The roads in the county seat were fairly smooth, but the country roads were inevitably bumpy and uneven. Even an expensive carriage couldn’t help but jolt.

Eunuch Liu signaled the coachman to slow down.

Even so, Duan Jin could see that the young prince’s complexion was growing increasingly sallow. In the past, the young prince had indeed been fair-skinned, but that had been a delicate, plump whiteness; now, however, he looked pale and haggard, and even his lips—usually as lustrous as cherries—had lost their color.

Duan Jin couldn’t help but grow concerned: “Your Highness, please have a sip of tea to settle your nerves. This stretch of road is indeed rough. Perhaps we should have the coachman open the curtains by the door so you can breathe some fresh air—it might help.” 

At a time like this, Eunuch Liu could no longer concern himself with matters of rank and status. He poured the young prince a cup of clear tea and then fully opened all the curtains in the carriage to allow the air to circulate.

The moment the air from the carriage door entered, it brought with it the scent of the fields outside—a blend of earth, fresh grass, and the woods—which was indeed much more pleasant.

Xiao Yunqing’s expression softened considerably, and he asked him, “How much further is it?”

Duan Jin replied, “Once we pass this stretch, we’ll enter the village. Once we’re in the village, it won’t be far from there, and the roads in the village are much easier to travel.”

Xiao Yunqing wasn’t the type to be overly particular; otherwise, he wouldn’t have insisted on coming to such a remote place. Once he felt his body had settled, he instructed the coachman to pick up the pace.

Just as Duan Jin had said, after a little less than half an hour, Xiao Yunqing noticed the air gradually changing—from the dry scent of fresh grass and fields to a slightly salty, damp aroma, though the fresh air remained just as intense.

Whether in the palace or at the imperial retreats scattered across the land, no matter how exquisitely the scenery was arranged, he had never encountered such a refreshing scent before.

It was a scent unique to the land.

Xiao Yunqing’s curiosity was piqued. He peered through the half-drawn curtains on the carriage walls, scanning the surroundings. To prevent anyone from bumping into the noble guest, Eunuch Liu had lowered the curtains on the carriage doors as soon as they entered the village.

Occasionally, villagers did pass by outside, but they merely cast a curious glance before going about their business as if it were none of their concern.

Soon, Duan Jin had the coachman stop and turned to the young prince, saying, “The ground ahead is exposed by the receding tide; it’s difficult for carriages and horses to pass. I’m afraid Your Highness will have to walk across.”

“No problem.” Xiao Yunqing couldn’t wait to get out of the carriage.

“Wait a moment…” Duan Jin said, “Your Highness, please wait a moment while I fetch what I’ve prepared for you.”

After Duan Jin had placed several pairs of straw sandals into the carriage one by one, Eunuch Liu could no longer contain himself and exclaimed, “You actually want the Prince to wear straw sandals?” 

Duan Jin shook his head. “Not just the Prince—you’ll have to wear them too, Eunuch Liu.”

“His Highness’s current attire is also unsuitable,” Duan Jin said after giving him a once-over. “I wonder if His Highness would prefer to change into coarse cotton shorts, or have his robes tied up?”

“How dare you!” Eunuch Liu exclaimed. How could coarse cloth garments be worn by a prince? Tucking them in was out of the question—wouldn’t that expose the prince’s bare feet in straw sandals?

“Eunuch Liu,” Xiao Yunqing said gently, “I am no woman; there is no harm in tucking them in.”

Hearing this, Duan Jin chuckled softly but said nothing.

Xiao Yunqing, however, heard his chuckle and asked, “What are you laughing at, Minister Duan?”

“If Your Highness were to look outside, you would know why I am laughing,” Duan Jin said. “Along the way, the fields were full of women working, and here there are even more. Moreover, every single one is dressed in short garments and straw sandals; as far as the eye can see, both men and women have their calves and feet exposed. They are not like the noble ladies in the palace, who have servants to attend to them, never touching the ground with their feet or water with their fingers…”

“The common people have no feudal privileges.”

