Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 265: Rewards galore! The local chieftain's dream [Please subscribe]

About ten days later, the Beiyang First Long-distance Exploration Fleet arrived in the capital, and Crown Prince Zhu Biao led some civil and military officials to greet them at the military dock near Yifeng Gate.

Fleet Commander Chen Zhongming, Tongzhi Zhang Bingyi, Tongzhi Li Mingqi, and Military Supervisor Wang Shun were all deeply moved, and the officers and soldiers who came on board also felt that the adventure of the long voyage over the past two years was worth it!

So, when Chen Zhongming and the others disembarked from the ship and arrived at the dock not far from Zhu Biao, they all clasped their fists and bowed in salute, excitedly shouting in unison: "We pay our respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

Zhu Biao also knew how dangerous this voyage to America was, so he immediately stepped forward to help Chen Zhongming up, saying with a gentle smile, "Soldiers, please stand up quickly - you are all heroes of our Ming Dynasty!"

It was not the first time that Chen Zhongming met Zhu Biao, but when he heard these words of affirmation, his eyes still reddened.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something humble, but when he thought of the dangers he had experienced during the voyage over the past two years and the soldiers who had sacrificed their lives, he could say nothing.

Zhu Biao patted his arm, spoke a few words to Zhang Bingyi, Li Mingqi and others, and then led more than 2,000 soldiers of the exploration fleet (some of whom stayed in America) into the city.

He planned to first go to the temporary camp assigned to the fleet, and then lead Chen Zhongming and several other senior fleet generals to the palace to meet the emperor.

It was also at this time that Zhu Biao noticed that there were four strange men wearing animal skins in the team.

He took a few looks at him, then asked with a smile, "Is this the American chieftain who admired the Ming Dynasty that Commander Chen mentioned in his report?"

Chen Zhongming said, "Your Highness, that's right."

"Then I will bring them to the palace to see the emperor later."

Chen Zhongming had discussed this matter with Zhang Bingyi and others on the way, and now he said, "Your Highness, the prince, after all, the local chieftain is not familiar with the etiquette of the Ming Dynasty. I am afraid that rashly meeting the emperor would offend His Majesty."

Zhu Biao thought about it and agreed.

Although these people have been resting in Dengzhou for a few days, they must have been instructed to take many baths and would not carry any diseases.

Even when he came to Ming Dynasty by ship, he had learned some Chinese, but he certainly had not learned the etiquette of meeting the emperor, so someone had to be sent to teach him.

He nodded and said, "Alright, I'll have the Ministry of Rites send someone to teach them the etiquette of audience with the emperor."

Afterwards, Zhu Biao took Chen Zhongming and others to the temporary camp. After Chen Zhongming and others had bathed and changed their clothes, he took them into the palace to meet the emperor.
After Chen Zhongming and other high-ranking officers of the fleet went to the palace to report, Zhu Yuanzhang issued an edict the next day to reward the officers and soldiers of the First Long-distance Exploration Fleet.

Chen Zhongming was directly awarded the title of Earl of Tanhai and was given the title of Vice Governor of the Naval Governor's Office, which was a promotion of three levels!

Zhang Bingyi was also promoted three levels to the position of Assistant Governor of the Naval Governor's Office!
Li Mingqi and several other senior officers of the fleet were mostly promoted two levels; most of the middle and low-level officers were promoted one level, but there were also a few who performed outstandingly and made great contributions, who were promoted two or three levels, or even four levels in a row!
As for the military inspector Wang Shun, he was a eunuch in the palace, so naturally he also received rewards.

In addition, all officers and soldiers of the First Expeditionary Exploration Fleet will receive three more years of salary! Those who perform well and make great contributions will receive additional rewards!
For fleet officers and soldiers who died of illness or in battle overseas, ten times the pension will be given!

The gold, silver, banknotes, cloth, etc. awarded by Zhu Yuanzhang were delivered to the temporary camp of the exploration fleet on the day the imperial edict was issued, and the officials were ordered to send people to distribute the pensions immediately.

