Back to the Warring States Period as Zhao Kuo

Of course, what can help this city's development is not the steam engine that has not yet been fully deployed in the Central Plains, but the South China Sea Fleet of the Han Kingdom that has established its base here.

Then the question arises, how did the Han Dynasty and the South China Sea Fleet help the city develop?

The answer is even simpler, that is the harvest from the fleet at sea.

Since the news of Zhao Kuo's arrival had already been known, the South China Sea Fleet did not go to sea, but all the ships were waiting for Zhao Kuo's arrival.

After Zhao Kuo entered the city of Guangzhou, the first thing he discovered was that there were a large number of slaves in this city. Most of these slaves were dark-skinned and thin in stature, but when they worked, they seemed to be full of stamina and quite agile. , at first glance, he is not from the Han Dynasty, nor even from the local Baiyue people in Guangzhou.

"Are these people the slaves you caught in Nanyang?"

Zhao Kuo asked Xu Ping, the commander of the South China Sea Fleet of the Han Dynasty in front of him.

Xu Ping replied respectfully: "Your Majesty said exactly that. After years of development, our South China Sea Fleet has acquired a large overseas territory in Vietnam. These slaves are all obtained from Vietnam's overseas territories."

Zhao Kuo nodded, and said to Xu Ping: "I have heard that your South China Sea Fleet of the Great Han Kingdom has continuously expanded its territory in the past few years. Now that I have come here in person, I just want you to introduce it to me. , What is the extent of our development of the Southeast Asian peninsula and archipelago in the south?"

From Zhao Kuo's own point of view, he has special feelings for this piece of the south, after all, this is a node that is crucial to China's southern ocean.

Zhao Kuo must personally sit in town to ensure that this place is under Huaxia's control.

Chapter 1303 New Development of the South China Sea Fleet

There is a saying that goes well, if you don't listen, you don't know, and when you hear it, you will be shocked.

After listening to the introduction of the commander of the South China Sea Fleet, Zhao Kuo realized that the South China Sea Fleet had actually done so many things in the past few years.

The first and most basic thing is the South China Sea Fleet's exploration and development of various peninsulas and islands in the South China Sea.

The first one to explore is actually not the territory of other countries in history, but Hainan Island, which is located on the opposite bank of Leizhou Peninsula in the south of Guangdong.

Hainan Island is a place that can be said to go south. However, at this time, Hainan Island is mainly distributed among some ethnic groups among the Yue people. These ethnic groups are relatively brave and unwilling to surrender to the big Han. .

But it is a pity that these so-called bravery are obviously not worth mentioning in front of the Musketeers of the Han Dynasty.

In fact, musketeers are not even needed to conquer these places, because these local peoples don’t even know how to smelt iron weapons, and many of them don’t even master the technology of how to make bronze ware. It belongs to the lowest stage of tribal civilization, which is like drinking blood.

Therefore, after a massacre that was not considered intense, it could only be said that it was one-sided, these ethnic groups were forced to retreat to the mountains and forests, and the entire plain area of ​​Hainan Island was completely occupied by the South China Sea Fleet.

After the South China Sea Fleet occupied Hainan Island, it established a county and several counties in this place, and then used this as the next springboard to continue all the way south along the coastline.

Why head south along the coast instead of exploring the Luzon Islands, where the Philippines is located, first?

Of course, because going south along the coastline is a safer choice.

On this way south, the South China Sea Fleet really discovered a new opportunity, that is, the Red River Delta.

The so-called Red River Delta refers to the delta plain area where Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam in later generations, is located. This place is actually quite similar to the Pearl River Delta. The difference is that it is further south than the Pearl River Delta. Some climates It is also hotter.

The South China Sea Fleet has set up another advance base here. Originally, the South China Sea Fleet thought that the local natives would not or dare not have any opinions, but something they did not expect happened soon.

About three months after the stronghold was established, one day an indigenous army of more than [-] people actually appeared outside the stronghold and surrounded the stronghold.

Due to the language barrier between the two sides, after some gesticulations, the local garrison of the South China Sea Fleet understood the meaning of these aborigines, that is, the South China Sea Fleet must leave the place of these aborigines as quickly as possible. The natives are about to kill everyone in the South China Sea Fleet.

