Chapter 65 Young Master Ye Takes a Disciple

The Qinhuai River.

The most famous boat owner was a man named Wei Sanbao.

Originally from Yangzhou, his mother had been a renowned courtesan in the city. One night, while entertaining a client, the patron accidentally punctured a fish belly. That resulted in his birth, hence he took his mother's surname.

Growing up in the brothels since childhood, he was intimately familiar with the operational tactics of pleasure quarters. Having seen countless high-ranking figures, his ambition and vision naturally surpassed those of ordinary men.

Twenty years ago, he came to the Jinling Prefecture with a thousand taels of silver that his mother had painstakingly saved. At that time, flower boats on the Qinhuai River were still few and far between. Recognizing a business opportunity, Wei Sanbao immediately rented two boats and meticulously renovated them. Through his mother's connections, he invited two famous courtesans from Yangzhou.

From then on, he firmly established his foothold on the Qinhuai River.

As the flower boat business flourished, Wei Sanbao purchased six more boats. He bestowed a massive fortune upon Wan Zhaolin, the Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Rites and Music (Jiaofangsi), thereby branding his enterprise with official backing. Within the ministry, women of high quality and superior education had to pass through his hands first. Whenever others came to make purchases, they were left with whatever Wei Sanbao had discarded.

Dong Rushi was precisely one of the women he had carefully selected from the Ministry.

Yet, never in his wildest dreams did he expect that just as Dong Rushi was reaching the peak of her popularity, she would leave to sing at a wine house. Even more unexpectedly, Wan Zhaolin personally sought him out to borrow Dong Rushi once again.

Wei Sanbao initially refused, but Wan Zhaolin reminded him that the borrower was the Jinling Academy.

Instantly, Wei Sanbao resigned himself to his fate.

The Great Qian Dynasty was a very peculiar era. Even if you were connected with both the underworld and the authorities, even if your subordinates were all formidable enforcers wielding dual-flower red cudgels, you simply could not afford to provoke scholars—especially that particular group of educators.

No one could ever predict what kind of achievements their students might attain in the future.

A few years ago, the Jinling tyrant Jiang Guansi bullied the market and oppressed the populace. A scholar from the academy happened to pass by and stepped forward to dissuade him.

Jiang Guansi flew into a rage and directly ordered his men to break the scholar's legs.

What he did not know was that the scholar had two extraordinarily powerful students. One was named He Jiren, currently serving as the Vice Prefect of Suzhou; the other was named Wang Liang, currently serving as the Assistant Prefect of Jinling.

Less than three days after the beating, the tyrant Zhen Guansi was sentenced to be executed in the autumn. All individuals involved in the case, including the powerful patrons shielding him behind the scenes, were severely investigated and heavily punished.

One might say that Jiang Guansi alone subjected the Jinling Prefecture to the largest-scale crackdown on crime and evil in its history.

The battered scholar was none other than Master Wu of the present Jinling Academy.

Because of this precedent, Wei Sanbao did not dare to provoke the Jinling Academy either.

At this moment, he was drinking with Wan Zhaolin at the Bianyifang tavern. He originally intended to vent his displeasure, but before he could even speak, Wan Zhaolin broke the silence:

"Sanbao, I have a suggestion. I wonder if you care to hear it?"

Wei Sanbao's heart tightened. "It wouldn't be about Dong Rushi, would it?"

"Sanbao, the academy's music teacher is afraid won't be returning anytime soon," Wan Zhaolin kindly reminded him. "A new batch of maidens has recently arrived at the Ministry. I've scouted a few for you; neither their looks nor their artistic attainments are much inferior to Dong Rushi's."

"Sir, could you elaborate? Sanbao guarantees that every word of this will rot in my stomach."

Wei Sanbao felt like dying. Do you have any idea how bloody hard it is to cultivate a premier courtesan? The courtesan competition was right around the corner, and Dong Rushi currently commanded the highest public acclaim and market value. The losses were by no means trivial.

"An arm cannot twist a thigh," Wan Zhaolin paused. "This year's grand selection will be dominated by the authorities. The official establishment will sign a three-year indenture, complete with proportional dividends... You boat owners should just participate a little and avoid sinking too deep into it."

"Sir, but my business is also government-backed," Wei Sanbao asked, baffled.

