Before leaving, she thought about whether she should go to Wangchen Tower or return to Xiao Mansion, but after thinking about it, she suddenly realized that even if she went, there would not be many people waiting for her.
Perhaps the only person she could wake up in the middle of the night was Yao Yi. But she wasn't worried about him at all, because she knew Yao Yi was someone who could live well on his own no matter where he was.
In the end, she didn't go anywhere. She just climbed into Xiaofuju from the backyard when she passed by, took two jars of wine, filled the wine bag, and left two silver ingots.
She knew she wasn't completely lost in her attachment to this city. Otherwise, why would she be so unwilling to even wait for the dawn and enjoy a bowl of noodle soup? She knew that once she saw the sun shining on the city and the people busying about with their daily lives again, once she sat down at Lao Guo's stall in the east of the city and ate a bowl of bone noodle soup, her heart would be moved again.
Whether such days can belong to her again, let God judge.
The sun rose and set, and the sun rose again. Her cloak was wet with dew, then frosted, and turned into cold dew, and finally dried by the sunlight.
It was still early autumn when we left Zhongli, but it was already late autumn when we entered Wancheng.
Fishing boats shuttle back and forth on Ming Lake. The water is cold and the fish are fat. The fishermen are rushing to catch the last batch of river fish before the lake closes in winter.
Xiao Nanhui put down his chopsticks, feeling a little regretful that he had not added another fish when he ordered the fish soup.
Putting down some change, she took the well-fed and well-drinking Jixiang's hand and walked towards the pier by the lake.
Ming Lake is as big as the lakes on the northwestern plateau. There are many ferry terminals along the lake. Some are large ferry terminals for merchant ships, and more are small terminals built by nearby fishing villages that cannot accommodate large ships.
Occasionally, there are lone travelers who can pay a few copper coins to take a small fishing boat to cross the lake, but when the wind and waves are strong, they can only wait.
The lake was sunny today, but the clouds in the west were very low, and the distant horizon was black. The experienced fishermen had already packed up their boats early.
Maybe it's going to rain heavily.
Xiao Nanhui held Jixiang's hand and stopped at the dock to look around. A small boat that was drying nets came over and the fisherman on the boat shouted from across several boats.
"Where are you going, girl?"
She answered truthfully.
"Buxu Valley. How much is the boat fare?"
Unexpectedly, when the man heard it, he pushed the oar and slid away in an instant.
In this way, she asked three or four boats in succession. When the boatmen heard where she wanted to go, they either shook their heads or simply ignored her.
Xiao Nanhui was a little surprised. Just as he was thinking about whether he should just hijack a ship and set sail, a voice came from a small sampan not far away.
"You won't get the boat if you ask like that."
The fisherman who was speaking looked to be in his early thirties, but the tattered little sampan under his feet seemed older than both of them combined. It was likely that it would fall apart in a few years.
Seeing that she didn't speak, the other party lowered his voice and moved closer.
"Several government ships passed by there a few days ago, and no one wants to cause trouble. Plus, the situation is changing. If it weren't for the chance to earn a few bucks and a few grains of rice, who would be willing to take the risk?"
It seems that it is indeed Buxu Valley.
Xiao Nan thought about it, took off the bag from his waist, counted it, and took out five round and plump silver ingots.
"This money should be worth more than just a handful of rice, right?"
The fisherman only took a glance, and his expression immediately changed.
"The water over there in Buxu Valley is shallow and there are many reefs, hidden shoals and dangerous currents. The larger the ship, the more likely it is to be in trouble."
He paused deliberately when he said this, then patted his sampan meaningfully.
Xiao Nanhui looked at Jixiang's fat butt, then looked at the wobbly boat. A thousand terrible premonitions flashed through his mind, but he finally got on the boat.
"Please hurry up, we are in a hurry."
"Okay, sit tight!"
With a row of the oars, the small sampan nimbly left the dock and headed towards the vast lake.
The water of Ming Lake is cool, and a layer of fog perpetually covers the surface. As the sampan sailed north, the only boats passing by were returning, rarely heading in the same direction.
She said nothing, just sat at the bow of the boat guarding the katydid cage, watching the water surface being broken and then healed without a trace.
It wasn't that she didn't want to talk, it was just that there was a heavy weight on her heart. Her legs began to ache again, but compared to the tightness in her chest, the pain was nothing.
The fisherman at the stern of the boat couldn't see her expression, and since he was a talkative man, he kept mumbling to himself.
"It never rained at this time of year in previous years, but I don't know what's wrong this year, it's been raining non-stop since the beginning of autumn. Look at that stone pavilion over there, it's half flooded. And look at that cloud over there. I reckon it's going to rain today or tomorrow, and it'll probably last at least another ten days or half a month..."
The other party spoke the local dialect of Wancheng, and she only understood half of it. Knowing that the other party was complaining about the weather, she just let it go in one ear and out the other.
Two hours later, there was no sign of any other boats on the entire lake, and it was so quiet that only the sound of sampans paddling in the water could be heard.
The fog was still thick ahead. Xiao Nanhui noticed the sampan slowing down, staring at the katydid cage in front of him and pointing to the left without turning his head.
"there."
The boatman was obviously a little surprised. He was stunned for a moment before rowing the boat in the direction indicated.
"Miss, you are not from outside? Few people come to Buxu Valley. Are you back to visit relatives, worship your ancestors, or..."
Xiao Nanhui sighed and touched the armor around his waist.
"My man ran away with someone. I heard he ran here, so I came here with my sword, intending to chop off his legs."
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