Chapter 23
The saga of "Flowers in the Mirror" ended with the tragic demise of Consort Wang and the stunning beauty of Cui Yunxi. Cui Yunshu's business empire, far from being harmed by this direct suppression from the palace, became even more firmly rooted and flourished due to the "legendary" connection between her and the Crown Prince that was widely discussed.
However, standing atop the highest pavilion of Qing Shu Courtyard, overlooking the bustling capital city that had been transformed by her, Cui Yun Shu felt a lingering chill in her heart.
She won every battle, whether it was the business strife against the Second Prince or the palace intrigue with Consort Wang. Her wealth snowballed, and her influence far exceeded what a "princess" should be. But she knew better than anyone that all this prosperity was built on sand.
Her business empire, however vast, grew within the territory of the Qin Dynasty and was exposed to the ever-watchful eyes of the imperial power. Today, the emperor might laugh off her "outrageous" behavior out of admiration for her intelligence; tomorrow, he might wield the sword out of fear of her wealth.
A ruler's heart is unfathomable; the wrath of an emperor can leave millions dead.
As long as she and her family remain on this land, they can never truly escape the shackles called "fate." Everything she does—the money and food she hoards, the connections she builds—is merely adding some flimsy ballast to that giant ship that could capsize at any moment.
She needed a real way out. A way to completely escape this game, a way to get out of the reach of imperial power... the ultimate escape route.
Her gaze passed over the layers of rooftops and landed on the distant, azure east.
The sea.
Only that vast, boundless deep blue, full of unknowns and opportunities, is where her true hope lies.
An incredibly bold, even insane, plan gradually took shape in her mind.
She wanted to build ships and assemble her own ocean-going fleet. She would use her advanced nautical knowledge to explore new trade routes and search for those legendary, unknown continents teeming with gold.
This is her "Noah's Ark" plan.
To realize this plan, she needs a strong, reliable ally with military background to clear the most critical obstacles for her.
Tang Pu, the young prince of the Prince of Anjun's mansion.
The name naturally came to mind.
[Male protagonist's perspective]
Tang Pu met Cui Yunshu again in a private room on the top floor of the "Yunjian Pavilion".
Since the last "alliance," he has become a regular here. Under the guise of discussing "cooperation," he comes here almost every three to five days, but in reality, he comes to observe his "prey" and wait for her next move.
He watched as she effortlessly thwarted the Second Prince's meticulously planned economic blockade; he watched as she cleverly used her sister Cui Yunxi's connections to defuse pressure from the inner palace. Every move she made was precise, ruthless, and brimming with unbelievable imagination.
The more he observed, the more alarmed he became, and the more excited he became...
He was almost certain that he was standing on the eve of a momentous upheaval. And the seemingly delicate young girl before him was the chief architect of this transformation.
Today, Cui Yunshu dismissed all the servants, leaving only the two of them in the private room. Instead of discussing accounts or anecdotes from the capital as usual, she went straight to the point, presenting him with a plan that made his heart stop beating.
“Young Prince,” Cui Yunshu’s eyes shone brightly in the candlelight, “I want to… assemble our own ocean-going fleet.”
Tang Pu's hand, which was gripping the teacup, suddenly tightened.
“I want to open up a completely new overseas trade route that doesn’t go through any government post stations,” Cui Yunshu continued, her voice full of seductive power, “to find the legendary ‘golden route’ that can bring endless wealth.”
Ocean-going fleet!
Golden Route!
A thunderous roar erupted in Tang Pu's mind!
Here she comes! She's finally going to show her true fangs!
He remained outwardly calm, merely raising an eyebrow slightly and feigning surprise, saying, "The princess's appetite is truly enormous. While overseas trade may be highly profitable, the risks are even greater. Pirates and Japanese pirates are treacherous, and the odds of death are nine out of ten. Moreover, the cost of assembling a fleet capable of long voyages would be so immense that it would likely cripple the national treasury. This is hardly a worthwhile business."
He knew that the difficulties he mentioned would be insurmountable obstacles for a true businesswoman, enough to deter her. But for a traitor with grand ambitions, these were merely insignificant hurdles that had to be overcome.
As expected, Cui Yunshu simply smiled faintly upon hearing this: "Risk and reward have always gone hand in hand. As for the technical and financial issues that the young prince is worried about, Yunshu has her own solutions."
"oh?"
