Chapter 146: Wuhu

Ship lanterns were hung at the bow and on the mast — these night lamps were specially covered with black cloth so the light couldn't reach the deck, shining only in a specific direction to avoid disturbing the coxswain's view of the channel.

By now the passenger boat had entered the midstream channel, and the sailing was very smooth. After nightfall slowly descended, the boatman furled the sail, the boat's speed became leisurely, the boat workers were each resting, one man kept watch at the bow and one on each side — in truth they were also sitting and resting — only the coxswain steering at the rear dared not slacken his attention in the slightest.

Inside the cabin it was pitch black; the excitement from when they'd first set out had faded considerably. Most of the passengers were resting; only a few fellow townsmen traveling in groups were still chatting loudly.

People of this time were accustomed to sleeping early; ordinarily, unless one was from a wealthy household, they were loath to use lamp oil. When he'd first arrived in Tongcheng, Pang Yu's biological clock had already shifted — as soon as night fell he wanted to sleep. After he had silver in hand, though he no longer lacked lamp oil, lighting a lamp still offered no entertainment, so he would still go to sleep early. But after the roving bandits had attacked, there had constantly been many matters to deal with, and he'd reverted to the habit of sleeping late, so he remained sitting by the cabin door gazing outward.

Pang Yu was still full of interest; this was his first time on a boat since coming to the Ming dynasty, and his first trip out was to Nanjing. In the past, a distance of seven hundred li like this, driving a car would take just three hours — to him it had felt as ordinary as a daily meal. But this time he was actually somewhat excited, like the feeling of going on a long journey in the old days.

On the river the night breeze blew gently; all around was filled with the rushing sound of the current. The boat's hull swayed faintly, emitting soft creaking and groaning sounds. The bamboo poles, oars, and such placed on the forward deck occasionally bumped against the hull.

Outside the boat it was pitch black, but one could make out the hazy riverbank. That coxswain steered very steadily — Pang Yu had looked earlier; he was around forty or so. That he dared sail at night meant he must know the channel by heart, recognizing which stretch of river it was just by the shadow of the bank. Without ten years or more of experience, one surely wouldn't dare run a night sailing.

A figure drew near from a spot further inside. Pang Yu could tell by feel it was He Xianya; he'd been sitting right next to Pang Yu. When they'd boarded, Guo Fengyou had sat opposite him, constantly observing the passengers around them. Xu Lengzi had simply slept in the middle on his own, and by now his snores were like thunder, even louder than those few people chatting.

"Second Brother, have something to eat." In the darkness, He Xianya passed over an oil-paper packet.

Pang Yu took it. Inside were just some ma candy and shayong — all high-calorie foods. They hadn't brought much, because they'd heard Ruan Dacheng say that passenger boats stopped all along the way, and food could be bought anywhere on the docks; there was no need to carry it a thousand li.

Pang Yu instinctively felt for a piece of shayong, put it to his lips and nibbled gently, then broke off a piece of ma candy for He Xianya.

"Has Guo Fengyou gone to sleep?"

From the darkness opposite, Guo Fengyou's voice said, "Not yet. Does the Squad Head have some matter?"

"Have something to eat."

Pang Yu tossed the oil packet over. There was a rustling sound from that side — he must have caught it.

Those few people in the cabin let out a burst of loud laughter; no one dared reproach them. Some others were already fast asleep, emitting a rising and falling chorus of snores.

He Xianya said in a low voice, "Second Brother, you sleep first. Guo Fengyou and I will take turns keeping watch."

Pang Yu knew he was talking about the flying tickets on his person. These flying tickets had been exchanged last time with Liu Ruogu in Anqing. The Mace zhuang of this time had flying ticket services, but they were far less developed than in the Qing dynasty. The flying tickets from the various Anqing Mace zhuang could only be redeemed in Nanjing and Yangzhou; there were none for Suzhou. Pang Yu could only redeem them once in Nanjing, and then handle Suzhou flying tickets at a piaohao in Nanjing — otherwise he would have to carry several hundred or even a thousand taels of silver ingots to Suzhou.

Because they carried a huge sum on them, the few of them naturally could only rest in shifts.

Pang Yu shook his head habitually and said, "I'm not sleepy yet. You two sleep first."

He Xianya's voice said, "Second Brother, why suffer squeezing in with these people? You could very well charter a whole boat. Anqing hasn't opened tribute transport yet; those grain transport ships are all willing to rent out passenger cabins — it saves them trouble too."

"Everywhere we'll need silver; save where we can. Once we reach Suzhou, we'll go first to Mr. Ma's place and settle that matter."

After waiting a moment, He Xianya hesitantly asked, "Second Brother truly means to enter a military appointment?"

"Truly enter a military appointment." Pang Yu took a bite of shayong. "Ruan Dacheng was right. The realm is in turmoil; what the Emperor lacks most are military men to stabilize the state."

"Then what of the two squads in Tongcheng?"

"If all goes smoothly, I intend to recommend you to succeed as Fast Squad Head."

In the darkness, He Xianya's breathing came in two quick gasps. Pang Yu didn't wait for his thanks, and continued, "What I'm contending for is the Anqing Garrison Commander post, but I won't only guard the Prefectural City. What I want to guard is the entire territory of Anqing Prefecture. Tongcheng needs someone trustworthy; only then can we coordinate seamlessly when resisting the roving bandits later."

"It's just that with Second Brother suddenly leaving, Magistrate Yang might not necessarily..."

"No need to worry. By then I'll already be Anqing Garrison Commander. Magistrate Yang will be hoping I bring troops to save Tongcheng when the roving bandits come. Though he's a young man, he's also a clever one; he won't offend me over a squad head."

