Love Affairs in Chang'an - Chapter 211

Chapter 211 Strong Dragon Vs. Earth Snake
The Eight Ghosts Crossing was bustling with activity today. From early morning onwards, ten warships had already sailed over one after another. They were lined up a mile or two away from the surface of the water, almost cutting across the surface of the river.

The ferry originally had dozens of merchant ships of various sizes, and there were quite a few merchant travelers and porters passing by. When they saw this grand occasion, they all stopped to watch. Gradually, they rushed to inform each other that the Eight Ghosts Crossing was already overcrowded.

“What kind of big event happened today that caused the warships of the Military Manor to gather?”

“Could it be that we’re going to attack the water ghosts in the West River Cao again?”

‘”What a spectacular fleet! I’ve never seen such a large ship in my entire life!” The old masters said, “There’s no water for ten thousand.” The warship in the middle would probably be able to carry more than ten thousand stones! ”

…

In terms of shipbuilding technology, the Great Tang was now the best in the world. Various shipbuilding technologies have long prevailed in the watery areas of the south, the most common of which is the “flat-bottomed sand-proof boats”, which are generally popular among the people. The few large army ships in front of him were extremely rare “lucky ships” in Jing Xiang’s generation, also known as “Wu Yue Sea Ships”. The ship is characterized by its large displacement, sturdiness and ease of breaking waves. It is often used in the southeastern coastal areas to travel in the deep-water routes of the South China Sea.

The warships in front of him were the “Divine Fish Ships” that Zhao Chong had mentioned. They had cost a lot of money, and the experienced old boatmasters they had hired from the southeastern Wu Yue region had taken a long time to build. The materials for shipbuilding were all high-quality pine, fir, camphor, and nanmu that had been specially shipped from Wuyue. The shipbuilding techniques used were also extremely rare in small pools of water in Jingxiang, such as “living water tanks”, “multi-masts”, and “mortise joints and nails.”

It’s like a car dealership full of BYD and Chery QQ, where a few limited edition Ferraris suddenly arrive, and it’s hard not to attract attention.

On one of the largest Divine Fish ships, Zhao Chong had a handsome expression on his face as he pursed his lips and remained silent. Standing beside him was a group of generals from the Xiang Prefecture Military Manor, all of whom were standing quietly. But a few people were clearly getting impatient.

“Zhao Chong, did General Qin agree with you yesterday?” Guo Yi’s commandant, Du Chengyuan, came forward and asked.

“Answer the general. That’s right.” Zhao Chong raised his head and looked at the sky. He sighed and said, “The hour is almost here. I don’t know why it hasn’t come yet.”

“This General Qin may not be acting too strangely. How could there be a new official who doesn’t arrive first to take up his post and meet with all the bureaucrats?” Du Chengyuan knitted his eyebrows and said, seemingly a little unhappy, “But he’s fine. First, he had a private interview and ended up in prison. Then, he went on a military parade with a lot of fanfare. He only read the sailors and didn’t know what kind of medicine he sold in his gourd.”

‘”He is the future son-in-law of the emperor, the son-in-law of the Tang Dynasty. What does he want to do? Perhaps he wanted to show off his might on a whim, but just a casual sentence made our brothers work too hard.” Zhao Chong curled his lips in disdain and said, “The officials of the capital are all like this. They are arrogant and difficult to serve.”

Du Chengyuan smiled and said, “Zhao Chong, don’t underestimate Qin Mubai. I know a bit about him. It doesn’t matter if he is the future son-in-law of the emperor. This person isn’t simple.”

“How is it not simple?” Everyone was interested and asked.

“Has Baiji heard of it? It’s a newly formed personal guard of the Emperor in recent years. It’s said that every soldier in Baiji is capable of blocking a hundred with one strike and possesses the unfathomable abilities of ghosts and gods. They are known as the King of Armaments.” Du Chengyuan said, “I went back to Chang’an Province a few years ago and heard rumors about Qin Mubai from the streets and alleys.” He was the first Baiji, and he was the one who personally formed and trained the Baiji Guards. Other than that, this person’s intelligence and martial arts were extraordinary. He had a close relationship with the noble nobles of the royal family in Chang’an. It was said that he had also taken Duke Wei Li Jing as his master to learn the art of war. That was enough to see how much the emperor valued him. In the future, if he becomes a rising star in our Tang army, it is unknown. “Don’t forget, he was originally from the General Sect, after Duke Yi, Qin Shubao …”

Du Chengyuan said a long speech, causing Zhao Chong and the others to be stunned for a moment.