Zhao Kuo couldn't help laughing when he heard this, and said, "Unexpectedly, these indigenous people don't have much knowledge, but their ambition is quite high. How many people were there in the garrison at that time?"

Xu Ping also said with a smile: "The garrison at that time had a total of 500 people, but all of these 500 people were all musketeers, and they also carried a batch of grenades with them."

With 500 well-trained musketeers relying on their strongholds and owning grenades as throwing weapons, there is no need to say more about the outcome of this war.

When a large number of ships from the mighty South China Sea Fleet came to support them in a few days, in addition to seeing mountains of indigenous corpses outside the stronghold, they also found thousands of captured indigenous people inside the stronghold.

"Has Your Majesty seen these slaves?

A large part of it is actually the natives who were captured at the beginning. "

Zhao Kuo nodded with a smile and said, "Very good, so what happened next?"

For Zhao Kuo, things like slaves are no longer his demons.

He actually doesn't mind the Huaxia people enslaving other nations. What he needs to do is to make the Huaxia people the most powerful nation in the world.

It may sound narrow-minded, but frankly speaking, is it true that someone will help others without distinction and ignore their own family?

I'm afraid such people are rare in this world.

Only after all the common people in the Han Kingdom have enjoyed a very rich material life and spiritual civilization life, Zhao Kuo will have time to pay attention to the people of other ethnic groups, and will help these ethnic groups integrate into the Chinese nation, and then improve their lives. level.

To briefly summarize, Zhao Kuo's idea is actually to have a priority in everything he does. At present, the most important thing is the Han Dynasty, which is the happy life of the Chinese nation. For the time being, other nations are in front of this goal. You can stand aside.

Xu Ping continued talking.

After conquering this piece of Red River Delta.

The South China Sea Fleet established a new city here. Since the city is located inside two rivers, they named the city Hanoi.

After Zhao Kuo heard these words, he was also a little surprised. Like many cities before, the reason why they have the same name as the later modern Huaxia cities is of course because of Zhao Kuo’s handwriting, but this Hanoi is really not Zhao Kuo’s. Named, but just a coincidence.

This proves that a good place is always a good place. No matter what kind of nation occupies it, he will definitely build a city in the same good place, and even the way of naming may be very consistent.

After the construction of Hanoi City, the South China Sea Fleet went all the way south, and successively established dozens of strongholds on the eastern coast of the Southeast Asian peninsula.

With these strongholds as the center, the South China Sea Fleet began to slowly develop inland. Last year, most of these were close to the plains. The local arable land is very sufficient, and the products are very amazing, because this is a tropical area.

The most famous tropical region in the world is Africa. People can often see through various documentaries that as long as the seeds are scattered casually in Africa, then, with the help of sufficient sunshine and moisture, these notices will disappear in just a few months. Able to mature and grow enough food.

This is why Africans are lazy, because they don't need to work hard at all, and they can live on, so why not be lazy?

Some people say that it is a matter of race, but it is not, it is simply because nature has given this land too much grace.

Let’s talk about the Southeast Asian peninsula first. Although it is a bit worse than Africa, it is only a little bit worse.

In this place in Southeast Asia, there is the strongest food crop variety in the world at this time, that is, Champa Rice, which is recorded in history textbooks.

The famous hybrid rice in later generations was actually cultivated on the basis of Huaxia rice obtained through thousands of years of planting after Champa rice was introduced into China.

Zhao Kuo also thought of this after hearing this, so he asked: "I heard that these natives in Southeast Asia have a kind of rice, and the yield of their rice is very high, have you seen it?"

Xu Ping was taken aback when he heard this, and said to Zhao Kuo with some admiration, "I didn't expect His Majesty to know about rice. To tell you the truth, we did bring back some rice seeds. Planting has started near Guangzhou."

After Zhao Kuo heard this, he immediately showed a satisfied smile and said: "Rice is a really good thing. Your next task is to collect rice seeds with all your strength. At that time, I will spread this kind of word to the north and south of the river, so that the whole Everyone in Huaxia Han Kingdom is responsible for this seed."

Although wheat in the north is also a very good grain, compared with rice, it can only be said that it really does not have an advantage in terms of yield.

