Jingnan Strategy

Chapter 376: Greedy
"Uuuuuu——"

In the middle of the twelfth lunar month, when Muchun led the 150,000 Ming army in the southwest to reform and return to their homeland, a huge army was about to be sent off on the mainland further southwest than him.

At the port of Nechiner in the eastern part of the Vijayanagar Empire, officials from this city were walking around on the pier with a group of Ming Dynasty officials wearing round collar robes. On the pier, tens of thousands of local poor people were carrying supplies. Get on board.

The large ships all demonstrated their weight and the strength of the Ming Dynasty behind them.

Ram, an official in Nechinar under the Vijayanagar Empire, had been responsible for receiving the fleet a month and a half ago, and the fleet had brought peace to their waterways.

"If possible, I really don't want you and your fleet to leave. Neqing'er has not been peaceful like this for a long time."

When the team stopped, Ram also looked sincerely at Zheng He and Chen Xuan beside him.

"You can rest assured that even if we leave, we will leave part of the fleet in a suitable place to keep the waterway open."

Zheng He talked with Ram about his thoughts, and Ram sighed after hearing this: "It's a pity that the king is unwilling to set aside the land in Neqing'er, otherwise we could become long-term friends."

"Aren't we friends now?" Zheng He smiled heartily, and then set his sights on Neqing'er Port.

It is a pity that Yongle Tongbao can only be obtained when trading with the Ming Dynasty fleet. Compared with the market, the quantity is very scarce, otherwise it may soon become the strongest trade currency on the waterway.

Chen Xuan's instructions were nothing more than a show of force, and Zheng He chuckled upon hearing this: "As long as we don't fire the first shot, you can make the rest."

Its geographical location is not good, and its territory is basically within the Deccan Plateau. Although it occupies most of southern India, famine problems have never ceased.

Due to the unique geographical location of the Kingdom of Gampola, Ariel Kunel, as Prime Minister, made many targeted policies towards the merchant ships during his administration. Each of these policies squeezed the passing merchant ships and was extremely infamous.

"Every time, time was wasted because of the suppression of pirates, so we had to go against the wind every time."

The arrival of the Ming Dynasty fleet undoubtedly gave tens of thousands of hungry people in Neiqing'er a way to survive.

During the conversation between the two, Chen Xuan couldn't help but smile and said: "If he refuses us to go ashore, then I will follow His Highness's instructions."

Ram brought good news, and Zheng He was also happy after hearing it:
"This is really great. With the official factory in Guli, our navigation supplies along the way can be guaranteed."

The famine in the eastern coastal city-states was alleviated, and merchants also took this opportunity to make a lot of money.

"I will." Zheng He nodded solemnly, then said goodbye to Lamu, and led the fleet to continue heading to the southern waters.

This may not seem like much, but in the entire waterway east of Kunlun Cape, Yongle Tongbao is undoubtedly the hottest currency at the moment.

For some merchant gangs, sailing here with Zheng He has already recovered half of the cost of armed merchant ships. Therefore, many people hope that Zheng He will finish destroying the pirates and set off early in the morning.

Time passed little by little, and when the time came to the 24th of the twelfth lunar month, the Pacific Fleet led by Zheng He also arrived at the Gulf of Mannar.

Neqing'er Port is different from many ports that Zheng He and the others have passed through before. Although there are various ships passing through the port, the buildings full of Hindu style are something that Zheng He and the others have not come into contact with.

"Okay Ram, it's time for us to go."

It was precisely because of their invisible urging that Zheng He decided to head south to Ceylon after the suppression of pirates.

Since the rise of maritime trade in the late Tang Dynasty, Ceylon Island, as an important transportation route between the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, has undoubtedly become the intersection of maritime transit and trade among various countries, and has a very high strategic position.

And because the local people did not have enough copper coins, they basically used spices, gold, and silver to buy food from the merchants, which invisibly allowed the merchants to make a lot of money.

