Chapter 378 - The Return of Li Siya

Dr. Zhong’s timekeeping and reporting plan for Lingao was to use these meticulously maintained backup clocks as the observatory’s reference clocks. They were to be checked daily against the observations from the transit instrument. When a significant discrepancy was found between a clock and the transit instrument’s measurement, the clock’s time would be adjusted. By combining the two, a long-term accuracy of 10^-8 could be achieved.

He silently took down a clipboard hanging on the wall. When it was impossible to calibrate with astronomical time, the reference time used was the Greenwich Mean Time brought from the old world. Dr. Zhong recorded the time of the other chronometers at Greenwich Mean Time zero, then took out the quartz clock he had brought from his pocket and carefully calibrated it.

“Father, this place is…”

“Xiaoying, you are now in a confidential location of the Yuanlao Senate,” Dr. Zhong said in a very serious voice. “Everything here, unless I permit you to speak of it, you must not utter a single word to any outsider until the day you die, understand? Otherwise, you will die without a burial place—even I, your father, will not be able to save you.”

Zhong Xiaoying was terrified. She quickly knelt down and said, “Your daughter understands. Your daughter swears to heaven that without Father’s permission, I will never reveal a single word about this place to anyone! Otherwise, may I be struck by lightning and destroyed by heaven!”

Zhong Lishi nodded. For a girl like Zhong Xiaoying, making her swear an oath was more realistic than talking about the “Yuanlao Senate Secrecy Regulations.” He said, “Get up! Now come here. Father will now impart to you the secret of timekeeping from our Australian sages…”

In the port of Anping, many ships ready to set sail were anchored. Most were junk ships of varying sizes, both from Guangdong and Fujian, with a few Western-style sailing ships mixed in. The harbor was a forest of masts and rigging.

In an inconspicuous corner of the docks, an unremarkable medium-sized junk ship was moored. Its waterline was deep, as if it were fully laden with cargo, waiting to depart.

The sailors were scattered across the deck in twos and threes, looking very leisurely. Below the deck, a secret meeting was taking place.

The dark and smelly cargo hold below deck had been emptied, with two chairs placed inside. On one of them sat a young woman, wrapped in a black cloak, her hood pulled over her head, so that her face was almost lost in the darkness. Only from the sound of her voice could one tell she was a young woman.

Opposite her sat a man, also cloaked. The little light that filtered in from the hatch showed that although his face was covered in grime, he was not old. He seemed equally afraid of being recognized, using a corner of his cloak to shield his face.

“I have a job for you. Listen carefully,” the man said.

“I am all ears,” the woman replied.

“A large Fujian junk ship, transporting immigrants to Taiwan, is anchored below the Anping fort. The ship is set to sail for Bengang tomorrow morning.”

“So I must go to that ship tonight?”

“Depart immediately. That is to say, as soon as you agree, you must set out. This ship will unload cargo in the evening, and part of it will be transferred to that ship—you can use the opportunity of the unloading to get off this ship and go over there.”

“Alright. Now, tell me about the mission you are entrusting to me.”

“Your task is simple: make the Dutch and the Australians enemies—to the point of drawing swords.”

“The simpler the task, the harder it is to do,” the woman commented. “How much time do I have?”

“The sooner the better,” the man said. “My master expects it to be done within three to four months.”

“That’s too difficult,” the woman said.

“Three thousand taels of silver.”

The woman refused flatly, “Five thousand taels.”

“Three thousand five hundred,” the man upped the offer.

“Five thousand taels. Not a penny less.”

“Three thousand eight hundred, at most—and a year’s free pass flag for your ship.” This flag was worth a considerable sum; selling it at a discount to any merchant would fetch at least a thousand taels.

“Four thousand taels, plus the flag. That’s the price.”

“Deal.”

“Pay one thousand taels first,” the woman said. “The rest will be paid upon completion.”

“No problem.” A smile appeared on the man’s face. “My elder brother said you are an astonishingly remarkable woman—you will certainly not disappoint us this time.”

“You flatter me.” Although the woman’s face was not clearly visible, one could feel that she was smiling radiantly at this moment. “Please tell the General that I am willing to serve him with all my heart.”

“Then I shall await the good news,” the man said with a suppressed laugh.

The ship swayed, and a ray of sunlight from the hatch swept across her cheek—it was Li Siya.

She looked a little plumper than before, and there were fine wrinkles at the corners of her eyes. Years of maneuvering between the major powers at sea were a sharp tool that wore away a woman’s beauty.

