I served as Li Bai's page.

After seven days of arduous travel on a cargo ship, we finally arrived at the Wumadu Wharf in Nanjing.

After the cargo ship docked, the crew members were busy unloading the cargo. I found the helmsman, paid the fare, and disembarked with Li Bai.

"Yuehua, have you heard the folk tale of five horses crossing the river, one of which transformed into a dragon?" Li Bai asked me.

"I read in historical records that the Five Horses did not refer to five horses, but rather to five princes surnamed Sima," I said, offering my superficial understanding.

"Our Yuehua is alright, at least she can read history. This is her first time visiting Wumadu, and she even knows the legend of Wumadu." Li Bai smiled and patted my head.

Li Bai continued, "After the War of the Eight Princes and the invasion of foreign enemies, the Western Jin Dynasty was far weaker than before. The descendants of the Sima family sought other paths. Sima Rui, the Prince of Langya, on the advice of his strategist Wang Dao, requested to move his capital to Jianye, which is present-day Jinling. This was approved by Sima Yue, the victor of the War of the Eight Princes. He led several princes and grandsons of his direct line across the Yellow River and eastward across the Yangtze River to Jinling. A few years later, Sima Ye was murdered, the Western Jin Dynasty ended, and Sima Rui proclaimed himself emperor in Jianye, marking the beginning of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The crossing of the Yangtze by five horses signifies the formation of a north-south division in the rule of Chinese dynasties."

"Wasn't Nanjing the center of Sun Quan's rule during the Three Kingdoms period?" I asked.

"Yes, it wasn't called Jinling back then, it was called Jianye. It marked the beginning of Jinling as the imperial capital," Li Bai explained to me.

Li Bai and I walked and talked as we carried our luggage on the Wumadu Wharf.

Wumadu is located north of Mufu Mountain and on the south bank of the Yangtze River. The terrain is wide and flat, and various cargo ships and tourist boats are moored there. The docks are bustling with people coming and going.

"Young Master, shall we go find Young Master Meng? He said he's on the Qinhuai River, not far from the Confucius Temple," I asked Li Bai.

"Let's find an inn on the Qintan River to stay in first, and then go find him," Li Bai said.

"Then I'll go find a carriage. You wait for me here." After saying that, I put down my luggage and started looking for a carriage at the Wumadu Wharf.

I arrived at the exit of the dock, where many carriages were soliciting business, some beautifully decorated, others extremely ordinary. I approached a beautiful carriage and asked:

"Brother, do you rent out this carriage?" Before I could get an answer to my question, a handsome young man walked toward the carriage.

"Young master, you must be tired from your journey." The driver greeted him as he took the luggage from the young master's hands and placed it on the carriage.

I quickly stepped aside, and the coachman looked up at me and said, "This is the Prince's carriage. This is our young master. Young man, you'd like to rent a carriage somewhere else."

When Young Master Wang heard that I wanted to rent a car, he leaned out of the car and said, "Where are you planning to go? Perhaps we can give you a ride."

"My young master and I are going to the Confucius Temple," I replied.

"I'm going back to Wuyi Lane anyway. Let me call your young master, and we'll go together," said Young Master Wang.

"Thank you, young master. I'll go call my young master." I bowed to Young Master Wang and turned to run towards Li Bai.

"Young Master, there's a young master Wang in Wuyi Lane who's willing to give us a ride. His carriage is quite beautiful." I picked up the luggage and urged Li Bai to walk towards the carriage.

Upon arriving at the carriage, Young Master Wang alighted, and Li Bai stepped forward, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "I am Li Bai, a man of the Qinglian School. Thank you for your assistance, young master."

"Who do you say you are?" Young Master Wang looked at Li Bai in surprise, pacing back and forth as he recited: "The moon over Mount Emei is half-full in autumn, its reflection flows in the Pingqiang River. I set off from Qingxi at night towards the Three Gorges, longing for you but unable to see you as I descend to Yuzhou."

"This is the 'Song of the Moon over Mount Emei' written by my young master," I said anxiously.

Li Bai said, "I'm sorry to have made you laugh, sir."

Young Master Wang grasped Li Bai's hand and said, "Seeing is believing, I'm so glad to finally meet you in person. Come, let's get in the carriage and go back to Wuyi Lane. I'll treat you to a welcome dinner tonight. Let me introduce myself. My name is Wang An. I'm from Wuyi Lane, thanks to the blessing of my ancestor Wang Dao."

Li Bai couldn't resist Wang An's enthusiasm, and after Wang An got into the carriage, I sat next to the driver.

Li Bai and I boarded the Prince's carriage and arrived at Wuyi Lane. Just as we entered the lane, I saw an inn and said to the carriage driver:

"Brother, could you please stop the car? We've arrived."

The driver stopped the carriage in front of the inn. I jumped off and said to Li Bai, "Young master, we've arrived."

Li Bai and Wang An both got off the carriage.

Wang An said, "How can you stay at an inn? Come stay at my house."

"We already made the reservation, thank you, Mr. Wang," I said to Wang An.

Li Bai replied, "Thank you for your kindness, Young Master Wang. I appreciate it."

"Then I'll invite you for drinks tonight. See you there!" After saying this, Young Master Wang got into his carriage and went home.

"Yuehua, you're lying. When did we book a room?" Li Bai said, looking at me.

"Young Master, you really lack flexibility. This is called a white lie. Do you really want to stay at Young Master Wang's house?"

"Of course I won't go. We've only just met; there's no reason for me to just stay at someone else's house."

"That's settled then. You didn't want to go, but you couldn't refuse Young Master Wang's kind offer, so you had no choice but to say this."

"Yuehua is getting better and better at talking; she truly lives up to her reputation as my page." Li Bai finished speaking, put his hands behind his back, and walked into the inn. I followed behind, carrying the large and small bags of luggage: "Young Master, wait for me."

The waiter saw that I was carrying so much luggage and helped me take it.

I said to the shopkeeper, "Boss, I'd like two standard guest rooms."

Li Bai corrected him, saying, "Just one superior room."

"Young Master, I don't want to sleep with you," I said.

"Don't be so fussy, boss. I'd like a superior room with two beds."

The innkeeper took out a set of keys and handed them to the waiter, saying, "Go and open the door for the guest; it's the room on the third floor, on the left, the one with the private corridor."

We followed the waiter upstairs. The inn in the big city was indeed different. The room was spacious and bright, with a large bed and a daybed for temporary rest. The tables, chairs and benches were made of high-quality wood. In particular, there was a huge enclosed corridor outside the room, where several pots of jasmine were in full bloom and exuding a wonderful fragrance.

"It smells so good." I went into the room, put down my luggage, and rushed to the corridor.

"Young Master, is the suite we're staying in considered the presidential suite?" I asked Li Bai.

"What room?" Li Bai looked at me with a questioning gaze.

"It's the kind of place the emperor lived in," I quickly explained.

"The emperor wouldn't live in such a house. It's more like a house for nouveau riche landlords," Li Bai said.

"Then we can be considered tycoons, right? Can we have a tycoon-level dinner?" I looked at Li Bai with a questioning gaze.

"Didn't Young Master Wang invite me for drinks? Let's wait a bit!" Li Bai said.

"Do you really believe that? What if he doesn't come?" I asked Li Bai.

"A true man's word is his bond; I trust him," Li Bai said.

After I put my luggage away, I took out Li Bai's poems from my backpack and put them on the table to organize them.

Li Bai paced back and forth in the corridor, looking restless, as if waiting for something.

I casually asked, "Young Master, would you like to drink again?"

Li Bai gave me a helpless look.