Fenghou

Chen Qing smiled faintly: "Aren't you afraid of being pointed behind your back?"

Zhong Hui shook his head, "Don't be afraid of a lowly position, I beg Your Highness to help you!"

"Did you redeem her body?"

"Not yet, but the bustard asks for fifty guan, which is affordable for a humble job."

Chen Qing smiled slightly and said, "It's not about money. Once you redeem her, her background will be determined. I don't want my generals to bear this reputation!"

Chen Qing turned his head and said: "Nian Xiaowu, Li Hu!"

"The humble position is here!" Two soldiers stepped forward and said.

"You bring a dozen brothers to find that old prostitute, beat me, and force her to confess to kidnapping a woman from a good family, and then publicly behead her. Each of these new prostitutes will be given ten pennies, and all will be sent back to the country."

Chen Qing said to Zhou Tao again: "You arrange this matter!"

Zhou Tao went with a dozen of Chen Qing's soldiers, and Chen Qing smiled and said to Zhong Hui: "Clear her identity, and you can marry her and have children with peace of mind."

Zhong Hui knelt down and sobbed, "Your Highness is so kind, I can't repay a humble job."

Chen Qing said lightly: "If you really want to repay me, you can make your home in Ryukyu!"

"Humble official swears that the descendants of the humble official will guard the sea for His Royal Highness!"

Chen Qing nodded, "Based on your oath, from now on, you will be officially promoted to commander!"

……

During dinner, Chen Qing told the second daughter what happened to Zhong Hui today, and the two women really became interested. Yu Lian smiled and said, "Newspapers often publish such things, and we are most interested. I thought it was a made-up story. , I didn’t expect it to happen.”

Yao Mei also said: "General Zhong's late wife passed away ten years ago, and he still can't forget it. He is really a man of temperament. This time is also his fate."

Chen Qing shook his head and said with a smile, "Amei always likes to think of things beautifully."

Yao Mei pouted and said, "Officer, is it wrong?"

"It's not wrong to be wrong, it's just a little too exaggerated."

Chen Qing said indifferently: "The essence is that these island guards are too empty and lonely. When a young woman smiles at him, he can't help himself. In fact, looking like a dead wife is just an excuse."

Yao Mei said indignantly: "Even if it's an excuse, but he hasn't married for ten years, it's also a memory of his dead wife!"

Chen Qing waved his hand and said: "The thing I'm thinking about now is not this Zhong Hui, but other soldiers. I'm thinking about whether I can bring their family members here together, let their families get used to this place slowly, and then like it here, even if Soldiers can stay after retiring from the army, being able to stay is the key!"

Yu Lian smiled slyly and said, "I'll give my husband an idea, to ensure that many soldiers will stay in the end."

"Tell me, what's the best way?"

"You can recruit some young women from Japan to work on Ryukyu Island, and then let unmarried soldiers choose women from them to marry. When they have children here, have children, and have family property, these women are definitely not willing If they leave, they will be afraid to live in a new environment, fear of being excluded, I am a woman, I understand women's psychology, wives and children are unwilling to leave, soldiers will finally stay with peace of mind."

What Yu Lian said made Chen Qing thoughtful.

……

The next morning, when Chen Qing and Zhou Kuan talked about this matter, Zhou Kuan said with a smile: "Madam's suggestion is very reasonable. In fact, we have experience. Many of the party women we captured at the beginning were married to soldiers of the Western Army. These soldiers After retiring from the army, most of them stayed in Lingzhou, and the reason was just like Madam said, the soldiers chose to stay because their wives and children were unwilling to leave. To increase the population of Ryukyu Island, it is a good way for soldiers to leave the army and stay.”

Chen Qing nodded, "If soldiers who already have wives and children at home bring their families over and grant them land and real estate, will they also stay in the end?"

Zhou Kuan shook his head, "That's not necessarily the case. We Han people pay attention to returning fallen leaves to their roots. In the end, even if they don't go back, their children will go back to their hometown, unless there is nothing left in their hometown."

Chen Qing walked a few steps with his hands behind his back, and said to Zhou Kuan: "When I chatted with the villagers yesterday, I realized that most of them are from the Yellow River Flooding Area, and they are all willing to come to Ryukyu. People are tenants and coolies. At that time, I had an idea that we can recruit people from the Yellow Flood Area, and the soldiers are the same. Let the soldiers whose hometown is in the Yellow Flood Area come to Ryukyu to station, take their families over, and they will stay and settle down. It's very likely."

