Chinese New Year

Chapter 1482 Standardization

By August 15th, the trip could no longer be delayed.

At dawn, more than ten ships set sail in succession, heading northeast.

The journey was long and arduous. Cao Xian sat in the best cabin, casually flipping through the captain's logbook. Although the Piaoyujin Duzhi Xiaoweifu had experience in Shamen Town, this was their first real voyage in the Liaohai Sea.

The log was updated regularly, and Cao Xian picked it up to read it before the ink was even dry.
“The two characters ‘Ma Shi’ are carved on the cliff in front of Lushunkou Mountain, which is very conspicuous.”

"Leaving Lushunkou, head east, cross the sea, and return to Pingdaokou. There are reefs to the southwest of the entrance. There are mountains outside. Enter the entrance and anchor. The southern side is an old shore, and at the end, looking east, you can see three mountains. Entering the interior, there is a north-south sandbar connected by steep banks and deep water, suitable for anchoring. To the west of the three mountains is Nanshan. Enter Qingniwa (Dalian)..."

Cao Xian then looked through the previous records.

"The locals call it 'Sheep's Head Hollow,' because it has two islands that provide shelter from the wind..."

"There was once a place called 'Lianyin Island,' which the Prince of Yan renamed 'Lianyun Island' because it was often shrouded in dark clouds..."

Cao Xian watched for a long time, full of praise.

That's how you do navigation!
During the Wei and Jin dynasties, there were also people who sailed the seas, especially those from the Eastern Wu, who traveled north from Danyang, Kuaiji, and Wujun to Liaodong to connect with Gongsun. However, after the fall of Jin, no nautical records were found. Even the Zhongli family, a prominent naval family, only had some privately held nautical charts, which were not as detailed as those before us.

This place not only has nautical charts, but also marks distances, mountains, hydrology, weather, local customs, and so on. If all navigation were done like this, the chances of accidents would be greatly reduced.

Unfortunately, since the Han Dynasty, seafaring has often been used only when there is a need and dispatched only when there is no need.

War was needed, but land routes were blocked, so sea routes were necessary. People were scrambling to find manpower. The general in charge of the operation was even transferred from the army and had to learn everything on the spot.

With the war over, all the men were laid off and struggled to make a living. As time went on, these newly trained boatmen and soldiers either changed professions or forgot many things. Decades passed, and everyone was dead, leaving nothing behind.

Nobody from top to bottom cares about these things.

This demonstrates the immense changes an emperor who values ​​navigation can bring about.

The ships are better than before, the records are more detailed, there are more skilled personnel, and various regulations have been improved, reducing the risks of navigation. If this is done in all cases, navigation will still be dangerous, but it will be much better than before when people were constantly gambling with their lives.

A gentle sea breeze blows, and I drift with the current.

On August 17, the fleet sailed off the coast of Hongya County (now Zhuanghe). Looking westward, they saw rolling hills and dense forests.

There is not much flat land, and most of it is located by the sea, so it is not clearly visible from a distance. However, it seems that most of it has not been developed into farmland, probably because cattle, sheep and horses roam around it.

Some say they can see the capital of Liaodong, Xiuyan, but those in the know laugh and say they can't see it at all unless you have a telescope—it's said that the Imperial Household Department found pure crystal and sent craftsmen to polish it, but they haven't succeeded yet.

During the voyage, Cao Xian felt much better and was less dizzy, so he took a moment to check on the people in the cabin.

Each time the ship stopped, these people had the opportunity to go ashore and rest. But along the way, more than ten people in the fleet died one after another, thrown into the sea, and died without a burial place.

Those who survived didn't seem as pale as before; it appeared they were slowly adapting to their turbulent life.

That’s good, that’s good!

On the night of the 18th, the fleet approached the mouth of the Yalu River, commonly known as Anpingkou, and anchored one after another.

******
"Dong dong..." The rumbling sound of drums echoed through the mountains and reached all the way to the seaside.

After Cao Xian went ashore, he listened carefully and heard faint shouts of battle in the wind.

Xi'an Ping County sent a county constable named Kou Fang to supervise the unloading: some of the armor, swords, spears, arrows, and grain loaded in Lushun were essentially being transported along the way for them.

There were also some iron farm tools, oxen, paper, porcelain, lamps and other items purchased in Hebei, but not many.

"Don't worry, Attendant Cao, there's no war. It's just routine drills. They come every year after the autumn harvest," Kou Fang said kindly, reassuring the people who were resting on the shore.

After saying this, he noticed that there were quite a few young women or married women in the crowd, and immediately whispered, "Lord Cao, could you release some of the women? Don't worry, they will not be humiliated. They will all be registered as commoners and then married properly."

“No way.” Cao Xian immediately refused, thinking to himself that he could give him the money, but not him.

However, he was still very curious, pointing to the farm not far away, and said, "I see there are quite a few women in the farm..."

“Most of them are Goguryeo people,” Kou Fang said. “Going east across the Yalu River, almost all of them are barbarians. Some are Goguryeo people, and others are hard to say.”

"Are there no Chinese people here?" Cao Xian asked.

"Perhaps they used to be, but now they're no different from barbarians," Kou Fang said dismissively.

Language, customs, and culture have all changed. Even if they are Han Chinese by blood, they are actually Goguryeo people.

"A woman is enough, why bother robbing my house?" Cao Xian said unhappily.

Kou Fang laughed heartily and said no more. The sound of thunderous hooves rose in the distance, and soon hundreds of riders charged out, circled the open field, and fired arrows repeatedly at the straw figures at the foot of the mountain.

