Un jeune homme maladif qui voyage dans le temps jusqu'à la dynastie Song

Chapitre 5

Fang was truly hungry. She squatted at the edge of the field and ate several pancakes and most of a pot of rice in no time. She also drank some water before letting out a satisfied burp.

Gu Zao ate only a pancake, half a bowl of rice, and a few sips of soup before feeling full. After Qingwu also put down his chopsticks, Third Sister packed up her things and went home.

There was no shade by the field ridges. Feeling sorry for Qingwu, Gu Zao draped her wet towel over Qingwu's head and let him sit down and rest for a while. She then followed Fang Shi to continue cutting rice. After more than an hour, seeing that the field was full of rows of cut rice stalks, they stopped. Fang Shi gathered the rice stalks, filled two baskets, and then carried them home quickly.

Gu Zao looked at the field full of rice stalks and felt a little worried. With her current strength, she could only help Fang Shi harvest the rice; she simply couldn't carry these two baskets of wet stalks. There was no cart or anything like that at home, and since it was the busy farming season, even some families needed one themselves, and there was nowhere to rent one. Fang Shi was left to make the round trip alone. Fortunately, the distance from the field to home wasn't too far. She also wondered if there was a threshing machine here. Would she have to stomp on the rice, rub it by hand, or pound it with a pestle to remove the grains once she got home?

At this moment, she deeply felt the hardship of being a farmer, and hated that she didn't have the ability to build something like a threshing machine. Seeing that Fang had already returned, her face was covered in sweat from the sun, but she didn't bother to wipe it off. After Gu Zao helped load the second load, she hurriedly flew away again.

Gu Zao sighed, then bent down again and continued cutting rice with Qingwu, which was then carried home by Fang Shi in trip after trip.

As evening fell and darkness descended, the harvested rice from the three acres of land was finally brought home and stacked in the yard. After a quick meal, the family of four, without even taking a break, began threshing the rice under the moonlight in the yard.

Fang's hands were thick-skinned and she wasn't afraid of the prickling, so she rubbed the rice ears like a sieve. Before long, the basket next to her was filled with a thick layer of threshed rice. Gu Zao sighed that she didn't have that skill, and she and her third sister Qingwu each took a stick and pounded the rice. The whole family worked until the moon was high in the sky, and only when they thought about going to the fields the next day did they pack up and rest.

Gu Zaozao was so exhausted that she felt like her body was falling apart. She fell into a deep sleep as soon as her head touched the mat. When she woke up the next morning, she felt as if her whole body had been run over by a car. No part of her body was unharmed. Her third sister felt sorry for her, but she prepared the family's food for the day early in the morning and took it to the fields. She closed the courtyard gate and said that she would also go to the fields.

The whole family worked tirelessly in the fields for five or six days to harvest all the rice on the five mu of land. They then threshed the ears, winnowed away the empty husks and other debris in a breezy spot, and left the rice to dry in the hot sun for three or four days. This continued for more than half a month before they finally finished. Fang Shi was already dark-skinned, so it wasn't noticeable, but Gu Zao's face was already more than a layer darkened by the sun.

This year's harvest was quite good. The three mu of fertile fields by the river yielded nearly two shi of rice per mu, and the two mu of barren fields together yielded a total of nine shi of rice. After deducting the taxes to be paid to the government, nearly seven shi, or more than a thousand jin, ended up in the granary.

Looking at the golden millet filling the village, Fang was overjoyed, but the thought that her five acres of land would soon belong to Mao Tuanzi made her feel a pang of heartache.

Gu Zao pondered for a moment and said to Fang Shi, "Mother, since we are going to Tokyo and we can't take this grain with us, it's just feeding the hamsters anyway. I might as well go to the county town and see if it's suitable to sell it all."

Although Fang was heartbroken, she thought it made sense and had no choice but to agree, but she repeatedly told him not to sell it cheaply.

Last time he went into the county town, he rode in Fan Niangzi's mule cart. This time, however, he didn't have such a good ride. Gu Zao walked for almost half the distance before he flagged down a car that was also going into the county town. He paid a few coins and finally got a ride. But by the time he arrived, it was already noon.

Gu Zao, without even having lunch, went straight to the rice market and asked about prices at each shop, only to be somewhat disappointed. It turned out that this year's harvest was plentiful, so prices naturally couldn't go up. The rice shops were selling for 48 coins per dou, and some were even buying at as low as 30 coins per dou, while the slightly higher prices were only one or two coins more.

