New Song Dynasty: My Wife is an Imperial Princess

As Wanyan Xun swung his short axe through the air, a silver light flashed, and the reins binding the ship's side were severed.

Without restraints, the boats in the dock slid slowly downwards along the logs due to inertia. A deafening crash was heard as the boats collided with the canal water, sending up a spray several meters high.

Watching the newly built boats swaying from side to side in the canal, the craftsmen on the shore were all on tenterhooks. If the newly launched boats sank, their lives would be over.

Fortunately, after a period of rocking, the new ship gradually calmed down, and its huge hull floated steadily on the water.

A small boat was rowed from the shore and moved toward the new boat. A young man grabbed a rope hanging from the boat and climbed up. After scaling the side of the boat, he immediately threw down a bundle of rope ladders.

More and more boatmen boarded the boat, and they maneuvered it toward the shore. A gangplank was raised from the side of the boat and placed steadily on the bluestone dock on the shore.

After Wanyan Xun and Tang Qian boarded the ship one by one from the gangplank, the first new ship built at Youzhou Shipyard began its first trial voyage. With the concerted efforts of more than ten boatmen, the new ship sailed downstream along the canal, covering a distance of more than twenty miles in less than half an hour.

In summer, the canal flows swiftly, and the boats travel very fast downstream. If the sails are raised and the wind is used to propel the boats, the speed will be even faster.

However, these were not the things Wanyan Xun wanted to test. Seeing that the ship was about to leave Youzhou territory, Wanyan Xun immediately ordered it to turn back.

At his command, the boatmen on the boat all got busy, and the boat was quickly turned sideways on the river. More than ten people stretched their bamboo poles out of the side of the boat and stuck them into the silt in the river.

Amidst the shouts of the boatmen, the boat slowly turned around. Tang Qian picked up a hammer and struck the iron pipe that was slanted into the cabin. Wan Yanxi could clearly feel the entire boat moving upstream at an extremely slow speed. The faces of the dozens of boatmen who had been holding onto the bamboo poles to prevent the boat from drifting backward with the current gradually relaxed.

Next, to Wanyan Xun's utter surprise, the scenery along the shore was slowly receding, proving that the boat was indeed going upstream. He took a few steps to the stern and stretched his head out to look down. Although he couldn't see the wooden propeller working behind him, the splashes and eddies on the water's surface proved to him that Tang Qian had fulfilled his boast.

He really did build a ship that moves on its own without wind. If this ship were enlarged to scale, wouldn't it be a seagoing vessel that could sail across the ocean anytime, anywhere?

"Brother Tang's skills are truly amazing, which has greatly surprised and delighted me."

"It is my duty to share the burdens of Your Highness."

"Very good." Wanyan Xun stood on the ship's railing, looking at the Youzhou city gradually taking shape in the distance. He slowly suppressed his pride, turned his head to look at Tang Qian standing behind him, and smiled with a hint of amusement. "I will remember your kindness in helping me, Brother Tang. I will repay you handsomely after I achieve great things. Since you are my strategist, Brother Tang, you should be able to hold out until that moment, right?"

Knowing that this was yet another test by Wanyan Xun, Tang Qian showed no fear: "Now that we have formed an alliance with Your Highness, I will certainly do my utmost."

"Is that so? But I have a feeling that Brother Tang still has his heart set on the Song Dynasty."

Tang Qian gave a bitter laugh: "Back in the Song Dynasty, I was just a good-for-nothing who could be mocked by anyone. But in Youzhou, I have gained the respect and trust of the Prince. I know very well who is good to me. Moreover, by following the Prince, I may become a founding minister of a dynasty. What can I do if I return to the Song Dynasty? Although I am not very talented, I will still make political investments that will make money and those that will lose money."

"Then tell me, where did that Ye boy who's been following you around lately go today? I haven't seen him at all."

"Your Highness is referring to Ye Yilie?" Tang Qian paused for a moment before replying, "I sent him to Tokyo to deliver the news that the Jin army is preparing to march south and attack the Song again."

Wanyan Xun's lips twitched slightly. He hadn't expected Tang Qian to be so open and honest, able to openly discuss such a secret matter as collusion with the Song Dynasty.

"I turned a blind eye when your personal bodyguard Tang Xiaoqi left Youzhou before, because he could only bring back some confidential information to report your safety to your family. But this Ye Yilie is blatantly tipping off the Song Dynasty court. Brother Tang, have you ever thought about what will happen to you and your princess wife if the truth comes out?"

“If Your Highness intended to inform the Emperor of the Great Jin Dynasty, you probably wouldn’t have mentioned this to me today. Since you won’t report it, what do I have to worry about?” Faced with Wanyan Xun’s aggressive questioning, Tang Qian simply smiled faintly. “Besides, my actions were entirely for Your Highness’s sake. One who eats the Emperor’s food must be loyal to the Emperor and bear the Emperor’s worries. What is there to fear?”

"Oh?" Wanyan Xun glanced at Tang Qian again, seemingly intrigued by what he had just said. "I'd like to hear more details."

"The Emperor of Jin summoned all the marshals to Liaoyang to discuss the attack on Song. Your Highness, you have claimed illness and requested leave, so you will naturally be removed from the list of generals for this attack on Song. This is to take advantage of the Jin's weak military presence in the heartland to strike at the heart of the Jin and seize control of the ancestral court to take the position of Anban Bojilie. Therefore, the longer this great war between Song and Jin lasts, the more advantageous it will be for us."

"You mean to say that we should send Ye Yilie back to deliver a message so that the Song Dynasty can take precautions as soon as possible, and the more the Jin and Song Dynasties fight each other and it becomes difficult to determine a winner, the more time we will have?"

"The Song army's fighting strength is negligible. If we are not prepared, the Jin army will be able to conquer cities and territories in the south as easily as cutting melons and vegetables. If the Jin army wins a great victory and returns to their respective garrisons in just six months, we will miss the easiest opportunity to capture the ancestral home of the Jin."

Tang Qian frowned slightly. “It takes at least three months to build a ship that can travel on the canal, and even longer for five ships to sail at sea. Taking the waterway may be a shortcut, but it is by no means safe. Therefore, I believe that taking advantage of the Jin army’s southward advance, the Youzhou army should advance eastward by land. Otherwise, we will have to wait at least two more years.”