In the final years of the Jiajing reign, the sea bans stood like mountains and Japanese pirates ran rampant.
Shen Ying transmigrated into the body of a coastal pearl diver.
Her entire family had only one leaky old sampan. They had to put to sea to dive for pearls in every season, earning money for the imperial court.
Luckily, she was bound to the [Pirate... no, Maritime Trade System]. As long as she collected enough materials, she could upgrade her ships.
Sometimes, thanks to a trade deficit, she could even swindle some Nanyang spices with a vat of pickled vegetables to help support her family.
But as the materials required for upgrades grew more numerous, her ambitions gradually expanded from pirates to the small Folangji cannons used by Europeans and Americans.
Her little sampan upgraded from a "twin-masted fast sailer" to an "armored cruiser," and then to a "Netherworld-class submarine."
She did it all: maritime deliveries, refugee escorts, salt and grain smuggling, and clearing waterways. She could even occasionally use manpower to clean up the navy's messes.
She had always thought of herself as an utterly ordinary maritime merchant.
Until the Ming fell, factional strife at court spread to the coast, and the Tatars joined forces with the Japanese pirates to attack the passes.
A cry for help traveled thousands of miles from the imperial palace to her fleet.
"Empress of the Sea! The empire and the Ming dynasty are on the brink of ruin. I beg you to act and save millions of our people!"
Shen Ying: ...Who, me?
[Reader's Guide]
1. A capable female lead focused on her career. Early story: building a business, upgrading ships, and bartering. Later story: naval battles and infrastructure development.
2. This book is being written and stockpiled. The blurb has already been screenshotted.
Theme: When poor, cultivate yourself alone; when successful, help the whole world.
