The voyage afterward was uneventful. The river flowed gently, and a breeze murmured by their ears.
The farther south they traveled, the more pleasant the climate became.
There were many boats around them.
River boats, capital boats, provincial boats, and the like all had established routes.
Several days later, at the dock on the shore.
They could already see crowds moving on the opposite bank from afar.
"Everyone, time to disembark!"
The boatman gave a loud shout.
Everyone had long since spotted the scene onshore, and their faces were filled with anticipation.
Their voyage of over ten days had finally ended.
The large boat docked, and everyone disembarked in turn.
Li Ping'an cupped his hands toward the boatman at the dock in farewell.
Li Maocai said, "Sir, since this is your first visit to Nantong, if there's nowhere in particular you want to go, why not travel with us?"
Li Ping'an hesitated a moment. "All right."
Nantong.
Nantong lay along the coast, with a thriving trade.
Its prosperity rivaled that of the Capital City.
In recent years, however, corvée labor and taxes had grown too burdensome, compounded by Japanese pirates wreaking havoc along the coast.
This had caused the three provinces of Nantong to decline for a time.
Still, a starved camel was bigger than a horse; it was not a place just any province could compare to.
As they walked, Li Maocai introduced Li Ping'an to Nantong's circumstances.
Along the way, they also enjoyed a meal of local Nantong delicacies and its local customs.
Nantong was Li Maocai's hometown, and now that he had been transferred back home, he naturally felt thoroughly at ease.
Afterward, they encountered the officials who had come to welcome Li Maocai, the newly appointed Prefect.
Li Ping'an politely declined Li Maocai's invitation to continue