Chapter 7: Clear Navigation Charts

I asked in confusion, "Then this nautical chart should not be the Zheng He nautical chart preserved to this day, right?" I have seen counterfeit Zheng He nautical charts, and they are completely different from this one.

The so-called female chef is actually Jenny's personal bodyguard, a black belt in Taekwondo, proficient in Sanda and Muay Thai, and knowledgeable in both medicine and culinary arts. She appears to be quite skilled, at least in the eyes of others. On this ocean voyage, her primary responsibility is to ensure Jenny's safety, mainly out of concern that some sailors might have ulterior motives, which is why she was brought along. Upon reflection, it makes sense; Jenny is so beautiful that even someone as upright as I am has been moved, let alone others.

Jenny, seeing that I had arrived, still wore her usual smile and asked, "Is there something you need?"

I ignored him and continued to focus on Jenny. She eased the tension and said, "Jin Zhongyi, don't forget, you have already signed this contract, and your name is written in black and white."

Look, look, I was right after all. I knew it; whose family goes fishing without even a fishing net? I asked, "Then why did you come to find me if you’re not going fishing?"

Very well, I hope we have a pleasant cooperation. Jenny's face showed a slight change, as if she were stifling a laugh. Little girl, you still want to deceive my eyes; it seems you have a bit of interest in me. Sorry, I might be a bit shameless.

You certainly have a lot of questions. To be honest, my ancestors are indeed Zheng He.

I disdainfully replied, "Damn it, don't think you can intimidate me with a contract. If I say I'm not doing it, then I'm not doing it; no one can make me." Little girl, don't think that just because you're beautiful, you can fool me.

She turned around and walked over, then pulled over a suitcase. After opening it, she took out something from inside and handed it to me, saying, "This is the navigation chart."

"You ... ..." Jenny's face turned red with anger at my words. Shunzi, standing beside me, tugged at my sleeve and said, "Yige, calm down, don't be angry."

I pretended to cough and said, "Ahem, well... I have one very personal question to ask, and it will be the last one."

"You don't need to worry about this; just focus on doing your job well." Her tone was somewhat cold, and although she wore a smile, I still found it quite displeasing.

Jenny raised her eyebrows and said, "Well, it is like this, you are quite clever. I have said everything that needs to be said; do you have any questions?"

Jenny sighed and said, "Forget it, I might as well tell you everything. This nautical chart has been passed down through my family for generations; it is a family heirloom."

I asked in confusion, "Ancestry? Then who is your ancestor?"

Damn, what kind of boss are you? Are you trying to make me die? Am I not allowed to die? I maintained a stern expression and said, "So what if you are the boss? What is there to be smug about? If you don't clarify things today, I won't bother with you any longer."

"Don't come at me with that, and don't explain. What are you explaining to me? You clearly know everything but refuse to tell me. Damn it, I'll settle this with you later." After I finished speaking, I signaled Shunzi and left the control room

I glanced at Shunzi and said, "If you don't understand, don't speak carelessly. Zheng He originally had the surname Ma, which was later changed by Emperor Zhu Di. Furthermore, even if Zheng He was a eunuch, the children he adopted still belong to his lineage."

What is the problem

"What Old Mai said is the truth. This time we set out to sea from hetushu.com to salvage the sunken ships of the Ming Dynasty." It turns out that the old ghost is called Old Mai, and Jenny spoke in a very serious tone, without a hint of jest.

Jenny herself is a graduate student at Peking University, majoring in history. Her father is the owner of a publicly listed company, and her mother is American, making her a typical Chinese-American mixed heritage. As for the helmsman and the maintenance worker, those are all facts.

Of course not, let me reintroduce it to you...

I also learned to smile like her and said, "Alright, you lower the lifeboat for me, and I will leave with Shunzi immediately"

I have long since discovered that there are a total of two small lifeboats here. Although we are already far from the shore, with the endurance of both Shunzi and myself, we can still row back. At worst, we will just be exhausted.

Jenny glanced at me and, with a tone of mockery, said, "Alright, if you don't want to work, you can leave right now; no one will stop you"

I scoff at you, it's really meaningless, lacking any sense of humor, but I like it, beautiful women tend to have more personality

However, it is still noticeable that there are two red marks, which are quite prominent. The routes before and after seem to be a bit distant, and there is no scale indicating the distance. Analyzing the appearance of the nautical chart and the drawings within, this chart is at least a hundred years old, very outdated, and quite an antique. However, it seems to be incomplete, as the edges of the nautical chart are somewhat damaged, appearing to be only a part of the whole.

"That is natural; it is a family heirloom, how could it possibly be given to an outsider? If you can see it, consider yourself fortunate," Jenny said with great pride.

In the operating room, Jenny, the old man with the flower glasses, and that female chef are all here, and surprisingly, even that grandson Jiao Ba is present

"Damn you and your old man, I'll settle the score with you later." Jenny glanced at the old man, then looked at me and said, "Alright then, let me tell you, our voyage this time is not about fishing."

