63: Chapter 62: Terror on the Water 63: Chapter 62: Terror on the Water “Do you two need a ferry?

We’ve got fresh river delicacies just caught…” The beautiful ferrywoman rowed closer to the shore with a paddle, smiling before she even spoke.

Seeing the two people on the shore, the ferrywoman “Eh” perked up, her smile stiffened; it seemed she was thinking about rowing away again, not wanting to take these two passengers.

Zhao Changhe and Cui Yuanyang looked at each other.

Their clothes were dirty and torn, and both had mud on their faces; Cui Yuanyang’s once white rabbit fur coat was ragged and cotton stuffing was poking out all over in addition to being dirtied, making him look like nothing more than a little beggar.

They had been trudging through the mountains and forests in the rain and after for three to four days…

The two had been together for so long they might not have noticed, but to others, they probably stank so bad the smell could have wafted onto the boat.

Cui Yuanyang whispered to Zhao Changhe, “She’s scorning us, she must be a normal boat owner, right?”

Zhao Changhe felt a great consolation, this naive one was actually considering this, and not whining about being scorned, indeed he was becoming less and less naive, hmm, or perhaps not as cute anymore?

Zhao Changhe eyed the boat, the ferrywoman hesitated, thinking about moving closer but rowing slowly, and there was an old helmsman steering, also with a look of distress and tightness, as if he didn’t really want to take these two passengers either.

Whether this was a normal boat owner was hard to say, but relatively speaking, certainly more normal than those who acted excessively enthusiastic.

Zhao Changhe’s own experience was just so-so, and he couldn’t see any problems for now, so he said, “We have to cross the river anyway, we have to pick a boat.”

After thinking for a moment, he suddenly laughed, “In fact, even your dad wouldn’t probably recognize you right now in front of him…”

Cui Yuanyang “hmphed” and called out loudly, “Hey, boat owner, how can we get on board to eat the river delicacies if you don’t come closer?”

The ferrywoman hesitated, “The river delicacies are quite precious…”

Cui Yuanyang stood with hands on her hips, took out a piece of silver and held it up high, “I have money!”

That was really a moment to puff out her chest in pride; the rich little girl’s money had hardly ever been put to use, and she had been waiting for this moment for a long time!

The ferrywoman’s eyes lit up, and she rowed over with a beaming smile, “We caught such a big carp today, just knew a distinguished guest would come!”

Cui Yuanyang grinned, “You flatter me.”

The two boarded the boat and entered the cabin, which was a small room with a bed and a table, well suited for a family outing and enjoying the fisherman’s leisure.

It seemed that this world also had such amusements.

From this perspective alone, the “chaotic times” hardly seemed appropriate.

But whether it was so peaceful because they were nearing the edge of the Cui Family’s influence territory or not was unknown.

“Does your boat go straight to the opposite shore?” Zhao Changhe asked the ferrywoman.

“It depends on the customer; if they want to cross directly, we go to the opposite shore.

If they want to go downstream, that’s also fine.

As far as they want to go, but there will be an extra charge!” The ferrywoman laughed vivaciously.

Cui Yuanyang handed over the silver, “Then take us downstream to Wei County, will this be enough?”

The ferrywoman happily said, “It’s more than enough, I’m going to stew the fish for the guests.”

Watching the ferrywoman leave and the curtain being drawn, the two exchanged glances, both feeling a sense of relief.

Once they reached Wei County, they would be truly within the Cui Family’s sphere of influence; Cui Yuanyang could simply find anyone to be protected closely, with no more troubles.

The closer they got to the Cui Family’s territory, the safer it was.

It was normal not to know the situation at first, but three to four days had passed in the mountains.

Although more and more people might be enticed by the bounty and come sniffing around, the Cui Family must be aware by now.

As long as the Cui Family had normal intelligence, they should be deploying elite forces in all directions, clearing the paths to pick up the princess, and starting to investigate for any traitors.

Of course, with such a vast area, they might not be able to make accurate rescues, nor arrange everything outside their sphere of influence in time, but the closer they got, the safer it was.

That was inevitable.

The most dangerous part of the journey was actually right now.

As long as there were no problems with the ferry, everything would be concluded.

Cui Yuanyang truly felt that there should be no more problems; she perched her little head and watched the scenery outside the window, waiting to eat the fish.

But Zhao Changhe’s spirit was getting tighter and tighter.

The more crucial the moment, the less room there was for negligence.

The sky gradually darkened into dusk, the glow of the setting sun reflected on the river, the glimmering light, the scene was extremely beautiful.

Cui Yuanyang watched a carp leap from the river and splash back down, clapping and laughing in delight; the savory scent of the stewed fish wafted from outside the cabin, accompanied by the ferrywoman’s lingering song; horsemen passed by the shore, the sound of hooves clattering; the wind blew through the willows, the water gurgled, and behind them other boats drifted slowly downstream.

All the surrounding sounds and lights flickered through their consciousness frame by frame.

Footsteps sounded.

Zhao Changhe reached for his knife handle.

But it was the ferrywoman who lifted the curtain and entered, still with her characteristically preemptive smile, “Guests, your fish soup is here!”

The fish soup was placed on the table, wobbling with the rocking boat.

Cui Yuanyang leaned in to smell, “So fresh!”

