When the fishing boats docked, the sun was at its peak.
The shore was already packed with people.
Both soldiers of the Zhenbei Army and commoners of Wuling stood there, everyone craning their necks to gaze out at the sea.
For the past few months, every venture out to sea had yielded absolutely nothing. Deep down, everyone knew all too well that Shen Jue would likely return empty-handed this time as well, yet they still could not help but hope.
Even if he only brought back a few fish, it would give these fishermen, who relied on the sea for survival, some peace of mind.
A saying had been passed down through their ancestors for generations: as long as there were still fish in the sea, they could still survive!
Before long, Shen Jue's boat was the first to dock.
Before the hull had even steadied, the winch at the stern began to creak and turn, dragging the fishing nets out of the water inch by inch.
The shore suddenly fell dead silent for a moment.
Immediately after, the nets were pulled open from the top, and plump sea fish poured out like a flash flood, spilling across the entire beach with a loud rush.
Still dripping with seawater, their silvery-bright scales glinted under the sun. The moment they hit the ground, they flopped about frantically, their tails slapping against the wet sand and kicking up countless tiny droplets of water.
Pei Du stood at the very front of the crowd.
Staring at the sea fish that nearly covered half the beach, he could scarcely believe his eyes. “General Shen, how did you catch so many fish?!”
He had figured Shen Jue might catch some fish, but the sheer volume before him far exceeded his wildest expectations.
Shen Jue leaped down from the bow and walked toward Pei Du.
In a few concise words, he explained, “We stumbled into the Divine Lady's sacred domain by chance. The Divine Lady then dispatched her spiritual beast, the Kun, to guide us on the sea. That we were able to catch so many fish today is entirely due to the Divine Lady's mercy upon us mortals.”
Exclamations of shock instantly erupted from the crowd.
“The Divine Lady?”
“The Divine Lady is truly merciful!”
“We are saved...”
Thousands of people fell to their knees on the beach in unison.
The sea breeze swept over their sun-blackened faces and rustled their tattered, ragged clothes, but it could not extinguish the spark of hope that had suddenly lit up in their eyes.
Pei Du, Feng Chunya, and the others knelt on the ground as well.
“We thank the Divine Lady for her gift of fish,” they said, kowtowing deeply three times toward the horizon.
Everyone else quickly followed suit.
Only after they finished kowtowing did Shen Jue turn to Pei Du beside him and ask, “Zirang, these fish...”
Before he could finish, Pei Du cut him off.
“General Shen, have your men transport the fish back to the camp first. We will discuss other matters later.”
He thought much deeper than Shen Jue.
The Divine Lady was omniscient and omnipotent; how could she not know of the tragic state within Wuling City? The reason she had not appeared in person, but had instead sent her spiritual beast to guide them and secretly aid Shen Jue's group in catching fish, was likely because she could not openly show favoritism to mortals.
Perhaps Fuyan was right—the living beings in the eyes of the Divine Lady had never been limited to just them, the mortals.
Shen Jue glanced at the surrounding Wuling commoners and immediately realized that this was indeed no place to discuss business.
He asked no further questions.
The soldiers of the Zhenbei Army worked with exceptional efficiency. The fish piled on the beach were quickly packed into baskets and carried away.
Shen Jue was busy taking inventory and had no time to think of anything else.
The Wuling commoners watched longingly.
Until the very last basket of fish was carried out of sight, many wanted to speak up but did not dare to utter a sound.
These fish were gifted by the Divine Lady to the Zhenbei Army. They had absolutely nothing to do with the commoners, so what could they possibly say?
Observing the reactions of the Wuling commoners, Pei Du lowered his eyelashes slightly, concealing the deep thoughts in his eyes.
Yesterday, the Zhenbei Army and the Divine Lady had distributed porridge one after the other, and the military physicians had treated the wounds of the Wuling commoners. Aside from the old, weak, sick, and disabled, most of the commoners who had fled the city to find them had regained their mobility.
