Chapter 2

The speed of the pirate ship was not fast, even with favorable winds, it could only reach a speed of about ten knots. Slowly, Long Yufei became familiar with life on the ship. Except for the young pirate who had threatened him and continued to treat him coldly, the other pirates were quite respectful to him.

From the pirates, Long Yufei learned about their origins. They were originally civilians from coastal areas, living in poverty but managing to get by. However, due to the maritime ban, they secretly went out to fish and were discovered by the authorities. To avoid the authorities, they had to go out to sea to find a living. In the end, to survive, they became pirates.

Long Yufei knew that the maritime ban and the coastal evacuation order issued by the Qing government had destroyed the once prosperous coastal areas. Many people who could no longer survive fled to the South Seas. However, life in the South Seas was also difficult. They not only suffered from the oppression of Western colonizers but also from the bullying of local natives. Many of them chose to become pirates. Of course, the fate of these pirates was also extremely tragic. With the development of technology, Western powers intensified their aggression against China and the entire East, and the pirates active in the South China Sea would be hunted down and eventually eliminated.

The leader of this group of pirates was named Luo Sang. According to Huzi's introduction, their original leader was Luo Sang's father. However, three years ago, Luo Lao Da was hit by a cannon from a foreign ship during an operation, and his body was torn to pieces. He did not last long and died. To ensure the survival of the group, Luo Sang stepped forward and became the leader of the pirates. At that time, she was only seventeen years old. However, a tiger does not have a dog for a daughter. Luo Sang, who grew up at sea, though she did not know how to sew or do needlework, was very skilled in sailing and fighting. The other pirates were very impressed by Luo Sang and accepted her leadership. Luo Sang also had a younger brother, who was only thirteen or fourteen years old and was left at their base.

Huzi, the young pirate around seventeen or eighteen years old, whose real name was Li Hu, was very friendly to Long Yufei. The pirate who harbored hostility towards Long Yufei was named Chen San, who also held a high position among the pirates.

After a day and a night, the pirate ship docked at a remote coast.

"Mr. Long, this is Luzon. After you land, head north, and you will reach a small city where there are many Chinese people. You will be safe there! However, I hope you do not tell anyone about meeting us, or I will not let you go, no matter where you run!" Luo Sang said to Long Yufei.

Long Yufei hesitated. He was just a pure tech enthusiast, and the idea of surviving alone in the first half of the 18th century, especially in a place like Luzon, was like being left to fend for himself.

"Mr. Long, get off the ship quickly!" Chen San shouted when he saw Long Yufei standing still.

"Um, Miss Luo, I have nowhere to go. Can I join you?" Long Yufei asked. Since he had nowhere to go, and after observing, these pirates did not seem to be extremely vicious. Staying with them might increase his chances of survival.

Luo Sang frowned. Being a pirate was a dangerous business, and any day could be their last. Long Yufei, who looked like a weak scholar, could he really become a pirate?

"Ha! You, pretty boy, can you even hold a knife? Can you kill? Do you even look like a pirate?" Chen San laughed. The other pirates also looked at Long Yufei with doubt. In their view, no educated person would want to become a pirate!

Long Yufei's eyes twinkled, and he said, "I know how to use a musket!" He knew that if he did not show some ability, these pirates would not let him join!

"Huzi, bring that musket!" Luo Sang ordered.

"Yes, Chief!" Li Hu responded, ran into the cabin, and quickly brought out a musket.

Long Yufei looked at the musket in Li Hu's hand and sneered. He recognized this musket; it was the British Army's standard equipment, the Brown Bess musket. It was a smoothbore gun that the British Army began to equip in 1800. Although it had been thirty years, it was still the main rifle of the British Army.

The Brown Bess used round bullets, loaded from the front, and had a flintlock mechanism. Its maximum range was 200 meters, but its effective range was only 100 meters. Beyond 100 meters, it had no lethal effect on humans.

Long Yufei took the musket and began to operate it. Although he was not very familiar with it, he managed to handle it properly. Soon, after preparing, Long Yufei aimed at a seabird on the shore.

