Lu Ming

……

As "Cao Chuan" took over the action of the confession and the official seal, the wheel of history changed drastically here, and the crossing forces started the process of lying on the Ming Dynasty to suck blood.

The big hat of "gaining the country is not right, seeking to usurp the throne" is not worn by the cross-border people in vain-this act of appeasement, at least, can save everyone 5-10 years of development time.

The reason is simple: the work permit issued by Xiong Wencan for "Coastal Defense Guerrilla" is universal for the entire Ming Dynasty.

In other words, from this moment on, even if the civil service system despises Cao Guerrilla, the fleet with the banner of "Guerrilla General Cao" can still enter any port in Daming to purchase any materials and personnel, including all items that are prohibited from export by the government. .

Traveling across the public business, you can swagger to do business from north to south in the future.As the reputation of suppressing pirates spreads in the future, the Ming court will gradually rely on the warlord Cao who holds a large army.And at that time, it will be extremely easy to dump goods to the provinces of Ming Dynasty, transfer population at the same time, and control the trend of history, and the strength of the crossing crowd will inflate like a balloon.

Compared with the benefits obtained at the strategic level in the future, the obedience and weak strength that Xiong Wencan sees now are the biggest disguise of a certain power.

Old Xiong would never have imagined that there would be a flat push technology called industrialization in this world.In the traditional sense, the so-called comparison of strength and overall control will soon be overwhelmed in front of machine tools and assembly lines, and the traversing crowd will use faster speed to gain deeper control of all sites within the range of guns.

……

After the secret conferring ceremony that night, despite the huge class gap, Cao Chuan and Xiong Wencan, who are already court officials, are considered close colleagues from a legal point of view.

Therefore, the next two colleagues naturally talked about how to deal with Zheng Zhilong's problem.

Here "Cao Guerrilla" was already prepared, so he put forward two strategies on the spot that Lao Xiong could choose at his own discretion—there was no inferior strategy, and the worst strategy was to kill the whole army and find Lao Zheng to fight. This is too stupid and no one will support it.

Chapter 192 Exploration Team

Regarding Zheng Zhilong's final solution, the newly released Cao Guerrilla proposed two strategies of "upper and middle".

The best policy is very simple, only five words "follow Wang Zhi's story".

Who is Wang Zhi?

Wang Zhi, a native of Huizhou in Southern Zhili Province, the owner of Captain Wufeng, was the most famous pirate and businessman during the Jiajing period.

The famous "Tanegashima Iron Cannon" was taught to Tanegashima by the Portuguese on board when Wang Zhi passed by Tanegashima.Of course, the name is not for nothing. At that time, he sent his daughter to sleep with him.

After the mid-Jiajing period, the Ming government began to implement a sea ban policy.Hu Zongxian, the governor of Zhejiang Zhizhi at the time, advocated recruiting Wang Zhizhi, and the two sides had a pleasant negotiation at first.However, when Wang Zhi relaxed his vigilance and was playing in the West Lake, he was captured by Wang Bengu, who was then the patrol envoy of Zhejiang, and was subsequently executed.

With the execution of Wang Zhi as a symbol, the incident entered the famous period of "Jiajing Japanese Insurrection" in history.

……

Cao Guerrilla also meant the same thing now: to lure Lao Zheng to Fuzhou City with the bait of recruiting and negotiating, and then finish the job with a single knife.

This method can be said to be faster, more economical, environmentally friendly and pollution-free, who knows who uses it.

As for whether Lao Zheng will come or not?There is no doubt about that, just look at Cao Guerrilla himself.

Unless Lao Zheng wants to spend his whole life floating at sea as a guerrilla captain.As long as he still wants to recruit security, do regular business, and get a work permit issued by the government, he has to pass this test.

Old Zheng is not afraid to take this risk: Zheng is a businessman by nature, and his way of thinking is different from that of a pure pirate.

In history, Lao Zheng went to hostile camps to negotiate many times, including the Dutch who had trade disputes, including Cai Shanji, the prefect of Quanzhou, and Xiong Wencan himself. Lao Zheng only brought a small number of people to negotiate.

Of course, there is no way to bring large troops.The so-called "XX personally led thousands of people to come and surrender" is actually the same as signing contracts on TV in later generations. The boss pretends to sign a few contracts in front of the flashing lights-the real negotiation process has long since ended, and this is a ceremony.

If the Zheng family took the so-called large force to coerce outside Quanzhou or Fuzhou port before the two sides had reached an agreement, it would be called rebellion, not negotiation.

Therefore, the plan proposed by Cao Guerrilla is the safest plan: the old bear only needs to show his goodwill, then meet Zheng Zhilong, and wait until he enters Fuzhou City...

