Chapter 19: Bizarre and Multifaceted
The storm lasted for one night. Fortunately, there were two beds in Qi Xiao’s room, so Fu Yunzhi slept there that night.
The next morning, the rising sun drove the storm away. The roaring of the sea and the fury of the sky from the previous night seemed like just a dream. Fu Yunzhi opened the window and saw the bright sun high in the sky, not a cloud in sight.
The weather at sea really does change in an instant.
Seeing Fu Yunzhi looking out at the sea with a face full of emotion, Qi Xiao thought, Is Yunzhi about to compose a poem?
After all, weren’t scholars, especially those full of literary talent, capable of spouting long, long poems at the sight of a crooked willow tree, a single falling leaf, or a bird flying by?
The wind blew through Fu Yunzhi’s hair. He stretched out a hand to feel the warm sea breeze and said, “The sky has cleared. We can go catch some yellow fish to eat again.”
Qi Xiao: “…”
Oh.
Fu Yunzhi turned his head and asked, “Do you have anything to do today?”
“I do,” Qi Xiao said. “I’m going to eavesdrop on Alliance Chief Shen and Cult Leader Mu.”
…So you’re really still thinking about that?
Fu Yunzhi waved his hand. “Since you have nothing to do, let’s go catch some seafood. I don’t want to eat those hard, dry rations. Duanmu Ling likes to eat too. Now that he’s injured and Inspector Qi is busy taking care of him, we can share some with him.”
Qi Xiao thought for a moment. “Why don’t you come with me?”
Then he added, “It’s quite fun. It’s boring to stay on this big ship all day.”
Fu Yunzhi pondered for a moment before saying, “Alright.”
After they both washed up, Qi Xiao prepared some fishing gear and led Fu Yunzhi to one of the decks on the south side. This deck was lined with small wooden boats, and it was where everyone on the main warship went to sea.
Qi Xiao untied one of the boats and, controlling the ropes, slowly lowered himself and Fu Yunzhi, who was in the boat, down to the sea surface. The closer the boat got to the sea, the clearer the sound of the waves became. Fu Yunzhi looked at the clear, azure water, and his already good mood improved even more.
Splash—
The small wooden boat landed on the vast sea. Qi Xiao handed a bamboo fishing rod with a worm for bait to Fu Yunzhi.
“Do you know how to fish?”
Fu Yunzhi nodded.
Qi Xiao smiled and paddled the boat further away from the main warship. Even so, there were still many large ships around them. After all, many people had come to exterminate the pirates, and their enemies were ruthless sea bandits. A single warship would be no match for them.
“Why don’t we row a little further?” Qi Xiao said. “It’s quieter, and there are more fish.”
Fu Yunzhi looked around. “Is it safe?”
Qi Xiao laughed loudly.
Fu Yunzhi was stunned for a moment, then suddenly understood. The meaning behind Qi Xiao’s laughter was probably: You’re out with me, the Great General. Are you afraid it’s not safe?
This person is so arrogant, Fu Yunzhi thought, rolling his eyes.
Qi Xiao really did row the small boat far away, to a place where they could no longer see the large ships. As far as the eye could see, there was only the blue sea and sky, with a few birds occasionally flying by.
“Doesn’t it feel like we’re the only two people left in the world?” Qi Xiao smiled.
“If we were the only ones left, we would die.”
“How would we die?” Qi Xiao said. “We could farm our own land, weave our own cloth, and cook our own food.”
Fu Yunzhi thought for a moment. “That’s true, but then we wouldn’t be able to find wives.”
We could be each other’s wives… no, wouldn’t it be nice if you were my wife?
Qi Xiao said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, “Yunzhi, have you ever thought about finding a wife?”
“I have.”
“What kind of person have you thought about?”
“Someone like you.”
After saying this, Fu Yunzhi perhaps felt that the words were too awkward and strange to say to a friend, so he added, “Or someone like the Emperor.”
Qi Xiao smiled. “Someone like the Emperor is probably not a good idea. His mind is full of state affairs.”
Just as they were speaking, Fu Yunzhi felt a tug on the fishing rod in his hand.
“Qi Xiao, it’s moving!”
“Pull it up, reel it in!”
