Minglan rushed to open the window and looked out. In the distance, one of the large boats was engulfed in roaring fire reaching toward the sky. Figures flickered and moved among the flames; she could dimly make out shapes falling into the water one after another. On the wind came the sound of shouting and the clash of fighting. Changdong pressed his small face against the window, his cheeks going pale. Just then a sharp, piercing whistle rang out from the ship’s side — the watchman-boatman sounding the alarm.
In a short while, everyone on the boat had woken. Minglan called Danju awake and asked her to rouse the other girls, while she pulled Changdong along to find Changwu. On deck, boatmen, maidservants, and matrons all leaned over the sides to look out, every face taut with alarm. Minglan ignored them and went straight to Changwu’s cabin. Inside, she found Yun’er sitting upright clutching her gently swollen belly, her face ashen. The moment Yun’er saw Minglan, she grabbed her hand: “Your elder brother went outside to see what has happened. I just sent someone to find you. Merciful Bodhisattva — I pray everyone is all right!”
Minglan had no idea what had happened outside and could only settle beside Yun’er. Changdong craned his neck trying to slip out, and Minglan clapped him back with a firm hand.
Before even a cup of tea’s worth of time had passed, Changwu came hurrying back, short of breath. “River bandits!” All the women were instantly horrified. Changwu then explained the situation in brief.
The waterway they were traveling was called Yongtong Canal — the Huaiyin segment of the north-south Grand Canal. That night the wind had died and the water was calm, and many boats had moored for the night. Besides the Sheng family’s vessel, there were two large boats belonging to official-family travelers, two escort boats, and several merchant ships belonging to the Baochang Long trading house, all clustered together in a sheltered gourd-shaped bend in the river. Merchant ships were fore and aft, with escort ships and passenger ships in the middle.
After everyone had retired, a gang of river bandits had crept aboard by night, targeting the merchant ships fore and aft first. But they had the misfortune to choose a vessel from the Baochang Long fleet carrying nothing but tung oil. In the ensuing struggle, a handful of the merchant company’s young workers set fire to the cargo hold, and an entire hold full of oil barrels exploded. The ship was instantly a blazing inferno — the workers took the opportunity to leap into the water and escape, and the explosion also gave all the other boats advance warning.
Minglan saw Yun’er trembling without stopping and patted her hand reassuringly. “Sister-in-Law, please don’t worry. I can see these river bandits aren’t very skilled at their trade. Any experienced hand knows to go for the passenger boats first — who goes running at the cargo ships? That’s practically startling the…” She caught herself. “…startling everyone away, isn’t it?”
At this, the ever-grim Changwu could not help but give a faint smile. “Well said, Sixth Sister — exactly right! They’re probably a scattered bunch of petty opportunists. Right now they’re being engaged by the escort boats. The small punts are ready below — once you’ve gathered your things and reached the left bank, you’ll be safe.”
All the women relaxed at once.
The number of bandits was not great, but their advantage lay in the element of surprise, and the cramped space of the boat prevented easy defense. On the right bank, the river curved in such a way as to create a natural shelter where the boats had all gathered; the left bank was a wide expanse of dense reeds, standing nearly the height of a person, and from there a direct path ran to the nearest Huaiyin garrison post. Once ashore on the left bank, not only would soldiers from the garrison arrive to assist, but the bandits, once scattered, could not possibly give chase in time.
There were no lifeboats in this era. The shore-side boatmen had all been quietly subdued by the bandits under cover of darkness. It was only with great effort that Changwu had managed to get hold of two small flat-bottomed punts. But he had, after all, been a garrison commander who had personally led men in battle, and he had some understanding of how to handle such a situation. He had people gathering their things and preparing to leave the big ship, while directing others to light every lamp in every room of the vessel, and had people running back and forth inside to create the impression of a large number of panicked people on board. The small punts, meanwhile, were not to carry so much as a spark — sheltered under the cover of darkness, they could slip away soundlessly to the bank.
