Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

Jiangling Port.

On a warship, Lai Gou'er, stripped to the waist, wielded a steel saber, beads of sweat flying.

He punctuated each strike with a loud 'Hei! Ha!'

All around him, sailors drilled diligently.

The port was experiencing some rough seas today, and the massive ship was still pitching and rolling.

This meant the physical exertion was considerable, and many were beginning to lose their form.

The commander stood at the bow, constantly surveying the training results below.

To explore uncharted territories by sea, the imperial court had specially created two official positions.

Naval Military Commissioner and Supervising Naval Censor.

The Supervising Censor was naturally responsible for overseeing discipline and ensuring the integrity of the ranks.

The Naval Military Commissioner was responsible for practical combat training.

The current Naval Military Commissioner standing at the bow was named Zheng Hui. He had originally been in the navy, was well-versed in naval warfare, and had grown up by the sea.

Such talent was extremely rare, but he had not been highly valued.

He had thought he would be stuck as a minor official for life, but unexpectedly, the imperial court suddenly intended to open the seas, and he was recommended and rapidly promoted.

As for why the seas were being opened, Zheng Hui knew very well, and his admiration for Fang Zheng was doubled.

Several months ago, Fang Zheng sent a handwritten letter to Jiangling Port, saying he wanted to place a distant relative as a sailor for training, to temper a junior member of his family.

This was a minor matter; it was just one more mouth to feed in the camp. Zheng Hui naturally agreed.

He had assumed it would be some纨绔子弟, but unexpectedly, this Lai Gou'er, who had come in through connections, was surprisingly formidable.

It wasn't that his physical qualities were particularly good; there were plenty of people in the army with better physiques!

It was that ruthless劲儿!

He was fierce in training and resolute in his will!

Ordinary sailors, when they had some rest time, would often go to the nearby city to eat, drink, gamble, and visit prostitutes.

But Lai Gou'er was different; he actually liked to read.

Every day, after training until he was drenched in sweat and exhausted, he still wanted to read.

Even more interesting was that he would constantly seek out people to ask for advice, and he never tired of it.

At first, he only asked simple questions, but as he went deeper, Zheng Hui already felt somewhat strained.

The young man's learning speed was indeed too fast, and his foundation was already faintly showing signs of being unable to answer.

However, Zheng Hui didn't mind; it was rare to have such an ambitious young man.

And he was related to Fang Zheng; although coming here might just be a formality.

If they really went to sea, Lord Fang probably wouldn't let his own relatives take such a big risk... What a pity.

Looking at the training crowd below, already exhausted and gradually becoming crooked and out of shape.

Only Lai Gou'er was still performing the standard movements rigidly. A trace of regret flashed in Zheng Hui's eyes.

Then he raised his hand to call a halt, ordering everyone to rest.

Lai Gou'er did not stop; he had only practiced half a set of movements and hadn't finished it.

He continued to swing his saber in practice.

A figure appeared in front of Lai Gou'er and said, "Alright, that's enough for now. Come with me."

Lai Gou'er quickly sheathed his saber and followed quickly.

Inside the cabin, Lai Gou'er asked curiously, "Lord Zheng, what do you want to see me about?"

Zheng Hui picked up a letter from the table, handed it to him, and said, "A message from the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Lord Fang wants you to go home for dinner."

"Oh, thank you, sir. Then I'll pack up and hurry back to the capital."

"Wait a moment." Zheng Hui stopped Lai Gou'er, sighed, and said, "Gou'er, there have been some movements in the capital recently. There have also been some hints from the imperial court that they will probably be preparing to set sail soon. Pack up your things, and you don't have to come back."

"To be honest, young men like you are really rare. What a pity."

Lai Gou'er was stunned and said, "Ah? Lord Zheng, what's a pity?"

Zheng Hui shook his head: "It's a pity you can't go to sea with me. You are Lord Fang's relative. How many dangers are there on the vast sea, unless he wants you to die."

Lai Gou'er smiled: "Lord Zheng, don't worry! I'm determined to go to sea! My brother will definitely agree. I promised him that I would be a successful man. Wait for me to come back!"

With that, Lai Gou'er was about to leave.

Zheng Hui trembled.

Brother? He called Fang Zheng brother?!

Why didn't this kid say so earlier? Didn't the letter say he was a distant relative?

Lai Gou'er had just reached the door when Zheng Hui hurriedly shouted, "Gou'er! Come and be my deputy when we go to sea! Don't forget to tell Lord Fang..."

"Got it!"

......

That day, Fang Zheng had prepared a table of wine and dishes early in the morning.

He had arranged for people to meet Lai Gou'er outside the city.

It had been a long time since he had seen this kid, so it was good to meet him.

It was evening when Lai Gou'er finally arrived.

When Fang Zheng saw him coming, he immediately got up and greeted him with a smile: "Gou'er, how have you been lately?"

Lai Gou'er chuckled: "Thanks to you, brother, I've been doing pretty well lately."

"Come, let's talk while we eat."

The two sat down, and Fang Zheng first poured him a glass of wine: "I came to you today for nothing else, just to tell you that you've been in the capital for quite some time, and it's time to go home."

Lai Gou'er stared wide-eyed, looking at Fang Zheng: "Brother... Why do you want me to go home? Don't you want me here?"

Fang Zheng shook his head: "No, the imperial court plans to go to sea soon, and you don't have to go."

"There are many dangers on the vast sea, and you are not young. You should get married and start a family. It's not that I'm chasing you away. If you want to stay in the capital, I can help you buy a house."

So he wasn't chasing me away, that's good.

Lai Gou'er breathed a sigh of relief: "Brother, I... I want to go to sea. I'm good at it. Even our commander praised me for learning well, and he's even preparing to promote me to be his deputy."

Fang Zheng was a little surprised: "Oh? I remember that man's name was Zheng Hui, right? He thinks so highly of you?"

"Yes! It's Zheng Hui, he really said that." Lai Gou'er lowered his head.

Fang Zheng smiled with relief, then persuaded again: "Even if he said so, I still don't recommend you go. This is not a small matter. Do you know how far the place the imperial court is going to is?"

"How long will it take to go to sea and return? We don't know anything. These first pioneers say that they are facing a nine-out-of-ten chance of death."

"Gou'er, you saved my life, and I don't want you to go to your death, let alone send you to take risks with my own hands."

"Speaking of which, aren't you doing this for Xin Zhu? She's already married, there's no need to keep pestering her. There are plenty of good women in the world, why bother?"

"If it really doesn't work out, come to the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and I guarantee you'll be the envy of everyone. You can marry whatever kind of wife you want."

Hearing Xin Zhu's name, Lai Gou'er felt a pang of pain in his heart, and after waiting for a long time with his head lowered, he slowly said: "Brother, after you left, I have been learning martial arts and literacy. I now know the wind direction and understand the water currents. I even know how to build ships. When I arrived at Jiangling Port, I learned many more things. I think everything I have learned now is for going to sea. If I stay in the capital, in the end, it's just that brother is willing to spend money to support me. I don't want that."

"Brother, meeting you was the luck of my life, but..."

Fang Zheng frowned slightly.

Only to see Lai Gou'er suddenly raise his head, his eyes filled with determination: "I'm no longer a beggar, I want to make a name for myself!"

......