Red Mansion: Seizing Jiangdong, starting with pirates

Chapter 305, Three Warships

Beijing.

Before the news of Handan's victory could reach them, several other pieces of bad news arrived first.

The biggest piece of news is that Chu Yuqi of Liaodong has responded to Tian Tianrui's uprising.

Not long ago, Chu Yuqi sent troops to control Shanhaiguan, which was originally guarded by his old subordinates, so he easily occupied it. Then he issued a proclamation to the world to punish the traitor Fang Yong, and took the title of Grand Marshal of Liaodong, completely breaking off relations with Fang Yong.

However, Chu Yuqi did not go any further, probably because he was still wary of Fang Yong's strength. So he only controlled the Shanhaiguan area and then stopped expanding, watching from afar to see the outcome of the battle between Tian Tianrui and Fang Yong.

It is estimated that Chu Yuqi was unaware that Tian Tianrui's uprising lasted only a little over a month before it ended in failure.

Fang Yong ordered Niu Jin to be in charge of monitoring Chu Yuqi's movements and to be on high alert.

In addition to Chu Yuqi, Liu Xiang, the governor of Sichuan, and the Mu clan of Yunnan and the An clan of Guizhou jointly sent a memorial requesting the Longqing Emperor to confer upon them the titles of King of Shu, King of Nanzhong, and King of Qianyang.

They claimed to be requesting Emperor Longqing, but in reality, they were forcing Fang Yong to bestow upon them the title of king.

Among them, Liu Xiang is a capable person.

He was originally from the capital. During the final years of the reign of the retired emperor, that is, the last few years of the Longqing Emperor's puppet rule, he was sent to Sichuan as governor.

After taking office, he extensively repaired water conservancy projects and leveled official roads, achieving a series of remarkable political achievements. What was even more remarkable was that he gained the support of the local prominent families, the Fei, Li, and Chen clans.

He also had a wide circle of friends in the court, and even after Zhang Tingzheng fell from power, it did not affect his status.

After Fang Yong arrived in Beijing, he knew this man posed a great threat, so he had already taken control of his wife, children, and elderly parents in the capital. However, he did not expect that even so, the man still...

All I can say is that Sichuan is just too tempting.

So much so that he could disregard even his wife, children, and elderly parents.

As for Yunnan and Guizhou, they are not very important; they are basically just an extra.

Fang Yong didn't mean any regional discrimination; he was just stating the facts. In the current era, there's really nothing to say about these two places.

Since ancient times, these two areas have been famously contested by military strategists.

Several previous dynasties conquered these two regions, but not only did they fail to generate tax revenue, they also had to spend money to govern them.

If it weren't for the need to control the territory, Fang Yong wouldn't even bother with these two places.

I don't care if these two chieftains want to be made kings; nobody will take them seriously. Once I'm free, I'll lead a large army over and show them how times have changed. I'll burn their villages to the ground.

In addition to these, there is another piece of news.

The Prince of Nan'an sent word that Siam had dispatched a fleet to harass the borders of the West Bay and North Bay, posing as pirates to plunder merchant ships traveling between Da Xi and Siam. He inquired whether Fang Yong should wage war against them.

Siam, a small country in the South China Sea.

In the past, Dae Hee could easily destroy it.

Now they have the audacity to come and provoke us.

Fang Yong suspected there was something wrong with this.

In addition, in the original work, he remembered that the Prince of Nan'an suffered a great defeat at the border, which led to Tan Chun's marriage to a distant land for political reasons.

In other words, it is very likely that this was the time when the Prince of Nan'an suffered a major defeat in the war against Siam...

If possible, Fang Yong wanted to prevent this crushing defeat.

In fact, purely from a self-interested perspective, the Prince of Nan'an's defeat was more in line with his own interests.

Because the Prince of Nan'an was stationed on the border, he was always an unstable factor. If he suffered a major defeat, he could take the opportunity to seize his military power.

But... those soldiers under the command of the Prince of Nan'an.

If Fang Yong didn't know, he wouldn't care.

But now that it can be avoided, let them die needlessly...

Fang Yong was unwilling to do so.

