On the surface of the Bohai Sea, fishing boats were everywhere. The folks from Hebei Province had nothing to eat and naturally needed support from their coastal neighbors. Though there was no grain, the sea still had plenty of fish. As long as there were enough hands, they just needed to catch them.
In the distant sea, the navy’s giant vessels patrolled, thrusting bamboo poles into the seawater and striking forcefully. Their only purpose was to drive the fish toward shallow waters. Dolphins leaped high from the sea, spun a few circles, and dove back into the water. There were many fish here, and they too were busily hunting and eating fish.
Yun Ye had removed his outer robe and wore only shorts and a short jacket. Two boats towed a giant net, sailing with the wind. The bruising at the corner of his eye hadn’t yet faded, and blood vessels still remained visible in his eyes.
This time he had suffered a huge loss. Using his own money, he bought all the dried fish and distributed them to the several governors. Facing the disaster victims crying out to be fed, Yun Ye really couldn’t bring himself to ask for money. Watching them cheerfully carry away all the dried fish, Yun Ye was so heartbroken he couldn’t speak.
The navy soldiers thought that was the end of it. Their dried fish had been given to starving common people. Like Yun Ye, they were very reluctant to part with it, yet didn’t utter a single word of complaint. Kind people were all like this.
Gritting his teeth, he sold several treasures obtained through embezzlement, exchanged them for over ten carts of copper coins, and distributed them to the soldiers. If he was going to be the good guy, he couldn’t let them suffer losses.
In this distribution of money, the officers got no share. Even the squad leaders got nothing and could only swallow their saliva looking at the piles of coins. Many of the soldiers were from this area. He gave them half a month’s long leave, issued two bags of rice each, and sent them home to visit. On the evening before departure, people knelt in masses at the entrance to Yun Ye’s commander’s residence. Everyone knew what crime it was to privately grant soldiers leave, but the commander didn’t care. Liu Renyuan had tried to advise Yun Ye several times but was driven out. Hong Cheng also told Yun Ye that this offense was no joke.
“Will I be beheaded?” Yun Ye asked Hong Cheng.
“That won’t happen, but your military position will be stripped, and His Majesty will also send an edict to scold you. If you want to lead troops again in the future, that will be difficult.” Hong Cheng was worried and deeply concerned about Yun Ye’s future.
“Excellent! Now no one can force me to lead troops in battle anymore. Be scolded by His Majesty? How many times has he scolded me already? In the past, he used to kick me directly. Think of another method to get rid of my civil positions too. Is there some good way to just strip away positions without taking military beatings or beheading?” Yun Ye grabbed Hong Cheng by the collar and made him think of a solution. He used to be someone who lived by informing—he had rich experience in this area.
Frightened, Hong Cheng twisted away and ran, telling Wu She that Yun Ye’s brain had been damaged by that croaker fish.
“Settle down. You used to be an earl too, but you do things stupidly beyond measure. Whose brain is damaged? I think it’s your brain that’s damaged. Letting soldiers return home is propriety, it’s filial piety, it’s benevolence. I estimate Marquis Yun has other arrangements for letting them go home. In those remote villages, when they see their sons bring back grain, money, and cloth, even if they previously had dissatisfaction with the court in their hearts, they should feel relief now. Moreover, their own sons still have to go to the capital to receive rewards, with great prospects waiting. At this time, even fools know their sons must return to camp on time. The families will also settle down and be obedient subjects, afraid of bringing bad influence to their sons.”
“When soldiers return to camp on time, that’s trustworthiness. One matter encompasses benevolence, filial piety, propriety, righteousness, and trustworthiness completely—it’s not wrong, it’s a beautiful tale. His Majesty can only commend it. Anyone who criticizes this matter will immediately become a villain, absolutely a villain whose name will stink for ten thousand years. A fool like you actually had the face to run and advise the Marquis. Think about it—since you’ve been dealing with Marquis Yun, have you taken advantage, or has he?”
Wu She put down the bronze mirror in his hand and spoke to Hong Cheng with bitter earnestness.
“The first time I met Marquis Yun, I exchanged all my family wealth for the ‘Yin Fu Jing.’ His Majesty was very satisfied and promoted me to head of the Bai Qi Si. My family wealth was gone.”
“The second time we truly dealt with each other, we tricked the Imperial Jade Seal from Kang Shaoli’s hands. I carried the jade seal in fear and trepidation, running several thousand li back to the capital. His Majesty was very pleased and rewarded me five hundred guan of cash. As a result, he swallowed all of Kang Shaoli’s wealth—at least eight thousand guan. I bore the burden, the fright, and the responsibility, while all the profits went to him.”
“The third time, the Dou family provoked Yun Ye. He fooled all the city’s people into smashing the Dou family. We were the vanguard. As a result, he eliminated a major trouble and even built houses on the Dou family’s original site to make a fortune. I was scolded by His Majesty.”
“The fourth time was when Dou Yanshan plotted to assassinate His Majesty using an eight-ox crossbow. He safely sent His Majesty back to the city, achieved merit, and received commendation. I was exiled to Lingnan by His Majesty.”
“The fifth time is this one. In Lingnan, I offended everyone thoroughly, killed until my hands went soft. As a result, all the achievements are his. His Majesty praised him like a flower in the edict. I only got one phrase—’Hong Cheng and others.’ Heavens, I’m just a pig. He’s taken countless advantages from me, yet I thought he was my brother. Even now, I only have feelings of loyalty toward him, no resentment. Sir Wu She, am I beyond saving?” Hong Cheng clutched his head, squatting on the ground, painfully tearing at his hair.
