In the autumn of the sixteenth year of the Yuanfeng era, the canal transport docks in the capital were bustling with activity. The grain barges of the Jiangsu Guild had all finished unloading the autumn tax grain. The bargemen were now loading the local specialties ordered by the Young Master onto the boats, while dedicated inspectors were giving the vessels a final round of checks, preparing to set sail while the weather was clear and fine.
Suddenly, two fine horses galloped up. The young man leading them wore a golden crown, appeared to be in his twenties, and had a charming, rakish face. He stopped in front of a barge and, before even speaking, broke into a smile. Pointing his riding crop at one of the bargemen, he asked, "Where's your Young Master?"
The bargeman pointed towards the boat. Zhao Ziheng dismounted, tossed his reins to his companion Shu Changfeng, and boarded the largest barge of the Jiangsu Guild. He headed to the top cabin to dig out Bai Shiqi, who was still sleeping in. "Shiqi, wake up!"
Bai Shiqi was the only son of Guild Master Bai Zhenting, just having come of age. He had gone into the city last night to listen to Song Jiuniang's variety play and didn't return until dawn. Awoken from his slumber, he lashed out with a kick, furious. "Get out!"
Zhao Ziheng dodged the bare foot that came at him, even managing to give it a feel as it passed. "How come your feet are more delicate than a woman's?" He almost had his handsome face ruined by a bamboo pillow aimed at his head.
"Hey, hey, no violence! If this face of mine gets damaged, how will I charm the young ladies?"
"Narcissist, get out! I need to get dressed!"
Bai Shiqi, clutching the quilt, chased the uninvited guest out before getting up to wash and dress. Fortunately, he hadn't undressed or removed his cap when he returned.
Bai Zhenting had been married for many years without children. Taking numerous concubines hadn't helped. Finally, his principal wife, Lady Su, gave birth to a daughter.
That year, he had just pulled the previous guild master from his position and ascended to the leadership himself. To the outside world, he announced that Lady Su had borne a son. He even expressed hope that Lady Su would continue her efforts, preferably giving birth to seventeen or eighteen sons. Thus, he named the newborn "Shiqi" (Seventeen), embodying his fervent wish for the Bai family line to flourish.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. For the next twenty years, the wives and concubines in his rear courtyard seemed to have made a pact—not a single peep, let alone a child.
Bai Shiqi's looks took after Lady Su, with red lips and white teeth. Standing about 1.7 meters tall, he had been a troublemaker since childhood, leading the guild's second generation into battles against the Salt Guild's youngsters from the age of seven or eight, boasting an impressive record of victories that endeared him to the guild's uncles and elders.
Bai Zhenting doted on his only child. When Shiqi turned sixteen and wanted to follow the guild elders to the capital to escort the tribute grain, Lady Su tried repeatedly to stop him, but Bai Zhenting had the final say: "A man should have ambitions beyond his immediate surroundings. We can't let Shiqi spend his whole life stuck in this small patch of land, can we?"
Lady Su was a classic beauty of the Jiangnan region. Her crying was as delicate as pear blossoms bathed in rain, and her anger held little deterrent power. "Is Shiqi a man?" she asked.
With only the two of them in the room, Bai Zhenting asked with a cheeky grin, "If he's not my son, then whose son is he?" This earned him a flurry of punches from Lady Su.
Bai Zhenting treated it like she was scratching an itch for him. "I've built this huge family business, and it will all be Shiqi's in the future. Once he's familiar with the guild affairs, he'll even become the guild master."
The previous guild master's son had been useless, devoted only to pleasure, which ultimately allowed Bai Zhenting to usurp power. The son didn't even have the ability to help his own father in a fight.
Bai Zhenting wasn't highly literate, but even a country squire wants a son to inherit the family business, let alone someone like him?
For all his doting, Bai Shiqi's education in letters and martial arts was never neglected from a young age. He was famously clever, and the tutors hired to teach him praised his photographic memory, saying he grasped everything after one lesson. Only his martial arts were somewhat lacking in vigor, leading to frequent forced training sessions by his father and the guild elders. His skills in brawling and fighting consequently improved by leaps and bounds.
Bai Shiqi: ...Damn, the downside of a transmigration is not only having to relearn culture and knowledge, but also not being able to skip P.E.!
As it turned out, she was still too naive. Bai Zhenting had an unusual way of thinking. When Shiqi was thirteen or fourteen, he would drink with "his son" at the same table to build his alcohol tolerance. At fifteen, he had a trusted subordinate take "his son" out to visit brothels, grandly calling it: "learning to remain unmoved by temptation."
