Chapter 235 System Shop

"System, open the mall for me quickly!"

Gao Yuan was so excited he almost jumped up, impatient to open the mall and prepare for a massive shopping spree.

"Host is using a mysterious key. Opening the mall. Randomizing products..."

"Meow, meow, meow? What the hell? The products are randomized?"

The system did not respond. Soon, a brand-new translucent interface appeared before Gao Yuan's eyes. The dazzling array of products left him momentarily overwhelmed.

Gao Yuan flipped through page after page, seeing countless good things. From lethal weapons like mingguang armor, Iron Pagoda armor sets, and Divine Arm Crossbow blueprints, to chili seeds and Landrace breeding pigs—it had everything.

Unfortunately, among the hundreds of various products, the ones Gao Yuan longed for—corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and high-yield rice—were nowhere to be found.

Those seeds were the true treasures that could change an era. Although weapons and armor seemed to provide immediate results, they were not his first choice.

After looking around, Gao Yuan was slightly disappointed and began to feel conflicted.

Chilies were good, but they were just a seasoning that could slightly enrich the flavor; they weren't irreplaceable.

Landrace Pigs were also good, but he already had White Feather Chickens, so his need for cheap protein wasn't that urgent.

Tobacco was even worse. Wouldn't that just harm everyone's health?

The thought of his army turning into a bunch of heavy smokers made Gao Yuan shudder. That was purely a side effect.

After looking back and forth, Gao Yuan finally selected a product—galleon blueprints.

The galleon was the absolute mainstay of the Age of Discovery. The largest galleons had a displacement of two thousand tons and a draft of eight meters. For a long time, galleons carried the task of transporting treasures from colonies.

The later Spanish Armada's main force consisted of galleons, though their development path was toward giant galleons for both merchant and naval use.

Later, the British improved upon them with small-tonnage fast galleons, which wiped out the Invincible Armada in a single stroke during the Anglo-Spanish War.

However, that was already in the era of cannons, and fast galleons were born purely for war with almost no cargo capacity. To truly plunder resources from overseas, one still had to look at the Spanish model.

To put it simply, it was a matter of suitability, not necessarily a distinction of who was stronger or weaker.

Gao Yuan spent a massive sum of five thousand strings of cash to exchange for the full set of blueprints, meaning he had mastered the entire technology tree himself. He was delighted.

Taking the giant galleon blueprints out of the system space, Gao Yuan excitedly went to find Zhao Xiyao.

After inquiring, he learned that the seagoing vessel he was longing for was still in the material preparation stage and construction hadn't started yet, which made him breathe a sigh of relief.

"Good, good. It's a relief it hasn't been built yet. Take a look at these blueprints."

Zhao Xiyao sat on Gao Yuan's lap, her beautiful eyes staring seriously at the blueprints in her hand. The unique hull design was refreshing to her, but it also raised many doubts.

"Husband, will this kind of pointed bottom work?"

"Facts speak louder than words, and practice yields true knowledge. Why don't I have the shipyard build a model first to test it out?"

"'Facts speak louder than words, and practice yields true knowledge.' Husband, those two phrases are so well-said. I must write them down."

The woman was already accustomed to Gao Yuan occasionally tossing out a golden quote or two, but she still couldn't help but praise her Husband before opening her little notebook to record them.

Like the woman's doubts, the master craftsmen at the shipyard clearly didn't believe such a pointed-bottom boat could be reliable either.

However, since the order was given, they quickly got busy. In just over an hour, a model of the pointed-bottom boat appeared before everyone.

Gao Yuan took the model to the edge of a pond and gently set it down.

"It's floating! It's actually floating!"

Amidst the crowd's exclamations, the model floated steadily on the water. Even when faced with the waves Gao Yuan deliberately stirred up, the small wooden boat only swayed slightly before stabilizing, leaving everyone even more amazed.

The shipyard manager was an old shipwright from Jiangnan named Huang Tai. He stepped forward quickly and bowed deeply to Gao Yuan.

"This old man apologizes to the Prince and the Commandery Duke."

"Hahaha, it's fine, it's fine!"

Gao Yuan patted Huang Tai on the shoulder.

"It's normal to have doubts when facing something you've never seen before. However, I hope that in the future when similar things happen, everyone must not be quick to negate them. Instead, you should hypothesize boldly and verify carefully. Only then can our skills continue to progress."

"Hypothesize boldly, verify carefully..."

While Huang Tai was still savoring those words, Gao Yuan was already supporting Zhao Xiyao as they walked out. The crowd hurriedly bowed deeply to their retreating backs.

"We thank the Commandery Duke for his teachings."

The woman was clearly still a bit excited; she grabbed Gao Yuan's arm and shook it gently.

"Husband, you are truly amazing. Not only can you say such reasonable things, but you can also create such divinely crafted items."

At this moment, where was Zhao Xiyao's dignity as a Prince? With stars in her eyes, she looked exactly like a little fangirl meeting her idol.

Gao Yuan pinched the woman's pretty face.

"It's good enough that you don't say I'm neglecting my duties to pursue trivial tricks."

"How could I? I already understand those three sentences you said, Husband: 'Without agriculture, there is no stability; without industry, there is no strength; without commerce, there is no wealth.'"

"If it weren't for the cement Sister Yueying developed, how could we have built so many official roads? If it weren't for the repeating crossbows... If it weren't for the commercial taxes..."

Although Gao Yuan was the one pushing and leading these things behind the scenes, he still felt a bit embarrassed when the woman credited everything to him like this.

But seeing this devastatingly beautiful woman looking at him with stars in her eyes, Gao Yuan had to thicken his skin and accept it all. This feeling was truly fantastic.

The galleon—no, its current name should be the Great Qian Treasure Ship—thus began simultaneous construction at the two shipyards in Panyu and Haojing'ao.

The Age of Discovery that Gao Yuan looked forward to was finally about to begin.

The local conflict in the south had ended. In the north, as the weather warmed and spring plowing finished, all sides began their long-planned campaigns.

Outside Panyu Port, a tattered fishing boat docked at the shore. Over a dozen ragged, emaciated people disembarked.

Although they had docked for supplies halfway, Gao Yang and his group had still suffered a lot on this journey.

It was only because it was winter that the sea was somewhat calm. If it were summer, any random typhoon would have turned the whole boatload of people into fish food.

As soon as he got off the boat, he impatiently looked for someone to ask where Gao Yuan was.

He was truly penniless. He was so hungry his hands and feet were weak, and his legs felt floaty as he walked. He felt his whole family would starve to death if they didn't find Gao Yuan soon.

When someone coming from the sea impatiently asked for the Nanyue Royal Palace, the passersby grew wary. Soon, a squad of soldiers appeared before Gao Yang's group and invited them to the government office.

What a joke. What kind of status did the Prince of Nanyue and the Duke of Xicheng Commandery hold? How could they be seen by just anyone?

In the government office, Gao Yang wolfed down five large bowls of rice and finished the chicken soup. Only then did he let out a long breath and give a full burp.

"I am Gao Yang, son of Gao Jia, the head of the Twelve Protectors of the Gao Family Army. This is my mother, my fiancée, and my father-in-law. These few are the shipwrights who came with me."

Upon hearing they were from the Gao Family Army, the County Magistrate immediately took it seriously. He arranged for Gao Yang's group to bathe and change while sending someone to report to the Royal Palace.