Episode 152. People who came up as sacrifices
Around noon.
As they passed the point where the Yangtze River split into three, the captain hurried to find Yeonjeokha and his party.
“Gentlemen, we will soon arrive at Gangjujin. There is a Jangangsuchae there, so we will not be staying there and will be leaving right away… … . Is that okay?”
The captain secretly observed the complexions of the martial artists.
The original destination of the ship was Gugang, which was about 20 minutes from Gangjujin. However, the Murim people said they would get off at Gangchujin.
Kang Ju-jin’s Jang River Suchae is also the headquarters of the bandits active in the Yangtze River area. So, I came to check if it really rained.
Yoo Geun-sik came forward.
“Yes, but is there a problem?”
“Ah, rather than a problem… … .”
The captain trailed off.
Unless you are related to the Jang River Waterway Federation, you don’t really go to Gangjujin.
I thought it through carefully, but when it came out like that, I got scared.
Because I was worried that you might think, ‘Did I look down on you?’
“Oh, nothing happened. I was just checking where the warriors would disembark.”
After speaking, the captain bowed and quickly turned around.
Yoo Geun-sik turned around and shrugged his shoulders as if he had no idea what was going on.
Later, Yeonjeokha asked Namgungyeon a question.
“What’s going on?”
“It seems like the captain was worried about us. I saw him checking to see if we were really going to get off at Gangjujin.”
“Ahem.”
Yeonjeokha looked at the captain with strange eyes.
It was a little surprising that he was worried about that even after seeing his and his party’s martial arts skills.
“Is the Jangjiang River such a scary place?”
“Have you ever heard of the Jang River Waterway Federation?”
“no.”
Namgung Yeon chuckled at Yeonjeokha’s cheerful answer.
“It’s a union made up of various gangsters from around the Yangtze River. The leader is the leader of the Yangtze River Suchae Gang, the leader of the Yangtze River Ilgwae Gang. There are few people among the residents of Gangjujin who are not related to the Yangtze River Waterway Alliance. You’ll be surprised when you see them later.”
“Is it surprisingly large for me?”
“It is no exaggeration to say that it is a small kingdom ruled by the Jang Gang Ilgwae. There is no place on the entire island that is not under his control. It is called the strongest among the strongest.”
“Am I the best among the best?”
Simtong, who was nearby, chimed in.
“Hehe. To put it simply, you can think of it as a lawless place. I also lived there for a few months when I was young. I really liked that atmosphere.”
“Oh my. You must be foolish. I can understand why it’s an island with an atmosphere that old man Sim likes. If you like it so much, why didn’t you just continue living there? Why did you come out?”
“Hehe. At that time, I strangely suffered from severe seasickness. That’s when I realized, ‘Ah! I guess I’m meant for mountains,’ and I went to the mountains.”
“Tsk tsk! What kind of life is this, a bunch of bandits or thieves.”
“Thanks to that, I met Confucius. Isn’t this all the will of heaven?”
I shook my head in disbelief at the shameless words of the heart.
Meanwhile, the ship slowly entered a wharf that was incomparably huge compared to anything else it had ever seen before.
Finally arrived at Gangjujin.
The captain let the group of sailors and their carriage off and left without looking back.
Seolchasu muttered as he watched the ship departing in a hurry.
“Huh! The person who used to ask me every morning and evening if I needed anything just left in a flash.”
The coachman said with a very intimidated face.
“I had a drink with the captain last night, and he started getting worked up just by mentioning Kang Joo-jin.”
Yoo Geun-sik offered words of comfort.
“Haha. Don’t worry too much. Even if they’re enemies, they won’t touch ordinary people.”
“Is that so?”
Then a scream erupted from afar.
The gazes of Yeonjeokha and his group all turned to the source of the sound.
It seemed like people coming and going from the pier had bumped into each other and started an argument.
A vicious looking man in his forties began to beat up his opponent while swearing at him.
