Chapter 137: Reunion Once More

Half a hour later, the ox-cart halted beside an alleyway.

After Lu Ying and her younger brother found a nearby inn, she went out to look for a broker.

Since it was just a rental, matters were much simpler. After inspecting several places, Lu Ying chose a courtyard. This courtyard was more than three times the size of the one she had in Chengdu. The rooms for the master and servants totaled fourteen in all, cleanly and beautifully renovated, and even came with a resident steward and servants. However, the annual rent was eighty taels of gold. Lu Ying met with the landlord to negotiate, and eventually dismissed the steward and servants, securing the lease for sixty-five taels of gold a year. Renting a place like this for two years would cost more gold than Lu Ying’s entire family home in Hanyang had been worth.

The house was fully equipped with everything needed and was ready for occupancy after a brief cleanup.

Once they moved in, Lu Yun immediately devoted himself to his studies. Having finally managed to become the disciple of a renowned scholar, only to be ruthlessly driven away, a deep sense of grievance remained lodged in his chest. He nurtured a constant ambition to one day become a great Confucian scholar himself and appear once more before his former teacher. Lu Yun resolved that on that day, he would show his teacher the true meaning of unyielding fortitude and incorruptibility in the face of wealth and power.

After spending a full half-month scouting the city, Lu Ying rented a homing pigeon and sent a letter to Luo Zi far away in Hanyang.

She informed Luo Zi that she had arrived in Jiangzhou and settled down. She also shared her observations regarding the current situation in Jiangzhou. She told him that Jiangzhou had just experienced a political earthquake in the officialdom, resulting in a near-complete reshuffle of the major aristocratic families, and many industries were currently vacant and unregulated. She then vaguely touched upon her encounter with a noble personage, and finally asked Luo Zi if he was willing to come to Jiangzhou to lend her a hand. She wrote that should he be willing to come, regardless of how many people accompanied him, all travel expenses would be covered by her, along with their lodging, food, and clothing.

As the homing pigeon flew off into the distance, Lu Ying let out a sigh of relief.

To be honest, she desperately wanted Luo Zi to come. Although she was currently traveling in men’s attire, she was, after all, a woman, and being entirely on her own made many tasks inconvenient.

To Lu Ying’s surprise, merely four days later, she received a message via carrier pigeon from Luo Zi, informing her that he would bring seven of his beggar brothers along with him to Jiangzhou.

Upon receiving Luo Zi’s promise, Lu Ying was overjoyed. With this matter settled, her next tasks were to continue familiarizing herself with the conditions of the Jiangzhou government and aristocratic families, understand the spheres of influence of the local ruffians controlling the various streets, and compare the various commercial trades between Chengdu and Jiangzhou.

Amidst such bustling activity, another ten days passed.

One evening, after finishing dinner, Lu Yun suddenly said, "Elder sister, a little over three months from now is your birthday."

A birthday?

Lu Ying was startled. Indeed, she was approaching the age of womanhood! For a young lady of a respectable household, coming of age was closely followed by marriage.

Twenty days later, Luo Zi arrived in Jiangzhou with a band of brothers. On that day, Lu Ying made a special trip to the city gates to welcome them.

While still some distance away, Luo Zi caught sight of the handsome young man leaning against an ox-cart—though somewhat tanned by the sun, his features were even more strikingly refined and his posture upright.

How long had it been since they last met? Aoying seemed to have grown even more attractive.

Luo Zi felt his throat go slightly dry, and instinctively, he reached up to smooth down his hair, which looked dusty and unkempt from the long journey.

Noticing Luo Zi in a daze, one of the beggars tugged at his sleeve and asked, "Brother Luo, which one of them is our new master?"

Luo Zi lowered his voice and said, "She is right over there. Let's walk faster." With that, he broke into a run toward Lu Ying.

As he ran, he saw Lu Ying lift her gaze and smile at him. At that moment, Lu Ying appeared handsome, elegant, and possessed the grace of a born aristocrat. Catching her smile, Luo Zi felt his heart hammering rapidly.

This time, his mother had been reluctant to let him go. After all, not long ago, he had traveled all the way to Chengdu specifically for her sake, only to be driven away again just as they met and matters were settled. Deep down, Aunt Yang no longer trusted Lu Ying.

Yet she could not stop Luo Zi's stubborn persistence. Luo Zi himself scarcely knew what he was thinking; during his previous trip to Chengdu, he had told himself that he followed Lu Ying because he believed she offered a promising future.

Yet now, she had offended a powerful noble. Logically speaking, her path forward would be fraught with difficulty, making her a poor choice for allegiance.

And yet, for reasons unknown, the moment he received her carrier pigeon, the only emotion remaining in his heart was joy. He was desperately eager to rush to Jiangzhou, telling himself over and over that Aoying was so clever she would undoubtedly prosper no matter whom she had offended. He also told himself that true help in times of need was always rare, and since he had chosen her once more, she would surely remember his loyalty. Perhaps she would treat him just as well as she treated her younger brother, Lu Yun.

Lost in these chaotic thoughts, Luo Zi arrived breathless before Lu Ying.

Looking at him, Lu Ying smiled gently and said, "Luo Zi has grown taller." Glancing at the youths behind him, she added, "Let's go. The food is all prepared, and tonight we'll have a hearty meal."

The youths let out cheers of joy.

This delight turned into rapture when they saw Lu Ying’s newly rented residence and learned that they, too, would live here from now on.

After settling the youths, Lu Ying visited a tailoring shop that very evening and ordered two sets of new robes for each of them. Since the robes were made of medium-grade fabric, the purchase cost Lu Ying a considerable amount of copper coins.

While the clothes were being made, Lu Ying forbade them from going out, instead making them practice their walking, speaking, and dining postures over and over again.

