1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 870
Leaving aside the arrogance and domineering of the Haihan people, just looking at these few conditions, He Xiao thinks it is still very tempting.But he is not a person without a city, and the thoughts in his heart will not be directly expressed on his face. After thinking about it for a while with no expression on his face, he responded: "This matter involves many parties, and I can't make a decision on my own, but Boss Qian What I have said, I will take back and ask my lord to make a decision."

Although He Xiao's tone was still firm, in Qian Tiandun's view, this was already a sign of the other party's softening attitude.Although he acted extremely tough just now, it is not the best solution to deal with the local government of Daming. Even if he can use money to solve the enemies in the officialdom of Daming, it is unlikely to be realized in a short time.What Qian Tiandun really wanted to do was to intimidate the other party with a tough attitude, and then lure him with benefits in exchange for the other party's compromise.As he said, Haihan's requirements are very low now, and he doesn't need the Ningbo government's public support, as long as he can turn a blind eye and close his eyes, and not stand up to disrupt the situation.

Given the current situation, Qian Tiandun estimated that he would not be able to meet and discuss with officials at the prefect level of Ningbo in the short term, so the communication between the two parties can only rely on messengers like He Xiao for the time being.How the high-ranking Ming officials behind He Xiao will judge the current situation depends to a certain extent on how he describes it after he returns.Therefore, for He Xiao, Qian Tiandun thought it was necessary to fight for it, but in his capacity, there was no need to do this kind of thing in person, and it would be more convenient for Lin Xing and others to come forward.

This meeting is the first contact between the two parties, and the purpose is mainly to test each other. After both parties express their attitudes, the basic purpose of the meeting will be achieved.Qian Tiandun asked Lin Xing and Ma Ling to hold a banquet in honor of He Xiao. In order to ensure that the two leading parties would not say wrong things at the wine table, Qian Tiandun also transferred two officers from the staff to accompany him.

Lin Xing had already reported He Xiao's situation before, and for a person like him who was used to receiving cash from the Sanlin Gang before, the best way to win over was undoubtedly to send money directly.So when He Xiao came, he was worried, but when he went back, he was already smiling, and promised that he would help Qu Yutong and say something nice to Hai Han.

The envoys sent by the Ningbo government were sent away, and the attention of the coalition headquarters returned to the north.At present, the control range of the coalition forces has reached the front line of Dengbu Island, which is less than three nautical miles away from the southern tip of Zhoushan Island, which is already close at hand from the map.Advancing northward from Liuheng Island to Dengbu Island, the coalition forces destroyed two groups of armed forces during this period, but compared with the Haisha Gang on Liuheng Island, the strength of these two groups was weaker, so It didn't take much effort to deal with them. Xu Yuzhuo led his men to destroy one of them. The Haihan militia only provided cover at sea and did not participate in the post-landing operations at all.

After entering May, the atmosphere in the Zhoushan Islands has become more and more tense. The Haihan people have been pushing northward recently, and have pushed to the doorstep of the Zhoushan Ship Gang, the number one armed force in the East China Sea.But judging from its posture, it is obvious that it does not intend to stop here, and it should only be a matter of time before continuing to advance north.

The leader of the Zhoushan Ship Gang is Wang Jialin, who is said to be a descendant of Wang Zhi, a great smuggler during the Jiajing period, but it is impossible to verify whether it is true or whether he took advantage of Wang Zhi's fame to cause trouble.But Wang Jialin's current prestige in the Zhoushan Islands can indeed be compared with that of Wang Zhi back then.

Similar to other armed forces in the East China Sea, the Zhoushan Ship Gang also has official backers behind it, but their background is bigger than their peers. It is said that several princes participated in it, and there are also people in the capital court.The sphere of influence of the Zhoushan Ship Gang includes the sea area centered on Zhoushan Island, and neighboring islands such as Jintang Island, Zhujiajian Island, Putuo Island, and Xiushan Island are also under its control.There are tens of thousands of people in its control area, and more than 8000 people work for it. It is a veritable top spot in the East China Sea.Although the strength is not as good as that of Fujian's Shibazhi in its heyday, the background of the Zhoushan Ship Gang is much stronger, and it will not worry about being suppressed by the local government.