He Xianya felt somewhat relieved hearing this. After a moment, he spoke again, "Second Brother, don't take this the wrong way, but I've actually been thinking I could purchase a clerk's status, and when a vacancy opens in the Tongcheng Military Office, take over as head of that Military Office Clerk. That way I could oversee Tongcheng's Three Squads, militia, Inspection Office, and stores and societies."

Pang Yu thought for a moment and said, "That would be even better. But until the Military Office Clerk post becomes vacant, you'll serve as Fast Squad Head first."

"Then I'll follow Second Brother's word. Thank you, Second Brother, for your patronage."

There was a moment of silence in the darkness. He Xianya spoke again, this time in an even lower voice, so only Pang Yu could hear clearly; even Guo Fengyou opposite probably couldn't.

"Would Second Brother arrange a destination for Eldest Brother?"

Without the slightest hesitation, Pang Yu said, "No."

"Did he truly come asking Second Brother for silver?"

"He didn't come." Pang Yu closed his eyes and said, "He must have realized himself it wasn't right; he just wanted to use you to test the waters."

He Xianya said, "I've already admonished him. He should understand now, and said he won't associate with Liu Xiucai anymore."

"Then we'll see." Pang Yu lay down a bit, cushioning his head with his bundle. "You two keep watch first. If we reach Anqing during the night, call me, and note what hour we arrived."

"Understood."

During the night, Pang Yu got up and took one shift. When he woke in the morning, they still hadn't reached Anqing.

After daybreak the boatman raised the sail again. Pang Yu watched the boat workers adjust it for a moment; the sail was slightly askew, but it happened to catch the wind just right. With a favorable wind on the river, the boat's speed nearly doubled.

Not long after, they reached Sheng-Tang Wharf. Pang Yu couldn't help feeling a bit regretful; he'd hoped that if they passed the Anqing river surface at night, he could have seen the sight of the pagoda's shadow stretching across the river.

But he realized the boatman had likely done this deliberately, because only after daybreak would passengers come to the ferry crossing to wait for the boat; no one would come at night, and those on board couldn't buy food either.

At Sheng-Tang Ferry the boatman took on some bamboo ware, let off a few passengers, and waited for a time. There were many passenger boats at the dock; they waited half a shichen and only got five people. Seeing passengers were scarce, the boatman cast off and headed downstream.

Not far downstream they passed a sandbar. The river surface was covered with fishing boats, and along the bank there were rows of fishing boats moored. Pang Yu guessed this was the Yancha Fishing Lanterns that Ruan Dacheng had spoken of — a pity it was daytime again, and he saw nothing at all.

From here on downstream, the current was swift for a stretch, with reefs like Lanjiangji and others; the boat's speed dropped again. The boatmen were all on deck keeping watch, bamboo poles in hand, not daring to be careless in the slightest.

Pang Yu also stood on the deck, making small talk with the boat workers while observing the conditions on the river.

The boat's speed was very slow. At nightfall they passed the location of Lower Zongyang Town, without stopping at Zongyang, and went all the way downstream, mooring once along the way at Chizhou.

By the fourth day, the passenger boat arrived at a large harbor. Once the boat was securely moored, Pang Yu emerged from the cabin and saw riverside streets and markets stretching for several li — a scene of bustling prosperity. Porters at the dock came and went in an endless stream, and the goods they carried were all bolts of cloth.

"This place must be Wuhu." Pang Yu made a mental note. He had no suitable brush to use; that writing set of brush, ink, paper, and inkstone was very inconvenient to carry, so he could only record everything he saw along the way in his mind.

He Xianya stood beside him and said, "Calculated by the distances recorded in the Unified Route Records, it's still roughly ten-plus li per shichen."

Pang Yu nodded. "Without the sail, about fifteen li per shichen; with the sail and a favorable wind, twenty-plus li. But as that boat worker said, in the summer high-water season the current is two or three times faster — about three or four hundred li in a day, faster than roving bandits on horseback. This one boat can carry three thousand dan; on land you'd need to mobilize several hundred carts and several hundred grooms. With the labor costs of eating, drinking, and bodily functions, there'd be little profit. This boat needs only ten boatmen and travels even faster — that is the advantage of water transport."

"Reckoned that way, land truly cannot compare to water transport." He Xianya then asked Pang Yu, "Why are all the porters here carrying bolts of cloth to shore and onto the boats?"

Guo Fengyou had also followed onto the deck. After a brief observation, he answered offhandedly, "You can tell at a glance — what's going ashore is all white cloth; what's being loaded onto the boats is all dyed cloth."

At that moment, a middle-aged passenger was disembarking. Hearing them, he said to the three, "You gentlemen must be visiting Wuhu for the first time, and don't yet know that what Wuhu is most famous for is starching and dyeing. Everyone in Jiangnan says: Songjiang cloth, Wuhu dyeing. Every year, countless cotton cloths are sent from all over, all dyed in Wuhu."

Pang Yu was somewhat surprised. The Ming dynasty's textile industry had actually formed a regional division of labor, and separated by such great distances — without the convenience of water transport, it absolutely could not have been achieved. At the same time, Wuhu must have a complete starching and dyeing industry chain, possessing economies of scale and an enormous cost advantage, for out-of-town cloth merchants to be willing to transport their goods such long distances for starching and dyeing.

He quickly asked the passenger, "May I ask, what other famous things does Wuhu have?"

The man stepped onto the gangplank, and as he walked, he answered offhandedly, "The others would be the Three Knives and Su Steel — especially that Su Steel. Iron reaches Wuhu and becomes steel, as they say."