Chapter 57: The Yangtze River Shock

Chapter 57: The Yangtze River Shock

Chapter 57: The Yangtze River Shock
The grain warehouse murder case was not reported to the police and ended quietly. Many people in the Xiao family didn't even know it had happened.

At this time, the attention of the entire family shifted to the battle between the three Xiaos. This was related to the honor and status of the family, and everyone prayed that the Jiangdu Xiao family would win.

Two days later, just as the sky was getting light, a group of more than 30 people from the Xiao family lined up and set out. They went to the pier outside the city to take a boat to Jiangning County on the south bank of the Yangtze River.

Xiao Xia was wearing a blue warrior robe and carrying a locked leather suitcase containing his personal belongings.

He followed the team, and soon the team arrived at the dock, where they saw a huge passenger ship docked. It had a capacity of at least 5,000 koku and several floors.

Xiao Xia's eyes lit up. A luxury cruise ship! She had never been on one in her previous life, but she didn't expect to realize her wish in the Sui Dynasty.

At this moment, Xiao Xia suddenly felt someone patting his shoulder from behind.

Xiao Xia turned around and was slightly stunned. Standing behind him was a thin old Taoist priest with a tuft of burnt yellow goatee and a sly gleam in his smiling eyes.

He was wearing a greasy and worn Taoist robe, a bamboo crown on his head, and holding a soul-calling banner that looked like a baby's diaper. There was a whisk with only a few strands left stuck on the back of his collar, and he also carried a peach wood sword on his back.

"Infinite life and blessings, your forehead is black, there will be disaster today, it is better not to go!"

Xiao Xia was startled, "Who are you? Do I know you?"

The old Taoist priest said calmly: "It doesn't matter whether you recognize me or not, but if you board this ship, your life will be in danger!"

"Xiao Qilang!" On the big ship, Xiao Zhurong was already calling him.

Xiao Xia laughed, took out a handful of copper coins and stuffed them into the Taoist priest's pocket. "I am well-informed. It's useless to try to fool me. Go and have a bowl of noodles!"

He ignored the Taoist priest and turned to run towards the ship, "Wait a minute, I'm coming!"

The old Taoist weighed the copper coins in his hand and sighed softly, "Only ten cents. Young people nowadays are becoming less and less respectful of Taoists."

.........

The large ship slowly left the dock and headed towards the Yangtze River.

It takes a day and a night for a large ship to travel from Jiangdu County to Jiangning County in Danyang County, and it will arrive the next morning.

Xiao Xia and Xiao Zhurong lived in a cabin on the second floor of the ship. Unfortunately, there were no windows, but the floor was very clean. They slept directly on the floor at night. The conditions were pretty good.

It was the beginning of summer in August and the weather was still very hot. We could only open the cabin door to let the river breeze fill the cabin, bringing a little coolness and comfort.

"Qilang, what did that Taoist priest want to do with you just now?"

"I don't know. He said that my forehead was black and that there would be disasters when I took the boat, so he told me not to get on the boat."

"Let him go and let you give him money. If it were me, I would kick him to death if he dared to say such a thing and curse me."

At this time, there was a cheer from outside, and the two men hurried out of the cabin. It turned out that the big ship had entered the Yangtze River.

Xiao Xia held onto the side of the boat, watching the white waves rolling in front of him and the vast and magnificent river in the distance. There were also seagulls circling and crying overhead.

Although the ship was sailing against the current, it had a favorable wind. With the sails raised, the east wind blew the white sails, making it look like a bright moon as it sailed slowly on the river.

Their large ship was not alone. There were many fishing boats on the river, and there were several more following behind them.

"Qilang, look!"

Xiao Zhurong pointed to a fishing boat behind him, and saw a Taoist priest standing on the bow of the boat. He was wearing a bamboo crown, holding a soul-calling banner, and had a goatee. He was the old Taoist priest he met at the dock in the morning.

"is it him?"

Xiao Xia nodded, he recognized it at a glance.

Xiao Zhurong sneered, "He actually wants to find an opportunity to tell your fortune so that he can take our boat across the river and save some money on the boat fare."

Although what Xiao Zhurong said made some sense, Xiao Xia still had a sense of foreboding. The excitement of the boat ride soon passed, and everyone began to get bored and gathered in groups of three or four to chat.

The topic was almost exclusively about the upcoming Three Xiao Martial Arts Battle.

Several of the warriors had participated in the previous Three Xiaosou Martial Arts Competition. Li Zhen, the deputy commander of the first-level warriors, said to everyone, "There are five competitions in total, three arena competitions, one water fight, and one flag grabbing competition. The family with the most points wins the martial arts competition. The arena competition, water fight, and flag grabbing are all worth ten points. If there is a tie, there will be an additional arena competition.