"It is we who should thank you. Your merchants have purchased a lot of food for us from Bengal in the past few months, which has alleviated the famine problem in Neqingr and many city-states."

During their conversation, the fleet gradually moved south and stopped at some city-states in the eastern part of Vijayanagara Empire.

While Zheng He was busy cleaning up pirates in the waterway, merchants came and went twice, transporting no less than a million stones of grain to the eastern coastal city-states of the Vijayanagar Empire.

These city-states were very enthusiastic about the arrival of the fleet, because the arrival of Zheng He's fleet would undoubtedly bring employment to most of them for a few days.

"There is nothing we can do about this." Zheng He smiled heartily, and Chen Xuan also looked at Zheng He after hearing this.

Regardless of quality or reputation, Yongle Tongbao is the first choice for current businessmen.

Faced with such a person, Zheng He was naturally prepared to deal with him carefully, while Chen Xuan was gearing up, preparing to seize the opportunity to show the impact of force as instructed by the East Palace.

"Thank you for the prosperity and peace you have brought to Neqing'er. I have already mentioned to the king that you are about to go to Guri in the west. The king also agrees with you to build an official factory in Guri, but the number of people left behind cannot exceed a thousand people."

Ram was talking about the merchant ships of the Ming Dynasty buying and selling grain. Although this seemed to Zheng He and the others to be normal trading practices, after all, the merchant gangs went to the West just to make money, and Bangala, which Ram called Bangladesh, already had Sufficient food is undoubtedly suitable for food trade.

For the merchants of the merchant gangs, if they spend 300 Wen to buy a stone of grain in Chadi Port, and then sell it to the people of Neiqing'er for 500 Wen, they can make huge profits.

The Vijayanagar Empire was a country less than a century old, but it was the last Hindu country on the Indian subcontinent.

"Okay!" Upon hearing this, Chen Xuan immediately showed a smile on his face.

On the deck, feeling the monsoon wind blowing in the opposite direction, Chen Xuan could not help but complain:

At this time, the Gampola Kingdom in the south was owned by Buwanakabahu V, but the real person in charge of the kingdom was Prime Minister Ariel Kunel.

In the cultural building area near the port, there are many ancient Hindu churches and ancient Indian buildings scattered there.

Zheng He looked at the fleet that had mostly left the port, and turned around to explain to Ram. Upon hearing this, Ram also grabbed him and said:

While gradually driving south, Zheng He and Chen Xuan learned more and more about Ceylon, and the situation gradually became apparent.

"The country of Ceylon in the south is different from us. Their king is greedy and lustful. You need to beware of him."

They enthusiastically helped the Ming fleet carry goods, and the Ming Dynasty paid them ten cents.

"Just now Ram said that the king of Ceylon is greedy and lustful. Do you think he will refuse us to go ashore?"

At this time, there were two major kingdoms on the island of Ceylon, the Kingdom of Jaffna in the north and the Kingdom of Gampora in the south-central part.

"It's not impossible."

There are more than two hundred merchant ships, almost each of which can carry two thousand stones of grain to Neiqing'er.

Unlike the previous welcomes from various countries, when they came to the Gulf of Mannar, they not only did not receive a welcome, but also received a flag signaling them to "stay away."

"Mom, you really dare to drive us away."

Chen Xuan laughed angrily. He didn't expect such a remote and small country to have the courage to drive them away.

"As we said before, I will handle this kind of thing."

Chen Xuan turned her head and looked at Zheng He, who looked unhappy, with a smile on her face.

"You handle it."

Zheng He nodded, turned around and walked back to the cabin.

Seeing this, Chen Xuan smiled and said to his son Chen Zuo: "Send some brothers ashore on sand boats. Remember to be polite. We can't attack first."

"Yes!" Chen Zuo chuckled and bowed, already understanding what his father meant.

Not long after, a sand ship entered the Gulf of Mannar driven by more than 20 Ming troops, while hundreds of Ceylon soldiers wearing simple leather armor and chainmail gathered on the pier.

"You can't go ashore here!"