Fu Yunzhi rarely fished, so he didn’t react in time. Seeing this, Qi Xiao put down the oar and helped him reel in the line. He sat behind Fu Yunzhi, his arms wrapped around his waist, his hands covering Fu Yunzhi’s as he pulled up with force.
As heaven is my witness, this time, the Great General truly had no ulterior motives. His only thought was to help his wifey catch the fish. With his mind on the fish, Qi Xiao leaned forward even more, holding Fu Yunzhi tightly without realizing it.
But Fu Yunzhi’s cheeks turned red with a whoosh.
It was quiet all around, with only the sound of the waves and Qi Xiao’s breathing. Combined with what Qi Xiao had said earlier, Fu Yunzhi felt it was impossible not to let his thoughts wander.
In fact, there were many men in the nine kingdoms who preferred men. Shen Linye and Mu Linglong were a well-known couple.
An image suddenly appeared in Fu Yunzhi’s mind: he was dressed in a grand red wedding robe, bowing in a ceremony with another person. That person was tall and handsome, wearing a matching wedding robe…
Fu Yunzhi jabbed his elbow back with all his might, hitting Qi Xiao in the chest.
“Ugh—” Qi Xiao clutched his aching chest, feeling very wronged.
What did I do wrong…
Qi Xiao looked at the fishing rod in Fu Yunzhi’s hand. “The fish… got away.”
Fu Yunzhi didn’t answer. He leaned over the side of the boat, his eyes fixed on the water below.
“What’s wrong?”
“Qi Xiao, come and take a look.”
Hearing this, Qi Xiao also looked curiously in the direction Fu Yunzhi was pointing. He saw several unidentified objects floating just below the surface of the sea. They looked like the skin and flesh of some creature, with barbs and blood.
After a closer look, Fu Yunzhi said, “This should be the remains of the sea monster fish.”
“It’s probably the sea monster fish that the Jianghu people and the Qi family army killed last night,” Qi Xiao said, unconcerned. “If I remember correctly, they only took a small edible portion and threw the rest of the remains into the sea.”
Fu Yunzhi shook his head. “No, look closely. The edges of this skin and flesh are uneven, and there are ribbon-like strips. It doesn’t look like it was cut by a sword. It looks more like it was torn by some monster with sharp teeth…”
Qi Xiao frowned.
Could there be a creature in this sea even more powerful and terrifying than the sea monster fish?
Qi Xiao leaned down and used the oar to scoop up a piece of the skin, planning to take it back for a closer examination.
“This skin will rot if it’s left out for too long,” Fu Yunzhi said. “Let’s go back first.”
Qi Xiao nodded and started to paddle.
Perhaps because of the discovery of the sea monster fish’s remains, Fu Yunzhi felt a little uneasy and was more alert to his surroundings. So, as the small boat approached the main warship, he once again noticed something was wrong.
He pinched his nose. “Why is the smell of blood so strong?”
“The smell of blood has always been here,” Qi Xiao explained. “You just got used to it after staying on the main warship for so long, so you didn’t notice. Now that you’ve been away for a while, of course it’s overwhelming when you come back. Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it and ignore it after a while.”
“Why do these ships smell of blood? Is it because of the sea monster fish from last night?”
Qi Xiao nodded. So many sea monster fish had been killed last night. The blood had flowed down the deck into the sea, and the hulls of the ships were stained with the smell of it.
“We should burn some medicinal herbs to get rid of the smell,” Fu Yunzhi said. “We can’t just ignore it.”
“That’s what I was planning to do.”
After they boarded the deck of the main warship, they saw Shen Linye hurrying over.
“General Qi, you’re finally back!”
“Did something happen?”
“The patrol boats have returned,” Shen Linye said concisely. “There are six pirate ships forty miles away. The number of people on board is unknown. Should we attack?”
Qi Xiao fell into deep thought, his mind rapidly assessing the situation.
The most important thing in a war was the first battle. If the first shot was a success, everyone’s morale would be different. Therefore, the first battle could not be reckless.
Just as Qi Xiao was thinking, someone ran over and shouted, “General Qi, Alliance Chief Shen, another report has come in! The pirates are heading in our direction!”
“Then there’s no need to think about it,” Qi Xiao said. “They’ve already discovered us. This battle is unavoidable. We must prepare quickly.”
