Renting a Boat

By the time Gao Yunyi emerged from meditation again, it was already early the next morning.

The experience gained from seated meditation was so meager that his experience bar seemed not to have moved at all, but Gao Yunyi still persisted in meditating every day.

He continued along the road for less than an hour before coming upon a village. Gao Yunyi glanced at his map, which showed that it was called Zhangjia Village.

He chose not to linger and continued on his way.

What Gao Yunyi did not know was that before long, the village would be filled with rumors about him.

Even decades later, whenever children in Zhangjia Village misbehaved, their parents would frighten them with tales of the vengeful ghost in that lonely grave out in the wilds.

And Gao Yunyi would become the childhood nightmare of everyone in Zhangjia Village.

After walking for another half a day,

His view suddenly opened up, and a vast lake came into sight.

There was a dock on the shore, boats on the lake, sprawling beds of reeds, and several white cranes flying over the water.

He had reached Yangcheng Dian.

It was the first time Gao Yunyi had ever seen such a vast lake in real life. Its waters sparkled, merging with the sky at the horizon, seemingly stretching beyond sight.

After admiring the beautiful lake, Gao Yunyi figured it was time to get down to business.

He set off toward the dock.

He had no idea where the white cranes landed. He needed a boat and a fisherman familiar with the area to take him there.

The dock was bustling.

Fishermen went out on the lake to fish, then returned to the dock with their catch. Others unloaded and packed it into crates, which were carried into a warehouse specifically used to store freshwater catch.

Gao Yunyi's sudden arrival immediately drew the attention of the people there.

There was no helping it. Though his clothes were ordinary and understated, his face and bearing were utterly out of place here.

An entire industry had taken shape around the dock. Everyone had clearly defined duties and worked in an orderly fashion.

Where there was an industry, there had to be people in charge and people who maintained order.

Yet as Gao Yunyi walked through, not a single person stopped to question him. Those who maintained order seemed to have collectively gone blind.

People at the bottom had their own wisdom for survival. One look at Gao Yunyi's face and bearing was enough to tell he was the son of some high-ranking official or dignitary from Dingzhou, or a gentleman who had earned an official degree. They could not afford to offend him, so they could only pretend not to see him.

And so, a stranger who had suddenly wandered in walked openly into the dock.

There was a boat at the dock.

It was not large, about three zhang long and eight chi wide.

A reed canopy stood on the boat, and a girl of sixteen or seventeen squatted at the bow.

The girl had very dark skin and bare feet, and her hair was tied in a small braid. Her coarse hemp clothes were covered in patches.

She was lighting a fire to cook. A salted fish simmered in a broken iron pot with half of it missing.

Gao Yunyi crouched on the dock and leaned over to ask the girl at the bow, "Is this your boat?"

The girl froze at his words, then slowly turned her head.

With that one look, Gao Yunyi's face was deeply etched into her mind.

It was a man's face unlike any she had ever seen, more handsome than every man in Yangcheng Dian. As for why it was Yangcheng Dian, it was because she had never been outside it. Yangcheng Dian was her entire world.

His skin was as white as a pearl in a clam shell, his eyes as bright as stars in the sky, and his voice was especially pleasant to hear, like the white cranes on the shallows.

She had never studied and did not know how to describe him. She only knew that this stranger was handsome, exceptionally handsome.

Seeing the girl staring blankly at him, Gao Yunyi could only ask again, helplessly, "Does this boat belong to your family?"

Only then did the girl come to her senses, as if waking from a dream.

She hurriedly lowered her head, as though she had done something wrong. Her fingers twisted the hem of her clothes restlessly, the tips of her ears turned red, and her eyes were full of timidity and unease.

Just as Gao Yunyi began to think she was mute, a voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz finally reached his ears.

"It... it belongs to my family."

Gao Yunyi paid no heed to what the girl was thinking and continued, "I want to rent your family's boat."

"Huh? Rent the boat?"

The girl was at a loss after hearing that. Her family's boat was a fishing boat they lived on, and no one had ever rented it before.

"I... I have to ask my father first."

"Where is your father, then?" Gao Yunyi asked softly, without growing impatient.

After hesitating for a while, the girl answered in a quiet voice, "My father went to pay this month's taxes. He should be back soon."

Hearing that the boat's owner would be back soon, Gao Yunyi said no more. He stood up and continued admiring the view of the lake.

What he did not know was that, standing on the dock, he had also become a sight for others to admire.

Workers and fishermen passing by stole glances at him from the corners of their eyes now and then. Not only did they lower their voices, but even their footsteps grew softer.

There was curiosity and puzzlement in their eyes, but more than anything, there was shock and fear.

"What... what do you want to rent my family's boat for?"

The desire to draw close to something beautiful temporarily overcame the timidity in her heart. The girl summoned her courage and asked in a low voice.

"To go there."

Standing with his hands behind his back, Gao Yunyi answered as he watched the flock of white cranes flying low over the lake in the distance.

The girl looked in the direction of his gaze.

"There's nothing on those low-lying shallows except a flock of white cranes. What are you going there for?"

This time, however, Gao Yunyi did not answer his question.

Disappointed that she had not gotten the answer she wanted, the girl nevertheless did not dare ask anything more.

Though she was young, she knew quite a lot.

She knew that in the eyes of outsiders, Xumin like her were lowborn, with a lowly status, and anyone could bully them.

If she said too much and upset a noble personage, the consequences would be unthinkable.

And so, one stood on the dock admiring the scenery while the other squatted at the bow cooking salted fish. Neither spoke again.

It was not until a weathered voice rang out that the silence was broken.

"Xiaoya."

The girl immediately stood up when she heard the voice, delight spreading across her face as she called back, "Father!"

The newcomer was a middle-aged man with sun-darkened skin. Deep furrows ran across his weather-beaten face, which also bore a worry that was hard to conceal. His hair was half white, and his clothes were even more worn than the girl's.

"And this young master is...?"

Seeing Gao Yunyi standing in front of his family's boat, the man froze for a moment, then hurriedly asked with great care.

"Father, he wants to rent our boat to go to those shallows where the white cranes are."

Unlike her timid, restrained manner with Gao Yunyi, the girl showed a bright, innocent side in front of her father.

"But my boat is only used for fishing, young master. I've never carried passengers," the man said, troubled.

A fishing boat was dirty and reeked of fish. Even ordinary people were unwilling to ride in one, let alone a young master like him.

"It doesn't matter. I'll pay."

Gao Yunyi spoke flatly. He was not here to tour the sights, so he did not mind whether the boat was dirty or clean.

Besides, the girl's family boat was already among the cleanest at the dock.

Hearing that the young master did not mind and was even willing to pay, the man stopped worrying about it.

"All right, young master, please come aboard."