Chapter 211: 211
Black Prince Sam assigned a dozen pirates that could swim well to dive to the spot where the Spanish treasure ship sank . Soon, the divers managed to discover where they stored the gold bars . The next problem that needed solving was how they could salvage the ingots from the bottom of the sea . The crates were located half a nautical mile from the coastline at a depth of about 20 meters .
Such depths were close to the limits a human could dive . It wasn’t just the oxygen starvation, but the water pressure would increase every ten meters . If they continued venturing deeper, the pressure would cause them to suffer from nitrogen narcosis and oxygen poisoning, which could be fatal .
Zhang Heng vaguely remembered that the deepest a human ever attempted to dive without the assistance of equipment was about 40 meters . He was puzzled as to how the person managed to achieve such a superhuman feat . People like Black Prince Sam and his allies all grew up right next to the sea . Most of them were sons of fishermen, and from a young age, they were already natural swimmers and divers .
Having said that, the divers were forced to resurface the moment they laid their eyes on the crates that contained the gold bars . Only one person amongst them managed to dive to where the boxes were and retrieved a dislodged gold bar .
“It appears that we’re going to be on this island for some time,” said Black Prince Sam .
Despite the losses the pirates sustained, their hunting trip was considered an enormous success . A total of 5,000 pounds of gold divided among six ships would see every single pirate returning to Nassau with a tremendous amount of wealth .
Apart from the gold, the Spanish ship was hauling a shipment of tobacco as well . Unfortunately, the dried leaves became useless the moment they hit the water . Despite Brook suffering the most damage in this battle, he was happy with the results . The extra 50% of the loot he would receive meant he could fix his ship and even compensate those who were wounded during the battle . And even after everything was settled, he would still walk away pocketing a large sum of money .
Everyone was envious of Zhang Heng and the Jackdaw’s luck . Although he and Brook were both chosen as bait, the enemies, unfortunately, decided to focus fire on the Swordfish instead of the Jackdaw . It was all because the Swordfish looked to be the weaker of the two . After two rounds of bombardment, the Jackdaw received no further damage . When the Spanish convoy of three fell into their trap, Zhang Heng waited until the four pirate ships attacked them before joining the battle . Amid the cacophony of artillery, the three Spanish vessels weren’t bothered to deal with the Jackdaw anymore .
When the Jackdaw played the bait, Zhang Heng made the right decision by taking every random opportunity that came to avoid taking as much damage as possible . Not only did he manage to confuse the enemies, but it also allowed the Swordfish to retreat . If Zhang Heng didn’t stall the Spanish, Brook and his men would have ended up at the bottom of the ocean .
Brook was extremely grateful for Zhang Heng’s assistance, going up to him and thanking him personally when they were all on Parrot Island . Before this, Zhang Heng had spoken little to Brook, though, having heard of his name before . Other than his notorious reputation in Nassau, he was one of the captains that vouched for Zhang Heng to join the meeting . To Zhang Heng’s surprise, he discovered that Brook wasn’t as aloof as he seemed to be after talking to him . He was actually quite talkative .
During the meeting for the battle, Brook barely said a word . Zhang Heng thought that it must be Brook’s nature to stay quiet, but as it turned out, he was wrong about him .
“I’m sorry . I’m not trying to offend anyone here, but I have some beef with Dynamite Jarvis . ”
Dynamite Jarvis, captain of the Warrior, was also one of the captains that vouched for Zhang Heng . Sam had once told him about wanting to utilize this trip to solve a longstanding conflict between his two friends . It was now apparent that Sam referred to Brook and Jarvis . None would have thought that they would both clash again amid a critical operation .
“I have been friends with Jarvis for decades . I knew him long before I knew Sam . About two months ago, I received a precious lead . A slave-trading ship departed Africa and was heading towards Boston, carrying a decent amount of cargo . Most of the slaves on board were teenagers no older than 18 or 19 . They were of good health and had all their teeth intact . I brought someone with me to check on the route this ship would take .
“Just as I was close to my target, a group of unknown people came out of nowhere and disrupted my plan! So, I sent someone to talk to them . Unfortunately, they were in no mood to talk . In the end, they killed the people I sent to negotiate with them! As if that weren’t enough, they wanted to attack my ship as well! Luckily, we were fast enough to flee .
“When I think about it again, I believe the group of people had been waiting to ambush me . That was how I knew that it was no coincidence . Someone wasn’t happy with me . However, I only talked to Jarvis before I set sail . So, I confronted him when I returned to Nassau . Unsurprisingly, he strongly denied all my accusations . He was furious, and he told me that I should never doubt him . At that time, I felt guilty that perhaps, I could have wronged him . After that, I assigned someone to dig deeper into this matter, and I found out that he had secretly left Nassau the night before I set sail! He also didn’t leave with his own ship . ”
“So, this is the conflict, huh?”
“I just don’t understand why he would do something like this to me . We have been friends for a long time . It doesn’t matter anymore… I’m done thinking about it . I promised Sam that I won’t harm him in any way . It’s just that… from today onward; he is just another stranger to me . ”
“Ah . You guys are here . Our luck just gets better! Ball found some wild goat, rabbits, and other animals on the island . I think we are going to have a feast tonight! There’s quite a bit of rum left on the ship as well . Sam suggested that we should start a bonfire to celebrate our success . We are now the first pirates to rob a Spanish treasure ship!” Eric exclaimed with enthusiasm .
“Celebrate? Now? The gold bars are still at the bottom of the sea,” Zhang Heng replied .
“Yes, but it’s not like they’ll run away, eh? Don’t worry . We will find a way to bring them all up . Do you have any food on your ship? You can contribute to the celebration as well,” said Eric while patting Zhang Heng’s shoulder .
“I can provide 30 barrels of rum and some fresh lemons . ”
“Great . I will ask someone to go fishing . We can use your lemons for the garnish . Sinks the stench, I say . ”
“All of you can see that I have nothing left on the ship,” said Brook .
“It’s ok . Captain Sam has solved the problem . Maybe you can thank Jarvis later . I heard that he’s willing to give you a third of his supplies . ”
“Did he volunteer, or did Captain Sam make him?”
“Would there be a difference? Be the bigger man here, Brook . That incident is ancient history! Are you still going to dwell on it? You’ll recoup all your losses the moment we get our hands on the gold . ”
Brook harrumphed and didn’t say a word after that .
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