Moreover, the fact that the Prince of Nan'an specifically came to consult him was already a sign of goodwill towards him.

"Someone, go and fetch Mr. Willie!"

Count Sweet returned to the British Empire after his wedding, and it is currently Willy and others who remain in Da Xi to hand over the reins to Fang Yong.

Willie arrived quickly.

Fang Yong got straight to the point.

“Mr. Willy, I would like to purchase three of your Nemesis battleships.” “Oh, Your Majesty, these are not for sale. We can build similar warships for you, such as the Smith steamship, the Arken…”

"I'll offer five million pounds per ship!"

Where would you like to dock your warship?

At that moment, the light in Willy's eyes shone brighter than the sun.

Five million pounds per ship, three ships, that's fifteen million pounds! (approximately 300 million taels of silver)
Fifteen million pounds, what does that mean?
In the British Empire, an average worker's annual income was around twenty to thirty pounds.
A house in London can cost anywhere from tens to hundreds of pounds.

A cow is worth only a few pounds, so 15 million pounds could buy almost 5 million cows!
Yes, the Nemesis battleship is the most advanced technological achievement of the British Empire.

But that's fifteen million pounds.

Yes, the Nemesis represents a national secret!
But that's fifteen million pounds.

Yes, he knew that the technology of the Nemesis was confidential!
But that's fifteen million pounds.

Willie didn't know the cost of the Nemesis, but excluding research and development costs, the total cost of manufacturing all three ships would definitely not exceed a few hundred thousand pounds.

Fifteen million pounds, then his profit is...

Oh, damn it, he's going to be hanged, and not just once!
Those lawmakers might disagree?

Who cares about their opinions?

That's fifteen million pounds!

Willie agreed without hesitation.

Fang Yong told Wei Li to hurry up.

Willie assured him, "Your Majesty, rest assured, your warships will arrive at the same time as the lathes being transported to you!"

It definitely wouldn't be that fast under normal circumstances!
But, as I said before, that's fifteen million pounds!

Even an emotionless steam engine would be moved by this.

After Wei Li left, Fang Yong replied to the Prince of Nan'an.

"Withdraw merchant ships, prohibit them from going to sea, and deploy defenses along the coast."

After finishing his business, Fang Yong went outside.

I went to look for Daiyu, but couldn't find her.

The palace maid informed the princess and her concubines that they were all staying at Jiangxue Pavilion to escape the summer heat.

Fang Yong then went to Jiangxue Pavilion.

Upon arriving at Jiangxue Pavilion, they found a somewhat unfamiliar girl sitting quietly in the pavilion of the covered walkway.

Looking closely, it seemed familiar... to Yingchun. That's right, it was her.

Fang Yong walked over.

He was skilled in martial arts and walked silently. Yingchun was focused on the chessboard in front of her and did not notice his arrival.

However, a tall maidservant next to Yingchun noticed Fang Yong and was about to call out to him when Fang Yong glared at her, exuding an imposing aura. The maidservant immediately fell silent.

Fang Yong sat next to Yingchun, who was in a daze and hadn't noticed anything. She was resting her chin on her hand, staring intently at the chessboard in front of her.

Fang Yong saw her fair and tender skin, as delicate and smooth as a lychee. Because of the hot weather, Yingchun was wearing very thin silk clothes, which were slightly transparent, and he could vaguely see her fair and smooth skin under the clothes, as well as the bulging bellyband underneath...

Just then, Baochai returned from the opposite side.

It turned out that she was playing chess with Yingchun, and had left for some reason, only to return now.

Baochai was slightly surprised to see Fang Yong.

Fang Yong and Baochai exchanged glances, and Fang Yong winked at her.

Baochai covered her face with her fan, smiled with pursed lips, stopped Ying'er who was about to speak, and sat down in front of Yingchun.

"Sister Yingchun, I'm back, please step down!"

Yingchun said "okay" in a gentle voice, then looked at the chessboard, reached into the chess box with her right hand to pick up a chess piece, and was about to place it when she suddenly felt that she had seen something in the corner of her eye when she picked up the piece.

Seemingly incredulous, he turned to look...

(End of this chapter)