Chapter 188: Whaleback

Ruan Hongyu broke free of Bai Qing's hand and continued burying her head in silence.

"You understand Chinese, don't you?" Bai Qing said slowly. "I just came back from the Hoi An palace. They think you've been ruined by sea bandits, that you've lost your chastity—" Ruan Hongyu's body trembled, and she hugged herself tighter.

Seeing that she still wouldn't speak, Bai Qing recounted what she had seen at the Hoi An palace, then added: "If your father wanted you back, I'd be happy to hand you over—might even get some reward for it. But now you're a stinking fish; if I handed you over, I'd just end up smelling bad myself."

Ruan Hongyu still said nothing, her head sinking lower, her body trembling slightly.

Bai Qing comforted her: "It's not that I'm unwilling to let you go. It's just that if you go back rashly, your fate probably won't be good. Come back to the Great Ming with me, and consider yourself dead."

Having said this, Bai Qing ordered her subordinates: "Take her to the Zhangzhou. Then go ashore and buy two maidservants to attend to her."

Bai Qing finished speaking and walked out of the cabin.

Zheng Zhilong followed her out, his face full of delight, pulling out a hairpin: "Sister Bai, impressive! Take it!"

Bai Qing was somewhat baffled: "Impressive what? Why are you giving me a hairpin?"

Zheng Zhilong said: "Who said it's for you? This is the little—the little Princess's."

"Why did you snatch her hairpin? Give it back to her at once."

Zheng Zhilong looked utterly astonished: "This is the only thing on her that's worth anything. I can't exactly strip off her bodice and give that to that Ruan fellow, can I?" Bai Qing suddenly understood: "You want to use it to threaten that Ruan?"

Zheng Zhilong was dumbfounded: "You genuinely kept her out of pure kindness?"

Zheng Zhilong hurriedly urged: "Commander, that woman's got nobody who wants her anyway. Why not use her to threaten that Ruan fellow? Maybe we can squeeze two more pieces of timber out of him? By your own account, that Ruan isn't a good sort either—we could—"

Bai Qing raised her hand to cut him off, staring blankly: "Brother Yiguan, your scheme is a bit…"

"Despicable?" Zheng Zhilong finished the sentence with great self-awareness.

"A bit clever!" Bai Qing praised, looking him up and down. "You little rascal, you've got no shortage of wicked ideas."

Zheng Zhilong laughed heartily: "Sister Bai, helping that woman without expecting anything in return—that's righteous of you too!"

Bai Qing recounted what she had seen at the Hoi An palace, then commented: "That Ruan fellow, seeing the siege of Hoi An lifted, has put his mind at ease. He made excuses over just two pieces of timber. In a few days, we'll use this hairpin to give him a proper scare."

Zheng Zhilong grinned wickedly: "We'll need to think carefully about what to say—something that threatens him without making him hold a grudge against us."

"Exactly. But let me say this in advance: we can't actually lay a hand on her."

Zheng Zhilong said: "Of course not!"

Two days later, the carriage convoy bound for Fuchun set out.

Bai Qing and José went as before, bringing seven or eight carpenters along, while Zheng Zhilong and Lü Zhou stayed behind to guard the fleet.

Along the way, Bai Qing saw many inns and hostels by the roadside, and countless merchants and travelers on the road—it was very prosperous.

When passing a checkpoint, Bai Qing carefully observed the soldiers stationed there.

Though they were thin and small of stature, their eyes were sharp and their builds wiry and strong, and their armor and weapons were in excellent condition—far better than the camp soldiers and guard station troops of the Ming's southeast.

Two days later, the convoy entered Fuchun and drove all the way into the palace grounds. The commoners by the roadside all knelt and bowed as they passed.

After the carriage came to a stop, Bai Qing alighted nimbly and was startled by two giant beasts at the palace gate.

The two beasts stood two or three men tall, with gray skin and very long noses, and a pair of white tusks protruding from their mouths. They were adorned all over with gold, silver, and silk—extremely imposing.