Unmoved, my foot!
Bai Shiqi was grateful that the alcohol content in this era was low and that her body naturally had a high tolerance. By eighteen, she had quite a reputation as a playboy, with numerous beauties as confidantes. Combined with her handsome looks, generous spending, and never taking her temper out on the courtesans, she was very popular among the top courtesans and famous beauties in the Jiangsu region.
Bai Zhenting was quite satisfied with the results of his teachings. He gradually began instructing her in handling guild affairs and the family business. At eighteen, Bai Shiqi escorted the tribute grain to the capital alone for the first time. Dealing with officials at various checkpoints along the Grand Canal went off without a hitch. This year was already her third trip escorting grain to the capital.
Now properly dressed, she found Zhao Ziheng on the deck, still wearing a scowl. "What do you want?"
Zhao Ziheng was an idle, pleasure-seeking young master from a wealthy family. They had met on a painted pleasure boat in Suzhou, coming to blows over a popular courtesan on board. Naturally, Bai Shiqi, a veteran of countless fights since childhood, won, pinning him down and giving him a thorough beating. Unexpectedly, the fight led to friendship.
Zhao Ziheng indeed had a favor to ask today and got straight to the point. "I have a cousin who was injured in an accident and can't walk properly. We've tried all the famous doctors in the capital without any improvement. He wants to travel south to Jiangnan to seek out renowned physicians. Since you're familiar with the area, and you happen to be here escorting the grain, I promised my family. So, I was hoping to take your boat south." He grinned cheekily. "We're brothers, right? No need for formalities between us."
Bai Shiqi sighed in resignation. "If you're coming, go pack quickly. The fleet sets sail in one hour. I won't wait for you."
Zhao Ziheng's face lit up with joy. "Wait for me!" He dashed off the barge, hurrying with Shu Changfeng to deliver the news.
Bai Shiqi had something of a chivalrous reputation in Jiangnan, with a wide circle of acquaintances and considerable experience. Standing on the deck, she observed the carriage of Zhao Ziheng's cousin and the dozen or so guards on tall horses surrounding it. She privately surmised that this cousin's family background was likely quite distinguished, probably an official or noble family.
The carriage stopped. Guards brought a wheelchair down from behind it, while another guard respectfully lifted the carriage curtain. Facing her direction, a face emerged—resolute, stern, and cold, with a distinctly heroic air between the brows.
Once the party had disembarked and boarded, Zhao Ziheng personally introduced them. "This is my cousin, Zhao Wujiu. And this is my friend, Bai Shiqi."
Zhao Wujiu's gaze swept over Bai Shiqi like a blade. Although seated in a wheelchair and thus physically lower than Bai Shiqi, his eyes held a condescending, scrutinizing quality that was extremely uncomfortable.
Bai Shiqi had someone arrange guest cabins, and attendants led Zhao Wujiu and his party to rest. She pulled Zhao Ziheng aside for questioning. "Confess. Your cousin isn't an official, is he? The kind who presides over trials? His face might as well have four big characters written on it."
"What four characters?" Zhao Ziheng asked curiously.
Bai Shiqi pointed to both sides of her cheeks: "Impartial and incorruptible." She described her first impression: "It felt like one wrong word and you'd be dragged out for a beating. He's not serving at the Dali Temple or the Censorate, is he?" His professional demeanor was a bit severe, with his smiling muscles on permanent leave, leaving only one expression—commonly known as a poker face.
Zhao Ziheng mumbled vaguely, "...That's about right." Stationed in the central command tent, where anyone violating military regulations was dragged out for a caning—it sounded quite similar to what Bai Shiqi described. Both involved beating people with sticks, after all.
Bai Shiqi almost jumped up to smash his stupid head: "What were you thinking, inviting a government official onto the boat? Are you trying to get me killed?" When the grain transport boats headed to the capital, they carried tribute grain, but on the return trip, the boats were empty. Therefore, many transport boats would smuggle private goods or take on cargo for transport on the return journey, even though the court explicitly forbade transport boats from engaging in trade.
She had been escorting tribute grain to the capital with her uncles since she was sixteen. The officials along the route were all well-greased and would turn a blind eye. But having an impartial and incorruptible official lord on board? What was that if not a ticking time bomb?
Thinking of the full hold of private goods in the lower cargo deck, Bai Shiqi felt a headache coming on.
