Guannan

“Guannan? Ji Guannan? I heard he was one of the Five Great Geniuses of Changyun, and that he fell here a few years ago...”

“Yes, Lord Guannan was a genius of the Ji family's direct line. He entered the Tendon Tempering Rank at a young age and should have had a limitless future.”

Deng Shan's face filled with sorrow as he let out a long sigh.

“But two years ago, Chenjian Dock allied with the Giant Whale Gang and Water Dragon Stockade to launch a massive night raid on Yunyi Island. With Lord Guannan's movement technique and cultivation, he could have easily broken through and escaped...”

“But to cover the brothers on the island, he didn't retreat even half a step. He led three Patrol Envoys to defend the trestle bridge to the death. In the end, the three Patrol Envoys fought to exhaustion and fell, and Lord Guannan was also surrounded and cut down by three of Chenjian Dock's chiefs. He took dozens of blade wounds, his blood staining the Cloudwater...”

He was actually surrounded and killed by three forces working together!

Shen Xiuhan's heart shook violently.

From what he had heard from Luo Zhan at the placement meet earlier, he had assumed Ji Guannan had failed to escape and was captured and executed by the second chief of Chenjian Dock.

Only now did he realize that this genius had voluntarily stayed behind to cover the retreat, ultimately fighting to the death.

Shen Xiuhan could not help but feel a deep sense of respect.

Such loyalty and disregard for his own life was truly awe-inspiring.

Walking out of the duty room, Shen Xiuhan held a set of black Ji family uniform with silver trim, as well as three black-lacquered bamboo tubes about the length of a short flute.

Deng Shan pointed at the bamboo tubes and said:

“Patrol Envoy, this is the ‘Cloud-Flint Arrow’. Unscrew the cap at the bottom, and you'll find a fuse inside. If we are attacked by enemies, light it with a flint and fire it into the sky. The rocket will shoot up. Even in broad daylight, it can transmit a signal up to five miles. If water bandits invade in large numbers, fire three arrows in a row.”

Shen Xiuhan nodded slightly. After playing with them for a moment, he solemnly put them away.

Afterward, the two went straight to the berths and untied a lightweight black-awning fast boat.

Deng Shan rowed the scull himself, and the small boat followed the current all the way north. After about half a cup of tea's time, the boat rounded to the northern side of Yunyi Island.

Looking up, a row of stilt bamboo houses built over the water loomed in the distance. As dusk began to fall, the lake's surface grew dark and cold. Only a few bamboo houses cast a faint, warm yellow light, throwing flickering shadows onto the water.

The boat docked, and the two leapt onto the wooden walkway.

“Team C, assemble on the walkway!”

Deng Shan roared at the top of his lungs.

Before long, four agile figures darted out of the bamboo houses one after another.

All four wore coir raincoats and short-sleeved shirts, their builds robust and fierce.

Shen Xiuhan swept his gaze over them. He could tell that these four were all young practitioners. Each carried a steel blade at their waist, and the oldest looked to be no more than twenty-seven or twenty-eight.

“Keep your eyes sharp!” Deng Shan barked in a deep voice. “This is the new Patrol Envoy Shen sent by the main family. From now on, Team C will be under Patrol Envoy Shen's command. Why don't you all introduce yourselves!”

Hearing this, the four straightened their expressions, stepped forward in unison, cupped their fists, and shouted:

“Yan Chuan of the Tiger-Subduing Martial Arts Hall!”

“Geng Weizhi of the Dragon-Tiger Hall!”

“Hu Zhi of the Hu Family!”

“Ruan Linhuan of the Zhou Family Martial Academy!”

“Greetings, Lord Patrol Envoy!”

Their voices were resonant, their momentum surging.

Shen Xiuhan cupped his hands and returned the gesture, his voice carrying over the lake wind. “Shen Xiuhan of the Mei Family Martial Arts Hall's inner courtyard. Greetings!”

After getting to know each other, Deng Shan departed. Shen Xiuhan followed the four into the bamboo house. Since it was just in time for dinner, they invited him to join them.

Inside the bamboo house.

An oil lamp flickered.

The meal was rather simple.

A small red clay stove sat in the middle of the room, heating a boiling pot of millet porridge that bubbled and steamed.

On the table lay four large, golden-brown roasted lake fish, scattered messily.

Yan Chuan and the other three held large, coarse porcelain bowls, their chopsticks dipping into the pot of millet porridge.

As for the roasted fish, none of them even bothered to spare them a second glance.

After a moment of thought, Shen Xiuhan understood.

