Along the Bai River in Jiangyin County, a pleasure boat glided slowly from afar. The entire vessel was painted in vermilion and gold lacquer, adorned with carved beams and painted pillars.
The second-story window lattices were inlaid with foreign stained glass, and over a hundred glazed lanterns hung from the roof. The boat was festooned with flowers, and the melodious notes of a guqin drifted from within. Many charming, enchanting entertainers leaned against the windows, taking in the riverside scenery.
Returning from Yangtao County, Gu Qingyun rode past on horseback. Hearing such exquisite guqin music and seeing such opulent splendor, she could not help glancing over a few more times.
Seeing her valiant bearing on horseback, the lovely maidens aboard the boat fluttered their handkerchiefs and teased, “Handsome lad on the riverbank, don’t be in such a hurry! Come keep your elder sisters company. No matter what kind of beauty you desire, we have them all right here.”
Before Gu Qingyun could reply, Old Lady Zhang, seated in front of her, spat discreetly and muttered, “Qingyun, pay no mind to those women. They are thoroughly improper.”
Gu Qingyun said, “Grandmother, they have little choice in their lot in life. If they didn’t find some amusement to numb themselves, their days would be even harder to bear.”
Old Lady Zhang patted Gu Qingyun's arm. “You, ah, you're just too kindhearted.”
Freeing a hand, Gu Qingyun waved toward the pleasure boat. “Sisters, please don't tease me! I'm rushing back to the county seat for duty!”
One sharp-eyed entertainer caught sight of Gu Qingyun’s face, hid her smile behind her sleeve, and laughed. “Why, it’s a little sister even handsomer than any young gentleman! Little Sister, come aboard and have some fun!”
Gu Qingyun shivered at the melting sweetness of the voice. Beautiful women truly had voices just as lovely—clear and melodious, like pearls tumbling onto a jade platter. The tips of Gu Qingyun's ears flushed red at the sound.
Not daring to look any longer, she urged her horse forward and fled in embarrassment. From afar, the melodious laughter of the women drifted after her.
Watching her granddaughter react like this, Old Lady Zhang nagged her continuously while reminding her to slow down. “Look at you. A young lady blushing just because some women teased you! What are you even blushing for? It’s not as if you have the equipment for that sort of thing anyway.”
Hearing this, Gu Qingyun felt utterly mortified. Everyone appreciated beauty; what was wrong with simply wanting to admire beautiful women?
Seeing that Old Lady Zhang was still rambling on, she could only interrupt, “Grandmother, I'm hungry.”
The moment she said that, Old Lady Zhang’s thoughts shifted immediately to dinner. “Our Qingyun has worked hard these past two days. The food outside really can’t compare to home cooking. Tonight, Grandmother will make your favorite braised pork belly. In a moment, let's take a slight detour and see if the meat vendor still has any meat left.”
The corners of Gu Qingyun's mouth curved upward slightly. “All right.”
...
In the courtyard, Old Lady Zhang and Lady Su were busy preparing dinner in the kitchen, while Gu Qingyun practiced her saber techniques in the yard.
On the other side, Gu Yihan and the others were preparing supplies for tomorrow’s street stall. Their niece Xiao Guai clapped her hands nearby, cheering them on. The setting sun cast a warm, golden glow across everyone’s faces in the courtyard, painting a scene of serene warmth and beauty.
Having met with her brother, Old Lady Zhang felt a heavy burden lifted from her heart, thoroughly relaxed. She even hummed a little tune while bustling around the stove, prompting anyone who heard her to hum along involuntarily.
Just then, a hurried flurry of footsteps outside shattered the courtyard's tranquility. Gu Qingyun stopped her movements and walked toward the gate. “Mother, keep doing what you’re doing. I’ll go check.”
Gu Qingyun pushed open the gate. The visitors were Wang Hu and Bai Fan. At this moment, both had pale faces and were panting heavily, clearly having run all the way here.
