Chapter 21: The Remarkable Archer

Jiang Nian’s large ship sailed into a narrow stretch of the Grand Canal within the borders of Zaozhuang. Meng Xiong stood on the deck, keeping watch, holding a spyglass.

This spyglass had originally been purchased by Jiang Nian to explore the technological level of this era; now, on their journey to the capital, it was just right for scouting during navigation. It wasn’t too expensive—ten taels of silver—mainly because Jiang Nian had bought a relatively good one; cheaper spyglasses only cost one to a few taels.

When spyglasses first arrived in late Ming China, they were costly, since China had yet to master the manufacture of optical glass. During the Jingning era of the Daqing reign, China began producing glass lenses, causing prices to drop significantly. Now, Chinese spyglass-making technology had matured, and such instruments were no longer rare.

Suddenly, Meng Xiong noticed something unusual on the river ahead: two small boats, one on the west and one on the east, had trapped a large vessel.

He hurriedly took a closer look through the spyglass, furrowing his brow. The scene made his heart tighten; it was a band of river pirates conducting a robbery.

Meng Xiong quickly reported this to Jiang Nian and He Yun.

Thus, the six men aboard—themselves including Jiang Nian, He Yun, Meng Xiong, He Zhong, Dong Liang, and Dong Feng—gathered on the deck.

He Yun wore the official uniform of a fifth-rank Dragon Forbidden Guard, looking imposing.

This was for convenience—to openly display his rank and avoid unnecessary trouble along the way. If they encountered pirates, his official status would serve as some deterrent.

After scanning the scene with their spyglasses, Jiang Nian turned to He Yun and said, “Those bandits are despicable. You should draw your hard bow and shoot first the archers on the eastern pirate boat, then the pirates on the western boat.”

Jiang Nian had observed through the spyglass that the large ship under attack was in grave danger. The pirates on the western boat were attempting to board it.

However, the eastern pirate boat had an enemy archer.

For the safety of himself and the Jiang family’s servants, Jiang Nian decisively decided to target the enemy archer first, then the pirates on the western boat.

At this moment, the Jiang family’s large ship and the Xue family’s large ship were separated by over a hundred meters. If Jiang Nian himself shot an arrow, it would be difficult to hit the target at such range.

Though physically strong, Jiang Nian was only fifteen years old, with limited strength, archery skill, and lacking combat experience.

In the Daqing martial examinations, both foot archery and mounted archery effective ranges were only a few dozen meters.

However, the effective range of a Daqing hard bow could reach over a hundred meters.

He Yun was much stronger than Jiang Nian, his archery skill superior and experience richer. Even at over a hundred meters, he stood a considerable chance of hitting the target.

With the aid of the spyglass and the calm, windless air, the likelihood of He Yun’s shot succeeding increased.

Immediately, He Yun drew his powerful hard bow, the bowstring taut like a full moon. An arrow was nocked; his gaze sharpened, locking onto the archer on the eastern pirate boat—none other than the bandit leader Li Liu.

He Yun took a deep breath, relaxed his fingers, and in the overcast sky, the arrow shot forth like a meteor, whistling fiercely.

The shot was swift and intense, a force like thunder tearing through the air.

Yet at such a distance, the arrow missed slightly.

By chance, though it failed to hit Li Liu, the arrow struck a nearby pirate instead. The man had no time to react before the arrow pierced his chest. His body jerked violently and then collapsed, dead.

Li Liu, a vicious and ruthless bandit leader, was greatly shaken by this sudden arrow. His pupils constricted sharply as a chill ran down his spine.

Not only had he witnessed a comrade shot dead before his eyes, but he instinctively believed the archer’s shot was aimed at the fallen pirate. At over a hundred meters, such precision spoke to terrifying strength and skill.

Li Liu himself was strong and skilled, but the probability of hitting a target at that range was low.

Panicked, he quickly shoved another pirate in front of him as a human shield and kept watch on the Jiang family’s large ship behind.

At that moment, Jiang Nian, holding the spyglass, saw He Yun’s first arrow fall just short of killing the enemy archer. He also noticed the archer had pulled a pirate before him as a shield. Jiang Nian realized this archer was likely high-ranking among the bandits, possibly their leader.

He decisively instructed He Yun, “Shoot another arrow at that archer’s position!”

He Yun understood instantly and without hesitation drew the hard bow again, the string taut, the arrow gleaming coldly.

He held his breath, focused like a torchlight, then released. The arrow whistled through the air.

Perhaps learning from the slight deviation of the first shot, or perhaps because the distance had lessened somewhat, He Yun’s second arrow was exceptionally accurate, aimed directly at Li Liu’s position.

“Thud—”

With a muffled sound of arrow piercing flesh, the pirate Li Liu had used as a shield was struck and died instantly.

Li Liu silently cursed his luck, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

Had he not promptly pulled a shield to take the shot, this second arrow would have meant his death.

“What an incredible archer! And he’s wearing an official military uniform!”

Li Liu was thoroughly frightened by He Yun’s two arrows. He clearly saw the archer on the large ship behind was clad in the Daqing military uniform.

“Soldiers! Retreat!”

Not daring to linger, Li Liu shouted and quickly dove into the cabin.

To him, his own life was paramount, followed by that of his men. As long as he and most of his men survived, failure in this robbery was not the end—there would be more opportunities.

At his command, the eastern pirate boat retreated swiftly in the direction from which it came.

The pirates on the western boat, just about to board the Xue family’s large ship, heard Li Liu’s order and saw the eastern boat fleeing rapidly. Although reluctant, they hastily withdrew as well.

Meanwhile, Jiang Nian’s large ship continued cutting through the waves, heading toward the Xue family’s vessel.

Jiang Nian, still holding the spyglass, took in the sight of the two pirate boats retreating in disarray.

Seeing the bandits fleeing so quickly, Jiang Nian allowed himself a slight breath of relief but kept his brow furrowed, not fully relaxing. He also wondered inwardly, “Who exactly was on that large ship that was attacked by the pirates ahead?”

He Yun was breathing heavily, his chest rising and falling fiercely. Drawing the hard bow twice at such range had drained much of his strength and spirit, yet he still gripped his bow tightly, eyes vigilant, pondering whether he would need to draw the hard bow a third time and shoot a third arrow today.