At the same time, Zhu Yuanzhang also allowed the exploratory fleet to take a ten-day holiday, allowing them to rest, play and relax in the capital, and then board the ship back to the Beiyang Navy Camp in Dengzhou after the holiday.

On that day, the entire temporary camp of the exploration fleet was filled with cheers, and the soldiers were all extremely excited!

Chief Bai Xiong of the White Bear tribe and three other chiefs were placed in a separate small camp, each with a house.

At this moment, he heard the laughter of the Ming soldiers in the camp outside, looked at the delicious food and wine in front of him, and recalled the experiences of the past year or so. He still had a sense of unreality as if he was dreaming.

When the White Bear tribe was attacked by the Apache tribe, he was shot by an arrow and survived immediately, but according to his experience, he would most likely die from the pain if he only relied on the herbs provided by the young shaman of the tribe.

As a result, after being treated by a doctor from the Ming Dynasty, he recovered in just over a month and had no aftereffects.

Afterwards, he took the remaining people of the tribe to live with the Ming Dynasty soldiers. In addition to hunting as before, they also learned many skills such as fishing, growing wheat and vegetables.

The lives of the tribesmen are much better now than before.

Not only that, after the Ming soldiers found out the situation of the Apache tribe, they went to attack the Apache tribe and captured more than 200 people.

The young women of the Apache tribe became women of some Ming soldiers, while others became forced laborers for the Ming people and were forced to work.

After this incident, Bai Xiong and his people became even more awed by the Ming Dynasty. So after discussing with the shaman, he led the Bai Xiong tribe to submit to the Ming Dynasty and allowed the women of the Bai Xiong tribe who had no men to marry Ming soldiers.

Afterwards, the people of the White Bear Tribe changed their names according to the customs of the Ming Dynasty. For example, he is now called Xiong Bai.

Originally, Xiong Bai thought that what he saw in that seaside village were most of the elite warriors of the Ming Dynasty (tribe).

It was not until the following year, when huge ships arrived at the seaside and unloaded countless similar elite warriors, that he realized that the warriors in the village were only a tiny part of the countless warriors of the Ming Dynasty.

Then the leader of these Ming warriors told him that the Ming Dynasty was on the other side of the sea, and their emperor (chief?) ruled over tens of millions of people.

Xiong Bai didn't know what tens of millions meant, but he roughly understood that it was probably more than the number of trees in their tribe's previous hunting grounds.

At the same time, he also met three other tribal chiefs who also surrendered to the Ming Dynasty.

These three chiefs were all going to the Ming Dynasty to meet the emperor, and the leader who commanded many elite warriors wanted him to go as well.

Xiong Bai is old and his curiosity is far less than that of young people. He is afraid of the endless ocean and even more afraid of being separated from his tribe and going to the unfamiliar Ming Dynasty.

But he didn't dare to refuse, so he agreed to it. They sailed on the sea for a month or two, experiencing many terrible storms. Fortunately, the Ming people's huge ship was tall and strong enough to withstand those storms.

They arrived at several large islands one after another, where there were villages built by the Ming people. The smallest ones were home to a few hundred people, while the largest ones were home to several thousand people.

Xiong Bai and the other three chiefs thought that the place was the Ming Dynasty, but Zhang Bingyi (a very smart Ming citizen) told them that this was just the overseas territory of the Ming Dynasty and a very small part of the vast territory of the Ming Dynasty.

After a few days, they arrived at a city called Dengzhou.

Xiong Bai had heard Zhang Cheng, Zhang Bingyi and other Ming people mention the city before, but this was the first time he saw it.

So, he and three other chiefs stood in front of Dengzhou City, looking up at the huge city that was crawling on the seashore like a giant beast. They were stunned and even dared not to go in.

After they were surrounded by Ming soldiers and brought into the city, the countless people, rows of houses, all kinds of strange objects, and delicious food with wafting aromas made them feel as if they were in a dream.

