The days on the boat were the calmest Ling Qingyu had experienced since transmigrating.
After transmigrating, a series of upheavals had left Ling Qingyu overwhelmed, and after her mother's death, anger and grief filled her chest.
Although she had transmigrated, her mother in this life was identical to her mother in her previous life, and she had also inherited the original host's memories.
During their time together, even when her mother was gravely ill, she thought daily only of how to make her daughter's life better.
That maternal devotion had long since merged the two mothers in Ling Qingyu's mind, making her view her as her birth mother.
As a result of her own carelessness, her mother had been angered to death.
Ling Qingyu was furious and remorseful, her heart filled only with the desire for revenge.
Holding her breath until now, sitting on the boat, Ling Qingyu had not left her cabin.
Even her meals were brought by Shanyao, and she simply focused on planning.
This made Shanyao like this quiet young lady even more.
One had to know that the boat now carried not only her own Master but also the Sixth Young Master of the main branch, and there were many servant girls on board with designs.
For the past two days, Shanyao had been worried daily that this young lady would make some inappropriate move.
Who knew that this young lady wouldn't even step out of her door, making her task of supervision much easier.
So, when Ling Qingyu followed Zheng Xi off the small dinghy from the aft cabin and bowed deeply again, Shanyao said, "My Master is the newly appointed Chief Official of the Quanzhou Maritime Trade Commission.
You can come to the Fan Manor to find me later."
Ling Qingyu thanked her, "Thank you, Shanyao Sister.
In the future, if there's anything I can help with, please don't hesitate to say so, Shanyao Sister."
She then took out a small silver ingot, placed it in Shanyao's hand, waved, and jumped off the dinghy.
Ling Qingyu held a list of notes, checking off completed items one by one, muttering, "Find a small courtyard to settle down."
She looked up at the courtyard she was in.
The courtyard wasn't large, with just three main rooms, two side rooms, a storage room, and a kitchen.
But there was a large tree in the courtyard, its cloud-like canopy shading most of the courtyard from the scorching sun.
Under the tree was a stone table and four stone stools, and in the western corner of the courtyard was an old well.
The ground was paved with bluestone, making the entire courtyard small but neat and refreshing.
Ling Qingyu nodded with satisfaction, adding one hundred taels after the item, and then continued to read, "Locate the Wind God, inquire about the application process for sea transport permits, check commodity prices, find sailors, purchase goods, draw nautical charts.
Hmm, this has been done."
She spread a silk chart on the table in the courtyard.
She had started drawing this silk chart as soon as she conceived the idea of sea transport.
Based on years of experience sailing, she had drawn a world map, islands, ocean currents, monsoons, and marked latitudes and longitudes.
She also annotated the names of foreign ports she had learned from Zheng Xi and the names from her own memory.
Fearing prying eyes, Ling Qingyu had used pinyin or simplified characters for all her annotations.
Ling Qingyu carefully examined the nautical chart, wondering if there were any omissions, and also thinking that although it was a parallel world, she didn't know if the terrain had changed or if the distribution of other countries was the same.
She didn't notice at all that Zheng Xi had led someone in and had been standing behind her for a long time.
"Is this Master Lin's nautical chart?"
"Ah!"
A sudden, deep voice behind her made Ling Qingyu jump up in fright, rolling up the silk chart (it's really good to use silk instead of paper!).
She shouted, "Who are you, you villain?
My elder brother will be back soon.
You'd best surrender immediately!"
She dodged behind the table, only then seeing a person behind her—no, now in front of her—staring at her with a surprised expression.
"Young lady, this is Boss Ding, the former captain of the Wind God and now from the Houshan Society Shipyard," Zheng Xi said awkwardly, having been standing behind Ding Budong.
"Ding Budong?"
Ling Qingyu looked at the person Zheng Xi had been talking about all the way.
In Zheng Xi's words, this person was an omnipotent, loyal, and righteous great man, capable of ascending to heaven and diving into the sea.
But the person in front of her was less than 170 cm tall, with an upper body as thick as his lower body, and a messy short bun of graying hair.
Only his small eyes gleamed, adding a spirited look to his ageless face.
"Boss Ding, it's a pleasure to meet you," Ling Qingyu habitually extended her hand, then immediately remembered that handshakes were not customary in this era.
She bent at the waist, changing to a curtsy, but before she could complete it, her hand was grabbed by Ding Budong.
Before she could even be surprised, the silk chart in her hand was taken away and spread on the table.
"Can you be a Naval Commander?" Ding Budong glanced at Ling Qingyu, staring at the nautical chart, and asked.
"Naturally, I can," Ling Qingyu said, lifting her head.
A Naval Commander was a modern navigator.
When Ling Qingyu was in college in modern times, she joined a sailing organization and had participated in several amateur round-the-world sailing competitions, serving as a navigator.
Ding Budong looked at the nautical chart, but couldn't help but frown.