"Your Highness, that's a good idea!" Zhou Kuan praised.

Chen Qing laughed again: "But recruiting young Japanese women to marry unmarried soldiers is also a good way."

Chen Qing immediately ordered Chao Kun to be found. Not long after, Chao Kun came in a hurry, and Chen Qing talked about his idea of ​​recruiting young Japanese women.

Chao Kun thought for a while and said, "It's totally doable. At the time of recruitment, many families wanted to send their daughters as well. We only wanted young and strong men. If we were recruiting female workers, I knew there would be many girls who would come. The first batch There is no problem recruiting 2000 people."

Zhou Kuan asked again: "But will it cause disturbance among Japanese laborers?"

Chao Kun said with a smile: "Don't worry about participating in politics. After the city is repaired, [-] Japanese laborers will move north to open a new settlement at another river mouth hundreds of miles away. When the Japanese female workers arrive, these men will not be here long ago. These women workers are good at weaving, and with young women, soldiers can start families, have children, and stay in peace.”

Chen Qing made a final decision, "That's it, the next time I go to Japan, I will recruit the first batch of [-] female workers!"

……

Chen Qing stayed in the big island of Ryukyu for three days. He didn't wait for the leader of the Gaoren natives to come to see him, so he authorized Chao Kun to sign a non-aggression agreement with the Gaoshan natives as his representative.

This is actually a very pragmatic approach. If Chen Qing regards the mountain natives as his own people, then there will be no agreement to be concluded. Although it saves face, it leaves hidden dangers.

The Gaoshan natives are not actually the citizens of the Yong Kingdom, and they will not listen to any laws and regulations of the Yong Kingdom, they only consider their own interests.

At the beginning, there were not many immigrants, and they might be able to live in peace, but when there are more and more immigrants, the suspicion and insecurity of the native people in the mountains will increase day by day, and conflicts will break out sooner or later.

Therefore, a non-aggression agreement was concluded early, and both parties strictly followed the agreement. This is of great benefit to dispel the suspicion and insecurity of the other party. This is equivalent to setting a limit. As long as the immigration does not exceed this limit, the other party will have nothing to do. worry.

Of course, when the immigrants are strong enough, the treaty is meaningless, and the natives of the high mountains will naturally take the initiative to attach themselves and become the subjects of the Yong Kingdom.

Three days later, Chen Qing left Ryukyu Island and returned to Quanzhou.

-------------Chapter Dividing Line---------------

When Chen Qing's four large ships sailed into the bay of Quanzhou Port, Chen Qing accidentally found that there were many more large ships with thousands of stones in the bay. Although they were flying the red-bottomed black dragon flag, it always felt a little different. The flag had a circle of yellow borders. , Unlike the regular Western Army banner, there is a large viewing bucket on the mast, and there are many colorful flags, which are usually equipped by ocean-going fleets.

Chen Qing suddenly understood that this must be the return of Liu Dajiang's fleet.

Liu Dajiang's fleet is Chen Qing's private army. One thousand soldiers are no longer in the Western Army's establishment. Even the ten large ships are Chen Qing's private ships. Back to ordinary people's clothing.

At this time, Liu Dajiang had already learned that King Yong had arrived on Fujian Road and went to the big island of Ryukyu for inspection. He would come to the pier almost every day to inquire about news.

At noon, Liu Dajiang was eating in a tavern on the wharf when he suddenly heard 'Dang!when!when! 'The bell rang, he didn't care to finish his meal, left a handful of money and ran to the pier.

He saw a huge ship docked at the pier, which was countless times larger than the Wanshi ship, and he immediately waved his fists in joy. This was the return of His Royal Highness King Yong.

Liu Dajiang ran up quickly, but was stopped by soldiers. The inside was a security zone, and ordinary people were not allowed to enter.

Liu Dajiang quickly took out the gold medal given to him by King Yong and handed it over, "I am a relative of His Highness King Yong, please report to Your Highness for me, Liu Dajiang asks to see you!"

Seeing that the other party was actually holding the gold medal of His Royal Highness King Yong, the soldier nodded, took the gold medal and ran to report it. After a while, he returned the gold medal to Liu Dajiang, "Follow me, please!"

Not long after, Liu Dajiang was brought in front of Chen Qing, and he stepped forward to bow and salute, "Please refer to Your Highness for humble duties!"