“Who would have thought that Qin Mubai would have such a great background and ability!” Everyone was shocked. “We only thought of him as a playboy who was attached to a dragon and a phoenix. Because of his nepotism, he had the title of Commandant!”

Du Chengyuan gently raised the corner of his mouth and said with a serious expression, “Let me tell you this … I’d rather look down on Prince Wu than underestimate this Qin Mubai! Perhaps, this Qin will stir up a big commotion in Xiangzhou at some point!–Just like when he helped Prince Wu in Jiangzhou!”

…

At this moment, Qin Mubai led Pang Fei and his group of thirty hundred cavalry soldiers, dressed in full military uniform, jogging on the bank of the river heading for the Eight Ghosts Crossing.

“General, I heard Zhao Chong boast that the Divine Fish Ship and the White Wave Navy in Xiang Zhou Prefecture are amazing. I can see it today.” Pang Fei grinned and said with disdain.

Qin Mubai smiled and said, “Zhao Chong’s words are full of sarcasm. All along, the northerners have been riding horses and the southerners have been fighting on boats. He bullied us from the Guanzhong area. He doesn’t know how to swim, he doesn’t know how to swim on a dark boat!”

“Haha! If the Hundred Cavalry don’t understand water and can’t sail, wouldn’t they laugh their teeth off?” Pang Fei laughed loudly, “Our hard training in the Wei River every year is not in vain. If we talk about water warfare, we really don’t care about the White Wave Black Wave Navy!”

Qin Mubai lightly raised the corner of his mouth and smiled, “Actually, sometimes being underestimated is not necessarily a bad thing.”

After advancing for several kilometers, the group saw the crowd of people from the Eight Ghosts Crossing in the darkness. The noise and liveliness were extraordinarily noisy. In the distance, a row of boats were anchored in the center of the river. They were closely connected and lined up. They were like a city built in the middle of the river. They were as sturdy as golden soup and possessed extraordinary momentum. Rumbling drums and zheng horns sounded towards the sky, so angry that the water of the han river shocked the shore.

“That’s right, it’s indeed spectacular.” Qin Mubai smiled and said, “It’s rare to see such a large ship in the lake in the south. It must have cost a lot of money.” This ship was enough for sailing. Only in the military ports of Japan, Japan, and Penglai would such warships be abundant. It was enough to easily cross the sea to reach Baekchi, Silla, and other countries. “I didn’t expect that a small Xiang Province would actually use such a large ship to deal with a water ghost … Haha, what a slaughtering knife!”

“General is truly knowledgeable. We have never seen such a large ship before!” The soldiers were shocked.

Qin Mubai smiled and said, “This is also the first time I’ve seen it. However, when I was in the Imperial Study, I accompanied His Majesty the Emperor to look through the blueprints of the ships sent over from East Marine Town, so I have a slight impression of it. Building such a ship is worth more than building thousands of cavalry. It’s worth a lot!”

As he spoke, a group of cavalry quickly rushed over. The leader of the cavalry dismounted from Ma Na’s head and bowed, “May I ask if you are General Qin?”

“Exactly.” Qin Mubai raised his horse whip and said, “Are you from the Xiang Prefecture Military Manor?”

“It’s Biao Xia!” The military academy stood up and said, “General, please board the ship and parade. Everything is ready!”

“Alright.” Qin Mubai and the others got off their horses and walked towards the riverside. The onlookers let out an uproar as they watched.

Walking to the river, a boat with a flat bottom was waiting. Qin Mubai and the others boarded the boat, and a soldier on the boat waved his flag and sounded the war horn. At the same time, a huge flag was raised above the ship’s top-mast pole, and the word “Qin” was written on it!

At the same time, the ten Divine Fish spaceships lined up in the middle of the river also sounded their war drums and sounded their horns, waving the same flag.

“Heh, these navy soldiers have indeed trained quite well. They are neatly and uniformly professional.” Qin Mubai smiled and praised.

