That wretched vixen has disguised herself as my wife!

If Fang Zhiyi were to stand on the city wall just to make her smile, there might be a foolish emperor who would light the beacon fires to amuse his lords.

"But even so, why am I the one who's in big trouble?"

"Hey!"

The boat captain jumped down from the railing and shook off the cigarette ash.

"Young man, you're interested!"

"?"

At that moment, the huge sails unfurled with a "whoosh," catching a boatload of river wind, and the ferry sailed onto the wide surface of the Posuo River.

Jiang Jingming gripped the railing tightly to avoid being thrown into the water. He looked up and saw that the tide was calm, the banks were wide, and the wind was fair with a sail hanging high.

The sailors on the ship cheered, and the people on the dock who were seeing off the passengers waved and shouted "Have a safe journey!"

The bolder children stepped into the river and chased after the boats, only to be picked up and whipped by their parents who caught up with them.

The captain patted him on the shoulder, then hurried a few steps toward the bow to talk to the sailors.

Jiang Jingming stood at the stern of the rocking boat, his white robe billowing in the wind.

My mood was a bit chaotic; I didn't know why the boat captain suddenly said that.

It was probably just an unintentional joke, right?

Jiang Jingming leaned on the railing and looked out. The boat was covered with colorful ribbons tied to it, making it dazzling to look at.

These ribbons have fine stitches, clearly hand-woven by someone. To ignore such genuine care shows that the boat captain is just a clueless straight man.

Thinking of this, Jiang Jingming felt much more at ease.

The captain directed the sailors to stand guard and carefully inspected the hydrangeas displayed on the ship.

He squatted down next to a basin of bright red water and added a little water to it.

He used to think it was just his wife's hobby, but now that Jiang Jingming has brought it up, he cherishes it even more.

After watering the boat, the captain stood up and saw that Jiang Jingming had already walked to the mast.

The little girl in red was still excited, surrounding him and chattering away.

The girl in white circled the boat, admiring the flowers one by one with great interest.

Only the girl in green stood silently in the distance, her long hair flowing, lost in thought.

"It's so good to be young!"

The boat captain chuckled and sighed, thinking that only young people would fall into such a sweet dilemma.

What girlish thoughts, what femme fatale?

Actually, he's not a Casanova at all; what he said earlier contained an element of pretending to know what he didn't.

After all, sailors who drift on the river all have the bad habit of talking big and bragging all the time. Even though he became a boat captain, he still couldn't get rid of this habit.

But his statement that the young man was tempted was based solely on his own experience.

He spent a fortune to marry a girl from a completely different social class, all because of a fleeting glimpse of her.

She was seeing her father-in-law off at the dock when the gangplank was about to be taken down. She still had some things to give him, so she hurriedly went up the gangplank.

The boat was rocking precariously, and she looked like she was about to fall. The boatman couldn't bear to see her like that, so he went over and pulled her up.

With just one glance, he knew his life was over.

And what lingers between those two today is undoubtedly the same feeling as back then.

......

When will the rain of flowers fall? When will the rain of flowers fall?

Xie Yunqi kept pressing the boatman for answers.

"Little girl, the wind isn't strong enough yet. We'll have to wait until the boat picks up speed!"

The boatman stubbed out his pipe and answered with a chuckle.

Lu Zhao stood to the side, wanting to speak up and persuade the young lady to calm down, but he knew it would be useless, so he could only sigh.

"We finally managed to cheer her up, so let her be."

Jiang Jingming said with a smile.

Thinking about it carefully, it seems that ever since I met Xie Yunqi, no matter how many dark clouds accumulated in my heart, they would dissipate the next day.

Last night's incident with the man-eating ghost had left everyone feeling quite down, but today, her outburst over getting on the boat actually made everyone feel a bit more relaxed.

"If the weather stays this good, we should be able to reach Fengling City by tomorrow afternoon."

The boat captain patted Jiang Jingming on the shoulder and said with a smile:

"I was originally going to invite you for drinks, but after what you said, I'm so eager to go home that I don't want to waste a single second."

"It's alright."

Jiang Jingming lowered his head and smiled.

"By the way, young man, what brings you to Fengling City?"

The boat captain had wanted to ask this for a long time; such a group of people walking together was certainly eye-catching.

"We are originally from Zhongzhou. We went to Shulan City to visit an old friend, and this is our return journey."

Lu Zhao answered first, giving Jiang Jingming a wink.

"Yes."

Jiang Jingming casually replied, following his words:

"I originally wanted to ride on my brother's hydrangea boat when I came, but I missed it. I finally made it back on the way back."

"No problem! From now on, you can just come directly to my ship."

The boat captain waved his hand and took it all on.

"Thank you very much, brother."

Jiang Jingming and Lu Zhao exchanged a glance and then bowed to express their gratitude.

"But things haven't been peaceful in Fengling City lately. After that incident, people are panicking, and many are rushing to take boats across the river to avoid the storm."

