Chapter 36: Buying a Ship (Part 1) Requesting Collection

  After leaving the dock, walk north along the spacious and prosperous trade street district until you reach the end of the street, which is the famous Xixi Shipbuilding District.

  From a distance, Tang Jie could smell the scent of wood shavings and paint wafting through the air. Everywhere, half-naked workers were crawling on the wooden frames of the ships, hammering away with a clang-clang-clang sound, driving rivets into the frame one by one.

  Near Tanger's side, some long wooden boards that had been planed into arc shapes were piled high on a wooden cart with wheels, and the sailors in front used thick and long ropes to shout and chant slogans, pulling them into huge factory sheds one by one. They would be assembled into ships that could withstand wind and waves under the hands of skilled craftsmen.

  "Ah, two gentlemen from afar, are you looking to buy a boat?" A short and stout merchant came up, beaming with smiles.

  Tang Jie smiled and asked in return: "How did you know we came from afar?"

  "Look what you're saying, this place, Xixis, everyone who comes here is a renowned traveler! Just look at the nearest port to us, their ships can't compare to ours. Darmouth? Ha ha, those people from York County can only build sailboards! The Imperial City? Ha, those noble lords aren't building ships, they're building sea palaces! Have you ever seen a palace that floats on water without sinking? And as for Kilton, oh my god, in the name of the sea goddess Tira, please don't tell me they're also shipbuilders, we Xixis people are ashamed to be associated with such shipbuilders!"

  The fat man said with a red face and saliva flying everywhere: "Take a look at our ships, whether you want a two-masted or three-masted sea ship, we can pick out the best one that suits you! And the price is absolutely fair, no cheating of old and young! Take a look at that two-masted Flying Fish-class sea ship, the hull is ten meters long, three meters high, and the keel is made of the finest white birch wood, just transporting these white birches from the distant Noah's continent is worth your gold coins! Don't you want to knock on it a couple of times? Feel the texture of this hard wood?"

  Old Barl tossed a gold coin into Pudding's chest, interrupting his endless self-boasting: "Alright, put away your repetitive speeches and take us to see your port. Who doesn't know that you Sisians can blow life into the dead?"

  Fat boy quickly put away the gold coin, he knew that he had met a generous patron today and became even more spirited.

  He turned around, only to see a team of workers dragging wood passing by their side. He waved his hand and shouted loudly: "You bunch of useless things, yesterday on the belly of your mothers, it wasn't such a sickly look! Take out the strength you used to drink milk and quickly move this pile of stuff for me!"

  The workers looked up to see that the speaker was Darius, a notorious and cunning merchant from Sicyon. They burst out laughing in response: "Darius, have you found another sucker today? Don't forget to share some of your loot with us, instead of giving it all to your mistress!"

  Darius's face turned red with rage, and he jumped up and down, shouting loudly at the top of his voice, while these workers' wages were not paid by Darius, so they had no qualms about laughing and scolding him back.

  All I saw was a dock at this factory, with a burst of spitting and lively atmosphere.

  Tang Jie's mouth was wide open as he looked at these scenes with a mixture of shock and amusement, all of which were absolutely impossible for him to encounter before.

  Old Ba Er laughed and said, "Surprised, aren't you? People who make a living on the sea are mostly rough men. Even if a man is very gentle, after dealing with the vast ocean for a long time, he will become a bold and real man. By the way, after buying the boat, you can go to the bar at the harbor to find some sailors. Your boat can't be sailed by just one captain!"

  Tang Jie took the opportunity to strike the snake and said with a smile: "Captain Bar, you should at least send me a few familiar hands, shouldn't you? Can't let me be on that ship without a single familiar face?"

  Lao Ba pointed at Tang Jie and laughed loudly: "You really should become a businessman!"

  As soon as Darius saw the workers dragging the wood away, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and turned around with a big smile on his face to say to Ball and Tongjie: "You two gentlemen mustn't take their words to heart. I, Darius, am known for being honest and considerate of our guests!"

  Just as he was about to brag again, Tang Jie slapped him on the shoulder and pinched this fat man with a full brain and intestines, making him grimace: "Stop talking nonsense, whether it's a mule or a horse, take it out for a spin! Take us to see your boat!"

  At the rear of the factory is a non-commercial dock for launching ships, and all the ships berthed here are ocean-going vessels produced by Xixi itself that have not yet been sold.

  Tang Jie took a glance and saw that every docked position had a sleek sea ship standing upright, the merchants of Xixi hired a large number of people to polish these sea ships every day, making their ships look shiny and impressive.

  Old Barlow whispered to Tangie about the habits of the Xixis people, and Tangie sneered: "It seems that the Xixis people understand the importance of image engineering, but why don't they consider polishing their rough and dark skin as well?"

  "Look, this brigantine has four sailors' quarters in total, each of which can accommodate fifteen sailors. It also comes with storage rooms, a galley, a kitchen, an infirmary, and the captain's quarters, as well as the most luxurious and grandiose cabins for the captain and first mate." Darius rattled off the details quickly, like he was listing off his family treasures to Tong Jie and Old Bar. He shook his head with excitement, looking pleased with himself. "If you'd like, we can turn your captain's quarters into a VIP suite just for you!"

  "What about the cannons? Why doesn't it have a gunport?" Tang Jie looked up, standing under a twin-masted Flying Fish-class sea vessel, and asked in surprise.

  Darius's smile faltered: "Honorable sir, this is a merchant ship... it's not a warship!"

