Chapter 52: Riding to the Old Ferry

When settling the bill, the palace attendant beside Baili Heng calmly produced a thirty-thousand-tael silver note, while the Great King looked resentfully at his second brother.

Didn't you say you didn't take much money? He pouted and snorted angrily.

Baili Heng: 'Cough…… Thirty thousand is nothing.'

Impoverished Great King: ……

Is that even human speech!

Leaving the Water Clan World, there wasn't much else to do in Secluded Prefecture; Baili Heng had never seen the sea and said he wanted to go to the seaside to have a look.

The two brothers hit it off immediately, deciding to ride to the nearest seaside outside the city to take a look—that was the Old Ferry of Secluded Prefecture.

As soon as Little Date appeared, it instantly outshone the Second Prince's prized steed.

'Lao San, your horse……'

The Great King immediately spoke up to interrupt his covetous gaze at Little Date, saying, 'Isn't it handsome? It's called Little Date, and it only listens to me—Zhang Commander and the others definitely can't! I bought it from a merchant selling horses in the Northern Hu; if you like it, Second Brother, I'll save one for you next time I come across one—our Secluded Prefecture is close to the Northern Hu.' He knew this would happen, so he restrained himself from showing off his Bai Ze and Winnie to the Second Brother. This thing can't be snatched here; who knows if letting it go back will prompt Father Emperor to issue an edict? This kind of thing, the Second and Eldest Brothers have done before when they vied for supremacy.

Baili Heng couldn't hide his affection; this horse made his expensively bought steed look like a sticky rice ball.

It's just that the name is rustic and unimpressive.

'Definitely, Third Brother! If I encounter another horse of this quality, I'll definitely hold one for you—money is no problem!'

The Great King loved hearing that, so he went back to the market to refresh the listings; once there was a seller, he'd definitely get one for his big patron.

The group abandoned the carriage and rode to the Old Ferry quickly; he brought eight guards on his side, while Lao Er brought over fifty, and this procession of tall horses charged into the Old Ferry, causing the few busy fishermen nearby to flee far away.

Just looking at them, you could tell they weren't the type to be messed with!

Baili Heng was delighted to have no one disturb him; seeing the sea for the first time, he made a fool of himself badly at the seaside.

The Great King tricked him into shouting toward the sea, saying there would be an echo, and that some lucky people heard a female voice in the echo—that was a mermaid's reply. Yes, he made it up based on the stories of the shark people.

Baili Heng didn't really believe it, but he didn't want to spoil his good mood and wanted to give it a try.

The two foolish sons of Emperor Ningde just stood by the sea and howled for a whole afternoon……

The returning fishermen in the distance would moor their small boats farther away; dozens of tall guards looked hard to provoke, or rather, they were hard-to-provoke fools……

Many years later, Baili Heng often thought of that dilapidated ferry in Secluded Prefecture; alas, time cannot be turned back, but people's hearts change easily.

. ★

That night, upon returning, the Great King went to Bai Yang's place to pick up the new goods, which Bai Yang had specially bought from a museum near his home as merchandise.

One batch were flowing sand paintings, titled 'Light Boat Has Already Passed Ten Thousand Mountains'.

It should better suit the ancients' aesthetic taste; the flowing sand sealed in transparent glass would run out each hour, turning a thousand miles of rivers and mountains into a surging Yellow River. Not only is it pleasing to look at, it can also serve as a timekeeping tool. With a wooden frame and base, the pedestal also features mountains, stones, and trees made of various mother-of-pearl beads, plus the silhouette of a poet, giving it a remarkably beautiful ambience.

Another batch were hand-cranked wooden-carved music boxes; once wound, a winged wooden pig would fly up and down, playing a tinkling tune, though it only repeated the same two lines over and over. Such a modern-day return-to-simplicity little trinket seemed quite novel to the Great King.

Bai Yang sold him one of a kind, ten of the Ten Yuan Treasures each; the Great King left the estate gate feeling uneasy—'Huh? No one stopped him!'

He threw the stuff straight into the bedroom upon returning, didn't even set it out, and directly called for Zhao Bao to come in.

'Have you noticed that the bronze table in the mansion, adorned with several dragons and several phoenixes, is gone?'

The items weren't placed in the Great King's bedchamber, and Zhao Bao really hadn't noticed.

The Great King gave pointers, then pointed to the pile of cardboard boxes in the corner, saying, 'I exchanged these with the Star Lord; we'll keep one set here, send one set to the Internal Affairs Office for archival research, and tonight send the remaining eight sets to the Water Clan World, telling the proprietor a thousand taels each. The instructions are here—send them all together.'

Zhao Bao was already numb.

This time he believed it, because the item was extraordinarily heavy, making it hard to steal out; moreover, one glance could tell it was imperial ritual paraphernalia, something no ordinary person would dare to accept if taken to the civilian market.

But…… what does the Star Lord want that thing for? The craftsmanship of heaven isn't any better than that of the mortal realm.

After the Great King finished his instructions, he couldn't wait to take out his own set to play with; he simply couldn't put it down.

He personally turned the handle over and over; when he stopped, the chubby winged wooden pig began to fly up and down, accompanied by clear, tinkling music.

Zhao Bao was also dazzled by the wondrous music box, watching it with relish beside him; the Great King urged him, 'Hurry up! After my second brother leaves, who else could afford such a fine thing!'

Zhao Bao: ……

What His Highness said.

'Wait a moment, also order the Internal Affairs Office to make an exact copy, so no one can tell the difference.'

Zhao Bao: 'Yes.'