Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 241 The Eastern Fleet 1
In the summer of 10 AD, a caravan from South America met up with a transport fleet in Africa and the Arabian Sea.

A large combined fleet carrying treasures from South America and Africa sailed across the Indian Ocean and landed in Lin-yi County, Champa District, Annam Province, in the Indochina Peninsula.

Upon learning that King Wu was vacationing in Qiongzhou Port, a thousand miles away, the group thought they were being welcomed and wept with joy. They didn't even rest, but immediately rushed to Qiongzhou after replenishing their fresh water and food.

After nearly two years of arduous work, the Japanese caravan finally completed its circumnavigation mission just before Beijiwu was about to return.

They weren't doing it for fame or because they particularly loved sailing.

It was merely King Wu's order.

King Wu gave the order to do this, and everyone did it.

A gentleman severs ties without uttering a harsh word.

People can oppose virtuous people and question or slander the achievements and decisions of saints.

Arctic Martial is not a saint.

Whether they were farmers, family members, or outsiders, everyone understood King Wu's decision and supported him from the bottom of their hearts.

Shandong Agricultural University's grand stage—come if you miss.

The opposition is doomed.

Those who offended Arctic Martial Arts were simply killed by him, rather than treated viciously by Arctic Martial Arts.

Li Tangqing didn't offend Beijiwu; Beijiwu only thought he was stupid and was even more determined to kill the old woman Li who had never shown her face.

Whether it's through words or by directly causing trouble, Beijiwu has never been magnanimous enough to forgive others.

Many orders were simply assigned arbitrarily by the Arctic Army, and once the orders were given, they were largely ignored.

Sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn have all been obtained, and the fleets that returned first have already collected their rewards. At this point, Arctic Martial has nothing to do.

Arctic Martial did not meet with these people directly; he only briefly reviewed some summary reports.

In autumn, when the Japanese fleet, laden with various spoils of war from the East and West, arrived at the port of Linhai, Beijiwu did not greet them, and the others did not think it was a big deal.

A long journey of seven months a year leaves many people physically and mentally exhausted.

However, those who died in battle or from illness were soon given compensation, and the remaining survivors were also rewarded. They were incorporated into the Shan Nong people's ocean-going fleet as advisors and assigned to work in the shipyard.

The fleet captain was promoted from an ordinary merchant to a centurion, rewarded with a thousand taels of silver, and granted a maritime trade license (for 20 years).

The other merchants all received ten-year maritime trade licenses.

Everyone was very satisfied with the reward!
History records little about the captain, and the only record of the fleet is that many people died and they encountered various troubles. Fortunately, they believed that the ancestors of the Shan Nong people would protect them. Thinking of King Wu's instructions, they were full of energy and feared nothing!

Whether it was the war record of conquering Eurasia, the first round-the-world voyage of the Japanese caravan, or the spoils brought back from overseas, none of them caused much of a stir in this magnificent era.

***
They were not summoned by King Wu, and were not even allowed to dock at the port of Linhai.

However, the tens of thousands of people in the entire fleet did not see anything wrong with it.

It's to be expected that you won't be able to see the emperor.

Actually, I don't really want to see him...

Most people, like Liu Jingshun, needed an emperor and were loyal to him, but they didn't like to see the emperor.

The dilapidated ocean-going fleet, like a mountain, slowly approached Anju Port.

The wind billowed the sails, and the strong sea breeze made them rustle loudly.

The shore was crowded with people, and a large number of workers were standing in position, waiting to unload the goods.

The merchant ships carried not only mountain farmers and Han Chinese, but also Arabs and Europeans and Africans.

Violet, from Scotland, stood on the ship, looking out at the bustling port.

Violet means violet or purple violet, and can also be pronounced Violet.

However, after the Anglo-Saxons were conquered by the barbarians, she gave herself a new name, Wei Lan.

As a noblewoman, Wei Lan was taken back to the Shan Nong Kingdom as spoils of war.

Because she was a spoil of war for King Wu, she had plenty to eat and drink along the way and lived in a spacious sixteen-person room with the other women.

These women are not allowed to move around freely on the ship, but they are allowed to go outside to use the toilet, participate in group activities with other women, read and study, and go out for an hour in the morning and afternoon.

They were brought here by Arabs and Europeans. After they joined the Japanese fleet, the rooms became crowded with young girls, children, and pregnant women.

Using much of the knowledge she had gained from the monastery and newspapers, Wei Lan became the head of the women who managed them.

Now, Wei Lan and a group of women looked at the bustling crowd at the port with shock in their eyes.

It looks like there are over 100,000 people crowded around the port, as if a war is about to break out!
A mere thousand mountain peasants could destroy the powerful Frankish Kingdom next to Great Britain, and here there are hundreds of thousands!
Fortunately, Wei Lan discovered that these were just workers, mainly responsible for moving cargo on the ship, as obedient and compliant as ants carrying things.

As we disembarked, a group of white, black, and brown girls lined up to get off the ship, all dressed in beautiful clothes.

Wei Lan noticed that many of the people working nearby were not from the mountain farms. The young people with yellow hair glanced over, then quickly bent down, picked up their boxes and sacks, and continued walking.

The same blond hair and blue eyes, the same status as slaves.

Wei Lan and the noble ladies from various countries behind her were dressed in beautiful long dresses, white stockings, and bright high heels, and were carrying umbrellas for sun protection.

Those male slaves of the same race, however, were shirtless and reduced to hard labor at the docks.

Wei Lan did not stop. Following the mountain farmer's directions, she held up her umbrella and continued forward like an elegant noblewoman.

Some people will fall behind, some will never get up again, and some will be sold into brothels or even worse places.