In the haste of the moment, the maidservants grew only more frantic and fumbling. Changwu urged them on without stopping. Yun’er’s face had gone a frightful white; she pressed her hand to her belly with an expression of pain. The commotion had evidently unsettled the child. Minglan glanced at the blaze several dozen yards away — the fighting seemed to be at its height — then said, “Sister-in-Law is unwell, and the longer we wait the worse it will be for her to move. Why doesn’t Elder Brother take Sister-in-Law and Fourth Young Brother across first? As soon as I’m done here, I’ll follow immediately.”
Yun’er and Changwu both refused. But seeing that the bandits had not yet reached them, Changwu steeled himself, then gave Minglan careful, earnest instructions before leaving: “Leave the silver and things — don’t worry about any of it. Just hurry and get yourself across!” He also left half his guards and one of the small punts behind.
Minglan nodded — and also made sure Yancao stayed with Changwu.
She had, in fact, already estimated the distance to the other bank. As someone with aspirations to be a capable and hardy young person, even at half of Yao Yiyi’s swimming ability, Minglan was fairly confident she could make it across. As for the rest: Danju knew a doggy paddle, Xiaotao could take her along; Luzhi and the few maidservants Yun’er had left behind also had some degree of water competence.
This trip for Changwu was to attend the family funeral — he would soon be observing a full mourning period. He had brought with him nearly everything he had accumulated over his years in the capital, which was considerable. There was no reason to hand it over to a gang of bandits with such limited professional standards. Minglan directed several maidservants to gather the lightest valuables — jade ornaments, small antiques, gold and silver jewelry — all packed into small oil-cloth pouches, while she herself ran to keep an eye out on the deck.
She found Luzhi at the ship’s railing, and suddenly Luzhi gave a cry of delight: “Serves them right! Shoot them all dead!”
Minglan rushed over to look: not far away, along the rails of several large vessels, guards were drawing bows and shooting into the water. Among the curses and shouts there came screams and cries of alarm. Minglan’s heart seized. “This is bad! Their boat is hemmed in — they’ll scatter and swim for us through the water!”
All the girls were terrified. Minglan thought for a moment, glanced over to confirm that Changwu’s punt had reached the middle of the river, then reacted swiftly. She pointed at the girls before her and said in a low, firm voice: “You — the two of you — throw every lamp and light source on this level into the river. Not a single one left. I’ll take Luzhi and do the same for the lower level. Xiaotao and Danju — take these thin-skinned iron boxes and tie ropes to them; Xiaotao, you’re the strongest swimmer, tie the ropes to the bottom of the boat, then lower the boxes into the water. When you’re done, meet us in the kitchen in the lower hold. Quickly!”
“Miss, why don’t we just get on the small punt and go?” one of Yun’er’s maidservants asked hesitantly.
Luzhi rounded on her with blazing eyes. “Stupid girl! Do as Miss says and stop asking questions! If it weren’t for you lot and your mistress, our Young Miss would have been gone long ago! How dare you complain?!” Danju, gentle-tempered as always, hastened to explain: “The water already has bandits in it. How fast can we row? If they catch up and punch a hole in our little punt, we’ll overturn!”
The girl flushed red and bowed her head.
Minglan had no patience to be irritated — after all, this wasn’t her own team. She ran out to the deck, divided the guards into four groups, and assigned each group to escort one set of girls to complete their tasks. Within a short time, the entire vessel was plunged into utter darkness. Heaven was giving them a helping hand: the night was moonless, and one could not see one’s hand in front of one’s face.
Minglan dashed off and ordered all the matrons and miscellaneous servants to hide themselves, the physically strong ones to go to the ship’s rail to confront any who came aboard. She herself ran straight to the kitchen, rummaged around, and came up with a collection of kitchen cleavers, long forks, pot-scrapers, and iron pestles. When the girls came in from all directions, she distributed “weapons” among them. Xiaotao got an iron pot; Luzhi received a cleaver; the rest of the girls were each given something similar.
