Chapter 9: Sudden Accident, Joss Paper¹, Why Is There Joss Paper Here?

The deal was struck. Once the other party confirmed that Bai Yu and Bai Xi had lowered their guard, they became more talkative, speaking about the situation on the shore.

“Are they not letting you go ashore either?”

“They say it’s too dirty to sell fish on land, so they’ve blocked us and won’t let anyone get close,” Bai Yu replied. “If we’re forced to stay on the water, food isn’t a big problem, but it’s impossible without firewood or charcoal.”

“Exactly. Without food, you can catch a couple of fish to fill your belly, but without wood or charcoal, eating raw food will ruin a person’s health. I don’t know what kind of high-ranking officials came from the shore, but they’re incredibly overbearing.”

“They’re from the capital, and with a ship like that, they must be very powerful figures.”

“I don’t know about powerful, but they’re certainly greedy. These days, there aren’t many good people among those big shots in the capital.”

As the person spoke, a violent coughing fit suddenly erupted from their cabin. The speaker’s expression shifted instantly, and they fell silent, wordlessly taking the firewood Bai Yu handed over.

Bai Yu didn’t dare to pry, only asking in a low voice, “Is that your master?”

“It is.”

No wonder the person went silent the moment that cough rang out.

Bai Yu didn’t ask anything else, silently passing the firewood over bundle by bundle.

Once the wood at the bow was handed over, they moved to the stern to pass the rest. The total amount of firewood was worth only about twenty or thirty copper coins, but since the other party had given a full fifty, they naturally gave them everything they had.

The other party was clearly spooked by that cough and didn’t speak again. Once the firewood was stowed away and the sun began to sink in the west, they said a quick word and hurried away.

As the boat slowly drifted into the distance, Bai Xi brought the string of copper coins into the cabin. She took the rest of their coins from a hanging bag and threaded them onto the same string.

As she worked, she spoke up, “Now that this firewood is sold, we’ll have to go back to the Plane to gather some more.”

“We need to,” Bai Yu said, looking at the string of money. “Perhaps we can take this opportunity to earn a few more copper coins.”

“Is there any difference between gathering it for ourselves and selling it?” Bai Xi looked up.

“Usually there isn’t, but this time is different. That noble’s great ship is staying there, so many boats will likely be short on firewood. Since there’s a shortage, we can charge a bit more. If we can make an extra dozen coins like we did today, wouldn’t that be great?” Bai Yu shared her thoughts.

Bai Xi threaded another coin, saying with a lack of confidence, “Can we really sell it?”

It wasn’t certain. It was possible they would spend time gathering wood only for it to go unsold.

Furthermore, they didn’t have much experience in sales. Usually, when they sold fish, they did so alongside the larger group.

“Forget it, let’s not overthink it,” Bai Yu turned and took Bai Miao’s hand. “Miao Miao, take Eldest Sister to the Plane. Let’s gather some more wood before it’s time to head back.”

Bai Miao pulled a small pouch from around her neck, took out the Transit Pass, and pressed it skillfully, bringing Bai Yu with her to the forest.

As soon as they arrived, Bai Yu sensed something was wrong. The air was thick with the heavy scent of rain.

The sky was gloomy, threatening to pour at any moment.

If it rained, the dry branches currently on the forest floor would be difficult to collect.

She didn’t dare waste time. After setting Bai Miao down, she ran quickly to gather dry branches. Once she had an armful, she rushed back with Bai Miao, dumping the wood in the cabin for Bai Xi to process before heading back to the forest again.

After several trips back and forth, they finally gathered an amount similar to what they had before.

Bai Xi touched the last batch of branches. “These are a bit damp.”

“It’s already raining over there,” Bai Yu panted. “It’s a good thing we went early, otherwise all the dry wood on the ground would be soaked. In a forest that size, once the rain falls, who knows how many days it will take to dry. I was hoping to gather more to sell, but it looks like there’s no hope for that now.”

“At least we have enough for ourselves. It was free to begin with, so we shouldn’t be greedy.”

“You’re right, we shouldn’t be greedy.”

The sisters were of one mind. They moved all the gathered firewood onto the deck, tidied the cabin, and laid out the bedding so Bai Miao could lie down. Then, they took up the punting poles and headed toward the agreed meeting point.

When their boat arrived, two or three other boats were already anchored there.

This time, everyone had split up to buy different supplies in addition to firewood. Once everyone returned, they began to trade what they had, sharing resources between the boats.

Firewood was scarce, so the “price” during the exchange was higher.

“They say firewood is hard to come by. Several households refused to sell, and those who did asked for high prices. Aren’t they just taking advantage of the fact that we’re short on wood? If we could go ashore, who would be lacking firewood?”

“You weren’t overcharged, were you?”

“No, perhaps the people we met were kind-hearted,” Bai Yu said.

“Maybe they saw that you three girls have it hard. There are plenty of kind people out there.”

“But we can’t go on like this. That noble is staying for at least ten more days. We can’t go door-to-door trading every time. Even if the items aren’t expensive, it’s a waste of time.”

“Let’s move elsewhere tomorrow morning. Even if we can’t sell fish and shrimp, we need to find a place where buying supplies is convenient. We have enough on the boat for now, but we can’t wait until we’re desperate to go looking.”

