Episode 216: The Yangtze River
The next morning, Tang Mujin’s group, now grown to six members, made their way to the banks of the Yangtze River. The air was thick with the briny scent of the river.
As one of the largest river ports alongside Chongqing, Wuchang offered numerous docking spots for ships.
The docked ships were bustling with sailors and workers loading and unloading cargo. A little further out, other ships bobbed gently, waiting for their turn.
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen a scene like this,” someone remarked.
“Indeed,” another replied.
The group hadn’t decided in advance which ship to board. They hadn’t had the luxury of time to plan.
Yet, as if by unspoken agreement, the six of them gravitated towards the largest and most impressive-looking vessel.
This ship was nearly twice the size of the others, and the people on deck were dressed smartly.
“Mostly merchants,” Tang Mujin noted.
Typically, merchants traveled with a retinue of guards and porters.
However, there were no porters in sight, and only a few guards. The cost of passage was several times a guard’s monthly wage.
It was more economical to dismiss the guards and porters before boarding and hire new ones upon disembarking.
For the same reason, there were no pack animals on board. Large ports always had a market nearby, teeming with guards and porters looking for work.
Wang Jincheng was visibly excited at the sight of the large ship.
After all, a street kid like him had probably never been on a ship before.
“Are we really going to board this one?”
“If there’s room, we will. But even if there isn’t, we’re not settling for a smaller ship,” Hong Geolgae replied.
Namgung Myung chimed in, “Wang Jincheng, your excitement will last a day or two. Soon enough, you’ll be itching to get off.”
“No way,” Wang Jincheng protested.
“Just wait and see. You’ll be begging to get off,” Namgung Myung teased.
As they approached the ship, a sailor gave them a once-over with a stoic gaze.
His eyes lingered on Wang Jincheng, as it was unusual for a child to board a ship. But seeing the boy’s neat attire, the sailor assumed he was from a well-off family and moved on.
His gaze lingered longer on Hong Geolgae.
Though not shabby, Hong Geolgae’s clothes were modest. He deliberately avoided new clothes to maintain his identity as a wanderer.
After assessing the group, the sailor concluded that Hong Geolgae was no ordinary vagrant.
Tang Mujin approached the sailor and asked, “Where is this ship headed?”
“We’re going to Luzhou, passing through Chongqing.”
Luzhou was in the southeastern corner of Sichuan Province.
In terms of distance, it was closer to Chengdu from Luzhou than from Chongqing.
However, since the journey from Chongqing to Luzhou was quite lengthy, it was always more practical to disembark at Chongqing.
“When do you depart?”
“We’ll be leaving within the next two hours.”
“We’re six, planning to travel to Chongqing. What’s the fare?”
“Fifty taels of silver per person.”
Tang Mujin’s eyes narrowed.
When he traveled down from Chongqing with Gwai, the fare was twenty taels per person. When they traveled up with Namgung Myung from Wuchang to Chongqing, it was forty taels per person.
And that was during the expensive transition from winter to spring.
The sailor, understanding Tang Mujin’s expression, explained, “The fare is steep, I know. You could find another ship for around thirty taels. But this ship offers much more comfort. The larger the ship, the less it rocks.”
It was a reasonable explanation.
Besides, with their current financial situation, a few extra taels weren’t a concern. It was just the thought of being overcharged that was irksome.
Once the misunderstanding was cleared, Tang Mujin’s expression softened.
“That makes sense.”
“Do you have any luggage? If you have a lot, the fare will increase.”
“What you see is all we have.”
“Then it’s three hundred taels. If you pay an extra five taels per person, we’ll provide simple meals on the way to Chongqing.”
Tang Mujin quickly calculated in his head. Simple meals likely meant noodles, dumplings, or porridge with pickled vegetables.
Though several times more expensive than eating at an inn, considering the logistics of carrying food on a ship, it was a fair price.
“Six people to Chongqing, meals included. Three hundred and thirty taels, correct?”
The sailor nodded, and Namgung Myung took out the money on Tang Mujin’s behalf.
Seventeen gold pieces. At twenty taels of silver per gold piece, that equaled three hundred and forty taels.