Although Lin Shen's nautical charts were closely guarded, Ding Budong had seen one of Lin Shen's charts during a long-distance storm, and it was far less detailed than this one.
Had Lin Shen added more later?
But he had followed all the ships Lin Shen used to sail, and this chart even showed vast areas that Lin Shen's ships had never been to.
"You want to repair the Wind God?" Ding Budong rolled up the nautical chart, returned it to Ling Qingyu, and asked.
"Yes, not only to repair the Wind God, but I also want to invite Boss Ding to sail again," Ling Qingyu paused, recalling Ding Budong's expression when he looked at the chart, and said, "Boss Ding has seen my father's nautical charts before, and should know that my chart has places my father never even visited.
I wonder if Boss Ding still has that ambition?"
Ling Qingyu decided to take a gamble.
Besides herself, no one else could really understand that nautical chart, but Ding Budong's expression showed he understood the general idea.
This person was indeed an old hand.
However, her father had died mysteriously, and Boss Ding had retired a year before her father's accident.
Who knew if there was an inside story?
But for now, she wanted to go to sea, and the best helper she could find was this Ding Budong, whom Zheng Xi described as loyal, righteous, and daring.
"Girl, do you know why your eldest uncle agreed to give you the Wind God and the shipyard?" Ding Budong stared at Ling Qingyu.
Seeing Ling Qingyu ponder for a moment and then shake her head slightly, he said, "Come with me and see the Wind God."
Houshan Society, Quanzhou—this place housed the best shipyards in Quanzhou and even the entire country.
And now, in this completely abandoned small shipyard, with only some trash and debris, a large ship, tilted heavily to one side, was docked at a small pier.
Let's call it a large ship for now.
Its main mast was broken in half, there were large holes on both sides of the hull, the bulkheads were shattered into pieces, and traces of knives, swords, axes, and other sharp weapons were everywhere.
Ling Qingyu couldn't help but sneer, "It was indeed a great storm of blades and blood."
"The Wind God was manned by skilled sailors, all trusted confidantes of Master Lin, and they were all concentrated on the Wind God at that time.
Unless the other party had more than three times their numbers, it would have been impossible to kill everyone on board, girl," Ding Budong glanced at Ling Qingyu and said in a calm voice, "Miss Lin, are you sure you want to resume sea transport?
The money needed to repair this ship would be enough for you to buy several hundred mu of good farmland and marry a good man.
Wouldn't that be better?"
"I originally wanted to live a peaceful life, but the other party didn't even spare my mother.
I'm afraid they won't have any good intentions towards me either," Ling Qingyu gazed at the Wind God, her mind involuntarily imagining the bloody storm on that ship on a night of high winds and waves.
She closed her eyes briefly and said, "Besides, even if I could live a peaceful life, I cannot forget this blood feud.
Lin Family Steward left this Wind God for me to see, nothing more than to remind me that if he could kill my father, what hope do I, a mere young girl, have?"
Ding Budong couldn't help but laugh, "You also know you're a young girl.
What will you use to get revenge on them?
Two years ago, I told Master Lin not to get involved in government affairs.
We're just after wealth, and that's enough.
Your father also wanted to withdraw from this business, but he didn't expect this outcome."
"Is it not just the Lin Family Steward and the Wu Family?"
Ling Qingyu keenly sensed a conspiracy and involuntarily looked at Ding Budong.
Seeing Ding Budong shake his head, unwilling to say more, she knew that given her current situation, Ding Budong's unwillingness to let her delve deeper was out of good intentions.
Her heart warmed, and she said, "Uncle Ding, I know the path of revenge is difficult.
Now I have no power or influence, and I won't do anything beyond my capabilities.
But my father, he started with sea transport and died by sea transport, and I..."
Ling Qingyu lifted her head, looking towards the distant coastline, where seagulls soared over the white waves.
Ling Qingyu wrapped her arms around the sea, saying, "This world is so vast.
I want to see the world my father traveled.
Uncle Ding, please believe me, I will be a Naval Commander greater than my father."
"Ancient wisdom says women cannot board a ship," an old voice sounded from the side.
Seeing Ling Qingyu turn back in surprise, an old man tapped his pipe on a stone, then took a deep puff, blew out a smoke ring, narrowed his eyes in enjoyment, and slowly said, "If a woman boards a ship, it will surely capsize.
Even if you are Lin Shen's daughter, the Sea God will still capsize your ship."
"Old Wu? You're still alive?" Ding Budong exclaimed in surprise.
"I was supposed to die, but before boarding the ship, this old man caught a cold.
The Master took pity on me and let me disembark, which saved my life," the old man looked at Ling Qingyu and said, "Miss, the Master was a good man.
Don't let his line end."
Ling Qingyu quietly asked Zheng Xi, "Who is this?"
Zheng Xi said with a joyful expression, "Wu Da, he built this Wind God.