Li Siya was not short of money, nor did she have any ambitions that required large investments. Adventure and intrigue were her entertainment—she reveled in it.

She didn’t particularly hate or loathe the Australians, though she felt a vague sense of annoyance towards them—because she had not received the attention she felt she deserved from them, whether that attention was love, appreciation, or hatred. Li Siya always felt that she had played many tricks on the Australians, incited various forces to oppose them, and even kidnapped their leader. They should hate her to the bone. But so far, she saw no sign that the Australians held any special grudge against her.

Of course, her interest in the Australians went far beyond that. Since getting her sister to connect with the Australians, she had obtained a lot of firsthand information, but the question that interested her most—the “Proof of the Seven Seas’ Conqueror”—remained a complete mystery.

Even the Yuanlao from the navy and trade departments, who had the most contact with Li Huamei, never let a single word slip. Li Huamei dared not mention the phrase in front of them, fearing it would alert them. Although she didn’t need to be so careful with ordinary sailors and soldiers, they knew nothing about it.

In any case, the “Proof of the Seven Seas’ Conqueror,” by its name, was related to the navy, and the Australians’ naval power was well-known. Through her foster sister, Li Siya could obtain information about many of the strange new devices the Australians were equipping. She speculated that these things might be proof of some kind of recognition, or some kind of authority.

It was very likely that the Australians had already obtained the “Proof of the Seven Seas’ Conqueror”! She thought so, and once personally sailed south, venturing into the southern seas on an expedition, trying to find traces of the Australians’ northward journey.

However, this expedition brought her no new intelligence. Besides seeing many desolate green islands, there were only naked natives. The Dutch navigator she hired told her clearly that even if she continued south, past the Tropic of Capricorn, she would not find any Australia, only some large, desolate islands.

After returning from this unsuccessful expedition, Li Siya turned her attention back to Lingao. She realized that with the Australians’ power in the South China Sea, their strength could not be curbed in the foreseeable future. To truly understand the Australians’ background and the “Proof of the Seven Seas’ Conqueror,” she had to send someone to infiltrate their ranks. For this, she began to prepare after returning from her overseas voyage.

In the process of their post-victory expansion, it would be easy to send people to infiltrate the Australians’ ranks as merchants or defectors to obtain intelligence.

She wanted to know the secret of the Australians’ powerful machinery and the “Proof of the Seven Seas’ Conqueror,” and if possible, how to obtain this power and certificate; as well as the Australians’ origins and destination, why they had abandoned the motherland that gave them such great power to come here, and what purpose they wanted to achieve. The Australians had not explicitly said they wanted to conquer the mainland, but many people were watching them, and Li Siya wanted to use this to judge their next move and take advantage of it.

Her foster sister had already established contact with them as a merchant, but merchants were not highly regarded. In particular, Li Huamei’s background made them always wary of her. To gain further trust, she had to make a greater contribution to the Australians—or have greater utility.

But this was not something that could be achieved overnight, and the other party was very shrewd. It was not easy to get such an opportunity. So she thought of another approach.

She learned from her foster sister that the Australians were recruiting women as their maids according to a certain standard—their so-called maids were concubines. Although the Australians’ aesthetic tastes were very different from those of the Ming people, from the various standards they proposed, the purpose of these maids was self-evident.

So the best way was to find a few women who completely met their standards and send them to Lingao. She could control these women by holding their families.

Men are most relaxed and unguarded in bed. In front of a beloved woman, they might say anything to show off. Even if they didn’t, the snippets of conversation they overheard in daily life would provide far more information than Li Huamei could gather.

Besides maids, the Australians’ large-scale recruitment of refugees and sailors was also an excellent breakthrough point. Ordinary refugees were of little use, but they were very interested in orphaned teenagers. It was said that after large-scale recruitment and education, many positions were held by these youths. These children would inevitably become the confidants of the Australians in the future and could obtain a lot of intelligence.

Before that, she was very willing to create some chaos for the Australians—as the saying goes, it’s easier to fish in troubled waters. If the Australians could clash with the Dutch and lose some personnel, they might not be so picky in replenishing their ranks. Furthermore, in this scheme orchestrated by the Zheng family, she had her own plans. If successful, she would be one step closer to the Australians’ secrets.

Zheng Zhilong was by no means a match for the Australians at present—this was Li Siya’s judgment. Their eagerness to provoke a conflict between the Dutch and the Australians was a manifestation of their lack of confidence in their own strength. Of course, the presence of Liu Laoxiang also made it difficult for them to act as they pleased.