Yongle Emperor's grandson: Zhu Yuanzhang with cheats, Zhu Di went crazy

Chapter 173 Monkey Riding Rabbit and Pumpkin
The cold wind was howling, and the river breeze mixed with moisture made people's faces hurt.

On the river, a fleet is docked here.

The sailors on the ship were busy transporting various military supplies to the cabin.

Teams of fully armed soldiers lined up and entered the transport ship under the command of officers.

"This time, we will talk to them first. If we can't come to an agreement, we can consider fighting."

In the pavilion on the shore where people were seeing off their families, old man Zhu Pangpang, wrapped in a thick cloak, looked at the busy fleet and gave instructions to Zhu Zhanjun beside him.

Half a month ago, Xu Da led the reorganized Shenwei Battalion and marched south to replace Zhang Fu.

Zhu Zhanjun saw them off, arranged the rest of the matters, went to the Taimiao to offer sacrifices, and then left Jinling for Liujiagang.

Here, the squadron left for him by Zheng He was waiting.

It was his first time for his son to go to war, and Zhu Pangpang was worried, so he sent him from Jinling to Liujiagang.

As departure approached, Zhu Pangpang was still worried and kept giving instructions over and over again.

Zhu Zhanjun, who was listening at the side, said helplessly: "Dad, if someone came to your house and wanted to take two pieces of land from you, and these two pieces of land also have mountains of gold and silver, would you be willing?"

This is indeed the case. If it were just an ordinary diplomatic accountability, it is possible that Japan would be tolerant in order not to provoke the Ming Dynasty.

But Zhu Zhanjun's purpose this time was to occupy the territory, which also had mountains of gold and silver. The Japanese would not agree to this no matter how stupid they were.

Even Empress Dowager Cixi would arrogantly fight a war with the other side before ceding land and paying compensation, and would only cede land after being defeated.

The little pumpkin is a little weak now, but it is not worse than the old Buddha.

Zhu Pangpang opened his mouth and sighed.

"Well, you can do whatever you want when the time comes. If you can avoid fighting, try not to fight."

In his heart, Zhu Zhanjun actually agreed with his father's idea.

There is no need to spend food, money and soldiers' lives to fight for something that can be obtained by talking.

But this time, he was determined to get started.

Even if the Japanese people don't know about it at first, they will be unwilling to accept it when they see the production of silver and gold later.

"It's cold, you should go back early. I estimate that I will be back before the end of the year. Don't tell mother and grandmother to worry."

Seeing that Fatty's face was turning pale from the cold, Zhu Zhanjun hurriedly advised him to go back early.

Zhu Pangpang waved his hand: "I'm not in a hurry, you go on board first, I'll leave after you leave."

Zhu Zhanjun moved his lips but stopped trying to persuade her.

A mother worries when her son goes far away, and the same goes for a father, especially when the son goes to fight in a war.

Anything can happen on the battlefield, and no one can guarantee that he or she will be the lucky one.

If the matter wasn't too secretive and involved mountains of gold and silver, Zhu Pangpang would not have let his son go, and would have just sent a general.

Zhu Zhanjun took a step back and bowed deeply to Zhu Pangpang.

"Dad, my son is gone. You and mom need to take good care of your health."

Looking at his son who was taller than him just a few months ago, Zhu Pangpang felt a surge of emotion.

Time flies, years pass.

The little guy who used to make a lot of noise around him has now grown up and can share the pressure of the country with his father.

Zhu Pangpang stepped forward to help Zhu Zhanjun up and patted him on the shoulder: "Go, be careful, your grandmother and your mother have already discussed about selecting a talent show for you, and when you come back, you can choose a wife."

Zhu Zhanjun grinned and whispered, "Then Dad, you have to talk to Mom about it and choose carefully. It would be best if she is as virtuous as my great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother."

“Hahaha…” Fat Zhu laughed happily, took his son into his arms and patted him hard.

"Okay, I'll tell your mother when I get home that she must choose carefully."

The two men separated, and Zhu Zhanjun bowed again.

