Young hero, stay put and don't be reckless.

Chapter 5 Ah 9

Jiang Xun turned over and closed his eyes.

We'll talk about it tomorrow.

We'll talk about it tomorrow.

The next morning, Jiang Xun went to the dock.

Jiangzhou City is located by the river, and the docks are bustling with people, mostly merchant ships traveling from the south to the north.

People carrying bags, pulling ropes, and selling food were all in complete chaos.

Jiang Xun mingled in the crowd, wandering around.

He needed to find a boat—any boat that could take him away from Jiangzhou.

It would be best to go south; I've heard the south is prosperous and easier to make a living there.

After looking around for a while, he spotted a large ship. It was loaded with salt bags and had a deep draft, clearly a vessel for long-distance travel.

The crew on the ship were unloading cargo, working up a sweat.

Taking advantage of the moment when no one was paying attention, Jiang Xun slipped to the side of the boat and quickly climbed aboard.

He hid behind the salt bag, motionless.

Not long after, the ship set sail.

Jiang Xun lay in the middle of the salt packs, and slowly closed his eyes as the boat rocked back and forth.

He's exhausted. He hasn't slept a wink since yesterday.

I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

Jiang Xun was awakened by a series of voices after an unknown amount of time.

He opened his eyes and found that it was already dark. The boat was still moving, with a lamp lit at the bow, and several boatmen were drinking together.

Jiang Xun quietly got up and pricked up his ears to listen.

"...We should make a good profit from delivering this batch of goods, right?"

"What profit are you talking about? You think this is our goods? This is for—"

The speaker suddenly lowered their voice.

Jiang Xun couldn't hear what he was saying, but he noticed something—the pile of salt packets had a strange smell.

It doesn't taste like salt. I can't quite describe it; it's a bit pungent, a bit acrid.

Jiang Xun leaned closer to smell it and frowned.

No, that's not right. He grew up in the streets and alleys; he can tell what things smell like just by smelling them. Salt doesn't taste like that.

What is this?

Jiang Xun couldn't understand it, but he knew one thing—this ship was no ordinary vessel.

He needs to be careful.

Jiang Xun hid in the pile of salt bags for three days.

In three days, he figured out the ship's rules—sleep during the day and travel at night.

The boatmen took turns rowing, without stopping for a moment.

Besides the salt bags, there were several large boxes in the cargo hold, locked with iron padlocks, and two boatmen took turns guarding them, as if they were precious treasures.

Jiang Xun didn't dare to get close.

He only dared to hide behind the salt bag, and when he was hungry, he would nibble on a couple of bites of the roast chicken he had stolen from the ship—it was long gone, but at least it was meat; when he was thirsty, he would sneak to the ship's side and scoop up a couple of mouthfuls of water when no one was looking.

On the evening of the third day, the ship finally docked.

Jiang Xun peered out through the seam of the salt bag—the dock was bustling with people, even more lively than Jiangzhou.

In the distance, there are city walls, and a large plaque hangs at the city gate: Wuling City.

Jiang Xun wrote down the name.

After the boatmen disembarked to unload the cargo, he quietly slipped off the stern and mingled into the crowd.

When his feet touched solid ground, his legs went weak and he almost knelt down—his legs had become weak after hiding on the boat for three days.

"Make way, make way, make way—"

Shouts came from behind.

Jiang Xun looked back and saw a group of people running towards him, all carrying weapons.

The leader was a burly man with a dark face, whose voice was so loud it could shatter roof tiles.

"The Changfeng Gang is recruiting! Sixty coins a day! Meals provided! Bonuses for winning!"

Changfeng Gang?

Jiang Xun was stunned. Before he could react, a group of people rushed out from the other side, led by a shirtless burly man.

"Jade Sand Sect is hiring! Fifty coins a day! Meals included!"

The two groups were about ten feet apart, glaring at each other, the tension so high it could be ignited.

The locals at the dock were used to it and went about their business as usual, not even bothering to watch the spectacle.

Jiang Xun stood there, his mind racing.

Sixty coins a day, meals included.

He is now penniless and can't even afford a steamed bun.

Who cares what kind of gang it is, I just need to make a living first.

He walked towards the Changfeng Gang.