Gu Zao was unwilling to sell his hard-earned rice at such a low price, so he could only leave the rice shop dejectedly. He felt unbearably hungry and saw a stall selling fried dough sticks by the roadside. He took out two coins, bought a fried dough stick, and slowly began to eat it.

We're leaving Dongshan Village.

The fried dough sticks were a bit overcooked and had a rough texture, but Gu Zao was preoccupied and didn't pay much attention to the taste. He walked slowly along the street for a few steps, then looked up and saw a broker's shop by the roadside. On a whim, he quickly ate the remaining fried dough sticks in a few bites and stepped into the shop.

The shop was small, and an elderly man in his fifties was sitting behind the counter, head down, one hand rapidly calculating on an abacus; he must be the broker.

When the broker saw someone arrive, he looked up at Gu Zao and said slowly, "Young lady, are you looking to hire laborers or craftsmen?"

Gu stepped forward a few paces, smiling obsequiously, and said, "I've come to inquire if anyone wants rice."

The broker laughed and said, "You're quite a character, young lady. If you wanted to sell rice, you should have gone to the rice shops at the back of the street. Why did you end up here?"

Seeing that the broker had a kind face, Gu Zao calmed down and said unhurriedly, "Since you're running a business, as long as you make money, what does it matter what kind of business it is?"

The broker chuckled, putting down his abacus: "You're quite witty, young lady. Tell me, how do you plan to make a profit from this business?"

Gu Zao said, "Judging from your appearance, you must have been a broker for many years and are very familiar with the restaurants and taverns in the county town. If those restaurants and taverns use rice, how much would it cost if they bought it from the rice shop?"

The broker said, "It's slightly lower than the market price."

Gu Zao said, "That's it. I have some rice to sell, and the price is naturally lower than what he buys from the rice shop. If you act as a middleman, wouldn't all three parties benefit?"

The broker chuckled, stood up, and said, “Young lady, you’re quite shrewd. You’ve had some good luck today, running into me. A few days ago, a winery in the east of the city asked me to buy some new grain to brew high-quality wine. The price they offered wasn’t as high as the rice shop’s selling price, but it wasn’t too low either. This year, ordinary people have received a few more bushels of grain, but after paying taxes, there’s not much left. Most of them save it up for their own use throughout the year, so they’re reluctant to sell it. I was quite worried about this, but then you came to my door.”

Gu Zao was overjoyed. He took out a handful of rice he had packed from his pocket and showed it to the broker. Seeing that he was satisfied, he immediately agreed on a price of forty coins per bushel and arranged for the rice to be delivered early the next morning. Gu Zao then thanked the broker and left the broker's shop.

By the time Gu Zao got home, it was already afternoon. Gu Zao told Fang Shi the price, and Fang Shi considered it for a moment, finding it somewhat low. She kept muttering to herself, but Gu Zao ignored her, took a sip of cold water, and hurriedly went out again, heading towards the village head's wife's house. Her family owned dozens of acres of fertile land and were considered a wealthy household. They also had a mule cart, which Gu Zao wanted to borrow to transport rice to the county town early the next morning.

When the lady of the house heard Gu Zao's purpose, she readily agreed, saying that she would have the family's farmhands bring a mule cart over the next morning. Only then did Gu Zao feel relieved and return home.

The next day, the mule cart was indeed parked outside the courtyard gate early in the morning. Five or six large sacks filled with rice were neatly stacked on the mule cart. Gu Zao jumped onto the mule cart. Fang Shi wanted to go too, but there was really no room for her on the cart, so she had no choice but to give up.

Upon arriving at the brokerage shop in the county town, the broker led Gu Zao, and they drove the mule cart, creaking and groaning, all the way to the winery in the east of the town. The owner inspected the rice and counted the money according to the agreed price. Just then, a young man wearing a turban came in from outside the workshop. He approached the owner in a flustered manner and said, "Sir, I just opened the newly brewed vats of soy sauce, but they've grown moldy inside again. What should we do?"

The shop owner stopped counting the money, stamped his foot, and cursed, "You useless bastard! Everyone else produces oil vat by vat, but how come it all turns to mush in your hands? I opened a soy sauce factory after listening to your advice, but I haven't made any money. Instead, I'm losing money every day. If you don't produce any more oil, you'll be packing your bags and leaving!"

The kid was scolded and looked miserable, unable to say a word.

Gu Zao couldn't help but ask, "The soy sauce that the old man wants to brew, is it that kind of reddish-brown oil used in cooking, which has a savory flavor?"

