Chapter 120 [Unreliable Ship Owner]
Liaoshou shook his head: "When I think about them having to live with us, I really lose my temper."
The anchorman hammered the edge of the boat: "It's all my niece's fault. She's just being soft-hearted. If it weren't for her father's face, I would have quit long ago."
"We've been working with the old owner for so long, and nothing has happened. But as soon as your niece took over, she let a bunch of random people on board the Tianxuan."
Liaoshou felt a little uneasy thinking about the journey ahead: "We still need to go around a bit and dock at Cangsha Ferry to let them disembark."
At this time, another winder finished tying the sail rope and came over to persuade the two to stop talking: "Alright, Wen family boss, please stop talking. The ship owner just finished his funeral. It's hard enough for a weak woman to go out to sea with her mother and sister."
Other boatmen also came to persuade him.
The anchorman in brown clothes is Wen Kang, the eldest son of the Wen family. His younger brother was the old owner of this ship and passed away half a month ago.
The new ship owner is his niece. He has a lot of say in the ship and has no respect for the new owner.
"I just thought it was unlucky to see her wandering around the boat in that mourning dress. And just imagine having to obey the orders of a girl under twenty all the way. Who would accept that?"
"It's just that I went out to sea a few times with my brother, and I thought I was capable, so I insisted on becoming the captain of the ship."
The term "boss leader" was used to refer to the captain of a ship in ancient times.
Many ship owners have several ships and do not directly serve as the team leader, but hire someone to be the team leader.
The ship owner usually serves as the captain directly to save costs or because he likes to take risks at sea.
The person in charge of sea navigation is familiar with the method of using the compass and is responsible for measuring the positions of the sun, moon and stars, measuring the weather, and observing the geography. He needs to be experienced and knowledgeable, and is usually an older sailor.
Others advised Wen Lao Da: "Alright, alright, everyone knows she is just a figurehead, the real leader is still you, everyone listens to you."
What’s the use of him being the leader?
It would have been great if he was the ship owner. Whenever Wen Kang thought of this, he felt a little annoyed.
More than 20 years ago, Lianzhou's maritime trade was not so developed. At that time, his younger brother wanted to build a large ship for business and persuaded him to join the partnership. However, he felt that it was too expensive and unnecessary, and that a small boat to carry cargo would be enough, so he did not join.
Unexpectedly, large ships are now so popular that these merchant families are scrambling to sign contracts to secure large ships and make them their fixed merchant ships. There are many ways to make money from them.
Wen Kang said he was tired and bored, so he went to get some water and do his own work. Before leaving, he threatened the convicts, "You're lucky to have met an unreliable shipowner who insisted on taking matters on board into his own hands."
The convicts, having heard the boatmen's recent conversation, were now as frightened as birds on a string. Now the captain of this ship was a woman under twenty? Could she be trusted to direct the ship's voyage?
Some people have already started to pray with their hands folded.
Jiang Lili got a general idea from the conversation among the crew members. These boatmen were previously taken out to sea by the old ship owner.
The old ship owner passed away, and his daughter took over the Tianxuan as the new ship owner. Despite everyone's opposition, she wanted to be the captain of the ship and command this voyage.
Looking at the situation this way, it is indeed easy to make people panic.
But this is just their excuse. We still don't know what the real situation is. If the new ship owner was not unsure, he would not have become the captain himself and disregarded his own life and the lives of his mother and sister.
Anyway, the boat hasn't sunk yet, so don't panic. Just make the best of it.
But Jiang Lili remembered that He Lin had told her that after they arrived at Cangsha Ferry, He Shao would regularly send merchant ships going out and returning to deliver supplies, and the Tianxuan was one of them.
Should we discuss this matter with the new shipowner?
However, an hour has passed and there is still no sign of the new ship owner.
About half an hour later, a young woman in white mourning clothes approached the exile group. "Excuse me, who is Jiang Lili?"
"It's me." Jiang Lili thought that this person must have been sent by the ship owner.
The woman said respectfully, "Please follow me."
The woman brought Jiang Lili to the cabin below deck and said, "Miss Jiang, I am Shanhu, the shipowner's personal maid."
"If you need anything on board, please tell me. I'll show you the room first."
Jiang Lili: "Thank you."
As soon as you step into the entrance of the cabin, a mixture of the salty and damp smell of sea water and the fragrance of aged wood hits you in the face.
The hatch is low and one needs to bend down to enter. There may be a waterproof oilcloth curtain hanging on the lintel to isolate the cabin from the wind, rain and waves outside.
As Jiang Lili walked around, she found that the space inside the cabin was cleverly divided into several rooms. The room closest to the side of the ship was often used as a cargo hold. Under the dim light, it was filled with all kinds of goods, from silk and porcelain to grain and medicinal materials.
The cargoes were carefully stacked and tied to prevent damage from the turbulence of the sea. The living quarters on board were located in the center and rear of the cabin, with a relatively compact space.
"This is your room."
With a creaky sound, the wooden door was pushed open. Inside the room, simple beds were arranged close to the wall. Each bed was covered with a rough linen sheet and a thin quilt was stacked on top. There was only a narrow aisle between the beds.
The top of the room is a low deck, only a few feet high. During the day, a ray of sunlight can be seen through the small windows and gaps above.
The three rooms Shanhu showed Jiang Lili were the largest and best-located rooms below deck. She said, "This is the living environment at sea. I can only let you down."
Jiang Lili shook her head: "It's okay, this is much better than the conditions on the road to exile. Thank you."
She asked curiously, "Why doesn't your ship owner come out?"
"Miss Jiang, do you have something to ask our eldest daughter?" Shanhu's face was filled with worry. "Our second daughter is sick with a high fever. As soon as the eldest daughter got on board, she took the second daughter to the cabin to take care of her. Now she can't get away."
Jiang Lili understood: "Why don't you stay on land and see a doctor?"
Upon hearing this, Shanhu smiled bitterly and said, "Originally, I brought the Second Miss aboard because I saw that her fever had subsided."
"Besides, we no longer have a place to live on land. All our properties have been sold, leaving us with only the Tianxuan to run business for the He family to make a living. We usually eat and live on the boat."
It turned out that he had his own difficulties, so Jiang Lili stopped asking.
The ship owner was a woman of the same age as herself. It was not easy for her to be the crew chief and arrange the affairs on the ship, and to take care of her young and sick sister and her weak mother.
Jiang Lili thought that she would still be under the care of the ship owner in the future, and it would be the Tianxuan that would deliver supplies to Cangsha Ferry in the future, so it would be nice to have good relations with her.
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