Griffin Commander in the Late Ming Dynasty

The sailors on the deck were now scattered in groups of two or three in various corners, keeping an eye on the situation on the river to prevent any ships from approaching. Without them knowing, an arm slowly climbed up the outer railing of the ship.

"Zhao Laosi, how is the situation over there?"

The patrolling guard asked about the situation of each department as usual, and when he saw a soldier standing crookedly, he became furious for a moment.

"Do you hear me talking to you? Zhao Laosi!"

After asking, there was no response from the other party. The inspector felt like he had made up his mind and immediately stepped forward to teach this lazy dog ​​a lesson.

puff!

With a sound of breaking wind, a dagger pierced directly into his throat. The blood-draining groove on the dagger made the blood gush out like a floodgate opened. The crooked body of the guard instantly went limp. A black shadow came up and covered his mouth, silencing his last sound.

"What's all the noise?"

Someone heard the noise here and came to check the situation. Suddenly, his nose twitched and a bloody smell hit him.

"Hmm? No! There is an enemy..."

Crack! A crisp sound choked his words in his throat. Slowly catching his fallen body, LTLX slowly breathed a sigh of relief: "It's been a long time since I carried out such a mission. I'm really a lot less rusty..."

"All units, report the situation"

"A group successfully infiltrated"

"Group Two has successfully infiltrated"

"Three groups successfully infiltrated"

"Very good, quickly eliminate the enemy's manpower, remember, leave the ship operators behind"

"receive"

After slowly letting out a sigh of relief, LTLX unfolded his two shields and began to run rapidly on the deck.

When they encountered the hatch to enter the ship, they simply opened a tear gas bomb and threw it down. When they saw a garrison soldier in front, they used a pendulum to knock the man out of the boat. The treasure ship was more than ten meters above the water surface. If it was hit by water from this height, even if nothing happened, it would be a disaster, not to mention that a soldier under the pendulum would have been beaten half to death.

The screams of the sailor falling from the sky alarmed the other soldiers. The sailors on the ship were very alert and quickly found the direction of the sound: "Who is it! Enemy attack!!"

"Be alert! Someone is approaching!"

On the next ship, some soldiers were attracted by the sound: "What's the noise on the ship ahead?"

"Of course, it means there is an enemy attack~"

"So there was an enemy attack. I thought there was an enemy attack. Huh? Who are you!!!"

With his double shields closed, LTLX rushed forward and directly broke through the cabin door. After entering, he found that the sailors in the cabin were already on high alert and had deployed their battle formations to prepare to meet the enemy.

"Ah, everyone is so enthusiastic. This is our first meeting. I brought a gift~"

Three nine-flash bombs and four tear gas canisters swirled and exploded in the crowd.

"Ah!!! My eyes!! I can't see!!"

"Cough, cough, cough, what's that smell!! I can't breathe!!"

I have to say that this unbalanced tactic is of high quality. It starts with throwing flashes and then blocks the smoke. The smoke is poisonous. The 9-flash combo is the best of the best. It packs nine flash ammunitions together. Once detonated, it will be a chain explosion of 9 flashes. Don't even mention turning your back to the defense. Even if you ascend, you will be hit by this flash!

To be able to receive a tear gas grenade afterward is the height of quality. The brightness of a flash bomb is extremely high. If you are not prepared to be hit by one head-on, a spot of light will appear in front of your eyes, causing more than two days or even permanent blindness. This is the time to scream loudly and take a deep breath. If you inhale it in one gulp, what a thing.

The effect of tear gas is not to make you cry loudly, but to make you cough uncontrollably, retching, vomiting until you feel weak all over and tears in your eyes. This tear gas is extremely effective in a closed environment like a cabin. In particular, these sailors can only light kerosene lamps in the cabin for lighting, and the environment itself is very dim. If this happens suddenly, it's like the Shanghai neighborhood committee selling supplies, which is really a shame.

Almost at the same time, several treasure ships were filled with smoke, accompanied by a large number of crying and cursing sounds lingering in the air, making people feel a kind of... joy of harvest.

"Haha, I activate field magic, sacrifice the two rooks and one phase in my graveyard, and activate Xyz Summon! Come out! Blue-Eyes White Dragon! And equip it with Zhuge Crossbow! Checkmate!"

Jiang Han was as happy as the silly son of a landlord.

There are still 4000 words in the evening. Good guy, I am tired.

Volume 223: Chapter Chapter : Maritime Trade Plan

"Are these the so-called ** treasure ships? They are really huge..."

Looking at the huge creature in front of him, even Wang Dang was amazed at its physique.

**The treasure ship was 44 zhang long and 18 zhang wide, and used more than 2,000 pieces of material. If converted to the current size using the Ming Dynasty ruler, it would be a 148-meter-long behemoth. The deck alone was as large as a football field.

There are a total of sixty-two such treasure ships in the entire ** team.

