The next day, at the Jinzhou docks.
A young couple, arm in arm, appeared before a large cargo ship.
Due to the cold weather, the man was wrapped in a thick cloak, his full beard making him stand out in the crowd. The woman had a pure and elegant appearance, wearing a fine jacket embroidered with peonies, which enhanced her naturally fair complexion to an even more translucent degree.
"What are you two here for?" a man dressed as a crew member blocked their path to the ship and asked.
Lu Wuxie stopped, glanced at the many people who had already boarded, and stroked his beard. He deepened his voice and said, "I'm from Yingzhou. I heard the court has been strictly inspecting ports recently. Since there's no business, I'm heading home to stay for a while."
"From Yingzhou?" The crew member sized up Lu Wuxie, then looked at the woman beside him. "And her?"
Lu Wuxie glanced at Zhong Li. Before she could react, he pulled her closer by the waist and said, "They say the beauties in Jinzhou are as gentle as water and are excellent at serving men. So, I bought one from the Hundred Beauties Pavilion to 'spend the winter' with! If I have no business for another two months, won't I be bored to death?"
"Is that so?" the crew member said, his gaze fixed on Zhong Li.
Zhong Li had been struggling against Lu Wuxie's hand on her. When she felt a burning gaze sweeping over her, she froze. She looked up to meet the crew member's curious eyes. Taking a deep breath, she changed her usual cool demeanor, her lips curving playfully. With enchanting eyes, she replied, "Why don't you try, sir? My skills are quite famous at the Hundred Beauties Pavilion!"
As she spoke, Zhong Li raised her delicate fingers and brushed them lightly against the crew member's thick outer garment. Stirred by her flirtation, the crew member blushed and coughed. "Do you have a token?"
Lu Wuxie nodded and handed the crew member a pass, which the bearded man had given them the previous day. The crew member glanced at it, confirmed it was in order, and returned it to Lu Wuxie, signaling for them to board.
There weren't many ships sailing from Jinzhou in winter, and the court's strict port inspections had only been announced a few days ago. Therefore, the usually uncrowded cabins were now filled with merchants traveling between the Southern Yue Kingdom and Yingzhou. Zhong Li followed Lu Wuxie as they walked with the crowd towards the cabin.
She looked up at the large characters 'Bei Chuan' flying on the sails, her brows furrowed. She had observed before boarding that there were many ships docked at the pier, but they were all furling their sails and resting. Only Bei Chuan was preparing to set sail, which showed the immense influence of this gang.
"Stop looking, you might draw suspicion," Lu Wuxie whispered a reminder in Zhong Li's ear.
Zhong Li came to her senses and quickly scanned the ship's surroundings. It turned out that every corner of the ship was manned by crew members wearing Bei Chuan gang attire. They looked sternly at the travelers, as if searching for something.
"I inquired before we came," Lu Wuxie whispered. "There's a mole in the Bei Chuan gang, and they're hunting for him now. Even though we aren't involved, we are here to investigate the Bei Chuan gang's affairs, so we must be cautious."
Upon hearing this, Zhong Li nodded. Recalling the identity Lu Wuxie had assigned her when they boarded, she pretended to lean on his shoulder and said coquettishly, "My lord..."
When Lu Wuxie saw Zhong Li flirting with the crew member upon boarding, ruining her image of cool aloofness in his mind, he had almost burst out laughing. Now that she was acting this way towards him, he could no longer contain himself and his body trembled with laughter.
Zhong Li narrowed her eyes, hooked her arm around his, and dug her fingertips into his waist with slight force, warning him in a low voice, "Young Master Lu, you have no guards protecting you on this ship. Be careful, or I might secretly put corpse poison in your food if I'm displeased, and you'll never return."
Hearing this, Lu Wuxie quickly suppressed his smile. Just as he was about to apologize, a voice came from behind them: "Are you two also going to Yingzhou?"
Zhong Li and Lu Wuxie turned to see an elderly couple, both in their fifties with streaks of white in their hair, looking at them with smiling eyes.
Lu Wuxie said, "Yes, returning to Yingzhou with my wife."
"See, husband, I told you this woman is the principal wife, but you insisted she was a concubine," the old woman said, glancing at the man beside her with a playfully complaining yet affectionate look.
The middle-aged man smiled, put his arm around his wife, and said, "Yes, yes, whatever my wife says is right."
"Are you two also going to Yingzhou?" Zhong Li asked, as the ship would make stops along the way.
The middle-aged man nodded. "We are merchants from Jinzhou who trade with Yingzhou. Previously, our steward handled everything. But with the strict inspections lately, we fear any mishaps, so we've personally come to deliver a batch of goods to Yingzhou this time."
Zhong Li nodded and did not inquire further. The man's wife seemed warm-hearted and asked as they walked, "Are you two newlyweds?"
Zhong Li paused, her hand on Lu Wuxie's arm. She found it somewhat amusing and was about to answer when Lu Wuxie spoke first. "My wife and I have been married for nearly half a year."
Hearing this, Zhong Li paused. Half a year? Wasn't that the length of time they had known each other.
"Is that so? My husband and I have been married for almost forty years. Seeing you two reminds me of when we first met. It feels so familiar," the woman said, her smile widening.
...
The four chatted as they walked and soon reached the cabins, bidding each other farewell and entering their respective rooms.
As soon as Zhong Li and Lu Wuxie closed the door to their room, Lu Wuxie, ensuring they were alone, casually picked up the teapot on the table, poured a cup of water, and dipped his finger in it to draw on the table.
"I've observed the entire Bei Chuan gang's ship," he said, drawing an outline of a ship on the table and then dividing it into four levels from top to bottom. "The first level, the topmost deck, is basically filled with Bei Chuan gang members. I counted about two hundred people."
So many? Zhong Li was surprised by this number. She had expected the large passenger ship to have many Bei Chuan gang members, but she never imagined that the upper deck alone would accommodate so many. Adding those scattered on the other levels, she estimated there were at least three to five hundred people.
"The second level," Lu Wuxie's finger tapped on the second level. "This is the level we are on. It's mostly merchants going to Yingzhou and other places. This level is considered the best location on the entire ship."
"And the lower two levels?" Zhong Li asked.
"One level is for the rowers, and the other level is likely where the Bei Chuan gang stores their goods," Lu Wuxie replied.
"So, if we want to thoroughly investigate whether the Bei Chuan gang has been involved in the trade of Qia Te Cao, we should start by focusing on these two levels?" Zhong Li asked.
"Yes," Lu Wuxie nodded, writing the number 'three' on the table with his fingertip. "It takes seven days to travel from Jinzhou to Yingzhou. Deducting the time for loading and unloading, stops, and inspections, we have three days of ample time for our search."
"Then we..."
Knock, knock, knock.
Before Zhong Li could finish her sentence, there were knocks on the door from outside.