Beginning with the Ubume Bird Chapter 245

Chapter 245: Chapter 82 The Great Thief's Fame (Part 4)

“Zheng Xiu? Who is Zheng Xiu?”

Tang Ruola was momentarily lost in thought.

The soldier delivering the message couldn't clarify either, only conservatively saying, “This is the daughter of a great pirate.”

Tang Ruola's face became furrowed. He muttered something, drained the cup of fresh green tea, and then said, “Take me to see Sir Alex.”

Alex Bechey, sent by the East India Company as the highest-ranking administrator on this mission, was an Eton College graduate, a member of the House of Commons, had served as the senior secretary to Governor Hesting, and was a commodore in the British Navy.

But when Tang Ruola met Sir Alex, he was startled by the gaze of the robust young man, who had just turned thirty.

“Your Excellency, there's something I must inform you of.”

“The allied forces of South Seas pirates are drawing near. The vanguard might even encounter them directly. I already know that…” Tang Ruola nodded his head in acknowledgment.

“Yes… It's about another matter.”

Alex's tone was peculiar as he handed over the exquisitely crafted parchment.

Tang Ruola ran his eyes over the document aimlessly until his pupils suddenly contracted and the age spots on his face began to tremble.

One of the best tacticians in Europa's history, under the command of His Majesty Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte of France, known as “The Son of Victory,” Andre led seventy thousand French troops straight towards the Portuguese city of Almeida in the east. And the most capable force within Portugal was nothing but a British reinforcement army of less than twenty thousand men…

“Bishop Tang Ruola, what are your thoughts?” asked Sir Alex.

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Tang Ruola answered with difficulty, “I think if the situation in the Far East becomes deadlock one could consider…”

“Then let's not allow it to become deadlock. We need a quick battle,” Sir Alex clenched his fist. “Precisely because the situation is critical, we must ensure our interests in the Far East. By the time we received this news, the battle may have already started. This is no longer within our power to intervene, but the tremendous interests are right in front of us. Bishop, we are only one step away from success.”

Bishop Tang Ruola struggled to speak for a long time, and after an indeterminable duration, he finally nodded gently, “I, I understand.”

More than fifty English warships ultimately suffered a crushing defeat, with only twenty-two escaping. The rest were either sunk by gunfire or cleared out by the pirates of the Red Cai Allied Forces during boarding combat, with ships and men alike captured.

“The first battle was a victory, the military might of the Red Flag Gang is indeed blazing, and today I have witnessed it.”

On the deck, Cai Qian and Li Yan stood side by side, the former wearing a long purple coat with yellow patterns, his words half admiration, half amazement.

Just how great the gap was between the sophisticated British naval personnel and the pirates, Cai Qian knew better than anyone. Recently, the Portuguese Attorney General Barros had led a team that tore through the Official Navy's defenses. Seventy thousand men clashed at sea, with the Official Navy crumbling upon contact. They suffered over ten thousand casualties, while the Portuguese losses were unbelievably in the double digits!

It was this battle that made the officers of the Official Navy fully realize that their forces were no match for these ferocious foes from afar, prompting them to contract their defenses, forego naval battles, and take a stand defensively. Alas, in the end, they couldn't turn the tides.

And today, the British sailors, demonized by the official army, tasted unexpected defeat at the hands of a group of pirates, losing over a thousand men in the process.

Previously, Cai Qian had endeavored to elevate the valor of the Red Flag pirates, as well as the excellence of their ships and cannons. But now, it seemed, he still underestimated them. Considering Tianbao had been the Dragon Head of the Red Flag for less than a month, the stability of this heritage had to be credited to the late Queen Yan.

After the battle, Cai Qian couldn't help but lament that although the current Tianbao was incredibly brave and appeared invincible, it was the mysterious and victorious Queen Yan, who could turn a hundred li around into a sea of red with a flick of her hand, that was truly more formidable and feared.

Remembering those years when that woman was alive, the other Four Flags were content to lay dormant. Indeed, the Five Flags Alliance was the greatest force in the entire South Seas, a level above the other four major pirate factions.

But those days are gone, never to return…

Li Yan shook his head when he heard Cai Qian's flattery, “We have several times more manpower than our opponents, and though our ships are somewhat inferior, it's not by a heaven's breadth. The Red Hairs aren't invincible; if we can't defeat them, we might as well slit our own throats. Besides, the loss of our ships and manpower is twice that of our opponents; there is nothing to brag about.”