Chen Qing nodded and smiled, "Boss Liu has worked hard, when did you come back?"

"Humble job came back the day before yesterday."

"Wait a while! I'll listen to your report after I've settled down a bit. I hope the news is exciting."

"Your Highness will definitely not be disappointed."

Chen Qing nodded, and asked the soldiers to greet Liu Dajiang first, and he took his son into the carriage.

"uncle!"

Liu Dajiang suddenly heard someone calling him, and when he turned around, he saw his niece Yao Mei on the side of a cart. He was surprised and delighted, and hurried forward and said, "Amei, you are here too!"

Yao Mei was surprised in her heart. She always thought that her uncle opened a restaurant with her parents in Jingzhao, but she didn't expect to meet her in Quanzhou.

"Uncle, why are you here?"

Liu Dajiang scratched his head, "Didn't His Highness tell you?"

"No, the officials didn't say anything about uncle."

"I'm working for King Yong! I'm doing overseas trade, and I just came back from Nanyang."

Liu Dajiang took out a pearl the size of a pigeon egg from his bosom, smiled and handed it to his niece, "This is for you!"

Liu Dajiang has no children, and he likes Yao Mei the most, and has always regarded her as his daughter. Yao Mei took the beads, "Thank you uncle!"

At this time, the carriage started, and Yao Mei hurriedly said, "Uncle, you must be careful when you go out to sea, don't take risks, and take care of yourself!"

Liu Dajiang nodded, his nose a little sour.

……

An hour later, Liu Dajiang was brought into Chen Qing's temporary study by his own soldiers. Upon seeing the ceremony, Chen Qing waved his hands and said, "Sit down and have a sip of tea, and then talk slowly."

A maid came in and served tea, and Liu Dajiang took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, and then he reported in detail what had happened over the past few months.

Chen Qing listened very attentively. He pondered for a moment and asked, "In just a few months, nearly twenty pirates were wiped out. How did you do it?"

Liu Dajiang hesitated and said: "Actually, we used deception. Their noses are sharper than dogs. As long as there are single merchant ships at sea, they will definitely be discovered by them, and they will definitely show up."

Chen Qing laughed and said, "Are you pretending to be an orderly merchant ship?"

"Exactly!"

Liu Dajiang said with some embarrassment: "Although it is a bit disgraceful, it is very effective. Basically, it is accurate to use one at a time."

Chen Qing shook his head, "You have to remember that there is no brilliance on the battlefield, only victory and defeat. The 36 strategy is to teach you to use various so-called disgraceful means to kill the enemy. Once the brilliance is achieved, it means that we have to pay heavy casualties. This kind of general I must resign from office."

"Your Highness taught me, I will remember it. In fact, we have always carried out His Highness's order. All pirates will be exterminated and no one will be left alive."

"Very well, just because you strictly follow my orders, I will give you a reward."

Chen Qing took a long box from the table, handed it to him and said with a smile: "This is the treasure of sailing, you can open it and have a look."

Liu Dajiang opened the box carefully. Inside was a black leather tube, less than a foot long, with one end thick and the other thin. He was at a loss, what is it?

Chen Qing said with a smile: "This is called a telescope. It can check the situation in the distance. It is very useful for you to find islands and check ships in the distance!"

Chen Qing took the binoculars, demonstrated it to him, and handed it to him again. Liu Dajiang imitated using the binoculars to look towards the bay. He was so startled that he almost threw the binoculars away.

He exclaimed: "This... this is clairvoyance!"

Chen Qing smiled and said: "You can also call it clairvoyance, how about it, it is very practical!"

Liu Dajiang was reluctant to put it down, looked at it again and again, finally put it away carefully, and thanked again and again: "This is really a nautical treasure, I want to make a chain and hang it around my neck, but I want to use it for the lookout, will your Highness allow it? "

Chen Qing gave a thumbs up secretly, this Liu Dajiang is really a person who can afford to let it go, he said happily: "It is a good thing to make the best use of it, and I will give you another one in the future."

"Thank you, Your Highness, for fulfilling the task!"

Chen Qing took a sip of tea, and asked again: "Those pirates don't have any lairs, what's the reason?"

Liu Dajiang thought for a while and said, "I think there are two reasons. One is the pirates themselves. Many of them are not real pirates, but fishermen from various countries in Southeast Asia. , and the rest of the money is given to the family.

