Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 512 The Adventure of the Yuanwang Ship (Part Two)

After passing through the Tsushima Strait and sailing on the surface of the Whale Sea, the group began to reminisce about the brief encounter they had just experienced.

Chen Youliang said excitedly, "I didn't expect the Japanese pirates' ships to be so vulnerable. Just eight cannons firing in one salvo were enough to sink them. If we didn't have a mission, we could have wiped out all of the Japanese pirates' dozens of ships with just one ship."

Captain Zhang Chao of the Yuanwang also nodded and said, "That's why His Majesty said that we should build a navy. It is much easier to defeat the Japanese pirates at sea than to fight a land war. Moreover, once the Japanese pirates land on our coast, no matter how we fight, we will be the ones who suffer the losses in the end."

Yang Hui, who was on the same ship, looked listless. He had learned that he was to be exiled to Lizhou, tens of thousands of miles away. Now, no matter what happened in the country, it had nothing to do with him anymore.

Wang Dayuan then said, "His Majesty once said that the ships of the Japanese are called Atakebune. They are made of wooden planks, like roof tiles, one on top of another, without even mortar to fill the gaps. Moreover, the Japanese pirates' Atakebune do not have a keel at all, they are just like a wooden basin."

"In addition, our cannons are powerful, which makes the Japanese pirates' Atakebune seem vulnerable. However, if you fight against the Japanese pirates in the future, you should not underestimate them. The enemy is not incapable of learning. If they learn to build stronger ships, or if they become more prepared for our cannons after this incident, it will be much more difficult to fight them in the future."

Zhang Chao immediately nodded, "What you say is true, Your Majesty always teaches us that pride will surely lead to defeat, and we must never be careless when facing an enemy."

Upon hearing this, Chen Youliang seemed to be deep in thought, marveling at the many talented people under Lu Jin's command. "I never imagined that Mr. Huanzhang was not only proficient in navigation but also knowledgeable in military strategy."

Wang Dayuan stroked his beard and said modestly, "Although I don't know much about military strategy, my son is His Majesty's student and is now the commander of the artillery regiment in His Majesty's Imperial Guard. My son-in-law is also His Majesty's trusted general and is in charge of the Imperial Guard. I have been influenced by him from a young age. Although I cannot lead troops into battle, I can still talk about military strategy on paper."

"Sir, you are truly blessed. You have made a great contribution upon your return from Lizhou, and your future is limitless," Chen Youliang immediately flattered.

"Not at all, not at all. We will need everyone to work together to reach Lizhou. This credit is not mine alone."

While they were praising each other, Nahachu, who was standing next to him, was also deep in thought. He had witnessed the strength of the navy built by Lu Jin. This new ship was said to have been designed by Lu Jin himself. Not only was it extremely fast, but it also reached the Tsushima Strait in just two days after leaving the mouth of the Yangtze River, easily sinking the Japanese pirates' ships.

Thinking of this, he immediately asked, "Mr. Wang, His Majesty has such powerful warships, and when we left Jiankang, I saw new keels being erected at the shipyard, as if the construction of these warships is still ongoing. Is His Majesty building so many warships to continue the Yuan Dynasty's unfinished eastern expedition?"

The Eastern Expedition, of course, refers to the expedition against Japan. To this question, Wang Dayuan simply shook his head. "I don't know either. Continuing to build warships doesn't necessarily mean we're going to launch an expedition against Japan. Anyway, whether we're fighting Japan or defending against Japanese pirates, we can't do without warships. Besides, we also need them in the South Seas."

"Even if we were to launch an expedition against Japan, it would be a long time coming. Our country is not yet at peace, so how could we possibly send a large army to conquer Japan?"

Wang Dayuan's words were ambiguous and vague. Nahachu understood that Wang Dayuan did not want to discuss this issue with him, so he wisely stopped bringing it up and asked again, "Now that we have crossed the Tsushima Strait, where are we going next?"

“We should head to Sapporo on Chengzhou Island, where we can replenish our fresh water and firewood. Although we have enough food on our ship, we should replenish our fresh water and firewood whenever we have the chance, in case of any unforeseen circumstances,” Wang Dayuan said immediately.