"You are merely in a joint venture with me. To outsiders, it just wears the skin of official backing." Wan Zhaolin took a small sip of wine. "Give the academy some face, and I will secure a genuine official operating license for you."

"Sigh!"

Wei Sanbao's expression turned exceedingly ugly. Letting Dong Rushi go meant losing at least ten thousand taels. Yet, if he could truly obtain an official license... what did such a minor loss matter?

"I beseech you to instruct me, Sir!" Wei Sanbao retrieved a thousand-tael bank note from his sleeve and carefully handed it to Wan Zhaolin.

"Dong Rushi has helped the two of us earn quite a bit over the years. At least you haven't actually taken a financial loss."

"Hand her indenture over to Wang Yuanhui. Say nothing else, do nothing else, and the academy will take care of the rest for you."

Wan Zhaolin tucked away the bank note and thoughtfully instructed, "Afterward, recognize Dong Rushi as your younger sister. If you ever need her in the future, she will be there for you at the first moment. For instance, when you cultivate a top courtesan or need song lyrics... For a premier courtesan to retire with her reputation intact at the peak of her career—you will become her greatest benefactor for life."

"Sir, you government officials truly are watertight in everything you do," Wei Sanbao said, utterly bewildered. "It sounds like you've said everything, yet you've said nothing at all. Whichever way I look at it, I haven't understood a single word."

"If you don't understand, just go do it." Wan Zhaolin raised his wine cup, and the two men clinked glasses. "I also hold shares in the flower boats. With bright, shiny silver right in front of me, would I fail to make a profit? Rest assured, your elder brother here won't cheat you."

***

Hearing that his son had taken on a disciple, Ye Wuji beamed from ear to ear.

Early in the morning, He Daoxuan arrived at the Ye family courtyard. He formally performed the master-student bowing ritual to Ye Wuji and Ye Xiu, and offered the master's tea.

Upon learning He Daoxuan's true identity, Ye Wuji gasped sharply.

The leader of the Jiangnan Poetry League, the biological nephew of He Jizhen, has become my son's disciple?

My son is truly a mighty bull battling ten cows—utterly and brilliantly astonishing!

Li Weishen also looked He Daoxuan up and down, unable to suppress his inner delight: Doesn't that mean I'll be a junior grand-uncle from now on?

"Did you beat him?" Ye Xiu sat in his chair and asked in a deep voice.

"I beat him! I beat him until he fled in panic, crying out that he would report this to the authorities!" He Daoxuan was brimming with excitement. "Family matters should be resolved within the family; how could I let him have his way? I beat him until he begged for mercy on his knees, and finally promised not to report it to the authorities or tell his parents, before I let him off."

"Good, well done!" Ye Xiu put down his teacup. "The first lesson of initiation: the verification of truth is achieved through practical exploration."

He Daoxuan was puzzled and asked cautiously, "Does that apply to nautical charts as well?"

"Yes." Ye Xiu nodded heavily. "Your master has already spoken with the old village chief, and the courtyard next door has been rented for you. It is provided so you can dedicate yourself to studying nautical charts and put your research into practice, proving with concrete actions that everything you say is correct. Your master will also instruct you based on your practical applications."

"Teacher, but I don't have any nautical charts," He Daoxuan scratched his head vigorously.

"You may not have them, but your family does," Ye Xiu smiled. "Go home and transport all the nautical charts to Jinling. Furthermore, I will have your grandmaster see Xu Yougong and bring all the nautical charts from the Jinling Prefecture Yamen here for your research."

"Teacher, are you truly giving me a free hand to study this?" He Daoxuan's eyes widened. "You aren't going to force me to study the Confucian classics?"

"Why study things you dislike?" Ye Xiu shrugged indifferently. "Would your master ever do something as foolish as forcing a mute to speak or compelling a vulture to stop eating meat and eat dung on the ground instead?"

"Respected Master, I am setting off for Yangzhou right this instant," He Daoxuan said excitedly. "However, regarding my uncle..."

"Didn't you say you make your own decisions?" A dark, ominous premonition suddenly rose in Ye Xiu's heart.

Looking at He Daoxuan again, the young man flashed a cheeky grin and had already slipped away like grease on his heels.

Ye Xiu let out a heavy sigh: Damn it, I acted too hastily!