Chapter 276

Xiao Ningxun murmured, "You, Ming, Top!"

Xiao Er and Lu Qi gathered, saying, "The turbid world shall fall, Youming is the top! What does it mean?"

Xiao Ran recalled, "Yesterday those Daoists kept talking about some great undertaking, Father Emperor above, how dare they discuss such great undertaking! Could it be they want to rebel?"

Tuan Tuan heard the new word, "What is rebellion?"

"Ugh..." Xiao Ran choked.

Tuan Tuan tugged Xiao Ningxun's sleeve, "Third Brother, will we go home tomorrow?"

Xiao Ningxun startled, the others also looked at him.

Xiao Ningxun looked at the iron box in his hand, hesitated a long while: "Tuan Tuan, on this trip to Xibei, although we toppled Qingyunguan, Qixiazi fled to Jiang Prefecture, the truth of Youming Top still has no clue."

"Brother thinks, we won't return to Jingcheng first, go straight to Jiang Prefecture. Only by capturing that Qixiazi can we fully figure out what the Youming Top intends to do."

Tuan Tuan's little head drooped, "But I miss Daddy and Mommy."

Xiao Er hurried to comfort him, "Miss, Xibei is barren, Jiang Prefecture is different, a land of fish and rice, there's plenty of good food and fun."

"Let's just treat it as a stroll; coincidentally, Jiangnan Region's accessories and fabrics are top-notch, you can also buy some gifts to bring back for the Princess Consort."

Lu Qi also chimed in, "Lord Master, you aren't trying to save Lord Feng, are you? If we don't clarify this, he won't be able to get out."

Xiao Ran walked up to Tuan Tuan, squatted down to meet her gaze, "Little speck, Ninth Brother spends all day in Jingcheng, already bored, you might as well keep me company playing, okay?"

Tuan Tuan glanced at him, then lifted her head to look at the others, pouted, and flung herself into Xiao Ran's arms, her small hand reaching out to wrap around his neck, burying her head in the crook of his neck, silently nodding.

Soft, fragrant, and snug.

Xiao Ran instantly felt his whole body go soft, he gently rubbed her little cheek, extended his arm to embrace her, and slowly stroked her small back.

Xiao Ningxun rolled his eyes, frowned, and said, "My sister, why are you so enamored?"

Xiao Er clenched his fists; another fellow trying to snatch the young lady!

Lu Qi curled his lip: "Lord Master has already been in my arms like this once! You really got a steal."

"I want to write a letter! Let Meiwei and Jiayao deliver it to Father and Mother!" Tuan Tuan, nestled in Xiao Ran's arms, said in a muffled voice.

"Good! Ninth Brother will help you write it!"

"I want to go see Grandfather and Uncle Xie before leaving."

"No problem! Ninth Brother will take you there."

"I want to eat that pastry with jujubes on top again!"

"Sure, Ninth Brother will buy them all for you, so you'll have something to eat on the way to Jiangzhou."

"I also want..."

"Even if you wanted the moon from the sky, Ninth Brother would get it for you!"

Tuan Tuan's eyes darted: "I want that... whatever, to rebel!"

"That's not allowed!"

Everyone burst into laughter.

The next day, Xiao Ran helped Tuan Tuan write a family letter, and had Meiwei and Jiayao send it to Jingcheng.

Immediately, the party went to Changfeng Goods Depot to bid farewell to Xuan Fu Weng and Xie Guzhou, checked out the project of Yun Ke Lai, then bought a large amount of provisions, and set off on the road to Jiangzhou.

After several days of travel, the carriage arrived at Huizhou dock.

They hired a spacious passenger boat, drifting south along the canal, seeing the willows on both banks grow denser, the water turning from murky to clear, entering the Jiangnan region laced with waterways,

Tuan Tuan leaned against the rail, her small hand reaching out to catch the flying spray, seeing a large white bird skimming the water: "Third Brother, those birds are so big!"

Xiao Ningxun smiled as he smoothed her wind-tousled bangs: "Those are egrets, a common bird in Jiangnan."

Occasionally a small black‑awning boat brushed past them.

The boatwoman wore a straw hat, and the hold was piled high with fresh water chestnuts.

Tuan Tuan looked curious: "What is that? Is it tasty?"

Xiao Ran immediately bought a small basket, peeled it open and handed it to Tuan Tuan: "Try some, but watch your teeth."

Tuan Tuan carefully took a bite; the clear, sweet juice melted in her mouth: "Really delicious!"

Lu Qi chuckled: "Lord Master, these water chestnuts grow in water, so they're exceptionally crisp. When we reach Jiangzhou, there are also water chestnut cakes and pastries—that's truly fragrant and sweet."

Tuan Tuan ate to her heart's content: "Mm-hmm, I want to eat them all!"

Suddenly, the boat shuddered slightly and slowed down.

"What's wrong?" Xiao Er poked his head out to ask.

The boatman was a dark‑skinned man in his forties, surnamed Zhou, his face a little pale as he pointed toward the right front of the bow: "Guest, look over there!"

Everyone looked and saw, on the water's surface, a floating corpse!

The person floated on his back, bobbing gently with the ripples.

Xiao Ningxun hurriedly covered Tuan Tuan's eyes and pulled her into his arms.

"Unlucky! Truly unlucky! How did this happen!" Zhou muttered repeatedly, hurriedly adjusting the bow, trying to steer away.

Three or four small boats suddenly darted from all sides, quickly surrounding the passenger boat in the middle.

On each boat stood two or three men, all with unfriendly expressions.

A gaunt man with a sharp nose and monkey‑like face cried out loudly: "My brother! You died so terribly! How could you be run over by this black‑hearted boat!"

Another plump man pointed at Zhou and shouted: "Your boat killed someone! After the collision you want to run away?"

Zhou panicked, waving his hands repeatedly: "No, no! It wasn't me! My boat only brushed lightly, he was already floating there…"

"Bullshit!" the gaunt man stomped his foot and cursed, "My brother was just fine fishing in the water a moment ago, and in the blink of an eye your boat ran him down! All of us saw it! You still want to deny it?"

The people on those boats shouted one after another:

"Yes! We all saw it!"

"It was this boat that collided!"

"We can't let them go!"

The fat man stretched out five fingers and snarled, "Enough with the nonsense! You've run someone to death; either face the authorities, have this ship seized so you can't do business, and you'll all end up eating prison food!"

"Or, bring out five hundred taels of silver as burial money for my brother!"

Five hundred taels! Zhou Chuanjia's vision went dark: "Everyone, please be generous! How could a lowly person produce that much silver?"

"None?" The gaunt man's eyes darted, landing on the Zhou family's daughter who had just stepped out of the cabin after hearing the commotion.

The girl was about thirteen or fourteen, dressed in plain clothes and a simple hairpin, yet she was naturally pretty.

The gaunt man licked his lips and chuckled, "If you can't produce the silver, that's fine too."

"Then, one hundred taels of silver, plus you, young lady, I'll take back, make you the wife for my brother who died tragically; that will settle the matter!"

"Otherwise," he said coldly, "we'll meet at the yamen! Official, will you believe you or us, the aggrieved?"

"You… you…" Zhou Chuanjia trembled with anger, clutching his daughter tightly behind him.

Miss Zhou's face turned deathly pale with fear, tears swirling in her eyes.

Xiao Ningxun and Xiao Ran's faces both darkened.

A crisp child's voice suddenly rang out, "Second Uncle, that person just died, there's still a chance—quick, pull him up, I can save him!"