[Count of Monte Cristo] Love and hatred

r073

The captain came back very late that day, and he told the crew in a different serious tone than usual that the Macaulay had received a big business and was now recruiting other smuggling ships to participate.

The evil god Macaulay is the patron saint of merchants and thieves in Roman mythology, and the smuggling ship named after Macaulay is the place where smugglers in Livorno often meet.If an uninformed person heard it, they might think it was some kind of pirate conference.But in fact, the smuggling boat owners are just talking about business along the coast on board.

But this time the gathering was even bigger than before, and all smugglers from the Mediterranean coast, regardless of nationality or nationality, came to participate.

"What is the cargo that needs to be transshipped?" Jacob asked curiously.

"Arms," ​​Edmund replied, "an Italian nobleman is willing to pay a large sum of money and invite the smuggling ship owners in Livorno to transport a batch of weapons to Greece and hand them over to the rebels. If it succeeds, the profits will be huge." rich."

Jacob's eyes widened immediately. They had never taken a job like that before, and he knew what a risk it would be.

"How much is the reward?" asked a sailor hesitantly.

"Each crew member can get five hundred piastres," Edmund explained. "If we participate, we can receive a deposit now."

After listening to the captain's words, many sailors were motivated. This money is almost what they usually earn by taking ten large orders.However, they were still a little worried about the danger of this mission. After all, their enemy this time was no longer the tax police who played cat and mouse games with them, but the Ottoman Turkish army.

"Let's vote according to the principle of the minority obeying the majority." Edmund pondered for a while, "If everyone decides to take over this job in the end, those who really don't want to go can stay in Livorno first."

Mei Tess could see that the captain was determined to take on the task, and that he did so in part because of the little princess.So she cleared her throat, took half a step forward, and said firmly, "Everyone knows that the Greeks are suffering under the iron heel of Ottoman Turkey. Now that Yanina has fallen, only the rebels are still stubbornly resisting. Maybe This batch of arms may be just a drop in the bucket, but for us, this is a choice, whether to be a hero or a coward?"

All the crew members looked at Mei Tess in silence.She paused, then continued, "Those sanctimonious people compare us with thieves and robbers, but they forget that among thieves, there is no lack of grand thieves like Robin Hood. This is also an opportunity to prove that we do not lack aristocratic qualities." The so-called honor and nobility!"

She raised the sword in her hand high, "I cast this vote as a crew member, for justice!"

"For justice!" Jacob also raised his sword and came out, but the little monkey rushed to him first, "I want to participate too, I want to be Robin Hood at sea!"

Edmund scratched his hair lightly, "As long as you promise to stay on board."

"But I'm already a man." The little monkey muttered with some dissatisfaction.

Then several sailors stood up with their swords raised, encouraged by Mei Tess' passionate speech.

Edmond went on to say, "I think everyone overestimated the danger of this mission. We just need to send the goods to Shipwreck Bay, which is currently the territory of the rebels. Although there are Turkish navy cruisers at sea, those cumbersome warships It is far behind the speed of the Maiden Amelie, and as far as the current situation is concerned, the wind direction is in our favor."

After the captain said so, the rest of the sailors expressed their willingness to participate one after another, and the matter was decided like this.

However, when Edmund was preparing to go to the Macaulay, he chose to take Maize Tess instead of Chief Mate Jacob.He considered this because he knew that Mei Tess knew as many languages ​​as he did.He instinctively sensed that something was going to happen at this convention.

Jacob showed a look of disappointment for a moment, but he didn't feel jealous towards Mei Tess, he just patted her shoulder lightly, "Protect the captain."

"I will," Mei Tess nodded.Edmund told her to carry a gun, but that wasn't her thing, so she pinned daggers to her belt.

That afternoon, the captain took Maisé Tess by the arm, and led her to a dhow anchored in Ogriho.

Accompanied by the welcoming brass bells, they enter the cabin, which is where the smugglers of Leghorn often meet.Edmund had been here two or three times with the old captain when he was a sailor, and he would only come here more frequently after he became a smuggler.

Having seen all these brave and brave duty-free traders scattered along the nearly [-]-mile coastline, he has calculated in his mind that if these various networks are combined, there is nothing he can't accomplish.

And Mei Tess, who came here for the first time, looked up and down at this ship, which was much larger than the Maiden Amelie.The cabin of the Macaulay has been temporarily transformed into a hall, and there is no cargo in it, only a long table made of wine barrels and wooden boards, and two rows of chairs.

The old man sitting on the chair at the back of the hall is the captain of the Macaulay. He has gray hair and deep wrinkles on his face, but his eyes are still sharp like peppercorns.He is very prestigious among the smugglers in Leghorn. Besides the Macaulay, he has another larger ship specially used for smuggling goods.

At this moment, he was busy directing his daughter Angelica, pouring wine for every smuggling ship owner and crew who came to the meeting.

This was the first time that Mei Tess saw a woman other than her on a smuggling boat. After all, people in their business were superstitious and believed that bringing women and horses on board would bring bad luck.

Angelica wore the same men's clothing as other sailors on the Macaulay, her beautiful chestnut hair was casually draped over her shoulders, and she wore two exaggerated gold earrings on her ears, giving her a wild and sexy look.She deftly shuttles between the captain and the sailors, and will not hesitate to fight back when encountering a man who does not have long eyes and wants to take advantage of it.

After pouring Edmund a glass of rum, she asked Maisy Tess, "What would you like?"

"Is there any water?" asked Plum Tess.She doesn't like alcohol other than red wine, but there is obviously no such wine here.

"Are you sure?" The expression on Angelica's face was as if she had eaten a sour lemon.

"Give him a rum bar too," Edmund ordered.

"Sorry, only the captain has rum," Anjelica clasped her hands.

"Then give him a glass of beer." Edmund looked at Mei Tess, asking for her opinion.

"No problem," said Mei Tess.

After Anjelica left, Edmund explained in a low voice, "Our maiden Amelie doesn't have the problem of drinking water because she often docks. But for a big ship like the Macaulay, they have to use Wooden barrels store a lot of fresh water. Even if the water is boiled and boiled, it will turn green and smelly in less than a month, and it can only be barely drunk when rum is added."

Plum Tess imagined the taste of the water, and then showed the same expression as Angelica.She was just about to thank Edmund when the copper bell at the door rang again.