Mo Zi’s gaze was blazing, her face showing a very pleased smile.
Wuyou happened to see this and couldn’t help teasing in a low voice, “Could it be that little sister also has feelings for the capital’s most handsome young general?”
“Feelings?” Mo Zi murmured, staring at Xiao Erlang’s direction. Having heard only half the words, she answered half: “Really quite good.”
Wuyou had been joking, but hearing Mo Zi say “quite good,” after a moment of shock, she knitted her distant mountain brows. “Little sister, if you truly regard me as your elder sister, listen to my advice—that kind of person is not someone we common folk can aspire to. Even though I know little sister is a rare extraordinary woman, the difference in status is too great. Though the Xiao family bears a different surname from the royal family, they’re highly valued by the emperor above and beloved by soldiers below. Their reputation and position surpass even the Wu surname princes and marquises. Xiao Wei is the outstanding talent among the Xiao family’s younger generation and will definitely inherit the prince title in the future. Never mind being a legitimate wife—even as a concubine, they’d probably select young ladies from prestigious families. Little sister is so capable. As you advised me, why yearn for the moon in the water or flowers in the mirror? Looking at it this way, Xu Jiu suits little sister better. He hasn’t married, nor does he have concubines yet. If little sister marries him and puts in a little effort, you’ll be his only one for life. How wonderful is that?”
“Three masts, iron hoops, keel frame, sharp nuclear bottom—this workmanship…” Mo Zi shook her head then nodded. “Impeccable, though combat capability is low, speed is mediocre, almost completely without defense.” However, as a vanguard strike vessel, it was among the best in the world.
Wuyou listened in bewilderment. “Little sister, what are you talking about?”
“Great Zhou’s warship.” What else could it be? This wasn’t Mo Zi’s first time seeing Great Zhou water stronghold ships. She’d seen ship models in Great Qiu’s imperial palace before. Seeing them in person several years later, she noticed many improvements, so naturally her eyes were busy. She admitted her interests were limited.
“Weren’t you looking at Young General Xiao?” Though Mo Zi ran a shipyard, with such a god-like figure before her, any woman would look at him, right? She couldn’t help secretly admiring him too.
“Why look at him? One nose, one mouth, two eyes, one pair of ears—is he missing something?” Would the person who always brought her bad luck be more pleasing to the eye if disabled?
Wuyou lowered her head, covering her forehead as she laughed. “Little sister, I admire you even more now.” Fu Tian said Mo Zi would one day yield for the man she loved. No, she wouldn’t. Only a man who could yield for her would have the chance to get close. Because her heart was too vast, encompassing hundreds of rivers and thousands of waters.
Mo Zi didn’t understand where Wuyou’s laughter or admiration came from, but she didn’t ask. Watching that warship waving the Xiao character banner approach Weiyang’s large boat, she only wondered aloud, “What are the water stronghold people doing here?”
“It’s somewhat customary.” Wuyou obviously knew something. “Every year at the Double Ninth dragon boat race, the authorities always send people to observe. If there’s a water stronghold garrison nearby, it’s definitely water stronghold commanders. When it was held in Yun Zhou last year, there were even soldiers rowing dragon boats. Golden East Gorge is two days’ water journey from the Xiao family water stronghold, so Fu Tian had invitations sent. Who’d have thought Xiao Wei would come personally—what great face!”
So Xiao Er’s talk about “don’t blame us for being presumptuous” was just courtesy. Mo Zi pursed her lips, forcing a dry laugh, no longer watching that official-civilian harmony over there.
With a firecracker’s bang, the dragon boats shot past the starting line. Immediately shouts shook the heavens as each gang shrieked for their own racing boat.
Mo Zi saw most dragon boats had high heads and high tails, with ship bodies hung with dazzling decorations. Iron scale armor, wooden knobs forming dragon heads and tails—sitting so deep in the water. Some were even more exaggerated—even the men rowing wore towering dragon fin clothing, already sweating profusely in the blazing sun before going even ten meters. Were these people competing for speed or competing for who looked more dragon-like?