The second reason is distrust, especially pirate leaders. The wealth they get is gold, silver and jewelry. They are afraid of being betrayed by their accomplices on the island. It is better to keep the treasure in their own hands, so every pirate ship will have a secret room. The cabin is specially used to store the treasure of the pirate leader. Every time we capture a pirate ship, we first look for the secret cabin, but it is easy to find, almost all the entrances are in the cabin of the pirate leader. "

"How many pirates are there in Nanyang?" Chen Qing asked again.

"Humble job is not very clear. I heard that there were hundreds of pirates at the most. In recent years, the number of merchant ships going to Nanyang in the Song Dynasty has decreased a lot, and there have been fewer pirates. If the maritime trade is prosperous in the future, pirates will definitely continue to appear, just like the humble job As I said before, most of them are fishermen from various countries in the South Seas, and they will turn into pirates when they make a profit."

Chen Qing nodded and said: "The fight against pirates will end for now. Next, you will lead the fleet to do two major things. First, investigate the big island of Luzon in detail to understand its resources, fresh water, land and local natives. According to the situation, to find the best settlement for immigrants, preferably near the mouth of the river, this is your first task."

-------------Chapter Dividing Line---------------

Liu Dajiang nodded, "Remember, we have actually been to Luzon Island, but we didn't meet native people, but we didn't investigate carefully. We will go to Luzon Island next."

"And then the second mission!"

Chen Qing spread out a Nanyang map drawn by Chao Kun. Although it is not as accurate as later generations, it can still be roughly distinguished.

"After exploring Luzon Island, you go to the Three Buddha Qi Dynasty. You pretend to be a businessman to buy a piece of land from their king. I will tell you where it is."

Chen Qing pointed to a long strait and said: "This strait is the only way to Tianzhu and Dashi. If you buy the peninsula in the north, even if you can't buy all of it, you have to buy half of it. The key is to have Tamsui, I want to establish the Nanyang Trade Bureau here."

Obtaining a piece of land in Nanyang as the foundation of overseas trade has always been the wish of the Song and Ming dynasties. In history, it was Ming Chengzu Zhu Di who really realized this wish. He established the Jiugang Propaganda Department centered on the old port. It is not related to Qi's Chinese regime, but it is indeed an official Ming Dynasty institution.

The peninsula that Chen Qing asked Liu Dajiang to buy was naturally the later Malay Peninsula, and at this time it belonged to the territory of the Srivijaya Dynasty.

Liu Dajiang thought for a while and said: "In fact, with our strength, we can completely occupy any island in Nanyang. Why spend that money to buy it?"

Chen Qing smiled and said: "Of course I know that it can be directly occupied, but when it comes to military campaigns, you must pay attention to strategy and long-term vision, especially the expansion of land boundaries. You must pay attention to legality. You buy the land and then resell it. Give it to the Yong Kingdom, then this piece of land is the legal land of the Yong Kingdom."

Liu Dajiang nodded, "The humble guide Zhang Jiugong also said that the territory of the Three Buddha Qi Dynasty was too vast, and there was no territorial awareness. For the Three Buddha Qi rulers, it is of course okay to sell a piece of land to a businessman in exchange for huge wealth. Anyway, you can take it back when you need it.”

"Yes! It's the idea of ​​taking advantage of them!"

Chen Qing praised: "If the government comes forward to buy it, they will definitely have concerns. They are afraid that there will be a powerful neighboring country around them, so they may not sell it, but if it is a businessman who buys it, they will drink blood and eat meat before gnawing bones. Idea, they will sell the land, I want their deed of sale."

Liu Dajiang wished he could set off immediately, he immediately said: "The humble official will definitely take this land for His Highness!"

……

Lin'an has entered the midsummer season, and the heat is unbearable. The streets seem to be on fire, and the air is about to burn. Every step is sweating. Except for the people at the bottom who are still enduring the heat and running for their lives, the rest of the people are in a state of stillness. Those who have no money squat at home to escape the heat, and the conditions at home are good, so they squeeze into various teahouses to drink iced drinks to enjoy the coolness.

Apart from the people at the bottom, the only people still appearing on the street are the Plum Blossom Guards. The Plum Blossom Guards are having a hard time recently. They have received a heavy task, asking them to clear up illegal salt.

Since last year, private salt in the Jiangnan area has gradually emerged, and it has become more and more serious now. The high-ranking officials may not feel it, but the salt tax cannot be faked. Last year’s salt tax was cut by half compared with the previous year. In the first few months of this year, The salt tax dropped by [-]%.