"Um..." He walked up to the burly, dark-faced man, "Are you still hiring?"

The dark-faced man looked him up and down—he was as thin as a bamboo pole, with bruises on his face and tattered clothes.

"You?" The burly man frowned. "Have you ever been in a fight?"

Jiang Xun thought about Liu Wei's distorted face.

"...I fought with him."

The big man glanced at him again and waved his hand.

"Okay, I'll take it." He waved his hand. "Give him a red handkerchief."

A henchman handed him a strip of red cloth. Jiang Xun took it and tied it around his arm, imitating what others were doing.

"Stand over there and wait for instructions!"

Jiang Xun walked into the crowd.

He was surrounded by people like him—burly men with broad shoulders and thick waists, teenagers around his age, and a few who looked like refugees from famine.

They were all wearing red cloths, carrying sticks, shovels, and some even had spatulas.

Jiang Xun looked down at his spatula—the one he had just used, rusted so badly it was practically crumbling.

I had only taken two steps when someone tapped me on the shoulder.

"Hey bro, new here?"

Jiang Xun turned around and saw a smiling face.

The man was about the same age as me, wearing a slightly worn blue robe, and was dressed neatly and cleanly, looking like a young master from a scholarly family.

But those eyes of his were just as quick and darting around.

"How did you know?" Jiang Xun took a step back warily.

"I can tell just by looking at you." The young man in the blue robe pointed at his clothes. "Haven't changed them in three days, have you? Were you hiding on the ship for days?"

Jiang Xun didn't say anything.

The young man in the blue robe smiled, revealing a set of white teeth.

"Don't be nervous, I do this all the time." He casually put his arm around Jiang Xun's shoulder. "Come on, let me treat you to some sesame cakes."

As Jiang Xun was being pulled along, he wondered to himself, "Who is this kid?"

The young man in the blue robe led him to a sesame seed cake stall by the roadside, took out two coins to buy two sesame seed cakes, and handed one to him.

"Eat up, don't be shy."

Jiang Xun took the sesame seed cake and took a bite.

It's hot and smells of sesame.

He hadn't eaten anything hot for three days, and after that bite, his eyes almost welled up with tears.

"Eat slowly, no one's going to take it from you." The young man in the blue robe took a bite himself, chewing as he spoke, "My name is A-Jiu, what's yours?"

"Jiang Xun".

"Jiang Xun?" Ajiu blinked. "That's a nice name, better than mine. My 'Jiu' was given to me by my grandfather according to the birth order in the clan. The ninth one was named Ajiu. There's no particular reason for it."

Jiang Xun glanced at him.

This person talks too much.

But he doesn't dislike it.

"Those two groups of people just now..." Jiang Xun pointed towards the dock, "What's with the Jade Sand Sect and the Long Wind Gang?"

"It's about seizing territory." Ajiu shrugged. "The docks in Wuling City are incredibly lucrative. Goods from all over the country are unloaded here. Whoever controls the docks gets rich. The Jade Sand Sect and the Changfeng Gang have been fighting over it for three years, with small fights every three days and big fights every five days."

"Is the government not going to do anything?"

"Manage?" Ajiu laughed. "The government is more than happy for them to fight. They pay tribute to both sides and offend neither. If someone dies, they just grab a few scapegoats to cover their tracks, and a few days later they'll fight again."

Jiang Xun nodded.

It's similar to Jiangzhou.

"Don't worry, they're just putting on a show. They won't actually fight." Ajiu shrugged, thinking Jiang Xun was scared. "They're all bark and no bite. They shout a lot, but when it comes to actually fighting, they all back down."

How did you know?

"I've been watching this for days," Ajiu said in a low voice. "It's always the same. Both sides agree on a time and place, bring hundreds of people, shout for two hours, and then go home to eat."

Jiang Xun was skeptical.

"And today?"

"Same today," Ah Jiu said nonchalantly. "You'll see in a bit. Just keep shouting, don't rush forward."

As he spoke, he stuffed the last bite of the sesame seed cake into his mouth.

"By the way, where do you live?"

"Nowhere to stay."

"After the fight, I'll take you somewhere. I know a dilapidated temple where you can sleep."

Jiang Xun nodded.

Ah Jiu is actually a pretty good person.