They were members of Third Team!
Li Mo's booming voice instantly dispelled the anxiety that had gripped Yu Bin and the others.
They looked at one another, relief washing over them before an indescribable surge of joy followed.
At first, they hadn't dared hope. Hitting the Treasure Fish seemed nearly impossible, and they had already braced themselves for failure.
Who would've thought someone could actually hit and claim it—and that the archer would be one of their own, from Third Team!
Yu Bin eagerly asked, "Li Mo, hurry and see whose arrow it is!"
He only knew the arrow belonged to someone from Third Team; he didn't know who had fired it.
The others looked at Li Mo curiously as well.
Li Mo nodded, then examined the arrow closely. When he saw the name inscribed on its head, his pupils contracted.
He blurted out, "It's Hong Ming!"
"Hong Ming?"
Many of them froze at the name.
Who was that guy?
They all knew one another in the Treasure Fish Team, and none of them had heard of him.
If he wasn't part of the Treasure Fish Team, was he from the Fishing Team?
Since when had anyone in the Fishing Team been such a skilled archer?
The confused men exchanged baffled looks.
Only a handful of them showed any reaction.
The instant Shen Lin heard the name, his gaze sharpened. He immediately thought of the companion who had entered the Preparatory Camp alongside him.
Could they be the same person?
He was doubtful. It didn't seem likely.
Hadn't he heard that Hong Ming had been without a posting for nearly a month? How had he ended up in the Archery Battalion, and on the same team as him by sheer coincidence?
And how had he revealed such formidable archery skills?
A thought nagged at Shen Lin: could it be someone with the same name?
Yu Bin had no such doubts. He was simply surprised.
He had some impression of Hong Ming, but it went no further than their first meeting.
Back then, Hong Ming had seemed like a rotten log—impossible to carve.
How long had it been? Had Li Mo stripped away the rot and carved him into a pillar of the state?
It had to be a fluke!
He settled on a reason he could accept.
Li Mo accepted it too.
Compared with the other two, he found the situation easier to believe. He figured Hong Ming had hit the target through a combination of skill and luck.
He didn't dwell on it. However it had happened, Hong Ming had caught the Treasure Fish, and that was a blessing for Third Team!
Just as they were about to take the Treasure Fish back, a shrill, grating voice rang out, threatening to shatter their good fortune.
"Li Mo, leave our Treasure Fish here!"
The voice came from Second Team. The speaker was its deputy Squad Leader, Wang Jiu.
Led by Wang Jiu, the Treasure Fish Team's boats closed in around them. Everyone aboard wore a sour expression and glared at Li Mo and the others.
They had come looking for trouble, plain and simple!
"Utter nonsense!"
Before Li Mo could speak, Yu Bin roared in anger, venting his old grudge over the stolen arrow with interest.
"Our team caught this Treasure Fish. What does it have to do with you?"
Wang Jiu sneered. "What a joke. If you hadn't played dirty and deliberately obstructed the arrow Zhou Zheng fired, would the Red-Horned Pomfret have fallen into your hands?"
Hearing him twist the truth like that, Yu Bin nearly cursed him out.
Li Mo kept his cool and quietly stopped him. "Don't get tangled up with them. The Treasure Fish is what matters!"
The fish tide had only just begun. Treasure Fish could appear at any moment; they had no reason to waste time with Second Team.
Their main task was to catch Treasure Fish—as many as possible!
But while Li Mo wanted to leave, Wang Jiu and the others weren't about to let them go.
"Stop!"
His words fell like a call to arms, and the atmosphere grew tense.
In the blink of an eye, Water Soldiers from Second Team had bows in hand and arrows nocked, poised to attack Li Mo and the others.
"What are you trying to do?"
Li Mo's face darkened. Pointing at the Red-Horned Pomfret, he barked, "Wang Jiu, the River Bureau has long had a rule: whoever hits a Treasure Fish gets to keep it for himself and his team. Are you planning to openly defy that?"
Wang Jiu wasn't buying it. "Li Mo, spare me the rules. The rules aren't at fault—you cheated!"
"What a joke. How did we cheat? You're the ones who can't measure up!" Yu Bin didn't hold back, rubbing salt in the wound.
Wang Jiu's anger flared. In a low voice, he said, "Enough nonsense. We can take this matter to the higher-ups and have Squad Leader Han and the others settle it."
At that, Li Mo and Yu Bin's expressions shifted, their brows furrowing.
Neither wanted this to blow up. The higher-ups would likely smooth things over by taking sides, and they were more worried about missing the fish tide—and the Treasure Fish.
But Wang Jiu and his men clearly had nothing to lose. They were determined not to back down.
Unwilling to let this opportunity slip away, Li Mo seemed to give in. "Then what do you suggest?"
"The camp's rules say archery contests settle disputes. Whoever wins gets the Treasure Fish!"
Having cornered Li Mo and the others, Wang Jiu didn't push his luck. He wanted the Red-Horned Pomfret, but not if it meant both teams suffered.
"An archery contest?"
At the suggestion, Li Mo and Yu Bin both relaxed a little.
If the Treasure Fish's ownership were decided that way, they could accept it.
As deputy Squad Leader, Li Mo had to shoulder the responsibility. His archery had improved lately, and this was a chance to establish his authority over Wang Jiu and the others.
But before he could agree, Wang Jiu added, "Not us. The two who fired just now—Hong Ming and Zhou Zheng!"
He had clearly seen through Li Mo's intentions and laid down the terms in advance.
Li Mo's archery ranked among the best in Second Battalion. If he competed, even Wang Jiu wouldn't have much chance of winning.
"You want Hong Ming to compete?"
Yu Bin's expression darkened slightly.
Li Mo fell silent, his brows knitted tight.
He didn't yet know how good Hong Ming was with a bow, but he knew Zhou Zheng's ability.
Zhou Zheng was an exceptionally gifted archer in Second Team, no less talented than Shen Lin.
The difference was that Zhou Zheng hadn't yet reached his full potential, while Shen Lin had already lived up to his promise and become famous throughout the Archery Battalion.
In terms of eyesight alone, even Li Mo couldn't match him.
If Li Mo competed, he figured the odds would be even. But if Hong Ming had to do it, there was no telling how it would turn out.
Li Mo's thoughts raced as he weighed every possibility.
Yu Bin, however, refused to settle. "Wang Jiu, if we're having an archery contest, then we'll do it by our rules. We can choose whoever we want!"
Wang Jiu said nothing. He simply struck a shameless pose that said, if you don't agree, we'll keep dragging this out.
Yu Bin ground his teeth, but there was nothing he could do!
In the end, he left the decision to Li Mo. Li Mo sighed and said, "We'll do it your way, but we'll set the rules for the contest!"
"Fine!" Wang Jiu readily agreed.
After a moment's thought, Li Mo pointed at a withered pine tree standing in the distance.
They had temporarily marked it with a target the size of a millstone.
Using the pine as the target and the circle as the bull's-eye, Li Mo laid out the rules. "At this distance, each person gets ten arrows. Whoever hits the target more times wins. How does that sound?"
How did it sound?
Wang Jiu gauged the distance, then looked at the size of the target, thoroughly surprised.
The rules were so generous that he almost thought Li Mo was giving the Treasure Fish away!
Under these conditions, forget Zhou Zheng—even any archer on their Treasure Fish Team could hit the target ten out of ten times. It would be as easy as pie.
"What on earth is Li Mo thinking?"
Before you continue