The fat man did not board the ship. After the merchant ship set sail, he ran back quickly.
He had to return to Wucheng to inquire about which important figure had recently been issued a travel permit by the county. How could the yamen not be informed of such a distinguished guest arriving at the border? Fortunately, he, Fatty, was quick-witted; otherwise, he would have already been thrown into the Yu River!
The Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce’s ship was large, with three decks. Shen Xing arranged them in the largest room on the third floor.
“Brother, why are we boarding the ship?”
The ship swayed with the waves, making Xiaoman dizzy. She felt bouts of nausea, and her face turned a little pale. She was lying on the bed, her head raised, her brows furrowed. Until this moment, she hadn’t understood what was happening. Weren’t they going to Changming Mountain???
“Go around!”
Nan Shiying leaned against the soft couch, her eyes closed in rest.
The water route was not as smooth as the land route. The ship swayed with the water, causing a slight discomfort. However, compared to Xiaoman, Nan Shiying was doing a little better.
As for Situ Kong, who was beside her, he was completely unaffected.
“Go around?” Xiaoman blinked her eyes, meaning, to enter the mountain not from Linyuan, but from Liaojiang?
Nan Shiying nodded. In fact, before meeting that fat man, she hadn't intended to go around via Liaojiang. Traveling to Changming Mountain from Liaojiang was an option, but the fat man’s appearance had reminded her—since the soldiers of the Huanlang Army had disappeared after entering the mountain from Linyuan, it was likely that all visible and hidden routes for entering the mountain had been ambushed. In that case, she might as well go around the back.
Although the Yu River was called a river, it was actually as vast as the sea. It took two days to reach Liaojiang.
During these two days, the people from the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce had made no move and had behaved properly, with no incidents of murder, robbery, or bodies being dumped in the river.
Shen Xing would certainly not do anything that could destroy the foundation of the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce. There was no need for it, and it was not cost-effective. After disembarking the three of them, Shen Xing began to arrange the unloading of the cargo.
“Bao Tou Shen, are you taking on escorts?”
Nan Shiying stopped Shen Xing and asked with a smile.
“What goods does Young Master wish to have escorted?” Shen Xing did not see anything worth escorting in the other person’s hands. The only thing he could see was a jade bone fan, which she was holding and playing with like an ordinary folding fan to fan herself. Could it be that she had some precious item tucked away inside her clothes?
Nan Shiying raised her hand and extended her slender fingers, pointing to her own nose: “Me!”
“I wish to request Bao Tou Shen to escort us to Changming Mountain!”
“Ha?”
Shen Xing felt as if he had heard a joke. She had traveled by ship from Linyuan to Liaojiang, surely not just to enjoy the scenery of the Yu River?
“Did Bao Tou Shen not hear clearly?”
Shen Xing shook his head: “I didn’t understand!”
“Bao Tou Shen travels between Linyuan and Liaojiang, so you must be very familiar with the customs and practices of Liaojiang.”
Nan Shiying handed the bone fan in her hand to Shen Xing. She said this, almost unrelated to the previous topic. Shen Xing did not take the bone fan she offered. He had been a Bao Tou for escorting goods for the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce for ten years. His father had founded the Wusheng Escort Agency himself, but after his father’s unfortunate death while on an escort mission fifteen years ago, the agency gradually declined and was eventually merged into the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce. He naturally became the exclusive escort of the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce.
For the past ten years, he had traveled between Linyuan and Liaojiang. Liaojiang was now considered half his hometown, so he was naturally familiar with it. However, for some reason, when asked like this, he felt a reluctance to agree with her statement: “Not at all. I am merely escorting goods, and I have some understanding, but it is not thorough.”
Seeing that he did not take it, Nan Shiying flicked her wrist, and the bone fan fell from her hand.
This jade bone fan was worth at least several thousand taels of silver. Shen Xing’s heart trembled, and he felt a pang of heartache as if all his possessions had been thrown into the sea and swept away by the waves.
He subconsciously bowed and reached out to catch it.
The jade bone fan was cold to the touch. The moment it entered his hands, Shen Xing shivered violently.
“Since Bao Tou has accepted the escort fee, then this matter is settled. After we unload the cargo, we will follow Bao Tou to the nearest town. After you have settled the goods, we will set off for Changming Mountain.”
Shen Xing stared blankly at Nan Shiying, watching her mouth open and close. Was this escort business something that could be forced upon someone?
Shen Xing handed the jade bone fan back to Nan Shiying. Nan Shiying took a step back.
She said, “If Bao Tou Shen dislikes it, you can smash it.”
Listen to this! Was this something a person would say?
She didn’t seem to care at all about this thing worth several thousand taels of silver. Shen Xing felt that he was perhaps a bit shortsighted. He truly couldn’t bear to smash it.
He thought that not only him, but even if the hall master of the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce came, he wouldn’t be willing to smash such a fine jade bone fan.
It was simply a terrible waste of a precious object.
Shen Xing’s face twitched slightly. He really couldn’t bring himself to refuse such a great windfall.
Was it not just escorting her to Changming Mountain? What difficulty was there?
“I can take this escort mission, but Young Master must tell me why you are going to Changming Mountain!”
“Does it matter?”
“It matters a lot!”
“I have always heard that Changming Mountain is known as the summit of ten thousand mountains and an eternal marvel. Therefore, I wish to tour it. However, recently, a fog has suddenly appeared on Changming Mountain, and I heard that even soldiers have been swallowed by it… But I, a person who has been confined to the capital my entire life, with my family fearing I might get hurt, have never stepped outside the capital. This time, I tricked my family into going to Jinmen to visit elders, and then I tricked the elders into visiting my cousin, thus step by step I made my way from the capital to Wucheng.”
“When I arrived in Wucheng, I heard that one needed a travel permit from the county magistrate to pass through the Huanlang Army camp. There was no other way, so I had to threaten the county magistrate to issue me a travel permit. However, the news of my arrival in Wucheng might not be kept secret.”
“But since I have come this far, if I don’t ascend Changming Mountain, I will not be reconciled!”
“Originally, if I were at Linyuan, I would worry about getting lost in the dense fog, and I would worry even more that the vanguard camp guarding Changming Mountain would receive the news and stop me. Who knew that a fat man would suddenly appear and tell me that merchant ships could carry people.”
“Tell me, how could I refuse such a heaven-sent opportunity?”
Shen Xing listened to her words, his expression becoming as strange as if his face had been plastered with glutinous rice paper. This unfortunate creature was simply a bear child magnified proportionally!
For this reason, it was no wonder his family wouldn't let him leave the capital!
Shen Xing first complained, then he seemed to recall something, and his face suddenly changed color.
He had been quite playful before, but now he savored the meaning of her words. This person was a pampered young master from the capital. From the capital to Wucheng, there were elders and cousins along the way. The family’s influence was so great that it spanned half of Linyuan.
Furthermore, her travel permit was also obtained by coercing the county magistrate.
Judging by her behavior, she must be at least the son of a marquis.
And a noble family with a prosperous lineage.
If what she said was true, the county magistrate had informed her family of her presence in Wucheng and her journey to the border. This meant that as long as her family came looking for her, they would definitely receive news that she was traveling to Liaojiang on a Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce cargo ship. If something happened to her in Liaojiang… Hiss, Shen Xing dared not even think about the consequences for the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce, let alone his entire family.
Shen Xing trembled all over, feeling a cold wind blowing from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.
No, this lord must not be allowed to have any accidents!
Escort her, he not only had to escort her but also protect her the entire way. He absolutely had to send her back completely unharmed!