Map Dispute

In a room within the Governor's Mansion of Tortuga Port, Liu Zhi carefully leafed through several books belonging to the Governor of Tortuga.

This was Tortuga Port's reward for Liu Zhi's discovery of a way to deal with the Fishmen and for reporting the method immediately.

Of course, aside from allowing Liu Zhi to read in the Governor's Mansion, he had also asked for other things. For instance, an old fishing boat that required three people to operate. Liu Zhi had tested it, and it was seaworthy.

He had also obtained permission to copy a nautical chart of the nearby routes.

Today was the last day the Governor of Tortuga had allowed Liu Zhi to read in the Governor's Mansion. Liu Zhi pulled out every book he could borrow and carefully compared the details recorded within, marking everything he had found on a sheet of parchment he had brought with him.

Just as Liu Zhi was busy, the door suddenly opened. Looking up, he saw the Governor's steward enter with two men.

The two men were one old and one young. The older man was over fifty, with hair that had already turned white. The younger one looked about twenty-five, strong and healthy.

Their clothes showed that they were both of noble birth. Yet they had clearly spent years sailing or exploring this region. Setting aside their skin, even their habitual movements revealed that they frequently traveled through forests and mountains.

Liu Zhi merely glanced at them before lowering his head and returning to his work. Over the past few days, people had occasionally come into this room to look up information. As long as they did not disturb him, Liu Zhi generally paid them no mind.

However, under the steward's guidance, these two walked straight over to Liu Zhi.

Before Liu Zhi could speak, the steward said, "Mr. Sandru, I need to trouble you with something."

Liu Zhi frowned, about to speak, when the older man behind him said, "You are Mr. Sandru, correct? Actually, we are in the wrong here, but we truly are pressed for time. We can only trouble you."

"What is it? Go ahead." Given the situation, Liu Zhi could hardly tell them to get lost. He sighed helplessly and put away his map.

"It is like this. We need to enter the nearby jungle to find a plant. Its flowering period is only these next few days. If we miss it, we will have to wait another seven years. So I need a map, but we arrived too late. Every nearby map we could find was only a rough version, completely unsuitable for our purposes. We finally heard that you were drawing a detailed map here, so I wanted to ask whether you could sell your map directly to us. I have some ties with the Governor, so I can discuss it with him and let you draw another map here."

Liu Zhi shook his head. "Sorry, but I also need to go into the nearby jungle to look for something. If it were just an ordinary map, I could sell it to you without issue. But this time, I have marked clues to what I am searching for on it as well. That item is extremely important to me. I cannot let someone else obtain it."

At Liu Zhi's words, the two had no choice. If Liu Zhi had simply refused, they would still have grounds to press him. But since he had included clues to what he was searching for on the map, forcing the issue would be excessive.

The younger man, who had been standing at the back, grew somewhat angry at once. Pointing at Liu Zhi, he said, "What could the thing you're looking for possibly be? Do you really think we'd want it? Do you know what we're looking for?"

"Lloyd." The older man interrupted him.

Only then did the young man, Lloyd, close his mouth. Still, his expression made it clear that he was deeply displeased with Liu Zhi.

At that moment, the older man turned back to Liu Zhi. "I wonder if you could..."

"No. I will not show you the map. But if you are willing to wait, I can draw one for you."

"There is no time. We have to set out today, or we will miss the flowering period." The older man spoke helplessly, then turned to the steward. "How about you speak to the Governor and lend me all the materials here? I will see whether I can work out the map on the road."

"There is no need, Lord Perkin. I will handle this." Lloyd walked up to Liu Zhi. "Name your price. How much are you willing to take for handing over the map?"

Liu Zhi shook his head. "That is impossible. I really am going to look for my item. As you can see, this is where I am headed. Such an obvious cross was definitely not something I just marked. It was part of my plan from the beginning."

As he spoke, Liu Zhi showed the three of them his map. Just as he said, a red cross had been marked near the center, with all sorts of information Liu Zhi had gathered over the years written beside it.

This information included hydrological details, dangerous areas along the route, possible supply locations, and more.

Though they only gave it a quick glance, the three understood that Liu Zhi had put considerable effort into this map. Many things on it could not have been discovered in just a day or two.

Then Perkin suddenly said, "How about this, Sandru? If you are unwilling to give us the map, then take it and set out with us instead. As long as you guide us to the vicinity of that plant, you can leave on your own."

Upon hearing this, Liu Zhi snorted heavily. "What, if I refuse, are you planning to tie me up and drag me there?"

"No. I would simply be hiring one more guide. I will pay you the same rate I pay my guides. What do you think?"

"Not much. I had originally planned to sail my own boat and lie back comfortably inside it. But after what you said, I have become your employee instead."

"You can sail as well? Then I have even more reason to hire you. Do not worry, I am not someone who forces others. I always make sure people are satisfied. How does 50 Gold Coins sound?"

Liu Zhi frowned at those words. He had not expected the man before him to be so generous. That amount of gold was nearly one-sixth of the price of the cargo hold he had started with.

Liu Zhi's expression fell into Perkin's eyes. He understood that Liu Zhi was tempted, but what he had offered was not what Liu Zhi wanted.

"How about you tell me what you want? Rest assured, I am a generous man. As long as I have it, I will not be stingy."

Liu Zhi was about to refuse, but after reconsidering, he made a request. "You have a good relationship with the Governor, so can you obtain Xise Naval Swordsmanship? I want a version that can be learned directly up to the extraordinary level."

Perkin hesitated for a moment. "I actually do have that."