One of them raised its trunk and let out a cry, like an iron trumpet being blown.

The Nguyen Lord stepped forward with a smile: "Heavenly Envoy, these are Quang Nam's elephants. This beast has boundless strength—when hauling timber up the mountains, it's the elephants that do the carrying."

Bai Qing nodded: "I stand instructed. Where are the large timbers?"

"This way, please." The Nguyen Lord led the way, followed by a crowd of servants, guards, and ministers.

The Nguyen Lord probed: "A few days ago, one of your warships went in pursuit of pirates—did it meet with any success?"

"We killed quite a few of the bandits, but unfortunately we didn't find your country's Princess."

The Nguyen Lord waved his hand: "No matter."

The party advanced to the northwest, gradually approaching the palace's outer wall, where they saw a warehouse occupying a vast area. Four guards stood at the door, and an enormous lock was mounted on it.

A servant stepped forward and barked sternly: "Open the door."

One of the guards came forward, unlocked it, and pushed the door open.

The Nguyen Lord said: "Please."

The courtyard inside was very clean—clearly someone swept it daily. The interior was extremely spacious, roughly over ten zhang long, five or six zhang wide, and one or two zhang high. In the very center of the hall stood an entire row of timbers laid flat and raised off the ground.

The timbers were propped up on dunnage against the floor, stacked in three racks and three layers.

Before each rack there was a gap wide enough for two people to walk abreast.

The three layers together stood over one man tall, with dry, neatly cut dunnage evenly spacing each layer apart.

Bai Qing walked up and saw that the timbers were all perfectly straight, their bark completely removed, their surfaces a silvery gray.

She touched them with her hand, and her fingertips felt a warm, oily smoothness; the grain on the surface was extremely distinct.

Tapping lightly with her finger, the sound was crisp and solid, like striking metal or stone.

Counting roughly, there were at least nearly two hundred large teak timbers stacked in the room!

Bai Qing was too stunned to speak. The carpenters she had brought were even more awestruck, circling the timbers one by one, trembling all over with excitement. One man gently stroked a timber and burst into tears, saying: "Excellent… what a treasure! The wood is fine, and the preservation is fine too! Truly excellent!" Another pressed his face into the stack of timber and sniffed hard, his expression more intoxicated than a man smelling a woman's face powder.

Seeing this scene, the Nguyen ministers all smiled. Recalling the day the fleet entered port, they were glad that at last they had stunned the Ming Heavenly Envoy once—a bit of face reclaimed.

"Heavenly Envoy, please follow me," said the Nguyen Lord.

Bai Qing went along as the Nguyen Lord led her through row after row of timbers.

Along the way, Bai Qing noticed that the warehouse had an extraordinary number of windows—the four walls were practically covered densely with them. Presumably these timbers relied on those windows for ventilation.

Tending to timber is extremely troublesome work: when it rains, the windows must be shut; when the weather clears, the windows must be opened.

This batch of timber was said to have sat in their palace for several decades—it must have cost no small amount of manpower.

The Nguyen Lord, walking ahead, stopped and pointed at a spot: "Heavenly Envoy, please look."

Bai Qing followed his finger and saw that in the very center of the warehouse, no timber rack had been placed—instead, a single giant log stood alone.

This timber was perfectly straight, thick, and long, nearly reaching the walls at both ends of the warehouse, with a diameter over half a man's height. Had she not seen it with her own eyes, she would hardly have believed nature could produce such a creation.

The Nguyen Lord said proudly: "This giant timber is ten zhang six chi long and five chi seven cun thick. Its name is Whaleback—it is the heirloom treasure of the Nguyen clan."

This practice of naming timber was something Bai Qing had never seen in his life, so he asked, "For a giant tree like this, how many years does it take to grow?"

The Nguyen lord smiled and said, "Not many—three hundred years is enough."

"Oh." Bai Qing thought to himself, "Three hundred years—that would be back when… well, anyway, before the Great Ming Dynasty even existed!"