"Dad, please take care of yourself. Your son is gone."

After saying that, he swung his cloak behind him and took Xiaohu and Ergou to a treasure ship waiting in the distance.

Zhu Pangpang took a few steps forward and looked straight at his son's back.

War is the easiest way to temper a person's character.

Although Zhu Zhanjun had experience in commanding an army of 100,000, that was ultimately an emergency, and he was only leading the troops to retreat.

Today's battle is a war of conquest, and being in a foreign country, logistical support is extremely difficult, which is a great test for the generals.

Winning this kind of war is a great experience and training for a general.

It was for this reason that the old man agreed to let Zhu Zhanjun lead the team.

Although on the surface only Zhu Zhanjun was allowed to lead his own troops, only Zhu Pangpang knew the truth.

The old man placed part of the Fifth Army Camp in Weihaiwei, and ordered all the warships in Shandong to be on standby there.

In the future, if Zhu Zhanjun fails in Japan, this army can go directly to the rescue.

However, neither Zhu Pangpang nor the old man wanted to use this army.

When they arrived on the boat, Zhu Zhanjun waved to Zhu Pangpang who was standing in the distance looking out.

With a horn sounded, the ship left the dock.

"Are all of you officers here?"

In the command room on the main ship, Zhu Zhanjun asked Wang Jun, the head of the squadron.

"Yes, Your Highness. All of them, including the escort and logistics officers, are here."

Looking at the dozens of people in front of him, Zhu Zhanjun frowned and asked, "Does anyone among you want to say something to me?"

Hearing this question, the officers looked confused.

Do they have anything to say to Your Highness?
Didn’t we already say everything that needed to be said at the meeting last night?
The reason why Zhu Zhanjun asked this was not because he was bored and wanted to tease these officers.

I want to find the person who was sent here by the space during the New Year.

More than two months have passed since New Year’s Eve.

Zhu Zhanjun waited day and night, but the guy still hasn't shown up.

If Zhang Baigui had not appeared before, Zhu Zhanjun would have suspected that New Year's Eve was really a dream.

"Your Highness, do you have anything to tell me?" Wang Jun looked around and saw that all the officers under him shook their heads slightly to indicate that it was no problem. He walked over to Zhu Zhanjun and asked in a low voice.

Zhu Zhanjun looked around again unwillingly, and after confirming that everyone was normal, he waved his hand.

"It's alright, you can go back to your posts."

After the officers left in confusion, Zhu Zhanjun stood on the side of the boat, looking at the river and feeling annoyed.

He was still counting on this naval warfare expert to come and help, but it turned out that the person hasn't reported yet. The next expedition to Japan will depend on him alone.

"Could it be in Zheng He's fleet?"

Zhu Biao, who noticed Zhu Zhanjun's irritability in the space, put forward his own ideas.

Zhu Zhanjun thought about it and it seemed that this was really possible.

"Forget it. As long as nothing unexpected happens, he will come over sooner or later. Then we will know the situation."

The fleet sailed down the river, out of Baoshan Guard Station and straight into the sea.

Then we went south along the coast and headed for the ocean route that Zheng He took to Japan.

In ancient times, ships’ navigation relied entirely on experience. There was no such thing as positioning. It was all experience gained through exploration from generation to generation.

Sometimes I would rather have some trouble than take the risk of taking an unknown route. I always try to be stable.

After arriving at Daishan County, the fleet rested and replenished fresh water and food, then headed east along the route of that year.

"Your Highness, based on our experience from our last voyage, as long as there are no problems on the road, we will be able to reach our destination in about a month."

On the deck of the flagship, Zhu Zhanjun was fishing with a fishhook.

While holding a telescope and observing the situation on the sea, Wang Jun talked about his last trip to Japan.

"Did you investigate the situation in Japan the last time you went there?"

Zhu Zhanjun stared at the sea and asked about what happened last time.

"Ha ha……"

Perhaps thinking of something funny, Wang Jun couldn't help laughing and said, "Your Highness, you don't know that the people in Japan are really as short as winter melons."