Therefore, he could not simply give them the fish for free. That would only foster a habit of expecting rewards without labor.
Furthermore, there were still many commoners inside Wuling City waiting for food to save their lives. He had to plan carefully, prioritizing the rescue of the city's inhabitants before considering anything else.
Not far away, the fishermen also looked as if they wanted to say something but hesitated.
They wanted to ask about their wages, but they were just a group of illiterate, ordinary commoners. Seeing Pei Du in his fine brocade robes and Feng Chunya in her armor made them feel intimidated.
In the end, it was Zhu Jingzhe who stepped forward.
Since he was the one who had initiated the venture out to sea, he now had no choice but to brace himself and ask about the wages on everyone's behalf.
“Young Master Pei,” he said, bowing with clasped hands and speaking in a low voice. “Before we set sail, the wages General Shen promised us... do they still stand?”
“Of course they do. The Zhenbei Army values its word. Once a promise is made, it will always be kept.”
Pei Du intended to use this opportunity to make the Wuling commoners understand that rewards only came with effort.
Thus, he said to the soldiers behind him, “Distribute the wages they deserve to them.”
Zhu Jingzhe hurriedly said, “Young Master Pei, I... Can I not take the wages? Could you give me fish instead?”
In this world where corpses of the starved littered the land, having money did not guarantee one could buy food. It was far more practical to ask for fish directly.
Evidently, the others thought the same.
“Young Master Pei, I want fish too...”
Seeing this, Pei Du shook his head at them. “It is not that I am unwilling to exchange your wages for fish. It is just that Wuling City is currently filled with commoners so starved they can barely walk. They need these fish to survive far more than you do.”
“I hope you can all understand.” He bowed deeply.
Zhu Jingzhe froze on the spot.
He had never imagined that the Zhenbei Army's venture out to sea to catch fish was actually to save the starving citizens of Wuling City.
For a moment, he wanted to slap himself hard. He was truly despicable; not only had he failed to help, but he had also done nothing but cause trouble.
“Young Master Pei, I don't want the fish anymore.”
As he spoke, his voice trembled, and his eyes grew noticeably red. “And I don't want the wages either.”
“You must take the wages.” Pei Du stuffed a purse into Zhu Jingzhe's hand. “If you trust me, once Wuling City stabilizes, I guarantee you will be able to use the silver in this bag to buy cheap grain in the city.”
Zhu Jingzhe was slightly taken aback. “Will there really be a day when Wuling City stabilizes? And we can actually buy cheap grain?”
“With the Divine Lady here, it will.”
The moment the words left his mouth, the sky suddenly dimmed, as if a thin veil had been drawn over the world.
Everyone instinctively looked up, and then they witnessed a scene they would never forget for the rest of their lives.
High in the heavens, the clouds began to churn restlessly, slowly swirling open to reveal a massive circular opening in the center.
Sunlight spilled down, condensing into a pillar of light.
Within that pillar of light, a figure emerged.
She descended upon the light, her moon-white robes fluttering in the air like rolling clouds. Her long hair was unbound, cascading loosely behind her.
There was no celestial music, nor were there petals drifting through the air.
Yet, as she simply stood there in silence, all things in heaven and earth paled in comparison, leaving only that single touch of moon-white.
“It's the Divine Lady!”
Pei Du looked up at the sky. “She has come.”
The Divine Lady stood suspended in the air above the sea.
“You possessed the courage to venture out to sea to seek a way forward, and you hold a heart that wishes to save Wuling City from its plight. It was not in vain that I aided you in securing a line of life for this disaster-ridden city.”
She lowered her gaze and looked around the land.
Her gaze swept past the soldiers of the Zhenbei Army and landed on the Wuling commoners. They all stared up at her, their eyes shining with incredible brightness on their gaunt faces.
Like drowning people who had finally found a piece of driftwood.
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