"Money, 'Yunjian Pavilion' and the properties under my name are more than enough to support us." Cui Yunshu's tone was full of confidence. "As for ships... I have a few ancestral blueprints for 'treasure ships' that are unknown to others. Their sturdiness and speed are far superior to any official or merchant ship today."
Blueprints passed down from ancestors?
Tang Pu sneered inwardly; he didn't believe such nonsense. This was clearly a trump card that the Crown Prince's faction had been secretly accumulating for years!
Looking into Cui Yunshu's clear and determined eyes, his inner suspicions almost became reality at that moment.
A private navy with top-notch technology, independent of the imperial court, and with abundant financial resources...
This is no ordinary caravan! This is clearly an elite force that can be used at any time to transport troops, blockade the coast, and even, in the event of a major failure, preserve the cause for its lord and retreat overseas to attempt a comeback...
The "golden route" she mentioned is probably not a trade route at all, but rather... a secret base they had booked overseas!
At that moment, Tang Pu felt his blood boiling. He felt a thrilling excitement at being able to participate in such a grand and meticulous "great undertaking".
He finally understood that he hadn't misjudged her. The girl before him was the one he had been searching for, the one who could stand shoulder to shoulder with him on this perilous journey... a kindred spirit!
"Alright." He put down his teacup, his voice tinged with a hoarseness and excitement that he himself was unaware of. "With such boldness from the princess, it would seem petty of me to hesitate any longer. Tell me, what do you need me to do?"
His quick agreement surprised Cui Yunshu. She had thought she would have to use more persuasion, perhaps even offering substantial rewards, to convince him.
She didn't know that, in her eyes, this was the beginning of a business adventure; but in Tang Pu's eyes, it was a historic moment when their "rebellion" officially moved from land to sea.
“I need two things,” Cui Yunshu said in a deep voice, “an absolutely reliable and highly skilled shipbuilding master. And… an absolutely secret shipbuilding base that can avoid all government surveillance.”
"What's so difficult about that?" Tang Pu smiled, a smile that carried a confident air of complete control.
[On the shores of the East China Sea, in an unnamed bay]
A few days later, Tang Pu personally led Cui Yunshu, riding at full speed, to a secluded bay a hundred miles east of Dengzhou Prefecture.
This place is deserted, surrounded by mountains on three sides, with its only entrance hidden by dense primeval forest. The bay is calm, deep, and wide, making it a natural and excellent deep-water harbor. Most importantly, this place is far from official roads and is not even marked on maps; it is a highly secretive place that even the most knowledgeable local fishermen would not set foot in.
"How is it here?" Tang Pu asked Cui Yunshu, who was dressed in a tight-fitting outfit and looked travel-worn, pointing to the bay.
Looking at the bay before her, which resembled a paradise, Cui Yunshu's eyes were filled with amazement and satisfaction. She knew that simply finding such a place was enough to prove the effort Tang Pu had put in.
“Excellent,” she exclaimed sincerely.
"I've brought the person with me too." Tang Pu gestured with his chin toward a thatched hut not far away.
An old man with white hair and beard, but still robust in build, emerged from the thatched hut. He was dressed in coarse cloth, carrying a gourd of wine in his hand, his eyes cloudy, and his face full of impatience.
"Young Tang, what are you doing bothering this old man again? I've already told you, I've already stopped building ships and I'm no longer building anything!" The old man's voice was as loud as the waves behind him.
“Master Lu, please don’t be so quick to refuse.” Tang Pu stepped forward with a smile and introduced Cui Yunshu to him. “Today, I have brought you a ‘gift’ that you cannot refuse.”
As he spoke, he took out a roll of parchment from his pocket and handed it over.
That was a structural diagram of a modified "Fujian ship" drawn by Cui Yunshu herself based on her memories from her previous life. On the drawing, watertight compartments, rigid sails, a liftable center plate, a balanced rudder... all kinds of ingenious designs far beyond the understanding of this era were clearly marked.
The old man, known as "Master Lu", was initially disdainful, but the moment his gaze fell on the blueprint, his turbid eyes suddenly flashed with a terrifying light [2].
He snatched the blueprints, his hands trembling as he unfolded them, muttering to himself, "A masterpiece... truly a masterpiece! This... this watertight compartment design... and this balancing rudder... who? Who could have come up with such an ingenious design?!"
He was once the top shipbuilding master of the Ministry of Works of the Qin Dynasty. Dissatisfied with the infighting among officials in the court, he resigned in anger and lived in seclusion here for nearly twenty years. He was obsessed with shipbuilding all his life and thought his skills had reached the pinnacle. But seeing this blueprint today, he realized that he was just a frog in a well.
