Of course, there were far more Japanese pirates unwilling to surrender. These pirates knew they couldn’t outrun four-legged horses, but fortunately, this was the Jiangnan water region, crisscrossed with rivers and waterways, where cavalry could not easily tread. To escape the pursuit of the Zhejiang Army, these pirates avoided main roads, opting instead for small paths or fleeing into rivers, fields, and hilly terrain where cavalry couldn’t follow.
Where the Zhejiang Army’s cavalry couldn’t go, their infantry pursued in units of ten, chasing along small paths, rivers, and fields.
Whenever they encountered resisting pirates, the Zhejiang infantry would fire muskets point-blank, then finish the job with a bayonet formation.
Disorganised and desperate to escape, the pirates couldn’t withstand point-blank musket fire. Those not killed immediately turned and ran, rarely fighting back. The few who dared to counterattack faced another volley of musket fire. If they miraculously survived unscathed, they then had to confront the Zhejiang Army’s bayonet formation, clad in full cotton armour and protected from head to toe.
The Zhejiang Army’s individual combat skills were far inferior to the pirates’, but they never fought alone. Since the army’s formation, their training focused heavily on formations. The Zhejiang Army’s dense bayonet formation overwhelmed the disorganised pirates. Outnumbered, even the most formidable pirates couldn’t withstand the forest of bayonets and were inevitably pierced into sieves.
Of course, some exceptionally skilled pirates managed to escape the bayonet formation unscathed, but they were a rare few.
Even rarer were those who not only escaped but also inflicted casualties on the Zhejiang Army.
Thus, when caught by the Zhejiang pursuers, the fleeing pirates faced grim fates: death by musket fire, being skewered by the bayonet formation, kneeling in surrender, or turning to run again…
“Bloody hell, Squad Leader, we’ve run out of rope for the prisoners! There are still plenty of surrendered captives we haven’t tied up!”
A Zhejiang soldier tasked with securing captives realised they’d exhausted their rope supply and hurriedly reported to the squad leader.
“None left? Didn’t I give you a whole bundle? Did you lose it?” the squad leader turned and demanded.
“No, no, not a single rope lost, Squad Leader. We’ve used them all up. Look how many captives we’ve caught!”
The soldier pointed to a long line of bound pirate captives behind him, defending himself adamantly.
“Er, let me think… Right, take their trouser belts. Use their belts to tie their hands and string them together.”
The squad leader came up with a solution.
Thus, the next group of surrendering pirates faced an awkward situation. They had to provide their own ropes to be bound. If they had none, their trouser belts were removed to tie them up.
As for whether their trousers fell down after losing their belts—that was no concern of the Zhejiang Army.
While the Zhejiang Army pursued the pirates, Zhu Ping’an, escorted by Liu Mu and others, followed the chase.
During the pursuit, Zhu Ping’an occasionally muttered, “Glorify my ancestors…” while scanning the surroundings.
At that moment, in a vision invisible to others, streams of slowly moving black-red qi pillars appeared in the air.
Above each fleeing pirate was a faint black-red qi pillar. Based on the size and direction of these pillars, Zhu Ping’an could estimate the number of escaping pirates and their direction of flight.
Zhu Ping’an had become adept at using his qi “radar.”
In this era, having such a radar was akin to cheating, revealing the enemy’s movements completely.
It was like having the map fully revealed.
As long as they weren’t facing a large group of pirates, the Zhejiang soldiers pursuing the fleeing remnants were in no danger.
Within his vision, small black-red qi pillars dotted the landscape, moving in all directions as they fled.
But one stood out—an exceptionally large black-red qi pillar. Zhu Ping’an had been tracking the pirates beneath this pillar.
Based on his experience, this large qi pillar indicated a force of roughly seven hundred to a thousand pirates.
“Hm?” Zhu Ping’an let out a surprised sound upon noting the position of this large qi pillar.
The pillar was about five *li* from their current location.
A stick of incense ago, this qi pillar had been in that same spot. Now, after the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, it still hadn’t moved, remaining almost exactly in place.
During a desperate escape, for the largest group of fleeing pirates to remain stationary was highly unusual.
Resting?
Impossible! In the critical moments of escape, the pirates wouldn’t dare stop to rest, let alone for the duration of a stick of incense.
This large group had fled so far—they couldn’t possibly be waiting to die or to be captured.
That left only one possibility.
“Interesting, interesting…” Zhu Ping’an’s lips curled slightly. This group of pirates was intriguing.
“Young Master, what’s interesting?” Liu Mu asked, puzzled.
“You’ll see soon enough,” Zhu Ping’an said with a faint smile. He pointed his riding whip toward the direction of the large qi pillar and asked those around him, “About five *li* ahead—what place is that? Does anyone know?”
“Sir, I know. A few days ago, I scouted the area to check compliance with the ten-household registration law. It’s an old ferry crossing. Two large rivers converge there, forming the Ban Ferry River. The water is deep, and many cargo ships pass through, creating a small dock. The dock isn’t managed; it’s just a place for boats to stop briefly. In the past, villagers from nearby would sell tea, food, and river fish there, but with the pirate troubles in recent years, no one does business there anymore,” a Zhejiang soldier, brought before Zhu Ping’an by Liu Mu, explained.
“Very good. What’s the terrain like at the old ferry crossing?” Zhu Ping’an asked further.
“The riverbanks are lined with dense trees and several reed marshes. There’s only one stone bridge to cross the river northward.”
The soldier replied.
Zhu Ping’an nodded, satisfied. “It’s an ideal spot for an ambush. Pirates are known for setting ambushes. Considering their timing and pace, if the largest group of fleeing pirates isn’t willing to accept defeat and wants to set an ambush, this is the most likely place.”
He then instructed Liu Mu, “Quickly send a few skilled men, dressed in the clothes of pirate captives, to scout the old ferry crossing. Focus on checking the reed marshes and woods on either side of the stone bridge for any pirate ambushes. Keep your distance and don’t alert them.”
“Yes, sir.”
Liu Mu saluted and selected a few men, ordering them to don pirate captive clothing and head to the ferry crossing. He reiterated Zhu Ping’an’s instructions, emphasizing they could ride only two *li* on horseback, then proceed on foot to avoid raising suspicion.