"Bang!" A gunshot rang out, and the seabird, about fifty meters away, fell to the ground. Long Yufei was relieved that his skills had not rusted. Back in his military training, his shooting skills were top-notch, and the instructors even said he was wasting talent by not joining the military. In the end, Long Yufei chose to continue his studies because he could not bear the harsh life in the military.

The pirates stared with wide eyes. Compared to muskets, they preferred knives, as the feeling of cutting into flesh seemed to excite them more. However, Long Yufei's marksmanship still earned their respect!

"Alright, since you can use a musket, you can join us! But you must swear to follow my orders and not betray us. Otherwise, I will cut you into pieces!" Luo Sang said.

Long Yufei quickly patted his chest and promised that from now on, they would be brothers, and he would never do anything so despicable!

Long Yufei officially joined the pirates, and the pirate ship immediately set sail, heading back to their base. However, Chen San found an opportunity to come to Long Yufei and warned him fiercely, "Kid, I don't care what your intentions are for joining us! But I warn you, stay away from the Chief, or you'll end up being thrown into the sea to feed the fish!"

Long Yufei was stunned. He wondered why Chen San had been targeting him all along. It turned out that Chen San saw him as a rival! However, Luo Sang seemed to be quite attractive, with only her dark skin as a flaw. Her figure was excellent, and in the modern world, she could easily become a celebrity.

Long Yufei did not take Chen San's warning seriously. He could see that Luo Sang had high prestige among the pirates, and although Chen San had designs on her, Luo Sang did not seem interested. In short, Chen San was just infatuated with her!

After a half-day's voyage, the pirate ship docked at a small island in the evening. Although there was no sea chart, Long Yufei guessed it was a small island in the northern part of the Sulu Sea, south of the Luzon archipelago.

The island was small, only about ten square kilometers. There was a small port with over ten ships of various sizes. The larger ships were about ten to twenty meters long, while the smaller ones were a few meters long fishing boats. However, the population of the island was not small. When Luo Sang's ship docked, people gathered at the pier to welcome them. Among them, the elderly, women, and children made up the majority, while strong men were not many.

"Chief, how was the trip?" an old man with white hair asked.

"Uncle Zhao, it went smoothly. We sold the goods and bought some rice and flour. Arrange for people to unload the ship!" Luo Sang instructed.

"Alright!" Uncle Zhao nodded and then looked at Long Yufei, who was a new face, with some caution.

"Uncle Zhao, this is Long Yufei. We rescued him on the way. He studied in Britain and was on his way back when his ship sank. We saved him, and now he has joined us!" Luo Sang explained.

"Studied in Britain?" Uncle Zhao's eyes showed a hint of surprise. To Long Yufei's shock, the old man spoke a string of English, though not very standard, but he could understand the general meaning. He was asking Long Yufei which university he studied at and where he was from.

Although surprised, Long Yufei immediately answered in English, telling the old man that he studied at Cambridge University, majoring in mechanics. His hometown was in Zhejiang Taizhou, but his family had fallen on hard times, and he had no relatives left there.

At this point, the old man named Zhao nodded, acknowledging Long Yufei.

Long Yufei was relieved that his English was still at a high level. If he had not known English, he would have been exposed. As for what would happen after being exposed, it was easy to guess. This was the pirates' base, and to ensure safety, the pirates would likely kill him to keep him quiet. After all, killing a person was a common occurrence for these pirates.

Later, from Huzi, Long Yufei learned that the old man named Zhao was called Zhao Yi. His ancestors were also scholars, but they had to flee overseas and became part of the pirates. Zhao Yi was also skilled in firearms manufacturing, and all the repair and maintenance of their firearms were handled by Zhao Yi and his two sons. This made Long Yufei even more curious about Zhao Yi's background, wondering if he had any connection to the firearms expert Zhao Shizhen from the Ming Dynasty. After all, there were not many Chinese who understood firearms at this stage in China!

PS: Thank you to the readers kngnjj, Luomo Gugqing, and Dengni Xiaoge Shiji for your support! Thank you to the reader 1Xiaoyao Jianghu1 for your support and review!