Song Jiyun couldn’t help but frown.
The arguing outside grew louder, "Fine, we won’t take your boat. Give us back the remaining fare. A total of two hundred taels of silver, you’ve sailed half the distance, just give us back one hundred taels of silver and that’s it."
It was Hong Xi’s voice.
Song Jiyun couldn’t help but walk over to push open the window.
Hong Xi, supporting the frail Hong Zhao, said coldly to the boat owner, "Don’t think you can just ride on the coattails of the Grain Transport Gang. I’m going to Yingtian Prefecture to ask around right now."
As he spoke, he took out a red invitation from his bosom and called out loudly to the people around, "I am a relative of the Prefectural Magistrate’s family from Shuntian Prefecture. I would be grateful if someone could help us deliver a message, and I will reward you handsomely."
The onlookers were all taken aback.
But the boat owner became somewhat flustered and said in a hurry, "If it’s a refund you want, then it’s a refund you shall have. Why are you being so aggressive?" As he spoke, he called his apprentice over to give the refund.
Hong Xi did not argue with him anymore.
Yet someone nearby asked, "Young Master, do you still need us to help deliver a message to Shuntian Prefecture?"
Hong Xi thanked the man and said, "It wouldn’t be good to just show up at a relative’s door like this. We will find an inn to clean up first and then it wouldn’t be too late to pay a visit."
People didn’t dare to underestimate him, and he called for a sedan and left the dock.
Song Jiyun smiled to herself, feeling that the invitation in Hong Xi’s hand was most likely a bluff to scare people.
She sat back down in front of her desk, and only went to sleep after midnight sounded.
Zhou Zheng and the others didn’t come back until the next morning, yawning ceaselessly. They were somewhat embarrassed to see Song Jiyun walking on the deck.
Song Jiyun, having also stayed up all night before, didn’t think much of it, and greeted them with a smile, "You’re back! Have you had breakfast? Today the boat has made duck blood stew, it’s quite good. Do you want to eat something quickly and then go to sleep? We set sail at noon."
Zhou Zheng and the others nodded sheepishly and scampered off.
They exuded a touch of youthful air.
Song Jiyun smiled faintly while strolling on the deck, and continued to mull over her journey to the Capital City in her mind.
"Miss Song!" someone exclaimed in surprise.
As she turned around, it was Hong Xi, followed by a fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy dressed as a servant boy, carrying a bundle and supporting Hong Xi, boarding the boat next to hers.
"It really is you!" He showed the kind of surprise one feels when meeting an old acquaintance in a foreign place, "How come you are here?"
He surveyed Song Jiyun’s boat.
It seemed he was still unaware of her trip to the Capital City.
Song Jiyun thought to herself and walked to the side of the boat to talk to him, "I’m going to the Capital City, stopping here to resupply."
Hong Xi was clearly very happy and said, "I’m also going to the Capital City, I didn’t expect us to be travelling together."
As they talked, a quarrel erupted from his cabin.
Song Jiyun and Hong Xi looked toward the source of the noise, only to see a boat owner blocking Hong Zhao and the servant boy from entering, "I don’t care who sold you tickets, our boat has been chartered by someone else. You better find another boat quickly."
Hong Xi’s expression changed and he quickly approached, "What’s going on?"
The boat owner spoke harshly, "We don’t take passengers like you on our boat."
Hong Xi became furious, "But when I asked you yesterday, you agreed to it without issue."
The boat owner’s voice also started to rise, "But you didn’t say your companion was sick."
"He doesn’t have an illness," Hong Xi insisted, unable to hold back his argument, "He’s just seasick! If he were sick, I’d definitely take him to see a doctor, not take him on a long trip."
No matter what, the boat owner refused to let them into the cabin, even going so far as to plead desperately with Hong Xi, "Please be kind, I’ll refund you triple, no, quadruple the fare. We can’t let my business fail just because of your brother, right?"
From time to time, people in the cabin would stick their heads out to look around. Judging by their expressions, it seemed like someone had said something that made the other passengers unwilling to accept traveling with the Hong brothers.
Hong Xi obviously noticed it too. He was extremely angry, but powerless.
Hong Zhao watched the scene unfold as if enjoying a play, a tragic smile on his face as he said to Hong Xi, "You don’t need to put on an act of brotherly love for me. You can just leave me here. I don’t want to live anyway."
Hong Xi’s lips were tightly pressed together, as he tried to say something more to the boat owner, but Song Jiyun could no longer stand by silently and sighed, "Young Master Hong, if you don’t mind, please keep me company!"
He was stunned.
Song Jiyun said, "It means you’ll have to put up with staying at the stern of the boat. We have quite a few people traveling with us, so we can’t free up two cabins."
"Thank you, thank you so much!" Hong Xi was overjoyed.
Watching him, Song Jiyun always felt there was a glint in the corner of his eye, as if there were a flicker of moisture.
After the Hong brothers boarded the ship, Song Jiyun had Zheng Quan take care of them and then returned to her own cabin.
Soon after, Zheng Quan came over and said, "That second Young Master Hong really isn’t sick. If I’m not mistaken, he seems to have given up on eating and drinking because he doesn’t want to live."
That was even more troublesome.
If he committed suicide on the boat, they’d probably lose the ship.
Song Jiyun felt she had thought too simply about the situation. All she could do was to ask Zheng Quan, "Please trouble Dai Sishi to keep a closer watch."
Zheng Quan agreed and went to give the orders.
By noon, they had left Nanjing.
Hong Xi requested an audience.
Song Jiyun met him in the guest cabin.
"Things have changed," he reflected. "Ever since I was recognized by the Hong family, I’ve been subjected to all kinds of disdain, but I never imagined that after the family’s downfall, we’d encounter even more despicable people and incidents."
Clearly, he had suffered a lot after the fall of the Hong family. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞
Without experiencing the bitterness of others, one shouldn’t persuade them to be virtuous.
Song Jiyun could only offer vague consolation, "Life is always like this. No one knows what tomorrow will bring."
Hong Xi seemed to be contemplating her words for a while, then laughed self-mockingly with a hint of satisfaction, "Don’t worry, I will take good care of Hong Zhao." He explained, "I am going this time to seek support from Lord Cao, the Vice Minister of Communications. He was a classmate and a close friend of my teacher when I was studying in Hangzhou. It was my teacher who recommended me for this trip to the Capital City."
He also told Song Jiyun that after he was released from prison, he went straight to Hangzhou, intending to continue his studies, but for some reason, he couldn’t settle down to read. His teacher suggested he travel for a few years and also advised him to visit the Capital City.
"I think my teacher’s advice makes sense," he said with a bitter smile. "Who knew I would run into Hong Zhao in Nanjing. He was feverish, sickly, and delirious, abandoned on the street by an innkeeper. If I hadn’t taken a second glance..."
He shook his head, "I thought I would hate him. I had walked two streets away, but still couldn’t bear it, and went back to take him to a clinic."
The affair of the Hong family was almost universally known in Liang County, as was the feud between him and Hong Zhao.
Song Jiyun felt he wasn’t seeking comfort from her or her opinions on these matters, but deep down he was distressed and needed someone to talk to.
"I took him to the Capital City, yet he was unwilling. He kept insisting that he was about to die. I can’t recall how many times I’ve had to explain to others along the way... but when I think of my father, I find it hard to be indifferent. He never intended for us brothers to recognize each other when he was alive, simply because he loved us both."
He rambled on, causing Wang Hua to come and check in frequently.
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