Chapter 202 Ride the cloud and transform into dragon
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Hearing Xiao Se say the words "male aphrodisiac", Mu Chunfeng also started to flush, and he coughed lightly. "Um, to be candid, it's exactly what Xiao-xiong said."
"Is this illness difficult to treat?" Lei Wujie asked in confusion.
Xiao Se shook his head and said, "You’re still young so you don't understand."
Tang Lian frowned slightly. "Actually, I don't really understand either."
Xiao Se reluctantly spread his hands. "Am I the only one who knows about love affairs? Now you’re making me feel awkward. In fact, I only know through reading."
Mu Chunfeng sighed softly. "My eldest brother is nearly forty years old. He has a romantic nature and didn't really control himself when he was younger. Now his body is not up to it and he invited many famous doctors. At first, they were effective, but later, his condition became more and more serious. I searched through the ancient books and found this medicine which needs the snake galls of the gold line, silver banded and iron crystal snakes. In order to collect all of them, I have to go to Three Snake Islands. So, I asked my father for this cedar longboat, partly to find a cure for my brother, but also like the three of you, I want to see the incredible sceneries of the world.”
"Gold line, silver banded and iron crystal?" Tang Lian murmured. "Gold line snakes are not rare, but silver banded snakes are difficult to find. As for iron crystal, what kind of snake is that?"
"The Three Snake Islands are Golden Snake Island, Silver Snake Island, and Crystal Island. The iron crystal lives on that Crystal Island. It’s said that it is an incredibly long anaconda that has already lived for hundreds of years and is only waiting for the day to ride the wind and transform into a dragon." When Mu Chunfeng talked about the Three Snake Islands, his eyes suddenly brightened. "I really want to see one."
"It's no problem for the three of us to assist you," Xiao Se drawled lazily. "But we have a request."
"Please speak plainly." Mu Chunfeng smiled.
"After arriving at Three Snake Islands, and after we help you obtain the three snake galls, are you sailing off immediately on the return journey?" Xiao Se asked.
"Since we’re heading for the Three Snake Islands on this trip, naturally, I would have to harvest quite a catch of gold line snakes back. To be honest with you, in order to enter the forbidden sea, I had to pay a fair bit of silver to the government," Mu Chunfeng said. "The Qingzhou Mu family will never conduct business at a loss."
"Very well. The three of us will help you obtain the snake galls of the gold line, silver banded and iron crystal. As for the rest, it’s not our business. However, after that, you have to lend us a small boat to go out to sea and wait seven days for us to return," Xiao Se said.
Mu Chunfeng was surprised. "Where are the three of you going?"
"Is that your business too?" Xiao Se raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Well, I didn’t mean it that way, of course. It’s just that there’s nothing nearby from Three Snake Islands, and there’s no other landfall in that endless sea. You’re only going for seven days, so I’m afraid you won't have enough time. If you go east beyond the Three Snake Islands, that’s even more of a dead zone. There’s a raging undercurrent that even the cedar longboats cannot cross, let alone a small boat." Mu Chunfeng's tone was sincere. "I'm just worried."
Xiao Se smiled slightly and asked, "Looks like Mu-xiong is very knowledgeable and has read many ancient books. Then, in the ancient books, do any of them say what realm lies beyond the Three Snake Islands?"
Mu Chunfeng pondered for a while and replied, "In the previous dynasty, the Commander-in-chief of the Eastern Sea District once wrote in the 《Eastern Sea Treatise》 that the area beyond Three Snake Islands was a dead zone. There are no winds and no waves, you can’t raise the sails, and you can’t move the boat. All his life, he couldn’t travel another mile forward. It was the end of the sea. In the ancient book 《Charts of Mountains and Seas》, that place was called the end of the world where there was a bottomless cliff. There, the seawater converged and rushed downwards, and the falling water was so fast that it ignited a flame that lit the entire sky red. However, another ancient book, 《Record of Heaven and Wind》, said that many immortals lived there and thousands of Buddhas went there on pilgrimage. It was a place where supreme immortals lived."
