Chapter 381: Whirlpool (6)
We had sailed swiftly down the long north-south stretch of East Dongting Lake and were now entering the wider, east-west basin of South Dongting Lake, continuing our journey for quite some time.
As he looked out at the water, Sagong Won, the head boatman of the Dongting Eighteen Boats, pointed toward a certain spot and spoke up.
"That over there, Sir So-ryong, marks the start of East Dongting Lake."
"From there?"
"Yes. That little reed island is generally used as the dividing point between East and South Dongting Lake. Of course, it’s not a strictly defined boundary, so opinions vary."
Some people, he explained, consider it East Dongting only after going around the island, while others claim it begins right there.
What he was pointing at was a small reed-covered islet, jutting out like a signpost from the marshlands on the left side. And sure enough, looking around, there were no fishing boats to be seen here.
Until now, we’d passed plenty of fishing vessels hauling up nets and luxurious boats ferrying people about on West and South Dongting Lake—but here, nothing. Not a single sail in sight.
"So we’ll rest until nightfall and head out as planned?"
"Yes, sir. Understood."
We didn’t set sail into East Dongting Lake right away.
There were no patrol ships in sight, but better safe than sorry.