Daomu Biji: The Southern Archives

For He Jianxi, the four hours in the sea were like hell. The sea was cold at night, and although it wasn’t the kind of bitter cold that could take people’s lives, his feet were still spasming.

But it was as if this plague god could breathe underwater. When he couldn’t swim anymore, Zhang Haiyan would swim with one hand and pull him forward with the other without decreasing his speed at all. When he was having cramps, Zhang Haiyan would hold his chin above the water so that he could take a break.

Even so, four hours was still too long. He Jianxi’s consciousness immediately became blurred and he couldn’t remember how he got on the Nan'an. He only remembered that a huge palace was sailing towards them on the sea. It was so huge, and the lights were so beautiful that it was just like a fairyland. He even thought that he was dead and had sank into the Crystal Palace (1).

After that, his back met a solid deck. This was the first time he had felt at ease lying against a hard surface. And the most amazing thing was that the deck was still warm.

Since the water was too cold, even the deck felt warm.

It was only when Zhang Haiyan dragged him to a corner and made him drink from a finger-sized bottle of spirits that He Jianxi slowly recovered.

His whole body was weak, and it felt as if all of his bones had been removed. Even his muscles hurt like they had been pricked with needles.

“Where are we?” He asked weakly.

“We’re on the Nan'an. It’s a steamship heading to Xiamen.”

“Why Xiamen? I’m going to San Francisco. Big Brother, what are you doing exactly?”

“I’m saving your life.”

Zhang Haiyan felt that this kid was truly lucky. Such a difficult plan had succeeded so smoothly.

The ship was very quiet. The Nan'an wasn’t a warship, so no one was patrolling on deck. Zhang Haiyan was extremely tired and also drank a bottle of spirits as he began to observe their surroundings.

He Jianxi slowly came back to his senses and suddenly understood what Zhang Haiyan said. He grabbed Zhang Haiyan, “You bastard. I’m going to San Francisco. I don’t want to go to Xiamen as a stowaway. My cousin is still waiting for me.”

Zhang Haiyan covered his mouth. “Shut up, or you can swim back.”

He Jianxi became enraged. “I’m going to report you. I’m going to report you!”

Zhang Haiyan took out his ferry ticket and waved it. “Don't be silly. You are a stowaway on this ship. I’m a valued guest here. You can only report yourself.”

He Jianxi looked at the ticket, clutched his heart, and almost had a heart attack.

As he was feeling utterly aggrieved, Zhang Haiyan patted him. “Don’t worry. No one believes that anyone can sneak aboard a ship in this area. There aren’t any bad sailors or crooks on this ship, so don’t be afraid. After arriving in Xiamen, I’ll let you go to San Francisco. You’re just taking a detour. That’s it. Let’s go back to my room, and I’ll explain it to you in detail. But behave.” With that said, he helped He Jianxi up, recalled the location of the first-class cabin, and then moved forward.

He Jianxi had no physical strength to resist, and could only submit. As he walked, he asked, "Who are you exactly?”

They had only taken two steps when they saw more than a dozen corpses piled up further behind their hiding place. They were all crew members whose throats had been pierced.

The two of them immediately retreated, and He Jianxi looked at Zhang Haiyan, “Didn't you say that there aren’t any bad sailors or crooks? What’s going on?”

Zhang Haiyan was speechless. As he was thinking, he suddenly heard someone come up on the deck.

A girl’s voice said, “Dump all the bodies into the sea. That woman is very shrewd. We mustn't let her become suspicious.”

The two people shrank back and hid in the shadows. Zhang Haiyan saw two girls dragging a new corpse towards them.

****

TN Notes:

(1) A cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. More info here