"No matter which of those possibilities are true, they’re all worth seeing," Xiao Se said.
"But the price could be very steep," Mu Chunfeng continued.
"If we’re not back in seven days, you can take your ship and leave." Xiao Se yawned. "Is it a deal or not, give me an answer now."
Mu Chunfeng walked back to the table, picked up a teapot, and slowly poured himself a cup of tea. He glanced at the armoured warrior with a spear and finally said, "I’ll do it."
"Very well. We’ll set sail in a few days?" Xiao Se asked.
"We’ll wait another three days. Once we have gathered enough snake catchers, we’ll set sail," Mu Chunfeng said.
"Alright. See you in three days." Xiao Se turned around and walked out. Tang Lian and Lei Wujie exchanged cupped fists with Mu Chunfeng and followed.
"Hold on for a bit," Mu Chunfeng spoke in a low voice.
"Yes? Are you already regretting it?" Xiao Se turned around.
"I’m just curious. I heard from my two subordinates that this Lei-xiong has powerful internal strength which could even repel the gold line snake into hiding. And this Tang-xiong is even more proficient with his hidden weapons and his dragon beard needle was brilliant. But, I don’t know what ability Xiao-xiong has?" Mu Chunfeng continued to smile as he looked at Xiao Se.
Xiao Se pulled down his hood. "I don't have any abilities."
"Oh?" Mu Chunfeng raised his eyebrows slightly.
"But they both listen to me." Xiao Se raised his head, his eyes sharp. "How’s that?"
"Excellent." Mu Chunfeng nodded.
After the three of them got off the ship, Tang Lian asked, "This Mu Chunfeng agreed to our request so readily? Will there be a problem with him?"
"No." Xiao Se shook his head.
"Why are you so sure?" Lei Wujie asked.
Xiao Se smirked. "I've seen lots of young masters from rich families like him. They think themselves handsome and suave with a manner that’s above the common man. Hearing me talk about an urge to see these mysteries of the open sea and it’s as if he’s met a bosom friend and became completely devoted. He’s not very shrewd, easy to cheat. I was just thinking, on the way back, I can cheat him of some money."
Lei Wujie was nodding along at first, but the more he pondered on the words, the more wrong they sounded and he couldn’t help but think they were aimed at him. Until he heard the last part, “cheat him of some money,” when he suddenly realised, "Xiao Se, did you think the same about me that day?"
"Forgive my bad eyes that time, I was wrong." Xiao Se threw a cold look at Lei Wujie. "That day, I thought you were pretending to be broke, but it turns out, you’re really broke."
"It’s great that we found a boat to sail with," Tang Lian said. "If we’d gone with our original plan to stowaway on one of the Sea Municipal Government ships then hijack the ship on the way, that would have created a huge commotion."
The three of them talked and walked at the same time and returned to the fish market. They saw Zhenzhu sitting beside her stall staring into space, but when she spotted them coming towards her, she jumped to her feet. "You’re back. Did you get the job?"
"The job?" Lei Wujie was taken aback, then quickly nodded. "Oh, oh, yes."
"Congratulations." The fish market vendors nearby heard this and congratulated the three outsiders on getting this good job, while their eyes were full of envy. After all, the reward of twenty taels of gold was something they could save up only after more than ten years of hard work.
Tang Lian asked Zhenzhu, "Do you still have that blue-spotted grouper?"
Zhenzhu pointed at a wooden basin next to her. "That’s the only one left. I kept it specially for you."
"Then we’ll boil some fish soup tonight. It's also a celebration." Tang Lian smiled.
"We can do that. Let’s go to my house." Zhenzhu raised her head and her face was all smiles.
Xiao Se glanced at Lei Wujie pointedly and nodded. "Sounds great."
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