“Chengzhou Island? Sapporo? Where is this?” Naha asked in confusion.

Wang Dayuan immediately led them into the captain's cabin, spread out the nautical chart and said, "It is located eighty miles north of Honshu Island in Japan, in Liaoyang Province controlled by the Yuan Dynasty, east of the Shuidada Road, and several dozen miles south of Guwei Island. Oh, by the way, His Majesty calls Guwei Island Sakhalin Island."

“There is a large river on the west coast of Chengzhou Island that flows into the sea. The mouth of this river is Sapporo, which the locals call Sapporo, meaning the Great River Valley.”

"This place is called Ezo by the Japanese, and the local people there are called Ezo people. However, this island is not under the jurisdiction of the Japanese or the Yuan Dynasty. Only the local people are there. We can stop here to replenish our fresh water and firewood."

This was the first time Nahachu had seen a map of Hokkaido and Japan. Hearing Wang Dayuan's explanation, he exclaimed in disbelief.

“There’s an island to the north of Japan that’s not far from the Yuan Dynasty’s Guwei Island? If Emperor Shizu had known that there was a Chengzhou to the north, why would he have sent his army eastward through the Tsushima Strait? He could have taken Chengzhou first and then advanced from the north of Japan. Naval warfare is not what our Mongols are good at, but as long as there is land connecting us, Japan would be doomed.”
"Oh, what a pity."

To everyone's surprise, Chen Youliang immediately retorted without hesitation when he heard his regret, "Oh? So what if the Mongols are connected by land? Annam is also connected to Guangdong and Guangxi and Yunnan. The Yuan Dynasty fought against it three times and suffered heavy losses and a crushing defeat. It's not like you can win just because you have land connections."

These words immediately left Naha speechless. Moreover, given his special status as a prisoner of Lu Jin, it was hard to say that Lu Jin intended to exile him, as he was now being sent to Lizhou, 40,000 li away.

But Lu Jin had promised him he could come back in a few years. If he angered Chen Youliang and he wasn't brought back, that would be terrible. So he didn't bother arguing with Chen Youliang.

Seeing the awkward situation, Wang Dayuan immediately tried to smooth things over, saying, "Alright, alright, what's there to argue about? The Yuan Dynasty is about to fall, and everyone will be working for the new dynasty from now on. We should live in harmony."

"We are about to enter the Whale Sea. Before we set off, His Majesty specifically instructed that we may encounter a large number of floating ice floes on our northward journey. If the ship collides with the floating ice floes, it will be like hitting a reef and may sink the ship, which is very dangerous."

"Therefore, to be on the safe side, from now on, sentries will be stationed at the bow and both sides of the ship in shifts day and night to keep a close watch on the sea. If any floating ice is seen, we will immediately warn the helmsman to turn and avoid it."

"Let General Chen take charge of this task."

Chen Youliang asked doubtfully, "It's already May, how could there still be ice floes at sea? That shouldn't be possible, right?"

Wang Dayuan immediately said seriously, "We are heading north. The further north we go, the colder it gets. The legendary Bering Sea is even further north than the Gobi Desert. It is known as the Arctic. It is covered in ice and snow all year round. It only thaws for two or three months of summer. This is the season when the Arctic ice melts and the ice floes drift south. We must be careful."

Seeing the seriousness in his words, Chen Youliang nodded and then went to arrange the shifts for the sentries.

Before long, and before they could even see any ice floes, they heard a crew member shout, "There's a big fish in the sea! A really big fish! It must be at least 20 feet long!"

"Where is where?"

"They swam across."

"Hey, one after another, no, a whole bunch of them."

"My goodness, it's so big! If we catch one, we probably couldn't eat it all."

Hearing the commotion, everyone gathered around the ship's side to watch. Wang Dayuan also peeked out and compared the whale species with what Lu Jin had described before muttering to himself, "Swimming so fast and moving in groups, it's probably a minke whale."