The sailor, after receiving the gold, prepared to return ten taels in change.
But Namgung Myung waved it off.
“Keep the change. It’s a hassle to carry it around.”
“Thank you, sir.”
The sailor’s demeanor instantly became more amiable, his bow deep and respectful.
It was understandable, given that he had just received what would take months to earn.
Namgung Myung, having grown up wealthy, was generous by nature.
Though he learned the value of money while working as a guard and curbed his spending, he became even more generous to those who worked hard.
He understood how much a single tael or coin could mean to them.
As they boarded the ship, Tang Mujin commented, “Wasn’t that a bit much?”
“Not at all. A little extra kindness often comes back to you, like getting a bit more food,” Namgung Myung replied with a mature smile.
Unlike sea voyages, which require continuous travel until reaching the destination, river journeys often include stops.
These stops allow for picking up and dropping off passengers and restocking supplies.
Three days into their journey, the ship docked near Nando in Hubei.
On the riverbank, a group of people eyed the ship, whispering among themselves.
“Boss, are we targeting that big ship?”
“Yes.”
“It’s much larger than any we’ve hit before. Are you sure about this?”
“Don’t you trust me?”
“Of course, but…”
“This is a rare opportunity. Just trust me.”
They were a band of river pirates from the Southern Lin Fort, one of the many groups lurking around the Yangtze.
Pirates typically operated in one of two ways.
The first was to block a ship’s path with their own and extort a toll. They were ready to board if necessary, but usually, an unspoken agreement allowed them to collect the toll without violence.
Shipowners often prepared for this, making these pirates relatively peaceful, if a bit annoying.
The second type was more dangerous. They boarded as passengers and revealed their true intentions once the ship was underway.
These pirates were notorious for their ruthlessness.
They would create chaos to intimidate the crew into stopping the ship, buying time for their accomplices to board.
Chaos was just the beginning. They often escalated to violence, robbing passengers and crew of all valuables, sometimes even killing everyone on board.
While the first type of pirates might be tolerated by the authorities if they weren’t too brutal, the second type faced immediate execution if caught.
Despite the risks, some pirates chose the second method for one reason: the potential for a massive payday far outweighed the steady income from tolls.
The Southern Lin Fort pirates asked their leader, “Boss, why is this such a big opportunity?”
“Why do you think we don’t work often, and when we do, we only target small ships? Are we afraid of the merchants’ guards?”
The pirates shook their heads. The guards accompanying merchants were no real threat. Merchants didn’t travel with dozens of guards.
The real issue was elsewhere.
“We might run into a martial arts master by chance.”
“Exactly. But there won’t be any masters on that ship. I’m sure of it.”
“What do you mean?”
The pirate leader’s confident assertion puzzled his men.
“Every three years, there’s a martial arts tournament in Wuchang. Martial artists from nearby regions flock there. That’s happening now.”
“Boss, doesn’t that make it more dangerous? You said martial artists are gathering.”
“Think, you fool. The tournament won’t end for another ten days.”
“So what?”
The pirate leader lowered his voice, “The martial artists participating in the tournament or there to watch won’t leave Wuchang for the next ten days.”
“Ah!”
The logic was clear: with martial artists tied up in Wuchang until the tournament’s finals, targeting a ship departing now meant they wouldn’t encounter any martial artists.
The pirates marveled at their leader’s sharp thinking and felt grateful to serve under someone so skilled in both strategy and combat.
“If we miss this chance, there won’t be another big score for three years. Let’s make this count and enjoy some leisure time afterward. Got it?”
“Yes, boss.”
“You, Dongchul, and Hongjeom, get ready to board with me. The rest, follow at a safe distance without being seen.”
“Understood.”
The leader and his two henchmen donned the pristine clothes they had prepared in advance. With large bundles slung over their shoulders, they looked every bit the part of ordinary merchants.
As the trio confidently approached the docked ship, a sailor with a nonchalant expression asked them, “Are you boarding?”
“Yes.”
“Where to?”
