The ship sailed on, and within a few days they found an island. Lingzi recognized the island and said they were not far from Fusang.
The islanders here spoke Fusang language, but fortunately, they had Lingzi as a translator, so they quickly communicated with the people on the island.
Bai Ruozhu and the others gave the islanders so silver in exchange for supplies and rested on the island for a day.
At that ti, the script in Fusang was still largely Chinese characters, which Bai Ruozhu and the others could easily recognize, though they couldn’t understand the spoken language. Nonetheless, Bai Ruozhu was intelligent and quickly learned so Fusang language.
"The script must have been introduced from Zhongyuan in the past, right?" Bai Ruozhu asked.
Lingzi nodded, "I heard that many years ago, a high monk brought scriptures, and that’s how the script ca to be. It seems it was during the Tang Dynasty."
It seed that there had once been the Tang Dynasty here; it was truly a weaving of ti and space.
Fishern on the island offered to guide them because they made annual tributes to Fusang and knew the route well.
Jiang Yichun asked about their requirents, only to find that they didn’t want silver. Instead, they wanted his son to learn Chinese with their group.
"Fusang language originally ca from Zhongyuan. Chinese is the root, and we hold it in the utmost respect. I’m too old to learn much now; I just want my son to learn as much as he can. Maybe one day he can even go to Danliang and pass the Scholar examination," the fisherman said with a hearty laugh.
He introduced his son to everyone, a child of about four or five years old. Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but think of Little Dengdeng and felt it was hard to refuse.
"You’re considering your child’s future so early?" Tang Feng asked with a smile.
Lingzi translated, and the fisherman laughed heartily, "It’s best to learn a language early, just like Miss Lingzi, who surely started learning from a young age."
After Lingzi translated, Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but nod. This fisherman was indeed knowledgeable.
Eventually, Jiang Yichun agreed to his request, allowing his son to learn Chinese on the boat and promised him a fee.
After this, there was a lively little boy nad Little Cilang on board. He took Tang Feng as his teacher and asked Tang Feng to give him a na, saying he wanted a Chinese surna like Tang Feng.
Little Cilang’s father’s surna was "Sanjing." He was overjoyed at the request and asked Tang Feng to na his son.
Tang Feng thought for a mont and said, "Let’s call him Tang Yin. Yin is one of the twelve Earthly Branches and represents the tiger in the Chinese zodiac. Little Cilang looks so adorably tiger-headed, how about we use this character?"
Tang Feng even found so paper and wrote it down.
Bai Ruozhu and Gao Zhou, upon hearing of this, were utterly disdainful of Tang Feng, thinking he was being lazy and excusing it with a flowery reason. How shaless! Did he also want to give Little Cilang the courtesy na "Bohu"?
Tang Feng, knowing this, still said with a serious face, "Little Cilang was born in the year of the tiger, wasn’t it perfectly fitting?"
"Alright then, your student, your happiness," Bai Ruozhu said, helplessly.
With Sanjing’s guidance, the two ships took a straighter route. After resupplying on another island, they traveled for another seven or eight days and finally reached the country of Fusang.
Bai Ruozhu felt a bit excited, unsure if this place was the sa as the modern Nihong Country, but from Lingzi’s accounts, it was clear that this place did not exist in any particular historical period of Nihong Country.
Since they were foreign ships, they needed to report to the Governnt Office. Mo Beishan and Li Jin brought the Imperial Court’s docunts to et the local officials, which were actually officials arranged by the Mu Residence.
Bai Ruozhu and Jiang Yichun quietly took Lingzi off the boat, planning to find a way to search for her family.
Fusang Country not only had coastal piers; with Sanjing’s guidance, the place Bai Ruozhu and the others docked was Kyoto, where Lingzi’s family lived.
To ensure Lingzi’s safety, Bai Ruozhu helped her change into Danliang clothes and gave her a disguise, dressing her as a Danliang woman.
Their "strange attire" attracted quite a bit of attention, but fortunately, no one questioned them.
With Lingzi leading the way, Jiang Yichun didn’t notice anyone following them, and soon they found Lingzi’s ho.
Lingzi knocked on the door. The elder who answered didn’t recognize her until she whispered in Fusang language, and the elder reacted, tearfully inviting them inside.
Lingzi quickly t her father. Father and daughter couldn’t help but cry in each other’s arms. Bai Ruozhu and Jiang Yichun only heard them speak rapidly, not understanding their words, but Lingzi’s father’s changing expression clearly showed he was shocked to learn the truth.
After the father and daughter cried for a long ti, Lingzi finally composed herself and urgently introduced, "Father, these are Mr. Jiang and Mr. Bai from Danliang Country. They are the ones who saved and taught dical skills and Chinese along our journey."
Lingzi’s father suddenly knelt and solemnly expressed his gratitude, then spoke in Chinese, "Thank you for saving my daughter, I am deeply grateful."
Jiang Yichun quickly helped Lingzi’s father up, saying, "It was a small gesture, Mr. Anben, no need to stand on ceremony."
Lingzi had not ntioned her family’s surna before, but upon entering, Bai Ruozhu and Jiang Yichun noticed the large Chinese characters "Anben" at the entrance, clearly indicating the family na of the residence.
Anben’s Chinese was excellent; as they sat down to talk, Anben learned many things about the situation at sea, while Bai Ruozhu and the others learned about the current situation in Fusang Capital.
"The Second Highness has been chosen as the next Emperor, the enthronent ceremony will be held next month," Anben sighed, "I fear our household won’t be peaceful from next month onward."
He looked apologetic towards Jiang Yichun and the others, cupping his hands, "Mr. Jiang, Mr. Bai, you have traveled from afar, and I should invite you to stay at our residence and host you properly. However, given the current situation, I fear it might implicate you."
Jiang Yichun waved his hand, "No worries, if Mr. Anben can, please help us find two individuals."
"Who are they?" Anben asked quickly.
Bai Ruozhu gave Jiang Yichun a aningful look, as they had previously discussed this.
"My cousin went missing. Soone saw her being taken aboard a rchant ship heading to Fusang, but it seems the rchant was not registered in Danliang, making it hard to trace the information. It’s only known that his wife is a local Fusang person."
Bai Ruozhu said and took out a portrait, unfolding it for Anben to see, "This is a portrait of my cousin. She previously had a strange illness, so her hair is all white, which should make her easy to identify."
She then produced another scroll, showing it to Anben, "This is my sister’s fiancé, who also went missing while trying to find her. We suspect both were brought to Fusang Country."
Anben frowned, "Fusang Country is vast, and Kyoto is just a small part. If they’re not in Kyoto, it might be challenging to find them."
Jiang Yichun interjected, "That rchant could afford a private vessel for mariti trading, so he must be well-off. Even if he isn’t in Kyoto, he’d have a notable presence in other big cities as well."
Anben nodded, "Makes sense. I’ll arrange for soone to gather information."
User Comments
0 comments from readers