Goose Three Kingdoms

Chapter 623 Balance
In the northern part of Bohai Sea, a reconnaissance fleet slowly pushed forward through the waves.

Cao Ren, who had lost a lot of weight, stood on the command platform in the sparrow room, wearing a cloak and squinting at the increasingly obvious land and mountains.

He held a map in his hand, glanced down, and turned to ask Lu Zhao beside him: "Go around the front, is Dashi County?"

"Yes."

Lü Zhao, who had already investigated the area, pointed to the place where the flag was flying and said, "That is Mashijin. Most of the Qingxu merchant ships are anchored here. After Liu Xuande took control of Liaodong, he sent Mi Zhu to take charge of the five counties south of Xinshi, and Mi Zhu divided it into three counties. He has reported to Guanzhong and wants to establish Liaonan County."

Cao Ren lowered his head and continued to look at the map. The entire Liaodong and Lelang counties. If Liaodong was separated into Liaonan County, then Liaonan County would have two larger commercial ports.

There are a total of six such famous ports in the entire Bohai North, and the other three are in Lelang County.

Cao Ren rolled up the map. This time he would not only investigate Ma Shijin, but also go to the four ports to the east of Ma Shijin to look for powerful horse traders and Dongyi generals.

The Dongyi tribes near Gangjin are more civilized, and Han and Yi people live together. These powerful people can transform themselves into Dongyi leaders or Han powerful people, and their positions are very flexible.

The lack of war horses caused Cao's army's tactics to regress to ten years ago.

If you want to successfully take over Hebei, you must rebuild the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry.

In the Battle of Mianchi, Cao Ren was severely injured by the flail and nearly died.

After recovering from injuries, he cannot withstand the cold or strenuous physical activity.

Instead, it forced him to concentrate on studying the art of war, and his temperament became increasingly deep and gloomy.

His task was heavy, not only did he have to find horses, but he also had to find experienced long-distance sailors.

The more talents of this kind they collected, the fewer talents Liu Bei would have.

With more reserve talents for long-distance sailing, it will also be easier for them to travel to Yingzhou.

Cao Ren had seen the map sent by Cao Zhi, and the map in his hand was a copy of that map.

It is too difficult for the current Qi army to go to Yingzhou from Jiaodong.

If we cross the sea, we can set up an outpost at a suitable ferry point south of Lelang County, send troops to manage and expand it, and accumulate supplies and manpower.

The army then sailed northward and could obtain supplies or rest and take shelter from the wind at the islands in Bohai Sea.

Then sail along the coastline of southern Liaoning and Lelang County, arrive at the outpost base in the Samhan region, and finally cross the sea to Yingzhou.

Therefore, it is necessary to promote the war between Liu Bei and the Dongyi countries so that Liu Bei has no time to interfere and obstruct. Liu Bei will attack the Dongyi countries, and they will attack the Three Han.

As for the prince's escape and the affairs of Jiangdong... Cao Cao is not interested for the time being.

At the beginning of the year, Guanzhong investigated the water conditions of Dizhu during the dry season of the Yellow River, and set up fortresses and camps, ready to start the Dizhu demolition project at any time.

Even though the pillar is gone, the water transport in Guanzhong and Guandong is still smooth.

At that time, Xiahou Dun, who was stationed in the Heluo area, would be completely out of control. No matter how loyal Xiahou Dun was, he could not stop his subordinates from becoming disunited.

If you are not careful, you might be captured by the mutiny while you are sleeping.

The pillar is the lifeline of the Qi army.

When Guanzhong was opened up, the two states of Yan and Yu came under the rule of Guanzhong.

By that time, there will also be severe ideological shocks within the Qi army.

Their time was very tight, and only a fool like Yuan Shang was still thinking about fighting for the two states of Yan and Yu, and recuperating the national strength before fighting again with Guanzhong.

Cao Cao was tired of the disputes in the Central Plains, and Cao Ren was also tired.

This was especially true for Lu Zhao, who, bearing the infamy of murdering the previous emperor, wanted to flee overseas more than anyone else.

Only by going overseas can his family continue.

Many people still had illusions, but the rebels in Taiyuan and Hedong were all reduced to slaves; the Youzhou rebels and the Liaodong migration all proved a terrible reality. Guanzhong was very tough, and would force the migration even if many people died during the migration; even if they encountered more stubborn resistance, they would reduce all the rebels to slaves.

