Chapter 633: Words on the Deck

In the pristine environment of the Nanhai, the azure sky was washed clean, white clouds like gossamer, the sunlight bright and beautiful.

Looking down, one saw the clear ocean currents unique to tropical waters. The tender green seabed refracted rainbow-hued light, and multicolored sea fish darted among the red coral thickets — a scene of extraordinary beauty.

The next moment, the eyesore arrived.

With a "Ptooey," someone spat into the sea.

Utterly oblivious to his own appalling manners, Wu Sanye wiped the corner of his mouth and, as if nothing had happened, stuffed a new-style celluloid cigarette holder into his mouth.

He took a few precious, fierce drags until the cigarette burned out and Sanye inhaled an acrid plastic taste, only then realizing the cheap celluloid holder had already scorched and was unusable.

After cursing the counterfeit goods from the Xinqu Shipai Village Commodity Market in his hometown dialect, Wu Sanye flicked the holder into the clear seawater, inaugurating a new chapter in mankind's pollution of the ocean.

It was already the 10th day since departure.

The voyage before this had been fairly smooth. In the Nanhai during November, the probability of encountering storms was not high. Departing from Saigon, the fleet slowed its speed to adapt to local sea conditions, meandering along while conducting surveys the entire way, creeping southward at 4 knots by day and 2 knots by night.

Thus, a sea journey of 500 kilometers took a full ten days of dawdling. Only this morning did the fleet enter the Nansha waters from the north.

The sea conditions in the Nansha Islands area are complex. According to later-era statistics, this stretch of sea contains over 200 islands, sandbars, submerged reefs, submerged shoals, and submerged banks.

However, in the seventeenth century, that number was most likely inaccurate. No one knew how many submerged reefs and shoals existed here centuries ago, where exactly they were located, or how much they had shifted compared to later times.

Thus, upon reaching the outer edge of Nansha, the ships dropped anchor directly in a large lagoon area, not rushing to enter the interior of the island group. This was also why everyone could admire the shallow-water scenery in the depths of the ocean, though most of the fleet had long since become immune to it — having traveled all the way from the Great Ming, they had seen such sights far too many times.

One could only say that the fleet's anchoring and temporary halt gave Wu Sanye and his lot a chance to leave their cabins for some air and wreak havoc on the environment.

"Sanye, have one of mine!"

No sooner had Wu Sanye tossed away the holder than some quick-witted underling was offering goods to the boss.

"Mm, not bad, Biandan's made progress!"

The one offering the cigarette and speaking was He Biandan.

He Biandan, that eternally hungry porter, was now doing quite well for himself in the Pioneer Army.

Eating one's fill and eating well were minor matters. Through several previous missions and battles against various bandits, He Biandan's reputation had already spread far and wide. Now, many within the Pioneer Army knew that Wu Sanye had an eight-chi-tall fierce man under his command who charged into the thick of battle.

Of course, people all love heroic tales. As for the era-defying protective gear He Biandan wore every time he plunged into the fray, no one mentioned it.

Seeing Sanye's smug leadership posturing, someone nearby couldn't help but start making snide remarks: "Biandan, you blind fool, only now thinking to suck up when you see Sanye's been promoted? Too late!"

The speaker was Yusheng Shaoye.

Huang Yusheng, the former young master of a provincial landowning family, was now much sturdier. He sported a three-millimeter buzz cut, wore a denim shirt, and leaned with folded arms against the starboard side, a smiling expression on his face.

Yusheng Shaoye was not wrong — Wu Sanye had indeed been promoted.

On the very first day after the pioneer fleet set out, at an on-deck operations meeting attended by all squad leaders, Sanye had been personally appointed by the meeting's presiding big shot, Wang Bo, as Pioneer Army Squadron Leader and Deputy Landing Commander.

This Squadron Leader title carried immense weight, already placing him within the Pioneer Army's senior command echelon.

Because the Pioneer Army's organizational structure was rather loose, Sanye, as a Squadron Leader, had the authority, in the absence of a transmigrator superior, to command all local Pioneer Army forces, regardless of whether their total number was 200 or 500.

Hearing Yusheng Shaoye's teasing, He Biandan chuckled apologetically and pulled another rolled cigarette from his bamboo case, offering it: "Scholar Big Bro, I've always admired you the most."

"Mm-hm."

Yusheng took Biandan's cigarette and seemed to stop being sarcastic. However, as the team's Adviser, he had plenty to say today.

After thinking for a moment, Yusheng spoke again, pensively and deliberately: "Traveling thousands of miles to this damned Zhenghe Island, Big Bro, I fear this official post won't be easy to hold!"

After Yusheng said this, the atmosphere suddenly grew a bit quiet.

The reason the topic had suddenly turned somber was, in fact, the other, less conspicuous title Wu Sanye had received upon promotion: Deputy Landing Commander.

The so-called Deputy Landing Commander, in plain terms, was the Pit Master — the commander responsible for permanently garrisoning the bridgehead.

Far away in nameless seas, Zhenghe Island, which everyone had only seen on a map, was nothing like the Hongji Coal Mine in Vietnam, close at hand to the Great Ming. Garrisoning a place at the very ends of the earth, should anything happen, there would truly be no one to call and no earth-spirit to answer — they would have to stake their lives entirely on their own.

Everyone knew the danger of this job. So over the past couple of days, while everyone had seemed to be cheerfully congratulating Big Bro on his promotion, inwardly they were all a bit uneasy.

"Ha!"

