William Thompson said, “He really does look like a mantis.”

“Right? That damn petty official.”

“Why didn’t he shackle you?”

“He even found my mother, and I’m not running away. Besides, who am I? The white-furred rat Henry Clark—does he really think he can shackle me?”

“Then can you help me unlock these shackles?”

Henry Clark’s eyes darted about, regretting his loose tongue, and he grinned apologetically, “Come on, don’t ask me that. If I anger that mantis, what if he kills my mother?”

William Thompson nodded and said, “Forget it, then.”

He thought to himself that John Foster had arranged for Henry Clark to stay in this room precisely to test whether Henry Clark would obey orders.

So he just casually tested Henry Clark’s relationship with himself as well...

That night, Henry Clark actually slept on the beam of the roof.

Before dawn, someone struck a gong once in the courtyard.

The young man named David Green shouted, “All you chicken thieves and dog robbers, get up! Grandpa’s taking you to tour the old homeland to the north...”

Chapter Five: Caishi Rock

“The gateway of heaven breaks, the Chu River opens; green waters flow east and here turn back. On both banks, green mountains face each other; a lone sail comes from the edge of the sun.”

By the banks of the Yangtze River, Andrew Scott recited this poem in an aged voice, pointing into the distance as he explained.

“Over there is the Tianmen Mountain mentioned in Li Taibai’s poem.”

Emily Scott put her hand over her eyes and looked upstream for a while, then asked curiously, “Grandfather, why can’t I see it?”

She was twelve this year, her features not yet matured, thin and small, her face dark, dressed in shabby clothes, not pretty to look at, but her eyes were especially lively.

Andrew Scott said, “Because Tianmen Mountain is to the west of Dangtu County, and the river is too swift there. We need to cross the river at Caishi Rock to the east... Did you memorize the poem just now?”

Emily Scott replied crisply, “I memorized it: ‘The gateway of heaven breaks, the Chu River opens...’”

After his granddaughter recited the poem, Andrew Scott continued, “Speaking of Caishi Rock, this is where Li Taibai passed away and became immortal.”

“Didn’t you say last time that Li Taibai died of excessive drinking, drunk in Xuancheng?”

“That’s one version; this is another,” Andrew Scott said. “It’s said that Li Taibai was drinking on the river, and after getting drunk, he jumped into the water to catch the moon and unfortunately drowned—hence the saying, ‘drunk, catching the moon, riding a whale to heaven.’”

“Grandfather, I like this version better. Dying like that is more like the Li Taibai I imagine.”

“There are a few more poems about Caishi Rock...”

James Brooks turned around and interrupted, “Hey, old bookworm, you’re so old already, and you just keep talking and talking along the way. Aren’t you tired?”

“This old man does get a dry mouth, but I just want to teach the child as much as I can.”

“Ha! What use is all this to a little girl?”

Andrew Scott gave a bitter smile and said, “The world is in chaos. The teachings of the sages must be passed down from generation to generation.”

“That’s because your Jin dynasty fell,” James Brooks said with disdain. “Our Great Song is not in chaos—scholars are everywhere.”

Andrew Scott forced a few laughs but continued to help Emily Scott recite poetry.

The little girl had an excellent memory; she could recite the content after hearing it just once.

After finishing this little learning task, she turned to William Thompson and started chattering away—in Mongolian.

William Thompson struggled to reply in Mongolian, but he was still very unskilled.

Occasionally, Emily Scott would correct him.

“Brother Li, you said it wrong again. When you say this word, you can’t aspirate; you have to hold your breath like this.”

Andrew Scott said, “Qiao’er, you’re stumbling over your own words too...”

This group was the team led by John Foster heading to Kaifeng.

There were thirty-two people in the group, disguised as a merchant caravan, with six wagons carrying goods, each pulled by two horses.

The goods were carried by the wagons, but the people had to walk. It took them six full days to get from Lin’an Prefecture to Dangtu County.

The reason for bringing along Andrew Scott and Emily Scott might have been that having an old man and a little girl made them look more like a merchant caravan... or maybe there were other reasons.

The grandfather and granddaughter originally walked as well, but William Thompson suggested letting them ride on the wagons.

John Foster thought they were perfectly capable of walking to Kaifeng; at least it was easier than forced labor. But he only cared about achievements and couldn’t be bothered with trivial matters.

William Thompson noticed this and, by arranging this small matter, successfully tested John Foster’s character.

After setting out, William Thompson learned that Andrew Scott had once been a translator for the Jin dynasty, so he asked him to teach him Mongolian and Jurchen.

For six days on the road, their chattering conversations could be heard.

William Thompson wasn’t especially gifted at languages, but he was diligent and focused, just as he had been when practicing fencing, and improved rapidly.

And since Emily Scott wasn’t yet fluent in Mongolian, they could practice together.

That day, they finally reached Caishi Rock, which belonged to Taiping Prefecture, the present-day Ma’anshan City.

As one of the ferry crossings on the Yangtze, Caishi Rock had a customs checkpoint on the main road to collect taxes.

Since they were disguised as a merchant caravan, they couldn’t avoid paying taxes and being inspected.

The authorities strictly forbade the flow of ironware and copper coins to the north, and their wagons carried quite a few of these contraband items. Every time they passed a checkpoint, John Foster never showed any official documents—he always relied on bribery.