Looking at the sword dangling from the waist of a man in his forties, he looked like a martial artist. On the other hand, the person being hit looked like an ordinary person to anyone who saw him.
But no one passing by tried to stop the unmanned vehicle.
The director, who was watching the scene, muttered with a haggard face.
“You said you wouldn’t touch ordinary people.”
“I guess they’re not that bad. Don’t the city thugs have any pride or anything?”
“I don’t think so… … .”
“Okay, let’s go.”
Yoo Geun-sik drove the director towards the carriage.
He kept looking around as if he was in a strange mood.
Not only was it large in scale, but it was also crowded with people everywhere, making it look like a giant market street.
“Wow. Every area controlled by the Ten Horsemen was in ruins, but this place is different.”
“Hehehe. That’s not true. Unlike bandits who raid villages, don’t pirates raid ships? Besides, this is also the pirates’ base.”
“The watercolors are this big?”
Yeonjeokha looked at Simtong with surprised eyes.
No matter how you looked at it, it was a huge port city with dozens of ships coming and going.
How can a city like this be the home of pirates?
“Didn’t Lady Namgung say that earlier? This entire island is under the control of the Jang Gang Suchae. Look at the people coming and going. More than half of them are carrying swords. They must be bandits from somewhere.”
“Are all these people really just numbers?”
“Half of them are indigenous people who have lived in this area for generations. Those armed are either the number or the Sapa, and the rest are indigenous people.”
Yeonjeokha’s mouth opened wide as he thought about the wild vegetables.
Only then could I understand what Namgung Yeon meant when he said that I would be surprised if I saw him later.
Kang Ju-jin was, as she said, a small kingdom.
“My ladies, are you ready to go now?”
The director was already sitting on the coachman’s seat, as if he wanted to leave this place quickly.
The Yeonjeokha group got on the carriage one by one.
At that moment, about ten martial artists came rushing in with heavy, staggering steps.
Yeonjeokha, who was looking out the window, asked Simtong.
“Surely not, right?”
You’ve not even been off the boat for half an hour (about 7 minutes) and you’re already embroiled in a fight?
I didn’t do anything?
“Ahhhh. There are eyes to see. It seems like they saw Namgung Sojoo and Jin Seol-ha. In this place, the beautiful women belong to the strong men.”
“Wow. Is this a den of beasts?”
“It wouldn’t be wrong to say that this is where the enemies of the Yangtze River gather.”
The Yeonjeokha group all sat down, but the carriage did not start.
That’s because unidentified men were blocking the carriage.
The director looked at Namgungcheon, the Cheongungum sword, who was standing next to him with a puzzled expression.
Namgungcheon sighed and spoke to his followers.
“I don’t know who you are, but we… … .”
At that moment, a man with flowing red hair, the red-haired devil Joo Eun-jang, cut off Namgung Cheon’s words.
“What are we going to do, freezing to death? I don’t care who you are. Just put the women down and go. Then I’ll spare your pitiful lives.”
The polite Namgungcheon became angry at the man’s rude words.
“You punk! You’re talking nonsense with your mouth open! The people riding in the carriage are the Green Forest’s general patrol! If you want to save your lives, get out of here!”
Joo Eun-jang’s face hardened at the mention of the Green Forest Patrol.
“Excuse me, are you really saying that the Chief of Patrol is riding this car?”
Yeonjeokha threw the patrol command out the window.
Bam.
The patrol commander fell at the feet of the chief.
After looking around the area in front of the patrol commander, Joo Eun-jang respectfully offered it back with both hands.
After a while, as the carriage entered the riverside road, he spoke hurriedly to his companions.
“You guys, tell them that the general patrol has arrived! I will follow the carriage.”
“yes!”
The nine men scattered in all directions.
Joo Eun-jang followed the back of the carriage from a distance.
***
Kang Joo-jin.
Gugachon.
The Jangjiang Suchae, which is part of the Seventy-Two Green Forests and the headquarters of the Jangjiang Waterway Alliance, is located along the river like other suchae.
