Chapter 29

Although he had serious doubts about the stability of the power supply, Tang Wen still agreed to use the most expensive transformer.

The power bureau was also happy to get rid of that Siemens giant, and the final quote came to just over twenty thousand yuan, with a guarantee of priority power delivery.

In the following days, the power bureau busied itself installing utility poles, and the system would be operational in about a week.

During this time, Tang Yi had nearly finished reviewing all the technical data.

……

"Good news: there are many shipwrecks around us. Bad news: most of them are unrecoverable."

A large nautical chart hung on the wall, with Tang Yi inserting colored pushpins at the locations of the wrecks.

Tang Yi: "Based solely on the information we already have, we can confirm the positions of sixteen shipwrecks.

Including seven warships and nine cargo vessels, with a total displacement exceeding 150,000 tons.

Ten of them lie in international waters at depths over 1,000 meters; three others are stranded near shore—normally, they should have been discovered and dealt with long ago."

"So besides the one near Moon Bay Island, there are only these two places."

Following Tang Yi's finger, two red pushpins entered Tang Wen's field of vision.

One off the coast of Quanzhou, the other near Lu Song at the southernmost tip of the South China Sea.

Lu Song is out of the question—it's already within Lu Song's territorial waters, and the distance exceeds the yacht's range.

Off Quanzhou… it's nearly a thousand nautical miles along the coast; just the journey time is too far.

Of course, Quanzhou is far safer than Dongsha, and we can make port calls for supplies along the way.

There are still two wrecks there—both gunboats abandoned by the bald ones during their retreat, totaling two thousand tons.

But compared to the Oak Tree, they're vastly inferior—longer journey, less steel. The only advantage is almost no risk.

Should we risk it for ten thousand tons of steel?

Since we now know the Taiwan Coast Guard patrols Dongsha, the probability of being spotted and driven off is very high. Tang Wen asked Tang Yi:

"How soon can we find the Oak Tree?"

"There's a way to speed it up—deploy towed sonar units in suspected areas, place up to five, and we can scan the entire zone in no more than five hours. With metal detectors, we'll have results within a day."

Tang Yi's confidence came from the thorough documentation on the Oak Tree—the book recorded the exact route of the operation, and the sinking location was nearly certain.

He could pinpoint the wreck within a three-kilometer area, and searching shouldn't be difficult.

Tang Wen: "If we take the risk, we'll almost certainly encounter the Coast Guard. The Y1 yacht can hit over 30 knots—escape should be no problem, but it might interfere with the search."

Unlike fishing boats, the Y1's speed is more than enough to make a clean getaway; the Coast Guard won't chase far—they'll give up after a while.

Tang Yi said nothing, just stared at Tang Wen.

Until Tang Wen, feeling uneasy under the gaze, finally voiced the unspoken second half:

"Maybe… we could install some defensive firepower."

"First-class warships include cannons ranging from 102mm to 152mm, and plenty of autocannons."

Tang Yi added quickly.

He picked up the hand-drawn Y1 yacht blueprint and pointed at the long, sharp bow deck:

"Beneath the deck is a spacious living compartment—we can install a lift-type storage structure.

The Y1 is sizable. I recommend the 'Lake Erie's' single 152mm MK17 main gun—it's lightweight and compact, needs almost no ballast, and doesn't affect any performance.

Place a 40mm Vickers dual-purpose autocannon on each side of the bridge—also very convenient."

"Of course, if you're still not satisfied, we could try adding a gun at the stern—though the firing arc might be poor."

Tang Wen rubbed his chin, staring at the designated spots on the design—why did it feel like positions had been pre-planned?

But that suited him fine—after all, as commander, he didn't need crew assistance; he could operate all weapons alone.

One 152mm main gun and two 40mm autocannons—should be enough for self-defense, right?

"How long to install the weapons?"

"At most one day. These weapons have no extra structures and aren't heavy."

Tang Wen paused, then made his decision:

"Then prepare to salvage the Oak Tree. Prioritize safety—if we fail, abandon it and head north to Quanzhou!"

……

Three days later.

【Construction Progress: 100%】

Standing inside a dry dock nearly three stories tall, Tang Wen looked up at the freshly painted Y1 yacht.

Unlike the earlier purely virtual shipbuilding, the Y1's construction involved actual equipment and workers—though upon closer inspection, strange anomalies remained, like "materials growing themselves."

Yet the workers remained oblivious, eating, sleeping, and even playing basketball on the open ground as if they'd truly completed their tasks every day.