At that moment, I walked up behind Jiao Ba, grabbed him by the neck, and said, "You little rascal, you really can play the fool and actually trick me onto the boat."

I hold the nautical chart in my hand and mutter to myself, "This nautical chart is hand-drawn; it seems to be at least a hundred years old."

The period of Zheng He during the Ming Dynasty is quite interesting. "That truly has a long history, but where did this come from?" I asked Jenny.

Old Mai chuckled and said, "Young man, you have quite an eye. This nautical chart dates back to the Ming Dynasty during the Zheng He period and has a history of several hundred years."

Oh, you two, stop arguing. Jenny, why don't you explain the situation to him? There's no need to keep this matter hidden. That old man with the flowered glasses saw us arguing fiercely and quickly came out to mediate.

Jenny walked up to me and said in a stiff tone, "I don't need to explain anything to you. I am the boss, and you will do whatever I tell you to do."

"Yes, Jenny, Yi Ge is not an outsider; it has to be said sooner or later." Jiao Ba was also persuading from the side. I turned my head and glared at him; this guy definitely knows the inside story, otherwise he wouldn't dare to say such things. As soon as Jiao Ba caught my glare, he quickly turned his head away, not daring to look at me.

I laughed and said, "Since you have spoken the truth, I have no reason to leave. We will both stay, ready to await instructions and prepared to begin work."

This is truly an interesting journey, as it unexpectedly connects me with the descendants of Zheng He. If what you say is true, I believe those individuals must not be merely fishing for * maps * either

She might have been shocked by me, quickly avoiding my gaze and saying, "I will not answer this question for you"

"You seem to know quite a bit. Indeed, it is true that initially, the descendants of Zheng He all carried the surname Zheng. It was only during the Republic of China period that they reverted to the surname Ma, which can be considered a return to their roots," Jenny said with a smile.

What? Salvaging a sunken ship? Both Shunzi and I were stunned, especially Shunzi, whose expression resembled that of a foolish bird; he probably didn't even understand what it meant. I could hardly believe what I had just heard. Are you out of your mind? Salvaging a sunken ship, have you been watching too many movies?

When she mentioned Jiao Ba, I immediately interjected, "Alright, you don't need to introduce this person; I am very familiar with him. His family comes from a long line of tomb raiders, a typical grave robber. I assume you want to use him to help you appraise the items you've salvaged, right?"

Jiao Ba, with a grim expression, said, "No, Yige, please let me explain..."

I can't believe it, are you all out of your minds? Even if what you say is true, where in this vast ocean are we supposed to find a sunken ship, especially one from the Ming Dynasty? It's simply ridiculous, a bunch of lunatics. If they are telling the truth, then they must be completely obsessed with money, utterly delusional.

At this moment, Jiao Ba suddenly interjected, "Don't worry, Brother Yi, we have a nautical chart and can locate the general position of the sunken ship."

After listening to Jenny's introduction, I realized that the man called Old Mai is not really an old man; he is actually just over 40 years old. His hair is simply very white, and those glasses certainly cannot be reading glasses. He is a marine biologist, an expert in navigation, and also a specialist in salvaging sunken ships. His main responsibility is to use nautical charts to locate shipwrecks and to organize sailors for underwater operations.

Jiao Ba, this grandson, if it weren't for his connection with my friend, I would really want to give him a good beating. I detest being deceived by others the most. Once I return, I will definitely make sure to teach him a lesson.

I felt a bit embarrassed to ask, "Do you have a boyfriend?" As I spoke, my gaze was fixed intently on her, and the moment I uttered those words, everyone nearby looked at me with expressions of awkwardness. I couldn't believe it, was it really that serious

I casually said, "It's nothing much, I just wanted to ask, why do we have to do our work in the evening"

I glanced at her, slowly reached over, and then gradually opened it. Suddenly, my eyes lit up. By God, it really is a nautical chart. This is a very old nautical chart, likely made from sheepskin. I examined the routes on the chart closely; they were all hand-drawn, and although the markings for the reefs and small islands were somewhat blurred.

The old man with the glasses pushed up his spectacles and said, "Hehe, I called you here to salvage the sunken ship."

I said with a cold smile, "Heh, what exactly do you want to do? Not only have you missed so many schools of fish before, but you also insist on working in the evening. Please give me a reasonable explanation." I increasingly felt that these people did not seem like fishermen; without a clear understanding, I certainly could not work for you.

"Nautical chart? What nautical chart?" I threw a questioning glance at Jenny

"Stop joking around, sister. Zheng He has the surname Zheng, and you have the surname Ma. What kind of ancestry is that? Besides, wasn't Zheng He a eunuch? How could he have descendants?" Shun Zi's face was filled with skepticism as he interjected with a rather bold remark.

"I have said everything that needs to be said. Whether to stay or leave, you can decide for yourself." She said this with a serious expression, her face showing no emotion.