AUBTN -Chapter 59 Trip to Jiangnan (Part 2)

【According to Secrets of the Great Wei Court, Shen Jue appeared refined, but he hated people trying to guess his thoughts. This Jiang Ruyi was a bit overzealous… However, this Longjing tea did smell exquisite. A shame for the hands of a museum researcher like me, which can now only enjoy it on this fan.】

Listening to that calm inner voice, a deeper smile tugged at the corners of Shen Jue’s lips.

He didn’t touch the cup of tea and only said lightly, “Miss Jiang, you’re thoughtful.”

At the other end of the deck, the situation was far more chaotic.

“Brother Lu, look how wide this river is! Just like a great man’s heart!”

Song Zhaoyuan had changed into a lively pink-and-rosy brocade outfit, looking sprightly and cute.

She held a Map of Jiangnan Waterways in her hands, circling around Lu Yan like an octopus.

“My lord, up ahead is Caishi Jetty. When I was little, elders said the currents there are the fastest. If a boat is careless, it’s easy to hit a reef. But don’t worry, my lord—while I’m here, you’ll be perfectly safe!”

She spoke naturally, raising a handkerchief as if to wipe the nonexistent sweat from Lu Yan’s forehead.

Lu Yan calmly dodged, frowning slightly.

“Miss Song, this is an official vessel. The navy handles the helm. No need for you to trouble yourself.”

“No trouble at all! It’s my blessing to ease your worries, my lord!” Song Zhaoyuan blinked her big eyes, looking innocent and admiring. “You manage the state’s affairs daily; leave these little things to me!”

Not far away, Yu Qing was leaning over the railing, holding a fishing rod and pretending to fish, though her eyes were rolling toward the heavens.

【Pfft! That syrupy, clingy act—calling him ‘Brother Lu’ gave me goosebumps I could throw into the Yangtze! What Jiangnan waterways? More like Jiangnan green-tea tricks!】

Her eyes flicked toward a wet patch on the deck that hadn’t dried yet.

Now was the moment!

“Ah! A fish’s on the line!”

Yu Qing suddenly shouted, jumping up and pretending to be dragged by a giant fish, staggering toward Lu Yan.

“My lord! Help me! This fish has turned magical!”

Her foot slipped, and she fell like a kite with a broken string—aiming precisely at… the railing beside Lu Yan.

According to the script, Lu Yan should step in to save her, their eyes meet, and sparks fly.

But Song Zhaoyuan was a drama queen too.

Seeing this, a cunning glint flashed in her eyes, and she lunged forward before Lu Yan could react.

“Sister, watch out! I’ll save you!”

She shouted while secretly shoving at Yu Qing’s waist. If the push landed, Yu Qing would end up flat on the deck.

Yu Qing, however, was a veteran at staged accidents for twenty years.

In a flash, a sly smile curled on her lips.

【Trying to trick me? In your next life!】

Twisting her body oddly, Yu Qing avoided Song Zhaoyuan’s shove, grabbed her wrist, and panicked loudly: “Sister Song! Help!”

Splash—!

The heavy plunge startled the egrets on the mudflat.

Instead of a heroic rescue, the two women fell into the rushing river like conjoined twins.

“Help… glug glug… help! I can’t swim… glug glug…”

Song Zhaoyuan flailed desperately in the water. Her once-delicate makeup instantly ruined, pigments running down her face like a ghost crawling out of a dye vat.

She waved her arms in terror, showing not a trace of the graceful Jiangnan upbringing.

In contrast, Yu Qing also splashed, but with far more method.

She pretended to choke on water while secretly treading to stay balanced, even finding time to grumble in her mind:

【Hahaha! Is that all? Mastered seventy-two waterways? I think seventy-two jin of water must’ve entered your brain! How about this move—‘let’s perish together’? Lu Yan, come see how your devoted little cotton-padded jacket looks now!】

On the deck, Lu Yan watched the scene in the water, and even his usually cold, hard face cracked just slightly.

He had heard it.

This woman—she had fallen into the water and yet still had the energy to scold someone.

“Someone! Rescue her!”

Lu Yan barked sharply, and without hesitation, leapt into the river.

He grabbed the nearest person—the one sinking the fastest—Song Zhaoyuan.

Song Zhaoyuan clung to Lu Yan’s neck like a lifeline, her nose and tears smearing all over his flying-fish attire.

“Master Lu… sob sob… Yuan Yuan thought I’d never see you again…”

Lu Yan suppressed the urge to toss her back into the water and lifted her by the collar like a drenched chicken, leaping back onto the deck.

Immediately, a few Jinyiwei jumped in and pulled Yu Qing, still struggling, out of the river as well.

By now, Song Zhaoyuan’s hair was a mess, and she looked utterly disheveled.

Yu Qing, though soaked through, looked surprisingly fresh and delicate without makeup, like a water-born lotus.

Wrapped in a blanket and shivering, she still rushed to Song Zhaoyuan’s side first, her face full of guilt:

“Sister Song… I’m sorry. It’s all my fault for dragging you into this. I didn’t know you couldn’t swim… If I’d known, I wouldn’t have called for you to save me…”

【That strike hit—precise and fatal.】

Lu Yan looked at Yu Qing’s mischievous eyes, feeling both exasperated and amused.

This wasn’t a little white rabbit at all—it was clearly a little fox in a rabbit’s skin.

Night fell, and the river breeze turned chilly.

After the day’s chaos, the ship’s cabin had grown much quieter.

Song Zhaoyuan, frightened and chilled, had already gone to rest early.

In Shen Jue’s cabin, however, the lights were still bright.

“It’s your turn.”

Shen Jue’s long fingers held a black piece and gently placed it on the board.

The game was at a standstill—black and white pieces twisted like two entwined dragons, each move evenly matched, deadlocked.

Su Hewan knelt opposite him, calm and composed, entirely shedding the timid demeanor she had shown earlier that day.

Holding the white pieces, she moved with the swiftness of the wind; each move radiated lethal intent, pressing him step by step without yielding an inch.

Jiang Ruyi, standing aside and grinding incense, grew increasingly irritated.

She had hoped to use the fame of “Red Sleeves, Adding Fragrance” to showcase her talent before Shen Jue.

But after watching for some time, she realized she couldn’t understand the two of them at all.

“Lord Overseer, um… Sister Su’s move—did she make a mistake? If she places it here, wouldn’t she be walking into a trap?” Jiang Ruyi couldn’t help but point at an empty spot and speak in a coquettish voice.

Shen Jue didn’t even raise an eyelid. “Observe, but do not speak.”

Su Hewan ignored her completely. With a soft click, the white piece landed.

The moment it touched the board, the seemingly dead white pieces came alive, forming a sharp blade that pierced straight into the black’s territory.

Shen Jue’s pupils constricted slightly.

This was… turning a desperate situation into a chance for survival?

Su Hewan pushed up her nonexistent glasses and silently thought:

【This move uses the “Seven Thousand White-Robed Troops Deep Penetration” tactic from the Southern and Northern Dynasties, when Chen Qing’s force of 7,000 defeated 300,000 Wei troops. Shen Jue is naturally cautious and suspicious, preferring defensive counterattacks. To beat him, one must strike with precision, speed, and ruthlessness, cutting off all escape routes like a surgical blade.】

【History tells us that with someone like Shen Jue, blind submission only bores him. Only by matching him intellectually—or even surpassing him—can one truly capture his attention.】

Listening to her calm analysis, Shen Jue couldn’t help but laugh.