Before that, when Gongsun Zan and Yuan Shao were fighting for Hebei, there were too many people wavering between the two sides; when the Central Plains was in turmoil, Lu Bu and Cao Cao were fighting for Yanzhou; the subsequent Battle of Guandu was actually the same, and the wealthy and powerful treated rebellion as a joke.

This made many Qi officials have illusions. At the very least, they could follow the example of Tian Qi in history and surrender to Qin... Even if they didn't keep much wealth, they would still be free.

But now the bloody reality lies before them. What awaits them is only the confiscation of their property and the reduction of their family members to slavery.

Instead of doing this, it is better to take the risk and go out to sea to continue making clothes overseas.

Anyway, the officials of Qi State have adapted to migration. Even if they change to an unfamiliar geographical environment, they are still familiar people... In a sense, as long as there are enough people migrating, it does not count as leaving their hometown.

As for continuing the battle with Guanzhong... Cao Cao has this determination, but his subordinates really don't want to fight anymore.

One consideration is to cut off the plain from Hebei and squeeze the Yuan family. If Guanzhong collapses during this period, the solution is to annex Jizhou and become bigger and stronger.

If Guanzhong is stable, it will also limit Yuan's range of activities in Bohai, giving the Qi fleet more advantages.

Liu Bei in Liaodong lacked a sufficient naval fleet and could not even control the smuggling merchant ships, let alone intercept the Qi navy.

So, the naval reconnaissance team disguised as a merchant ship sailed into Ma Shijin, and later went ashore to sell primitive porcelain, silk, and lacquerware in the market run by Liu Bei's officials, almost trading Liaodong specialties in a barter manner.

Read the error-free version at 69shuba! 6=9+shu_ba is the first to publish this novel.

One tenth of the transaction amount was collected as commercial tax, and after a busy period of time, they returned to the ship to spend the night.

Ma Shijin is Lushun. There are very few Dongyi tribes around here and it is under strong supervision from Liu Bei, so naturally there are no horse dealers here.

Only by entering Lelang County, where the three ports are filled with Dongyi and Three Han merchants, can one purchase war horses.

Inside the cabin, a fish oil lamp burned.

The boat swayed with the waves. An official holding a wooden tablet he had recorded during the day told about the price changes in Ma Shijin. He finally said, "The price of silk has dropped a lot. The reason is that Lord Xuande has opened a Liaodong trading house in Guanzhong. Guanzhong silk and Shu brocade can be traded to Liaodong."

Fortunately, the output of lacquerware in Jiangdong is extremely high, and currently only the output of lacquerware in Yizhou can compete.

Primitive porcelain was the most advanced product in Jiangdong among all the states. Its surface was as lustrous as jade and it was stronger than pottery. The price of exquisite high-quality porcelain was dozens of times that of pottery.

It’s just that the craftsmanship is immature, the color is monotonous and difficult to control.

Even so, it is almost a specialty unique to Jiangdong.

Cao Ren listened to the report without any extra thoughts.

The porcelain, lacquerware and even some of the Wu girls and Yue girls brought on board the ship were all smuggled by the Langya Navy. The relationship between Qi and the Langya Navy was much better than the outside world expected.

Between Bohai Sea and Donghai Sea, there are only the Qi Navy and the Langya Navy. There is really no need for the two sides to compete.

The Langya Navy was mainly composed of people from Liangpei, and had various relationships with the high-ranking officials of Qi State.

There will be no benefit if both sides fight.

The Langya Navy’s top brass really don’t care about the few official titles awarded by the Southeastern Court.

When the Emperor Jian'an was assassinated, they fled to Xu Du and sought refuge with Liu Fu nearby. Liu Fu's enthronement cut off the escape routes of too many people.

He already had resentment, so it was even more impossible for him to work for the Southeastern Court.

Preserving and maintaining the framework of the Langya Navy is the only capital for future negotiations with Guanzhong.

Therefore, it became inevitable to use this business to support the army and build ships.

Zang Ba and Chang Ba, who occupied Xuzhou, were also happy to see the Langya navy, which was determined to establish its own regime. The Langya navy made Xuzhou more stable.

The relationship was almost interdependent. Zang Ba and Chang Ba needed the Langya Navy to counter the annexation of the Qi army; the Langya Navy needed people like Zang Ba to provide shelter to resist personnel transfers or military orders from the southeast court.

Despite the intervention and interference of external forces, Xuzhou has maintained a unique stable situation.

(End of this chapter)