Small Crescent Island stands as the most prosperous isle within the offshore archipelago’s core. Its name, remarkably similar to Crescent Island, reflects a status equally significant. In the vernacular of the overseas territories, it holds a position akin to the “Little Linzi” of the Qi kingdom.

Yet, for Jiang Wang, the island’s true importance lies in the presence of several old acquaintances. His journey to sea to investigate a case had been initiated, and the initial steps towards this destination had already been communicated to Xu Xiangqian and his companions by Yan Fu.

The news of Wu Yiyu of Jinzhenmen’s execution was no secret to Li Longchuan. Indeed, they had been awaiting Jiang Wang’s arrival for quite some time. As Xu Xiangqian would phrase it, “Jiang Qingyang, I’ve missed you to death!”

He even offered a poem as testament:
“Miss thee, ah miss thee, missed to death,
Hope thee, ah hope thee, still not yet come!”

After this impassioned recitation, Xu Xiangqian beamed with satisfaction: “How is it, this verse? The double meaning, have you all grasped it?”

The banquet was held at the Spring Wind Building. This establishment, boasting the motto “Maritime spring wind, all within this building,” was naturally a premier venue for revelry and lavish spending. With Xu Xiangqian involved, any humble setting was unlikely to be considered.

“To transform Jiang Wang’s ‘wang’ into the ‘hope’ of anticipation is truly wondrous. Brother Xu, your poetic skill has advanced greatly, congratulations!” Jiang Wang offered sincere flattery before turning to Li Longchuan and asking, “Why is Brother Yan not here?”

“I know not which island he’s gone to play on,” Li Longchuan, understanding Jiang Wang’s query, explained. “Before he left, he instructed the owner of this place to bill this welcome banquet to his account.”

If Xu Xiangqian were footing the bill, they likely couldn’t afford the meal. One could glean the approximate cost simply by observing the four beauties seated behind the screen, skillfully playing the pipa. Though Xu Xiangqian acted as if he were the host, this was merely his shameless habit. A fellow who lives for the day like him, having been in the offshore archipelago for so long, would have surely spent any money he possessed. Generally, Yan Fu handled the expenses, and his absence prompted Jiang Wang’s question.

Xu Xiangqian, returning from his poetic musings, punctuated his thoughts with satisfied clicks of his tongue: “You had no definite news, so naturally he couldn’t wait here for you. He’s completely lost himself in revelry now, running and playing everywhere after going to sea!”

Yan Fu possessed a calm and reserved disposition, handling matters with measured steps, neither rushed nor slow. Had he not been so intensely suppressed in Linzi, such unbridled behavior would have been unthinkable. It seemed Jiang Wuyou had truly forced him into seclusion for too long.

Alas, it was truly…

Jiang Wang couldn’t help but chuckle, then turned to Li Longchuan again: “What exactly happened with you all? I heard some whispers, but nothing clear.”

Li Longchuan glanced at Xu Xiangqian and pursed his lips: “He sent me an urgent letter claiming his inner mansion was shattered and his divine seed on the verge of scattering. So, I rushed over overnight…”

“Only to discover he had merely gotten a tooth knocked out!”

Li Longchuan was clearly exasperated.

But Xu Xiangqian leapt up: “A tooth is very important, alright?! That’s the face! Do you understand, face?!” He sputtered and glared fiercely at Jiang Wang, “What are you looking at? I’ve replaced it!” He tried to block Jiang Wang’s gaze from finding his missing tooth.

Jiang Wang, at this moment, truly didn’t want to provoke him. He was like a furious lion, driven mad by mating failure, on the verge of entering a duel at any moment.

“A tooth is very important!” Xu Xiangqian repeated. He looked at Li Longchuan’s perfect, white teeth. Then, he sat down again and put his arm around Jiang Wang’s shoulder, resorting to his usual method of aligning himself with the victorious party: “Forget it, you wouldn’t understand the troubles of us handsome men.”