They used Sinhala to drive away the Ming army. Fortunately, the Ming army brought translators hired from Neicheng.

"We are an official fleet from China. We came to Ceylon this time to establish trade with Ceylon and to replenish some food and fresh water."

"This is a gift brought to the king by our envoy." The translator said, and asked the soldiers to row close to the pier, and carried the three large boxes onto the pier with difficulty, but the people did not walk onto the land.

"You wait for us to pass the message." After hearing the other party's Sinhala, several generals looked at each other and asked them to wait. While not giving them a chance to go ashore, they also sent people to the royal city with these three boxes of gifts to inform the news. .

A few hours passed quickly. Seeing that they had not come up with the results of their discussion for so long, the translator could only say:

"Let's go back to the fleet first, and we'll ask again at noon tomorrow."

He explained, but the Ceylon soldiers were still watching with eager eyes. In the end, the Ming army could only row back to the fleet.

After returning to the fleet, they reported the matter to Chen Xuan immediately. After hearing this, Chen Xuan stroked his beard:

"Ask again this time tomorrow. It's best to let them take action first."

"Yes!" Baihu officials bowed after hearing this and then got out of the boat.

Seeing this, Chen Xuan also looked at Chen Zuo who was not far away: "Let the brothers prepare the field artillery, fixed gunpowder and iron cannonballs. Don't use stone bullets when we are on land. Attacking a city is not as powerful as iron cannonballs." .”

"Yes!" Chen Zuo agreed, turned around and asked the army to prepare.

During their preparations, time passed little by little, and until noon on the second day, the Ceylon Mountain Kingdom still did not give the Ming army a chance to land, and said that it would take three days to send the message to the royal city and back.

Upon seeing this, the Ming army returned to the boat again, and at the same time, a carriage and an official from the Port of Mannar also arrived in the mountain city of Ceylon.

Although Ceylon Mountain City is related to mountains, it is actually still a long way away from the mountains.

The country of Ceylon has been established for a long time, and the population of Ceylon has been migrating to the island since BC. Due to the flat terrain and fertile land of the country, the island has a population of more than one million, but 30% of them are Tamils ​​from the Jaffna Kingdom in the north, and the remaining 70% are Sinhalese.

In the stone capital, the crowded streets and dense stone houses and wooden houses are the most valuable items in this capital.

The Sinhalese people living in the capital can barely survive on agriculture, but many handmade goods need to be obtained from maritime trade.

Facing the arrival of the Ming fleet led by Zheng He, Ceylon was undoubtedly divided into two factions.

They did not know much about the Ming Dynasty. They only learned about China, Ming Dynasty and other words from other merchants on the waterway.

The Prime Minister Ariel Kunel opposed exchanges with the Ming Dynasty, while the Minister Yebanana believed that the Ming Dynasty's wealth had already spread overseas, and Ceylon could take this opportunity to build relations with the Ming Dynasty.

The argument between the two has lasted for a long time, and it has not stopped even if it has reached this point. However, all this will come to a halt with these three boxes of gifts.

When the silk, porcelain, tea and other commodities in the box appeared, Prime Minister Ariel Kunel, who was working at home, immediately put down the knife in his hand, walked down the steps and picked up a piece of silk.

"This silk is much better than the ones sent by those merchants. If sold in the market, it should be able to sell ten Suvarna gold."

Ariel Kunel is only a little over five feet tall, with a thick beard on his face, colorful clothes on his body, and a hat with many gems on his head.

Just by his appearance, people who didn't know it thought he was the king of the Ceylon Mountain Kingdom.

While he was admiring the Ming Dynasty porcelain and silk, a middle-aged man in his thirties standing next to him said: "Father, maybe we can let them go ashore and collect some goods from their ship."

"Well!" Ariel Kunel's eyes lit up, and he turned around and said happily: "Nayan, you have a good idea. We can forcefully requisition goods from them just like Timur and those merchants in Arabia."

"Leave this matter to you. You take 50,000 troops to Mannar and let them know our strength."