Especially in the Northeast region now controlled by the Great Han Kingdom, those black lands are the most suitable places to grow rice. In later generations, Siberian tiger-grown rice will be a household name.

Historically, the reason why China experienced a period of rapid population explosion in the Song Dynasty was because rice was introduced to the Central Plains of China at this time and planted on a large scale.

For example, during the Ming and Qing dynasties, there was often a saying called "Huguang is ripe, the world is full", and it also said that the rice in Huguang area, as long as these two places can have a good harvest, then the whole world can benefit from the rice in these two places. Harvest, and fully meet everyone's needs for food.

Zhao Kuo actually attached so much importance to this rice, so Xu Ping would definitely not take it lightly, he immediately agreed, and patted his chest, promising that more rice would be introduced into the territory of Han Kingdom as quickly as possible in the future.

Zhao Kuo walked to the map on the wall and looked at the strongholds established by the South China Sea Fleet in the Southeast Asian peninsula.

Judging from the map, this is a stronghold that is only located in Vietnam for the time being, and has not yet extended to the Malaya Peninsula, that is, the crucial Strait of Malacca, but Zhao Kuo is also very clear, according to this time If it continues, it will only be a matter of time before the Strait of Malacca is under control.

As long as you cross the Strait of Malacca and continue northward along the coast, you will find Myanmar, then Bangladesh, and finally, the Indian region of the South Asian subcontinent that was just conquered by the Han Dynasty.

In other words, it is also a very bad thing for the vast territory of the Han Dynasty to achieve communication through the navy.

Thinking of this, the joy in Zhao Kuo's heart was very hard to suppress.

In history, the Huaxia Dynasty was basically a country with land power, and did not pay too much attention to the ocean. This is not to say that the people of the Han Dynasty did not have the spirit of pioneering and enterprising. In fact, many residents in the southern part of the Han Dynasty would I like to go to sea, and this is why I have a vigorous activity in Nanyang.

The reason why the dynasties of the past dynasties did not regard the ocean as a priority for development is simply because the Han Kingdom can continue to expand its territory on land, and there is no need to develop from the sea at all.

If you pay attention to the countries in the age of discovery in the history of Western Europe, such as Portugal and Spain, or the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, these are countries that cannot continue to expand their territories on land and can only find their way out from the sea.

So sometimes, when you get an opportunity in one place, you tend to ignore the opportunity in another place. This is the so-called "happiness comes when misfortune rests on it, and misfortune comes when blessing rests on it", according to a Western proverb , that is, "God closes a door for you, but at the same time opens another window for you."

But no matter how you say it, but because of the foresight of the emperor Zhao Kuo, the Khanate is destined to be a unique existence in this era for the openness of the ocean.

You must know that at this time, there was no civilization at all on the Southeast Asian peninsula.

Therefore, there will be civilization in these places later, because after the continuous wars in the Chinese civilization, people began to flee to these places, and then slowly brought the civilization of these places, which is why East Asia and Southeast Asia in history Most countries will be radiated by Chinese civilization, and the reason why they regard the Central Plains Dynasty as their suzerain.

Zhao Kuo said to Xu Ping: "Judging from the current situation, it must be said that you are doing very well, very well.

I hope that you will continue to work hard to help me completely control these islands in Southeast Asia, and transport all their resources back to our Han country, to help our Han country develop better, and to let the people of our Han country Get a better life, get it? "

Xu Ping was naturally respectful.

After some frequent conversations, Zhao Kuo realized that it was already dark, so he stayed with the commander, had another meal, and chatted alone for a while before letting him go. leave.

In the next few days, Zhao Kuo wandered around the city of Guangzhou.

As I said before, this is a newly established city, so many things in this city are brand new, and due to geographical conditions, many things here are actually different from those in the Central Plains in the north. It presents a unique atmosphere.

After Zhao Kuo wandered around the city of Guangzhou for a few days, Zhao Kuo found Xu Ping and asked him a request that surprised Xu Ping, even unexpected.

"I've been watching here for the past few days, and I'm almost tired of watching it. How about this? I plan to go to sea to have a look. You organize a fleet and take me to Hainan Island tomorrow."

