not help but make him over-cautious.
"No, my dear, it will not do," Laurence said. "Likely they would only blame us for teaching you ill-manners, and resolve all the more on keeping you."
"Oh." Temeraire disconsolately let his head sink back down onto his forelegs. "Well, I suppose I do not mind so much going, except that everyone else will be fighting without me," he said in resignation. "But the journey will be very interesting, and I suppose I would like to see China; only they will try to take Laurence away from me again, I am sure of it, and I am not going to have any of it."
Hammond prudently did not engage him on this subject, but hurried instead to say, "How long this business of loading has all taken - surely it is not typical? I made sure we would be halfway down the Channel by noon; here we have not even yet made sail."
"I think they are nearly done," Laurence said; the last immense chest was being swung aboard into the hands of the waiting sailors with the help of a block and line. The men looked all tired and surly, as well they might, having spent time enough for loading ten dragons on loading instead one man and his accoutrements; and their dinner was a good half-an-hour overdue already.
As the chest vanished below, Captain Riley climbed the stairs from the quarterdeck to join them, taking his hat off long enough to wipe sweat away from his brow. "I have no notion how they got themselves and the lot to England. I suppose they did not come by transport?"
"No, or else we would surely be returning by their ship," Laurence said. He had not considered the question before and realized only now that he had no idea how the Chinese embassy had made their voyage. "Perhaps they came overland." Hammond was silent and frowning, evidently wondering himself.
"That must be a very interesting journey, with so many different places to visit," Temeraire observed. "Not that I am sorry to be going by sea: not at all," he added, hastily, peering down anxiously at Riley to be sure he had not offended. "Will it be much faster, going by sea?"
"No, not in the least," Laurence said. "I have heard of a courier going from London to Bombay in two months, and we will be lucky to reach Canton in seven. But there is no secure route by land: France is in the way, unfortunately, and there is a great deal of banditry, not to mention the mountains and the Taklamakan desert to cross."
"I would not wager on less than eight months, myself," Riley said. "If we make six knots with the wind anywhere but dead astern, it will be more than I look for, judging by her log." Below and above now there was a great scurry of activity, all hands preparing to unmoor and make sail; the ebbing tide was lapping softly against the windward side. "Well, we must get about it. Laurence, tonight I must be on deck, I need to take the measure of her; but I hope you will dine with me tomorrow? And you also, of course, Mr. Hammond."
"Captain," Hammond said, "I am not familiar with the ordinary course of a ship's life - I beg your indulgence. Would it be suitable to invite the members of the embassy?"
"Why - " Riley said, astonished, and Laurence could not blame him; it was a bit much to be inviting people to another man's table. But Riley caught himself, and then said, more politely, "Surely, sir, it is for Prince Yongxing to issue such an invitation first."
"We will be in Canton before that happens, in the present state of relations," Hammond said. "No; we must make shifts to engage them, somehow."
Riley offered a little more resistance; but Hammond had taken the bit between his teeth and managed, by a skillful combination of coaxing and deafness to hints, to carry his point. Riley might have struggled longer, but the men were all waiting impatiently for the word to weigh anchor, the tide was going every minute, and at last Hammond ended by saying, "Thank you, sir, for your indulgence; and now I will beg you gentlemen to excuse me. I am a fair enough hand at their script on land, but I imagine it will take me some more time to draft an acceptable invitation aboard ship." With this, he rose and escaped before Riley could retract the