The small boat cut through the sea. Feng Zhi Wei stood silently at the bow, thinking about the way Jin Siyu had rushed out and the glimpse of something she had seen right before she got on the boat. There was a hint of unease settling in her heart, something seemed off. 

After a bit of fruitless pondering, she turned around. Behind her, Ning Cheng was busily washing his face. Seeing her turn back, he cautiously took a step back. But Feng Zhi Wei didn’t look in his direction at all. Instead, she held up the chin in her hand, waved it towards Gu Nan Yi, and said with a smile, “Look, I even picked up something nice on this trip.” 

Gu Nan Yi took it, looked at it, and nodded. Ning Cheng had always been the sort to be interested in strange knick-knacks. His eyes kept wandering over to it, his inside itching with curiosity. Seeing that Feng Zhi Wei was about to causally put the chain away, he finally couldn’t hold back anymore and scooted over, “Let me see, let me see.” 

Feng Zhi Wei offhandedly handed it to him. Ning Cheng studied the seemingly plain yet exquisitely and ingeniously designed lock, exclaimed in admiration, “…good thing you used that method to copy the key. And Dummy Gu, who knew he had such skills as this….ah!”

*Click*

*Splash*

The first sound was the lock snapping shut, the second was the sound of a human body falling into the sea. 

No need to ask. Marquis Wei, as one who believes a gentleman’s revenge always arrives, no matter how long it takes, finally took action against the guard who dared to set her up. 

Chain locked on hand, followed immediately by being pushed into the sea. The moves were as fast as lightning. Before Ning Cheng could even react, his stomach was already full of seawater. 

With a loud splash, there emerged a soaking wet head from the sea, clutching the side of the boat, roaring in fury, “Feng Zhi Wei, you…!” 

Feng Zhi Wei sat on the boat, raised the chain in her hand, and said gently, “Guard Ning, if you say anything I don’t want to hear, then I’ll lock the other end of this chain to some random shark.” 

Ning Chen “…….” 

After a bit, he startled flailing his hands and feet, struggling to climb onto the boat.  Neither Feng Zhi Wei and Gu Nan Yi moved. Pushing him into the sea was just a punishment. Would they really drag Ning Cheng, who had been a key player in helping them, through the ocean for eight days? 

Clinging to the edge of the boat, Ning Cheng was busily struggling to get back into the boat while cursing in some hometown dialect that Feng Zhi Wei couldn’t understand. Just as his knee touched the boat’s side, he suddenly heard a creak. Ning Cheng froze and looked all around— did he use too much force and hit the boat? 

After taking a careful look and seeing no more movement, he continued to climb. One leg had just gotten over when there came another long creaking sound. 

Then Gu Nan Yi suddenly grabbed Feng Zhi Wei and leapt into the air. Feng Zhi Wei let out an angry yell, “Not good!” 

Ning Cheng looked down. 

A crack had appeared in the bottom of the boat, widening rapidly as seawater poured in. It was apparent that the small boat was about to sink. 

Guard Ning was utterly stunned— really? Did his furious climb break the boat? He doesn’t think his martial arts have improved that much lately… 

Midair, Gu Nan Yi let out a low shout, his jade sword flashed. In the next instant, the boat split into pieces and scattered across the seawater. The blade’s light travelled along the hull like lightning, quickly reaching Ning Cheng’s hand. Ning Cheng quickly let go and fell back into the sea once again…

While he was struggling in the water, Gu Nan Yi held Feng Zhi Wei in his arms, his robes fluttering as they landed on a piece of boat plank. The golden light of the sun beamed down on the embracing man and woman, like immortal fairies descending to the mortal realm. 

Ning Cheng looked up, dripping wet, his nose twisted with anger…

But his anger soon disappeared. He slapped the boat plank and laughed loudly as he pointed at Feng Zhi Wei, “There are still things you can’t predict!” 

Feng Zhi Wei let out a wry smile. 

She finally remembered what the thing she had caught a glimpse of before getting on the boat was.  

It was an animal skin raft, but it was folded up and camouflaged to look like a few oilskin coats. 

Jin Siyu did indeed have a backup plan— he was afraid she would steal a boat and escape, so he had made the two boats by simply gluing the planks together. Once the boat hit the water, it would start to fall apart. No matter which boat she took, the result would be the same. 

And the animal skin raft was the real escape raft he had prepared for himself. 

As for Jin Siyu rushing up to the deck of the boat, that was probably him being thankful of her final advice and feeling guilty enough that he wanted to tell her the boat was dangerous, but it was too late. 

The strategy she had given him had amazed him so much that it ended up delaying him from telling her the truth. 

Talk about “reaping what you sow”? 

Feng Zhi Wei narrowed her eyes and gazed towards that faraway direction, thinking inwardly to herself that Jin Siyu could be counted as one of the great ones of this generation. To be able to meticulously plan this hidden step despite the fact that she had planned his every move. If it wasn’t for the fact that she had first sent people to cause trouble in Dayue in advance, and then gave him such a brilliant strategy, so he had no choice but to rush back to Dayue without any way to come chasing after her, just with this one move, he could’ve leisurely come after her in his big ship and then dragged her back in her broken little boat. In the end, she would still be the one who lost. 

She suddenly started to laugh. Though soaked and stranded on these few broken planks, her smile was still brilliant, dazzling under the sunlight. 

Good! 

As the elites of their generation, locked in a duel of wits on this vast sea. A battle between a world-famous minister and the future ruler of Dayue, there were wins and losses on both sides as they parted. Satisfying! 

Even if they never meet again in this life, in their twilight years with white and grey hairs, they will look back on this memorable encounter on this vast ocean with a smile. 

Feng Zhi Wei stood up on the broken planks, scooped up a handful of seawater, and made a gesture of tossing back a drink towards the direction of where Jin Siyu was. 

She smiled. 

“A toast to you.”

“A toast that you finally, learned to let go.” 

—————————-

A broken boat didn’t pose any real threat of life to Feng Zhi Wei and the two others, but it would take some effort to get back. 

Ning Cheng’s little heart was finally thoroughly satisfied. Clinging to the broken piece of the boat, Ning Cheng’s grin was so big that his eyes all but disappeared. He then smugly shook the chain on his hand, thinking this lock was actually quite handy. In a bit, he will lock it to the side of the plank so some waves won’t knock it out of his hand. 

Gu Nan Yi suddenly leaned over. When he had used his sword to break up the boat, he was quite precise. He and Feng Zhi Wei not only occupied the largest piece of the boat, he even remembered to grab the oars, without falling into the water at all. The moment Gu Nan Yi leaned close, Ning Cheng promptly ducked his head into the water. However, what he felt instead was the lock on his finger being loosened. Hearing the all too familiar clicking sound, Ning Cheng looked up. Sure enough, the lock Feng Zhi Wei had put on his finger had been taken off. Gu Nan Yi was calmly relocking the lock on his and Feng Zhi Wei’s fingers. 

Ning Cheng stared blankly at the scene unfolding in front of him, wiped away the seawater on his face as if he was wiping away his own bitter tears— this is too much! Dang it, this is too much! Just now, I was chained up and dragged along in the seawater, but now the boat broke, he is worried about getting separated from Feng Zhi, so he just took it and put it on himself Ahhhhhhhh, he is too much! 


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