"Look, there's an even bigger one over there! Goodness, that one's probably six zhang long, it just flew out of the sea!"

"Where is where?"

Hearing this, the gunners in the cabin couldn't sit still any longer and rushed out to see the big fish. Seeing this, Zhang Chao immediately shouted, "Don't push! If you push people overboard, you'll be swallowed by the fish and no one can save you!"

Upon hearing this, everyone cautiously lined up along the ship's side, craning their necks to watch the whale. Just then, a huge humpback whale suddenly leaped out of the water, using its weight and splashes to wash away the barnacles that parasitized its body, immediately eliciting a chorus of "Wow!"s from the crew of the Yuanwang, who were all amazed.

Yang Hui, who had been listless, suddenly appeared and stood on the ship's railing, watching the whale leap out of the sea. Stroking his beard, he said, "Whale, a great fish of the sea. The ancients called this place the Whale Sea, and it truly lives up to its name."

Upon hearing this, Wang Dayuan retorted, "A whale is not a fish, but a sea beast?"

"Oh? What do you mean?" Yang Hui asked immediately when someone paid attention to him.

"Your Majesty once said that whales are distant relatives of deer and cattle on land. Although they live in the sea, they are not fish, because fish breathe with gills and lay eggs to hatch fry, while whales are like land animals, breathing with lungs, carrying fetuses and giving birth, and needing to nurse their young. Therefore, they are sea animals."

"How can you tell?" Yang Hui was somewhat surprised and disbelieving.

Wang Dayuan immediately pointed and said, “Look at that whale with the huge fin that just leaped out of the water. Its scientific name is Humpback Whale. It has many bulges on its head and is also known as a humpback whale. Its nostrils are on the top of its head. It was exhaling water to breathe. Fish don’t need to breathe, but whales can’t. They have to surface to breathe every few minutes.”

Upon hearing this, Yang Hui looked closely and found it to be true. She couldn't help but admire him and said, "It really is so. I didn't expect Mr. Huanzhang to be able to judge whales. Does he know what kind of whale is swimming alongside our ship?"

"It is fast, very curious, likes to travel with human ships, and is about two zhang long. It is a minke whale."

Upon hearing this, Yang Hui looked at him with even greater respect. Then, noticing another group of whales swimming rapidly in the distance, she asked again, "What about those over there?"

Upon seeing this, Wang Dayuan's expression immediately turned serious. "Its dorsal fin is high and long, nearly six feet tall, lying horizontally like a halberd, with alternating black and white colors. It's an orca, also known as a killer whale. Oh no, this thing seems to be coming for us."

"What if it comes at us?" Yang Hui asked immediately, seeing his serious expression and realizing something was wrong. The next moment, before Wang Dayuan could answer, a killer whale charged at high speed, knocking a minke whale that was accompanying the Yuanwang ship flying seven or eight meters out of the water, before it splashed back into the sea. Before the minke whale could recover, it was hit by two or three more killer whales, and when it finally fell back into the sea, it was completely disoriented.

The next second, another orca opened its blood-red mouth and tore a piece of flesh off the minke whale. The minke whale was still struggling, but it was being chased and devoured by the orca pod as it swam away. In the end, it was slowly tortured to death by the orca pod, and its blood stained the seawater red.

Everyone on the Yuanwang was stunned. Yang Hui was also shocked by the scene. Wang Dayuan then said slowly, "Whales are divided into baleen whales and toothed whales. Baleen whales have no teeth and feed on shrimp, crabs and small fish. Toothed whales have sharp teeth and feed on large fish and marine mammals. The killer whale is the most common toothed whale in the sea."

"It's so terrifying! No wonder it's called an orca. Will this thing attack our ship?" Yang Hui exclaimed in horror.

"No, His Majesty said that orcas are extremely intelligent and perceptive, with the wisdom of a fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy. They are quite friendly to humans. These animals are much smarter than cattle and horses."

"I see." Yang Hui breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. At least being exiled to Lizhou meant he would still be alive, but he really didn't want to end up as a fish's belly. "I never imagined that you knew so much about these sea creatures, sir."