However, the old bear rejected this best policy.

……

Keyword: bad reputation.

Slaying Lao Zheng with a single knife made the traveler happy, but the old bear took the blame again.

Although the officials of all dynasties have no integrity, and the incidents of trapping and killing bandits are endless, Xiong Wencan obviously does not belong to that kind of officialdom: Wang Zhi was beheaded back then. relation.

The old bear has deeper concerns.

Killing Zheng Zhilong was a pleasure, but what if the pirates elected a leader later?

If the time-traversing crowd is not as powerful as they say, and the new pirate gang cannot be suppressed, the old bear will be completely finished by then-no one will talk to the old bear again because he trapped and killed the former leader Zheng Zhilong The value is negative.

Although Cao Guerzilla has repeatedly used his head to guarantee that as long as Zheng Zhilong gets the lunch box, the superficial brothers who are gathered in Wuhewa will turn their faces and chop each other immediately, and then the officers and soldiers only need to clean up one by one afterwards... But the old bear doesn't believe it .

The old bear is not a time traveler, he doesn't know that Zheng Zhilong caressed his front foot in history, but his brothers turned against him and drove him and several of his family back to Fuzhou. How in the years to come, all the superficial brothers were sent to the west one by one.

From Xiong Wencan's point of view, it would be the worst policy for the government to kill Zheng Zhilong directly.He must leave a way out for both himself and the government. This is a choice that a normal superior will definitely make, and there is nothing wrong with it.

……

Well, since the best strategy is useless, Cao Youzhan took out the middle strategy here.

The first half of the middle strategy is the same as the best strategy, and Lao Xiong must cooperate with Zheng Zhilong in the early stage.After the interview, Lao Xiong can even send Zheng Zhilong to the boat and return to the nest in full view... After that, Lao Xiong will have nothing to do, and the follow-up work will be handled by the new monk Zongsha under Cao Gueran's command.

After hearing this strategy, Xiong Wencan, as expected, quickly expressed his agreement: the boss is still willing to try this kind of thing that does not ruin his reputation and can be both sides.As for Zheng Zhilong, who went to sea afterwards and couldn't find him...the sea is rough and rough, so it's none of his old man's business?

Two days later, Fujian governor Xiong Wencan summoned Zheng Zhilong's mouthpiece in Fuzhou for the first time: Lin Shudi, Tong Zhi of Fuzhou Prefecture.

After Lin Shudi came out of the governor's office that day, he was overjoyed and hurried to the "Hengguangkang" silk shop.

And Zheng Sancai, a relative of the Zhilong tribe who lives in Hengguangkang, did not dare to neglect the news, and sent two groups of messengers to Xiamen to inform Lao Zheng to come to Fuzhou to talk with Xiong Wencan.

What Zheng Sancai didn't know was that all his activities, including the ships the two groups of messengers took, and the routes of entry and exit, had been exposed and recorded.

Thus, without the knowledge of the general public, this important change in Fuzhou, which could affect history, was quietly completed.

At the same time, a dark net has also been opened, hiding behind the mist with a strong murderous intent; just wait for Zheng Zhilong, an outstanding businessman/pirate/diplomat in the 17th century, to fall into the net at the same time. Unleash the ultimate move to make it beyond redemption!

……

The story in Fuzhou City has temporarily entered the intermission stage.

Let us turn back the time to the end of May, the second day when the Ryan was sent to Fuzhou.

The sand ship "Yuan Dou" was one of the first batch of Chinese ships acquired by the cross-travelers after they came to Daming.

The 700 material Yuandou has been serving the people through time travel until today, and has undergone two major changes.

The first time was when I was in Tangzhuang. At that time, the crossing crew wanted to raid Dayuan Island and installed various electronic instruments and outboard motors on the Yuandou.

The second time is just as recent.Yuandou, which was assigned to the expedition team, was refitted again.

This modification is for exploration, so Yuandou specially strengthened the bilge, adjusted the cabin space, and equipped the deck with simple booms and small boats, and finally a wood gas power system.

The refitted Yuandou is now parked at the Dayuan Wharf with a brand new look, ready to go to Taipei to search for sulfur, iron ore and gold.

And Pan Mingzhong and Lei Jian, the two captains and deputy captains, were directing the sailors to make final preparations at the bow.

Unlike Pan Mingzhong, a donkey friend, Lei Jian is a serious student of the Geology College.It's a pity that learning is not useful: before Lei Jian crossed, he was driving for others in Africa.To be precise, it was the driver for the film crews who went to the reserve to shoot lions.