After firing a volley of arrows, cavalrymen drew their short weapons and charged forward to slash and kill.

Suddenly, countless banners appeared halfway up the mountain, and infantrymen all over the mountain shouted and charged forward, launching an attack on the cavalry that had reached the foot of the mountain.

The cavalry retreated suddenly, and the infantry formed ranks at the foot of the mountain, advancing slowly. They pursued the enemy for two or three miles, then the front ranks became the rear ranks, taking turns to cover each other, and retreated back to the foot of the mountain.

During this time, the light cavalry kept harassing them, but instead of shooting arrows, they made a show of charging.

Cao Xian watched with great interest. This martial arts demonstration was very realistic. For a group of peasants to train to this level was quite remarkable; they must have put in a tremendous amount of effort. Perhaps it was also related to the fact that they were the first generation of peasant soldiers, after all, they were veterans who had experienced war, so their performance was not surprising.

Of course, in border areas like Liaodong, the second and third generations of peasant soldiers were not much different, because they faced real threats and might actually have to go to war.

"Your Majesty is in the mountains to the north," Kou Fang continued. "Around April or May this year, some Goguryeo people came south to spy on us and even fought with the people of Xi'an Ping County over the river valley, so things were not peaceful. Therefore, Your Majesty personally came here and organized tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians to train in order to deter the thieves."

"How dare the Goguryeo people do this?" Cao Xian exclaimed in surprise.

Kou Fang glanced at the fleet in the distance and said, "If Liaodong had such a large navy, it could sail up the Yalu River and head straight for the country and Wandu. The bandits would surely be terrified and dare not provoke us."

"This fleet dares not venture too far into the Yalu River," Cao Xian said with a wry smile.

“That’s true.” Kou Fang smiled and said, “We still have to build our own ships.”

After saying that, he asked, "Does Cao Cao know how the area east of the Yalu River is divided?"

"I don't know," Cao Xian replied.

During the Jin Dynasty, the eastern border of Liaodong Commandery was not on the Yalu River, but in the lower reaches of the Cheongcheon River in the Korean Peninsula in later times, hence Kou Fang's question.

Cao Xian was unaware of what had happened and could only answer honestly.

Kou Fang seemed to be deep in thought.

The Prince of Yan said that the Emperor had mentioned to his face that the Liaodong and Lelang prefectures would be separated by the Yalu River, and he had agreed, but for some reason, nothing came of it, and the court never issued an edict. As a result, they did not know how to govern the tribes east of the Yalu River, and they were still left to govern themselves. In terms of geographical scope, Xi'anping County was the largest of the eleven counties of Liaodong Kingdom, accounting for almost a quarter of the territory. If the Prince of Yan had not established his capital at Xiuyan and brought some military households to Xi'anping County, it would still be a desolate place.

"Lord Cao can rest here for a few more days. After the training is over, there will surely be many birds and beasts to hunt, and then we can have a big feast," Kou Fang added.

"No, thank you." Cao Xian looked at the sky and said with a wry smile, "It's already mid-August. After September, the Liaohai Sea will be swept by fierce winds and towering waves, and then it won't be so pleasant."

After saying this, he cupped his hands in greeting to Kou Fang, returned to the fleet's anchorage, and instructed his attendants to purchase food and water to prepare for the voyage.

He then made the most of his remaining time, wandering around.

If you ignore the distant sounds of drums and horns, August in Xiping County is quite peaceful.

After the autumn harvest, the village was filled with tall stacks of hay, and the cattle and sheep were driven out to enjoy their last meal before the snow fell.

The men had all gone into the mountains to train, the women were harvesting fruits and vegetables in front of their doors, and the children were squatting on the ground, quietly chopping hay.

There was a schoolhouse at the entrance of the village, but it was empty.

The children seemed to have all gone home for the busy farming season, and the teacher lay under a pear tree, leisurely reading a book.

Further away, yellow clouds drift lazily, accompanied by the sound of crashing waves.

This is a tranquil and secluded place, and also a place isolated from the world.

Cao Xian suddenly remembered the current emperor's sons.

His lord, the King of Qi, has not yet taken up his fiefdom, but the fiefdom has already been decided and various preliminary preparations are underway.

He didn't know what the Third Prince, the Prince of Zhao, and his kingdom of Gaochang looked like; he had only vaguely heard people mention it a few times.

In terms of stereotypes, it is mostly about yellow sand, oases, earthen cities, camel bells, snow-capped mountains, and the Western Region treasures and countless gold and silver that caused a sensation in Luoyang.

He had seen the Liaodong Kingdom of the Fourth Prince and the Prince of Yan. His impression of it was of the sea, swamps, commercial ports, wheat fields, and herds of cattle and sheep. Now, he had added the sounds of clashing swords and galloping horses, the clashing of drums and horns, and perhaps endless deep mountains and forests.

These achievements were not made overnight, but rather through years of hard work and gradual development.

The positions of King Zhao and King Yan are both suitable, allowing them to fully utilize their talents. Gaochang Kingdom has the responsibility of pacifying the Western Regions, while Liaodong Kingdom has the important task of monitoring Goguryeo and the remnants of the Murong Xianbei. So what about King Qi? What are the two commanderies of Lelang and Daifang like?
Cao Xian hasn't been there yet, but he's very interested now.

On the morning of August 21, one ship after another departed from Anpingkou. After queuing up in the open sea, they headed south in sequence towards Liekou.

At noon on the 23rd, they could already see the outlines of the mountains and islands in the distance.

(End of this chapter)