Nightwatcher

# 344. Brushing Chamberpots

Mid-spring. The warm breeze warmed the body, and the river teemed with a myriad vessels.

Xu Qi’an stood on the deck, gazing out at the slow procession of barge boats, official ships, and multi-decked pleasure boats. The sails bulged to their limits, filled with the steady wind, suddenly giving him deja-vu of the winter past.

At that time, the biting winds off the river felt like blades on his face. But now, the spring sun beamed brightly, and just off the shore, flocks of wild ducks dotted the scene, plump enough to make one’s mouth water.

_Too far away; my qi can’t capture them..._ Xu Qi’an sighed with disappointment. _The martial path is truly a low-tier system. A sixth-rank like me can’t even fly._

Even using light-foot techniques, walking on water remained out of reach without floating supports. Perhaps at fifth-rank, when he mastered the art of Transforming Force, he could finally skim over water with his feet.

*Without Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao around, this journey is dull beyond measure,* he lamented.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, his peripheral vision caught sight of a familiar figure stepping onto the deck.

She looked about thirty to thirty-five, her features plain, and wore a navy-blue dress in the style of a maid, but her demeanour carried a haughty air. Her lips curled into a faint smile, as if savouring the balmy river breeze.