  But before the words had fallen, his eyes darted rapidly around the room: "Of course, if you want your sea vessel to be more powerful and inviolable, we can modify your storage room and sailors' quarters to turn it into a commercial... uh, warship..."

  "Of course, we will charge a small modification fee, on the original price of this ship, at a rate of 20%," Darius said with an expression that reminded Tong Jie of a fox.

  He is still a fat-headed fox.

  "How much is it?" Tang Jie asked casually with a disinterested expression.

  Darius's eyes rolled around, and he stretched out two fat fingers: "Four thousand gold coins, plus a twenty percent renovation fee, that's a total of four thousand eight hundred gold coins!"

  Tang Jie nodded, not knowing the value of firewood and rice. He had no concept of these numbers at all. His first impression was quite satisfied with this double-masted Flying Fish-class sea ship in front of him, but Old Bar was smiling knowingly, pointing to a nearby moored sea ship and saying: "What about that one?"

  Darius turned his head and looked in the direction of Old Bar's pointing, and whistled: "Sir, your eyes are really good! That is our newly launched three-masted Lion Eagle class sea ship! Look at it, the hull is 22 meters long, not counting the height of the main mast, it has already reached a height of four meters. When it is fully loaded with cargo, its draft is 1.2 meters, and its displacement is 150 tons. With favorable winds and full sails, its maximum speed can reach 6 knots! Believe me, among sea ships of the same class, there is no ship that runs faster than it!"

  "Gentlemen, what are you hesitating about? Look at this three-masted Lion-class ship in front of you. My goodness, just look at its majestic appearance! If you're willing, I can completely refit it into a warship with forty muzzle-loading cannons! You'll be sailing the seas in style, and if you show off your densely-packed gunports, haha, even the pirate king Atos will give you a wide berth! And if you can sail this ship into any port, those dockside whores will scream for you! Of course, I'm sure two gentlemen merchants like yourselves wouldn't need such a warship... would you?" Daliurus said, his eyes gleaming with an unnatural light, as if he was staring at a pile of gold coins beckoning him.

  Tang Jie didn't listen carefully to Darius' self-boasting, he walked up to this three-masted Lion-class warship, looked up at it with his head raised, and felt an overwhelming surge of emotions that he couldn't suppress.

  Tang Jie stood in front of the sea boat and found himself small like a yellow flower fish compared to an elephant. He raised his head to look at the towering main mast and foremast, the high top of the mast seemed to be high into the clouds, making people's necks slightly sore.

  Before that, when he was on the Flying Fish, Tanger thought Hell's Gate was already a fairly large sea vessel.

  At this time, seeing the three-masted Lion-class sea ship, Tang Jie felt that the two-masted Flying Fish-class sea ship was simply like a graduate student in front of a doctoral student!

  Tang Jie walked up the gangway and onto the deck of the ship, his eyes shining with an unprecedented light. His palms gently stroked the wooden railing of the sea vessel, feeling the smooth texture that was like a woman's skin as soft as silk. The beautiful curves of the ship were just like the elegant figure of a woman, every inch of her skin almost intoxicating Tang Jie.

  The ship had just been launched, and although the workers at the dockyard had already installed its sails, they hadn't been raised yet. Instead, the workers had tightly bound them to the mast with sturdy hemp ropes, making the mast look bare and unattractive. But in Tang Jie's eyes, the three lonely masts seemed to be accumulating power, and the bound-up sails were waiting for their true master to untie the ropes, then, on the vast and endless ocean, they would unfold their most magnificent appearance, braving the fierce sea winds, and set sail for distant horizons!

  Such a ship, it will soon belong to me...

  I'm going to own such a big ship, can I control it?

  Tang Jie's chest was surging with hot blood, and his heart was pounding violently.

  In the world before his transmigration, he was just an ordinary university student, except for being good at fighting and martial arts, he had almost no difference with others.

  Now he has come to this world, and in just a short month's time, his name is already spreading across the seas. What's more, he will soon have a three-masted Lionheart-class sea vessel!

  This is the sea boat that Old Bar never had in his life!

  Everything is like a dream!

  Lao Ba smiled and gazed at Tang Jie, looking at the young man with black hair in front of him with a deep sense of emotion.

  I remember when I first owned my own seafaring vessel, my expression and demeanor were just like his - enchanted and infatuated, gazing at my very first ship as if it were my first love.

  The big-bearded man smiled and didn't disturb Tang Jie, but turned his head to ask Dalierus: "How much is this ship?"

  Darius's eyeballs rolled around, and he quickly calculated in his mind what price he should open with, so that he could make the biggest profit without scaring away these two buyers.

  He hesitated for a moment, then stretched out one finger, pretending to be deeply hurt: "Ten thousand gold coins? This price can't even make a copper coin in any place in Xixi, what do you think?"

  "What, ten thousand gold coins?"

  Lao Ba hadn't even had a chance to speak when he suddenly heard Tang Jie let out a shocked shout from behind him.

  He heard Nia say that a twin-masted Flying Fish-class sea ship, which had been carefully modified like the Hell's Number, was worth only over 4,000 gold coins. This three-masted Lion Griffin-class sea ship, although it was larger in scale than the Twin-Masted Flying Fish-class and had better navigation performance, was worth only a little more than 8,000 gold coins. For someone like this fat merchant, that's really a lion's mouthful!

  Just woke up and updated.

  Rockets won the game today, they beat the Jazz, hahaha!

  Let's celebrate together by throwing flowers, hehehe...

  What if an immortal soul of a master hunter were to enter another realm?