The boatwoman laughed and said, “I also have braised fish, I’ll go get it now, so you can enjoy your soup without interruption.”

After parting the curtain and leaving again, Cui Yuanyang just couldn’t perceive anything amiss, eagerly scooping up a small spoonful of soup to taste.

Zhao Changhe moved as fast as lightning, grabbing her wrist.

Cui Yuanyang looked at him, puzzled, as Zhao Changhe shook his head slightly, without speaking.

Cui Yuanyang didn’t understand and, sniffing, put down her soup spoon in silence.

The fish soup smells so good…

It won’t be as tasty once it gets cold…

As Cui Yuanyang drooled in torment, not knowing how much time had passed, the boatwoman finally brought the braised fish back.

Seeing the untouched soup on the table, she appeared surprised: “Why aren’t you having the soup?

It’s nearly gone cold.”

“It’s nothing, we just like it cold,” Zhao Changhe smiled, “Leave the braised fish to cool off as well.”

The boatwoman looked at Zhao Changhe, baffled, and muttered, “What an odd habit.”

She didn’t rush them, leaving the braised fish with a puzzled face and walked away.

Over there, Cui Yuanyang saw nothing amiss, inwardly remarking that Zhao Changhe was being overly suspicious this time.

Just as she was about to speak, a flash of knife light, and Zhao Changhe inexplicably burst forth, slashing at the boatwoman’s delicate neck.

Cui Yuanyang was stunned.

The scene that unfolded next had her eyes widened in shock.

The boatwoman gracefully twisted her body, stepping lightly, easily dodging Zhao Changhe’s ambush.

She spun around and stabbed a dagger straight towards Cui Yuanyang’s heart.

“Bang!” Zhao Changhe parried with his knife while pulling Cui Yuanyang away, and at the same time, kicked the table over, splashing the fish soup towards the door.

As if on cue, just as the soup was flung, a breeze lifted the curtain outside, and the old boatman’s pole, which had its bamboo cover removed without notice, became a spear gleaming coldly, thrusting straight in from outside the door.

The scene of a tranquil evening song along the river had suddenly become like a den of tigers, with danger at every turn.

Cui Yuanyang hadn’t even had time to adapt to such a sudden role change, instinctively drawing her sword, and thrusting towards the boatwoman’s face with the Cui Family’s Swordsmanship technique, “Endless Green Waters.”

The boatwoman giggled, “Young Master Zhao is clever, and Miss Cui’s swordsmanship isn’t bad either.”

Meanwhile, Zhao Changhe’s knife had collided with the bamboo tip, which, despite appearing to be made of bamboo, emitted a clear, metallic clang.

The spear thrust at Zhao Changhe’s throat like a snake’s hiss!

Zhao Changhe slightly misstepped to avoid the spear, trapping it under his arm, and furiously chopped down—at the back of the other boatwoman’s head.

The boatwoman: “?”

She was still mid-taunt when the sharp wind at the back of her head hit, finding herself attacked by Zhao Changhe and Cui Yuanyang from both sides.

The boatwoman couldn’t understand what Zhao Changhe was thinking; by trapping your enemy’s spear, yet slashing to the side, you’re clearly exposing a huge opening.

A kick at your Dantian would cost you half your life.

Is that how much you want to strike me down?

Or was Cui Yuanyang’s safety more important in your heart?

With a “Bang,” the boatman indeed kicked Zhao Changhe in the stomach, but the boatwoman failed to dodge the dual assault and swiftly flashed to the side, crashing through a window and diving into the river.

A deep cut from Zhao Changhe’s knife on her back and a burst of blood blossomed in the water, leaving it unclear whether she died.

Zhao Changhe, seemingly unfazed by the boatman’s kick, forced the boatwoman to jump into the river and without hesitation, turned his knife towards the boatman’s neck for a slash.

Seeing the boatwoman flee, the boatman decisively let go of the bamboo spear, somersaulted out of the cabin, and also disappeared into the water.

Only then did Zhao Changhe lean on his knife, kneeling while clutching his stomach and gasping for breath, clearly injured from the kick.

Cui Yuanyang hurried to support him: “Big Brother Zhao!”

Having finally uttered this address, Cui Yuanyang no longer felt goosebumps, but her heart was filled with extreme anxiety: “How are you?

I, I have medicine for internal injuries.”

“Hmm, I was counting on you having good medicine, hence I chose this plan.”

“Why did you choose to fight and get injured?

I could have managed her temporarily…”

Zhao Changhe swallowed the medicine, shook his head, and looked out towards the river: “Do you know why I suspected them of foul play?”

Cui Yuanyang shook her head blankly; surely the other party hadn’t shown any flaws.

“Because I noticed our boat was moving slower than the others…

During this fish cooking process, more and more boats were trailing behind us.

I had to resolve these two quickly; otherwise, being surrounded in this river meant certain death.

For this, even risking injury was worth it!”

Having adjusted his breath a few times, Zhao Changhe found that the Cui Family’s medicine was indeed effective, feeling only a slight pain remaining.

He stood up using his knife: “Can you row a boat?”

“There’s a river in my home.

I know a little bit.”

“Good, then row towards the shore.

I must enter the water now, or if those two in the water bore a hole in the boat, we’ll both die here.”