The boat captain lowered his voice and mysteriously revealed the details to the two men.

"How to say?"

Although he knew perfectly well what was going on, Jiang Jingming pretended to be completely clueless.

"The entire Listening Waterfall Manor has been wiped out! The Righteous Alliance has been investigating for days without any results, and the murderer is still at large... I heard it's the young mistress of the Demonic Sect's Crossing the Moon! What a wicked vixen who brings calamity to the world!"

The boat captain slammed his hand on the railing, like a storyteller with dramatic intonation:

"The Imperial Guards from the capital have arrived! Good heavens, they've turned Fengling City upside down, but they haven't found a single hair on the demoness's head!"

"..."

Upon learning about his colleagues' progress in the search over the past few days, Lu Zhao scratched his head, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

"Perhaps the enchantress is hiding among those who crossed the river by boat a few days ago to avoid trouble?"

Jiang Jingming said slowly.

"Young man, don't scare me! I'm in a hurry to get back to see my wife!"

For the first time in his life, the boat captain was so afraid of losing his life that he kept slapping his thigh in desperation.

"Just kidding."

Jiang Jingming smiled, with a reassuring calmness.

Currently, although Fengling City has been taken over by the Divine Capital Guard, it is still in chaos, making it a good time to enter the game.

Chapter Fifty-Six: Fallen Flowers and Flowing Water

It was early spring at noon, and the sun was shining brightly.

The ferry sailed downstream, the river wind making the long sails billow like waves.

Under Xie Yunqi's lingering gaze, the boat captain finally raised his hands in surrender and stood at the bow of the boat.

Jiang Jingming looked into the distance, and all he could see was shimmering water, its surface reflecting golden light.

Finally, when the boat reached its maximum speed, the captain suddenly waved his hand.

Upon receiving the order, the sailors, lined up on the deck, forcefully flung out the silk ribbons they held in their hands.

In an instant, hydrangea petals fluttered up in the wind, dancing in the air like a sudden rain of flowers.

The unfurled silk ribbons fluttered in the wind, as if draping the ancient ship in a red dress. If someone were to look at it from a distance, they would mistake it for a roc with seven-colored feathers.

All the guests in the cabin went up to the deck, and clapping and cheering filled the air.

"OK!!!"

Xie Yunqi was the most excited of them all. She jumped up and down, clapping her hands, and turned around to wave to Jiang Jingming.

The young lady was really supportive. Jiang Jingming smiled. With her around, it was hard for the atmosphere to be awkward no matter what the occasion.

The boat captain was even happier to see her like this, and became even more determined to have a little daughter.

Fang Zhiyi raised her hand and caught a fluttering petal, examined it in her palm for a moment, then turned and asked with a smile:

What kind of flower is this?

"The petals are pure white, but upon closer inspection, there is a touch of crimson, which is the rouge tear."

Jiang Jingming didn't take it, but just looked at it in her palm.

Fang Zhiyi nodded thoughtfully.

"You interpreted the 'shattered jade ball' as a symbol of longing, but what about the 'rouge tears'?"

"I think it's probably a regret."

Jiang Jingming recalled the expression on Song Niangzi's face when she was tending to the flower field.

Madam Song is a rather spirited woman, decisive and efficient in her actions, only showing a bit of girlish charm when she's tending to flowers.

When Jiang Jingming was a child, he asked her why she came to Duyue Sect, but she was unwilling to answer. Instead, she took his hand and walked through the flower field, teaching him to recognize each flower.

Jiang Jingming thought for a moment before continuing:

"Coming too late, born at the wrong time, that's the kind of regret."

"Yeah."

Fang Zhiyi sighed, flicked her sleeve, and scattered the tear of rouge into the wind.

......

A rare and magnificent scene unfolded, yet only one person stood out from the crowd.

At the stern of the ship.

Aqing leaned against the railing, probably the only person on the boat who didn't look up to see the spectacular shower of flowers.

She simply looked down at the waves crashing against the rapidly receding water, petals falling into the water were quickly swept into the whirlpool, and she could vaguely see schools of fish swimming curiously around her.

"Aqing, what are you thinking about?"

Jiang Jingming walked to her side and looked at the same vortex as her.

Aqing looked up at him and shook her head.

I guess you're thinking the same thing as me.

Jiang Jingming leaned over the railing, stretching most of his body out, to watch the fish swimming in the whirlpool.

Aqing had no choice but to move closer and grab his belt, afraid that he would suddenly plunge into the water.

Jiang Jingming felt his belt tighten and chuckled softly.

He thought back to ten years ago when he and Aqing were crossing the river by boat. The boat was full of demons from the Crossing Moon Cult. He was very wary of them at the time, so he spent almost all his time with Aqing, the girl he had just bought.

As a child, he was sickly and had been traveling a long and dusty journey. He started to get seasick as soon as the ship set off and lay in the cabin in a daze all day.