The deafening sound of the surging waves filled his ears. On the horizon hung a sun like a salted egg yolk, about to set.
Even though Pei Xia had seen countless ships, the colossal vessel before him still made his heart skip a beat.
It was as tall as a building and as imposing as a mountain.
Pei Xia's eyes were almost glued to the ship.
Fu Chengyi, standing beside him, introduced it with pride, "This ship has a flat deck on top and a blade - like hull below, enabling it to cut through the waves. It has a deep draft, so it can withstand even the greatest resistance."
He twirled a gilded folding fan and raised his eyebrows at Pei Xia. "Brother Pei, why not board the ship and have a closer look? There are even more amazing things inside."
Pei Xia, usually so solemn, couldn't resist the temptation. He was intrigued and followed Fu Chengyi onto the ship.
Such a grand spectacle naturally attracted many fishermen in the vicinity.
Pei Li, who had just finished school, also came to join the fun. "This ship is so huge! It can probably accommodate at least thirty or fifty people."
Pei Jin ran her hand over the lifelike animal patterns on the ship's railing and exclaimed, "Such a large - scale project must have cost a great deal of manpower and resources."
Before she knew it, Fu Chengyi had come up behind her. He smiled gently and said, "What's so difficult about this? As long as you have money and technology, you can even build a fleet."
Only after he said it did he realize he had spoken out of turn. He slapped his own head and said, "Look at my stupid brain. How could I say such a thing!"
Pei Jin couldn't help but laugh.
The young girl stood on the deck in the setting sun. The shadow of the raised sail fell on her ear. The golden light flickered, revealing the tiny down on her face. She looked extremely cute.
Just as Fu Chengyi was about to say something else, Pei Xia called out to him from the other side, "Seventh Brother, come down with me to take a look at the cabins."
Fu Chengyi had no choice but to cast one more glance at Pei Jin before hurrying over.
Fu Chengyi chattered away as he led Pei Xia around with three or five attendants, introducing one thing after another. In short, he boasted that if the Fu family claimed to be second in ship - building, no one in the world could claim to be first.
The more Pei Xia saw, the more he liked it. He even found Fu Chengyi more agreeable.
Meanwhile, Pei Li nudged Pei Jin with his elbow. "What's going on between you and Brother Fu?"
Pei Jin coughed uncomfortably. "What do you mean 'what's going on'?"
Pei Li gave her a mischievous smile. "Do you think I don't know anything? Big Brother's eyes were almost glued to the ship, and Brother Fu's eyes were almost glued to you."
Pei Jin's face flushed instantly. She spat at Pei Li and said, "Bah! You can't say anything nice. Aren't you eager to see the compass? Hurry up and go."
Pei Li quickly said, "Okay, okay, I won't say anything. Don't be angry."
Just as the siblings turned around, they unexpectedly saw the ship's captain trotting over.
Pei Li's face darkened immediately. He stepped forward and blocked the captain, raising his chin and saying rudely, "What are you doing here?"
The ship's captain bowed and saluted in the direction of Fu Chengyi from afar. "I'm here to pay my respects to Master Fu. I also have something important to discuss with the eldest young master."
Pei Jin twitched the corner of her mouth. She would never forget the ugly look on the ship's captain's face.
When Big Brother had encountered trouble, the ship's captain had taken advantage of the situation and extorted a large sum of money from Sister Jiaoniang.
After taking the money, he had not done his job properly. He was a complete scoundrel!
Now that he saw Brother Fu presenting a ship to Big Brother, he came crawling back like a leech.
Pei Jin despised him deeply in her heart, but she still said politely to the ship's captain, "You've come at a bad time. Master Fu is busy showing my big brother around the treasure ship. He may not have time to see you."
How could the ship's captain be willing to let these two kids block his path to wealth?
That man was Brother Fu, the current head of the Fu family.
If he could establish a connection with him, great wealth would surely follow.
The ship's captain looked anxious on the surface. He thought to himself that he couldn't let this trip be in vain. He gave a look to his subordinate behind him. The subordinate quickly found a servant of the Fu family, pleaded with him for a while, and then respectfully presented a gilded invitation card.
The servant said expressionlessly that the invitation would be delivered.