In contrast, Weiyang’s dragon boat was entirely white and narrow. To create a dragon shape without affecting ship speed, she’d expended considerable effort. The dragon head made from the lightest wood crouched as low as possible at the bow. The ship body was painted with dragon scales using tung oil mixed with color—she couldn’t use carved ones like others to maintain minimum resistance with the water. The dragon tail was submerged. Though dragon boat regulations prohibited rudders and sails, what she made was a non-manually controlled movable tail that didn’t violate rules but could adapt to water currents and help speed up turning.
“Little White Dragon, go for it!” Mo Zi clenched her fists, eventually simply standing up.
“Little White Dragon?” Wuyou was also watching nervously, standing beside Mo Zi. “It really is. Though not at all fierce or powerful, probably like little sister—so beautiful yet absolutely not weak, it will definitely win.”
At this moment, on Weiyang’s ship, Wang Kun was chattering endlessly to Fu Tian in front of Xiao Wei. “Boss, I told you to switch to the backup dragon boat—why didn’t you listen? Look, every one of these dragon boats is built more impressively than Hongyu’s. Never mind the display and momentum—so big, so wide, so sturdy. One wave and they could capsize Little White Dragon. Little White Dragon, Little White Dragon—sounds like a child’s toy, and what a strange shape it is. It’s over, it’s over. Boss, if you can’t win, I’m even less likely to. This time, we might lose all face, and even the alliance leader position will probably be challenged.”
“A’Kun, don’t be anxious—we won’t necessarily lose. After practicing these past days, the rowing brothers say it handles very well, and the speed is surprisingly fast too.” Fu Tian gestured for Wang Kun not to worry.
Xiao Wei looked down at those dragon boats from the bow. A slender white dragon was faintly showing signs of emerging. Looking carefully, one could see that whether the hull, the oars, or the postures of the rowing men were all very different. For some reason, this dragon boat gave him a trace of familiarity.
“I agree with Alliance Leader Fu. Though your gang’s white dragon is slender, it has the ability to break waves and harness wind, like a swift arrow released from a bow.” Xiao Wei’s eyes narrowed slightly, staring at Weiyang’s dragon boat that was getting faster and faster, already starting to leave other boats behind. “Just now Gang Leader Wang mentioned Hongyu—could it be my Great Zhou’s shipyard?”
“Precisely.” Wang Kun also saw Little White Dragon taking the lead. He scratched his head and chuckled. “This Brother Mo really doesn’t lie—said we could win and we can win!”
“What?” Xiao Wei heard the name he was most sensitive to. “Who is it?”
“Brother Mo, the chief manager of Hongyu Shipyard. If we lost, she said I could smash her shipyard as I pleased.” Wang Kun beamed, his earlier worry thrown behind him.
“Looks like not only can you not smash it, you’ll have to treat someone to a good meal.” Fu Tian smiled slightly. “This time, how about at Wuyou Pavilion? You still complain Wangqiu Building is boring.”
Wang Kun laughed sheepishly. “To be honest, Wangqiu Building’s food and drink are first-rate—I haven’t eaten better anywhere else. But what Xu Jiu likes, beauties you can only look at but not touch, doesn’t suit this rough fellow. Eh? Wait, Brother Mo is a woman—how can she eat at Wuyou Pavilion? I’ve never even heard of a woman of the martial world visiting a brothel, much less a chief manager lady from a great household.”
“I think Brother Mo, dressed as a man and magnanimous in character, probably wouldn’t mind following the host’s convenience to a flower house.” Between Fu Tian and his brothers, there was still a lively side. Once his stern face melted into a smile, he was a charming middle-aged handsome uncle.
While he laughed cheerfully on this side, Xiao Wei’s face on that side was covered by a large dark cloud, lightning flickering—a thunderstorm brewing.