"Their general, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, is as small as a baby, and the horses they ride."

"At that time, Captain Chen of the treasure ship used a very appropriate metaphor, a monkey riding a rabbit."

"Ha ha……"

Zhu Zhanjun was amused by this word, but he agreed with it in his heart, thinking that the metaphor was very appropriate.

Seeing Zhu Zhanjun, who had been sulking for some reason these past two days, smile, Wang Jun secretly breathed a sigh of relief and continued, "And the women there are all as small as little kids, with long and thick bodies and short legs."

"At that time, many women wanted to join our ship and become our slaves, so that they could enjoy the good life in Ming Dynasty with us."

"A few brothers couldn't control themselves and were severely scolded by Lord Zheng He."

"We, the Ming Dynasty, have a noble bloodline. We can't let these little bitches take advantage of us."

"Let me tell you, Your Highness..."

"Woooooooo..."

Wang Jun was talking excitedly when a warning horn suddenly sounded from the lookout tower above his head.

The smile on Wang Jun's face disappeared instantly, and he quickly raised his head and looked upwards.

I saw the observer above waving flags quickly.

As an ocean fleet, with ever-changing weather at sea, they have various ways of communicating.

In rainy and foggy weather, horns, drums and lights are used as signals. Usually, the visibility is clear, and flag signals and horns are mainly used.

"Two huge warships were spotted ten miles to the southeast."

Wang Jun's face was solemn, and he quickly translated the flag bearer's words for Zhu Zhanjun.

After finishing the translation, Wang Jun took off the flag behind him and waved it upwards.

Soon the fleet started moving.

The cargo ships and troop transports began to move towards the middle, and the warships responsible for the battle quickly formed a battle formation to protect the troop transports and cargo ships in the middle.

Some of the sailors on the ship began to load their cannons, while others took out their weapons and muskets, preparing for boarding battles.

"Your Highness, the deck is dangerous. Please go back to your room and rest. Wait for me to deal with these two fish, and then you can go out to fish."

Zhu Zhanjun nodded and did not interfere with the fleet command.

He didn't know much about naval warfare, and if he gave orders blindly at this time, it would be like an amateur commanding experts, which would cause trouble for the fleet.

Zhu Zhanjun’s wisest choice was to obey the fleet commander’s orders and return to the cabin to wait for news.

However, before entering the cabin, Zhu Zhanjun picked up the telescope and looked at the enemy ship.

He was very curious. With the combat effectiveness of this squadron, they would not even take the ordinary small pirates seriously.

As the strongest naval force in the world today, the Ming navy is arrogant. They do not call ordinary ships large ships.

Today's enemy ship is rarely called a large ship, which means that this ship is definitely not small and poses a certain threat to the fleet.

Raising the telescope, Zhu Zhanjun quickly locked onto the target.

When he saw the two warships sailing, Zhu Zhanjun took a breath and couldn't help exclaiming.

"The battleship Sovereign of the Sea!"

Zhu Zhanjun was a little confused. If he remembered correctly, these two warships, like the HMS Sovereign, should have been born in England in the 17th century.

The problem is that it’s only the fifteenth century, damn, there’s still two centuries to go, where the hell did these two ships come from.

The reason why Zhu Zhanjun recognized the ship at a glance was that he liked watching ancient wars at sea and knew something about this aspect.

The Sovereign of the Seas is said to have participated in all the wars in the English seas, and its reputation is extremely great.

The ship has a tonnage of 1522 tons, a length of 51.13, a width of 14.17, a draft of 5.89, and can be equipped with 90 to 118 guns.

This warship, with such a firepower ratio, is almost invincible at sea, not to mention in the early 15th century when artillery was not popular at sea.

And damn, there were two ships that appeared at once.

Thinking about fighting at sea, being entangled by two ships, with each ship firing from each side, with nearly a hundred cannons firing at the same time, Zhu Zhanjun couldn't help but feel a tingling sensation on his scalp.

(End of this chapter)