Wang Dayuan immediately replied modestly, "These are all things His Majesty told us when he had nothing else to do. I was just repeating what His Majesty said."

Zhang Chao then chimed in, "There are so many big fish in this whale sea! It would be wonderful if we could catch them and bring them back. With so many whales, if we could catch just one, we could get tens of thousands of pounds of meat!"

Zhang Chao was originally a Tanka fisherman from Chaohu. Seeing so many fish here, it's not surprising that he was excited and had such thoughts. But to his surprise, Wang Dayuan also agreed.

"Captain Zhang is very insightful. His Majesty did indeed mention that he planned to establish a whaling company in the Whale Sea."

"Whaling, the company?"

"It is a business. His Majesty wants to immigrate and occupy Chengzhou, but if he wants to operate in the long term, he must have economic benefits. Otherwise, long-term immigration will not be profitable, and there will definitely be people in the court who will oppose it. Whaling is the fastest way to make money."

“This giant whale is a treasure from head to toe. Its meat can be eaten, its skin can be used to make leather, and its oil can be used to make lamp oil, which is bright and burns for a long time. There are so many giant whales in the Whale Sea. If we kill a few hundred a year, the money earned will be enough to support the immigration. Moreover, this is also part of His Majesty’s plan to use the people to support the army. The navy costs a lot of money. If there is no long-term benefit, it will inevitably attract criticism and be difficult to sustain in the long run,” Wang Dayuan immediately explained.

"I see." Zhang Chao suddenly realized and immediately said, "Being able to fight wild beasts in the sea is quite a good job. When I retire from the army someday, I will definitely come and visit this whaling company."

Nahachu overheard this and gleaned some meaning from the conversation between the two. Lu Jin had the idea of ​​occupying Chengzhou, which meant he really had designs on Japan. Otherwise, why would he go to such lengths to occupy an isolated island overseas?
The Yuanwang ship sailed at high speed through the Whale Sea for two days and finally arrived at the sea off Sapporo from the Tsushima Strait.

Wang Dayuan then assigned tasks to everyone on the ship once again.

"This is the first time we've landed on an unfamiliar island to resupply since we set sail. Everyone needs to be very careful and learn from this experience so that we can follow the same procedure next time we land to resupply."

"Yes, sir, rest assured, we will definitely pay attention," Zhang Chao immediately replied.

"Let's choose someone first. Who will lead the logistical support during this landing?"

Zhang Chao glanced at the people around him. Wang Zong, the first mate on the ship, was also an officer from the Holy Martial Army Navy. Upon hearing this, he immediately said, "If the captain is going to stay on the ship, then let me, the first mate, lead the team."

Wang Dayuan nodded, then gave instructions, “When we reach the mouth of the Sapporo River, we will lower both small boats. First mate Wang will organize sixty people to go ashore, divided into two teams of thirty people each in each small boat. We will first go upstream along the river valley, measuring the water depth with a plumb bob along the way to see if we can dock the Yuanwang ship, and then see if there are any local natives.”

"The local people here are called Ezo by the Japanese pirates, and they call themselves Ainu, which means people. When they greet each other, they can call each other Utali, which means friend or partner."

"If you encounter natives, do not show hostility, but bring weapons and give them some gifts. If the natives are friendly, you can find a suitable place to go ashore, taste the saltiness of the water along the way, and when you reach a place where there is fresh water upstream, go ashore to fetch water and cut firewood."

"If any situation arises, regardless of success or failure, immediately send a ship back to report the news."

"Yes, sir, don't worry, I know what to do."

"Okay, let's get ready then."

When the Yuanwang ship cautiously approached the mouth of the Sapporo River, more than a mile from the shore, a small boat was launched. Wang Zongxian led his men off the boat, measuring the water depth near the shore while guiding the Yuanwang ship to dock.

When they reached a distance of more than 300 meters from the shore, the water was no longer deep enough. Only then did Wang Dayuan order the Yuanwang to stop, furl the sails, and drop anchor. He also adjusted the ship's position, pointing the starboard guns toward the river mouth. If the landing team encountered any trouble, the Yuanwang could fire on the river mouth to provide support, intercept enemy pursuers, and cover the team's boarding.

