Page 121 of The Cinders

He waved at them.The sway of his arm was like the drift of kelp beneath the water.

‘Yes.I’m ready.’Xian was eager to warm his feet, chilled by the sandy clay.The rich scent of baking prawns with lemongrass, seaweed soup and fresh-shucked oysters drifted from the boat’s cabin.He squeezed Lim’s hand.‘He has huangjiu, Lim.An astonishing amount of it.I’m surprised the boat stays above the water.’

Lim let out a whoop, his delight drying Xian’s threatening tears.‘Then why are we still standing here with your feet in the mud?’

He dragged at Xian’s arm, urging him down the path.And so it was that they arrived at the dock, breathless and childish with excitement.

‘You’ve outdone yourself, Master Ren.’Lim called.

‘Come aboard, friends.’Ren’s gaze found Xian, and he tilted into a bow.‘Your Highness, it is wonderful to see you so well.You are luminous.’He glanced at Lim, who frowned as he tapped his foot against the narrow wooden plank that would take them onto the boat.‘And to have your shoemaker so light of heart now that he has found you.Come, come.Don’t be shy now.We are ready to leave.’

‘Master Ren, thank you for your kindness,’ Xian said.‘But I did not mean for us to take you from your farm.’

‘You’re coming with us?’Lim said rather more bluntly.

‘Unless you intended to sail the boat, Master Song?’

Lim laughter lifted high.‘Do you want your boat sunk?I couldn’t steer that thing away from the dock, let alone get us where we wish to go.’

The singing farmer had a generous smile.‘Then it is settled.I will take you to where the Red River meets the sea, then we shall find a ship bound for foreign lands to take you on.Now please, come on board.’

Lim gestured for Xian to go first.He did not bother to use the rope that acted as a handrail as he went, moving steadily up the plank.But when he turned around, he found Lim had only taken a few steps.

‘What are you doing?Should I help you up?’

‘I’m being cautious, Xian.We’re not all so lucky to be as sure-footed as you.The wood might be slippery, Master Ren drips, a lot.From the ends of his hair.Very odd, and dangerous for the likes of me, a man with no sea legs to speak of.’

The wood had been damp, Xian noted, as was the deck; despite the canopy, and no hint of rain, nor the river rough enough to splash its way on board.

He looked to Master Ren, whose grey eyes swam with amusement.‘Master Song is more perceptive than most.The water always flows from a siren.He saw me for what I am, though he did not know it.’He paused.‘Does he see you, your highness, for all that you are?’

Xian turned to watch Lim make his cautious way, muttering beneath his breath about slipping into the water and being eaten by a panlong.But he kept on, regardless.Because Xian had asked him to.

‘Master Ren, he saw all that I was, long before I did.He is a brave man.’

‘He is that.And a man deeply in love with you.He is everything that you deserve.’

Xian spun about.But the siren had already slipped away; only the mark of his wet footsteps, leading over to the steps of the galley, showed sign he’d stood with Xian at all.

The wind whipped up, filling the sails, making the canvas snap and shudder; the golden carp given life by the play of the wind.The tears Xian had subdued pricked again at his eyes.

‘Gods!’Lim cried.

Xian turned, his heart thundering.But Lim was safely on deck, jumping back from the gangway, right as it slipped from the edge of the boat and crashed down onto the dock.The ropes that held the junk boat slipped free, slapping at the water as the boat drifted from the dock.

Lim looked to him.‘Where is Ren?Should we tell him?’

‘He knows.This is his doing.’Xian did not know how — that would be the first of many lessons to be learned in his new life — but he knew enough not to be afraid.

The boat rocked gently against the steady water.Lim braced against the railing, his jaw tight.‘Then I hope he’s off getting my huangjiu.’He glanced down at Xian’s muddy feet.‘Damn my selfishness, you need shoes first.Is he down—’

Heavy splashes resonated from up near the bow of the boat, and the waft of algae-filled water reached Xian.He wrinkled his nose against the scent; so out of place on the flowing Red River.

The splashing intensified, sounding like the cargo was being cast overboard.

Xian and Lim exchanged a glance, and with not a word said, they rushed along the side of the drifting boat.Reaching the bow, they leaned over the crimson railing, side by side.

The bow was surrounded by carp.Thrashing and writhing, frothing the water in their eagerness to leap over one another and jump clear of the water’s surface.