Yes, Zhao Kuo is no longer satisfied with being a spectator and listener here, and he also hopes to participate in this voyage to the sea to see what it feels like to go to sea.

After Xu Ping heard these words, his first reaction was to dissuade Zhao Kuo.

"Your Majesty, going to sea is risky, please think twice, Your Majesty!"

Zhao Kuo asked back with a smile: "Don't you want to resist the order?"

Xu Ping: "..." The next day, a huge fleet set off from Guangzhou and headed south slowly.

Goal - Hainan Island!

Chapter 1304 Zhao Kuo's Trip to Hainan Island

Sitting on the big ship sailing south, looking at the vast ocean in front of him, Zhao Kuo's mood immediately improved.

Not only Zhao Kuo, but Yi Quwei beside him, was very excited and jumped up and down after boarding the boat. He didn't look like a concubine at all, and he turned into a curious baby girl.

"Your Majesty, you really didn't lie. The southern tour this time was really fun."

Looking at Yi Quwei with a smile on his face, Zhao Kuo couldn't help but shook his head with a smile, and he could only say that this concubine was happy.

If you browse the Qiongzhou Strait from the Leizhou Peninsula, then the time and distance must be very short, but this time Zhao Kuo chose to start from Guangzhou, so in terms of distance, he will choose a longer one. According to the previous In terms of budget, it will take at least one day to reach the northern part of Hainan Island.

For such a distance, Zhao Kuo has no opinion at all, and he even hopes that this distance may be better. After all, there is always a sense of novelty when taking a boat, especially when going out to sea by boat. It's fresh.

Zhao Qian has gone out to sea so many times, but this is still a rare experience, and Zhao Qian has indeed surpassed him in this matter.

Yi Quwei excitedly walked left and right on the boat, and suddenly cried out.

"Look, Your Majesty, there is a fish over there, and that is a really big fish."

Zhao Kuo looked around and saw a very big whale there.

At this moment, the whale is exposing its back to the water, spraying out a long column of water, shining under the sunlight, which looks very beautiful.

Looking at the scene in front of him, Zhao Kuo held his breath involuntarily, and began to appreciate it quietly.

Even some people who often go to sea may not be able to observe this scene. A large number of naval officers and soldiers also used the side of the ship's side to watch the whale quietly.

After a while, Zhao Kuo suddenly asked the naval captain beside him, "Can you think of a way to catch these whales?"

Yiquwei was stunned when she heard Zhao Kuo's words, and couldn't help but said, "How could Your Majesty kill such a beautiful whale?"

Zhao Kuo shook his head and answered Yiquwei with a smile.

"My dear concubine, you don't know that whales are really treasures all over. If you don't kill them, it will be a waste of resources."

For Zhao Kuo, he actually pays more attention to the benefits of development.

As long as any kind of thing can play a role in the development of the Han Dynasty, Zhao Kuo will promote it without hesitation.

In the age of great navigation in history, hunting whales was indeed a very profitable industry.

Until modern times, there are still large-scale whaling ships on the earth. It just means that due to hundreds of years of hunting, the number of whales has decreased a lot, so the income of whaling ships is no longer as much as before. Coupled with the opposition and appeals of some animal protection organizations, the industry is gradually getting colder.

But it must also be seen that when the industry of not counting whales was just emerging, it really played a role in promoting the great voyage.

After all, if you want to hunt whales, you must drive the boat to the sea to look for whales. In this way, it will invisibly promote the exploration of various sea areas.

Since an era of great navigation is to be opened in the Han Dynasty, for Zhao Kuo, any behavior that can promote the opening of this era of great navigation must be worth advocating.

After hearing Zhao Kuo's words, Yi Quwei obviously knew that Zhao Kuo had made up her mind. Yi Quwei could only stick out her tongue at Zhao Kuo, made a grimace, and then stopped talking.

After hearing Zhao Kuo's words, the captain on the side smiled quickly and said, "To tell you the truth, we have actually tried to kill such a big fish, one can eat for many days."

Under the command of the captain, many ships quickly gathered together and began to hunt down the whale.

Although there is no such huge harpoon, there are still smaller harpoons.

Many harpoons landed on the whale one after another. After more than an hour, the whale was finally killed. Its body was floating on the ocean, and the sea surface was stained red with blood.