Mistakenly Connected to the Jade Flower Branch

Nianyao stayed in Yaochi for two days without going out, and Luo An was responsible for bringing her meals. Nianyao was in the small hall perfecting the design drawings for the Jingwei spacecraft, while Luo An sat opposite her reading a book, occasionally chatting for a bit.

A simple meal, a few words, casual conversations and eye contact—affection grows stronger day by day.

On the third day, Yan Zeyi came to Chongming Island and brought back three pieces of news:

First, one of the two betraying ship owners escaped and disappeared, while the other was executed for treason. Zhou Yan temporarily appointed his deputy to act as ship owner.

Secondly, Xiling stationed troops in Jiangzhou. All ships and personnel from Jiangyang County to Jiangzhou were detained. The ship captains from Jiangyang County to Jiangxinzhou who had originally sought refuge with Ji Kongming directly surrendered to Xiling.

Third, Ji Kongming did not go south as expected.

Yan Zeyu said, "Brother Zhou said that Ji Kongming's inaction is probably waiting for the Xiling army to descend from Jiangzhou. Brother Zhou suggested that the ships from Jiangzhou to Guanzhou section of the river be withdrawn to the section from Wulongzhou to Yuezhou and temporarily merged with the shipyards on other islands."

Yuezhou? "My father sent her to Yuezhou, where she jumped off a cliff in Xiangshan and committed suicide."

Nianyao suddenly said, "Ninth Brother, have Luo An come over."

Qin Jiu readily accepted the order: "Young Master, the Chief requests your presence in the council hall."

Nanfei asked obsequiously, "Ninth Brother, how much will you give me this time? It can't be less than last time, can it?"

Qin Jiu smiled enigmatically: "Young Master, the Chief invites you."

Luo An stood up with the book in his hand, and Nan Fei followed reluctantly behind.

Luo An naturally sat next to Nian Yao, and Qin Jiu recounted the situation to Luo An.

Nianyao said, "The section of the river from Jiangyang County to Jiangzhou is an inland river, so it's understandable that Xiling seized the boats. Downstream from Jiangzhou is Nanyue. For many years, various countries have prohibited other countries from operating on the river, which has given the river gangs the opportunity to develop. If they go downstream, aren't they afraid of going to war with Nanyue?"

Liu Lin glanced at Luo An. Luo An opened the book and continued reading; he hadn't finished the previous one.

Liu Lin said, "Shizhou originally belonged to Xiling. Back then, the first emperor of Nanyue sent troops to Xiling to seize Shizhou. Originally, he wanted to continue to seize the southwest, but he almost lost his life when he mistakenly entered the Zhangqi Forest in Hengshan and had to retreat. For many years, Xiling has been eyeing Shizhou covetously. In addition, Shizhou has a complex terrain that is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Xiling should want to take this opportunity to recover the lost territory."

Nianyao said, "Then let's follow Uncle Zhou's suggestion and retreat the ships first. If Xiling continues down the river, we'll move all the ship owners from west of Yuezhou to east of Yuezhou. Nanyue isn't worried about not engaging in battle, and as a Jianghu gang, we don't need to provoke Xiling."

The council members nodded in agreement.

Nianyao looked at Luo An beside her. He was always very serious when reading, but this time he seemed unusually focused. "The Collection of Treatises on the Mechanisms of Diseases and the Importance of Preserving Life through Qi," what a lousy book, so difficult to pronounce.

Nianyao nudged him with her elbow: "Hey, what do you think?"

Luo An looked up and saw Nian Yao with a defiant attitude, as if she wouldn't stop until Nian Yao spoke.

Luo An put down his book, thought for a moment, then turned to Nan Fei and asked, "What do you think?"

Before Nanfei could even speak, Nianyao said in an annoyed tone, "I'm asking you, why are you asking him?"

Luo An said, "I don't understand military strategy."

Nianyao said, "He understands?"

A serious meeting can instantly turn into a quarrel between a young couple.

Luo An said, "His wife is a general."

Nianyao said, "Just because his wife is a general, does that mean he understands military strategy? Your wife is the leader of a boat guild, but can you steer a boat, fish, or dive?"

Nianyao spoke fluently. Luo An was stunned by her words, and everyone else was stunned as well.

