Di Ming

Chapter 55 Galaxy
Thinking of the human traffickers' illicit money, Ning Caiwei quickly scrambled onto the boat.

Although there wasn't much blood on the ship, a fishy smell permeated the air.

The smell of brain matter.

"Ugh..." Ning Caiwei smelled the odor and saw the tofu pudding coming out of the dead man's head. Her stomach churned and she couldn't help but rush to the side of the ship to vomit.

Zhu Yin patted the little girl's back with concern, "It's okay, you'll get used to it. You're just kind-hearted."

"Giggle giggle..." The baby Ning Qingchen laughed without a care in the world.

It's just a dead person's brain matter, what's so disgusting about that? Have you ever seen a severed eyeball, internal organs, or mutated tissue?
Sis, you're so useless.

No, you're not really useless. You're probably just pretending, acting weak.

Heh, do you think I don't know you?
When Galo, who was holding her, saw her smiling so happily, his face turned green.

This little princess will grow up to be a ruthless person.

Zhu Yin felt a pang of sympathy seeing Ning Caiwei vomiting so badly. Seeing Ning Qingchen's carefree laughter, he couldn't help but glare at her.

Ning Qingchen, however, was smiling very happily.

It hurts, doesn't it? It hurts, doesn't it?

She used to bully me a lot when she was a teenager.

You think she's a sweet and virtuous woman? You'll know how formidable she is once you marry her.

This spy is about to fall. Hahahaha.

After Ning Caiwei stopped vomiting, Zhu Yin accompanied her into the cabin.

Soon, a box was found inside the ship's cabin.

Upon opening it, one finds nothing but gleaming silver and women's jewelry.

Ning Caiwei couldn't help but beam with joy, "Primary capital, primary capital! Little Tiger brother, look how much you have!"

Zhu Yin smiled and said, "What's your estimate?"

Ning Caiwei glanced at it and said, "There are at least five or six thousand taels of silver, probably used for bribery. The jewelry... is equivalent to more than a thousand taels of silver."

"Goods worth about seven thousand taels. We only managed to earn a little over a thousand taels before, and now we've suddenly gotten seven thousand taels."

"Our business will start at a high level."

"Damn it." Her eyes sparkled. "They robbed us so fast."

"This is the silver used for bribery." Zhu Yin touched the silver, feeling quite at ease. "My godfather also has a share of this silver."

“In the Ming Dynasty, the higher the starting point for doing business, the more bribes you have to make. Even before you have a business, you have to give money to others and pay tribute at every level. The actual capital you can use to do business is at most two thousand taels.”

"With an initial investment of two thousand taels of silver, if you want to buy a medium-sized seagoing vessel, you'll only have a few hundred taels left."

“These things are clearly written in both San Yan Er Pai and Jin Ping Mei.”

Ning Caiwei looked at Zhu Yin with a clear and calm gaze, her innocent face conveying an unreadable meaning.

"You like reading 'Jin Ping Mei'? You like it?"

Zhu Yin looked completely bewildered. "What do you mean? I read the abridged version, the kind that omits so many words here, it's for research. What else did you think? What can't modern people see? Why would I need to seek thrills through *Jin Ping Mei*?"

Ning Caiwei smiled brightly, "Why are you so excited? No need to explain, I know you're serious."

Zhu Yin couldn't help but touch his forehead, "Was I... excited?"

Ning Caiwei didn't reply. She happily closed the box and then sealed it.

Zhu Yin ignored her and went directly to the warehouse to rescue the victims who had been abducted.

Qi Jiguang was afraid of being recognized, so he did not go in.

The warehouse was crammed with more than twenty people, mostly women and children.

They were all bound hand and foot, gagged, huddled together in a mess, sweaty mass, the entire bottom floor reeking of sweat and even urine.

They were both surprised and delighted to see Zhu Yin.

saved!
"I saved you all," Zhu Yin said to the crowd. "The thieves have all been killed. Go ashore and go home."

"Lancha, untie their ropes."

"Yes, sir!" Lancha and the others stepped forward and untied the ropes binding the victims one by one.

"My little benefactor..." Many people couldn't help but bow down as soon as they regained their freedom.

Zhu Yin said, "Don't kneel! I always do good deeds anonymously. Just remember my face. You might see me again in the future."

As they were talking, Ning Caiwei also came in.

“They don’t have the money to go home, and they can’t even go home,” Ning Caiwei said. “If we give each of them some money, they can go home.”

"Ten taels of silver for each person?"

Zhu Yin nodded and said, "I'll go all the way and give each of you ten taels of silver for travel expenses."

Ning Caiwei immediately ordered more than twenty silver ingots to be taken and distributed as travel expenses.

This cost more than two hundred taels of silver.

Ning Caiwei has a very rational attitude towards money. Money is merely a tool to achieve goals, not the ultimate goal.

She doesn't hesitate to spend money when it's necessary.

To everyone's surprise, Zhu Yin not only saved them but also gave them travel expenses.

This little benefactor, though young, is a rare and kind person.

Many people secretly remember this little face, wondering if their little benefactor will not recognize him when he grows up.

The vast majority of people were extremely grateful and thankful.

"My little benefactor...may your descendants be noble and successful for generations, and your fame spread far and wide through the imperial examinations!"

"May my little benefactor live a long and healthy life. I pray for him every night." But then two twin boys, around ten years old, and a girl of thirteen or fourteen knelt down.

"My benefactor, we have no home anymore, we can't go back! The human traffickers killed my father, my father is dead, and we have no home!"

The twin boys were in tears, saying, "We took the money from our little benefactor, but we have nowhere to go."