She even used the muddy ground outside to teach them how to write their own names.

At dusk, as the setting sun cast a golden glow behind brilliant clouds, Lu Ying quietly observed the eight youths and smiled gently, saying, "Have you ever envied the stewards of great households? Have you ever dreamed of making something of yourselves, of being respected wherever you go? From today onward, I will have you learn to read, and I will ensure you appear resplendent in every setting."

Pausing for a moment, her smile faded as she slowly continued, "My only wish is that a year from now, anyone who looks upon you will believe you were born to wealth!"

As her words fell, the youths felt their breathing grow ragged.

In truth, those who had followed Luo Zi thousands of miles to an unfamiliar place like Jiangzhou were men unwilling to remain obscure, dreamers yearning for a day of distinction. Though Lu Ying’s words were simple, they set their already restless hearts ablaze.

Yet they could not simply sit idly and consume their provisions. Once the new robes were finished, Lu Ying led them to the marketplace, produced forty taels of gold, and purchased eight sturdy donkeys. She then assigned them a single task: to learn how to ride donkeys.

Learning to ride a donkey was a simple matter, and in less than three days, all of them had mastered it. Following that, Lu Ying led them to the docks. Whenever passengers disembarked from the large ships, she had the youths drive their donkeys forward, offering to escort travelers to any destination they desired.

The city of Jiangzhou had just emerged through a period of turmoil, and the docks were an area not yet targeted by any major faction. Jiangzhou was a sprawling metropolis, brimming with docking ships, merchants, and travelers. Although a single donkey could not carry heavy cargo, travelers carrying light baggage were more than willing to spend a few copper coins to be safely escorted home.

To establish trust and standard rules, Lu Ying had the character "Zhuang" uniformly embroidered on the lower hem of the youths' robes.

And thus, the youths began their dockside escort business. The journeys varied in distance, but Lu Ying established a strict rule: whenever someone secured a piece of business, they had to report it to Luo Zi, and turn over eighty percent of their earnings to her. In return, she took charge of their clothing, lodging, meals, literacy education, and etiquette training while they stayed in Jiangzhou.

Although the youths retained only twenty percent of the earnings, they had no worries whatsoever, and their twenty percent was saved untouched. Occasionally, they used a small portion when escorting travelers to distant places or when they traveled too far to return for meals, but none of them voiced any complaints.

Lu Ying’s demands of them were exceptionally rigorous. She even had two sets of exquisitely tailored robes specially made; no matter how exhausted they were, they were required to change into these clean, refined garments before returning home, and they had to groom their hair and faces properly.

In the blink of an eye, three months passed.

Through three months of hard work and study, the youths had undergone a complete transformation. Gone were the servility and squalor of their beggar days; instead, they radiated vigor and capability.

As the youths learned more characters, they could not resist showing off slightly while transporting travelers, reciting stories they had heard from Lu Ying’s books. Imperceptibly, an increasing number of travelers grew to trust and respect them.

In any era where the literacy rate did not exceed one percent, the ability to read and write was in itself a symbol of capability and self-assurance.

Uniform, high-end attire, refined speech, literacy, and enthusiastic, attentive service caused the youths' business to flourish more and more each day.

As their enterprise thrived, it was inevitable that others would cast covetous eyes upon the dockside territory. Through Luo Zi’s execution and Lu Ying’s strategies, after several rounds of contest, the Jiangzhou docks gradually became their exclusive domain.

By this time, Luo Zi sent a letter back to Hanyang, summoning another twenty or thirty beggars. To welcome their arrival, Lu Ying rented another large courtyard in the commoners' district. She established a strict rule: only those who passed trials and proved themselves most capable would be permitted to move into this grand courtyard and receive her personal tutelage.

When winter slowly faded and the spring of another year arrived, Lu Ying—two months past her coming-of-age ceremony, sixteen years of age by actual count and seventeen by lunar reckoning—had recruited or brought under her control over a hundred men. Not only did she control the entire passenger escort business at the Jiangzhou docks, but even the freight transport of merchants through the docks had to pass through her hands. Furthermore, owing to her excellent relationship with the officials governing the docks, Lu Ying's men concurrently shouldered the duties of dock management and security.

At the same time, she possessed seventy-odd donkeys and had newly acquired thirty donkey-carts. Moreover, the gold in Lu Ying's possession had reached the sum of four hundred and sixty taels.

With sufficient financial resources to venture into another sphere, Lu Ying realized it was time to establish a reputation.

On this day, the fleet of the Qixiang Tower dropped anchor at the Jiangzhou docks. This fleet rarely made stops, but whenever it did, it would display alluring courtesans, music, and dance to the wealthy elites and powerful nobles of the area.

Lu Ying, who had spent the past half-year quietly accumulating wealth, changed into her silver-white robe on this day, dressing herself like an elegant young gentleman. Seated in an ox-cart, she followed behind the endless stream of crowds toward the docks.

At the Jiangzhou docks, all other vessels were moored at a distance, leaving only the ships of the Qixiang Tower lined up abreast, occupying nearly the entire pier. The vessels were adorned with red lanterns and suffused with the fragrance of rouge, intertwining with the early spring breeze to create an endless aura of romance.

Just as Lu Ying’s ox-cart came to a halt, she heard a familiar voice call out, "Lady Lu?"

Lu Ying turned her head and locked eyes with Zhi Liu, who was seated inside a carriage. Upon seeing him, Lu Ying instinctively looked further, quickly catching sight of the peerlessly handsome visage of the noble personage sitting within that black, luxuriously appointed carriage. Just as she looked toward him, the noble turned his head and met her gaze steadily.

Their eyes locked, and Lu Ying flashed a brilliant smile, revealing her pearly white teeth!