Martial Arts Escort System: I Got A Maxed Level Divine Technique From The Beginning-Chapter 385 - 196 Opening the Skylight_2

"From now on, whenever Su, the Chief of the Escort, passes by on this river, as long as a ship is flying the grand flag of Ziyang Escort or even has one person from the Ziyang Escort Agency on board, we dare not hassle them!"

"Exactly, as long as there is someone from the Ziyang Escort Agency on the ship, we must treat them with great respect and cannot take a penny from them."

"That’s the principle!"

The crowd was noisy and clamorous, leaving Su Mo no option but to clasp his fists in thanks.

The Great Village Chief of Xuanlong Water Fortress waited until the crowd had quieted a bit before coming up to Su Mo to apologize.

Su Mo waved his hand and merely asked, "If the opponents indeed retreat, when can this fleet formation be disbanded?"

"As soon as they retreat, we will immediately disperse the fleet and restore the river traffic."

"Good."

Su Mo nodded, "In that case, then..."

He paused for a moment, his eyes searching through the crowd, quickly locating Manager Zhan, and hurriedly said, "Manager Zhan!"

Manager Zhan, having blended in with the crowd, heard Su Mo calling him and quickly made his way to the front:

"What instructions do you have for me, Lord Su?"

"...Manager Zhan, what are you saying? It’s your ship. If anyone should give orders, it should be you."

Manager Zhan chuckled dryly. Orders? How could he presume to give them?

The heroes along the riverbank now practically revered Su Mo as their master.

Although he, Manager Zhan, was the shopkeeper of this ship,

these people were the rulers of this river.

With Su Mo now held in such high esteem, who was he to make decisions?

But he couldn’t quite say it like that. As someone who knew human relations well being a businessman, he simply smiled and said:

"Lord Su, you called for me, do you need anything?"

"There is indeed something I wish to discuss with you."

Su Mo spoke, "As you’ve heard just now, as soon as it’s confirmed that the other side has retreated, the naval blockade can be lifted immediately. How about we just anchor nearby and stay put for the night?"

"Sure."

Manager Zhan didn’t hesitate at all and readily agreed, "We will follow Lord Su’s orders."

Su Mo found the phrase still problematic, but insisting on changing it seemed overly meticulous.

He simply let it be for now.

Then he shared the idea with ZhuGe Changtian and others; they promptly invited Su Mo to rest on their ships.

Calling this lowly boat unsuitable was actually an understatement of the discomfort for Su Mo.

Their ships were larger and more comfortable. Su Mo could bring everyone and the goods aboard for rest, and anyone daring to covet the items Su Mo was escorting would have to face the tens of thousands of blades sharp along the riverfront!

Wei Ziyi was utterly astonished hearing all this.

The village chiefs along the river could turn this force into something formidable if only they could unite.

However... that was easier said than done.

To have such a stubborn and unruly group see eye to eye with anyone is nearly impossible.

But now, it seemed Su Mo had managed to accomplish just that.

Sadly, Su Mo ran an escort agency; if he ran a river fortress, it would have been totally lawless.

As she was lost in these thoughts, others eagerly invited Su Mo to rest on their ships.

Finally, the Hongye Gang Leader, after much discussion, claimed that since they were in Hongye Gang territory, how could they let Su Mo sleep on a ship?

Instead, they prepared an elegant room within the Hongye Gang for him to rest properly.

Upon hearing this, there was an uproar.

"Hongye Gang Leader, your Hongye Gang has never allowed men inside."

"Exactly... coming eagerly to your meetings and then not being able to step even half a step into your Hongye Gang, ending up just talking on the ship, is truly dull."

"Now with Lord Su here, has the Hongye Gang lost its norms? Can anyone just step inside now?"

People quipped back and forth not out of genuine envy, but rather in jest.

The Hongye Gang Leader became annoyed, hands on hips, pointing fingers, "If any of you had Lord Su’s martial arts prowess, breadth of vision, and temperament, even allowing you inside the Hongye Gang, what would it matter?

"But with your problematic behaviors, you dare compare yourselves to Lord Su?"

Hearing this, Su Mo hastily gestured, "Enough, enough, my friends, please calm down. I have urgent matters at hand and really must not leave the ship. The rules stand as they are; I implore you not to trouble me further."

Hearing his words, everyone quieted down.

After a few more persuasions that failed to convince him, they had to let it be.

However, someone immediately directed Manager Zhan to steer the ship to a certain spot, surrounded by numerous bandit ships,

to ensure no one disturbed Su Mo.

Manager Zhan marveled, having traveled all over in his life, he had often been surrounded by bandits.

But this was the first time he was surrounded by bandits with the intent to protect.

He’d never seen, let alone heard of such a thing before.

...

...

Finally, the clamor ended, and the various chiefs had their own matters to attend to and left.

After sending them off, Su Mo greeted Manager Zhan before returning to his own cabin.

Immediately, Manager Zhan offered to swap cabins, wanting to give up the main cabin for Su Mo to stay in.