However, the appearance of Haihan, an uninvited guest, broke the originally peaceful situation in the East China Sea. Organizations such as the Sanlin Gang and the Haisha Gang either took refuge or were wiped out. In just half a month, about one-third of the Zhoushan Islands The scope fell into Haihan's control, and its expansion momentum has not stopped there. It is basically only a matter of time before Haihan and the Zhoushan Ship Gang go to war.

When the Haihan people fought in the south, the Zhoushan Ship Gang was not idle. On the same day that He Xiao visited Liuheng Island, Wang Jialin, the leader of the Zhoushan Ship Gang, also called representatives of more than a dozen forces in the East China Sea to gather in Zhoushan to discuss how to Deal with the menacing Haihan people.Although these forces often fight with each other on weekdays, the current situation forces them to huddle together to keep warm and fight for the chance of survival.

However, there are still many objective obstacles to the realization of this kind of grouping. Just for the joint dispatch of troops, everyone has been arguing all morning and failed to come up with a charter.The reason is also very simple, no one wants to spend their own troops to fight for other families.

Although the Haisha Gang has been wiped out, there are still a small number of fish that slipped through the net and escaped from Liuheng Island at the beginning of the war. According to the descriptions of these people, the Haisha Gang basically had no chance to fight back in front of the Haihan fleet. The gap in strength between the two sides has reached a desperate level.Although not everyone will believe what they say, there is no doubt that most people are still affected, and they are not willing to fight head-on with opponents who are too much stronger than themselves.

But other people may choose to sit on the sidelines, or even take refuge in each other, but Wang Jialin has no such way out.He has always regarded himself as a tyrant in the East China Sea. In his eyes, the Sanlin Gang and the Haisha Gang are just puppets supported by the local government. The Zhoushan Islands have concentrated the maritime trade of several countries in one place, earning millions of taels of income every year. , How can it be easily given to others.Even if Wang Jialin could let it go, the big shots behind him would definitely not let it go, and these people he Wang Jialin could never afford to offend, and he feared them far more than Hai Han.

Watching the people in the hall arguing, the debate was not about how to deal with the Haihan people, but about redistributing the trading shares in this area first, Wang Jialin felt more and more angry.Representatives of several companies said that if they could not get more shares in the main trade items such as silk, porcelain, and tea, they would not send food and troops to participate in the action against Haihan. These people seemed to be completely unaware of their dangerous situation , He still cares about petty gains at this juncture. This kind of stupid and short-sighted performance really makes Wang Jialin feel angry.

"Stop arguing!" Wang Jialin shouted suddenly, "I invite you all to come here to discuss how to form a group to fight against the Haihan people. You are not here to fight for power and profit, and discuss how to form a group to die!"

"What's the meaning of Master Wang? If you want to work hard with the Haihan people, there must be some benefits, right?" Someone responded dissatisfied.

"Benefits? It is the greatest benefit that you can survive!" Wang Jialin pointed at the man and cursed: "The heads of Li Luotou and Mogi Shinobi have both been sent to Hangzhou Mansion, and it is easy for you to treat them as Haihan people." They want to occupy Zhoushan with peace of mind, how could they leave you and me alive? If they lose this battle, all of you here will have their heads cut off and reported as achievements in suppressing the bandits!"

Another person said: "Duke Wang, you have big people as your backing, so it's not enough to let them speak out? Why do we need to go to battle and go all out?"

"You know nothing!" Wang Jialin scolded, "Do you think the Haihan people are so polite and will obey the orders of the Ming government? They have money and soldiers, and they are like emperors in the south, even more than we are in Zhoushan. The prestige is ten times and a hundred times, why should we abide by the rules of Ming Dynasty? We are looking for Haihan people desperately not for the backers behind us, but for ourselves! Think about it carefully, what advantages do you have compared with Haihan people? There are big and small backers, but where can these backers come in handy? Only in Daming! If we fall, will your backers let the imperial court send troops to avenge us? No, they will only choose to replace us People continue to cooperate, because no matter who controls Zhoushan, they will open trade with Daming, and the money that the big shots should receive will not be less than one or two, just change someone to pay. Now the Haihan people have arrived on Dengbu Island, and the knives are all on the line. It's on your neck, and you're still arguing about these meaningless things, and you don't know how you'll die by then!"