“What has you two in such a frantic rush? Come in and have a sip of water.”
Wang Hu shook his head and swallowed hard. “We won't go in. Qingyun, something’s happened! Someone from the outer town reported that a pleasure boat appeared on the Bai River. Do you think it might be...?”
Remembering the events of that night, Wang Hu’s legs began to tremble. Could it be that the ghosts on that boat had been unwilling to let them go and had now come back to seek them out?
He truly regretted it. Lust was a knife above the heart. With neither money nor power, how could any beauty have truly fallen for him? They had only set their sights on his life! His wife at home was far better after all; he would never fool around outside again.
Ever since that night, his body hadn't been as robust as before. Alas, regretting it now was useless.
Gu Qingyun had thought it was something serious, but she only chuckled. “It's nothing. That is just an ordinary pleasure boat. I even ran into it on my way back. Don't be so jumpy and scare yourself.” She glanced at Wang Hu and chose her words carefully. “Uncle Wang, if you want to visit, you certainly can.”
Wang Hu waved his hands frantically, shaking his head like a rattle-drum. “Qingyun, don't tease me! I just want to live a peaceful life now. A pleasure boat like that isn't something someone like me can afford to visit.”
“Qingyun, why haven't you invited your colleagues inside to sit down?” a voice called out from the courtyard.
Hearing this, Wang Hu scratched his head in mild embarrassment. “Since nothing is amiss, I'll head back and report to Head Constable Liu. Sorry to bother you.”
With that, without even stepping through the doorway, he took Bai Fan and left directly. Only when their figures vanished from sight did she shut the front gate.
Turning around, she was startled to find the entire family staring intently at her. Lady Su and the women looked shocked, while her cousins wore wicked grins.
“Qingyun, what pleasure boat? Have you been getting into trouble behind our backs?”
Gu Qingyun kept a deadpan expression. “No. Why, do you brothers want to see what a pleasure boat ghost looks like? Although the County Magistrate forbade us from speaking of it, you must have heard whispers outside. The Constable Wang who just left nearly lost his life on that pleasure boat. When another pleasure boat appeared on the Bai River, he was frightened and came specifically to look for me.”
She paused, then added, “If you brothers want to go, I can lead the way.”
Gu Yiyun coughed softly twice. How could he dare? His mother’s eyes were practically spitting fire! Besides, his body belonged to his betrothed.
“Sister, you've misunderstood! We were just a little curious. Now we're not curious at all! We still have to prepare tomorrow's food, so we'll get back to work.”
With that, they scattered in an instant, leaving only the women of the family staring intently at Gu Qingyun.
Old Lady Zhang wiped her hands on her apron and looked at her. “I was wondering why the County Magistrate gave such generous rewards last time. It turns out it was all our Qingyun's doing. Tell me, as a young girl, why must you rush to the front lines? Staying safely behind is so much better. Our family doesn't need you charging into danger out there; as long as you're safe and sound, that is enough.”
Lady Su and the others nodded in agreement. “That's right. Our food stall business is doing well now, and the silver we earn is enough to support the family. Don't always think about chasing those rewards; just taking your monthly food and wage allowance is plenty. If the sky falls, there are taller people to hold it up.”
Previously, seeing their Qingyun always bring back silver, they had only thought she was capable. Who would have thought that while she was indeed capable, she was also doing such perilous work?
It wasn't that she had ill intentions and didn't want her Qingyun to pull her weight; it was just that she was a girl after all. The entire yamen was full of grown men, so how could they let a young girl charge ahead? Old Lady Zhang thought to herself.
Gu Qingyun smiled wryly and shook her head. “Grandmother, don't worry about all this. I will be careful. Handling these matters is beneficial to my cultivation; I know what I'm doing.”
Old Lady Zhang and the women exchanged glances, rendered speechless for a moment. They didn't understand what any of this had to do with cultivation.
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