The Nguyen lord continued, "And this whaleback timber grew on the ridgeline of a deep mountain forest."

Bai Qing asked, "What's the significance of that?"

The Nguyen lord walked to the cross-section of the timber and pointed at the growth rings. "Your Excellency, please look."

Bai Qing leaned in and saw that the growth rings were packed densely together, one circle after another, almost touching.

"The more a tree grows in sandy soil, deep forest, or on a ridgeline, the slower it grows, the finer its grain, the better its toughness, and the richer its oils—the finer the timber it becomes."

Bai Qing exclaimed in admiration, "Remarkable! I've truly learned something today."

The Nguyen lord said, "Ours is a tiny state with meager products; teak is the only thing we can offer. If Your Excellency likes it, when you depart the harbor, I shall send some to your ship."

Since the measure word "some" was used, it naturally referred not to the great timbers in this warehouse, but to ordinary goods available on the market.

Bai Qing smiled and said, "Then many thanks."

"Hahahaha, please!" The Nguyen lord laughed heartily and then invited Bai Qing to leave the warehouse.

Unexpectedly, Bai Qing said, "No rush—I still want to take a closer look."

The Nguyen lord said magnanimously, "Your Excellency, please make yourself at ease."

At this moment, Le Van Hung asked, "May I ask Your Excellency, what are those craftsmen doing?"

"Oh, taking measurements." Bai Qing answered casually.

The Nguyen lord looked over, and his eyelids immediately began twitching wildly. He saw that the seven or eight carpenters had at some point stopped their earlier awkwardness and had instead brought out measuring tapes, measuring the timber, while one man held a brush and rapidly took notes.

Hadn't they agreed this was just a look?

The Nguyen lord tried his best to keep a smile on his face and said, "May I ask what Your Excellency means by this?"

Bai Qing said, "Just taking measurements, that's all. Don't worry, we're not going to take your things."

"Your Excellency jests." The Nguyen lord said with an ingratiating smile, while alarm bells rang loudly in his heart.

As the saying goes, an innocent man may be guilty for possessing a jade—he naturally understood this principle.

But Bai Qing was an envoy from the great power above, a figure like Zheng He—how could he possibly come to rob them? Moreover, the Nguyen lord had requests to make of her, which was why he had felt confident enough to bring her to see the teak timber.

But what did it mean that she was now measuring the timber?

What kind of person goes to someone else's home as a guest and measures the perimeter of the house? Or automatically appraises the furniture and antiques?

The Nguyen lord sized up Bai Qing. Her clothes, though not shabby, were hardly luxurious either; she was dressed as a woman in men's clothing, neither one thing nor the other; and her speech lacked any trace of the bearing of a Celestial Court official. Was she really an envoy?

Just as he was growing anxious—

A guard entered from outside the door, approached the Nguyen lord, and saluted: "My lord, there is an official document addressed to Your Excellency the envoy."

The Nguyen lord took the document and handed it to Bai Qing with one hand. After the timber-measuring incident, much of his deference had worn off.

Bai Qing swept her eyes over the document, her brows slightly furrowed, and said nothing.

The Nguyen lord watched her expression, his heart scratching like a hundred claws, and could not help but ask: "May I ask Your Excellency—has something happened in the north?"

Bai Qing handed the document back to him: "See for yourself."

The Nguyen lord took the document and was first startled by the bright red seal of the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi. He thought: "She really is a Ming Dynasty official! Good thing I only had suspicions before and maintained a respectful demeanor—I didn't reveal my true thoughts."

Reading further, he saw that the document's contents ordered the Nan'ao naval forces to move west of the Leizhou Peninsula to suppress bandits.

What relationship the Nan'ao navy had with the female official before him, the Nguyen lord did not wish to investigate closely.

But wasn't this good news? Wasn't the troublemaker west of the Leizhou Peninsula none other than that bandit Zhong Yanwang and his crew?