The shopkeeper glanced at Gu Zao and sighed, "That's right, it's that reddish-brown oil. It's so much clearer and more fragrant than soybean paste. I heard that in Bianjing City, since last year, most of the well-known taverns and restaurants have stopped using soybean paste and started using this instead. So I thought I'd make some myself to sell, hoping to get started in the county and make some early money. But the juice I made was either bland or infested with worms, and this time it's even moldy. I can only blame myself for thinking it would be too easy."

When Gu Zao was learning the art of making private dishes from his master, he had also tried making various kinds of sauces in pursuit of unique flavors. After thinking for a moment, he said, "The more soybeans you use to make soy sauce, the fresher it will be; the more flour you use, the sweeter it will be. Adding a little sesame oil will make it even more fragrant. If you have worms, use six or seven aconite and stemona root, cut each into four pieces, and arrange them at the bottom of the jar. The worms in the center of the four sides will die and never grow back. As for the mold, it's not difficult. Just add a cup of licorice juice, and make sure it's sun-dried enough. Do not add any raw water, and it will be fine naturally."

Upon hearing this, the workshop owner was overjoyed and said, "So, young lady, you are an expert in brewing. Would you be willing to stay at my soy sauce factory as a master craftswoman? I will certainly not treat you unfairly in terms of wages."

Gu Zao laughed and said, "I dare not accept the title of master. I was just saying a few words casually. I cannot guarantee whether it will work or not. Why don't you send two more jars to see? If it really works, send more so as not to waste the stuff."

The shopkeeper was nodding vigorously, quickly counting out the money and handing it to Gu Zao. It totaled three strings of cash and six hundred and thirty coins. Gu Zao counted it and was about to take out the broker's fee when the shopkeeper generously paid it for her. Gu Zao thanked him with a smile, then put away the money and returned home, handing over all the money to Fang Shi.

Just after the autumn harvest, Mao Tuanzi's family came to urge her to hand over the land. Helpless, Fang had no choice but to go with Mao Tuanzi to the village head's house to hand over the land. When she got home, she cursed him for three days straight.

As early as when Gu had agreed with Fang to move to Tokyo, he had Qingwu write a letter to the county magistrate's nephew, asking him to send it to Gu Da in Tokyo via the post station. He mentioned that his family was going to settle in the capital and asked him to help find a cheap house to rent, so that they wouldn't be caught off guard and unable to find a place to live once they arrived.

The letter from here had been sent out for several months, but the reply from there was still nowhere in sight. Madam Fang waited anxiously every day. She was originally reluctant to go, but now that the fields here were gone, and she had heard from somewhere that there was gold everywhere in the capital city, and people were just waiting to pick it up. She had developed a little hope in her heart. Now that there was still no news from Gu Da, she kept muttering to herself every day.

After the busy farming season, many families in the village held weddings, and Gu Zao completed several more orders. The earthenware jar under her bed was already overflowing with coins. Taking advantage of a break while she was in town buying supplies for her employer, she secretly went to the official paper money shop. By this time, paper money had spread from Yizhou to the entire country. It bore ten copper coin stamps, official seals, and shop marks, with denominations ranging from one to ten strings of cash, one string being equivalent to 770 mo. Gu Zao exchanged a five-string paper money note, leaving her with only a few hundred large coins for emergencies. She had originally intended to ask Fang Shi to exchange her money for paper money as well, as it would be convenient to carry into the capital. However, Fang Shi was worried and refused, clinging to the copper coins. Gu Zao didn't force her.

That evening, after the family had finished dinner, Fang was still talking about it when the village head's wife walked over with a smile, holding a letter in her hand. It turned out to be a letter from Gu Da in the capital, which had finally been brought back. The letter was written in the tone of Gu's eldest sister-in-law, Hu, saying that she was very pleased to learn that her younger brother and sister-in-law's family was going to the city, and that she had already helped them find a house, so they could come over without worry.

Not to mention Fang Shi and her third sister Qingwu, even Gu Zao was quite pleased to read the letter. She thought to herself that although they hadn't been in contact for many years, just by looking at the tone of the reply, Hu Shi seemed to be a good person.

Once the decision to set off was made, the whole family began packing their belongings. Except for the house, which couldn't be moved, Fang Shi practically wanted to take everything with her. The final contents were piled high like a small mountain. Gu Zao looked through them and saw that even bowls, plates, chopsticks, and pots were included. Gu Zao was both amused and exasperated. Fang Shi, however, argued, "Although the capital is overflowing with gold, these things must be very expensive. We're going by water anyway; it'll just be a bit more arduous on the way, but we can save some money when we get there." Gu Zao argued with her for a while, and Fang Shi finally relented, removing the heavy bed frame and cabinets. In the end, however, she still packed seven or eight bags of various sizes, refusing to reduce the amount. Gu Zao had no choice but to let her have her way.