After crossing, he also had nothing to do at first, and it wasn't until the formation of the exploration team that Lei Jian finally made it through.

After tidying up, the Yuandou set off quietly, and there was no warm farewell scene - some time ago, considering that the number of ships arriving for the officers was increasing, it would be too late to welcome and send each day, Lao Xia had already issued an order: in the future, we must Personnel in this department are not allowed to greet or send off ships.

The lonely exploration team now has a total of 2 time travelers, and they will all be on board, so it is impossible for people from the department to come to see them off...

……

After the Yuandou sailed out of the entrance of the Dayuan Passage, it was uncharacteristically not heading north directly. Instead, it turned left and started heading south along the coastline of Taiwan, heading straight to Kenting Cape, the southernmost tip of Taiwan.

Pan Mingzhong and Lei Jian planned this way: Dayuan is very close to Kenting, the southernmost part of Taiwan, and it is less than a day's sea journey.Therefore, for this voyage, Yuandou should bypass Kenting Cape and head north from the outer coast of Taiwan Island.

Such a voyage route allows the Yuandou to survey Taitung and Hualien along the way.

The Taitung coast, located on the east coast of Taiwan, is the key target of this exploration.

The mouth of the Hsiuguluan River at the border of Taitung and Hualien was, in later generations, a coastal mining area rich in magnetite.Including the iron sand mine on the coast of Taipei, the combined annual output of the two mines is about [-] tons.

This output, in front of the rabbits of later generations, is the same as nothing - in 2017, the rabbits imported 11 billion tons of iron ore...

However, it is the 17th century now, and the pitiful kiln base has just recently estimated the iron ore smelting capacity in the second half of the year to a high level of 500 tons... This is already very good, thanks to the arrival of some iron material ships from Fuzhou .

Therefore, the iron sand ore that is enriched at the mouth of the Binhai River and is easy to mine is a strategic resource that needs to collect data as soon as possible after the traversing forces gradually extend their fists to the outside world.

……

In addition, Hualien is also rich in mineral resources, not only various serpentine, rose stone, marble, Taiwanese jade resources, but also a small amount of metal mines.

The most important of these is serpentine.

Serpentine contains a large amount of magnesium, which can make a variety of refractory materials.

In addition, serpentine and struvite can be calcined together to make calcium magnesium phosphate fertilizer.This fertilizer works well for corn, potatoes, beans, and root and tuber crops.

The main crops that agricultural companies are currently planting on a large scale in the Tainan area happen to be the above-mentioned varieties... Therefore, serpentine is also very important.

Time passed quickly amidst the discussions between Pan Mingzhong and Lei Jian.The Yuandou ship set off early in the morning and sailed southward on the north wind. In the evening, we saw the bright green color of Kenting, Taiwan's only coastline with tropical climate characteristics.

When the fierce sun sank into the sea, the Yuandou turned on the radar and sonar in the gradually brightening starry sky, bypassed the clear and transparent coral sea area along the coast of Kenting, and continued to sail south without stopping.

At 10 o'clock that night, the Yuandou bypassed Kenting and began to head northward along the coast of Taiwan's outer islands.

At this time, the speed dropped.Pan Mingzhong, who was in charge of the night shift, had to stay in the stern cabin all night, using a walkie-talkie and a tweeter hung on the mast to communicate with the chief mate who commanded the crew to turn the sail, while reporting the sea conditions ahead in time to avoid hitting the rocks.

Sailing against the wind is difficult.After one night, the Yuandou only ran a straight line of 30 kilometers. From a distance, the people on board saw a landmark on the east coast of Kenting: Bitou Reef.

Fortunately, God also seemed to think that sailing like this was too lonely, so at 10 o'clock in the morning, a small dot sailing from north to south appeared on Yuandou's radar screen.

Chapter 193 Mosquito Bites Elephant

After more than an hour, the Yuandou, which was maneuvering on the sea surface, could already see the European-style ship opposite through the telescope.

When the golden and red background, depicting the lion and the Spanish king's flag of the castle, jumped into the camera, Pan Mingzhong immediately shouted to Lei Jian on duty in the stern cabin: "Send the report, hurry up and let them come."

Pan Mingzhong, wearing a white shirt, blue jacket, wide-brimmed hat and rolled-up sleeves studded with brass buttons, stands on the forecastle of the Alicante while observing his opponents on the Yuandou Second Lieutenant Sandoval, at the moment, is also using a classic brass single-tube telescope to observe the small black spot on the sea.

The Alicante was a galleon with a displacement of only 180 tons.As a supply ship dedicated to running between Taipei and the Philippines, the Alicante departed from Taipei's Jilong Bay empty ship.

