1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3843

Yue Shizong stood at the bow of the boat, gazing at the rolling Yangtze River flowing eastward. His expression seemed calm, but his mind was already filled with countless thoughts.

He has been serving as the ambassador to Haihan for three years. The only time he returned to China during those three years was when he was recalled to report on his duties. He has spent the rest of his time in Haihan's jurisdiction. Even important matters such as bringing his family to Hangzhou were handled by Haihan on his behalf.

After all, the responsibilities of an ambassador were special, requiring Yue Shizong to be stationed in Hangzhou for an extended period and not to return to China at will. But unexpectedly, after joining Haihan, the first important task Haihan assigned him was to return to China.

Of course, this trip back to China was not reported to the Ming Dynasty court; it was purely a "private job" arranged for him by Haihan.

According to Hai Han's plan, Yue Shizong needed to travel from Hangzhou to Tongling County, Chizhou Prefecture, to have a private meeting with Lu Congshan, an old friend he had previously contacted.

Yue Shizong knew very well that Haihan had gone to great lengths to arrange this meeting that took them so far, and the purpose was certainly not for them to reminisce.

Before setting off, Qu Shengfeng came to see him specifically and made a clear request, hoping that he could cooperate with Haihan in this meeting to persuade Lu Congshan to choose to surrender.

This means that Haihan is no longer willing to spend time on the lengthy correspondence process, but hopes to speed up the process of winning over Lu Congshan.

Yue Shizong thought that Qu Shengfeng, who was in charge of intelligence work, would go with him, but Qu Shengfeng told him that someone else would be going to Tongling with him.

However, when Yue Shizong set off from Hangzhou, no one Qu Shengfeng had mentioned boarded the ship to travel with him. Yue Shizong could only guess that he might meet them somewhere along the way, or perhaps he would only see them when he reached his destination.

Yue Shizong's premonition was correct. After the ship entered the Nanjing section of the Yangtze River, its speed gradually slowed down, and it finally docked at Yanziji Wharf in the north of Nanjing.

Before docking, the captain had spoken to Yue Shizong, asking him not to leave the cabin during the berthing, as this was a classified mission and it was not appropriate for him to show his face during the journey.

Yue Shizong expressed his understanding, after all, his identity was sensitive, and if someone with ulterior motives saw him in Nanjing, it might bring unnecessary trouble.

He thought he was just resupplying here and would soon be on his way again, but unexpectedly, the captain suddenly reappeared at night and asked him to disembark.

Yue Shizong asked, puzzled, "Weren't we told not to go out?"

The captain explained, "Lord Yue, we are arranging for you to change ships here to complete the second half of the voyage. Rest assured, the new ship will be larger and the conditions on board will be better than here."

Speaking of the conditions on board, this really hit Yue Shizong's sore spot. Although the steamship he took from Hangzhou was extremely fast, the comfort on board was really poor.

Yue Shizong was initially intrigued, but he quickly discovered the drawbacks.

The steam engine on the ship was extremely noisy when it was running, and it made the whole ship vibrate. However, in order to save time, it had to be used day and night, so he had difficulty sleeping for several nights until it finally stopped after docking at Yanziji Wharf.

"Changing to another ship won't be any worse than the one we're on now." Yue Shizong didn't understand the meaning, but he still obeyed the arrangement and followed the captain to another ship moored nearby. Even though it was dark and the outline of the ship was not very clear, Yue Shizong could tell that the new ship was much larger than the previous one, and it was not a sailing ship commonly seen on the Yangtze River. It was very likely an exploration-class warship of Haihan.

However, there were no gun emplacements or other combat facilities on the deck, leading Yue Shizong to speculate that this was likely a civilian version of the Explorer-class aircraft.

It wasn't until he saw the owner of the ship that he understood why there was such a special arrangement to change ships midway.

The man waiting for him on the ship was none other than Shi Chengwu, the commander of the Nanjing garrison. Yue Shizong had spent several years in Hangzhou and had naturally met this young general from a prominent family before, and knew that he was now holding an important position in Nanjing.

Yue Shizong could easily guess why Shi Chengwu was here. This must be the companion Qu Shengfeng mentioned before setting off. No wonder he refused to reveal the details at that time.

Someone of Shi Chengwu's status naturally cannot easily reveal his whereabouts to outsiders in advance.

Yue Shizong stepped forward, bowed, and said, "General Shi, would you perhaps like to accompany me to Tongling?"

Shi Chengwu smiled and said, "Lord Yue is wise; this is exactly the arrangement."

Yue Shizong said solemnly, "I did not expect Lord Shi to attach such importance to this matter, and to have General Shi personally take charge."

Shi Chengwu said, "Lord Yue, now that you're here, I won't hide it from you. Actually, the plan to implement against the Jiangxi officialdom was initiated by me; my father only provided some assistance. Since I'm in charge of this matter, it's only right that I personally take charge at this crucial moment."

Yue Shizong was also very surprised when he heard this. He thought that with so many resources invested in this matter and the need to mobilize manpower across borders, it must be Shi Diwen's doing. However, he never expected that Shi Diwen was actually assisting his son Shi Chengwu, and that the real mastermind behind this matter was the young man in front of him.

Yue Shizong was stunned for a long time before finally managing to squeeze out a reply: "General Shi is truly young and promising; I admire him!"

Shi Chengwu not only planned this, but also personally participated in it, making face-to-face contact with Ming officials. Yue Shizong understood that this was no joke, but a determination to take Jiujiang.

As for why Shi Chengwu chose Tongling, Yue Shizong could roughly guess a thing or two.

Tongling is roughly equidistant from Nanjing and Jiujiang, making it a midpoint between the two places. Moreover, according to the previous ceasefire agreement between the two countries, Chizhou, to which Tongling belongs, is nominally still under the control of the Ming Dynasty, but in reality, a portion of the area has been controlled by the Han Dynasty.

Choosing this place to meet is like both sides taking a step back, which is more acceptable to both.

However, Yue Shizong was still somewhat uncertain. In his letter to Lu Congshan, he had hinted that officials from Haihan might attend the meeting, but at the time he did not know that it would be Shi Chengwu who would be there. It was hard to say whether this would put too much pressure on Lu Congshan.

Yue Shizong expressed his concerns, but Shi Chengwu had a different view: "Going to see him in person is both a pressure and a sign of sincerity. If Lord Lu has any conditions, I can make a decision on the spot, without wasting time on the journey of exchanging letters, and without any misunderstandings caused by the limitations of written expression. This is a good thing for both sides."

"If we can reach a cooperation agreement, the officials and people of Jiujiang Prefecture can be spared from the ravages of war. This is a situation that our Executive Committee would like to see. So as long as the conditions proposed by Lord Lu are not too unreasonable, I should accept them with pleasure."