Once preparations were complete, Minglan told the guards to stand watch outside, then led the girls to hide in an inconspicuous cabin deep in the lower hold.
In the darkness, the girls waited in silence. The occasional sound of someone swallowing dryly could be heard. The wait felt unbearably long. Knowing the girls were terrified, Minglan began softly to reassure everyone, one point at a time. First: not all the bandits could swim across; the arrows would have taken care of some of them. Second: there were several passenger boats here altogether — they surely would not all converge on their own vessel, which reduced the numbers further. Third: this boat had twelve cabins spread over two levels — if the bandits had any sense, they would search the guest cabins first, which would divide their numbers further still. Fourth: the bandits had swum across, so they certainly had no fire-starters on them; all the lamps and kindling from the kitchen had already been thrown into the river. Without light, they could not see; and even if they tried to tear off planks or door frames for torches, the timber was soaked through with river dampness and would not burn easily. Blind, they would remain blind. And finally: at the back of this cabin there was a small hatch leading directly to the surface of the river — it was there for drawing and disposing of water. If things went badly, they could jump straight out.
Besides, the bandits wouldn’t linger long on the boat. Finding nothing of value, they would probably move on to another target. All they had to do was stay hidden until it passed…
At this, the girls settled somewhat.
No one knew how much time had passed. Suddenly there was a commotion upstairs — the clash of weapons, shouts erupting into a full fray. Minglan knew the bandits had climbed aboard. She tightened her grip on the sharp long hairpin in her hand. The girls began to breathe faster again. They listened to the fighting sounds from above, the cries for help, and then, in a thick suffocating rush of frantic footsteps, the door panel was kicked open with a heavy thud.
Two dark figures came charging in, muttering foul-mouthed curses. Minglan had prepared for this — she and Danju, facing each other, yanked hard on the rope stretched across the floor. The first figure went down with a crash. In the faint glow of light from outside, Xiaotao marshaled every bit of strength she had and brought the iron pot down on that person’s head. The bandit let out a grunt and went limp.
The second bandit only stumbled slightly. Seeing the room full of girls, he immediately opened his mouth to call for help. A maidservant immediately raised a stool and slammed it over his head. He let out a muffled groan and swayed. Another maidservant jumped on him and the collision sent him crashing to the floor. Minglan seized the opening — in one stride she was upon him, her foot pressed to his chest, and her hairpin drove straight into the man’s chest. Blood welled up and began pumping out in spurts. The bandit was just drawing breath to scream when a fistful of chaff and ash was stuffed into his mouth, and then — with no clear single source — he was battered over the head many times by some unknown blunt object. His eyes rolled back, and he too went limp. The air was thick with the nauseating stench of blood.
Danju suppressed her revulsion and quietly closed the door panel. Following Minglan’s direction, the girls retrieved the ropes they’d prepared and trussed the two half-dead bandits up securely, jamming something in their mouths so no sound could escape. When it was done, the seven girls in the room — Minglan included — looked at one another. Having dealt with two bandits, they all felt an unexpected surge of courage; the fear in their eyes had been considerably diluted, replaced by something almost like excitement.
After a stretch of confused noise from above, then a sudden silence — through the air vents came the faint sound of words: “Nothing here. Try elsewhere.” The girls’ faces broke into relief. Minglan also exhaled — and then, at that very instant, from above came a raucous, extremely loud bellow of a voice: “…Those old women opened their mouths! Get down to the lower hold! They say the family’s young miss is still on board! Brothers, move! Catch her and we’ll make a fortune! And there are a few tender-skinned little maidservants in it for everybody!”
Minglan’s face went white. From Luzhi’s direction came immediate curses: “They actually sold out the Young Miss!” There was no time to wait. Minglan barked at the girls: “Tear off your outer coats and jump in the water — NOW!”
It was the beginning of winter. The girls were wearing thick quilted cotton outer robes; they ripped them off and went into the water. Outside a wave of shouting and stomping feet thundered down. The girls, in their panic, threw themselves in all at once.