The girl's eyes were also filled with tears. "My parents are both dead. My sister-in-law sold me to human traffickers for a pittance. I have a home, but I can't go back."

Zhu Yin looked at the three people, considered for a moment, and said, "If you really have nowhere to go, then come with me."

"Thank you, my little benefactor!" The girl bowed first. "I am willing to be your slave, your servant!"

The twin boys quickly knelt down and kowtowed.

“Alright, you don’t need to kneel anymore,” Zhu Yin said, offering a gesture of support like a little adult. “Let me make this clear first: although I am young, I have big rules. If you follow me, you must abide by my rules.”

"Yes, yes!" The three nodded in agreement.

Then, the others went ashore and left, leaving only the boy and girl, who were about ten years old.

Qi Jiguang said, "The wind is blowing from the south right now, let's hoist the sails and set sail, it's almost dawn."

He then ordered Lancha and others to hoist the sails, while Qi Jiguang personally took the helm. Zhu Yin, on the other hand, directed Lancha and the others to maneuver the sails.

This is just a sand barge that can carry dozens of people; it has a single mast and a hard sail, and can be operated by just a few people.

The sand barge immediately caught a gust of wind and headed south at full speed, though still not very fast.

That's right, this section of the canal is for "going south," not for going south.

Because it's against the current.

The section of the canal from Tianjin to Xuzhou flows from south to north, while the flow to the south is actually reversed.

It wasn't until several miles later, after leaving the bustling dock, that Zhu Yin ordered all the corpses to be thrown into the canal.

It was still dark, and visibility on the canal was low. The body was thrown into the canal and no one else discovered it.

perfect.

As dawn broke, more and more boats appeared on the canal.

It was truly a sight to behold, with thousands of sails racing and hundreds of boats vying for position; the river was filled with ships, creating a magnificent spectacle.

Zhu Yin stood on the deck, using a folding fan to shield himself from the sun, gazing at the canal scenery with a sense of exhilaration.

Ning Caiwei, holding her younger sister, stood beside Zhu Yin, also admiring the canal scenery with great interest.

"What is the Grand Canal?" Zhu Yin asked with a smile. "The Grand Canal is the lifeblood of the Ming Dynasty, the backbone of its finances."

Ning Caiwei recited: "Everyone says that the Sui Dynasty perished because of this river, yet today, thousands of miles of its waters still flow through it. Today, I finally understand why."

Zhu Yin shook his head slightly. "That's where you're going wrong. Let me explain, President Ning: the canal you're standing on is not the same as the canal built by Emperor Yang of Sui."

"Huh?" Ning Caiwei was quite surprised and couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. "No? Sigh, I misread the poem and expressed the wrong feelings."

He smiled modestly and said, "Tell me about it, so I can broaden my horizons."

Zhu Yin, always eager to teach, said, "The river that Yang Guang built is called the Bian River, also known as the Tongji Canal. It runs from Luoyang to Kaifeng, and then to Jiangnan."

"The river we are standing on is called the Huitong River. The middle section of the Sui Dynasty Grand Canal was basically abandoned due to siltation."

"Now you know, right? Hehe."

Ning Caiwei smiled elegantly, secretly thinking to herself that he was a chauvinist.

The canal at that time was much wider than it would be in later years. The banks of the canal were inhabited by people who lived off the river.

The houses along the canal are all single-eaved brick and wood structures with windows and doors facing the river, and lanterns hanging there to illuminate the night for boats sailing at night.

Below the steps at the entrance is their own small boat.

Many people from the canal row small boats, carrying goods such as wine, dishes, plum juice, mung bean soup, and fruits, calling out as they shuttle back and forth between the boats.

Along the riverbanks were temples, markets, theaters, inns, gambling dens, and military garrisons.

Even the stone arch bridges that you pass by from time to time are crowded with vendors and pedestrians.

Many vendors leaned over the stone bridge railings, hoisting their goods into baskets and onto the decks of the passing ships, shouting:

"Sir! I've lowered everything down for you, it's just a handful of copper coins!"

Those who were willing to buy would take out a handful of copper coins or a few pieces of silver, throw them into the hanging basket, and retrieve their goods.

Money and goods are both in order.

So someone on the bridge cheered, "Great! You've had a wonderful time, sir! May your journey be smooth and your fortunes soar!"

Those who didn't want to buy naturally wouldn't even glance at the suspended baskets lowered from the bridgehead.

Every few miles there is a small dock where boats can temporarily moor, get off to eat, drink, have tea, or gamble.

Or... go find the girls who sell their smiles at the door in the small market town.

Many of them are acquaintances and old friends, so of course they have to support the business; they are regular customers.

You could even bring it on the boat, and after a night of passion, you could set sail later.

No hurries.

As evening falls and lanterns are lit, the people living along the canal on both sides of the river seem to have agreed to light up the lanterns in their riverside windows to illuminate the way for boats traveling on the river.

Standing on the boat, one can see the lights on both banks, dazzling and beautiful like a starry river, as if almost ten thousand lights had been lit up overnight, as red as summer flowers.

Amidst the shimmering waves, the night is like a dream.

Seeing this, Zhu Yin gently waved his folding fan and softly recited:
My home is near the masts and oars of Yunfan.
The lamplight and starlight have traversed a thousand years.

Where are the young men in their prime?
I know I'll go to the ends of the earth, amidst the misty waters.

P.S.: This chapter's depiction of the world might not be thrilling or exciting enough, and not many people will enjoy it. But that's the style of this book, and it's unavoidable.

(End of this chapter)