After Wang Jialin scolded, some people began to realize the seriousness of the current situation.The Haihan people are different from ordinary pirates. They are not the type to rob and leave. Instead, they want to occupy a place to take root and dominate the place.What they did in the East China Sea was obviously not a stance to stop after they snatched Liuheng Island.

"Half a month after the Haihan people arrived in Ningbo, they occupied six or seven large islands and wiped out several forces. Now the Ningbo government and the local garrison have turned a blind eye to them. Are you still counting on your backers to come forward?" Wang Jialin said in a deep voice: "Don't deceive yourself! We are the only ones who can turn the situation around now!"

"Why don't you try to negotiate. I heard that the Sanlin gang was saved only after Boss Lin went to talk with the Haihan people in person." Some people still hope that the current crisis can be resolved peacefully.

Wang Jialin sneered and said, "Then the Lin brothers have been in collusion with the Haihan people for how long, and they are just acting out when things come to an end, do you believe it? If talking casually can make the Haihan people stop, then we might as well surrender together. In the name of Zhoushan Wouldn’t it be easy if it was returned to Haihan, but in fact it is still in our hands? You don’t even think about it, the Haihan people really plan to talk, so why do you do it on Liuheng Island without saying a word? Now push to the door step by step Now, there is no resistance at all, if you were you, would you still plan to talk to these opponents who have no power to fight back?"

"The force of the Haihan people is so tyrannical. If the Haisha gang is defeated in one day, it will be destroyed in two days. I'm afraid it will be difficult for us to defeat them. At that time, it will give the Haihan people an excuse to fight in the East China Sea." Some people are still very afraid of the power of the Haihan fleet, and think that it may not be effective if they do it.

"Whether we attack or not, the Haihan people have no intention of stopping. Is there any reasonable reason for them to attack the Haisha Gang? The Haisha Gang attacked the Shipu Guard, this kind of excuse can't even fool a three-year-old child! How can it be difficult for them to find an excuse to attack at any time?" Wang Jialin retorted: "Although the Haihan people are strong in combat, they are not invulnerable."

"Looks like Lord Wang has a good idea, let's talk about it together!" Some people who supported Wang Jialin also echoed.

Wang Jialin went on to say: "I can't say a good way, but after thinking hard these days, the old man also came up with a few ways, you can think about it."

"First, the territory of the Haihan people is far away in Fujian, thousands of miles away. If they want to fight in Zhoushan, supplies must be a big problem. If we can find out their supply routes, intercept their fleet and cut off their supplies, Or force them to retreat without a fight."

"Secondly, although the Haihan militia is powerful, its strength is limited. It is said that the sailors and civilian husbands included in the fleet going north this time are only about 3000 people. If 3000 people want to occupy the Zhoushan Islands, wouldn't it be enough for a single island? Only a hundred or so people can be placed? The larger the area they want to occupy, the more dispersed their forces will be. Although our combat strength is insufficient, if we concentrate our forces to attack their weak spots, we will be able to eat them bit by bit. people."

"Third, although the government and the garrison did not express their attitude, it does not mean that they are on the side of Haihan. They are probably just observing the trend of the situation and choosing sides when the situation is clear. Although we cannot let the government Send troops to attack the Haihan people, but at least they cannot let them sit back and watch the Haihan people do whatever they want in Ningbo."

"Fourth, if all the families here can work together to organize an elite team to go back to Liuheng Island when the Haihan people attack Zhoushan Island and capture its supply port, if you are lucky enough to capture a few Haihan leaders, then maybe There is still room for maneuver in negotiations.”

Wang Jialin said several methods in one breath, which sound reasonable, but if you think about it carefully, it is not difficult to find that the purpose is to force Haihan back, not to win the battle, which shows that even Wang Jialin himself is very interested in defeating Haihan Han also didn't have much confidence, and there was no plan to fight to the death in the plan he was considering.

However, for the current people who are like headless chickens, the solution proposed by Wang Jialin is worth trying, after all, no one can come up with a better solution for the time being.Seeing that there were no more voices of opposition, Wang Jialin immediately began to discuss the details.This plan is easy to say, but there are still many preparations to be made to implement it.But now that Haihan is approaching the city, there is not much time for them to slowly prepare.

(End of this chapter)