Seeing him in a daze, Nianyao felt both annoyed and a little sorry for him. Turning her head, she saw everyone staring at her, probably because they thought she was too fierce.

Nianyao softened her tone: "Send four more ships to Uncle Zhou Yan. If Ji Kongming wants to take advantage of the Xiling uprising to go south, don't be polite. Captain Yan will stay on Chongming Island tonight and set off with the ships tomorrow."

Nanfei blurted out, "Where did all these ships come from?"

Nian Yao glanced at him, then turned to Qin Jiu, her tone aggressive: "I told you to call him Luo An, why are you calling him Nan Fei?"

Qin Jiu said, "Uh... I was calling you Young Master."

"A scholar can be killed but not humiliated," Nanfei slammed his fist on the table and left.

There was a ship on Chongming Island that patrolled around the island. It was given to Zhou Yan on Jiangxinzhou Island on the day of the ship association's conference. The ship could carry 1,300 people, with about 400 to 500 people on daily patrols, and the standard configuration should be 1,000 people.

Nianyao said four more ships would be dispatched. Where are the ships? Where are the people?

Nanfei stared blankly at the dock, realizing that the Dahe Gang was not just composed of fishing boats and cargo ships of all sizes, and boat people struggling in the wind and waves.

He who controls the Yellow River Gang controls the world. The Southern Yue has been meticulously supporting the Yellow River Gang, and will not tolerate the Western Mausoleum's insolence.

If Nanyue wins, the area upstream from Jiangxin Island will become Nanyue's inner river, and the Dahebang will be Nanyue's private property. Given past grievances and old scores, Dongyang, separated by only one river, will be in danger.

Which emperor didn't dream of unifying the world and looking down upon all living beings?

When Nanfei returned to the teahouse, Luo An was reading a book there.

Nanfei took out a money pouch from the empty tea canister: "Young master, I forgot to tell Miss Wenjun last month that the free clinic was over. She should still be waiting for me. One hundred taels can keep you entertained for a few more days. Don't worry about me."

Nian Yao, Yan Zeyu, and Qin Jiu walked past him. Nan Fei gave a cold, arrogant snort.

Nianyao asked, "Where did he go?"

Luo Andao said, "Wudong County."

Nianyao said, "Didn't you stop providing free medical consultations?"

Luo An looked up at her, and Nian Yao scoffed dismissively.

Qin Jiu took out the chess box, and Yan Zeyu sat down next to Qin Jiu. Nian Yao naturally sat down next to Luo An, took the teapot and filled Luo An's cup first, then poured a cup of tea for everyone.

Qin Jiu glanced sideways: Is this a case of a mother's virtue? Twins, virtuous on top of virtuous?

Nianyao asked casually, "Have you ever met General Yuan Feng?"

Luo An said, "We've met once."

Nianyao asked, "Is she ugly?"

Luo An said, "It's not ugly."

Nianyao asked, "Is she blind?"

Luo An said, "I'm not blind."

Nianyao asked, "What kind of person is she?"

Luo An said, "Heroic and dashing."

Nianyao said, "She's not ugly, not blind, and has a dashing appearance, so how did she fall for Nanfei? He just goes to brothels because he has money. If it were me, I would gouge out his eyes, cut off his hands, chop off his feet, rip out his heart and feed it to the dogs, and chop his carcass into 108 pieces to feed the fish..."

Luo An's finger slipped, and the chess piece fell down.

Qin Jiu picked it up and put it back in the chess box, laughing, "Young master doesn't frequent brothels, what's there to be afraid of?"

He just accidentally dropped a chess piece.

“It’s a good thing you don’t go to brothels.” Nianyao thought for a moment and then said, “If you did go to brothels, you should charge them, otherwise it would be too much of a loss.”

Luo An asked calmly, "How much?"

Nianyao said, "Uh, at least... one... two hundred taels."

Luo Anwei turned to look at her.

Nianyao said, "You think it's not enough?"

Luo An said, "It depends on the person."

Nianyao asked, "What do you mean?"

Qin Jiu said, "I guess what you mean is that you should charge more for ugly people and less for beautiful people."

Nianyao asked, "Is that so?"

Luo An nodded.

Nianyao scoffed, "Does this beautiful lady want to throw herself at me?"

Luo An nodded.

Nianyao slammed the cup down: "What about Suhexiang? How much did they pay out of pocket?"