That night on the beach was lively. The only ones left to dine with Chengmo were Chengtian and the seven leaders of the divisions.
Unfamiliar cooking techniques, unheard-of delicacies, and the honey wine that Xiangbei brought out from the basket fermented everyone's excitement and dream-like expectations for the future.
Eventually, Chengmo carried the inebriated Xiangbei into a cabin on a luxurious ship in the harbor. In his drunken slumber, Xiangbei dreamt of embracing his K-pop idol, unwilling to let go, surrounded by pink heart-shaped bubbles.
The aftermath of the night's revelry was a dizzying sensation, like being on a rocking boat.
Thankfully, the pillow was comfortable, soft, and warm. Why was it so warm? Like the eight-pack abs of an idol. This texture felt so real.
Then there was this mermaid line – oh, my mermaid line, where are you going? Xiangbei desperately reached out to grasp the departing abdominal muscles, nearly falling out of bed.
She only managed to catch a piece of clothing after a struggle, and when she looked up, she was met with Chengmo's blushing face and neatly dressed silver attire.
Startled, Xiangbei sat up abruptly, "Why is it you? When did you come? Where's my idol?" A series of questions only earned her.
Chengmo's increasingly profound gaze and a glance down at the clothing.
"Oh, sorry, I thought you were my idol. I apologize." Embarrassed, Xiangbei released the grip on the clothing, smoothing out the fabric that wasn't even wrinkled and explaining apologetically.
"I, I came to tell you that the bathroom is behind that door, the water is ready. Get yourself cleaned up, then call me." Chengmo got up upon hearing someone fetching water next door.
At this moment, he felt so stifled that he wanted to cry. Why wasn't it me? Apparently, she spent the whole night thinking of someone else. Was that someone her Eto? Who is Eto? Have they become so close? But she didn't dare to say a word.
Last night, in her drunken state, she did act recklessly. Afraid that Chengmo might ask more, she left a few words and hastily walked away.
Xiangbei climbed out of bed, sensing a gentle swaying as she stepped on the floor. Guessing what it might be, she opened a window and confirmed her suspicion – she was indeed sleeping on a boat.
At this time, the sun had just risen, hiding behind condensed clouds over the water, while rays of light pierced through the edges, casting a myriad of brilliance over the sea, distant coral islands, anchored boats along the shore, and the busy figures on the beach, all bathed in a golden warmth. Sitting in the bathtub, immersed in warm water, Xiangbei sighed comfortably, "Another beautiful day begins."
Having entered her Jade space, Xiangbei casually put on some clothes, freshened up a bit, grabbed paper and pen, and wrote down the method for making oyster sauce.
She detailed the proportions of charcoal, saltpeter, sulfur, yellow clay, and paper for making black powder.
She also included a complete set of drawings, planning the salt pool on the alkaline beach, the volcanic rock bricks kiln for lime production using shells, the annealing path for preparing flat glass, and a large rectangular flat-bottomed iron basin with a water-cooling trough.
After finishing these, she checked the outputs in the space, stored the ripe crops in the Snow Jade Cave, continued harvesting honey for brewing, ground some arrowroot and sweet potato starch on the warm spring stone, then moved to the Snow Jade Cave to persist in practicing her Tai Chi and breathing exercises.
Seeing that about half an hour had passed based on the sunrise and sunset outside, she came out of the tub with her clothes on.
The water had almost cooled, so she quickly got up, dressed, tied her hair into a half-updo with a headband, and disembarked. Walking towards the dock where Chengmo was talking with several leaders, she joined them in conversation.
"Good morning, madam!"
"Good morning, queen!"
"Good morning, Miss Tong!" The only one who greeted in a conventional manner was Cheng Tian, who rarely appeared.
"Good morning, everyone! Cheng Tian, you're here too."It seems that Cheng Tian is highly respected here.
"Yes, Miss Bei, Master Mo said you discovered high-quality iron ore here, suitable for forging weapons."
"Yes, yesterday, Duke Mo took me to see the topography over there. It should be a marine volcanic rock iron ore vein. As for whether it's magnetite or red iron ore, and its quality, we need to take samples to confirm," Xiangbei waved the drawings in her hand, "Chengmo, I have a few things I want to do, and I've sketched them on these papers. Since everyone is here, should we discuss them during breakfast?"
"Everyone has been here for a while. It seems they haven't had breakfast yet. Why don't you talk while we eat?," Chengmo thought about the drawings. Even if he took them now, there would be many questions that needed her explanation.
Worried that they might keep her busy and miss breakfast, he immediately turned around and headed back to the ship. In fact, he had instructed people to prepare in advance in the guest cabin.