The Y1 yacht was officially completed, with weapon modifications carried out simultaneously, even adorned with red decorations and given a launching ceremony.

Though its 58-ton displacement sounded small, the actual 20-meter-plus Y1 was longer than a semi-truck, and its overall height of six to seven meters looked imposing.

Its upper section was painted gray anti-rust paint; the bow was a closed design, and the superstructure was low—making it look more like… a torpedo boat?

An odd word popped into Tang Wen's mind, and the more he looked, the more it fit—he turned to Tang Yi, beaming beside him:

"This hull looks like a torpedo boat to me."

"Oh, its prototype was the 1936 Vosper MTB-102 wooden torpedo boat designed for the Royal Navy. I scaled it up and converted it to steel, making minor hull modifications.

Look at the spaces on either side of the bridge—each can fit a 533mm torpedo tube. But first-class warship tech doesn't include torpedoes; you need second-class warship tech for those."

"…."

Whatever. At least it's a yacht now.

Tang Wen pulled out a bottle of champagne (part of naval supplies), smashed it against the bow, then, amid cheers and the crowd's retreat, Tang Yi ordered the dry dock flooded.

As the valves opened, seawater surged in—and even before the dock was half full, the Y1 began to sway.

When empty, its draft was less than one meter; once the water level matched the sea, Y1 had already been floating for quite a while.

Tang Wen, who had long been prepared, walked up the gangway onto the ship and into the crude bridge, and saw that the rough control console had almost nothing on it.

According to Tang Yi's introduction, the left side was for the captain and helmsman, the right side was the sonar operator's post, and the engine room—there was no engine room; the six outboard motors were electric-start.

Tang Wen stood near the helm and gripped the wheel with both hands, and information immediately popped up in his mind:

【You are currently operating warship: Y1 Yacht】

【Captain: Commander Tang Wen (LV0)】

【Status: 3000/3000】

【Defense (3): No protection】

【Firepower (5): Single-mount 152mm 47-caliber MK17 ×1 (range 9.1 km, reload time 6s), 25mm MK7 Vickers autocannon ×2】

【Anti-air (4): 25mm MK7 Vickers autocannon ×2 (range 2.5 km)】

【Accuracy (50): No observation/sighting equipment】

【Maneuverability (80): Maximum speed 34 knots】

【Consumables: None】

【Flag: None】

The various pieces of information about Y1 Yacht entered his mind in a data-formatted way; Tang Wen's senses spread across the entire ship, able to perceive every corner at any time.

He could even clearly know the length of a certain weld seam, and could even feel the spray of water hitting the ship.

At the same time, with a single thought, his field of view suddenly flew up into midair, overlooking Y1 like a game's third-person view, and could move freely within a certain range.

Below his field of view was a control panel just like a game interface, only with many more parameters.

With just a thought from Tang Wen, the long strip-shaped cover in the center of the bow opened to both sides, and a 152mm single-mount gun rose up.

There was a crosshair at the center of his gaze; once it randomly locked onto a distant target, the gun automatically rotated and aimed at the designated position.

The people standing in the bridge could clearly see the single-mount gun—which normally required manual loading, firing, and movement—rotating and adjusting on its own, then the breech opened, a gleaming brass shell was lifted by the Force and stuffed into the barrel, and then the breech closed.

With a deafening boom, an HE high-explosive shell was fired out, and the gun barrel recoiled and then returned under the recoil.

The shell accurately landed 15 meters to the side of where the crosshair pointed, then exploded into a huge spray of water.

This is what 50% accuracy looks like.

Accuracy doesn't equal hit rate, but being able to do this without any sighting equipment is already quite impressive.

This feeling of playing a game in the real world got Tang Wen very hyped; he had originally wanted to try the power of the 25mm autocannon, but suddenly sensed Tang Yi in the bridge shouting something desperately.

He immediately let his consciousness return to his body, and the moment he opened his eyes he saw Tang Yi painfully rubbing his ears.

The others were about the same; seeing Tang Wen wake up, they hurriedly said:

"￥%@&……"

Why are their mouths moving but no sound coming out?

Tang Wen looked puzzled, then with a sharp ringing in his ears realized he had temporarily lost his hearing.

A 152mm 47-caliber gun is a small-caliber gun in the navy, but on land it already counts as division-level heavy firepower.

Army soldiers have to wear ear protection and get into position in advance when firing, to cope with the blast's sound wave.

Warship crews also huddle inside the ship's compartments when firing with prior preparation, so it's actually still okay.

