1635 Han style rises again

Chapter 446 The Scholar of the Zheng Family

September 1642, 9, Daming, Quanzhou, Fujian.

Four Qi State armed merchant ships from Hanxing Island (today's Miyako Island) slowly sailed into the berth of Quanzhou Wharf.On the several Haicang ships docked nearby, more than a dozen officers and soldiers of Zheng's Navy stood on the deck, looking enviously at the several huge warships.Compared with the many small boats of the Hanzhou people, this gunboat of the Hanzhou people has an obvious advantage.Not only are there many cannons, but at sea, with a few large sails and some wind, the speed is much faster than that of my own ship.

If there is a conflict with their Hanzhou big ship at sea, it is estimated that more than ten of their own small boats can surround it.However, the relationship between their Hanzhou and my Zheng family is still very close, and the many firearms in the army are mostly thanks to them.Come to think of it, the chances of a conflict should not be very high.

"Excuse me, who is the leader among your Hanzhou generals who came to Quanzhou this time?" After the ship stopped, the officers and soldiers of the Qi State Navy were disembarking in an orderly manner, preparing to go to the city to buy some supplies.At this time, several officers and soldiers of Zheng's navy came to the pier and asked loudly.

"I am the commander of this fleet." Seeing this, Luo Rucheng took two steps forward and walked in front of the leading officer of the Zheng Army Qianhu.

"My family's governor wants to see you." Shi Lang said with a smile: "Please follow me into the city."

Luo Rucheng was taken aback. In the past, when they immigrated to and from Daming, they would often replenish supplies and maintain ships in Quanzhou. Zheng Zhilong had never met them.This sudden meeting with the commander of the Qi State Fleet probably has something important to do, and it is also related to Qi State.

"Does your Hanzhou have anything to do with those Ming people who rebelled in Luzon?" After meeting Luo Rucheng, Zheng Zhilong asked straight to the point, with a trace of gloom on his face.

"We have nothing to do with them." Luo Rucheng denied it.

"It doesn't matter?" Zheng Zhilong looked at Luo Rucheng closely, "Why do they have so many firearms in their hands? Where else would they come from besides what you Hanzhou provided?"

"Luzon is surrounded by seas, and Nanyang is not our family that has firearms. The Dutch, Portuguese, and even the natives of Nanyang may sell them firearms." Luo Rucheng said without changing his expression.

"Do you think I will believe it?" Zheng Zhilong said coldly: "At the beginning, you Hanzhou had a word with me that if my Zheng family captured Luzon, it would occupy the whole island. Now, you support those Ming people who rebelled in their own way. Planting weapons and fodder? Hmph... are you Hanzhou planning to compete with me for Luzon?"

"Governor Zheng, our country of Qi did not support those Ming people who once resisted the Spanish oppression, and we have no intention of competing with you for Luzon." Luo Rucheng said seriously: "I don't know the basis for your accusations. So much so that we firmly believe that we support those Ming people to fight against you. You know, my King Qi attaches great importance to the cooperation with your Zheng family, and we will work together to establish our Han power in Nanyang."

Zheng Zhilong listened, with a sneering expression on his face, he said word by word: "You Hanzhou think that if you establish rules and regulations and pretend to be king, you can act recklessly at sea, trying to gain territory and influence that your strength does not match. Scope? The Dutch have nothing to do with you, but it doesn’t mean that our Zheng family can’t do anything about you. You have to remember that in the entire coastal area of ​​Daming, without the permission of my Zheng family, not even a sampan can go into the sea. Can't reach the shore!"

When Luo Rucheng heard this, he couldn't help feeling angry.What, are you verbally threatening us Daqi?

"What is Governor Zheng's intention in saying this?" Luo Rucheng asked in a deep voice.

"If you want to cooperate, you must behave yourself, don't make small moves." Zheng Zhilong said: "Lu Song was captured by my Zheng family, so naturally it belongs to my Zheng family alone, and no one else is allowed to get involved. You Hanzhou must keep this in mind. To destroy or subdue those Ming people who rebelled, my Zheng family can do it on my own. But I think they belong to the same line as the Han people, why should they use swordsmen? I hope those Ming people can take care of themselves!"

Luo Rucheng looked at Zheng Zhilong with a serious expression, knowing in his heart that the other party was warning them not to continue to support those Lusong Ming people who rebelled, and even asked them to pass the message on their behalf to let the [-] Ming people surrender to Zheng Jun as soon as possible.Otherwise, they will take decisive measures to kill them and wipe them out.

On the other hand, they are also reminding Hanzhou that Zheng Jun's navy has an absolute advantage on the coast of Daming, so don't challenge their bottom line, otherwise, their immigration route will be cut off, making it impossible for Hanzhou ships to approach Daming Migration matters along the coast.

Zheng Zhilong watched Luo Rucheng, led by a housekeeper, leave the hall, pass through the ear door, and head towards the outer courtyard, without saying a word for a long time.

"Brother, are we going to turn against Han Zhou?" Zheng Zhibao asked softly.

Zheng Zhilong was awakened by the third brother's words, turned around, and looked at Zheng Zhibao who was sitting on the right side of the hall and a young man beside him.

"The Dutch have been fighting with them for three years, and it is said that they have not taken any advantage, but have suffered heavy losses." Zheng Zhilong counted blankly: "Moreover, according to the various messages from Batavia, the Hanzhou Lu division is good at fighting and has sharp weapons. Although the number of naval warships is small, the technique of roaming and attacking is hard to defend against. If my Zheng family can't defeat Hanzhou in one blow, then they will be harassed by Hanzhou ships on the sea road. Ha ha , can we still do business?"