Sanye, who had remained silent until now, probably felt it necessary to give his brothers a proper talk. The next moment, he responded frankly: "Shaoye jests — it was never easy to begin with."

"This official post under Grand Commandant Cao is no appointment for those good-for-nothings at court. If it weren't for the fact that I, Lao Wu, have some blood and courage, and have you life-and-death brothers backing me up, would Lord Wang have handed down this official hat?"

As soon as Sanye spoke these two sentences, the brothers immediately perked up: Right, Sanye's official hat was earned through the hard work and support of us brothers!

"Everyone knows our Pioneer Army was formed precisely to seize the land of the savages. Now, with military law so strict, even without this official hat, we brothers would still have to go to Zhenghe Island sooner or later. Since we all submitted our names and boarded Grand Commandant Cao's ship back then, there's no regret medicine to take today."

"Brothers, is your old brother's reasoning fair?"

Seeing his brothers nod one after another, Wu Sanye clapped his hands with a chuckle: "Stick your neck out, it's one blade; pull it back, it's one blade too. But I got a Squadron Leader title thrown in for free — you tell me, is that a gain or a loss?"

Once Sanye had broken down and thoroughly explained the logic, the brothers understood.

Seeing the excited gleam emerging in everyone's eyes, Sanye knew it was time to offer the benefits: "We brothers have known each other since our days in the Yizhou territory, and by now our bond is one forged in life and death. I, Wu Meng, lay my words down here today: Brothers, keep backing me, Lao Wu, as before, and once we're ashore, I, as Squadron Leader, will surely watch over every one of you brothers carefully in the days to come!"

At this point, Wu Sanye narrowed his eyes, bent his waist, and lowered his voice: "Know what Lord Wang privately promised me that day?"

A pile of heads leaned in close.

"The Daren told me in private: 'Wu Meng, the Grand Commandant has his eyes fixed tight on this Zhenghe Island too! Guard that bridgehead well for me, and it'll count as expanding our frontier. A legacy of wealth and rank for your family line will not be lacking in the future.'"

At this point in his story, Sanye extended three fingers and continued mimicking the Daren's tone: "Three years — just hold out through the hardest three years. When the time comes, with your merits earned, I'll personally handle the paperwork and convert your compensation into shares in Zhangsu Port. Do you know how many silver yuan a single square meter in Zhangsu Port goes for now?"

By this point, Sanye was already grinning from ear to ear. He slapped his thigh vigorously, pointed at the bunch of underlings before him, and his hometown dialect burst out: "You bunch of scoundrels, stick with me, and you'll end up living it up in style!"

Hearing that they only needed to hold firm for three years before they could go and squander money in the legendary Shanghai Bund, the core underlings instantly surged with fervor, all declaring their intent to follow Big Bro and make something great of themselves.

And just at that moment, several booming cannon salutes resounding from the distant sea surface drew a perfect full stop to Sanye's heroic declarations: a sleek-lined, swift sailing ship appeared in everyone's field of vision.

The survey ship "Yuan Dou" was the very first survey ship to be named. To date, the Yuan Dou had been upgraded to its fourth generation.

This newest generation Yuan Dou was a shallow-draft, specialized survey vessel. It was equipped with advanced sonar and radar, and even had a computerized mapping and recording system — a paragon of fighting without martial ethics, one might say.

The reason the pioneer fleet had dropped anchor in the lagoon was precisely to await the Yuan Dou's arrival.

In fact, as early as a month ago, the Yuan Dou had been ordered to the Nansha waters to carry out surveying operations.

After the two sides rendezvoused today, the Yuan Dou soon anchored near the fleet's flagship. Following that, a boat carried several figures who had climbed down a rope ladder onto the Yuan Dou.

After this, the fleet first conducted a round of resupply for the Yuan Dou. Various ships then dispatched boats, hoisting supplies and shuttling back and forth in transport.

By dusk, the squad leaders who had received orders gathered once more on the flagship's deck for a situation briefing.

In the end, Wu Sanye returned from the meeting and told everyone: the road ahead is now clear; we move out tomorrow.

Early the next morning, as a signal cannon boomed, the fleet weighed anchor.

After this departure, Commander Sha Zhengming ordered the entire group to adjust to low speed. All ships formed a single column, with the Yuan Dou as the navigator, and plunged straight into the depths of Nansha.

The entire way, the column slowly followed behind the Yuan Dou, cautiously rounding various danger zones, and from time to time had to stop for repairs and to survey the route.

With the rough route the Yuan Dou had scouted in advance, no major setbacks occurred along the way. The advanced technology, surpassing the era, provided assurance, allowing the fleet to evade countless hidden reefs and shoals.

Navigating with such care, a sea journey of less than 500 kilometers was arduously stretched over another five days. It was not until November 10th that the pioneering fleet finally passed through the Nansha Islands, familiar to later generations, and spotted that strip of yellow-green land on the horizon.

Even in later generations, Balabac Island, near the equatorial heat and dampness zone, is the best-preserved island of primitive ecology in South Asia. Let alone now, in the seventeenth century. The western section of the island where the fleet finally arrived was entirely a scene of primordial tropical landscape.

This kind of tropical dense forest terrain is wonderful for sightseeing. However, in the eyes of those on the fleet who possessed telescopes, this place was nothing short of hell — densely packed primitive tropical plants occupied every inch of the island's land, far exceeding the density of the Vietnamese coast they had stayed at previously.

At the thought of having to clear plantations and mines in this kind of environment in the future, every transmigrator currently aboard the fleet felt their scalp tingle.