"Yes!" After hearing his father's words, Nayan immediately walked out of his mansion, which was even more prosperous than the palace.

Soon, he began to recruit men around the mountain city of Ceylon. Whenever the men were recruited, Nayan would give them a wooden shield and a spear of about seven feet, and nothing else. .

While recruiting men, he also sent messages to the officials in Mannar, asking him to return to Mannar to welcome Zheng He to the mountain city of Ceylon and allow their ships to dock.

Under such an order, the Ming army, which arrived in Ceylon three days later, was finally able to disembark. However, due to Chen Xuan's restraint, only more than 2,000 Ming troops came ashore, while dozens of local natives were hired by the Ming army. Thousands of people.

They collected fresh water and vegetables for the Ming army. The Ming army took advantage of the hull and fishing nets to fish in the sea. After transporting them to the shore, they traded them with sea fish and currency.

At the same time, Zheng He was also ready to go to the mountain city of Ceylon.

"I still don't think it's a good thing for you to go over at this time. I always feel like there's some conspiracy."

Chen Xuan's sense of smell was very sensitive. He noticed that Mannar's army was constantly increasing, and so did Zheng He.

"I know it's not a good thing, but since they allowed me to go to the capital, no matter what they want to do to me, I have a way to deal with it."

Zheng He was very confident. Although he was a eunuch, he was also a eunuch who had followed Zhu Di in Monan and Modong for more than ten years.

In terms of leading troops to fight, he is actually not bad.

"Okay, then bring more guards." Chen Xuan was worried about Zheng He's safety, and Zheng He also nodded:
"I'll take three thousand men with me, and I'll take twenty field guns with me."

"If the Ceylon army does something bad after I leave, you don't have to worry about me and just take action."

Zheng He solemnly confessed, and Chen Xuan also grinned, stroked his beard and said: "Don't worry, I know what to say even if you don't tell me. You just need to take care of yourself."

"Then I'm leaving." Zheng He didn't say too many words. After all, he and Chen Xuan had been cooperating for more than a year. There were many words that didn't need to be said. They could be understood instantly with just one look.

Under the watchful eye of Chen Xuan, Zheng He formed a team of 3,000 soldiers and horses, carrying 20 field guns, and led by Ceylon officials to the mountain city of Ceylon.

Although Ceylon officials were curious about what field artillery was, not many countries in this era put artillery on ships, let alone put them on ships passing through Ceylon.

Therefore, although they were curious, they did not know the power of the artillery, let alone taste its power.

They set foot on the road to Ceylon Mountain City, and many ministers in Ceylon Mountain City also knew what Ariel Kunel was thinking, so they all condemned him.

"The Ming Dynasty is stronger than us. They have tens of millions of people and millions of troops. We cannot stop them."

In the royal palace full of Indian style, the thirty-seven-year-old minister Yebanana was arguing his case. At the same time, he also looked at the Prime Minister Ariel Kunel: "Zheng He's army has more than 20,000 people!"

"Nayan has gathered 50,000 people and is already on the way to Mannar." Yalie Kunel snorted and said:
"He took the closer road, while Zheng He was taken by me to the far road."

"By the time Zheng He arrived in the capital, Nayan had already led 50,000 people and destroyed Zheng He's 20,000 people."

Yalie Kuner, who was accustomed to being a local bully, overestimated his own strength. His understanding of the army was still based on numbers, so he did not intend to coexist peacefully with Zheng He.

"Even if they are destroyed, Ming Dynasty can still send more troops to conquer us."

Yabanana did not think that Ceylon had the strength to stop the Ming Dynasty, but Ariel Kunel frowned and said:

"Jabanaina, you are frightened by the words of those merchants."

"As far as I know, it will take up to four months to get to Daming from here, and you have to set off according to the prescribed season."

"Normally, it would take at least a year for Ming Dynasty to send troops to attack us."

"With such a long distance and time, even if Ming wants to punish us, it doesn't have enough power to support it."