Pang Fei and the others were stunned for a while. Someone asked, “General, what do these flags mean by flashing around?”

“The banner of the Great Tang Navy.” Qin Mubai said, “It was my negligence. I have never taught this before in Baiji. If I hadn’t learned it in Li Jing’s military book, I wouldn’t have understood the meaning of these flags.”

“Then how do they explain these banners?”

“Nothing much, just welcoming and respectful to me.”

Pang Fei and the others clicked their tongue and sighed, “It’s really like walking across a mountain …”

As they spoke, Qin Mubai and the others were riding on a flat-bottomed desert warship, heading towards the rivers and mountains. Actually, this ship was no longer small. Among the merchant ships and passenger ships docked at the dock of the Eight Ghosts Ferry, the largest was also like this. But when it reached the center of the river, it was placed alongside the Divine Fish spaceships, making it look like a dwarf ship.

One of the largest flying fish boats opened a cabin, allowing Qin Mubai and the others to easily enter. This caused Qin Mubai to be somewhat surprised. He didn’t expect that the ship would actually be so advanced!

When they reached the bow deck, all the soldiers came to pay their respects at the same time.

With a relaxed smile, Qin Mubai clasped her fists and bowed, “Brothers, please excuse me! I’m new here, and I have to thank all of you for your support in the future!”

“General Qin is too polite!”

Qin Mubai cut her hands and walked to the middle of the group of soldiers. She saw the familiar Zhao Chong and smiled at him, “Captain Zhao’s navy is indeed well trained. I’m a general. Especially this ship, it really opened the eyes of a dry duck from the north!”

Zhao Chong cupped his fists and replied, “General, this ship is actually not a ship commonly used in the Jingxiang area of Jiangnan. It was built by famous ship masters who spent a lot of money to hire from Wu Yue. In the Dengying and Ying areas, such warships are mostly used in naval battles. It is unprecedented in the inland areas.”

“That’s right.” Qin Mubai nodded and smiled, “When I was in the capital, I heard that Wu Yuetuo was clever, and his shipbuilding skills were even more outstanding.” There was a saying that prevailed among boatmasters in the south. It was called’water does not carry ten thousand ‘. The implication was that there were no more boats on the rivers than could carry ten thousand stones. However, there was a large ship in the Wuyue area. It opened an alley as a nursery. It could grow vegetables and raise chickens and sheep. There were hundreds of people who worked on the ship. Many people spent their lives on the ship, and the life-preserving marriages of men and women were all carried out on the ship. It was as if they lived on the ship. “Look at the ten Divine Fish ships in front of us. They are simply moving fortresses!”

After everyone heard this, their faces revealed astonishment. Zhao Chong immediately became respectful, “General is indeed knowledgeable! Actually, this ship is Wu Yue’s unique ‘Fortune Ship’, also known as’ Wu Yue Sea Ship ‘. The so-called Divine Fish … is just a different name given to it at the end of the day!”

Qin Mubai smiled and said, “I’m just talking on paper.” Speaking of water warfare, I don’t know anything about it, so I have to rely on you more! Look at the soldiers I brought, they’re all big butts, riding horses like this all year round. “Look at the sailors on the Divine Fish Ship. They are all barefoot. Each of them has one big foot. They stand much more steadily than us. It’s enough to see that you usually practice very diligently!”

The generals laughed and said, “The Divine Fish ship actually used a living water tank to drain water. It was extremely stable on the surface of the sea. Moreover, it was as if it was walking on flat ground, needless to say, it was walking in a river. When it sailed later, the general would probably think that it was still on land.”

“Alright, then let’s move forward!” Qin Mubai waved his hand and said, “Let’s go take a look at the West River Channel!”

“Yes!” Zhao Chong loudly agreed, walked to the command platform and waved his flag. All the ships beat drums together, their momentum shaking like a hurricane as they moved forward. During this period, under Zhao Chong’s command, the ten ships had constantly changed their formation. They were indeed well-trained.

Qin Mubai secretly shook his head, “These guys are more’formalism ‘. With such a large formation, are they going to cross the sea to pacify Japan?” It was just a few water ghosts, there was no need for such a ship. Hearing the sound of your drums, they had already jumped into the water and scattered. Was such a big boat used to suppress bandits or to put on airs to show off their achievements?