Hearing the Nguyen lord's question, Bai Qing smiled bitterly: "It's not the same. Once the navy is placed under the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi's command, they will only hold the line around the Pearl Mother Sea and will not advance westward. No matter how Zhong Yanwang burns, kills, and plunders Hoi An harbor afterward, the navy will not move one step west."

The Nguyen lord grew anxious at once and said hurriedly: "But Zhong Yanwang is backed by that traitor Zheng!"

"I understand Your Majesty's concern, but the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi's duty is to protect his borders and his people. Without an imperial decree from the Emperor, how would the navy dare to cross the border rashly?" The Nguyen lord was stunned—this reasoning was indeed sound.

"Moreover, Jiaozhi was designated by the Grand Ancestor himself as a nation not to be conquered. His Excellency the Governor-General would be even less inclined to stir up trouble."

This line was taught to her by Zheng Zhilong.

"Zhong Yanwang is nothing but a petty thief. For the Celestial Court's navy to destroy him would be no more than turning over a hand.

I had intended to seize the moment while I held military authority to strike swiftly and rid Your Majesty of this great scourge. But alas, man proposes, heaven disposes. Well then, Your Majesty must look to your own fortunes." "Ah?" All the Nguyen ministers were stunned. The powerful reinforcement they had been promised—how could it simply vanish?

Tran Van Dinh was the first who could not bear it, and pleaded: "Since the great power's navy can defeat the bandits as easily as turning over a hand, I beg Your Excellency, for the sake of the common people of the Great Viet Kingdom, to rid our nation of this great scourge!"

The other civil and military officials all snapped back to their senses and began pleading bitterly. No one paid any attention to the carpenters measuring the teak anymore.

Bai Qing merely made excuses and refused, claiming that military orders were as immovable as mountains and that she dared not delay in the slightest.

In front of the Nguyen lord, Tran Van Dinh and the others could not directly offer a bribe, so they all turned their gazes to the Nguyen lord.

At this point, how could the Nguyen lord not know what Bai Qing wanted? He gritted his teeth and said: "How about I give ten of these timbers here to Your Excellency?" Bai Qing said with a stern face: "How could I possibly—ah…."

According to the script she had worked out with Zheng Zhilong, she was supposed to say "How could I possibly have come for the timber?"

Saying that required far too thick a face, and Bai Qing could not bring herself to say it.

Fortunately, the meaning had been conveyed clearly enough.

The Nguyen lord gritted his teeth and raised the offer: "Twenty! Each of these timbers has a price but no market—an ordinary man who obtains even one would never worry about food or clothing for the rest of his life!"

Bai Qing merely shook her head.

The Nguyen lord's face flushed red, the veins on his forehead bulging out. He stared fiercely at Bai Qing, remaining silent for a long time.

Tran Van Dinh wiped his tears and urged: "My lord, the legacy of the former lords is what matters most! As long as you preserve that legacy, the teak in the southern Water House and Fire House will still be waiting quietly for you to take!"

Though she could not understand what the Water House and Fire House meant, Bai Qing still committed these two teak-producing locations to memory.

Just then, another guard came running in from outside the door: "My lord!"

"What is it?" There was already a trace of irritation in the Nguyen lord's voice.

"An hour ago, pirates threw this into the harbor!" The guard raised a hairpin as he spoke.

Regional Commander Ruan took it and saw it was a straight hairpin made of gold, with a sparrow-shaped ornament at the head, its feathers inlaid with fine gold wire and jade, and a string of small pearls hanging from the bird's beak.

"Summon the Princess's maidservant," Regional Commander Ruan ordered in a low voice.

After a moment, the maidservant hurried over and knelt before Regional Commander Ruan.

Regional Commander Ruan handed her the hairpin: "Do you recognize this?"

"It's the Princess's hairpin!" the maidservant said at a single glance.

Regional Commander Ruan said slowly: "Look carefully."

The maidservant said: "No mistake — this was a gift from the Princess's mother, and the Princess loves wearing it most of all."

Regional Commander Ruan waved his hand: "You may withdraw."

