Chapter 6: Chapter Six: The White Horse River Pact

Yan Qiu at this moment saw the Lord take out a fishing rod, she thought it was to assign her a task and was about to accept, but Li Bucai gave her a faint smile and said, "Come fish by the river with me?"

"Lord... Lord... that..." She looked as if she could be blown away by a breeze, just like the way Cao Gong described Lin Daiyu—sorrow on both cheeks, a delicate illness—perfectly fitting her; her voice was very gentle, though tiny, clear and pleasant, and she was an extremely shy girl who seemed to rarely speak with boys, uttering only a few words, her pink cheeks already flushed.

"What's wrong?" Li Bucai noticed a hint of displeasure in her expression.

Yan Qiu dared not meet his gaze, lowered her head, and said, "That... that is my duty..."

Li Bucai was still a bit puzzled, when the guard Township Xiaosheng said softly, "Lord, as a lord, you should assign these trivial matters to us servants."

Li Bucai nodded, perhaps displeased at having taken her task, and tried, "Then, would you mind preparing lunch for me?"

"Hmm..." Yan Qiu lightly nodded, took the fishing rod, and asked, "Anything else..."

Li Bucai was somewhat confused.

Xianghong understood Yan Qiu's temperament; she was a very inarticulate girl, especially before the Lord, and being a handsome pot made it even harder to speak, so Xianghong spoke for her, "Lord, what are your plans for today?"

"Um... plans? First, we'll fish a bit, then set up a few wind‑ and rain‑proof tents. Our manpower is limited, so we'll have to ask you to stay in tents for a few days. Once that's done, the day will be nearly over."

Yan Qiu, now understanding, nodded and, still a bit timid, said in a low voice, "Shall... shall we have a pot of fragrant flower tea."

"Fragrant flower tea? Do we have any?" Li Bucai, besides tools and enough utensils for these people, had bought nothing else.

"Hmm, there's a fragrant flower tea tree over there, it's in bloom."

Scout Rui Tong said, "Sister Yan Qiu may be erudite and versatile, but her greatest strength is the tea ceremony. The tea of Sky City—if Yan Qiu says she's second, no one would dare say first."

"Oh? Very well, then bring a pot."

"Hmm..."

Yan Qiu answered, went into the woods, and shortly returned cradling a bundle of dry firewood; lacking fire‑starting tools, she expertly struck two stones together to spark a flame, lighting it in moments. While the fire was still weak, she carried the pot to the foot of the hill and back; by then the fire burned brightly, she gathered three long sticks, fashioned a tripod, set the pot upon it, and began heating water.

"Mountain spring water?"

Yan Qiu replied.

Li Bucai couldn't help but silently praise her ability; having just arrived here without knowing the surroundings, she instantly located a mountain spring as if she had lived here for years.

"How did you know there was a spring there?"

"There, water cicadas are chirping; water cicadas only appear where the water is crystal‑clear, and fragrant flower tea must be brewed with pure water to taste good."

Li Bucai listened intently for a while, heard no sound, glanced at Xianghong then at Rui Tong, and the two shook their heads in understanding, indicating they too heard nothing; it must be another of her unique abilities.

When the water in the pot began to swirl, Yan Qiu had already gathered fragrant flowers. The blossoms resembled cherry blossoms in some ways, but with tiny petals and a faint scent. She also took a few leaves, folded them a few times; the palm‑sized leaves swiftly became delicate tea bowls in her deft hands, she placed the petals neatly inside, poured in the hot water, and the fragrant flower tea was complete. She lifted a cup with both hands and presented it to Li Bucai.

Li Bucai took a gentle sip and sensed a faint, lingering fragrance, sweet yet not cloying; after drinking the cup, he felt instantly refreshed and delighted, as if no beverage he had ever tasted could compare.

After receiving the Lord's approving look, Yan Qiu smiled contentedly, grabbed the fishing rod, and hurried to the riverbank.

A large pot of tea, drunk in one go by three people, still left them wanting more.

……

After tasting the fragrant tea, Li Bucai picked up a logging axe and went into the woods to prepare tent construction.

Building tents didn't require very thick timber; though a bronze axe wasn't as handy as an iron axe on Earth, after a short while he had chopped a modest pile, roughly enough to erect five tents, hauled all the wood to the camp, and began assembling.

At that moment, the sound of an axe striking a tree echoed from the forest across the river; on the opposite bank's clearing, a school‑uniformed girl, surrounded by two maidens, walked toward the river and waved at Li Bucai.

"What, my lord, must you personally handle even a rough job like logging?"

