Chapter 20: The Arrow Approaches (Part Two)

“Listen, people on the opposite ship! We are fishermen driven to desperation by hardship! If you give up resisting, we will only take a small amount of your belongings to survive. Anyone who dares to resist will be killed...”

A loud-voiced pirate shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth like a trumpet, his voice booming like a bell.

At this moment, the remaining men on the Xue family’s large ship had all gathered on the deck: Xue Pan, Xie Jixing, four strong male servants, and Li’er.

Originally, seeing the pirates’ fierce and murderous approach, and after Ji’er was shot dead by an arrow, these men of the Xue family had all armed themselves, ready to fight desperately. Even Xue Pan gripped a sword, prepared to struggle for his life and to protect his mother and sister.

However, the pirates’ shout made Xue Pan’s tightly drawn expression loosen, hesitation flickering in his eyes. He felt they could not resist the pirates and hoped that by heeding the pirates’ words, they might only take a small amount of property and then leave.

Seeing Xue Pan waver, Xie Jixing and two servants along with Li’er also showed signs of doubt. Xie Jixing’s heart tightened, and he sternly shouted, “Do not believe the pirates’ lies! These pirates are ruthless scoundrels. Since they’ve targeted us, they intend to plunder everything and kill all the men, violating the women! We must fight with all our might if we want to survive!”

He fixed his gaze on Xue Pan, his tone grave and urgent. “Master, if you don’t fight desperately, grandmother and the young lady will suffer. The young lady will most likely be violated by the pirates.”

He had one more thing he dared not say aloud—that Aunt Xue would also likely be dishonored.

Aunt Xue was not yet forty, having been remarkably beautiful in her youth and well-maintained as a noblewoman, still radiating charm.

Upon hearing Xie Jixing’s words, Xue Pan made up his mind; his hesitation vanished. He quickly agreed, shouting to the servants and attendants, “Yes, yes, we must fight the pirates with all our strength, or we will all die. If we drive them off today, I will reward each of you handsomely—one hundred... no, five hundred taels of silver each!”

The four servants and Li’er all thought Xie Jixing’s words made sense. For them, five hundred taels was a fortune. Without hesitation, they nodded resolutely, determination shining in their eyes.

By now, the two pirate ships had closed in on the Xue family’s large vessel. Pirates hurled grappling hooks like serpents that hissed as they scraped against the deck.

Meanwhile, the loud-voiced pirate continued shouting, “No resistance allowed! We only take a little to survive. Anyone who resists will be killed...”

Xie Jixing suddenly roared, “Kill!”

The sound thundered like an explosion.

Immediately, Xie Jixing led one servant and Li’er, each wielding two-meter-long red-tasselled spears, fiercely thrusting toward the pirate ship on the west side.

The western pirate ship had more pirates and grapple hooks.

The other three robust Xue family servants quickly moved, also grasping their two-meter red-tasselled spears, fiercely stabbing at the pirate ship on the east side.

The eastern pirate ship had fewer pirates, but its leader, Li Liu, was aboard.

For this trip to the capital, Xie Jixing had carefully prepared six red-tasselled spears, each two meters long. Although in this era, two meters was considered short for a spear—long spears ranged from three to five meters—these six red-tasselled spears now proved invaluable.

In the hands of the Xue men, these spears became sharp weapons of resistance, each thrust filled with determination and courage aimed at the pirates.

Amid the chaos, one pirate on the western ship was pierced in the chest by Xie Jixing’s spear. The pirate clutched his chest with both hands as blood instantly stained his clothes. He staggered a few times, then weakly fell into the river with a muffled splash, sending up a spray of water.

Seeing a pirate on the western ship hook the Xue family’s ship’s side with a grappling hook, the rope taut and pulling the two ships closer, Xie Jixing grew anxious. He continued thrusting his spear fiercely while shouting at Xue Pan, “Master, quickly cut the grappling hook off!”

Xue Pan gripped his sword but couldn’t reach the pirates on the other ship, growing anxious as sweat broke out on his palms.

Hearing Xie Jixing’s sharp command, Xue Pan snapped out of his daze and hurried to unfasten the grappling hook. It bit firmly into the ship’s side, and with tremendous effort, he finally freed it—only to see another grappling hook thrown again. He had to rush over and struggle to cut it loose once more. Sweat poured down his forehead, a mixture of exhaustion and fear.

While Xue Pan was busy with the grappling hooks, one Xue servant pierced a pirate’s arm on the eastern ship with a spear. Though not fatal, the servant was immediately shot in the chest at close range by Li Liu’s arrow. The servant’s body trembled as blood gushed out, then collapsed heavily on the deck, silent forever.

The battle descended into a fierce melee.

The pirates, using their numerical advantage and ferocity, launched relentless assaults. The Xue family’s defenses were weak and struggling to hold.

Soon, two more Xue servants were brutally killed by the pirates. One was pulled overboard by a pirate while thrusting his spear at the western ship, then hacked to death in the water. The other was shot at close range by Li Liu.

Only four men remained on the Xue side—Xue Pan, Xie Jixing, one servant, and Li’er. All knew they could no longer hold out; their faces were etched with tension and fear.

At this moment, the pirates on the western ship had pulled their ship so close to the Xue family’s vessel that only a hand’s breadth separated them. The pirates fiercely resisted Xie Jixing and Li’er while trying to climb aboard the Xue ship, their faces savage and greedy.

On the eastern ship, Li Liu drew his bow once more, aiming to kill the last defending Xue servant.

Just when the Xue family faced utter peril, a miracle happened!

An arrow streaked like a meteor, swiftly flying from behind the Xue family’s ship, striking a pirate beside Li Liu. The pirate’s body jerked violently before falling.

Another arrow followed!

This arrow was not shot by Li Liu but came mysteriously and swiftly toward the pirates!

Li Liu stared in shock as the pirate beside him was struck and fell. Hastily, he pulled another pirate in front of himself as a human shield, then sharply turned his gaze toward the rear of the Xue family ship, where another large vessel was rapidly approaching...

Li Liu’s eyes fixed on that ship in the distance but within his clear sight. He could faintly make out several figures on its deck.

On that ship’s deck stood Jiang Nian, He Yun, Meng Xiong...

Yes, it was Jiang Nian’s big ship!