The records from the Nanyang Archives in later generations document the events that occurred on the South An that night as follows:

Miss Dong, accompanied by Warner’s rifle squad, engaged in a total of fourteen gunfights. While the scattered skirmishes are not the focus here, the largest confrontation took place in the common cabin. The common cabin is an area where the cargo hold was converted into passenger quarters, with many people crammed into one space, including small vendors who were sleeping on the floor. Even the South An allowed for such a cargo hold to expand its passenger capacity.

Initially, the assassins were unaware that Miss Dong had their information. The data provided by Zhang Haiyan was not necessarily comprehensive, but when Miss Dong began to pull one assassin after another out of the crowd, making them kneel facing the wall, these individuals realized the gravity of the situation.

Often, if a person can win just 50%, the remaining 50% will follow suit, and that’s how it unfolded on the South An that night. The remaining assassins assumed that Miss Dong had the entire list of names, and in a bid for self-preservation, they took a desperate gamble, charging at her in hopes of taking hostages. In reality, while the situation seemed risky for Miss Dong, her chances of winning were quite high. If someone had promptly informed everyone of Miss Dong’s performance at the dance, those rushing towards her, thinking they could seize her in an instant, would not have appeared so surprised.

Miss Dong merely took a few steps back, and those unfortunate individuals failed to grasp her clothing. She quickly seized the wrist of the first person, twisting it to block the projectiles coming from behind, at which point the rifle squad raised their submachine guns, instantly turning the four attackers into a mass of holes, with blood mist blooming like a lotus.

The remaining assassins hastily grabbed nearby women and children, attempting to use them as hostages, but they severely underestimated the caliber of Warner’s marksmen. These riflemen, trained in close-quarter shooting during the westward expansion and conflicts with Native Americans, found gaps in the hostages’ shoulders, armpits, and sides, shooting the assassins without obstruction.

Throughout the entire process, the Southern Archives make no mention of any accidental killings or injuries. By the time dawn broke, approximately thirty-four assassins had been shot dead on the ship. Seven assassins jumped into the sea to escape, and one lifeboat went missing. Only one assassin was captured, named He Jianxi. After the interrogation, it was determined that he had been coerced and was released without charges. On the side of the riflemen, five were killed.

From the start of the journey from Malacca, a plague began to spread. In total, nineteen passengers went missing, thirty-four assassins were killed, five riflemen died, and seven assassins jumped into the sea to escape. This was considered a major maritime crime at the time. Newspapers reported the incident, leaving the entire south astonished. Notably, Zhang Haiyan was not listed among the deceased.

So where did Zhang Haiyan go? Why did He Jianxi survive?

At that moment, Miss Dong looked at He Jianxi, while Steven recounted the events briefly. Warner looked at Miss Dong with a challenging expression, wanting to know if this woman was bluffing. But Miss Dong showed no hesitation.

“Kill him,” she said, and then continued leading the team forward. He Jianxi looked at Hardy in terror as he pulled out his pistol: “Turn around, don’t look at the person who is shooting.”

At this moment, Steven pressed Hudson’s hand down, saying, “Leave a few alive. What if this woman is embezzling and planning to kill everyone to cover her tracks?”

At this time, Zhang Haiyan had already come out from the balcony and climbed up to the pipes in the corridor. As soon as Hudson fired his gun, he would shoot out a blade and pull He Jianxi to jump into the sea. But after thinking for a moment, Hudson retracted his gun. He instructed Steven to tie up He Jianxi and continued forward with Miss Dong.

Zhang Haiyan breathed a sigh of relief and quietly followed the group tying up He Jianxi along the pipes. He reached a corner where there was no one around and shot down a chandelier. He grabbed He Jianxi by the neck from above and pulled him onto the pipes.

The two of them ran wildly until they reached a cabin, where they heard gunfire. Miss Dong was not joking; she had already started a massacre. Zhang Haiyan thought about his own bad mood and desire to kill, suddenly realizing that he was still innocent, and it was this woman who was the true embodiment of action.

“Cousin, you betrayed me,” Zhang Haiyan said. “You little vixen, I wasted my care on you.”

“He had a heart attack, and I was afraid he would die. I didn’t expect he was faking it,” He Jianxi said anxiously, still feeling shaken. He had seen his boss’s brains splattered when he committed suicide, and just thinking about his own brain matter being splattered made him break out in goosebumps.

“The whole ship is searching for you; can you at least listen to me?”

“Clearly, it’s a search for you,” He Jianxi retorted angrily. “I’m just someone you hired to catch flies.”

Zhang Haiyan quickly calculated in his mind that on this closed ship, with Miss Dong’s exception, he wouldn’t be able to escape. Just then, he spotted the lifeboat on the distant deck.

In the vast sea, he certainly wouldn’t think of taking the lifeboat to Xiamen. Moreover, Zhang Ruipu’s intentions were already clear; he had to return to Pili State as quickly as possible to clarify the safety of the shrimp. For this reason, he couldn’t afford to think too much and couldn’t help but come up with a plan.