But as a victor, Wei Lan, like many noblewomen, was born into the power of the victors, becoming their slave, thanks to her naturally endowed beauty and figure. She became the female slave of the emperor of the most powerful empire in the world, the most powerful man.

There are thousands of locks, but only one golden key.

Arctic Martial Arts Academy simply couldn't open all those locks, nor could it accommodate all those houses.

Women can be given away, and houses can naturally be opened up as well.

After leaving Qiongzhou Island, Beijiwu chose to open these places to the public in order to reduce the investment and maintenance costs, as well as to reduce the number of staff needed to maintain and guard each palace.

After he had his fun, he would also let his subordinates have their fun, and Arctic Wu fulfilled his previous promise.

[Each production team is permitted to travel by train to Qiongzhou Island for a vacation every autumn. Tickets are free, with a limit of 4 people per household. The trip must last 5 days (excluding travel time). Prices on the island are the same as in the city. Room rental is 100 wen per day. Unauthorized entry to the Summer Palace is strictly prohibited; violators will be severely punished!]

[This will be temporarily conducted by the Northern Public Household, and may be opened to hereditary lords and free men depending on the circumstances. Unauthorized entry will be considered a grave disrespect!]

The cleaning of the summer palace was handled by the governor of Qiongzhou Island and more than twenty palace maids, while the tourism revenue was handed over to the local management to pay their wages.

Tourism revenue is used to maintain the operation of the Summer Palace, and any surplus funds are used for development.

Regardless, Beijiwu did allow others to enjoy the beach after returning from his own vacation and swimming, without hogging the good spots and preventing others from getting close.

The order of strength and weakness was clear. After the Embroidered Uniform Guard discovered a pregnant woman among the spoils of war, they quickly launched an investigation into those who had broken the rules.

There is no room for leniency in this capital offense; whoever dares to cover it up will die along with the criminal.

Since these were spoils of war presented to King Wu, even touching them was a capital offense.

Just like training a dog, you can't eat without permission or being told it can eat. Even if it's placed on the ground or right in front of you, you can't approach it or show any desire to eat it. You have to turn your head away to avoid it.

Even a dog knows this; if a person can't control their own belt, then they shouldn't try to control it.

***
A group of merchants and sailors knelt on the ground in fear, listening to the screams of their comrades who had survived the perilous voyage together.

One by one, the heads of the good guys were chopped off by the uniformed men and fell to the ground.

The sound of a head hitting the ground terrified thousands of people, yet none dared to rise and resist.

"What crime have these people committed? How dare they steal the Emperor's playthings! Those are meant for the Emperor, how dare you lowly commoners touch them?"

"Cut off their hands first! Then castrate them, then leave them to dry for an hour before killing them!"

"This time, His Majesty, considering your contributions, will spare your families. These people will be treated as if they died at sea, and will receive compensation, without implicating their wives and children!"

"If there's a next time! I'll cut you into a thousand pieces!! My whole family will die with you!"

Jinyiwei guard Hua Mingzhe has killed many people and said many harsh words; he is already used to these things.

You can't refuse to do it; if you want to make a living here, you have to follow the rules.

After saying what he should have said, Hua Mingzhe said something he shouldn't have.

“You are from the South. This should have been your chance to redeem the South from its sins, bring glory to your ancestors, and serve the Emperor, but you don’t know your place!”

"If you don't stop someone from making a mistake when they're about to do it, how will you feel after they make that mistake?!"

"Take a good look around this Lingnan region where criminals were originally exiled, then go back to your prosperous Jiangnan region and see your families. See what happens when you offend the Emperor, and what a good life you have after gaining his favor!"

More than 10,000 crew members, merchants, and explorers knelt for over an hour before they could leave. Despite having endured more than a year of hardship and made great contributions, they all returned home dejected and humiliated.

No one felt that going around the world once was a great achievement, nor did they feel particularly excited.

No one, from top to bottom, cared about this honor.

The businessmen felt as if they were serving a service.

The various spoils of war were unloaded and transported back to Luoyang. Some merchants continued to rest in Anzhou, while others couldn't wait to return to their hometowns in Jiangnan.

Beijiwu also returned to Luoyang with a group of people. The next two months will be typhoon season. A large group of people here will certainly not be blown away, but it will put too much pressure on local logistics.

The other production teams can only come to visit the sea after autumn.

It's not that I care about their lives.

Most of the work of the Shan Nong Guo production team was done before autumn. Only after completing the annual task targets could they have legal free time to submit various applications.

The release of the autumn harvest log marks the end of the busy farming season and is also the legal date for post-harvest executions and reckoning.

Arctic warriors don't need to wait until autumn to kill; the rest of the population does.

This is a legal and compliant matter. Beiji Wu never needs to follow the law when he kills people. He became emperor by his own merit, not by any power or relatives.

The mountain farmers became the eldest brother after conquering all the other ethnic groups, and then remained hidden among them.

Hu people, Han people, black people, even Koreans and Japanese people are all the same. As long as they speak the Shan Nong language and identify as Shan Nong people, they are considered Shan Nong people after being certified.

If you want to use nationalism to divide the Shan Nong Kingdom, you'll first fail to find a point of attack.

The Han people wanted independence, and in the past, it was the Han people who were suppressed.

The Hu people wanted independence, and in the past, it was the Hu people who were suppressed.

Europeans sought independence, and in the past, those who were suppressed were the descendants of European nobles.

If you want to rebel, all your neighbors will become your enemies.

A strong, unified, and progressive regime that is the ancestor of all people.

When, decades or centuries later, everyone wants to boast about how awesome their ancestors were, or to claim ancestor status, they will inevitably mention the Shan Nong Kingdom.

(End of this chapter)