That is a privilege reserved for well-fed and well-fed nobles.

Xiao Yunqing was startled by what he heard. Although he had never heard terms like “feudalism” or “power,” he could vaguely grasp what Duan Jin was getting at

He refused to play along with Eunuch Liu’s dithering and haranguing. With a sweeping gesture of his hand, he casually tied his hair back, slipped on the straw sandals Duan Jin had prepared, and stepped down from the carriage right behind Duan Jin.

Eunuch Liu stood frozen in place, his mouth opening and closing a few times as he struggled to find a rebuttal. Seeing that the young prince had already disembarked, he stopped hesitating, mimicked the commoners, casually tucked up the hem of his robe, slipped on his shoes, and followed him out.

The mudflats were already crowded with villagers, scattered in small groups here and there, their heads bent as they searched for something.

“Come this way.” Seeing the young prince looking around with eyes full of curiosity, Duan Jin led him forward.

Not far away were some rocks. Duan Jin had noticed something moving about there earlier. He felt like teasing the young prince, who knew nothing of such things, and quietly suggested he turn over the rocks to take a look.

After just a few turns, a small crab darted out from under a rock, waving its two large claws and flailing about.

Xiao Yunqing instinctively took a step back, but his foot slipped, causing him to lose his balance and teeter on the brink of a fall. Just in time, a warm, strong hand wrapped around his waist, steadying him firmly. 

Xiao Yunqing’s cheeks flushed instantly. He could clearly smell the faint scent of soapberry on the man’s skin, mingled with the salty, damp air of the seaside—it was surprisingly pleasant.

“Be careful, the ground is slippery.”

Duan Jin’s voice rang out above him, tinged with a hint of barely perceptible concern.

He let go, bent down to pick up the crab, skillfully pinched its body, and tossed it into the bamboo basket he had brought.

“You have to grab a crab by the body from behind; otherwise, you’re likely to get pinched by its claws.”

Xiao Yunqing nodded, though his heartbeat quickened slightly beyond his control.

He composed himself and, mimicking Duan Jin’s movements, crouched down to continue searching for crabs.

Facing a larger, more ferocious, and powerful crab, Xiao Yunqing gritted his teeth and steeled himself. He reached out to grasp the crab’s back, but the moment his fingers closed around it, the crab immediately began thrashing wildly. Unable to bear the sensation of a cold, hard creature writhing in his hands, he let out a shriek and flung the crab away.

The moment it hit the ground, the crab scuttled sideways toward the familiar shore, but it misjudged its direction and was getting closer and closer to Duan Jin.

Duan Jin was quick on his feet; in the blink of an eye, another crab had found its way into his basket.

Xiao Yunqing’s face flushed slightly as he said sheepishly, “I didn’t mean to…”

His previously haughty little head drooped. For some reason, Duan Jin couldn’t bear to see him looking so dejected. “It’s my fault,” he said. “These crabs are hard to catch. Let me take you to catch some others.”

“Look at this.” Leading him a dozen or so steps further along the beach, Duan Jin easily spotted a cat’s eye snail burrowed in the sand.

Xiao Yunqing curiously pulled the snail out of the sand. Unlike the snails he’d eaten before, this one’s flesh was all on the outside—plump and white, almost as big as its shell.

“Try squeezing its flesh,” Duan Jin suggested temptingly.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yunqing squeezed harder, and a fine stream of water gushed out from his belly. The jets varied in thickness; the thinner ones merely splashed onto the back of his hand, while a thicker one sprayed directly onto his collar, and a few drops even splashed onto Xiao Yunqing’s face. 

Duan Jin：“……”

Xiao Yunqing: “……”

Xiao Yunqing froze.

Duan Jin thought to himself, “My mistake!”

Instinctively, Duan Jin pulled a coarse cloth handkerchief from his bosom and held it out to the young prince as if to make amends.

