Wang Liang nodded: "Of course they will; they were originally transferred from the shipyard."
Thinking of the people still left at the dock, he grew melancholy again, sighing inwardly.
Jiang Jin's eyes lit up. These were true high-end talents; she had been worried about not having people to repair and build ships for her.
Most ships of this era relied on sails and manpower for propulsion, making them slow.
If the wind and currents were favorable, with the added effort of rowing, they could go faster.
But relying on the weather and geography were uncontrollable factors, and naturally insufficient for Jiang Jin.
She couldn't develop an advanced power system in the short term, but a paddle-wheel boat—that is, a boat propelled by revolving paddle wheels, also known as a 'wheel boat'—was still doable.
A 'paddle wheel' consisted of revolving blades continuously propelling through the water.
Not only did it provide continuous thrust, but the treadle-driven axle was more labor-saving, greatly improving efficiency and speed.
Jiang Jin had a plan in mind, but it would need careful consideration.
Come to think of it, Qu Zhao had been quite generous, leaving her so many useful people.
She understood why: although Qu Zhao was not skilled in naval warfare, since the Han people had warships and a navy, they needed to have them too.
"How much do you know about the shipyard situation?" Jiang Jin pressed on.
Wang Liang shook his head, then nodded: "General of the North, that is General Zhu, said when he left that he would take everyone from the shipyard with him. As for the specifics, I don't know."
He lowered his head, recalling the General of the Standard who had stayed behind with them to resist, and the sailors who had sacrificed their lives.
Jiang Jin sighed, once again envious of the First Prince, with all those resources poured into Sizhou.
Time passed quickly, and soon it was evening, with colorful clouds filling the sky.
The sea surface sparkled, the sunset painting it in vibrant hues.
The rowers of the Freedom One ate a hearty evening meal, yet their mood was far from pleasant. No matter how slow they were, they had noticed the problem.
According to the plan, by now they should have returned to Ze'a Commandery.
But here they were, still adrift at sea, with no end to their journey home in sight!
Back on the Freedom One, Jiang Jin looked at the scene before her and said after a moment of thought:
"I understand your difficulties. But we must go to Xunfeng Island. Since things have come to this, you have two choices."
"Either come with us first, and I'll take you back when we return to Ze'a Commandery, or you can join us directly as our sailors."
She spoke this way, but everyone knew that if they returned to Ze'a Commandery now, it would mean certain death. Becoming someone from Gefeng was their only path.
Xie Nanxiao snorted coldly: "There's one more option. You could go back right now. We'll let you off the ship right away. We have our own crew anyway."
The rowers' hearts skipped a beat.
Go back?
Swim back?
It was also the first time they learned of their true destination.
That is, the Jinyang Army had indeed broken their agreed-upon itinerary and changed course.
Did that mean they were now prisoners?
No wonder the helmsman had repeatedly told them to obey his orders; he had long seen the Jinyang Army's intentions.
Thinking of the helmsman, they recalled that Gan Ren and his second-in-command had not appeared for a long time.
Could they already have been killed?
The rowers shivered, feeling even colder under the sea breeze of dusk.
Jiang Jin waved a hand and said to Xie Nanxiao: "To each their own, that's all."
Her gentle part played, it was time for Xie Nanxiao to take the harsh role. His eyes cold, he suggested:
"Lord, these people must resent us. Why not throw them all into the sea to feed the fish? It'll save us some rations."
The rowers' hearts pounded violently as they quickly pledged: "No, no, we have no resentment! We're just... just worried about our families back home."
Jiang Jin sighed: "If you genuinely stay, you can tell me about your family situations, and we'll do our best to bring your families to Gefeng."
The rowers exchanged glances. After a long moment, someone asked tremblingly: "Are you serious?"
To tell the truth, they, as rowers, were at the bottom of the heap, often bullied and oppressed in daily life. They held no great loyalty to the noble families; it was merely a choice of last resort.
So they didn't have much objection to becoming people of Gefeng or Ze'a Commandery.
If Gefeng could keep them well-fed, they would be quite willing.
Jiang Jin nodded and gave her assurance: "That's right. If you join us as sailors, you'll get room and board, plus 200 copper coins a month."
The rowers' breath caught. Room and board and 200 copper coins!
"Oh, and by the way, in our Gefeng, fine grain is about 400 copper coins a bushel now; coarse grain is even cheaper."
The rowers let out hushed exclamations: "400 copper coins for a bushel of fine grain?"
They had always thought Ze'a Commandery was the best, with fine grain at 950 copper coins a bushel.
The noble families had always told them that elsewhere, grain prices were as high as 1,500 copper coins a bushel, and that people couldn't even buy it, claiming the families were considerate by setting prices so low.
Jiang Jin nodded: "Exactly. Vegetables like cabbage and radish that you're eating now cost just one copper coin for two or three catties."
The rowers grew even more excited. Such delicious food was that cheap? Two hundred copper coins could buy several hundred catties—much better than coarse grain.
Jiang Jin continued: "If you don't want to be sailors, that's fine too. After this period, you can come to Gefeng as ordinary citizens."
Someone couldn't help asking: "If we don't join as sailors and go to Gefeng, can we still get room and board?"
Jiang Jin shook her head: "No, you can't. But you are all young and robust, and it's easy to find work. Earning around 200 copper coins a month shouldn't be hard, but it won't include room and board."
Even without room and board, given the grain prices in Gefeng, their lives would be far better than in Ze'a Commandery.
Immediately, someone asked: "Are you still hiring? I want to bring my maternal grandparents' family to Gefeng too. Is that possible?"
Jiang Jin: "..."
She sighed to herself. The people's lives were so hard that they readily believed her, didn't they?
What she didn't know was that the rowers weren't easily trusting her.
Rather, some practices of Ze'a Commandery had chilled their hearts to the bone. They all knew about the infected plague victims.
Putting themselves in those victims' shoes, if they were infected with the plague, forced to die in a most desperate and tragic way, driven by arrows to attack Qu Zhao's people—how cruel would that be?
They didn't know the infected people had gone to Gefeng; they assumed they had been sent to kill Qu Zhao's people and died horribly.
This was just one of the many actions by Ze'a Commandery's noble families—along with oppression, conscription, and so on.
Staying in Ze'a Commandery was their helpless choice.
Now a place like Gefeng presented itself, offering such favorable conditions. Their already-cold hearts naturally leaned toward Gefeng.
Jiang Jin nodded: "Alright. Once we reach Xunfeng Island, give me your family lists, and I'll figure something out by then."
The rowers cheered, completely forgetting they were prisoners, and showered Jiang Jin with thanks.
Jiang Jin felt pleased. She had gained another batch of able-bodied young men.
Xie Nanxiao found it a bit hard to watch. The common people's lives were too bitter; even the slightest sweetness made them overjoyed and grateful.
At the Ze'a Commandery dock, however, chaos reigned.
Sheng He had been waiting with eager anticipation, yet his two ships never returned. He only felt a sharp pain in his heart, as though he might cough up blood—he had been toyed with by Princess Jinyang once again!
Burning with rage, he charged toward Princess Jinyang’s military camp, determined to demand an explanation.