Brother Mo? Hongyu Shipyard? Deceived by this girl time and again—did she thoroughly take him for a fool?
His eyes covered with a layer of frost, he silently watched Little White Dragon turn beautifully. The long oars were like a pair of wings, far ahead in the lead, rowing back to the finish line, causing firecrackers to explode wildly. How could a dragon in water compare to a dragon with wings? Though the white dragon was small, it could soar through nine heavens. Deafening cheers erupted on Weiyang’s ship, while what floated through his mind was that walnut boat and the oars stepped on by feet.
That day when asking about ships, Mo Zi not only claimed complete ignorance but also brazenly admitted lying, seizing the initiative as if guarding someone’s secret, unwilling to reveal a single word. Who would have guessed she’d become the shipyard’s chief manager? Without even thinking, one knew Qiu Sanniang must be the patron behind the scenes. Just as Third Brother said, Mo Zi was Qiu Sanniang’s hands and feet. With her, Qiu Sanniang could accomplish everything properly without leaving home.
Hmph! This time, let’s see how she pretends not to know what he wants to ask. He must make her confess everything.
“May I ask Alliance Leader Fu, where in the capital is Hongyu Shipyard located?” Thinking this, Xiao Wei planned to go block someone at the location. He knew all too well that Mo Zi hadn’t returned to the bamboo grove residence for the past half month.
Wang Kun was very enthusiastic, pulling out Mo Zi’s name card to show Xiao Wei.
Xiao Wei took it and looked. He couldn’t help sneering coldly. “Recently Imperial Academy scholars have been popularizing knowledge cards—this Manager Mo learns quickly.” Using the same small name cards as the great corrupt official Yuan meant these two were secretly colluding.
“So it was started by Imperial Academy scholars—no wonder it’s so refined.” Wang Kun didn’t detect Xiao Wei’s cold, heavy thoughts at all. “I even found a famous paper shop to make stacks for both Boss and myself. They really are useful.”
However, Fu Tian wasn’t as obtuse as Wang Kun. He noted Xiao Wei’s displeasure and, though not knowing the reason, could vaguely sense it related to Hongyu. He said, “Hongyu is newly opened, Manager Mo is still young and probably hasn’t dealt with the water stronghold. If the young general could offer guidance and support, it would be Hongyu’s fortune.”
Xiao Wei raised his thick eyebrows. “Alliance Leader Fu is such a hero of the martial world, yet you speak up for a mere female manager. I just don’t know if the other party appreciates it?” That one was fundamentally a girl who couldn’t distinguish good from bad, loving to get close to evil people and crooked ways.
Fu Tian didn’t know the subtle relationship between Mo Zi and Xiao Wei. Hearing this, he felt this grudge was quite substantial. The old veteran of the martial world immediately said no more, planning to tell Wuyou when he returned so she could give Mo Zi a heads-up. In his heart, he favored Hongyu. Mo Zi was generous and sincere in her dealings, conducted affairs with a woman’s heroic spirit, and clearly valued loyalty and righteousness. Moreover, Wuyou liked her.
He just didn’t expect that before he could speak to Wuyou, Wang Kun would point out Mo Zi’s location, making him smile bitterly at this brother’s thoughtlessness.
And Wang Kun even shouted loudly, “Isn’t that Wuyou Pavilion’s boat? Young General, better to arrive at the right time than early—the person beside Wuyou is precisely Hongyu’s Manager Mo. How about it? Want to call her up for you to look over? Absolutely a capable person.”
If Mo Zi heard these words, she might duel with Wang Kun. Unfortunately, she was still immersed in the joy of Little White Dragon’s victory. Her brain, very rarely, hadn’t turned around to think about the consequences of Xiao Er discovering she could build ships.
In Xiao Wei’s eyes, that soaring triumphant expression couldn’t help but make him clench his five fingers tight, subconsciously grasping firmly—