Fang carefully packed up everything in the house that she couldn't take with her. Even the bench with the missing leg was locked tightly in her room, with nothing exposed. She had also picked and eaten all the vegetables in the garden in the yard. In the end, only the two spotted pigs in the pigsty remained, which was a problem.

According to Gu Zao's suggestion, the two pigs were sold to the butcher. However, Fang was reluctant to part with them, saying that she had raised them until the end of the year. Judging from her words, she actually wanted to board a ship and rush to Tokyo.

Gu Zao was shocked. Early that morning, while she was out, she called her third sister Qingwu, and together they drove the pig to the butcher's house at the west end of the village to sell it, keeping two loads of pigs for themselves. She sent one load to the village head's wife, formally entrusting her with the care of the fields and harvest, and sent the other load to Granny Gu.

The old woman, Granny Gu, was the same one who had shown Gu Zao the way when she first arrived, and later helped stop the bleeding of the woman with the small, round face, bringing her a bowl of sweet water. Gu Zao was a grateful woman, and thinking that since she was leaving her hometown, she wanted to repay even the smallest kindness tenfold, so she helped her up to express her gratitude. Granny Gu thanked her profusely, grabbing Gu Zao's hand and repeatedly pleading with Heaven to open its eyes and let her find a suitable husband soon so as not to waste her good looks. This made Gu Zao laugh non-stop. Although she was a divorced woman, she was only eighteen years old. She didn't care what others thought of her; she felt like she had suddenly become young again and had made a huge profit. She had no intention of remarrying so early. After exchanging a few more words with the old woman, she took her leave and went home.

As soon as I got home, I could hear Fang scolding my second sister and Qingwu: "You two ungrateful wretches! You only got a few favors from my second sister and you're already behaving like this. When she wanted to slaughter a pig, why didn't you call me? Instead, you silently helped her!"

Gu Zao hurriedly stepped forward, grinning as he grabbed her hand and counted out the money from selling the pig into her hand. He then added two hundred coins for himself, which calmed Fang Shi down a little.

“Mother, if we drive those pigs onto the boat, they'll be filthy, not to mention they might run wild and break free of the reins, and the boat might even capsize. Besides, people aren't allowed to raise pigs under the eaves in the city, so even if you drive them there, it'll be for nothing. That's why I sold them to have some peace and quiet.”

Fang had no choice but to sigh dejectedly.

With everything settled at home, the Gu family, taking advantage of the auspicious day, prepared to leave Dongshan Village. The village head's wife and Granny Gu came to see them off, helping to carry the large and small packages to the dock and load them onto the hired boat. After Gu Zao said goodbye, the boatman set sail towards Bianjing.

Second sister made a move.

The boat entered the canal within two days. It sailed during the day and anchored to rest at night, enjoying smooth sailing all the way. It was the first time Third Sister and Qingwu had left Dongshan Village for such a long journey, and everything was new and exciting to them. They chattered incessantly throughout the trip. Although Gu Zao wasn't as excited as they were, she was also somewhat looking forward to it. Only Fang Shi, from the day she boarded the boat, suffered from dizziness and nausea, vomiting everything she ate. After a few days, she didn't even want to sit up, spending her days lying in the cabin groaning, and seemed to have lost weight. It took more than half a month for her to gradually get used to it. Sometimes she would climb out of the cabin to look at the scenery on the riverbank with Third Sister and Qingwu. Seeing that her complexion was improving, Gu Zao's anxiety, which had been building for so many days, gradually subsided.

After traveling by boat for over a month, they had entered the Bian River. The Bian River led directly to Bianjing (Kaifeng). According to the boatman, every year at least six million shi (a unit of dry measure) of rice from the Jianghuai region were transported to the capital via this river. These were all transported by boat, with each boat carrying anywhere from ten to thirty or fifty vessels forming a large, impressive procession. It was said that there were thousands of these boats on the Bian River every day, plus public and private passenger and cargo ships, totaling no less than ten thousand. The boatman's words left not only Fang's third sister and Qingwu, but even Gu Zao was secretly astonished.

Sure enough, after entering the Bian River, the closer he got to the capital region, the more boats passed by his home, and collisions even occurred from time to time if he wasn't careful.

