The candle flame in the lantern flickered once and finally went out, plunging the ship into darkness. After a while, they could adapt to the view under the dim starlight.

Meihong’s voice drifted gently over with the sea wind, “The iron anchor is severed—this ship cannot dock and will eventually drift to Japan. In the end, I still won, didn’t I?”

Meng Jianqing answered quietly, “This ship still has two vats of clear oil and three vats of wine—enough to burn the entire vessel through.”

When two armies clashed, provisions and supplies that couldn’t be taken must be destroyed to avoid aiding the enemy.

The various battle cases and military codes memorized at Jiangwu Hall had penetrated deep into his heart. When faced with situations, he responded almost without thinking.

Meihong couldn’t speak for a long time.

Meng Jianqing continued, “Now, will you take the small boat and leave first, or stay on this ship and perish together?”

Meihong stared at him in a daze.

Given Meng Jianqing’s usual style of doing things, he should have killed her to eliminate future trouble.

Meihong said softly, “Are you going to stay and perish with this ship?”

After a moment of silence, Meng Jianqing said, “I must guard until the final moment.”

Never give up lightly until the final moment—but even at the final moment, one must not give up easily.

Meihong remained silent, then, after a long while, said, “What if I want to stay?”

Meng Jianqing said coldly, “Then I’d have to kill you first to avoid unnecessary variables.”

Meihong smiled sadly, “I understand. Before leaving, could you let me look at what’s inside that dressing table? Those are things my mother left me. I’ve seen them countless times in dreams—if I can’t truly see them once, I’ll die with my eyes open.”

Meng Jianqing frowned slightly. “At this point, you’re still lying to me? You may indeed resemble Fang Guoxiang greatly, but how could you possibly be Fang Guoxiang’s daughter? If Fang Guoxiang were alive, she’d only be thirty-six this year—how could she have a daughter as old as you?”

Meihong sighed almost inaudibly, “I knew you must have investigated my age long ago, but I didn’t expect you’d investigate Fang Guoxiang’s age so thoroughly, too. However, though she wasn’t my birth mother, she was my stepmother. After my father died, we depended on each other for ten years. All of this—she told me, she left it to me.”

She raised her head, “I want to look at that dressing table—surely that’s not too much?”

Meng Jianqing silently stepped aside.

Meihong carried the dressing table to the deck, removed a small, brightly polished copper key from around her neck, and inserted it into the rusty copper lock, but it wouldn’t turn. Meng Jianqing flicked off the lock clasp with his blade, then retreated again.

Meihong pulled out the first small box.

Under the starlight, the box contained various purple gold hairpins and rings with vivid designs—phoenixes and birds seemed about to take flight.

Meihong said softly, “These purple gold ornaments were all crafted by Jiangnan’s most famous artisans of that time. The workmanship alone is beyond price.”

She pulled out the second box. It was filled with various unset gemstones. Meihong picked up a cat’s-eye the size of a hazelnut and said, “These unset gems are easiest to sell. This one alone is worth the entire fortune of an ordinary wealthy household in Jiangnan.”

The third box contained several flawless jade pieces wrapped in silk cotton, with a small case inside. When opened, even the starlight seemed to pale—it contained night-luminous pearls about an inch in diameter. Roughly counting, there were twelve.

Meihong turned to look at Meng Jianqing. “Are you going to destroy them?”

A smile involuntarily appeared at the corner of Meng Jianqing’s mouth.

Never give up lightly until the final moment—but even at the final moment, Meihong wouldn’t give up lightly either.

They looked at each other in the starlight for a moment. Meng Jianqing suppressed his smile and said, “I’ll count to ten. If you don’t leave, don’t blame me for drawing my blade on you.”

She couldn’t change him.

Just as he couldn’t change her.

Meihong’s heart darkened, and she smiled gently, “Leave? Where could I go? Though heaven and earth are vast, if I can never again have a day of glory, if no one will ever share my glory, why should I hide in shameful places and grow old day by day?”

She suddenly hurled the case of night-luminous pearls toward the sea surface with all her strength. Meng Jianqing had been constantly on guard against her. As soon as she raised her hand, his long rope flew out, wrapped around the case, and pulled it back.

But Meihong had already leaped into the sea while clutching the dressing table.

Meng Jianqing cried out in shock, gripping the case of pearls as he rushed to the railing, but saw only foam on the sea surface.

He didn’t know how good Meihong’s swimming ability was, or whether she would climb back up along the rope holding the small boat when he wasn’t vigilant, like Uncle Yanfu had.

Did he hope she would climb back up, or hope she wouldn’t?

Meng Jianqing’s heart couldn’t help but feel wave after wave of confusion.

He turned back into the cabin, moved the clear oil to the hold containing the iron chests, then placed the three wine vats in the middle cabin.

He brought provisions and fresh water and lay on the cabin roof.

Waves of dark clouds drifted across the starry sky like giant ships breaking through waves. In his daze, Meng Jianqing seemed unable to distinguish sky from sea.

Until sunrise over the sea, Meihong never appeared.

Nor would she ever appear again.

Meng Jianqing sat on the cabin roof, gazing at the rising red sun over the sea, feeling a dull pain slowly growing within his body that gradually penetrated to his bones, as if some part of his body had been lost forever, and that wound seemed it would never heal.