Late Ming Dynasty: The Counterattack Begins with Sea Pirates

The year 1637 began on a Thursday, and it was destined to be a crazy one.

That year, the Ming Dynasty increased its military expenditure by 2.8 million taels of silver to suppress bandits.

That year, the Red Tea Demon clashed with the Ming Dynasty in Guangzhou.

That year, the filial son performed the ritual of three kowtows and nine prostrations to the Ming Dynasty's mortal enemy.

The entire Ming Dynasty was already on the verge of collapse.

……

In June of the same year.

A remote coastline in Guangdong.

A group of smugglers were making a deal with the red-haired people under the cover of night.

The smuggling ringleader, Chi Honghai, anxiously emphasized the quality of his goods; his flushed face was clearly visible even in the darkness.

"These fine porcelains were brought from Jingdezhen at great personal risk, my friend. Jingdezhen, the imperial kiln! The imperial kiln, you understand!"

The Dutchman held the blue-and-white porcelain above his head, examining it carefully by the moonlight.

After confirming that it was a fine piece of porcelain, he nodded in satisfaction.

Just as the transaction was about to take place, a sharp sound pierced the night sky.

"call out--!"

An arrow struck the Dutchman squarely in the forehead.

Then, with a loud "bang," the blue and white porcelain in his hand shattered the tranquil atmosphere.

"Capture Chi Honghai alive! Bring him to the government office!"

Not far away, a group of people emerged from the bushes, carrying the banners of Ming Dynasty officials.

The group of people on the shore were caught off guard by the sudden situation and hurriedly ran towards the small boats moored on the shore.

Chi Honghai, the head of the smuggling gang, was no exception.

He quickly recognized the person by the voice—an official from Xin'an County.

He and the magistrate of Xin'an County were like brothers, but he never expected that the magistrate would stab him in the back.

Chi Hong ran along the beach, cursing as he went.

"Damn it, these bastards! Not only have they taken so many good things from me, but now they want to devour me whole to make their own fortunes!"

It's truly impossible to cooperate with the government; they'll fatten you up completely before killing you.

Despite the complaints, I had no choice but to flee.

Amidst the whistling of arrows, Chi Honghai stumbled onto the small boat and headed out to sea.

This also means that the remaining goods on the shore were used to support the government troops.

Looking at the group of fire lamps, Chi Honghai gripped the edge of the boat and punched it.

Damn it.

That's all my money, my money!

But good fortune never comes in pairs, and misfortunes never come singly.

Shortly after Chi Honghai and his group sailed away from the coast, they encountered a storm.

The sudden surge of waves tonight seemed to be aimed at him as well, overturning the entire group, including the small boat, and leaving them scattered and broken at sea.

Chi Honghai struggled desperately, but crashed into a reef and immediately lost consciousness.

……

Inside a cave not far from the coastline.

Water droplets dripping from the stalactites awakened the consciousness of the person lying on the ground.

At the same time, a voice brought him to complete clarity.

"Master, master!"

Chi Honghai slowly opened his eyes, momentarily stunned.

Where am I? Didn't I go swimming at the swimming pool...?

"Master, you're finally awake! We've all been so worried these past two days."

What master?

Chi Honghai stood up, holding his head in his hand. He glanced around at the surroundings and gasped when he saw the attire of the three people in front of him.

Did I drink too much water while swimming and drown my brain?

As it turns out, his current situation is even more mysterious than someone who's lost their mind.

"I've traveled through time..."

It seems I've traveled back in time to an extraordinary period—the late Ming Dynasty.

At that moment, a sea breeze blew in from outside the cave.

The chilly sea breeze and the worried expressions on everyone's faces made him realize that something seemed amiss.

He quickly confirmed his identity.

Chi Honghai is a smuggling businessman from Guangzhou.

Logically speaking, if you're involved in smuggling, you should be more careful.

But the original owner was so badly cheated by the government that he didn't even have his underwear left.