The ship's captain's subordinate bowed repeatedly and said, "As long as it's delivered, that's fine."
After delivering the invitation, the ship's captain gave Pei Li and Pei Jin a fierce glare. These two brats had really ruined his plans!
Humph! After he had won Master Fu over tonight, they would pay for it!
This time, Fu Chengyi had not only brought the treasure ship.
He had also sent five experienced sailors to Pei Xia. "They are all servants of my Fu family. Brother Pei, if you're usually busy, you can leave the ship in their care. They will surely do a good job!"
Pei Xia said, "This is inappropriate. How can I accept such a great favor from you?"
Fu Chengyi gave a casual laugh. Glancing at Pei Jin's graceful figure as she slowly disembarked, he thought to himself that if it weren't for currying favor with his future brother - in - law, he wouldn't have to be so diligent.
He patted Pei Xia on the shoulder. "It's settled then. I've brought their indenture contracts. You're my savior. This is just a small thing."
Fu Chengyi smiled and said, "If you want to thank someone, thank Sister Jiaoniang. She really cares about you whole - heartedly!"
There was a smile in Pei Xia's eyes. His Jiaoniang was truly peerless.
In public, Pei Xia tried his best to restrain himself. He wished he could grow wings and fly to Jiaoniang's side—he was eager to share this unprecedented joy with her.
As evening approached, Fu Chengyi and his entourage decided to stay for the night.
Out of courtesy, Pei Xia invited Brother Fu and his people to stay at his home.
Fu Chengyi was more than happy to accept.
On the way to the Pei family's residence, Fu Chengyi received the invitation card from the servant.
He had no interest in attending the ship's captain's invitation. He waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to look at it.
But after walking a few steps, Fu Chengyi frowned slightly. "Wait! Bring the invitation here."
**
The night was as deep as water, and the autumn wind blew coldly.
Pei Jin lay in bed fully dressed, feeling rather restless.
Although she tried hard to fall asleep, her thoughts kept drifting outside the window.
Just now, she had heard the sound of the wooden door opening and closing, as well as the casual conversation between A Li and Big Brother.
A Li had just come out of the bathhouse when he saw Big Brother, who was fully dressed. He said in surprise, "It's so late. Where are you going, Big Brother?"
Pei Xia lowered his voice. "I'm going to pick up your sister - in - law and call Brother Fu back."
Pei Li realized what was going on and joked with a sly smile, "Big Brother really misses Sister - in - law. He can't even wait for one night."
Half of Pei Xia's body was in the darkness. He let out a soft laugh. "You brat. Stay up a little later and leave the door open for Brother Fu."
Fu Chengyi had gone to the ship's captain's banquet an hour ago. He should be coming back soon.
Since he had brought so many people, the workshop was already full. So he had been arranged to stay in the same room as Pei Li.
Meanwhile, in the private residence of the ship's captain in the town.
Fu Chengyi and the ship's captain were sitting in the main seats. The ship's captain leaned forward slightly and showered Fu Chengyi with flattery.
"Your Excellency, please."
The ship's captain personally poured wine for Fu Chengyi, with an extremely amiable attitude.
Fu Chengyi had just obtained some useful information from the ship's captain. Now he had lost interest. He took the wine cup but didn't take a single sip.
The ship's captain looked a bit embarrassed. He thought that this master was really hard to please. He turned around and clapped his hands twice. "Come on, dance a song to liven things up."
Two charming women quickly emerged from behind the screen.
The two women were covered in thin veils. Their jade arms swayed gracefully, and they took delicate steps. The already scanty skirts fluttered in the wind. Their amorous glances kept falling on Fu Chengyi's face.
The fragrant breeze wafted over, and the air around seemed to heat up.
The men sitting at the table drank and stared at the beautiful women. They were all a bit tipsy. Some of the less - disciplined ones even showed greedy looks in their eyes. The atmosphere at the table suddenly became ambiguous and hot.
The two women had a clear target. They twirled around and came in front of Fu Chengyi through their dance steps.
The bold red - veiled woman on the right even danced behind Fu Chengyi. The beauty exhaled like a fragrant orchid, and a delicate hand slid towards his chest.