At the large dock in front of the waterway, there were five or six boats lined up and anchored.
Of course, regular ships were not allowed to approach this wharf.
That is also the reason why Yeonjeokha and his party landed at a port about an hour away.
The owner of the house, Jang Gang-il-gwae, Yang Dae-ho, was drinking and eating with his men who had not gone out to raid as usual.
When I was so full that I thought I couldn’t eat any more, someone came running in out of breath.
Yang Dae-ho turned his head and saw that it was one of the pirates hanging around Kang Ju-jin’s port.
The debt collector, Black Bodhisattva Shin I-chung, who was busy using chopsticks, asked with a sullen face.
“What’s going on?”
“They say that the Green Forest Patrol has appeared at Gang Ju-jin’s port.”
The people of Jangjiangsuchae called Gangjujin the outer port and Gugachon the inner port.
“Patrol? Are you saying Yeonjeokha came here?”
“Yes, yes.”
“Did you see him come yourself?”
“It is said that the Red-Handed Devil and his party saw the general patrol’s badge.”
“Okay. Go away.”
“yes.”
As the messenger left, Shin I-chung looked at Yang Dae-ho.
“Your Majesty, why is the general patrol here?”
“I don’t know. Have you heard of the general patrol?”
“Not at all. He’s someone I’ve never heard of before. Isn’t he someone the general manager raised through a backdoor?”
As he was Yang Dae-ho’s close associate, his loyalty to Chae-ju was stronger than that of the general manager.
“The Pacheonma Army is not someone who gives up his position just because he is a disciple. Look at the Twelve Ma Army. Even they did not rise to the position of general patrol.”
“Don’t worry about it. After all, he’s only twenty years old. Even if he learned martial arts while still in his mother’s womb, it wouldn’t be possible for you, Lord Chae.”
“Pheh heh. You little punk, how much can you learn if you try to ripen it in your mother’s womb?”
He was giggling, then suddenly remembered something and spoke.
“Do you remember what the merchants coming and going from the outer port said? That the young master of the Yeon clan beat the famous masters to death.”
“Are you talking nonsense like you turned into a monster or something?”
“More than that, that Yeon-ssi guy seems like a total patrolman. Isn’t there no one among the young Yeon-ssi who is that skilled?”
“That is true, but.”
“If, that is. If the general patrol really did beat and kill famous religious leaders… … .”
Yang Dae-ho’s eyes narrowed as if he was thinking about something.
Shin I-chung, who had been watching him with a stern face, stood up from his seat.
“The leaders of the Jang River Waterway Alliance will follow you, Master Chae. Shall we call them together?”
“Huh! Do you think I’m not good enough to be a total patrolman? Do you think I can handle that kid?”
“… … .”
Shin I-chung did not answer at all.
He is being cautious because it is a matter of life and death for Chae-ju and himself.
Yang Dae-ho drank his alcohol in gulps as if he didn’t like the cautious look of Shin I-chung.
And he said, shattering the glass and putting it down.
“First of all, the Chief of Police has come to visit, so gather everyone together. We will see how great a person the Chief of Police has appointed as the Chief of Police.”
Only then did Shin I-chung’s face soften.
In the current situation, that would be tantamount to saying that the experts of the Jang River Waterway Alliance would take the lead.
“Okay, I will prepare a grand welcoming ceremony.”
Shin I-chung bowed to Yang Dae-ho and went outside.
A heavy sigh escaped from Yang Dae-ho’s mouth, who was left alone in the hall.
“Hmm!”
Can the masters of the Jangjiangsu Waterway Alliance stand a chance against him?
It will probably be difficult.
There’s no way they, who aren’t even my opponents, could stand up to a general patrol!
‘Let’s see how much help he has.’
It’s not my concern that dozens of people will die in the process.
After all, they are people who have risen to their current position by sacrificing others.
Wuxia,
