The boat sailed for half a month.
Shen Que's condition improved day by day, his appetite also gradually improved, and he no longer felt nauseous so often. Fortunately, he was sailing all the way, and people around him who saw him like this thought he was sick on the boat.
Many people on this boat also came from the north. It was their first time on a boat. But it was the first time for even the helmsman to see someone vomit like this. He even joked with the crew privately, "He is a drought-stricken rat from the north. How can he endure the river? How miserable."
These people inevitably had some hostility towards the "officials" in their eyes. Shen was puzzled at first, but when he passed the customs later, he realized that these water merchants were often extorted by clerks and soldiers in the grain transport.
If the list submitted is not careful and there is even a single mistake or omission, and the Ministry of Revenue finds out, ten times the compensation would be too little.
Shen, however, heard from Ma Lao Er that when he passed through Xuzhou some time ago, a merchant asked the customs officials to seize a shipload of goods and confiscate all of them. The merchant lost all his money and became so frustrated that he jumped into the river and committed suicide.
"How can it be so easy to do business?" The four old men leaned on the cargo box and chatted with them lazily, "Do you think it's easy to make money from shipping goods? Countless people drown in these rivers every year, and they are also blackmailed by corrupt officials on the road. I think it's better to go back to the countryside and open up a piece of land. Life is hard, as long as I can have enough to eat."
Life on the ship was hard, and these men had nothing to do, so they had to crowd into this cabin and talk. However, after these days, I could know all their family backgrounds just by listening.
"You think you are happy as a farmer? When you encounter man-made disasters or natural calamities, you don't even have time to cry, and your own children have to be sold," the man said, and his eyes suddenly revealed a bit of loneliness, "I don't know if I can find my home after running thousands of miles away?"
It was dusk outside at this moment. There was a vast sunset over the river, and the sky and the water were each a painting, which set off each other very interestingly.
The girl outside brought back the mattresses that had been dried in the sun. It was rare for the weather to be sunny these days, so the woman took the initiative to carry the heavy bedding out to dry in the sun.
Chen Que did not stop her. This girl's name was Danxin, and she was a man of few words. Although she did not say anything about the favor of Chen Que giving her two taels of silver that day, she actually kept it in mind.
Danxin always slept at his feet during those nights. Once those men made any noise, she would suddenly sit up. It was true that Shen Que was good at martial arts, but one could not be tense all the time. With her guarding the night, Shen Que could sleep more peacefully.
Chen Que was also grateful to her, so he asked Ma Laoer for an extra piece of Hu cake today. Seeing that she had spread the mattress, Chen Que handed the cake to her.
Danxin was stunned for a moment, and when she looked up, she seemed a little flattered: "Is it for me?"
Shen nodded, smiled at her, and a faint dimple appeared on his cheek again.
There was sincerity in his eyes, and he didn't seem to be teasing her, so the woman took the pancake hesitantly, looked at him again, and looked as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.
"Eat." Chen didn't care whether she could understand or not. He just gestured and then picked up his piece of cake and started to eat it while leaning against the cargo box.
The woman did not suspect anything and started to eat the cake as she broke it into pieces. Her life on the ship was not easy. She had to wash countless pieces of dirty clothes for the sailors in a day, but she could only exchange half a piece of cake to fill her stomach.
One of them was dumb, the other was not talkative. They sat together and finished eating the Hu pancake in silence. Then Chen used a knife to cut the pear he had just received from Ma Laoer into half and handed it to her.
Danxin didn't reach out to take it this time. Fresh fruits were not easy to come by on this ship, and Chen only had one, so why should he share it with her?
Seeing that she didn't respond, Shen Que shook the half fruit and stretched it towards her. Ignoring the surprised look on the woman's face, he moved closer, moved his lips, and said silently: "For you."
Now is the season for eating pears. When the merchant ship docked for rest yesterday, most of the sailors went ashore to buy some things, while they, who had no money and no status, could only watch helplessly.
Danxin took the half of the pear, took a bite slowly, and the juice overflowed with a sweet fragrance in her mouth.
But she knew that whatever the men gave her, they would definitely take something away from her. After eating the pear, Danxin suddenly went outside again.
However, Shen thought that she was helping others wash clothes again, so he took off his outer clothes and lay down on the mattress.
He had been extremely sleepy lately, and there was nothing to do or see on the ship, so most people went to bed as soon as the sun went down.
But before he fell into a deep sleep, he heard Danxin lift the curtain and come into the cabin again. Then she knelt beside his mattress and began to take off her clothes without saying a word.
There was no light in the cabin at the moment, and it was dim all around. Shen couldn't see clearly at first, until he propped himself up and realized what she was going to do. He quickly held down her hands that were unbuttoning her clothes, and stared at her with wide eyes.
"My dear, you lent me two taels of silver and gave them to me," she said calmly, "You just wanted to do this with me, didn't you?"
Shen quickly shook his head.
"I have washed my body," Danxin said slowly, "it is not dirty."