What's even more critical is that last night, the government's true aim wasn't the goods at all, but the people.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have first raided the original owner's house and then posted arrest warrants all over the city to apprehend him.

Now, I have become this unknown figure in the late Ming Dynasty, and I am in this era of great suffering. It is truly a case of misfortunes never coming singly.

But having inherited another's body and karma, he was currently helpless. He couldn't just give up right away; that would be no different from being dead. This life was even more painful than death.

But the current situation can be described as a dead end.

Now, the ship is wrecked, the goods are lost, all the money is gone, and there is nowhere to live.

Apart from this wretched life, I'm truly clean and pure.

With this thought in mind, he looked up at the three people in front of him.

"Given the situation, why aren't you running away? Why are you still following me?"

"Master, what are you saying? The brothers have followed you for so long, how could they do such a thing?"

The three people in front of me are all servants in the household.

Previously, he had been engaged in smuggling in cooperation with the government for several years without any major problems.

Last night's storm not only pulled me out of the sea, but also didn't take my head to the officials for a reward. That shows how loyal I am.

These servants are fine.

The issue is.

How can we survive?

Upon returning to the city, he was reported by concerned citizens and could not escape death.

Developing in the wilderness, with four mouths to feed including myself, I'm afraid we'll all be eating dirt in three days.

Think about it.

Right now, there is only one way to survive and even make a comeback.

"Be the same as the light"

People in the South China Sea, regardless of whether they are officials or civilians.

Most people who live off the sea have some kind of shady background.

As the saying goes, smugglers and pirates are all one family, and the original owner's smuggling route was completely cut off.

The only idea they could try was something they'd never considered before—becoming a pirate.

However, the three of them alone cannot accomplish this task.

We need people and boats.

People need to eat, and boats need to be purchased; both of these take time.

He needs a safe place where he can survive and grow.

Otherwise, before the person is found or the ship is built, their head will be on the ground first.

Now, the four of them are in the same boat, and if one of them falls, they all fall together.

Chi Honghai is the captain of this ship, and he will lead the three initial crew members on a new adventure.

Boss Chi stood up, patted his chest with both hands, and rubbed something, but did not take it out.

He then walked to the cave entrance, looked outwards, and, relying on his knowledge from before his transmigration and his now almost superb geographical understanding of the southeastern coast, blurted out.

"That island over there... it looks familiar. South of Guangzhou, there's an island with two outlets to the sea, mostly mountainous and hilly... isn't that Hong Kong?"

"Sir, what is this Hong Kong you're referring to?"

Chi Honghai realized that the term had not yet appeared, and waved his hand as he spoke.

"It's okay...it's okay..."

Then, he touched his chin.

The islands south of Xin'an County are basically unmanaged, with only a few fishing villages. If you can establish a foothold there, there might still be a chance for everything.

In order to suppress bandits and thieves, the Ming Dynasty further levied grain and military supplies throughout the country. Not to mention the "disaster areas", even people in places like Nanguang were already suffering.

Adding to the grievances are the actions of a few local "powerful figures," which only exacerbates the discontent.

The vast majority of ordinary people had to face this fate of being robbed, and after several such incidents, no one in their family had a decent pot.

It seems calm now, but everyone is just angry but dare not speak out, daring to criticize but not to take action.

But those who dared to do it were almost all wiped out and became obedient.

Since that's the case, I, Chi Honghai, am that spark. Once it falls onto these thousands of "haystacks," it will ignite a raging fire.

Once on the island, we will make it our base.

Once we have manpower, food, money, and cannons, not only Xin'an County, but even Guangzhou Prefecture will have to show me some respect.

"Shen Er, take what you can and let's go to the island across the way. Maybe that's where we started."

"Okay."

Shen Er was also surprised that he agreed so readily.

Just then, as dawn broke in the east, a few rays of sunlight pierced through the clouds and slanted down onto the old man at the cave entrance.

He was yawning.

But he seems to be,

It's also a little different.