Finally, they arrived at Shili Town, not far from the capital. Another two or three days' journey would take them to the Bianjing wharf, but the boat could no longer move and slowly came to a stop. Gu Zao went to the bow and looked out, seeing the wide river ahead densely packed with boats of all sizes. The boatman lowered the anchor and steadyed the boat, loudly asking those who had stopped earlier. He learned that there was a narrow passage ahead, and two large boats traveling north and south had collided. Both were influential figures, and neither could swallow their pride, so they argued there, blocking the passage and causing the congestion behind them.

The boatman lamented his bad luck, but Gu Zao wasn't worried. She figured that arguments always have a time to settle down, and once both sides had calmed down, the river would naturally be clear again. Seeing that the sun was high in the sky, and realizing she hadn't had any fresh vegetables on the boat for days, and seeing the bustling activity on both sides of the river, she turned and told the boatman to find a dock so she could go ashore and buy vegetables for the next few days.

The boatman, having eaten nothing but pickled vegetables for days, was thoroughly bored. Hearing that Gu was going to buy groceries, he was delighted and quickly weighed anchor. Spotting a wharf, he prepared to row over, but a nimble little sampan swam past, weaving among the moored boats of various sizes. On the sampan was a little girl of about twelve or thirteen, dressed in old clothes, calling out, "Baked flatbread, fried dough sticks, and refreshing water..." Her sweet voice attracted considerable attention. It turned out she was taking advantage of the lull in the flow of people to sell baked flatbread, fried dough sticks, and refreshing water. The people on the river, already impatient and hungry from waiting, and too lazy to cook themselves, readily took out small coins to buy the baked flatbread and fried dough sticks to fill their stomachs. The little girl's business was surprisingly brisk.

Gu Zao smiled and remarked that this young girl was quite shrewd at business despite her young age. Seeing that the boat had docked, she prepared to go ashore with her third sister. Just then, she heard a scream, seemingly from the girl from before.

Gu Zao turned her head and saw a large pleasure boat moored not far away. The little girl's sampan was moored next to the pleasure boat, but she wasn't doing business. A young man was grabbing her hand and groping her.

The man appeared to be only around ten years old, dressed elegantly and adorned with jade pendants and sachets from head to toe. He had a handsome face, but his eyes had a captivating, almost flirtatious quality. Two servants stood behind him. He was currently holding the young girl's hand, grinning as he said, "Young lady, your voice is quite sweet. Since the boat isn't moving, why don't you board my boat and sing me a song? If you like it, I'll buy all your fried dough sticks and sesame cakes, and even give you some rouge and face powder."

Gu Zao frowned and stopped.

The little girl was pale. Seeing that her hand was firmly held by the frivolous man and she couldn't shake it off for a while, in desperation, she leaned over and bit the man's hand hard. The man cried out in pain and shook her off forcefully. The little girl lost her footing and fell into the river with a splash. The sampan also capsized, and the sesame cakes and fruit floated on the water, bobbing up and down.

The little girl fell into the river, her hands sticking out of the water, crying for help; she clearly couldn't swim. The young man who had been bitten earlier, however, stopped crying out in pain. Grinning, he grabbed a paddle from one of his servants. Gu Zao assumed he was going to rescue her, but to her surprise, he simply dipped the paddle into the water. Once the little girl had a grip, instead of lifting her up, he pulled her up and down in the water, playing with her like a monkey. The two servants behind him laughed uproariously, glancing at the restless people on the surrounding boats. They shouted, "Yang Guifei from the Imperial City of Tokyo is my young master's own sister! He wanted to be kind to this woman, but she bit him instead! She deserves to be dragged away and beaten to death!"

Those on the boat who were initially indignant shrank back when the servant mentioned Yang Guifei's name, only glancing at her furtively, no longer daring to step forward.

The young man seemed to have gotten into the fun. He squatted down by the painted boat, pressed the oar with the little girl's head into the water for a good seven or eight seconds, and then pulled her back up. The little girl had already swallowed several mouthfuls of water, and her hand was loosening, as if she was about to lose her grip.

Seeing that the man was about to push her into the water again, Gu Zao could no longer hold back. She snatched the bamboo pole from the boatman's hand, pushed away Fang Shi who was trying to stop her, and headed towards the painted boat. However, before she had gone halfway, she saw that the girl had already let go of her hand and sank into the water.

Gu Zao was shocked and, without thinking, jumped into the water before even taking off his shoes. The water was a bit murky, and Gu Zao could vaguely see a dark shadow sinking in front of him. He figured it must be the little girl. He swam over, grabbed her waist, and with a kick, his head was already above the surface.