The men at the other end of the cabin heard the noise coming from his side and immediately started to make a noise, whistling a few distorted tones in his direction.
"Young man, do you think we should stay away for a while?" The fourth elder teased him, "Come on, come on, let's all go outside for a walk, so as not to disturb our master's good deeds."
Chen frowned and gestured hurriedly towards Danxin, but unfortunately no matter how he gestured, she couldn't understand. The next moment, she took his hand and taught him to put his palm against her chest.
"You really don't want to?"
There was no desire in Shen's eyes. His palm seemed to be burned by the fire. He quickly withdrew his hand, then grabbed the scimitar on the pillow and pointed it at her with the scabbard.
He couldn't speak, but he showed through his actions that he rescued her not for lust.
The surprise and astonishment in Danxin's eyes only flashed by for a moment. After she understood, she put on her clothes, stood up and retreated to his feet: "I am sorry for being rude."
But Shen Que's action made the men on the other side stunned. In their eyes, this was a good thing that was offered to them. The girl even took off her clothes herself, so how could any man resist?
"You're stupid," seeing Chen Que like this, the fourth brother gritted his teeth and felt sorry for him, "You've spent money and given gifts, why don't you get some benefits from her?"
Shen put away the knife, lowered his head and said nothing.
"There really are such fools in the world," a man couldn't help but sigh, "She's a girl after all, shouldn't he get her back to her original state?"
Except for a few old women who cook, all the people on this boat are men, except for this girl, who is protected by Chen Que. Although this mute looks weak, she is very ruthless when it comes to beating people up.
They usually saw this girl coming in and out, and they were jealous and itchy. They would just let it go if they couldn't get her. But now they saw that this mute was unlucky and he threw away the duck that was delivered to his door. They were so angry that they wanted to vomit blood.
In the blink of an eye, it has been half a month since he left Beijing. However, in his dreams, Chen was thinking about the Yan Palace, his Lansheng Courtyard, his prince, senior brother, master, Yuanzhi...
The scent that belonged to Chen Luo on the robe that he left behind had become so faint that it was almost inaudible. He was getting farther and farther away from Kyoto, but the longing and melancholy in his heart grew more and more.
No one here can understand what he is saying, and no one understands him. He is like a rootless duckweed, drifting on this vast river. If he cannot escape death, he will die. If he escapes, he will never be able to go back in his lifetime.
The palace, His Highness, brother, master... in the end, they will probably all become a dream to him, until they forget themselves, and everything will fade away with the wind.
He hadn't felt this lonely in a long time.
Chen didn't know what time he fell asleep. He had been feeling weak recently, his brain was dull, he was sleepy, and he had many dreams at night. He often dreamed that he was still huddled in that dark layer, knocking and scratching for a long time but no one responded.
In the middle of the night, a hand suddenly touched his shoulder. Shen woke up immediately and grabbed the man's fingers fiercely, while his other hand touched the hilt of the knife.
The woman gasped in pain and explained hastily, "It's me, Danxin."
Shen thought she was going to use the same old trick again, so he stared at her helplessly, but he saw that the girl suddenly leaned down and whispered in his ear: "It seems something happened outside."
Shen was stunned for a moment, then he realized that the ship was heading in the wrong direction.
The moon is bright tonight, the wind is not strong, and the water is not rushing. The merchant ship should not stop at anchor. Moreover, even if it wants to stop at anchor, it will enter the port before dark.
It's the middle of the night now, why is the boat leaning towards the shore?
Chen Que immediately got up and dressed, and went out with Danxin to take a look. As soon as they left the cabin, they saw a sailor approaching them and scolding them, "Are you two looking for death? A fast horse ship just came, and the officials above have issued an order that all ships of all sizes on the canal should be moored and checked one by one."
"You guys who haven't even been arrested yet, why don't you find a place to hide? If you get caught, I'm afraid we will be implicated too."
Dan Xin asked hurriedly: "What do you want to investigate? Can the official reveal anything?"
"Who knows?" the sailor said viciously. "I've been sailing for so long and I've never encountered anything like this. You two should go back to the cabin!"
The two of them had no choice but to retreat back into the cabin.
The man called Lao Si had just gone out to relieve himself, but was driven back. He said, "Oh my god, I heard there's a fugitive hiding on the canal. I just saw the helmsman holding a warrant and was about to go over to take a look when they drove me back."
"What kind of fugitive is this that requires such a large-scale mobilization to capture him?"
Shen Que was already very upset, and after listening to his explanation, he felt disappointed.
He was the confidant of Prince Yan and knew too many of his secrets, but Shen never expected that His Highness would go to such great lengths to take his life.
Once the ship docked, he would never be able to escape.
No, he couldn't just sit there and wait for death. There was a way, there had to be a way.
Seeing the panic in his eyes, Danxin seemed to realize something and whispered in his ear: "Once those officers and soldiers get on the boat, I'm afraid we won't be able to escape - jump?"
Shen's eyes widened.
Then she said, "Jump down. Maybe there's a chance of survival."
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