Chapter 38: The Wharf Ruffians

At the banquet of the Blue Sand Gang, Liu Shen seemed lost amid the waves of applause and shouts of “bottomless capacity,” grabbing Qian You Sheng and drinking fiercely. With the reckless courage of a young calf unafraid of tigers, and a death-defying thirst, he managed to drink the seasoned Qian You Sheng under the table.

Having built his momentum to its peak, Liu Shen didn’t pause to rest but rose again, returning toasts to each guest in turn. The fierce fear the reckless, the reckless fear those who risk their lives. With Qian You Sheng serving as a vivid example, the drinkers saw Liu Shen’s flushed face and bloodshot eyes, yet still raising his bowl to toast, and they hurriedly urged him to drink less.

After all, they would inevitably meet again at similar banquets, all earning their livelihoods under the same roof of the Blue Sand Gang. If Liu Shen’s fearless drinking could topple Qian You Sheng, it could do the same to anyone else—who would want to lose face so easily?

Thus, in their minds, Liu Shen was already labeled as a “rash youth,” a “drunkard.” Even Ning Hongwu, who prided himself on his “thousand cups without falling,” cast frequent glances, ultimately stepping in to advise Liu Shen to take care of his health.

For a moment, Liu Shen was the center of attention.

After the feast, Feng Jun supported him out the door. When they returned to the dock’s hall, seeing no one around, Liu Shen broke free, staggered to a corner, and forced himself to vomit, retching violently.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk…” Feng Jun watched, clicking his tongue and teasing, “I thought you really had a bottomless capacity, that nothing could knock you down. Turns out you were just holding on.”

“Ah…” Liu Shen, after vomiting, felt strangely invigorated, as though the world had become much clearer. He said, “You might not believe this, but I never drank before today.”

Feng Jun was taken aback, his brows tightly knitted as he scolded, “That’s reckless! Why did you drink so much at the table just now?”

“It was just a moment’s bravado!” Liu Shen let out a long breath, grinning. “Didn’t you notice? Qian You Sheng initially looked down on me, didn’t take me seriously. The others surely felt the same.”

“My purpose at that table was to reassure those who had defected from the Red Water Gang. If the leader’s ‘buying the bones of a horse with gold’ is a saying, then I am that horse’s bone!”

“There was no avoiding the drink…”

“There’s a great figure from my hometown who once said, ‘Strike hard with one punch to avoid a hundred later.’”

“If I’d acted timidly, I’d only have been further belittled, and then I’d have been the one drunk under the table. But if I risked my life and drank him under, made him fear me, who would dare drink me under again? Who would dare look down on me?”

“My momentary bravado was meant to make them remember today whenever they drink with me in the future. I want them to lose their nerve before even raising their bowls.”

Feng Jun pondered Liu Shen’s words, his expression wooden, and the more he thought, the more sense it made. He looked at Liu Shen with renewed admiration. This young man was anything but simple: courage, vision, sense of the bigger picture—none were lacking.

A true talent!

“Comfortable! Clear-headed!” Liu Shen stretched and loosened his muscles, then waved a hand as he headed for his room. “I’ll rest first.”

“All right…” Feng Jun saw Liu Shen walking steadily and said no more, only instructing, “Tomorrow, the dock work resumes as usual. You’re from this dock, so you should be familiar. You may need to organize and reassure the shopkeepers and workers.”

“No trouble…” Liu Shen paused at his door and turned back with a smile. “You may not believe it, Master Feng, but I’m best at organizing. As for dock work…”

He paused, his voice full of self-assurance. “I could manage it with my eyes closed…”

With that, he pushed the door open and entered.

Feng Jun nodded thoughtfully, watching Liu Shen close his door, muttering with a half-smile, “This lad is indeed a wild one.”

He did not linger at the dock’s hall but returned to the headquarters of the Blue Sand Gang, knocking on the leader’s door and entering when called.

Ning Hongwu was rubbing his brows, looking weary. Upon seeing Feng Jun, he asked, “Is everything at the dock handled?”

“No major problems.” Feng Jun nodded. “I’ve given all necessary instructions today. The dock work will resume normal operations tomorrow.”

“Good.” Ning Hongwu nodded, sighing, “Another spring begins. Not to mention the merchants, just the government’s grain and tax shipments passing through the canal are enough to keep us anxious. If the dock isn’t managed well, it threatens the very foundation of our existence.”

“Caution is warranted…” Feng Jun agreed, then said with some concern, “In recent years, the prestige of our Canal Guild has grown in the underworld. I hear it’s caught the attention of the Imperial Bureau. Who knows if that’s a blessing or a curse…”

“Tu Xiong is a hero of his age.” Ning Hongwu sighed, “In the past, small gangs along the canal like ours were just watchdogs in the eyes of local officials—useful for supervising canal shipments, but dispensable, sometimes treated as river bandits to be rooted out.”

“Now, under Tu Xiong’s leadership, the Canal Guild has united dozens of gangs. Though not an ironclad alliance, we’re no longer just scattered sand. Whether fortune or disaster, we must face it!”

“True enough…”

Feng Jun knew these matters were not his to decide and shifted the topic. “Do you recall the young man named Liu Shen? He’s far sharper than I expected.”

“Oh?” Ning Hongwu was surprised, remembering the fearless drinker at the banquet, and asked dismissively, “Just a young, reckless drunkard—how much wisdom can he have?”

“Not so.” Feng Jun shook his head, clicking his tongue in admiration. “I had doubts, but hearing even you call him a reckless drunkard, those doubts are gone.”

He recounted his conversations with Liu Shen during the banquet and afterward at the dock hall.

Ning Hongwu listened, his brow furrowed. “So I was fooled by that lad’s performance?”

“Yes…” Feng Jun nodded. “Just watching him, who would guess an eighteen-year-old could see so clearly and think so far ahead?”

“Indeed…” Ning Hongwu nodded thoughtfully. “My sister said he was quick-witted, but now I see he’s not just quick—his vision, courage, and strategy are all impeccable…”

He paused, then concluded, “A promising talent, seen from a single point.”

“He’s still young.” Feng Jun chuckled, then remembered something else and told of Liu Shen’s encounter with the Red-Skinned Duck earlier that day.

“Haha…” Ning Hongwu smiled knowingly, intrigued. “Interesting, interesting. Who would have thought this lad had such a connection to our Blue Sand Gang?”

He paused again and said, “You mentioned he claimed to be best at organizing, and could manage the dock work with his eyes closed?”

“That’s right.” Feng Jun nodded, implying, “The young are always too young. If you wish to use him, you’ll need to temper his arrogance, lest we foster a wild one who doesn’t know his limits.”

“If he truly has talent, what’s wrong with being wild?” Ning Hongwu, hearing the term “wild one,” thought again of Tu Xiong, the Canal Guild’s leader. In his youth, Tu Xiong was famously wild, and now, older and unfathomably skilled, he had transformed into a dominant hero whose every word and deed radiated power.

After a moment’s reflection, Ning Hongwu smiled, saying, “Since I have nothing pressing, I’ll visit the dock tomorrow morning and see how this so-called thirty-something dock wild one organizes his work.”

“Hahaha…”