Before Xiong Bai could get rid of this dreamy feeling, they boarded the ship again, reportedly heading to the capital of the Ming Dynasty.

Xiong Bai didn't understand what the capital meant, he only knew that it was where the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was.

They then sailed on the sea for a few days, entered a large river, went upstream, and finally arrived at the capital of the Ming Dynasty.

When he saw the capital city, Xiong Bai was shocked, his mind went blank and he lost the ability to think.

Even after a day, even now, with the delicious food in front of him, he still hadn't fully recovered. He was still a little dazed and confused.

Zhang Cheng brought over a pot of wine and couldn't help but feel a little worried when he saw Xiong Bai like this.

Because he discovered American crops such as blueberries and beans, and made great contributions in conquering the White Bear tribe and defeating the Apache tribe, he became one of the very few lucky people who was promoted four levels in a row when he returned to China.

From a small flag, he jumped to become a deputy captain!
As for the rewards and salaries received, their value added together reached several thousand strings of cash!

Adding in some of the treasures he acquired in North America, his net worth is now over ten thousand!
Zhang Cheng gained all his wealth from America, so he naturally attached great importance to Xiong Bai, who was brought from America to Ming Dynasty. In fact, after more than a year of getting along with each other, he and Xiong Bai had become good friends.

"Old Bear, are you okay?" Zhang Cheng patted Xiong Bai's shoulder and asked.

"Oh, nothing." Xiong Bai focused a little more and said with a complicated expression, "I was just too... shocked."

Xiong Baihan's speaking skills were not very good, and he was unable to describe his feelings for a moment.

Zhang Cheng laughed and said, "Shocked, huh? Actually, you haven't seen anything more shocking in our Ming Dynasty yet. When we crossed the river before, I didn't want you to be frightened, so I kept you in the cabin and didn't see the Immortal Bridge."

"After you meet the emperor, I'll take you out of the city to see the immortal bridge and the railway!"

"Xianqiao? Railway?" Xiong Bai said he couldn't understand these two words at all.

Zhang Chengdao said, "You'll understand when you see it—By the way, I'm here to remind you that tomorrow an official from the Ministry of Rites will come to teach you the etiquette for meeting the emperor. You must learn it well."

"If you perform well when you meet His Majesty, you will definitely receive a lot of rewards. Even if you don't perform well, His Majesty will not blame you, so there is no need to be nervous."

Xiong Bai understood most of what was said and nodded.

Zhang Cheng poured Xiong Bai some wine and said with a smile, "Come, let's have a drink. When you're drunk you won't think too much."

Xiong Bai likes wine very much, so he diverted his attention for a moment and drank wine with Zhang Cheng while enjoying the delicious food...
Three days later.

Fengtian Temple.

Liu Kuan was invited to "watch" the American chiefs' audience with Zhu Yuanzhang together with Li Shanchang, Xu Da, and Tang He, two important officials.

Although Liu Kuan came from later times, he had never seen authentic and living Indians, so he was very happy to participate in this special court meeting.

After Zhu Yuanzhang and his ministers took their seats, four American chiefs entered the hall at the loud shouts of the eunuchs.

Perhaps in order to highlight their status as local chiefs, the hairstyles and clothing of the four people did not change much. Some had fluffy hair, while others had pigtails, and they all wore animal skins.

The four of them knelt down and bowed to Zhu Yuanzhang according to the etiquette they had learned hard in the past three days, kowtowed and shouted in unison.

"Greetings to our Emperor, long live His Majesty!"

In Zhu Yuanzhang's view, these four American chiefs seemed to be no different from some chiefs in the southwest and Southeast Asia.

But thinking that they came from the American continent thousands of miles away, Zhu Yuanzhang felt happy and immediately shouted loudly: "Stand up!"

"Long live thanks!"

The four local chiefs stood up, all looking nervous.

　Second update.

　　Good night~
　　
　　
　
(End of this chapter)