Jiang Wang looked at the heroic Li Longchuan, then at the extraordinarily high forehead of Xu Xiangqian. It was difficult to imagine how thick-skinned this man must be to consider himself more handsome than Li Longchuan. Was it not his forehead that protruded, but his face? But then he reconsidered; since Xu Gao’e had naturally categorized him into the same group, what did that make his own appearance? The feeling of schadenfreude suddenly became complicated.

“Alright, a good tooth is very important!” Li Longchuan conceded helplessly. “However, it’s good that Brother Jiang is here. Look, we’ve already fought and made enemies. Constantly vying and being jealous over a woman isn’t a solution. Do we really want to keep stirring things up here? The offshore archipelago is, after all, other people’s territory.”

“What do you mean, ‘vying and being jealous’!” Xu Xiangqian glared angrily. “Li Longchuan, that remark displeases me greatly.” He wore an indignant expression: “Zhao girl and I share mutual affection; that scoundrel Yang Liu shamelessly entangled himself. You didn’t know? You said a strong dragon can’t suppress a local snake, so I listened to you and first withdrew from Huai Island, resting at Small Crescent Island. Zhao girl couldn’t bear his harassment and, with her heart set on me, also came to Small Crescent Island. That scoundrel Yang Liu, utterly shameless, actually chased after her! How can you blame me? Am I vying and being jealous?”

Li Longchuan couldn’t stand it anymore, fearing Jiang Wang would be truly misled, and interjected: “It was Zhao Wuyan girl who first came to Small Crescent, and we followed after.”

“It’s all the same!”

Xu Xiangqian waved his hand dismissively: “Our hearts are connected; no need for direction, we understand. Even without arrangement, we ended up in the same place.” He grew more animated as he spoke: “She clearly adores me. Her junior sister also has a very good relationship with me.”

“Right, her junior sister is named Zi Shu.” Xu Xiangqian turned to look at Jiang Wang, patting him kindly: “I’ll introduce you when the time comes.”

Li Longchuan already had his hand on his forehead, unwilling to speak.

Jiang Wang, on the other hand, was perplexed. He had no idea how this introduction had suddenly come about. What Zi Shu?! He saw through it; Xu Xiangqian was completely resorting to sophistry, stubbornly refusing to leave, and still dragging Li Longchuan along.

His friendship with Li Longchuan was self-evident. Having boarded this ‘pirate ship’, it was difficult to disembark now. After all, he couldn’t truly abandon him and let him be bullied in the overseas territories.

The few of them made a commotion, while only the four beauties playing the pipa, who indeed possessed exceptionally high cultivation, remained undisturbed. Xu Xiangqian might have rambling crooked poetry and spouted nonsense, but they listened as if they hadn’t heard, not missing a single note.

“Tell me,” Jiang Wang said curiously, “what kind of divine being is that Zhao Wuyan girl, to so completely captivate Brother Xu?”

Even Li Longchuan, though disapproving of Xu Xiangqian’s “vying and jealousy,” couldn’t help but say: “That one is a senior sister from Longmen Academy. Her character, needless to say, is first-rate.”

“Oh?” Jiang Wang grew even more curious. “What is her cultivation? And what does she look like?” He was genuinely very curious. A scholar like Xu Xiangqian, accustomed to “gathering inspiration” in various pleasure houses, was a proper brothel regular. It was hard to imagine what kind of character could make him so infatuated, not hesitating to squabble with others like a common street ruffian.

“Brother Jiang,” Xu Xiangqian looked at him, shook his head, and picked up a cup of wine.

“In our lives, we will encounter many people and see many sights. Flowers number in the thousands, and people in the tens of thousands. But there is that unique one. One cannot say she surpasses all flowers, nor can one claim she is unmatched in the world. But once you have seen her, you cannot see others. Once you have missed her, you cannot accommodate other hearts.”

“At that moment, you realize how small your heart truly is, so small it can only hold one person.”

He drank the cup of wine in one gulp, momentarily lost in thought: “If this person is a dream, she arrives nightly, as scheduled.”