pappabearbooks Chapter 82 Li Wei's Maritime Ambition
Chapter 82 Li Wei's Maritime Ambition
Isabella was, after all, a pirate captain who had roamed the Atlantic for many years. These words were undoubtedly a declaration of surrender and a vow of loyalty.
However, Li Wei gently shook his head.
"No, Miss Captain, you've made a mistake."
He snatched the contract from Isabella's hand, turned to the last page, and pointed to the signature.
"The route is yours. The ship is yours too."
"I am simply your biggest customer and your most reliable insurance company."
He redefined their relationship as a purely business collaboration.
This deliberate distance, this absolute respect for her personal ownership, is like an invisible rope that binds her firmly to his chariot.
Isabella understood that while clients could be replaced, there was only one "insurance company" in the world that could provide her with this special "insurance" in the event of internal strife, covering the entire warship.
That evening, Oak Bay Estate.
A sumptuous dinner was laid out on the long table, and the fire in the fireplace was burning brightly.
Isabella changed into a clean dress and sat opposite Levi, displaying a demeanor completely different from that of the captain.
Wild and full of life.
During dinner, the two sides did not discuss anything about the sea, but instead talked about the various customs and myths of the Caribbean.
As they talked, Isabella became increasingly amazed by Levy's knowledge of maritime mythology.
In particular, one of the stories about the Bermuda Triangle was quite novel to her, even though she was used to hearing old sailors' nonsense.
After dinner, Li Wei did not take her to the study, but instead led her to the huge world map on the wall.
Fiona walked over and covered the Caribbean region with a new map.
It was a map of underground forces drawn by the "Dragon Eye" group.
The text is marked in different colors of ink, detailing the names, leaders, number of ships, and main business areas of the pirates, smugglers, and local armed groups based on various islands in the Caribbean.
"Broken Bones lost a speedboat and more than thirty elite men in this incident, and now they are at their weakest." Levi pointed his finger at Tortuga Island.
"His two deputies were very dissatisfied with his desertion and could be bribed."
He then pointed to another spot.
"In Santiago de Cuba, the Spanish garrison has been three months behind on its pay. Their commander is a greedy gambler who will turn a blind eye to the coming and going of a 'merchant ship' for fifty gold coins."
Li Wei's finger then touched several areas marked in green.
"Philip the 'Golden Hook' had only one ship and about fifty men, and mainly operated around Jamaica, but his ship had the best gunner in the entire Caribbean."
Li Wei's finger moved slowly across the map, and he uttered one familiar or unfamiliar name after another, along with their unknown weaknesses and exploitable desires.
"Your 'Black Pearl' needs sailors, it needs loyal warriors. These people, and these ports, are your first batch of 'initial shares'." Levi looked at Isabella and handed her a document that Fiona had just drafted.
"This is a business plan. The goal is to consolidate 70 percent of the Caribbean's smuggling routes within a year and become the sole rule-maker there."
Levi's plan, like a magnificent scroll, slowly unfolded before Isabella.
Isabella finally understood that what Levi wanted to do was not just control a smuggling route.
He wanted to help himself, to absorb and integrate those scattered forces, and to elevate himself from a lone smuggling queen to the throne of the entire Caribbean underworld.
What this Easterner needed was not an obedient captain. What he needed was a powerful ally who could control the entire southern sea route for him.
Isabella looked at the map, then suddenly picked up the rum in front of her and drank it all in one gulp.
The strong liquor burned her throat and ignited the ambition in her heart.
She suddenly realized that her past acts of robbery and smuggling were as ridiculous as children playing house.
It was late at night when she left Oak Bay Estate.
Li Wei personally escorted her to the door and handed her a small velvet box.
"This is an advance payment, the first installment of business development funds."
Isabella didn't open it; she knew what was inside. She simply nodded, mounted her horse, and galloped off towards Rhodes Island.
She was no longer a speculator worrying about her next business deal.
She carried with her a detailed "expansion strategy" and a sum of start-up capital, ready to conquer a kingdom that truly belonged to her.
Behind this kingdom stands an "investor" from the East.
As Isabella disappeared into the night, Fiona walked up to Levi.
"Sir, Project 'Siren' has been launched. However, the costs we've invested have far exceeded the initial budget."
"This Black Pearl has used up all the funds in your personal account, as well as half a month's net profit of the Black Dragon Chamber of Commerce."
Li Wei did not turn around, but only looked into the darkness in the distance.
"Fiona, think long-term. What we've lost is a small boat that could sink at any moment. But what we're about to gain..."
He turned around, tidied Fiona's slightly disheveled hair from her busy work, and continued, "It's an entire fleet capable of freely navigating the Atlantic Ocean."
The following day, a commendation order personally signed by Governor Thomas Hutchinson was delivered to Captain William Davis of the HMS Vigilance, praising his "heroic thwarting of a pirate plot and safeguarding the safety of the Imperial sea lanes."
Captain Davis held the commendation order, beaming with pride.
His only confusion was that the "enthusiastic businessman" who provided the crucial intelligence was mentioned in the report by the Governor's Office as "a Mr. Boston who wished to remain anonymous."
Nevertheless, the "Vigilant" went wild after leaving Boston Harbor, with barrels of rum being carried to a makeshift casino, and Captain Davis was completely absorbed in the compliments from the crowd.
When Captain Davis reached the captain's cabin, he muttered to himself, "Was it those escaped bastards cursing me? Why does my nose itch so much?"
Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Boston, an abandoned farm.
The air was filled with a sour smell, a mixture of rotting hay and old livestock dung.
Finn stared irritably at the neatly stacked wooden crates in the barn with his intact right eye.
These boxes were transported from the mouth of the New Hampshire River by more than a dozen horse-drawn carts, taking three days to reach this place via different side roads.
He touched the leather eye patch over his left eye with his large fingers, a gesture that calmed him down slightly.
"Damn it, how are they getting these things into the city now? Those bastards in red clothes at the city gate are checking them more often than the priests go to brothels lately."
"It's all those useless pirates' fault! They let the navy get away with it, making the army lose face. They'd love to arrest a few of them and make them sons of freedom!"