"If we can kill Zheng He and his fleet, the Ming Dynasty will know our strength, and they will pay taxes to the kingdom honestly."

Ariel Kunel thought that the Ming Dynasty was too far away from him, and even if he killed the Ming Dynasty fleet, he would not be punished, but Yabanana didn't think so.

He wanted to continue talking, but Ariel Kunel stood up:

"In two days at most, Nayan will annihilate the Ming fleet. At that time, I will send you luxurious and soft Chinese silk."

As soon as the voice fell, Ariel Kunel walked out of the palace with high spirits. Dozens of ministers in the palace saw his appearance, but they didn't dare to say anything while looking at each other.

On the contrary, Yabanana had already begun to discuss how to face Ming's counterattack.

Even he didn't think that the 20,000 Ming army could defeat the 50,000 Ceylon army.

But their ideas seemed so ridiculous to the Ming army, especially to Chen Xuan.

After Zheng He left with 3,000 troops, Chen Xuan immediately arranged for Chen Zuo to lead 5,000 soldiers and horses to station on shore. Once attacked, he could fight back without asking for instructions.

At the same time, Nayan also led his 5,000 capital troops and more than 40,000 soldiers to rush towards Mannar.

In addition to the five thousand capital troops who could wear chainmail, the remaining 40,000 soldiers also wore an extra uniform representing their country, as well as fragile wooden shields and spears.

As a famous general who fought through life and death on the battlefield of Jingnan, Zheng He was by no means a political novice.

When he learned that the army only needed three days to reach the capital of Ceylon, but he had already been gone for four days and still hadn't seen the capital of Ceylon, he knew that the country of Ceylon might have bad intentions.

Riding on horseback, Zheng He glanced at the Ceylon envoy leading the team in front, and then whispered in Mandarin to the commander beside him: "Brothers, please be ready at all times. Never take off your breastplate, no matter how tired you are." You have to dress too.”

"Yes!" The commander nodded, and then looked at the three thousand Ming troops who were on their way.

Under normal circumstances, the armor of the Ming army was placed on carts or on the backs of horses, and the soldiers only needed to wear a simple mandarin duck war coat.

But when the army set off, Zheng He told them that the rest of the armor could be placed on the carriage, but the breastplate must be worn.

Zheng He already understood the situation of the Ceylon army. Even if the Ming army only wore simple breastplates, they could defend themselves against attacks from the Ceylon Kingdom.

As long as he survives the first wave, he can immediately command the entire army to attack the capital of Ceylon with full armor.

Thinking of this, Zheng He rode forward, brought his translator to the team of the Minister of Ceylon, and asked with a smile: "How far are we from the capital?"

"We'll probably arrive at noon tomorrow."

The minister was very nervous, but still gave the approximate time.

He originally thought that Zheng He would continue to ask, but Zheng He just nodded, then slowed down his horse speed and gradually returned to the Ming army.

The minister nervously wiped the non-existent sweat on his forehead, and Zheng He also explained to the commander beside him after returning to the formation:

"When we arrive in the capital of Ceylon tomorrow, you will have people pay close attention to their troops tonight. Once their troops want to leave under the cover of night, you will immediately notify the entire army to wear armor and be on guard."

"Yes!" After hearing Zheng He's words, the commander's heart tightened and he couldn't help but ask, "Should we send Tangqi to deliver the news to Marquis Pingjiang?"

"Don't worry about them. Their preparations are probably better than ours." Zheng He chuckled. He knew Chen Xuan very well.

Chen Xuan was furious when the fleet set off from Liujiagang. Even though he sank hundreds of pirate ships along the way and encircled and suppressed the local bandits in Dagu La, these small fights could not satisfy him at all. The aggrieved mentality of not having fought for seven years.

Zheng He estimated that not long after he left with the Ceylon envoy, Chen Xuan had already asked people to build fortifications.

If Ceylon really dares to fight, then Chen Xuan will probably be too happy to sleep...

(End of this chapter)