Galen had nothing on board except a meager amount of brimstone and cloth and china.

……

During this time period in 1628, life was difficult for the Spaniards in Taipei.Whether it is the city of San Salvador built on Jilong Heping Island (Sheliao Island) or the recently built city of Santo Domingo in Tamsui, they are all surrounded by hostile indigenous tribes.

The Spaniards could not get supplies, and the impact of the early robbery of the indigenous land and villages was very bad-then the indigenous refused to sell food to the big pie faces.Due to the delay of the supply ship, the soldiers in the castle even had to rely on dogs and rats to feed their hunger.

All the supplies that Taipei needs today still need to be shipped from the Philippines.Moreover, due to pirates and the lack of trade goods, the number of Fujian merchants who come to Jilong Bay for trade is also gradually declining.

... Therefore, the captain of the Alicante, Second Lieutenant Diego Sandoval, did not want to deal with the other party after seeing the flat-bottomed junk boat coming from the opposite side.

Regardless of whether this junk ship is a merchant ship going to Japan for trade or a pirate ship going to Japan for robbery, Sandoval is ready to pass by each other... The mission of the Alicante is to reach the Philippines in time and then bring the supplies back The chicken coop, the rest of the options were not considered by the second lieutenant.

However, the sky does not obey people's wishes. God will probably go to Douyin now, and has no time to bless his people.So, 20 minutes later, Sandoval knew he was in trouble when he saw the junk start making odd maneuvers — coming straight up against the wind.

"I need the gunners to get ready! You, go and kick the bastards in the cabin onto the deck, and three men on the mainmast stand by at all times, and everyone else takes up arms, and the helmsman takes care to keep the course !"

Under the command of the experienced Lieutenant Sandoval, the Alicante quickly completed its combat readiness deployment.And at the same moment, the strange Junk ship on the opposite side had already entered within 500 meters in front of Galen's ship to the left from an oblique angle.

The Spanish ship is now heading straight south along the coastline of Taiwan Island on the right hand side.

Although all the crew, including the second lieutenant, felt strange about the Junk ship rushing against the wind, and some even raised their heads to look at the weathervane, the second lieutenant still ordered the ship to keep its course—no matter what the opponent wanted to do, it was in the middle of the sea. The Galen ship with full sail and wind is in top condition at the moment, and is fully capable of dealing with the challenge.

When the two sides meet each other, the distance shortens very quickly.A few more minutes later, when the Junk approached to a distance of 300 meters ahead to the left, it finally turned: it began to level its course with the Alicante.

Seeing the current passing situation, Second Lieutenant Sandoval naturally wouldn't think that the other party was just here to have fun.Sure enough, soon, the Galen ship received the semaphore from the other side.

"Stop the ship...to be inspected...".

The second lieutenant was in a daze.

At a distance of 300 meters, it can already be seen clearly with a telescope.Although Sandoval couldn't understand the unique hand-woven brocade art style Chinese character surname banner on the Junk ship, it didn't matter, what was important was that he could clearly see the armament on the ship...no armament.

There is only one row, about 10 sailors standing behind the bulwark with something similar to a bird gun, showing their upper body, and nothing else.

Sandoval couldn't make out the machine gun nest on the top of the poop of the sandship, and the M2HB heavy machine gun with only a section of the barrel exposed.So, the second lieutenant has now been identified: apart from their amazing sailing skills, this is a damn pirate ship.

...The displacement of the Alicante is not high, only 180 tons, which is slightly higher than the Junk ship opposite.However, the armament on the Alicante has four and a half snake guns.

Two 8-pounder guns and two 6-pounder guns are already in place on the left side of the ship's side, and the solid-core ammunition and shotgun shells are also ready. The gunners will teach these East Asian guys a lesson when the second lieutenant gives an order.

……

The distance of 300 meters was an embarrassing distance in the early 17th century.

Due to the craftsmanship of cast iron quality, gunpowder ingredients, and bore accuracy, Western-style artillery in the early 17th century was far inferior to naval artillery during the Opium War in terms of range and accuracy.

Although the range of these guns on the Alicante generally exceeds 500 meters, that is the maximum range where the shells cannot be found.On the ups and downs of the sea, if you want to hit the iron ball with an acceptable hit rate, then the enemy ship must be at least 150-200 meters away.

So Lieutenant Sandoval did not order the shelling at this time.He is a professional soldier, and completing the return mission is the most important thing. He can completely accept the ending of the two sides passing each other—as long as the lunatic pirates on this ship no longer try to approach.

Junk seemed to know what the second lieutenant was thinking, and did not make any other actions except for sending out brief semaphore.The two sides just kept a distance of 300 meters and passed each other.