“Yiling…”
No, claiming to go somewhere as close as Yiling might raise suspicion. Better to say they’re headed further away. The fare would be higher, but that was a minor concern. They planned to kill and plunder everyone anyway, so a little extra money wouldn’t make a difference. The leader of the Namrin Bandits grinned slyly and said, “No, we’re going to Zhongjing.”
Of course, the sailor had no way of knowing the bandit leader’s sinister intentions.
“Forty-five silver taels per person. If you want meals, that’ll be an extra five taels each.”
The leader emptied his pockets, handed over a hundred and fifty silver taels, and boarded the ship.
The leader and his two henchmen set their bundles down in a suitable spot and glanced around at the other passengers.
“Good. Not a single martial artist in sight. Just four guards.”
“As expected of you, boss.”
The guards seemed to include one first-rate and three second-rate fighters. Though skilled, the Namrin Bandits were confident they could handle them. Fighting on a ship was a different beast from fighting on land, and they had spent over twenty years living by the sword on the water.
The three of them sat in a corner of the deck, waiting for the ship to set sail. Once they reached a secluded area, they would reveal their true colors. Each of their bundles concealed a long sword.
As time passed, the surroundings grew dim, and the sailors lit torches. It seemed the ship would sail even in the dark. While setting sail at night was risky, they had traversed this route countless times, and the waters were calm. The sailors had nothing to fear—except for the three bandits hidden among them.
The ship became bustling as the time for departure approached. People who had gone ashore to explore the southern city were hurrying back to the ship. Leading the pack was a merchant with a protruding belly and a woman who seemed to be his concubine.
“Good. Those merchants look like they have plenty of money. And those people behind them… Huh?”
The leader noticed something odd. Six people followed the merchant, dressed in neat but plain clothes, yet their demeanor was unusual.
”…What?”
A child could be dismissed, but the rest had an air about them that was hard to ignore. A beggar, a man with a peculiar left arm, and two others in clean clothes.
”…Experts?”
Even from their demeanor, it was clear they weren’t to be underestimated. Unfortunately, those four would likely underestimate the Namrin Bandit leader.
But the last person to board was even more concerning.
“Sorry for the delay.”
“You’re not too late. It would be better if you boarded a bit earlier, though.”
As the person wearing a bamboo hat stepped onto the ship, the leader’s breath quickened. The martial prowess that far exceeded common sense, and the bamboo hat—there was only one person like this in the world.
“Why is the Blood Rain Wanderer here…?”
Just then, a sailor began removing the plank connecting the ship to the shore. The bandit leader’s sharp mind quickly assessed the situation. They needed to disembark immediately.
“Wait, hold on!”
As he hurriedly stood up, a gentle hand rested on his shoulder. Turning his head, he found the bamboo hat so close he could almost touch it. The Namrin Bandit leader’s heart pounded wildly.
The Blood Rain Wanderer spoke, “I don’t recognize you. New to the ship, are you?”
“Y-yes.”
“A merchant with some martial skills, I see. Where are you headed?”
When the leader could only open and close his mouth without answering, the sailor who had removed the plank spoke up.
“They said they’re going to Zhongjing.”
The Blood Rain Wanderer seemed delighted. “Perfect timing. We’re headed to Zhongjing too. Let’s get along until we disembark.”
”…Yes.”
The leader forced an awkward smile.
“They’re moving.”
“Follow quietly.”
The Namrin Bandits in the small boat maintained a safe distance, trailing the large ship. Hidden in the darkness, they had no fear of being discovered.
After about half an hour, the ship entered a more secluded area. The bandits waited for the ship to become noisy.
“Soon, the ship will stop. Get ready.”
The bandits rowed with tension, but the ship continued to glide smoothly without stopping.
An hour passed. The ship still didn’t stop. The bandits began to feel the strain in their arms.
Two hours passed. Still, the ship didn’t stop. The bandits’ mouths started to taste bitter.
Three hours, then four hours passed. As dawn began to break behind them, the ship remained in motion, serene as if nothing was amiss.
By the time the sun had fully risen, the deputy leader of the Namrin Bandits had unintentionally become the new leader.