Watertight compartments, existing since ancient times, are, as the name suggests, multiple isolated compartments set up at the bottom of a ship. If one is damaged and floods, but the other compartments are sealed and do not leak, the ship will not sink. This is the industrial application of "don't put all your eggs in one basket."
Zheng Baobao's warship had seven independent compartments at the bottom, so she wasn't afraid of sinking herself, which is why she dared to charge head-on at Hal's crude, broken boat. She never expected that after the hull was breached, Hal would actually burrow in.
Zheng Baobao immediately led her men into the compartments. Fearing she might not find him, I followed. In truth, I didn't need to go. The compartment Hal was in was already leaking. Even if he didn't need to breathe and could swim, he couldn't stay there long. Resigned to his fate, he was using his personal sword to dig through the partition between two compartments, making a clanging noise.
I pointed to Hal's location. Zheng Baobao understood. She fetched a long spear, removed the white cherry blossom at the tip, aimed carefully, and thrust it through the partition, impaling Hal on the other side. However, I noticed his breath escaping.
Zheng Baobao pulled out the blood-stained spear. Soon after, news came from the deck that Hal had been found and shot.
By the time we returned to the deck, Hal had been hooked out of the water by soldiers using a large arrow and rope. He was covered in blood, with a large hole in his abdomen, clearly from the stab wound earlier. Zheng Baobao, representing the Yan Dynasty court, read out Hal's various crimes and then beheaded him publicly, hoisting his head onto the mast.
Seeing their commander-in-chief dead, the scattered rebels in the water ceased their resistance. Zheng Baobao's fleet also stopped attacking and began throwing floating objects like wooden planks into the water for the rebels to hold onto. The warships, along with the rebel forces drifting in the floodwaters, sailed downstream towards Wuer City.
I reminded Zheng Baobao that Wuer City might have already been captured and it would be best to inquire first to avoid an ambush.
Zheng Baobao grabbed a rebel soldier from the water, who was using a plank as a coffin, and asked. Indeed, five days prior, Hal had led his army to conquer Wuer Pass. However, Hal had pressed upstream in pursuit of victory, leaving only two hundred defenders at Wuer Pass. Zheng Baobao, knowing the defensive layout of Wuer City, stated that two hundred men couldn't possibly hold the city, which was surrounded by plains on all sides, leading to a scattering of forces. She asked me for my plan.
"Then... let's take Wuer City while our morale is high," I said. My ten knights, plus Zheng Baobao's eight hundred naval troops, should be sufficient.
"Attack directly? We don't have siege weapons," Baobao frowned.
I pondered for a moment, then turned to look at Hal's headless corpse on the ground. An idea struck me. His build was similar to mine. I changed into Hal's armor and donned his helmet. Hal had long hair, styled into two braids. Zheng Baobao, not one to hesitate, cut off her own long hair and tied two braids for me. The extra hair was used to fashion a beard, and she applied a smoky eye makeup to give me Hal's sinister, gaunt facial expression.
After the transformation, when I stood on the ship's railing and waved downwards, I nearly caused the rebel soldiers below to riot. Fortunately, Zheng Bingbing reacted quickly, holding a knife to my throat to show that even if Hal were alive, he was still under their control. The rebels in the water then subsided.
The ships began to have the prisoners in the water undress and come aboard. Soon, all the soldiers were wearing rebel uniforms.
Zheng Baobao left only one warship to cover the rear, escorting the prisoners down the river and forbidding them from going ashore. Any who attempted to escape by landing were shot with arrows. The remaining seven warships hoisted their sails and accelerated towards Wuer City.
Three hours later, the fleet arrived at Wuer City ahead of the main body of prisoners. However, Zheng Baobao calculated that they were only half an hour ahead. This meant we had to capture Wuer City within half an hour. If we couldn't, or if the siege became a stalemate, the large number of rebel prisoners arriving would inevitably cause an uprising. This was because the riverbank here was vast and gently sloped, essentially becoming a lake, boundless and stretching as far as the eye could see. Once the rebels reached this point, even eight warships would struggle to maintain complete control.
The warships quickly landed. Since we were disguised, no specific tactics were needed. Upon disembarking, the eight hundred men formed eight columns and advanced directly towards the city, about half a mile from the shore.
The guards on the city gate spotted us and immediately shouted, asking who we were.
The captain shouted back from beside me, "Are you blind, you idiot! Commander Hal is back, open the city gate quickly!"