“Master, this blueprint is just the beginning.” Cui Yunshu stepped forward and said calmly, “I have even more exquisite and larger blueprints for the ‘treasure ship’. If you are willing to come out of seclusion, I am willing to offer you a fortune and guarantee that you will have an opportunity to use all your knowledge without any interference.”
Master Lu raised his head and stared intently at Cui Yunshu, his eyes like those of a wolf that had been starving for ten days and had spotted the most delicious lamb.
"I don't want money!" he said hoarsely. "I only have one condition! I want to see all your blueprints! I want to personally...build these miraculous treasure ships!"
“It’s a deal.” Cui Yunshu extended her hand.
"It's a deal!" Master Lu gave her a firm high five.
And that's how it happened.
On the way back to the capital, Tang Pu finally put forward his "conditions".
“Princess,” he said, walking alongside Cui Yunshu, his voice seemingly casual but filled with undeniable authority, “once construction begins on your shipyard, it will be a momentous event, its value immeasurable. Security must be of paramount importance.”
“What the young prince says is absolutely right.” Cui Yunshu nodded.
"To ensure absolute safety," Tang Pu continued, "I plan to select a top-tier squad from the 'Xuanjia Guard,' the personal guards of my Prince An's residence, and station them here to be responsible for the daily security and guard of the dock. This will prevent outsiders from spying on us and also eliminate any harassment from local government officials. What does Your Highness think?"
The Xuanjia Guard is the core armed force of the Prince An's Mansion. Each member is an elite soldier capable of taking on ten men, and their loyalty is beyond question.
Upon hearing this, Cui Yunshu was overjoyed. She had been worrying about how to solve the security problem at the dock, but unexpectedly, Tang Pu had taken the initiative to offer to send his personal guards. In her view, this was Tang Pu's greatest sincerity in order to deepen their "alliance."
"In that case, thank you very much, Your Highness." She agreed without hesitation.
She was completely unaware that her casual "thank you" was tantamount to inviting a wolf into the house, placing her most critical secrets under the tightest surveillance of her allies.
After receiving her affirmative answer, Tang Pu's smile widened even further in the darkness, unnoticed by anyone.
He knew that he had finally, legitimately, planted his eyes and ears in the heart of the enemy… no, the “ally.”
[Several months later, in the study of Prince An's residence]
A massive, secret shipyard rises from the ground in an unnamed bay.
Under the guidance of Cui Yunshu's revolutionary ship blueprints, and with the support of Master Lu's almost obsessive passion and skill, and with the accumulation of countless amounts of money and resources, the keels of giant ships, like the skeletons of prehistoric beasts, began to gradually take shape on the slipway.
On this day, a swift horse galloped from the shores of the East China Sea, breaking through the stars and moon, and rushed into the Prince An's mansion in the capital.
A messenger dressed in black armor respectfully presented Tang Pu with a parchment scroll sealed with sealing wax.
"Young Prince, this is the final draft of the first 'Fujian Ship' provided by Miss Cui, which Master Lu ordered me to send back urgently. Please take a look."
Tang Pu dismissed his attendants and went alone in his study to unfold the scroll of parchment.
Under the candlelight, a large and beautiful structural diagram of a ship was clearly displayed before his eyes.
Tang Pu had been well-versed in military strategy since childhood and had an excellent understanding of the structure of weapons and warships. His gaze, like the most precise ruler, swept quickly across the blueprints.
The streamlined hull was much longer and narrower than that of ordinary Fujian ships, in order to achieve higher speeds and wave-breaking capabilities.
The presence of up to five giant masts means it can suspend more complex rigging combinations to cope with a variety of complex sea conditions.
What alarmed him most was the unusually heavy hull structure, which featured a double keel and reinforced ribs, and... on both sides of the hull, rows of evenly spaced square openings cleverly disguised as ventilation vents.
Tang Pu's breathing almost stopped at that moment.
He reached out, his fingertips trembling as he traced the square-opening labels.
This is not a ventilation opening!
This is... a gun emplacement! A standard gun emplacement large enough to accommodate heavy artillery!
He suddenly raised his head, his eyes filled with uncontrollable shock and fervor.
A cold, yet incredibly stimulating current shot up from his tailbone to the top of his head.
He confirmed it.
He was finally 100% certain!
This is not a merchant ship used for long-distance ocean trade at all!
This is a complete quasi-warship, ready to be equipped with heavy artillery at any time and roam the seas!
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