Last time, our Jiangdu Xiao family won the water fight, and the Jiangning Xiao family won the flag grabbing game. The Jiangning Xiao family won two of the three arena matches, and they got a total of 30 points."

"Can we ask outsiders for help?" asked a warrior.

"You can invite two people, but the highest can only be the sixth rank in martial arts, called guest officials. Guest officials can only participate in one competition. Other contestants must be descendants of the Xiao family or registered warriors. Registered warriors must serve their masters for more than one year."

Xiao Zhurong whispered to Xiao Xia, "Yu Hai and Yu Chuan are the guests invited by the Second Master. Yu Hai is responsible for the water fight, and Yu Chuan is responsible for capturing the flag."

"But you didn't see Yu Chuan get on board?"

"He went to Jiangning by himself. Didn't he pretend to take leave? If he wants to pretend, he has to act more convincingly."

Xiao Xia nodded. If he also participated in the flag-grabbing battle, Yu Chuan would definitely want to take the opportunity to kill him. Of course, he could also take the opportunity to kill him. The problem was that he had lost his barrier-breaking state, so it was not easy to kill Yu Chuan. He had to use his wits and also prevent Yu Hai from killing him in return.

..........
Time passed slowly, and after dinner, everyone went back to their cabins to rest. Xiao Zhurong was the new leader of the third-level warriors. He was called to discuss matters and make personnel and tactical deployments.

Xiao Xia was sitting in the cabin bored, shooting mosquitoes with a throwing knife. The throwing knife was left by Liu Erhu when he assassinated him that night. It had no blades on both sides and was polished very smoothly, but the front end was very sharp. Xiao Xia liked this throwing knife very much, and he specially put it in a scabbard and kept it close to his body.

Although it is the eighth month of the lunar calendar, it is still very hot and muggy at night.

Xiao Xia felt stuffy in the cabin, so he simply opened the door and went out to the deck to get some fresh air.

The deck was empty, with no one on it. The warriors were gathered in several cabins gambling, it was quite lively. Xiao Xia was not familiar with them and did not want to join in the fun.

At this time, a boatman shouted from below: "Come down for supper!"

Xiao Xia turned around and was about to go down, when suddenly a figure appeared behind him. Xiao Xia thought it was also a warrior who went out for a midnight snack, so he didn't pay any attention.

Suddenly, Xiao Xia felt a wind behind his head. Oh no, he was being attacked. It was too late for him to dodge. He only felt a heavy blow on the back of his head. His eyes went black and he knew nothing.

Two dark figures quickly put him into a sack and tied the opening with a rope. Then they threw Xiao Xia into the Yangtze River with force, and the rolling white waves of the big ship instantly swallowed him up.

The splash of the water when he entered the water woke Xiao Xia up. He slowly opened his eyes, and everything in front of him was dark. He had a splitting headache and could only feel his body sinking, surrounded by water.

Xiao Xia reached out and touched the sack, and suddenly realized that he was drowning.

The huge fear and survival instinct made him struggle desperately, but it was useless. He curled up into a ball and couldn't stretch out at all. The sack on top was tied too tightly.
Soon, the river water submerged the sack, and the last bit of air in the bag was gone.

Xiao Xia suddenly couldn't breathe, his eyes went dark, and he almost fainted. He suddenly touched the throwing knife in his arms. He pulled out the throwing knife to cut the sack, but it was a throwing knife, not a dagger, so it could only pierce the sack but not cut it open.

Xiao Xia tried his best to poke holes in the sack, making countless small holes. Finally, one hand struggled out, and the sack touched the bottom of the river.

He could no longer hold his breath. Water entered his nose and eyes. The stinging pain from the water in his nose was so excruciating that his lungs felt like they were about to explode.

The intense suffocation made his eyes go dark. Xiao Xia cried out in despair, thinking that he was going to die at the bottom of the river.

At the moment when he was about to faint, a powerful breath suddenly burst out from his Dantian, as if a black dragon had finally broken through the steel net that bound it. It raised its head and let out a long roar, rushing straight into the sky. The powerful Dantian energy rushed into the Niwan Palace.

Xiao Xia felt a sudden bang in his brain, and suddenly became extremely clear-headed. The suffocating feeling of being unable to breathe also disappeared in an instant.

He felt a great power hidden in his body. He grabbed the hole in the sack with both hands and tore it with all his strength. With a "swish" sound of tearing cloth, the sack was torn in two.

Xiao Xia's body was freed from the restraints in an instant.

He pushed his feet downward and rushed toward the water like an arrow.
(End of this chapter)