He's the best shipbuilding Master in Quanzhou."
Ling Qingyu straightened her expression, smoothed her sleeves, and bowed deeply, saying, "Greetings, Grandfather Wu Da."
"No need for such formality.
Your father, Master Lin, showed me great kindness.
I cannot stand by and watch his only descendant go to her death as well," Wu Da glared fiercely at Ding Budong and said gruffly.
Ling Qingyu cleared her throat and said, "Grandfather Wu Da, I heard that this Wind God was originally the fastest sea vessel in Quanzhou."
"Naturally," Wu Da involuntarily lifted his head, as if to say, 'And who do you think built it?'
"I see that the keel and other parts of the Wind God are still good.
How much silver and how much time do you think it would take to repair it?" Ling Qingyu asked with a smile.
"Hmm, if Old Wu were to do it, I think it would take at most a month and a half to repair.
Replacing the main mast and adding the cabin boards, etc., would probably cost at least three thousand taels of silver," Ding Budong said, seeing Wu Da frown and remain silent.
"Women cannot board a ship," Wu Da said, tapping his pipe.
"Grandfather Wu Da, generally 'women' refers to adult women, right?
Look, I haven't even had my first period yet, so I can't be considered a woman.
And no one said children can't board a ship, did they?" Ling Qingyu said with a beaming smile, which startled the three men, making their eyes widen.
Wu Da couldn't help but scrutinize the girl in front of him again.
A long braid hung down her back, her blue dress was clean and neat, and her round, full-moon-like face bore a smile full of sincerity.
Even her freckles and pimples seemed amiable.
He really couldn't imagine what kind of girl could so easily talk about her first period.
Ling Qingyu maintained a smiling face, feeling her face was about to stiffen, when Wu Da said, "After the ship is repaired, Ding Budong can go to sea."
"But we don't have a Naval Commander," Ding Budong said before Ling Qingyu could speak.
How could a woman board a ship?
When Zheng Xi found him, his idea was to find a place to settle this orphaned daughter of the Master, and he would never take her to sea.
But when he saw that nautical chart and the girl's gaze fixed on it, Ding Budong felt something stirring in his heart, and by some strange impulse, he brought Ling Qingyu here.
"If you board the ship, no one will treat you as a woman or a child," Wu Da sighed.
He also knew that for sea travel, the Naval Commander was the most important.
In the vast ocean, once lost, it was a dead end.
A good Naval Commander could greatly increase the survival rate.
Since Ding Budong could approve of this girl, she naturally had her unique qualities, or perhaps Master Lin had held something back.
"I know.
Since I've chosen this path, I haven't considered myself a woman or a child.
Moreover, I have now established my own household.
The Lin Family can kill my father and my brother, but I, Ling Qingyu, will make sure the Ling Family's sea flag flies to the ends of the ocean!" Ling Qingyu smiled like the morning sun, her words ringing with conviction.
Although he still believed that for a young girl, marrying and living off some land was the right path, this young girl had even said such things.
Furthermore, for the revenge of her father's and mother's deaths, this young girl was willing to risk herself on this path of revenge, which earned his admiration to some extent.
Since he couldn't dissuade her, he would use the strength of his old bones.
"If Grandfather Wu Da has no objections, I have a few small suggestions," seeing Wu Da's expression, Ling Qingyu struck while the iron was hot, saying, "When my elder brother came home last time, he mentioned some ideas to me.
If the ship had a foresail and an aft triangular sail, like this, its speed would be much faster.
Then, an iron plough could be added to the front, and the gunwales could be raised."
Ling Qingyu squatted down, picked up a pebble from the ground, and began to draw a picture of a multi-deck ship in the sand.
As her drawing became clearer, Wu Da and Ding Budong both began to focus.
They were both experienced seamen, and after careful consideration, they immediately understood how significant these modifications would be for current sea vessels, and how great an improvement they represented.
Only after sitting in the carriage and pulling down the curtain did Ling Qingyu let out a long sigh, relaxing her body in the seat.
She knew that her behavior was definitely not that of a fifteen-year-old girl, but there was nothing she could do, as she was essentially a woman nearing forty.
Moreover, her personality couldn't feign the appearance of a loli.
Fortunately, Lin Huiniang had been well-protected by her family since childhood, and her father's old subordinates had never met her.
Although they had doubts, for her father's sake, they would still take care of her to some extent.
Furthermore, both Ding Budong and Wu Da were capable people.
She had originally thought that they wouldn't immediately accept the idea of the multi-deck ship, which would only appear centuries later, but to her surprise, they not only accepted it but also seemed to have their own ideas.
This was good too.
Overseas trade had always been the most profitable since ancient times.
Only by accumulating enough wealth could one possibly gain access to power.
Ling Qingyu closed her eyes slightly, carefully considering in her mind how to maximize profits from her route.