In his heart, Li Yan had calculated that just the appetizer of this battle had cost the Red Cai Allied Forces approximately three hundred thousand taels in losses, which was about the sum of his and Cha Xiaodao's combined earnings from fighting to the death…

Such is the nature of the towering tree supported by various woods.

Thinking of this, Li Yan picked up a naval soldier's monocle firearm and test-fired with a bang, fixing his gaze on the bullet hole in the grass target, estimating in his heart, “It's only slightly more powerful than Sudu's Feather, but with Carved Snow by my side, it's not a problem.”

Cai Qian laughed and asked, “By the way, Tianbao Dragon Head, after this encounter, there are about four or five hundred prisoners. How do you plan to deal with them?”

Li Yan's eyes swiveled, and he snorted, “There's no time to watch over them with the battle so heated, and these tickets are troublesome to handle. Might as well just slit their throats and throw them into the sea. It saves trouble.”

Cai Qian was startled and hurriedly advised against it, “Killing these foreigners outright will not only incite anger from the other side, but it's also too cruel. Wouldn't it be better to keep them and have them pay for their own redemption after we defeat the Anglo-Portuguese allied forces?”

“Cruel? When the Red Hairs were stabbing my brothers, were they not being cruel? We lost more than two thousand of our Red Flag brothers in this battle; if we don't kill them, what else are we supposed to do, keep them for New Year's? As for ransom, you assume we will definitely win. Should these sailors cause trouble again, it won't be your brothers who suffer.”

Cai Qian removed his melon skin hat to straighten his hair, chuckling wryly and shaking his head, “Tianbao, we've dealt with each other before; why resort to this attitude again when discussing business? Let's be frank, I am over seventy percent confident we can win this counterattack. As for the prisoners breaking out and causing trouble, that's a far-fetched scenario. There's no need to mince words. I want Mrs. Xiu'er, the Alliance Hierarch, to promise to show leniency to the surrendered Red Hairs and to transfer all the prisoners of the South Seas battle to me.”

“Ah, my brothers fought hard and shed blood, yet you want me to give you the prisoners… And besides, I doubt the other chiefs and leaders of the channels would agree, right?”

For this counterattack, pirate leaders were bestowed with official titles, imitating the ranks of the thirty-six chiefs from the Yellow Turban Rebellion of old, making the five pirate leaders into the five great chiefs.

Of course, it was just a title and not to be taken literally.

“Name your price for the ransom, Brother Tianbao.”

“Heh, buying from me and then reselling to the Red Hairs, while also earning goodwill–you certainly run a shrewd business, Mr. Cai.”

“That's a business you too would find difficult to manage, isn't it?”

“Silver, I'm not interested in. I've already spoken of the Red Flag's needs back on Ryukyu Island. Mr. Cai, your offer really puts me in a spot.”

Li Yan squinted his eyes, “I actually do have something I'd like to ask Mr. Cai to help with.”

“Please speak.”

“How exactly did Lin Ajin get his hands on that Quanlang Sea Ghost?”

Cai Qian frowned at the question, “The Quanlang Type technique is rare, and an exclusive secret of the Lin family, just like Mrs. Yan's Chu Sermon and Zhang He's Taiping Document. I can't get my hands on them; Tianbao Dragon Head, you are asking for too much.”

“Now that's strange. In the Gaoli ghost, the Quanlang Type is an integral component. The Lin family has only the Quanlang Type, so where did Ao Xing get the method to refine our Five Flagsi Alliance Gaoli ghost from?”

Cai Qian replied, “I heard it was from an internal conflict within the Black Flag, that Lin Ajin acquired it from one of Madam Guo's confidants. Of course, that's just what I've heard.”

Li Yan followed up, “All right then, forget about the method. You negotiate with the Lin family; I want the Lin family to refine a Quanlang Sea Ghost for my Red Flag! That shouldn't be a problem, right?”

“I'll do my best.”

“Then I'll be waiting for the good news from Mr. Cai.”

With just a few words exchanged between the two, a vast fleet gathered, its sharpened blades pointing towards Guangzhou Bay. Unbeknownst to them, on the distant horizon, countless black masts suddenly rose, with waves turbulent as dragon's breath, the imposing fleet of black three-masted ships, entwined with a large group of silver Vasco Warships, silently waiting for the arrival of the Red Cai Allied Forces…

Chapter end