There was certainly no satellite navigation in this era, so out on the ocean without landmarks, an overcast sky could mean straying off course without even knowing it.
That was exactly the situation facing the Star of Heaven and the few ships around her.
By daylight on the second day, they still had not cleared the rainy weather. The captain of the Star of Heaven stood at a high vantage point, surveying the distance through a telescope, with the first mate and two sailors beside him.
"Are we the ones who lost our way, or was it the other ships?"
Only six ships remained in the convoy, but yesterday's storm had hardly been extraordinary. How could so many ships have gone off course?
"Tell the convoy to reduce speed. Don't sail too fast. We'll wait until tonight and check the stars."
"Aye, Captain."
Mulan could feel the ship slowing, but he also knew it was already too late. The ships had not gradually drifted off course.
That night, the six remaining merchant ships, led by the Star of Heaven, finally left the rainy weather behind. Stars appeared in the sky, and aboard every ship, men immediately began taking sextant readings to determine the convoy's position. Their conclusions left everyone stunned.
Had they only strayed slightly off course, some error in celestial navigation would have been inevitable. It was not as accurate as satellite positioning, after all. But this was clearly far more than a slight deviation.
"How... how did we end up in these unfamiliar waters?"
The captain of the Star of Heaven was also the leader of the entire merchant convoy and a retainer of Count Alva. He stared out at the distant waters in shock. If all six ships had not reached the same conclusion, he would have