In the summer of three years ago, Peach Blossom Island was turned upside down by Lin Jue and Gao Muqing. In the end, it collapsed under the attack of the Ning Navy and the Hangzhou Xiang soldiers and the guards of the Liang Palace. The offshore foundation that has been in operation for more than ten years turned into smoke in an instant. More than 30,000 people were wiped out, and in the end, Hai Dongqing only escaped by boat with more than 1,000 remnants of bandits, and fled to an island called Big Bird Island east of Haizhou to settle down.

The frightened crowd hid for months on the Big Bird Island, not daring to make the slightest move. It was the darkest moment in Hai Dongqing's life. There was nothing on that island, and more than a thousand people had no food or drink on the island. If it weren't for the rain falling on hurricane days that filled the island's ponds, or for the fact that the pirates had cultivated a good water temperament after years of living at sea, they could find food in the sea. More than a thousand people are probably going to die of starvation and thirst on that island.

Because it's too hard, and there's no hope. There was also civil strife among the pirates. Several small leaders wanted to leave with their men, but Hai Dongqing did not allow it, and a conflict broke out between the two sides. Hai Dongqing won the victory and killed more than 200 pirates who intended to betray before quelling the matter. But this incident also made Hai Dongqing realize that he couldn't stay on this island anymore. This island has no danger to defend, and the resources are poor, and it is a death to stay here.

Hai Dongqing made an attempt, he sent a small group of pirates to sneak into the interior quietly along the mouth of the Yangtze River, trying to find a place to settle in the interior. However, in order to prevent the scattered pirates from infiltrating, the state capitals in the southeast have long formed a joint defense mechanism. As soon as more than 200 pirates who had fought at the front station appeared, they were strangled by the sailors on the Yangtze River. Hai Dongqing was completely dead.

After more than 1,000 pirates tossed and turned, there are only more than 500 people left. Hai Dongqing understood that if he didn't give these 500 people hope, they would all turn their backs on him. In addition, the Haizhou Navy seemed to have a move to send troops to destroy itself, so Hai Dongqing resolutely decided to leave Big Bird Island with his brothers to find a better hiding place.

Hai Dongqing boarded the ship with more than 500 demoralized bandits and left Big Bird Island. In the vast sea, there seems to be no place for them. The south is not to go, eastern Zhejiang, Haizhou and Chuzhou along the coast have been strictly guarded, and there is no place to stand. The sea is vast, and a few broken ships can't go deep into the sea. The only route they could take was north.

Several boats made their way north along the coastline, and when the dried fish on board had been eaten and the water had been drunk, they finally landed on a small island in the Bohai Bay. Once ashore, they soon found themselves in a place of hell. The island is full of snakes, and all of them are poisonous snakes. On the first night of disembarkation, more than a dozen pirates were bitten by snakes and poisoned to death. The crowd was panicked, and some suggested that they would have to leave, but there was no food and water stockpiled, and the next place to stay was unknown. Coupled with the fact that the weather has become colder and the cold wave is coming, they actually don't have much choice.

Hai Dongqing made a choice, he wanted to stay on this island, which was actually steep and suitable for camping. In the Bohai Bay, not far from the land, it is difficult to retreat to the sea, and it is difficult to harass the land and grab supplies. Hai Dongqing and Meng Xiang Song Mill summed it up and decided to stay here. There are a lot of venomous snakes on the island, which is actually a favorable factor as well. It is precisely because there are so many poisonous snakes on the island that no one dares to come to this island. It is also impossible for officers and soldiers to come and station. And these poisonous snakes happen to be the best food at the moment. Hai Dongqing has eaten snakes, and the taste is similar to that of chicken, crunchy.

Hai Dongqing led by example and personally began to catch snakes. In half a day, he caught more than 100 poisonous snakes. He cut off the head of the snake, plucked the snake's skin and internal organs, threw the more than 100 snakes in the pot, and boiled a pot of thick snake meat soup. All the pirates watched from afar, and each dared to taste it, because they thought it was a poisonous snake, and eating such a snake soup was tantamount to drinking poison. Hai Dongqing didn't care, and Meng Xiang, Song Milling, and more than a dozen henchmen ate meat and bowls of soup, and ate a lot. Then he lay down on the beach and fell asleep.

When they woke up, they found that there was not a drop of snake soup left in the pot. And all the pirates have begun to catch snakes all over the mountains. Hai Dongqing laughed, knowing in his heart that these people finally knew that snake soup was delicious and non-poisonous. Once they've tasted it, they'll never stop.

That night, more than a dozen cauldrons lined up on the beach, and thousands of snakes were boiling in the pots. The snake soup with sea salt is delicious, and it is simply delicious. More than 500 pirates who had endured months of pain and fear had eaten the most delicious dinner of their lives. They all burped and lay down on the beach with red faces. They weren't worried about snakes coming at night. Because a large area of poisonous snakes near the left was almost completely caught by them.

