In Daiyu's room, the young women had been watching through the window for quite some time. They watched as the situation took a sharp turn for the worse. Every one of those salt smugglers looked vicious enough to be bandits, if not worse, and panic soon broke out again.
Xueyan clutched her collar tightly, crying out like a frightened quail, "What do we do? What do we do? Those thieves are about to rush onto the ship!"
But who here could give her an answer?
Zijuan was also frantic, but suddenly a figure flashed through her mind. As if she had found a lifeline, she cried, "Right! Where's Second Master Sun? Maybe he knows how to deal with these thieves!"
At those words, everyone turned their eyes toward Ruan Rong.
Ruan Rong could not help groaning inwardly. Under normal circumstances, she naturally believed in Sun Shaozong's abilities—but she had accidentally dealt a heavy blow to his "vital spot" just moments ago. She had no idea how much he had recovered. How could she bear to send her lover into battle while injured?
Unfortunately, that reason was truly difficult to voice.
So she stammered out a few panicked excuses, but to the other young women, she looked entirely guilty.
Though Zijuan and Xueyan were disappointed, their status prevented them from saying anything.
But Daiyu remembered how Sister Ruan had praised Sun Shaozong these past days as someone unmatched under heaven, someone who even put her own Brother Bao to shame. Yet now that real danger had appeared, the man surnamed Sun was nowhere to be seen.
She could no longer hold herself back and blurted out, "Sister usually praises him as if he were Xiang Yu reborn, but who would have thought he was just a glossy lump of donkey dung! I think Sister ought to think this over carefully—don't let it ruin your life..."
Before she could utter the final word, a new change erupted on the deck!
The burly servants who had fled into the cabin suddenly came scrambling back out. Then, a huge wooden pole like a roof beam shot out of the cabin, swaying as it headed straight for the bow!
Only when more than four meters of the great pole had emerged did they see the bear-like man hugging the shaft. Who else could it have been but Sun Shaozong?!
It turned out that after Sun Shaozong had barely suppressed the pain between his legs, he heard the commotion outside growing unbearable and sent Feng Xin onto the deck to find out what was happening.
When he heard that five boats of salt smugglers had surrounded their passenger ship and were shouting that they would throw everyone overboard, how could Sun Shaozong remain seated?
Without a second thought, he went to the stern, hauled up the great oar that required six men to row, and rushed out while enduring the pain in his groin.
The usual honest look had long vanished from his face. Veins bulged across his forehead, his features twisted as fiercely as a demon's, and he held a great oar over seven meters long and weighing more than three hundred pounds. He truly looked like a god or demon descended to earth!
"Move! Get the hell out of my way!"
The moment he charged out of the cabin, Sun Shaozong let out a thunderous roar. His voice was like rushing thunder and flashing lightning, like the toll of a great bell, shaking echoes from both riverbanks and making everyone aboard hear ringing in their ears!
The young women on the second floor saw only his back, yet were already left staring in shock. How could the burly servants on deck dare stand in his way?
They had long since scattered to either side like a receding tide. If not for the railings, some of those fleeing blindly might have plunged headfirst into the river.
Only Jia Yucun retained some presence of mind and hurriedly warned, "Brother Sun, don't take any lives!"
Sun Shaozong paused slightly at those words, then pounced toward the bow again like a tiger or wolf.
The people of Jia Manor could get out of the way, but how could the salt smugglers who had just leaped onto the bow retreat?
"There are more of us! What are we afraid of?!"
"Right, everyone, attack him together!"
"This bastard might just be all show and no substance!"
The gangplank was packed solid, leaving them nowhere to retreat. The salt smugglers could only shout over one another as they raised their blades and spears, planning to rely on their superior numbers.
But Sun Shaozong had found this great oar precisely so he could fight a hundred men alone. Why would he care about the dozen men before him?
With a swing of the great oar, he swept it from side to side like a broom. The half-meter-wide blade was set at just the right height, catching the smugglers across the waist. They could neither dodge nor leap over it and had no choice but to block it with their weapons.
Yet the moment their weapons touched the oar, they felt an irresistible torrent of force. Not only could they not hold on to their weapons, but they themselves were swept into the river below like dumplings dropped into a pot.
Sun Shaozong pressed his advantage, carrying the great oar to the bow and sweeping it back and forth again, driving all the salt smugglers who had not retreated from the gangplank into the river as well.
Then he thrust the great oar beneath one of the gangplanks and violently heaved upward. The thick wooden plank, over five meters long, flew into the air like a sheet of paper and crashed down with a boom, smashing in the roof cabin of a salt boat!
That earth-shaking heave alone made the salt smugglers aboard all five opposing vessels turn pale in terror. They truly believed they had encountered E Lai reborn and Dian Wei resurrected, and none dared entertain another thought of fighting him!
Sun Shaozong stood imposingly at the bow and pointed ahead with an outstretched arm. The great oar nearly jabbed one of the opposing smugglers in the face, frightening him so badly that he dropped to his knees with a thud, babbling invocations to gods and ancestors.
Sun Shaozong ignored him. He merely adjusted his aim slightly and pointed the oar shaft at the fat middle-aged man leading them, sneering, "Were you the one who just said you'd drive everyone on our ship into the water?"
The fat man trembled so hard that the flesh all over his body shook. If someone had not been supporting him, he would likely have collapsed to the ground already.
Panicked beyond all measure, he no longer cared about taboos and shrieked, "I'm the steward of Prince Zhongshun's household! If you dare touch even a hair on my head, His Highness will never let you off!"
The moment the words "Prince Zhongshun" came out, Sun Shaozong felt the air behind him suddenly grow heavy. Even Jia Lian sucked in a sharp breath.
Prince Zhongshun and the Emperor had been born of the same mother. Relying on a closeness no one else could match, he was known for being especially willful and overbearing. Let alone a mere Rongguo Mansion, even if the Four Princes and Eight Dukes acted together, they might not be able to suppress him.
With him backing them, it was no wonder the salt smugglers dared transport contraband salt so openly.
When the fat man saw the fear on everyone's faces after revealing his background, his courage swelled again.
He puffed out his chest and belly and shouted, "You brute, no matter how fierce you are, offending my prince won't end well for you! I advise you to surrender obediently and come with me to await His Highness's judgment. Perhaps His Highness will appreciate that you're a real man. Not only might he spare your life, he may even grant you great wealth and honor!"
It turned out that seeing Sun Shaozong's extraordinary valor, the fat man had actually conceived the idea of recruiting him.
He thought that if he could recruit such a fierce general for the prince, then even if he lost one boatload of contraband salt—or even all of it—he might still be able to redeem himself through merit.
And sure enough,
someone was tempted!
Only, it was not Sun Shaozong, but Jia Lian.
He thought that if they could use Sun Shaozong to get through this crisis, it would truly be the best possible outcome. So he hurried forward a few steps, preparing to persuade Sun Shaozong to submit obediently.
But Sun Shaozong snorted. "So what if it's Prince Zhongshun? Is he greater than His Majesty himself?!"
As he spoke, he pointed back at Daiyu's room on the second floor and sneered, "The beloved daughter of Salt Surveillance Censor Lin Ruhai is aboard this ship—Lord Lin's body is not yet cold, and Miss Lin is still in deep mourning, yet she has been stopped and humiliated by a band of illicit salt traffickers! Tell me, if this matter reaches His Majesty's ears, how will His Majesty deal with it?"
This time, it was the fat steward's turn to turn pale with shock.
Before you continue