Mei Zi stood on the bow of the ship, gazing out at the waves in the distance.
On her head, she made a windmill with her own hands, which can show the direction of the wind and estimate the wind speed. Don't think it's easy for her to design the best warship, that's when all the software is already available. If you want to make one part at a time by hand, having theory is not equal to having everything, just like the pencil she made, the windmill also encountered failure after failure, especially the function of calculating wind speed, I don't know how many brain cells it cost her.
Therefore, with the lofty theory of the engine in mind, Mozi knew that it would take a long time to build one. Without having already built ninety-nine stories, a height of one hundred stories cannot appear out of thin air.
"The tide is going out, southeast wind, force two." She turned her head and shouted at Old Guan.
"Alright!" Old Guan began directing the three brothers to loosen the sails and shout at the mast.
She looked down at the few people working, thinking that if he didn't come soon, she wouldn't wait for him anymore. As she turned her eyes, suddenly six horses and riders came into view. The leader was wearing a white robe with a brocade belt, his face as smooth as jade, his eyes shining like stars, his high hat adorned with pearls, and his demeanor majestic. Wasn't it the second son of that family? Which second son was this?
She found that he was also looking at her, so she raised an eyebrow and tilted her head, with a sly smile on her face, saying "Heh, what good timing."
Six men drove their horses over, intending to collect the wooden boards. When Cen Er saw them, he was shocked and asked Mo Zi, "Brother Mo, why are they here again? They're not coming for us, are they?"
The purple heart knew it was her own drinking and eating, but it's not good to admit it in front of Cen Er, so she said, "Maybe the news came from elsewhere. Don't panic first, I'll handle it."
While speaking, both the man and the horse had already arrived in front of Yongfu.
Shi Ke muttered in a low voice, "How did this guy end up here too?"
"Good, indeed it's the same as our way." He glanced at his side and saw that he was still calm, as if he had expected someone to be there all along. "It seems you're right again."
The second son spoke in a low voice and instructed the two men on his left and right, "Do it as previously discussed."
He gave a serious order, and Zhong An Shilei also straightened his expression, each saying "yes".
"What a coincidence." Mozi slid down the rope from the watchtower, stepped over the wooden ladder, and arrived on the deck with his hands tied behind his back, smiling at the people, "It seems you've found your way."
"Alright, alright." The official spokesperson was always Zhang An's brother. "Little bro, didn't expect to see you again, take care on your way."
"Who's sailing with you?" Ceng Er hastily asked.
Mozi still smiled, "He's right, who is on the same boat with you? We're going to Yunzhou, and we're not heading in the same direction as you."
"Huh? Isn't that so? Someone said the Yongfu is headed to where we're going. Young man, if you know the boat owner, would you please introduce us?" Zhong An also laughed on horseback.
"This boat is going to Yunzhou, you are going..." Cen Er feared that there were too many people on the dock and they would talk too much, so he hid half of his sentence. "What's with the introduction? You've got it wrong, hurry up and leave, don't delay our departure."
"What's going on?" Old Guan heard some commotion and walked over.
"Is this old man the owner of the boat?" Erlang said.
"This is it - if you want to say so. The boat was bought in his name, but it wasn't his silver."
"We want to take a boat across the river, would you kindly help us out, old man." Er Lang's gaze swept lightly over Mozi and turned towards Old Guan.
"Just heard a few people who seem to be on a different route." The boat is so big, speaking loudly can be heard clearly.
"No way! Wherever this boat goes, we'll go!" Shi Lei's stature was tall and robust, his voice as loud as a bell.
My head is numb with anger, I secretly scold him for being stupid. What's the point of saying that where the boat goes, people go? It would be better to say that you're smuggling goods and take us along with you. Wouldn't it sound strange if others heard this?
"Where are you gentlemen headed?" Old Guan remained calm and stroked his white beard, "My boat is going to Yunzhou, how about you?"
"That's right." Zhang An said bluntly, "I see that old man's boat is quite large, so let's take a few more. We'll pay extra fare."
"It's not just our boat going to Yunzhou, several others are inquiring about other places?" Wherever they go, they can't bring it. Lao Guan thought of a reason, "This boat is booked by these two, no other passengers will be taken. Sorry about that."
Zhang An secretly smiled in his heart, as expected, the right to decide had indeed fallen into Mo Ge's hands.
"This young man, we're not strangers either, why be so inhumane? Traveling down the river is dull, having more people around would make it lively, wouldn't it?" He started negotiating with Mozi.
"Although what you said makes sense, I am also acting on the orders of my master, and it's not right for me to take matters into my own hands." Mozi narrowed her eyes and waved her hands vigorously.
"We won't take orders from outsiders. The cost of chartering a ship is not small, we are willing to bear half of it, and you can spend less by half. As for the extra silver, how you dispose of it is none of our concern." Zhong An played to their strengths - tempting them with benefits.
"Who cares about that little bit of money?" Cen Er hummed.
"You little scamp!" Shi Ke bellowed in a deliberately lowered voice, "Don't you care about your money? Don't you care about your life?"
"What... what do you mean?"
"You know what I mean. Tell you, if you don't let me on the boat, I'll shout out all your dirty secrets here. If we attract officials and soldiers, don't blame me for not understanding human feelings." Shi Lei's voice was loud and clear, his face twisted with malice.
"Hey!" Xun Er thought it was bad, all the private goods had been loaded onto the ship. Then, he leaned into Mozi's ear, "Mo brother, what to do?"
"It seems that we can only bring them along." Mozi was delighted to take advantage of the situation, "If they really want to make a desperate move and let the government soldiers search the boat, we'll be finished."
"What about the east house? This is our last deal, if the secret is revealed, it's all over." Xian Er was neither left nor right.
"Let them get on board and discuss in the cabin. Standing here for a long time will attract suspicion." suggested Mozi.
Can't Xun Er disagree? Although it feels like inviting guests is easy but sending them off is hard, it's still better than provoking trouble with the authorities.
"Three people get on the boat first, everything can be discussed." Mozi made a polite gesture.
Three people plus two more entered the cabin, and saw that the dark and shabby interior was spacious yet old and broken, with only a rickety low table, and no other furniture.
"There isn't even a chair." Shi Ke looked down on it, "Will it leak?"
"Where are you going to sleep if you put the chair down?" Xian Er snorted, "Don't worry, it looks old but it's absolutely windproof and waterproof. Besides, if you want to enjoy comfort, go back home and enjoy it."
"Little brother is right." Zhong An smiled and said to Shi Ke, "Shi Tou, this doesn't leak wind or rain, it's better than your canopy."
"You have a boat, why must you take ours?" Xun Er thought he was referring to the sail.
"Little brother, I'm talking about the hut he usually lives in," Zhong An explained.
Cen Er glared at them, thinking they didn't look like poor people, and thought to deceive themselves. He snorted coldly and turned his head away, unwilling to bother with them.
Mei Zi saw the strong smell of gunpowder, but didn't mind, crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow to look at the leader.