In this way, Hai Dongqing and others stayed on this island. Because there are many poisonous snakes on this island, Hai Dongqing gave the island a simple and easy-to-understand name: Snake Island. The pirates have no shortage of food, because they are everywhere. They catch snakes all over the island and change their eating patterns. Snake soup, grilled snake skewers, snake jerky, smoked snake slices, snake gall wine. In short, the pirates used their ingenuity to make a variety of special products on the island, and tasted them differently. The vipers on the island are dying out at a rate visible to the naked eye, and all but those lucky ones who dare to show their faces in the dense forest are eaten up.

Of course, more than a dozen pirates were accidentally bitten to death, but it had no impact on the overall situation. When the cold wave hit and the weather became colder, Hai Dongqing and others had already built a Juyi Hall on the high slope of the island, built dozens of wooden and stone houses, and order and people's hearts had been restored.

In the months that followed, Hai Dongqing organized several landing raids, seized a lot of food and supplies, and looted a material warehouse for the garrison in a large surrounding town. This is a great boost to people's hearts and morale. Although in his spare time, Hai Dongqing will still feel a faint pain in his heart because of the destruction of Peach Blossom Island. But he knew he was relieved again. Just like the many dangerous situations he has experienced in his life, he has once again been killed, and once again he has turned evil into good fortune.

The turning point came in the spring of the following year, when Hai Dongqing sat on the cliff high on Snake Island as usual and looked out at the sea, blowing the sea breeze. Suddenly, he saw a ship on the sea. This made Hai Dongqing extremely excited. It's been a long time since I've seen a ship around the island, and I can't miss this opportunity. So he immediately gathered his men and chased and intercepted him by boat, and the big ship dared to resist, and there were dozens of archers on it, shooting more than a dozen pirates.

Haidong was so angry that he was determined to hang all the people above on the mast. He ordered someone to dive under the water and scuttle through the ship. The big ship sank in the water and had to surrender for help. All fifty or sixty of them were captured alive. When these people were sent to Hai Dongqing, Hai Dongqing gave the order to hang them all, and at this moment, one of the captured people spoke. He said that he was from Liao, and asked Hai Dongqing to let him and others go, and he would give Hai Dongqing a large amount of gold and silver treasures, and give whatever he wanted.

Hai Dongqing felt a little strange when he heard his tone and saw that he was doing something, so he took everyone back to the island to ask. When I asked, I realized that I had caught a big fish. This ship is a military ship of the Liao State, and the person who led the troops on the ship is named Yelu Shi, who said that he is the third son of the new emperor of the Liao State, Yelu Zongyuan, and as long as Hai Dongqing lets him go, he can let his father agree to all his conditions.

Hai Dongqing was a little confused, if it was the Great Zhou royal family that was caught, he would naturally slaughter it without hesitation, because he and the Great Zhou were incompatible. But this is the prince of Liao, and I really don't know what to do about it. Hai Dongqing continued to ask Yelushi and the others about the purpose, but Yelushi no longer spoke, only saying that he came to the sea by boat to shoot fish and play, and had no other intentions.

Hai Dongqing would not be deceived by his words, the land around the Bohai Bay where he was located was the border town of the Great Zhou and Liao Kingdoms. During the several landing raids, I also knew some of the situation and some of the situation. He knew that the new emperor of Liao had succeeded in seizing the throne, and it seemed that he had turned his face with the Great Zhou, and the Liao people sent troops and ships to wander in the Bohai Bay at this time, which was definitely not for some kind of amusement and fishing, I am afraid that it was for another purpose.

Hai Dongqing thought about it for a few nights, and he finally made a decision that shocked everyone. He wanted to personally escort the prince of Yelu Shi back to Liao. All of them objected. Meng Xiang and Song Mill were particularly opposed.

"Lord of the village, the Liao people are a clan of tigers and wolves, how can they be in danger? Isn't this a self-defeating one? Could it be that the owner of the village really thought that they would give us gold and silver materials? The prince of the Liao Kingdom was captured, so he would naturally say these nice things. When I arrived in Liao, I was afraid that I would immediately change my hexagram. The Liao people have no faith. ”

Hai Dongqing laughed and said: "The Liao people are tigers and wolves, what are we?" Haven't we been seen as tigers and wolves for so many years? What is there to be afraid of? Besides, do you think I'm here to get the benefits of gold and silver? I'm here for the sake of the future, and at my age, it's time to give it a go. If you don't give it a try, it's too late. ”

Hai Dongqing and Yelu Shi, the third prince of Liao, talked for a long night, and the two sides reached an agreement. Hai Dongqing is willing to send Yelu Shi back to Liao, without any conditions, only Yelu Shi needs to introduce Yelu Zongyuan, the emperor of the Great Liao, to himself. Yelushi naturally agreed to come down.

Although the sea bandits also held opposing views, Hai Dongqing had made up his mind, and the persuasion was ineffective, but there was nothing he could do. Hai Dongqing explained the matter and ordered Song Mo to stay in Dazhai on Snake Island, while he only took Meng Xiang and thirty pirates to escort Yelushi to board the ship and return to China.

Two days later, they landed in Jinzhou, Liao, and arrived at Dading Mansion in Zhongjing, Liao, three days later.