Wu She looked again in the mirror at his mouth missing two teeth, sighed, and decided to speak less in the future. This greatly affected his dignified bearing as a master.
“Hong Cheng, don’t be sad. This old man isn’t much better off than you. At first, I didn’t look favorably on him at all, but in the end, wasn’t I still trapped in his snare? I’ve met so many formidable heroes and never suffered the slightest injury, yet after seeing him a few times, not only did I lose two teeth, I nearly sold myself to him. Coming out of the palace, I have to go teach disciples at the academy. My remaining years will be spent at the academy. Isn’t it still because I like being with him?”
“This is the charm of great people. His Majesty’s charm carries the aura of killing and decisiveness. Her Majesty’s charm carries the aura of nobility. The Crown Prince’s charm lies in his kindness. Prince Wei’s charm lies in his intelligence. Prince Shu’s charm lies in his persistence. Only Yun Ye—his charm lies in making you unconsciously believe he’s a good person, a harmless person. Being with him is very relaxing. You just feel the flowers are red and the grass is green. When you want to curse, you curse. When you want to throw a tantrum, you throw a tantrum. No one will take offense. In silence and without notice, you let down all your guard against him. Even being deceived by him, you feel he acts from good intentions. Thinking carefully, it really is good intentions. He’s never actively harmed anyone.”
Hong Cheng, bare-backed, dragged the net with his hands to haul it in. He used to feel this work was disgraceful, but now he did it with boiling blood. Every time Yun Ye saw a big fish, he excitedly shouted. Thinking of his conversation with Wu She, Hong Cheng suddenly felt this was how he should live. Going back to cry to His Majesty to get his title back probably wouldn’t be difficult. He could just go to the academy as the discipline master, manage those dandy sons—not a bad thing. He had connections and money too.
The newly installed crane hoisted up a full net of fish—this one haul was a good four to five hundred jin. The surrounding fishermen all cheered in unison. On the deck, they untied the rope buckles, and a large pile of silvery, glittering hairtail fish fell onto the deck, twisting their bodies like eels, preparing to escape. Seven or eight huge crabs and several cuttlefish kept spitting ink. They picked up a basin of scallops and selected two appropriately sized hairtail fish, planning to fry them crispy dry, sprinkle fine salt on them, and eat them like flatbread.
Yun Ye, Wu She, and Hong Cheng, the three of them, squatted barefoot in a shady spot eating seafood—all in the manner of coastal families. Boiled in plain water with a little salt sprinkled in was enough. One giant crab was sufficient to fill Yun Ye up.
With a crab claw in his mouth, he gazed into the distance and suddenly saw a dark, large creature not far away surfacing while spouting a water column. The Bohai Sea only had croaker fish and hairtail—where did this large whale come from? Looking at it, the size was definitely not small. Yun Ye pointed at that whale and said to Wu She and Hong Cheng: “Dongyu, that fellow went back to see his wife and child. Can the three of us take down that whale?”
“This old man thinks ordinary swords won’t work on that thing. Last time, the ones killed by the waterspout were sawed open with saws. We don’t have suitable tools. Cutting it with a blade would be like scratching an itch—useless.”
Hong Cheng deeply agreed. He had long heard Yun Ye say this was just a large fish, not some kun, and even less would it transform into a peng bird. Rather than saying it was close to fish, it was more like cattle and sheep on land—they were all viviparous, also had milk, only it preferred being in water.
Yun Ye removed the casing from the eight-ox crossbow, revealing eight gleaming crossbow bolts. Behind each bolt was attached a leather rope made of twisted shark skin—very sturdy.
Hong Cheng had always been bold and unrestrained. In ancient times, there was Master Ren who fished for whales and fed the people east of the river. Today, General Hong would also display his skills. He found several strong-bodied sailors, tightened the winch, grabbed a wooden mallet himself, and looked at the direction of the arrowheads. Earlier, Yun Ye, fearing they wouldn’t hold firmly, had specially added barbs. The large ship trailed the whale’s spouting water column. When that whale surfaced again, Hong Cheng shouted loudly, the wooden hammer struck the trigger, and with a whoosh, eight crossbow bolts flew out and heavily pierced the whale’s body.
The whale immediately dove down. A large patch of seawater was dyed red. Yun Ye watched helplessly as the eight coiled ropes on the deck rapidly diminished. When the ropes reached their end, he heard the large ship emit a creaking groan of distress, suddenly sinking downward. The mast to which the ropes were tied immediately broke in the middle, heavily jamming against the ship’s anchor. The large ship lurched violently and began sailing against the wind. From stillness to full speed ahead took no more than the time to drink a cup of tea.
Under the admiring gazes of fishermen, the large ship raced swiftly across the sea surface. The whale alternately dove into the sea and emerged from the surface, leaping high and crashing onto the water, splashing water everywhere with astounding momentum.
Hong Cheng laughed heartily like a youth. Wu She gripped a javelin in his hand. Whenever the whale came up to breathe, a javelin would accurately pierce its head. When a black javelin drilled into its eye, the whale became completely crazed, beginning to circle around the ship.
Wu She laughed heartily. Seizing the opportunity, he shot the other javelin into the whale’s other eye. With both eyes impaled by javelins, the whale beat its tail fin and swam rapidly toward shore.
Along the way, it overturned countless fishing boats. Youzhou Governor Feng Tai, who was standing on the beach directing laborers to dry fish, saw a mountain-like monster swimming toward him. He cried out in terror and fled in all directions with the laborers.
Using its powerful momentum, the whale beached itself on the sand, able only to feebly beat its tail fin, stirring up waves of spray. The ship shuddered. Only then did Yun Ye realize that his ship had also run aground.