Gu Zao carried the little girl and swam towards his boat. When they reached the boat, Third Sister and Qing Wuzao helped pull the little girl onto the boat. Judging from her appearance, she must have fainted.

Gu Zao was about to board the boat herself when she heard the man in the pleasure boat behind her still pointing and cursing at her. He was squatting by the side of the boat, his oars slapping the water, splashing water everywhere. She was furious, gave a cold laugh, and then plunged into the water again.

The people around, the man, and even his servants were all stunned when Gu Zao suddenly disappeared. But they didn't expect that a moment later, with a "splash," she had already emerged from the side of the painted boat, reached out and yanked the wooden oar that was still in the man's hand. The man was caught off guard and screamed as he was pulled headfirst into the river.

Everyone was shocked, but quickly burst into laughter, pointing at the man struggling in the water. Gu Zao ignored his cries for help and swam back to her boat. She braced herself against the gunwale and was about to board when she heard a deep voice from the pleasure boat behind her: "What's going on here? What's happened?"

Gu Zao had already halfway onto the boat when she turned around and met a pair of dark, deep eyes.

She paused for a moment, then glanced at him. She saw that he was wearing a blue silk robe and was tall, but half of his face was covered by a large beard, so she couldn't tell his age. However, judging from his voice, he shouldn't be very old.

The servants seemed somewhat afraid of him; the arrogance on their faces from a moment ago had vanished, and they stood there with their heads down, forgetting to pull the young master, who was still floating in the water and crying for help.

The man exchanged a glance with Gu Zao and noticed from afar the water droplets rolling down her face, her eyelashes wet, which accentuated her dark, bright eyes. He was momentarily lost in thought. In the blink of an eye, he saw the woman turn away and board the boat on her own. Her clothes were thin and soaked, clinging to her body and revealing her slender waist. Her shoes had fallen off, exposing her snow-white feet and a section of her calf. As he looked at her, he suddenly noticed countless pairs of eyes on the surrounding boats, large and small, staring at him just as he was. A strange displeasure arose in his heart.

Gu Zao boarded the boat, not caring that he was still soaking wet, and ignoring Fang Shi, who was biting her fingers in fear, and squatted down to look at the little girl.

The little girl lay there stiffly with her eyes closed. Gu Zao touched her chest and saw that she was still moving. He knew that she had only temporarily stopped breathing, and his heart was relieved. He then pried open her mouth and leaned over to blow air and press on her. After a while, some water came out of the little girl's mouth, she gurgled a few times in her throat, and her eyes opened.

It was already October, and although it was still the season for wearing only light clothing, the girl was still a bit chilly after coming out of the water and being blown by the wind. Gu Zao was afraid that the girl would catch a cold, so she asked her third sister to help her inside to change her clothes. Before she could even catch her breath, she was met with a barrage of angry words from Madam Fang.

Just as Madam Fang finished chanting "Amitabha," she turned around and saw the tall, ornate boat approaching her ship. The young master had already been pulled out and was lying on the deck, panting heavily, soaking wet. He was surrounded by a large group of servants and delicate maids and servants who had appeared out of nowhere, all crying and wailing. Seeing the stern-looking bearded man standing to the side, she was so frightened that her legs were trembling like a sieve. She secretly cursed herself, grabbed Gu Zao, and poked her finger at her face.

"Second sister, you troublemaker! So many men around didn't dare to step forward, what were you doing, a woman, trying to be so brave? It would have been fine if you had rescued that little girl, but why did you drag that young master of the Yang family into this mess? Do you think you can afford to offend such a royal relative? I'm afraid that before we even reach Tokyo, the whole family will be ruined by you. How am I supposed to face Gu Er in the afterlife then..."

Gu Zao let Fang Shi continue to scold him, wrapped himself in an outer garment handed to him by his third sister, and looked at the people on the painted boat that was approaching from the opposite side.

Arrived in Tokyo

The two boats gradually drew closer. The deck of the pleasure boat was much higher, and the bearded man simply stood quietly by the gunwale, looking down at Gu Zao.

Gu Zao's hair was still dripping wet, but she wrapped her clothes tightly around herself and raised her head to look coldly at the bearded man.

Seeing that Gu Zao didn't shy away from his gaze at all, the man thought to himself that this woman was quite impolite. He frowned slightly, and his gaze followed her half-dry coat downwards, only to find that her white, unbound feet were still exposed. His frown deepened.