Mistakenly Connected to the Jade Flower Branch

In June, the heat is inescapable, but the river breeze stirs the moonlight.

Someone… Nianyao, without opening her eyes, reached for the dagger under her pillow and thrust it forward.

She moved quickly; the person seemed to have used something to block the dagger. Nianyao opened her eyes and, by the moonlight, saw a blurry, familiar figure in front of her: "What are you doing standing in front of my bed?"

The person in front of her didn't move. Nianyao said gruffly, "What are you still standing there for? Go to sleep!"

With a flash of light, Luo An lit the lamp. Nian Yao then saw drops of blood dripping from his arm onto the floor.

Nianyao kicked off the blanket and jumped out of bed: "You're not mute, you're not stupid. You don't know how to dodge a knife? You've forgotten all the martial arts my father taught you."

In the middle of the night, who would imagine that someone having a nightmare could kill someone? It usually takes a long time for most people to wake up from a nightmare. With such a high level of alertness, the old gang leader was still worried she'd be bullied; he was really overthinking it.

Nianyao moved his precious medicine box and rummaged through it. Luo An simply pushed her hands away, first wiping the bloodstains on his arm with a towel, then applying the wound medicine and wrapping it with white gauze.

He moved slowly and deliberately, and didn't even cry out in pain. But wrapping a bandage around one hand was still inconvenient. Nianyao couldn't bear to see it and came over to wrap it up quickly. Her movements were as rough as ever, but the bandage was done very well.

After bandaging her wound, Nianyao brought water and cleaned the room thoroughly: "You can sleep on the bed tonight, I'll sleep on the floor."

Luo An ignored her, lay down on the floor, pulled the blanket over himself, and closed his eyes with his back to the bed. Nian Yao raised her foot to kick him but then pulled it back; it was ultimately her fault for accidentally hurting him.

Nianyao said, "I've lived on a boat since I was a child and I'm a martial artist, so I'm quite strong. You're weak, and you'll easily catch a cold if you sleep on the ground. If you catch a cold and cough, it will keep me awake."

Nianyao waited a while before lying back down on the bed. The lights were still on, and the curtain between them wasn't drawn. The room was exceptionally bright.

Just as Luo An was about to fall asleep, he suddenly heard Nian Yao say, "I dreamt of my father, and my mother... My mother died when I was very young, I don't remember her at all, how could I dream of her? She was so young, she looked even younger than me, how could she be my mother? I've never had a mother, and now I don't have a father, I'm all alone. Although my uncles are all very nice, none of them are my father. I miss my father, I miss him so much..."

Nianyao's voice was filled with sorrow and tears. Luo An wondered if he had misheard. He turned to the side and saw a clear tear slowly streaming down Nianyao's cheek, all the way to her ear and soaking into her hair.

Luo An felt as if his heart had been pricked by a needle; the pain was fleeting, almost like an illusion.

Nianyao hastily pulled the blanket to wipe away her tears: "There are so many men on Chongming Island, why did my father marry me off to you? Your weak and aloof scholar-like appearance is not my type at all. I like someone who is passionate, lively, strong, skilled in martial arts, and capable of steering, escorting, and managing affairs, like Brother Kongming. But you, all you can do is treat illnesses."

Nianyao spoke excitedly, sitting up in bed: "My room used to always smell nice. My dad would pick a bouquet of fresh flowers and put it in the room every day. Now, the first thing I smell when I come in is medicine. When I was little, I was sickly, and my dad would always force me to take very bitter medicine. I hated doctors the most. They always had that unpleasant smell of medicine on them. I hated that smell."

Luo An looked at the vase on the table. Indeed, a new bouquet was changed every day. Originally, the old gang leader picked the flowers himself, but later, when the old gang leader's health deteriorated, a servant was responsible for changing the flowers for the old gang leader and Nian Yao every day without fail.

Nanfei commented: "It is rare to find a wicked person with good intentions and a rough man with elegance."

Nianyao said, "And you're mute, you can't speak. You can't say when you're angry, you can't say when you're happy, and you won't respond when I talk to you. I told my father I wouldn't marry you, but he insists. He even insists we sleep in the same room. Is he possessed or confused? How could he marry his only daughter to a mute?"

She kept saying she was mute. Luo An turned his back and went to sleep. Nian Yao glared angrily at his back, then lay heavily on the bed, slamming the bed frame down with a creaking sound.

No matter how unwilling she was, it was a fait accompli. Her father was dead, and there would never be anyone in this world who would unconditionally pamper and tolerate her again. And she still had to face the boring, mute husband forced upon her every day.

Nianyao murmured, "Kongming-ge, when are you coming back?"

Perhaps it was a meeting of minds, for Ji Kongming returned the following evening.

Nianyao was marking hydrological maps in the council hall when she heard someone shout from outside: "Chief Ship Manager Ji is back."

Without a second thought, Nianyao rushed out and leaped onto the tower, where she saw the Pangu slowly docking at the pier. The last rays of the setting sun fell upon Ji Kongming, making him appear like a triumphant hero radiating light.

Nianyao put her hands to her mouth, making a megaphone shape, and called out, "Brother Kongming."

The call of "Brother Kongming" lingered on. Ji Kongming lightly touched the ground with his toes, leaping into the air and landing steadily in front of Nianyao, drawing cheers from the crowd.

Nianyao grabbed Ji Kongming: "Brother Kongming, was the journey smooth?"

Ji Kongming said, "Of course it went smoothly. The gang leader was worried that the royal goods wouldn't be delivered. I wanted to prove to him that there's no shipment that Ji Kongming can't deliver by river. By the way, how is the old gang leader's health?"

Upon hearing this, Nianyao burst into tears: "Father is gone. He passed away on the eighteenth of last month."

Ji Kongming was stunned: "Didn't the old gang leader get out of bed before I left? He looked quite well then, how could it be so sudden?"

Nianyao said, "Doctor Luo said it was a final burst of energy before death."

Ji Kongming said, "Dr. Luo is truly a miracle doctor. He said the old gang leader wouldn't make it past June... When I saw the old gang leader's complexion improving, I didn't believe it at all, but it turns out it was true."

Ji Kongming looked around: "Over the years, the old gang leader treated me like his own son. Without him, I wouldn't be where I am today. Yao Mei, don't worry, even though the old gang leader is gone, you still have me, Uncle Liu, Uncle Xu, Uncle Jiu, and many other brothers of the Dahe Gang. By the way, where is the old gang leader's memorial tablet? I need to go and pay my respects."

Someone nearby said, "Brother Ji is truly a man of integrity and loyalty; no wonder he is highly regarded by the old gang leader."

Ji Kongming first went to the ancestral hall to pay respects to the old gang leader. When he came out, he saw that the square was full of wine jars.

Nianyao said, "Brother Kongming, you have successfully delivered the goods and returned home. According to tradition, we should still celebrate."

Successful large-scale and high-profile escorts are always worth celebrating; after braving wind and rain, one should always seek good fortune.

When the Crown Prince of Dongyang married his Crown Princess, the royal family of Nanyue presented him with a pair of jade phoenixes, entrusting them to transport them by sea to the Haizhou Bay wharf. The price offered was one thousand taels of silver, making it the largest single transaction since the founding of the Dahe Gang.

The old gang leader was very cautious about the choice of escorts, and Ji Kongming volunteered without hesitation. Before they set off, the old gang leader, despite his illness, saw them off at the dock and told them to be extremely careful and not to make any mistakes.

Ji Kongming lived up to expectations and returned victorious.