"We can send a large army to pull out their Xinsheng Island near Cambodia and Hanxing Island (today's Miyako Island in Japan) and Xinghe Island (today's Ishigaki Island in Japan) near Taiwan." Zheng Zhibao said harshly: "If so, they There is no supply point near the coast of Daming, how can we fight with our Zheng family navy?"

"Do you think our Master Lu is sure to pull out those strongholds in Hanzhou?" Zheng Zhilong asked.

"The Westerners' Manila is so strong that we have broken it." Zheng Zhibao said: "Can the stronghold built by the Hanzhou people be stronger and more tightly defended than Manila?"

"Yuewen (Zheng Zhibao's characters), who provided our Zheng family's firearms in recent years?"

"...Hanzhou." Zheng Zhibao hesitated for a moment, then said: "So what, we are backed by the mainland, and there are plenty of people, so we can rely on the superiority of numbers to trap them. If you don't believe it, you won't be able to attack them."

"If we really want to attack a few strongholds in Hanzhou, how much do you think our Zheng family will pay?" Zheng Zhilong shook his head and said: "If the Hanzhou people are pushed into a hurry, and they collude with the Dutch people to deal with us, then How to deal with it?"

"..." Zheng Zhibao was at a loss for words.In the past few years, the Zheng family and Hanzhou have been implicitly allies. They jointly suppressed the Dutch in Batavia, making the Zheng family almost monopolize most of the sea trade between Japan and North Korea, and even suppressed the Dutch's demand for Ming goods. The supply is also controlled in the hands, making a lot of money.

If they turn against Han Zhou, force the other party to the Dutch side, and unite against the Zheng family, although they are backed by the mainland, they will not be defeated by the two families, but if the other party frequently attacks trading ships at sea, then the business will be lost Done.You must know that the Zheng family's ships trading between Japan and North Korea are all small and medium-sized Haicang ships, Asuka ships, and many lucky ships with small tonnage and weak firepower.The three or five ships added together are not the opponent of an armed merchant ship of about [-] tons.

Thinking about it carefully, the Zheng family's best chance to deal with Hanzhou was actually the three-year period when Hanzhou was at war with the Dutch East India Company.At that time, if the Zheng family blocked the Hanzhou immigrant ships along the coast of Daming, and the Dutch blocked the mainland of Hanzhou, it would definitely put Hanzhou in a very difficult situation.Not to say that it can completely defeat the opponent, but at least it will delay or delay the further growth of Hanzhou's strength.

"Father, Third Uncle." The young man sitting next to Zheng Zhibao said softly: "I see Han Zhou's actions in Daming and Nanyang in recent years. Trade has never revealed any intention of meddling. This move is a mixed blessing for my Zheng family."

"Fusong, Hanzhou specializes in immigration. For my Zheng family, what is joy and what is worry?" Zheng Zhilong looked at the young man with a smile.

The young man Zheng Zhilong called "Fusong" is his eldest son, named Fusong (Zheng Sen, also known as Zheng Chenggong in later generations), and this year is full.In the fourth year of Apocalypse (1624), he was born in Kawauchiura Chirihama on Hirado Island, Hirado Island, Japan.At the age of six, Zheng Zhilong was taken back to Anping, Quanzhou Prefecture (formerly Anping Town, Jinjiang County, Fujian Province, now Anhai Town) to live and study after being recruited by the Ming court to serve as an official.In the 11th year of Chongzhen (1638), he passed the examination as a scholar, and after passing the examination, he became one of the twenty "Ganshan students" in Nan'an County.Last year, she married Dong Yougu, the niece of Dong Yangxian, the minister of rites in Huian, Quanzhou, Fujian.

Zheng Fusong bowed his hands to his father, and said respectfully: "The Hanzhou travel to and from Ming Dynasty is not for the economy, but for immigration. For my Zheng family, this move avoids competition with each other and shares the benefits of our sea trade. It can be called joy. ; But since Hanzhou is not for the economy, but only for immigration, if my Zheng family wants to fight against it, the profit and loss must be my Zheng family. Immigrants from Lv and Lu will spend tens of thousands of dollars every day, and will lose some of the benefits of sea trade, and many affairs will be unsustainable."

"Is there a way to deal with it?" Zheng Zhilong nodded and continued to ask.

"My Zheng family occupies both Taiwan and Lu, and has already occupied the key points of the immigration route of Hanzhou. In addition, it has absolute control over the coast of Daming. If Hanzhou wants to immigrate, it will naturally look up to me." Zheng Fusong said: "But if If my Zheng family threatens Hanzhou with this, it will definitely anger them, or they will fight against my Zheng family. Even, as my father said, they will collude with the He people to attack my Zheng family and cut off my sea power."

"In the past, my father was called to guard Fujian and help the imperial court to calm the world, so he got this noble position. However, Nahanzhou is located in the southern mainland, with few products and a small population, but he established rules and ruled himself and pretended to be king. But , in the whole world, could it be the land of the king, and the shore of the land, could it be the king's ministers. A villain who steals a high position must be terrified. If my father goes to the court and recruits him to confer security, thinking that he is a vassal of the Ming Dynasty, Hanzhou must be grateful. Since, it will belong to the Ming Dynasty in the future Next, Hanzhou also respects the order of Ming Dynasty. I, the Zheng family, can act on behalf of the Ming court and restrain Hanzhou at sea."

After hearing this, Zheng Zhilong was stunned for a while, then looked at Zheng Zhibao next to him, and sighed slightly in his heart, this silly son, did reading make his brain go bad?

(End of this chapter)