Yunyi Island was short on almost all supplies, but the fresh river food in the water was inexhaustible.

Having been stationed on the water year-round, these four had probably grown thoroughly sick of eating fish.

Thinking of this, Shen Xiuhan put down his chopsticks, untied his bundle, and took out a few scallion pancakes.

These had been baked by Madam Zheng this morning. Although they had gone cold, they still gave off an enticing, wheaty aroma.

“Brothers, come, share these and have a taste.”

Shen Xiuhan tossed the pancakes to the four of them.

The rich aroma of scallions and oil filled the air.

Smelling the long-lost scent of fried dough, the four men's eyes lit up, pleasantly surprised.

“Thank you, Patrol Envoy!”

Geng Weizhi was an impatient sort. He immediately tore off a large piece and stuffed it into his mouth. After chewing twice, his eyes widened. Savoring the flavor that filled his mouth, he couldn't help but give a thumbs-up and praise:

“It's crispy, flaky, and has a great chew! Your culinary skills are incredible, Lord Patrol Envoy!”

Shen Xiuhan took a sip of hot porridge and laughed.

“This wasn't made by me, but by my mother. My family opened a shop on Guihua Street in the Inner City's South Market called the ‘Shen Family Eatery’. If you brothers ever go back to the city on your rest days, feel free to drop by.”

Hearing this, the four of them laughed and cupped their hands.

“So it's your mother's handiwork!”

“Don't worry, Patrol Envoy. Once we're off duty and head back to the city, we'll definitely go to your mother's place to treat our stomachs!”

With a few scallion pancakes in their bellies, any awkwardness vanished, and they naturally began to chat.

Among the four, except for the slender Ruan Linhuan who didn't talk much, Yan Chuan, Geng Weizhi, and Hu Zhi were all hearty and talkative.

After a few sips of coarse tea to wet their throats, they quickly laid out all the details of the waterways around Yunyi Island in just a few sentences.

Geng Weizhi lowered his voice and said:

“Lord Patrol Envoy, don't let our Garrison Master's youthful looks fool you. He usually keeps a low profile, but he's actually twenty-five this year and is a genuine peak Mingjin expert. He's quite a prominent figure even in the entire Changyun County!”

“Indeed, if not for his background...”

Yan Chuan sighed beside him, his tone somewhat guarded. “With the Garrison Master's methods and cultivation, he would definitely be the undisputed new leader of the main family's younger generation after Lord Guannan's death!”

After discussing the people, they moved on to the surrounding situation.

“The Cloudwater Lake is vast and wild, with waterways spanning across three states: Qi, Wu, and Yue. There are seven or eight water bandit factions of various sizes occupying the outer waters.”

“Just around Yunyi Island, groups like Chenjian Dock, the Giant Whale Gang, Water Dragon Stockade, and Fish Island are clustered together. These fierce bandits all trace their roots back to the Raging Sea Sect, a major martial arts sect of the Southern Sea.”

“Among them, Chenjian Dock is the largest and most rampant. It's said they have nearly twenty blood qi martial artists, over a hundred fierce water bandits, and ten chiefs in total. The ones sitting in the top five chairs are all Anjin experts!”

Hearing this, Shen Xiuhan raised his sharp eyebrows slightly and raised a hand to interrupt. “Since the water bandit forces are already so strong...”

Hu Zhi grinned, catching his drift, and chimed in:

“Is the Patrol Envoy wondering why these bandits haven't taken Yunyi Island, and instead tolerate the main family keeping this thorn in their side along the waterway?”

Shen Xiuhan nodded slightly. He indeed found it strange.

The forces the Ji family stationed on Yunyi Island were far from enough. Leaving aside the other groups joining forces, Chenjian Dock alone would have been more than enough to wipe the island clean.

“It's not that they don't want to, they don't dare!”

Yan Chuan snorted coldly, slamming his tea bowl onto the table, a look of satisfaction flashing in his eyes.

“Two and a half years ago!”

“Chenjian Dock deployed four chiefs—Blood Dhuta, Chen Xin, Tu Xiaotian, and Qu Bushi—leading over ten Mingjin experts and more than a hundred elite water ghouls to launch a massive siege on Yunyi Island.”

“In the end, they took Lord Guannan's life and heavily injured an Anjin guest elder of the main family. But this matter also blew the lid off!”

“The county government officials were furious!”

“The County Magistrate stepped in personally, joining forces with Wang Zhidao, the head of the Wang family. The two Huajin experts led the three squads of constables and numerous experts to demand an explanation from Duan Xiao, the first chief of Chenjian Dock!”