But Y1 Yacht is too small, and the bridge is also too thin to provide any sound insulation; the moment Tang Wen fired the gun, he knocked himself and the others inside into a daze.

It wasn't until getting off the ship and resting for over half an hour that Tang Wen still felt his head buzzing, but he could finally hear sounds.

"Ear protection, where's the ear protection?"

"We didn't take the ear protection out!"

Tang Yi was also dizzy; fortunately there was no blood in his ears, otherwise it would count as a work injury.

"The bridge is open with no door, and it's too thin—almost no defense. Damn it, we at least have to lay down a layer of wooden boards and fill the inside with cotton for noise reduction and sound insulation—why is my throat so dry?"

"Because we've all been shouting when we talk; look, the phone's been shaken by the blast."

"Is that a call coming in, Commander?"

A call?

Tang Wen quickly shook out his ears, and only then heard the landline ringing.

The moment he picked up the receiver, he heard a deep, resonant voice:

"Is this Dawan Town Gaijin Shipyard? We're Fudong Aquatic Products Company."

Fudong Aquatic Products Company?

Tang Wen looked puzzled, then asked:

"Yes, this is Gaijin Shipyard, I'm the owner Tang Wen. How did you get this number?"

"It was listed in the Yellow Pages; I saw it and contacted you."

Tang Wen then remembered that when the post and telecommunications bureau came to install the phone that day, they had mentioned asking whether to list the number in the Yellow Pages of Echeng.

The Yellow Pages is roughly equivalent to the portal websites before the internet age; it collects the phone numbers of major government bodies and enterprises, and anyone in need can directly flip through the Yellow Pages to call and contact them.

A certain Mr. Ma tried putting the Yellow Pages online for his first business venture, went to Jingcheng to pitch it, and nearly got kicked out as a suspected swindler.

The Yellow Pages also gets updated; if a factory or organization subscribes, the post and telecommunications bureau will regularly update and distribute it.

Even so, Tang Wen was still somewhat surprised; after all, Gaijin Shipyard had no reputation at all, and being contacted proactively was truly a rare occurrence.

At this point the other party proactively said:

"My name is Huang Dongfu, I'm the boss of Fudong Aquatic Products. I heard from someone that your shipyard is newly opened and can build a 500-ton ocean-going fishing vessel for 2 million—is that true?"

The moment these words came out, Tang Wen immediately thought of the swarthy old village chief.

Praise the village chief, praise the villagers' guardian spirit!

He had only mentioned it casually, yet the village chief had actually found a way to make contact.

He really did—I'm crying my eyes out.

But Tang Wen, having already learned the normal ship price of this era, did not immediately agree; doing so might backfire, so he said:

"Two million is the price for the hull alone, with no equipment and no engine—do you want it?"

"No engine? How's that possible? And no sonar, fish finder, trawl net, or satellite comms?"

"None."

"Then what's the point of buying? No way, no way."

The male voice on the other end of the phone sounded furious, as if about to hang up immediately.

But Tang Wen was not in a hurry; he waited quietly.

Sure enough, the man did not hang up; after a long pause, he asked as if casually:

"Then how much would it cost if you equipped it with all the gear and installed the engine?"

Tang Wen looked at Tang Yi, who gave him an OK gesture.

"Alright, I'll have our shipyard's chief designer and COO speak with you."

Tang Yi took the phone and immediately said:

"Hello, I'm the COO and Chief Design Director of Gaijin Shipyard. Feel free to ask me any questions."

"C what?"

"COO—Chief Operating Officer. That's the Chief Operating Officer, responsible for managing the entire company in actual operations."

A perfectly authentic British London accent left Huang Dongfu stunned—he wasn't sure if he understood, but repeated his request anyway.

"You want to buy an ocean-going fishing vessel? Let me first recommend a power setup: we have three options—1000 hp, 1500 hp, and 3300 hp—each suited to fishing vessels of 500-ton to 1000-ton capacity.

The 1000 hp domestic power unit is 300,000; the 1500 hp imported power unit is 600,000."

Tang Yi wasn't bluffing—the 1000 hp and 1500 hp units both required dedicated diesel engines; outboard motors wouldn't do.

First, gasoline outboards can't sustain high power output for long; second, their fuel consumption is horrific. Only large diesel units would work.

The distinction between domestic and imported was pure bluffing—don't ask, and if you do, just say imported is better and more expensive.

Back then, everyone still bought into this: domestic diesel engine giants like Weichai, Xichai, and Jichai hadn't yet grown strong, and the marine power market was still dominated by international brands like Steyr and Cummins.