The moment Minglan hit the water, the cold was like knives stabbing every part of her. She was grateful it wasn’t the depth of winter. She could hear shouting behind her: “They’re jumping! After them!” Minglan immediately churned her arms and legs, enduring the cold that seemed to pierce straight to her heart, swimming hard for the far bank. Behind her came a series of splashing plunges, then a girl’s sharp scream — someone had been caught. Minglan steadied herself with a breath, submerged, and did her best not to let her head break the surface.
She had only gone a few strokes when something caught her around the waist — an arm reaching from behind. Minglan was terrified and immediately kicked out with her legs. But the person behind her was extraordinarily agile — flipping to Minglan’s side, both hands clamped down on Minglan’s arms at some point she couldn’t identify. Minglan felt both arms go numb and weak, and then the person wrapped arms all the way around her and pulled her flush up against them. The instant of contact told Minglan: this is a woman.
The woman kicked her legs several times in quick succession. Both of them surfaced. The icy river wind hit Minglan full in the face; she drew a deep gasping breath. Then the woman caught Minglan’s chin and turned her face sideways, pressing painfully on her skin. Minglan hissed through her teeth. The woman raised her voice in a delighted shout: “Found her! This is the one!” Her voice overflowed with joy.
In the gap she’d been given, Minglan immediately drove both elbows back hard. The woman cried out in pain but only tightened her grip. This person clearly knew combat techniques — she had Minglan’s pressure points under her control and held her completely immobilized, and even laughed: “Don’t be afraid, Miss. We’re here to save you! You’re Sheng Family’s Sixth Young Miss, aren’t you — the one with two small dimples at the corner of her mouth… Eh! Here, over here!”
Before Minglan had a chance to be surprised, there came the sound of water churning, and a small boat hung with several bright lanterns came gliding over. The woman seemed to be an extraordinary swimmer; with a single arch of her back, she pushed Minglan up against the side of the boat, and then a pair of strong hands reached down and in one motion hauled Minglan bodily up and out of the water.
The moment she left the water, sharp threads of icy river wind pricked into her like needles from all directions. But within a breath, a thick heavy cotton quilt was thrown over her head, wrapping Minglan from every side, and the woman from the water climbed up too. Through the dripping curtain of wet hair, Minglan dimly made out a large, bear-like man wrapping something around her.
Minglan shivered violently and looked around as quickly as she could. The small boat was lit bright by lanterns. Several men stood on the deck. The bear-like man currently busy bundling her up was tall and powerfully built, dressed only in an old black long robe. His face was covered two-thirds over by a thick beard, and not a single ornament was on him — only a pair of deep, handsome dark eyes, familiar in some elusive way.
Minglan blinked hard, and a warm, sudden joy welled up in her chest. She called out loudly: “Second Uncle!”
She finally understood what it felt like, in a dark alleyway facing a gang of bad-intentioned thugs, to suddenly see a policeman — even if this particular policeman had once fined her without cause.
Gu Tingye’s eyes brightened. Beneath the heavy beard his expression was unreadable, but his voice came low: “You recognized me?”
Strange — the river surface around them was full of clamor, shouting, fighting, cries of pain all tangling together into a great confusion. Yet from the moment he began to speak, every word reached her perfectly clearly. Minglan said hurriedly, “Of course — how could I fail to recognize the person who just saved my life?”
Mindful of Danju and Xiaotao and the rest still in the water, Minglan quickly sidled a little closer to Gu Tingye, her exquisite jade-white face arranged into its most winning, eagerly agreeable smile. She coaxed him: “Second Uncle, some of my maidservants are still in the water — please have them pulled out quickly. It’s so cold — don’t let them freeze to pieces!” Minglan always managed to seem particularly adorable when she needed something from someone.
Gu Tingye’s dark, unfathomable eyes seemed to deepen, and the long line of his gaze lifted with a trace of thin, suppressed irritation — like light moving softly over a half-hidden lake — as if he wanted to scowl at Minglan but was holding himself back.