The school‑uniformed girl allocated most of her funds to first‑class labor, affording only one second‑class laborer. Though she arrived more than an hour after Li Bucai, by then the wooden house frame on the clearing was already erected; she left two maidens to brew tea and boil water, while she herself, comfortably served by the maidens, sat on a large stone by the riverbank, and another maiden offered her a cup of the locally unique fragrant flower tea.

"You aren't enchanted, are you? Wasting all your money on the second‑class labor market?"

On the opposite riverbank, only one person was fishing, accompanied by a guard; even Li Bucai had two warriors with him, and no other workers were visible, clearly all had hired second‑class labor.

Li Bucai could only grit his teeth and say, "Um... I thought there was only one market; I found the one downstairs was already too late, so..."

"Hah! No way I believe that. Hey, I originally intended to give you some time before bringing you in as a servant of my servant, but alas... now it seems I don't even need to act; a certain handsome pot from Mars is about to be conquered by this ruthless nature. Rest in peace, my Mars man. Otherwise... since we've met, why don't you lead your band of beauties here, place your territory under my control? I might consider giving you the worst assignment."

"If I cross the river now, aren't you afraid your handsome pots will be recruited by me? Of course, that includes you and the few beauties by your side."

"Um..." Across the bank, everyone is second‑class labor; if we attack now, not to mention myself, among all newcomers none would dare wager all their money on second‑class labor—who could be his opponent? "Do you know why I didn't choose the alluring eastern seaside and came here instead?"

The school‑uniformed girl was also his friend, so he naturally wouldn't attack his friend's territory: "Could it be... you can't bear to let me?"

"Hah, I can't bear to lose you, can't bear to miss this spectacle; I want to watch how my Mars man gets conquered by this ruthless nature. So, shall we compare?"

"Compare what?"

"Among everyone, only the two of us differ; theirs are half‑civil, half‑martial, while the two of us—you are all martial, I am all civil. In a year, let's see who develops the territory best; if I lose, I obey you in everything; if you lose, everything obeys me. How does that sound?"

"If I lose, I'll become the emperor's husband in your territory; if you lose, you'll be my crown prince in my territory. Either way we become emperor—only a fool would refuse such a boon."

"Nice thinking; when the time comes, even making you a father‑in‑law would be a bargain for you... The two sides now form a stark contrast, the school‑uniformed girl holds the advantage, flicks her cloak stylishly, and, attended by the maidens, returns to her camp.

……

Approaching noon, Li Bucai had already raised three tents on the clearing: the central small tent stood in the middle, oriented north‑to‑south, with two large tents flanking it on either side, and he expected to erect two more before nightfall. Glancing at the sun, it was already lunchtime; unsure of Yan Qiu's situation, he led Rui Tong and Xianghong to the riverbank.

On the north bank of White Horse River, Yan Qiu's silhouette stood still by the water like two vivid flower petals.

Two girls simultaneously blurted, "No..." "Now it's disastrous..." Yan Qiu had only three finger‑length small fish by her side. Yan Qiu is someone who knows everything; how could she catch only three fish in half a day?

Yan Qiu heard the voices, hurriedly turned around, her eyes blood‑red, glistening with tears, her face both anxious and imploring.

"What's this, my beauty."

Yan Qiu couldn't hold back; tears surged like sweet spring water as she choked out, "I'm useless, unable to complete the Lord's assigned task, I've let down the Lord's commission."

Yan Qiu had spent the entire morning here trying to reel in fish, but she was the type whose theory outweighed practice; she had learned everything from books, knew which bait suited which fish, yet when it came to actual fishing, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't catch any.

Yet at that moment, three more people came to fish on the opposite bank, pulling fish out one after another, each larger than the last; Yan Qiu grew increasingly frantic, and the more frantic she became, the less she could fish. As noon approached, she had only managed to catch three finger‑length fish. The Lord had barely assigned her a task, and it turned out like this; two tears swirled in her eye sockets, and Li Bucai, both anxious and embarrassed, could no longer hold back, and tears burst from his eyes.

Li Bucai stepped forward, wiped away her tears, and said, "First time fishing."

Yan Qiu nodded.

Li Bucai comforted, "Not bad, remember when I first went fishing, I spent a whole day and didn't catch a single fish. Embarrassed to go home, I secretly bought a few at the market, whereas you only spent half a day and caught three at once..." He deliberately examined the three fish, "Hey, what kind of fish is this? Isn't this a white fish? Where we are, this fish is extremely rare— even a veteran fisherman who has spent a lifetime fishing can barely catch it. It's my favorite, but it's hard to find at the market; you might go years without a chance. I never expected to enjoy such a delicacy here today."

Hearing that, Yan Qiu felt much better, stopped her tears, and said, "But... only three, we have eleven people."