What he feared most had come to pass. Regional Commander Ruan had over a dozen children; whether Ruan Hongyu lived or died, he cared nothing for it.

What he could not allow was for her to be taken alive by the enemy — if she suffered humiliation at their hands, where would the Ruan family's face be?

And with that traitor Zheng's cunning, he would more likely place Ruan Hongyu under house arrest, using her as leverage at every turn.

If that traitor Zheng cared to dig, the matter of his daughter cutting off her hair to join the army could not be hidden — and it would be turned around and trumpeted by Zheng, becoming the sharpest sword thrust at Regional Commander Ruan.

Casting her as a filial daughter who took her father's place in war, and him as a weak and incompetent Regional Commander.

A man who would casually cast aside even his own daughter — could he protect the people of Guangnan?

At this thought, Regional Commander Ruan gritted his teeth and said: "Thirty logs! Thirty large timbers — I beg the Imperial Envoy to send troops to our aid."

Having said this, Regional Commander Ruan steeled himself and knelt directly before Bai Qing.

Not only Bai Qing, but even the ministers behind Regional Commander Ruan were startled.

Bai Qing hurried forward to help him up.

Regional Commander Ruan pleaded: "I beg the Imperial Envoy to show mercy!"

Bai Qing cursed inwardly: "Miser, spineless! A ruler of a nation would rather kneel and beg than part with a few more rotten logs! What good are thirty large timbers? And even with the timbers, without a keel, aren't they just decorations?"

With this thought, Bai Qing said: "Our Great Ming's territory is so vast — what fine things do we lack? How could we covet a few logs of timber? Though these thirty large timbers are rare, they're hardly extraordinary."

"Er..." Regional Commander Ruan was stunned, a vague sense of foreboding rising in his heart.

"Only that whale's spine — that strikes me as somewhat interesting," Bai Qing said leisurely.

"This..." Regional Commander Ruan was deeply troubled.

At this moment, the craftsmen had finished measuring the timber and nodded to Bai Qing.

Bai Qing sighed and said: "But the whale's spine is a treasure of the ruler's heart — I naturally would not press for it. I take my leave."

Bai Qing led the craftsmen out of the warehouse gate, cursing inwardly: "Miser, tightwad, small-handed! Why didn't he chase after me? Well, if you won't chase, I can't turn back either. If you won't give, you won't give. I wonder if Fuchun is also by the sea — how many defenders does it have, and can the navy break in?" After leaving the palace gate, Bai Qing mounted a horse, rode to the harbor, and boarded the eagle ship.

This was the very ship that had just delivered the Governor-General of Liangguang's orders, conveniently docked at the harbor to take her back.

After sailing a good distance, Bai Qing asked the craftsmen: "Well, can these timbers be used?"

The craftsmen immediately burst into praise, and one of them said: "Teak should normally be golden on the outside with a brown core.

This batch in the palace has a silvery-gray exterior — it must have been aged for over a decade, causing the resin to congeal.

Such large timbers cannot be cut into planks, as they dry poorly in the shade — but this batch has been shade-dried for a long time, stable inside and out, ready for immediate use. Extremely rare. Alas! What a pity that pearls are cast before swine."

Another craftsman opened his ledger and said: "That warehouse held one hundred ninety-six pieces of timber in various sizes, not a single one hollow or cracked — all usable material. Not enough to build a whole ship, but enough for the frame."

Half a day later, the eagle ship arrived at Hoi An harbor. Bai Qing instructed the carpenter who had recorded the measurements: "Return to Nan'ao and report the situation here to the Helmsman." After the eagle ship left the harbor, Bai Qing boarded the Zhangzhou, and saw the deck in chaos — Zheng Zhilong was berating two maidservants: "Where did the scissors come from?" The two maidservants wept: "This servant does not know..."

"Don't know? Take them below — one cut on each of their faces, to teach them a lesson!"

"Yes!" the surrounding soldiers responded.

The two maidservants wailed to heaven and earth, begging loudly for mercy.