“That makes sense. Keeping the fish and shrimp in the nets for now isn’t a problem, but not being able to buy supplies is truly inconvenient. Shall we set off first thing tomorrow?”

“Agreed.”

With that decided, everyone found a place to rest. The three sisters did the same, planning to rest for the night and leave for the next location at dawn.

They discussed and planned together, preparing for the next day’s journey.

Although there were always difficult changes to deal with, being together as a family meant they had someone to talk to, making life feel less burdensome.

However, all of this was shattered the following morning.

The cabin curtains didn’t hang tightly, so the morning light easily filtered inside once the sun rose. But today, along with the light, there was a clamor of noise from outside.

“Bai Yu, Bai Xi, get up!”

The two sisters opened their eyes.

They immediately threw off their quilts, got up, and walked out of the cabin.

They saw their Eldest Uncle and Second Uncle, both in the prime of their lives, along with their male cousins, all with long blades held against their necks. The female relatives looked distressed, their faces etched with a sorrow that went beyond tears.

Bai Yu moved first. She hurried from the stern through the cabin to the bow and pulled Bai Xi into her arms. As for the still-sleeping Bai Miao, Bai Yu shot a quick glance back at the curtained cabin but decided not to wake her yet.

“Behave yourselves and transport these goods to the destination, and you’ll live. Anyone who dares to ask a single question will find that the blades in our hands have no eyes.”

“We wouldn’t dare, we wouldn’t dare. We won’t say a word or ask anything.”

Eldest Uncle shook his head repeatedly. At the sight of the gleaming blade, he didn’t dare say another word and shut his mouth tight.

At that moment, crate after crate was being moved from a large ship onto the small boats. One crate was even placed onto the three sisters’ small boat. The contents were heavy; as soon as it was set down, the boat sank lower into the water under the weight.

Someone from the bow of the neighboring boat barked an order: “Get inside the cabin. No one is allowed out without our permission.”

Bai Yu and Bai Xi immediately entered the cabin and held Bai Miao, who was blinking her eyes open, groggy from the boat’s sudden dip.

Fortunately, she didn’t have the habit of crying upon waking. After Bai Yu covered her mouth, she simply turned and buried her head in her sister’s shoulder.

Listening to the commotion outside, it wasn’t just them; everyone else was being ordered to stay inside their cabins, with no one permitted to step out.

No one knew who these people were, what the goods were, or where they were headed next. But these men had blades, and they were just ordinary civilians. No one dared to resist.

The boats slowly began to move forward.

Someone lifted the cabin curtain and tossed in two dry biscuits, a water skin, and a chamber pot.

“Eldest Sister…” Bai Miao leaned against Bai Yu.

“Don’t be afraid, it’s alright,” Bai Yu comforted her softly. “We’re still alive and well. Nothing will happen.”

Bai Xi reached out and pulled both of them into a tight embrace.

Over the next few days, the three of them were given only one dry biscuit and one water skin per day. They never had enough to eat, so they rarely even needed the chamber pot.

There was always someone outside. None of them dared to use the Check-in function, fearing that the sound from the Shell would trigger and bring more trouble upon them.

The cabin curtains were always down, so they couldn’t see anything happening outside. The boats traveled day and night; they could only tell whether it was light or dark by the faint glow filtering through the fabric.

After about five or six days, they clearly felt the two heavy crates being moved away.

They thought they would finally be allowed out, but there were still people watching outside, forbidding any movement. They could only continue to wait until the boat began moving across the water once more.

“Are they sending us back?” Bai Xi asked in a low voice.

“I hope so,” Bai Yu said, sounding uncertain.

“I wonder what they were transporting that was so mysterious,” Bai Xi continued to whisper. “Since they have such a large ship, they clearly don’t lack money. It would be so easy for them to buy some small boats. Why bother with us?”

“You’re right. Since they don’t lack silver, wouldn’t it be better to just buy small boats?”

“Acting so sneaky and secretive… I have a bad feeling about this.”

“If things really go wrong,” Bai Yu gripped her two sisters’ hands, her voice dropping even lower, “if something actually happens, we’ll head into the forest immediately. Even if we’re exposed, we have to go there.”

Bai Xi nodded solemnly.

If something truly went wrong, staying behind meant certain death, but heading into the forest offered a chance at survival.

After an unknown amount of time, the two of them felt the boat lighten again. However, no one was speaking outside. They didn’t dare move or speak loudly, so they remained huddled in the cabin.

Suddenly, Bai Miao, who had been resting in Bai Yu’s arms, reached out and pointed toward the gap where the cabin met the deck. “Eldest Sister.”

Bai Yu turned to look and saw a piece of paper stuck in the crevice. Driven by curiosity, she shifted her position and picked up the paper that had nearly drifted into the cabin.

“What is it?” Bai Xi asked curiously.

Bai Yu’s expression changed instantly. “Joss paper.”

“Joss paper? Why would there be joss paper here?” Bai Xi asked in surprise.

Bai Yu immediately stood up and threw open the cabin curtain.

Just then, a gust of wind swept past, and the joss paper scattered across the deck took flight, dancing through the air.

Translator’s Notes