Xiao Yunqing took the handkerchief; his fingertips accidentally brushed against his hand. Both of them froze for a moment, then quickly looked away. 

Soon, Xiao Yunqing also figured out the patterns of the cat’s eye snails’ movements and found two or three of them burrowed in the sand on his own.

This time, having learned his lesson, he held the shell in the palm of his hand with the meat facing outward, extended his arm, and let several streams of water shoot out in a parabolic arc. The plump, juicy meat immediately retracted back into the shell.

A sense of inexplicable satisfaction welled up within him. Xiao Yunqing placed the cat’s eye snail into the basket Duan Jin was carrying and, full of enthusiasm, prepared to catch the next one.

“Your Highness, come this way.” Seeing the young prince walking further and further away, Duan Jin called out in time.

Xiao Yunqing looked around. There were no rocks or obvious sand mounds near Duan Jin, so he asked curiously, “Is there something here too?”

“Of course.” With that, Duan Jin crouched down and pointed to a hole the size of a soybean. “Look, this is a clam’s breathing hole. If water bubbles up from it, there’s a good chance something’s hiding inside.”

Duan Jin gave the hole a couple of taps with a small trowel and explained, “But these creatures often burrow very deep, making them hard to catch. That’s when you need to sprinkle salt at the entrance…”

As he spoke, Duan Jin took some coarse salt from his tools and sprinkled it over the hole. “Clams can’t tolerate high-salinity environments, so they’ll pop their heads out soon.” 

Just as he spoke, a fleshy tentacle indeed poked out of the freshly dug hole. Duan Jin sprinkled a little more salt on it, and the tentacle kept wriggling, and soon a tentacle as long as a palm and half a clam shell was exposed.

“When you grab it, try to grab it from the very bottom, scooping up the sand along with it.” Duan Jin demonstrated by placing the clam he’d scooped up in the palm of his hand.

This clam was as long as his entire hand—truly a king of clams.

Xiao Yunqing’s eyes lit up as if he’d discovered a new toy. This method was indeed novel. With Duan Jin’s help, he sprinkled salt, watched for the clam to emerge, and pulled it out, thoroughly enjoying himself. He caught over a dozen before standing up, satisfied.

Seeing that he had played his fill, Duan Jin led him back toward the crevice. Xiao Yunqing hesitated for a moment, thinking to himself, “Surely he isn’t taking me to catch crabs, is he?”

Duan Jin had spotted a few small octopuses in the crevices over there earlier, but remembering the young prince’s aversion to wriggling creatures, he simply scooped one out of the water and placed it in the palm of his hand.

The moment it was pulled out, its body immediately arched, and several tentacles wrapped around Duan Jin’s fingers, clinging tightly.

Xiao Yunqing looked over curiously. He counted them in his head and exclaimed in surprise, “It really does have eight legs!”

The octopus’s appearance bore little resemblance to a fish. Its head was rounded, and its eight slender tentacles resembled cold, slender snakes, twisting and coiling as if each possessed a will of its own.

Xiao Yunqing couldn’t help but think that if this octopus weren’t so small, it could easily pass for the deep-sea sea monster described in those old storybooks.

Next, Duan Jin showed him a cuttlefish that could squirt ink. The cuttlefish bore a striking resemblance to the octopus, but Xiao Yunqing had no interest in creatures of that sort; he’d only looked at it out of novelty.

He was, however, quite interested in the shells in the nearby rocky area. The rocks were covered with colorful shells. He crouched down and carefully picked, occasionally picking up a beautiful one and turning to show it off to Duan Jin.

Duan Jin simply smiled as he watched him.

Seeing the young prince so happy, Eunuch Liu’s face softened into a kindly smile. The resentment he had harbored toward Duan Jin faded considerably, and he even began to think that the prince’s outing had turned out quite well.

Before long, the basket Duan Jin was carrying was filled with all sorts of beautiful shells and conch shells. The young prince clapped his hands, returning home with a bountiful haul, thoroughly satisfied.