Bai Qing stopped the soldiers and stepped forward to ask: "What happened?"

Zheng Zhilong glanced around and said in a low voice: "That honored guest tried to take her own life. Slit her wrists."

"What?"

"Don't worry — she was saved. Fortunately we brought Doctor Su's apprentice." Zheng Zhilong's face was full of relief. "When that young doctor came aboard, Doctor Su went on about some 'internship' — I thought he'd be dead weight, but who knew he'd prove so useful at the critical moment."

Bai Qing frowned: "Why did she seek death?"

"I don't know... Hey, don't look at me like that — I didn't mistreat her. Your cabin was only accessible to the maidservants..."

"I'll go see."

With that, she walked toward the stern cabin. Passing the maidservants, the two begged for mercy through their tears.

Bai Qing said: "Forget it — if their faces are ruined, how will they ever marry? Change it to a beating instead."

"Yes!" The soldiers acknowledged, found a bench and an oar, bound the two maidservants face-down, then brought the oar down — the maidservants screamed. Bai Qing pushed open the door and entered, finding Ruan Hongyu lying on the bed, her face deathly pale, her eyes vacant, like a walking corpse.

One of her arms rested at the bedside, and the physician was wrapping gauze around her wrist; the floor around her was covered with blood-stained cloth strips.

Bai Qing asked: "How is she?"

Only then did the physician notice Bai Qing's entrance. He rose and said: "Her cut wasn't deep — it wouldn't have been easy to die from it. She's out of danger now." Bai Qing shot him a glare, and the young physician, realizing his slip of the tongue, felt sheepish.

"You may go," Bai Qing said with irritation.

Bai Qing sat by Ruan Hongyu's bed and asked why she had tried to end her life, but no matter how she reasoned with her, Ruan Hongyu remained silent.

"If it's for your father, and that court of yours, then there's no need." Bai Qing recounted what had happened at the Fuchun palace that day.

Of course, the story had been somewhat embellished — the matter of sending men to measure the timber was omitted, and the threat to Regional Commander Ruan was glossed over in a single phrase.

She concluded: "You cut off your hair to go to war, were captured in a sea battle, and now you try to kill yourself — you've already died three times for that man surnamed Ruan. Even the greatest debt of gratitude should be fully repaid by now. From now on, live for yourself."

Ruan Hongyu finally shed a single tear. Her lips trembled, and she said in a hoarse voice: "Don't beat those two maidservants — the scissors were hidden by me." Bai Qing acknowledged, went outside, and called a halt to the punishment.

In the evening, a fast rider arrived at Hoi An harbor, claiming to be sent by Regional Commander Ruan, requesting an audience with Bai Qing.

Only after Bai Qing invited the man onto the deck did she realize it was an old acquaintance — Chen Wending.

Chen Wending smiled and cupped his hands in greeting: "Imperial Envoy, my master wishes to present the whale's spine to you, asking only that you send troops to crush the sea bandits of that traitor Zheng."

Bai Qing said: "And where is the whale's spine?"

"Well, it's still in the warehouse. The Whale's Spine is truly massive—to transport it here we'd have to dismantle the warehouse walls, palace gates, and bridges, and widen the streets along the way. At the fastest, it would take half a year."

"No need for all that trouble. I see Fuchun has a port—we can just load it onto a ship there."

Chen Wending was taken aback, then smiled: "That shortens the journey by over two hundred li. I estimate it can be delivered within a month or two."

Bai Qing smiled: "In that case, my forces can set out very soon. But since your Princess was taken by sea bandits, what is to be done about that?" Chen Wending said: "No matter—Your Excellency the Imperial Envoy need not worry."

"What do you mean? I don't understand."

Chen Wending looked around, and seeing no outsiders on the deck, spoke plainly: "The Princess was seized by treacherous villains. If word of this spreads, it would harm the King's reputation... To put it bluntly, she should never have lived."

In the stern cabin, Ruan Hongyu heard these words, her whole body trembling, her heart turned to ice.

Yahei

Fenyuan

Pen