On the surface, the Xiang Prefecture Military Manor could be said to be a big fight, spending a lot of effort to deal with the water ghost; Actually, they were all scratching their boots. One could imagine that in the past, when he said that he wanted to exterminate the water ghost, he had always acted like a thunderclap. It was like swinging a 1,000 jin hammer to hit an ant, whether they could smash it to death or not. What they cared about was whether the hammer was cool and handsome, but they forgot to crush an ant with just one finger.

To put it bluntly, this was the superficial article that the Xiang Province’s military manor used to deal with the upper echelons. It was indeed very gorgeous!

As the ship moved forward, Qin Mubai also got to know the generals from the military manor. What interested him the most was Du Chengyuan, one of the commandants of Guo Yi’s right and left hands, who was with Pang Fei.

“General Du’s aura is extraordinary and elegant. As expected, he is from a prominent family.” Qin Mubai smiled at him and said, “Chang’an Weidu, go five feet. General Du has an extraordinary background!”

“No, no, I made General Qin laugh.” Du Chengyuan smiled politely and cupped his hands. “The general is only a side branch of the Du Clan. How can he compare to the general’s clan? Last year, His Majesty the Emperor issued a new Clan Chronicle. The Qin Clan is already one of the most distinguished clans in the dynasty, and ranks ahead of the Du Clan!”

Qin Mubai smiled and remained silent.

It was because although Du Chengyuan’s words were polite, they contained a hidden sense of ridicule!

The Great Tang had only been established for over twenty years, but in the hearts of the people of the world, it was still an official clan that respected the old school. Traditionally, no matter if it was the royal family or the high-ranking officials, they were proud to intermarry with the veteran officials. The daughters of these clans were even more sought after than the princesses of the royal family, and their influence among the officials was quite great.

As an emperor, Li Shimin couldn’t help but be angry. Thus, a few years ago, he ordered people to recompose the clan chronicles and make a rigid ranking of the clans with surnames. In the end, the minister in charge of compiling the clan annals ranked Chang’an Weidu, Taiyuan Wang Clan, and a few other old nobles in Shandong before the Li Clan!

This really annoyed Li Shimin, so he personally made a move and gave a firm order to rank the Li family first. Many of the other founding veteran ministers’ surnames and clans were also ranked first.

The originally poor Qin Clan was one of them.

However, the truth was that the deep-rooted concept of family in the hearts of everyone was hard to change for the time being.

In the eyes of those veteran clans and officials, the Emperor’s actions were just a shame to himself. He was just saying that he was being arrogant and conceited, and others did not buy it. The current situation was that the reputations of the veteran clans were still very popular, and there was no change compared to the past. In the dark, many people mocked those who were “forcibly” dragged into the ranks of the nobles by the emperor, saying that they pretended to be nobles and were laughing generously while bathing in the crown of a monkey.

It’s like when a man wearing an Abidas walks into an Adidas store. Du Chengyuan was like a salesman in a specialty store, praising Qin Mubai for his good clothes-he scolded the bald donkey in front of the monk!

Although Qin Mubai didn’t care about family background, he was openly provoked and ridiculed by others, and even dirtied his family … Although he had a smile on his face, a trace of karma had already ignited in his heart.

It could be seen that Du Chengyuan had a high status among the generals of the Military Manor. Everyone subconsciously respected him and followed his lead. He was probably accustomed to being the boss in the military manor, but suddenly, a new official came to press on his head, causing him to feel uncomfortable on both his left and right. To embarrass this new “strong dragon” a little in front of the crowd, so that he could show off his might and remind everyone not to forget-I am the real boss!

Qin Mubai thought to himself, if I want to convince the crowd in the military manor, how can I survive in the future if I don’t deal with this local snake first?

Alright, Du Chengyuan, as soon as I came, you made your move … Not to mention a minor branch of the Du clan, even if you are the current prince-in-law, Du Ruhui’s son is standing in front of me, you must obediently stand at attention for me!

If it weren’t for the big scene today, I wouldn’t want to slap you in the face in front of everyone, making everyone embarrassed, you would have suffered!

We’ll see!