novelraw Chapter 758 - 751: Was It a Heavenly Thunder?
Chapter 758 - 751: Was It a Heavenly Thunder?
By mid-December, the farming families began entering their idle season.
The sea was also getting colder, the sea breeze cutting like a knife against the skin, and the villagers’ catch near the coast had decreased.
The fishermen of Lin Family Manor began weaving fishing nets, preparing for the upcoming voyage.
In previous years, these fishing nets were woven by the women at home, but in recent years, due to the cotton production, the women joined the workshops for weaving and couldn’t manage the fishing nets anymore.
Compared to the expensive cotton cloth, the fishing nets were insignificant, and now the task fell to the men.
The reason for not stockpiling more fishing nets was that it simply wasn’t feasible. The damage rate of fishing nets was relatively high, and some were sold to make ends meet, so they were woven as needed.
Once the preparations for the voyage were completed, everyone gathered to set off, and Lin Wanwan equipped them with a basket of homemade grenades.
Everyone had tested the power of these on the training ground in the mountain hollow, knowing they were strong weapons that must not be discovered by the Navy. They covered them with oil cloth and hid them along with the Fish Shooting Crossbow in the secret compartments at the bottom of the ship.
The fishermen of Mao County could not easily sail to other coastal areas of the Great Tang, as they didn’t own those territories.
If they fished beyond the boundary, they would provoke retaliation from local fishing tyrants.
While there was no strict legislation from the government on this matter, the sea had its own rules. For thousands of years, fishermen had developed an understanding.
So generally, during this season, fishermen from the Yangtze River Delta liked to sail far to the Northeast.
For those with good ships, they would set sail all the way to the islands of Japan, resupply, and then return.
Previously, the Lin Family Manor wouldn’t sail that far without the new ships provided by Lin Wanwan, usually only reaching the regions around Goguryeo, Silla, and Baekje.
Whether it be Goguryeo, Silla, Baekje, or Japan, they were still in a time of chaos.
Even though the territories were small, the population was still sparse. Thus, management of the ports was almost nonexistent.
Ships from the Great Tang could come and go with ease, much easier than accessing other ports within the Great Tang.
For novelty, fishermen often sold some of their catch locally while resupplying.
The silver from Japan was more attractive than that of the Great Tang, and if they could bring it back safely, they could make a small fortune.
This was also why they braved the distance to Japan, not just for the catch along the way.
Before setting sail on a long voyage, the clan usually held a ceremony to worship the Dragon King and pray for safety.
Even in modern times, not just in the Great Tang, the sea was met with endless challenges and obstacles.
Modern technologies offer various aids, but in the era of the Great Tang, avoiding the storms at sea depended entirely on the experience and skills of the villagers.
Seasoned villagers could read the weather, a vital survival skill, with each ship typically having one or two skilled technicians onboard.
Besides preparing a life jacket for everyone, and arranging for two extra escape dinghies, Lin Wanwan could offer little else to help them.
In fact, according to Lin Wanwan’s thoughts, with Lin Family Manor now relying on sweet potato vermicelli and cotton processing, they no longer depended on the sea; a little catch from nearby waters was enough for the clan.
But the Lin Clan Leader and many Lin clansmen didn’t think that way.
The Lin lineage had been engaged in fishing since their ancestors, and the ancestral skills could not be abandoned.
Battling the sea could not rely solely on oral tradition; one had to personally go out to sea to gain experience.
In years of great disasters and famines, when food was scarce, at least they had the sea as a way out.
Aside from the strongest clansmen who sailed far, the elderly, weak, sick, and idle had nothing else to do, so Lin Wanwan simply gathered them all for military training at the base in the mountains.
When the crowd first arrived at the base, they were stunned, unable to close their mouths, by the imposing fortress-like architecture. This base, like a giant beast standing amidst the mountains, deterred even the birds in the sky from flying over it casually.
During the military training, food and drink were naturally covered by Lin Wanwan, and it also served as a little supplement for the clansmen.
In winter, everyone ate more to fatten up a bit.
In the newly completed granary at the base, Lin Wanwan had piled up all sorts of grains transported from the modern era, including corn kernels, millet, rice, paddy, and wheat, everything you could think of.
It could sustain all the clansmen of Lin Family Manor, including Lin Wanwan’s servants, for two years without any problem.
Lin Wanwan also planned to move more over and start a price war with the Yu Family in Yu Yao’s market, determined to make them suffer substantial losses.
Among the Yu Family’s industries, there were several rice shops and taverns, and Lin Wanwan had decided to become the mighty dragon to suppress the local bully.
For Lin Wanwan, being in the Great Tang equated to being as wealthy as a nation. Even casually bringing in mirrors, glass, and pepper was as valuable as gold.
Playing in collaboration with the God of Wealth of Great Tang, she wasn’t afraid at all.
Additionally, on her territory, Xiao Chong being the boss meant she didn’t worry about being exposed.
After all, he was fully aware, and their cooperation was seamless.
As for the heavily armed Xingluo Assault Team sent out by Lin Wanwan, after striking the Yu Family several times, they received a warning from the Mao County Government.
Lin Wanwan’s sent people had instructions to destroy and damage property but not to harm people, targeting their financial assets by blowing up several rows of walls and houses.
The power of the explosives scared them witless; although there were no casualties, the atmosphere was tense and uneasy.
Lin Wanwan also seized the opportunity to distribute small flyers announcing that the Yu Family was suffering divine retribution for their heinous deeds of oppressing the villagers and tyrannizing the countryside.
In an era where the general populace of the Great Tang hadn’t heard of explosives, the sounds of explosions and collapsing houses were quite intimidating.
Even the masters of the Yu Family initially thought they were being struck by lightning.
After all, they had done plenty of things to deserve such a fate.
The second son of the Yu Family had just killed a commoner and seized his wife. The local government muddled through the case, made a male servant of the Yu Family the scapegoat, and allowed them to pay with copper for his life, essentially buying leniency.
If Lin Wanwan hadn’t intentionally had Liu Rushi expose some clues to let the Yu Family understand who they had offended, they might not have guessed it was Lin Wanwan’s doing.
After all, in their eyes, the Lin family was just a powerless noblewoman and a group of spineless villagers, easy to bully. Who would have thought she had such strength?
Trying the official route, the local county government was unwilling to challenge Xiao Chong; after all, it was just local gentry fighting among themselves, and the transient officials couldn’t be bothered to intervene.
Xiao Chong was also considerate enough not to stop Lin Wanwan’s actions immediately but allowed her to vent before warning her.
Lin Wanwan reciprocated, allowing several hand grenades and crude explosives to be confiscated by them.
The Chinese are talented at drawing inferences, and with what Lin Wanwan provided, alongside the Divine Book, Xiao Chong’s path of weapon development could leap ahead several steps.
After finishing things in the Great Tang, Lin Wanwan had to return to modern times to Hai City to attend the SV show.