After mooring the boat, they launched two more small boats in one go. Wang Zong led three dozen men in each of the two boats, armed with muskets, and rowed upstream on the Sapporo River. The other boat, carrying fifty musketmen, was moored next to the Yuanwang, ready to provide support should Wang Zong encounter any situation.

With everything arranged, all that's left is to wait.

As Wang Zong led his men upstream on the Sapporo River, he cautiously scanned the water and banks. However, they had only gone less than a mile inland when a crew member shouted, "First mate, there are people upstream, and there's a boat too!"

Looking upstream, Wang Zong indeed saw three natives paddling a dugout canoe made of tree bark, rowing with one hand and holding a harpoon with the other, fishing in the river. He immediately said, "Everyone, be on high alert. Watch your muskets, don't let them go off accidentally and startle them."

"Yes." Everyone agreed, and Wang Zong ordered again, "Keep rowing, get closer."

The two small boats continued forward, and the three Ainu fishermen upstream, seeing that their boats were large and that there were more than sixty people, immediately became more vigilant. They wondered where these people had come from, and as they chattered away, the three of them rowed towards the shore.

Upon seeing this, Wang Zong immediately called out to them, "Hey, Ainu, Utali, friends!"

The Ainu people were greatly surprised to hear this. They didn't know why these people of unknown origin could speak their language and call them 'friends'. They didn't seem like bad people, so they stopped on the shore and waited for them.

Seeing that the three had stopped running, Wang Zong immediately ordered them to move closer, shouting "Utali" while waving his large hat. Once they were close, Wang Zong pointed around and asked.

"Here, Sapporo?"

The elder of the three Ainu people immediately nodded, and was even more surprised, wondering how these people knew this place was called Sapporo. He then spoke in a string of words, asking Wang Zong and his companions who they were and where they came from, but Wang Zong couldn't understand a word they said; it was like talking to a brick wall.

Wang Zong didn't know what the other person was saying, but said again, "Utali, friend, our boat is over there. We came here to fetch water and go ashore to chop wood. This is our gift to you, Utali."

Wang Zong pointed towards the estuary, and the three natives craned their necks to look. They then saw a large white ship on the shore, as tall as a small mountain. Wang Zong then handed them his large hat and a long, thin knife.

One of the three young men took the hat, while the old man took the sharp knife and tried to cut a large gash on the fish. He then smiled with satisfaction, nodded to Wang Zong, and took out a water bag made of fish skin, offering Wang Zong a drink.

Wang Zong stared at the fish-skin water bag for a moment, then immediately took it and drank a sip as a gesture of goodwill. He then pointed to himself and said, "Me, Da Ming, Wang Zong. And you?"

The old man seemed to understand, and pointed to himself, "Pekka."

"Peika?"

The old man pointed to himself again and nodded, "Pekka."

After exchanging names, the old man named Pei Ka immediately and warmly invited Wang Zong and his companions to come ashore. Without hesitation, Wang Zong and his companions followed the three of them in their canoe and paddled towards the shore. Once ashore, the young man wearing Wang Zong's large hat immediately ran ashore, calling for his friends to come over.

Wang Zong immediately gave the crew a look, signaling them to be on high alert. There were also people left on board, ready to board and row away at any time. But not long after, they saw the young man from before calling over several women and children. It turned out that they were a family. Only then did Wang Zong feel a little relieved.

Knowing that the other party meant no harm, Wang Zong painstakingly communicated with the Ainu family, sending his men ashore to chop firewood and set up a pot to boil water. When the Peika family saw their iron pot, wood-chopping knife, and axe, they stared at them intently.

Upon seeing this, Wang Zong immediately smiled and instructed the soldiers around him, "Quickly, send a boat back to report that we have encountered a family of local people, including the elderly, women, and children. They like our iron pots, machetes, and axes. Tell them to bring some more from the boat."

"Yes."

(End of this chapter)