Only a handful of crew members bustled about on the deck, while some young couples lingered there, talking and admiring the view, but soon they would retreat to the cabin, unable to bear the river wind. Only one person remained there, gazing at the faraway, motionless, as if sculpted in stone.
There were quite a few people standing nearby, watching over this young master. This young master was usually cheerful and chatty, and among all the sons of the Mu family, he was the most playful and carefree, but he was also the most tender and good-hearted son to the Mu family’s servants. But this son, who always treated the servants with a smile and never a frown, would sometimes be quiet like this, gazing at the faraway in a trance, and they would also wisely keep their distance and not bother him, because this must be the son pondering over a very grave matter.
A youth in white clothes walked past them at this moment, and in a few steps he reached the mast, slapping the young master’s shoulder, “What are you thinking about?”
The servants were all startled, and some of them even planned to rush up and beat up this impudent fellow, but Mu Nianhua turned his head and just smiled. “It’s you, why aren’t you staying in your room?”
Su Baiyi smiled awkwardly, “My senior…my wife wanted me to go out and get her something to eat.”
“Come on, she’s not your wife, she’s just your senior sister, there’s no food to buy on the deck, stop acting.” Mu Nianhua teased with a smile.
“How did you figure it out?” Su Baiyi asked.
“Who would come to the deck if they had such a beautiful lady?” Mu Nianhua shrugged.
“What do you mean by that?” Su Baiyi asked, puzzled.
“You’re still young.” Mu Nianhua said faintly, with a slight smile on his lips.
“Fine. You still haven’t answered me what you’re doing here?” Su Baiyi turned his head and looked ahead, the river surface was shimmering with light, indeed beautiful, but not worth watching all the time.
“My father once said, when he was a young sailor, he met some serious challenge, so he watched the sea on the deck, and felt the vastness of the sky and the sea, and how insignificant everything was under it, so his mind became more open, and those troublesome things became less troublesome. I want to learn from my father.” Mu Nianhua said.
“What did you see?” Su Baiyi asked.
“I just felt the river wide and the clouds low, the wind and rain coming, the more I thought, the more I feared.” Mu Nianhua showed Su Baiyi his hand, which was slightly trembling, “I think, I am not as good as my father…”
Su Baiyi was stunned for a moment, then sighed, “Is it because of me?”
“Actually, in these more than twenty years of my life, I have never been afraid of anything, I always thought it was because I was courageous, but now I realize it was because the Mu family was powerful, when the Mu family couldn’t protect me from these things, I became afraid.” Mu Nianhua put his hand back on the railing, “How did you get involved with Shanglin Heavenly Palace?”
“That’s a long story.” Su Baiyi said faintly.
“Don’t bother telling me if it’s inconvenient.” Mu Nianhua looked up at the sky, “It seems like it’s going to rain soon.”
The two of them silently watched the river surface, for a little while.
“What did you see this time?” Su Baiyi finally asked.
“I’m still very afraid.” Mu Nianhua lowered his head.
The two of them looked at each other and smiled, then turned their heads away.
After a long time, Su Baiyi finally sighed softly,“Forget it.”
“With this forget it, your life and your senior sister’s life are gone.” Mu Nianhua’s voice suddenly became very calm, without any emotion.
“I always think that I am blessed by destiny, I lived through being hunted by scores of killers when I was a child, I lived through the coming of a tower master, a head, and a vice-head from Shanglin Heavenly Palace. But the people around me are not so lucky, my adoptive parents were killed, my master was captured.” Su Baiyi slowly said.
“I’m afraid, because it’s very likely that in order to fulfill my promise, this Golden Wind ship will be destroyed here, I will die, you will die, everyone from the Mu family on the Golden Wind ship will die, and this will implicate the Mu family, causing the entire Mu family to disappear.” Mu Nianhua gently tapped the railing with his hand, then emphasized, “But if I give up now, then I’m done here, and I won’t be able to support the whole Mu family in the future.”
Su Baiyi squinted his eyes slightly, without speaking.
“When my father was young, the Mu family fell into decline. He single-handedly brought the Mu family back to its peak. In doing so, didn’t he face moments of life-and-death decisions, where a single misstep could have led to the family’s ruin? Perhaps he did. But my father dared to take those steps and made the right choices, and so can I. Maybe you are some hidden prince or a princess’s consort. I save you, and in gratitude, you help the Mu family rise even higher.” Mu Nianhua smiled and looked at Su Baiyi, “It will be like this, right?”
Su Baiyi thought for a moment, and said seriously, “I might be Su Han’s son.”
Mu Nianhua was taken aback, then playfully flicked Su Baiyi’s forehead with a finger. “That’s too much of a boast.”
Su Baiyi stepped back and said, “You’ve already called me a princess consort, how can being Su Han’s son be more valuable than that?”
“You have no idea how priceless the name Su Han is, and you still spout this nonsense? The reason why our Mu family is what it is now, is because my father chose to align with Su Han in the past. Enough of this talk; the deck is chilly, let’s go.” Mu Nianhua turned around.
“Have you figured it out?” asked Su Baiyi.
“It just clicked for me, all those words I just said.” Mu Nianhua walked forward. “How about a drink? I find you quite interesting, young man. We could become friends.”
“Let’s skip the drink, I want to ask Brother Mu for a favour.” Su Baiyi suddenly said.
“What favour?” Mu Nianhua stopped his steps.
“Is there a suitable place for sword practice?” Su Baiyi asked sincerely.
Mu Nianhua felt that this little brother was even more interesting, “Isn’t it too late to practice sword now?”
“Not at all, not at all. My sword technique actually benefits from late practice,” Su Baiyi patted the long sword at his waist, “It’s just that my swordsmanship is a bit powerful, if I practice in the room, I’m afraid I’ll pierce the ship.”
“There is a place for sword practice, come with me,” Mu Nianhua continued walking forward.
“Su Baiyi, do you know another reason why I must help you, besides what I’ve already mentioned?”
“Is it because you feel a connection with me? Like we hit it off right away, and you can’t help but assist?”
“No, it’s because your senior sister is really beautiful, the most beautiful among all the women I’ve seen.”
“Shut up.”
Thank you