The treasure ship had eight floors and more than twenty gun muzzles, each of which was equipped with an eighteen-pound cannon. At that time, when everyone on the water was using six-pound bird cannons to fire at each other, it was truly a sniper attack. I was bullying others with a howitzer-level cannon.

Of course, seeing the size of the treasure ship, many people will have a question: How can such a big thing get through the Yangtze River? Ladies and gentlemen, don’t forget where the treasure ship was built? Nanjing Shipyard! So guess how it got from Nanjing to the sea?

Don’t underestimate the Yangtze River! It is the second largest river in the world! It takes you half an hour to cross the Yangtze River from one side to the other side even if you take a ferry! Not to mention a hundred meters, even a two hundred meter boat can easily cross it!

What's more, the ** treasure ship adopts a flat-bottomed boat structure instead of a pointed-bottomed boat with a deeper draft. It has a shallower draft and can catch more wind. Moreover, its power system adopts a rotating oar design, which rotates underwater for propulsion, much like a modern propeller. This type of oar has a small wading area and is very suitable for sailing in narrow harbors and crowded waters.

"Yes, it is indeed a great project that deserves admiration." Even Jiang Han, who has seen many big things, was amazed by this crystallization of human wisdom and technology from hundreds of years ago.

Before, the scale of this thing had already seemed large enough just from the images transmitted by the small plane. Now, standing next to the giant ship that is over a hundred meters long and thirteen stories high, the feeling is completely different. Just like what many people say about the giant beasts competing with each other, the five-meter crocodile and the nine-meter rock python, in the eyes of many people, they don't seem to be a big deal and are very common things. Only when you have actually faced a five-meter-long giant crocodile and looked at its head that is almost as long as your body, and the shock brought by the comparison of your own proportions, can you truly understand the huge size of the other party, rather than just a simple concept of numbers.

"Brother Wang, aren't you a local? Why do you look like you've never seen this thing before?"

Jiang Han was a little surprised. No, that can’t be possible. It’s okay if I haven’t seen it before, but how come you haven’t seen it before either? Is this reasonable?

"Um...Brother Jiang, you know that I just took office in Yangzhou, and I haven't even had time to pay this year's taxes when you rebelled. Naturally, I have never seen this treasure ship..."

Ah, this... "This wave, this wave is not coordinated well with the taxes, haha, hahaha, hahaha, brother Wang, you are broad-minded, so don't mind it. Let's take a look at the treasure ship. Oh, it's such a beautiful treasure ship. Oh, isn't this a prisoner? Let's take a look at the food that was transported here, family members."

Jiang Han turned his head and avoided Wang Dang's topic in a very stiff way.

Wang Dang turned his head and smiled. He had no way to deal with his good friend. To be honest, when Yangzhou City had just fallen, he had mixed feelings in his heart. On the one hand, he was angry about being betrayed by his friend, and on the other hand, he felt guilty. In addition, his country, the people, and all kinds of thoughts were in a tangled mess in his heart.

However, after taking on many practical affairs and starting to get close to the grassroots people like a good friend, formulating policies for these people and continuously implementing them, many of the confusions in his heart were left behind. It can also be said that he was escaping, but in short, now his mind is full of thoughts about how to bring welfare to the people.

I have to say that Jiang Han was lucky to meet such a simple official.

"However, with these treasure ships, it will be much easier to transport materials and food between the two sides of the strait."

Wang Dang was quite impressed with the carrying capacity of the treasure ships. Even though there were only three ships, the amount of food they took was enough to support the expenses of tens of thousands of troops for a week.

If this happens a few more times...even if it's a locust plague, the people of Yangzhou won't have to worry too much.

However, Wang Dang soon discovered that after he said this, his good friend looked at him with a strange look.

"What's wrong, Brother Jiang? Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something wrong with what I said?"

"Hey, Brother Wang, we have known each other for such a long time, but it seems that you still haven't gotten rid of the shackles of the times." Jiang Han began to sigh in a pretentious manner again.

"Brother Jiang, please stop mocking me. Just by looking at your expression, I know you have a different opinion. Why don't you tell me so that I, who is imprisoned by the times, can hear it?"

After spending many days together, Wang Dang has matured a lot. He is no longer the young man who used to be flustered when encountering problems and could only shout "Jiang Han, A Meng, use your invincible brain to think of a solution". He has also gradually become more confident and confident.

"This treasure ship was not built to transport goods on inland rivers. The transport ship only needs to be large enough. The treasure ship was originally designed to be an ocean-going ship. Their destination should be the sea, not the rivers. Even in this vast Yangtze River, which is as blue as the sky, it is still not big enough for the treasure ship."

"Brother Jiang, what you mean is..."

"Of course it's trade, trade! This world is huge, my brother. If you go out from the nearby sea, there are good things everywhere, such as rice, spices, rubber... The vast ocean is full of huge waves and storms. Only treasure ships can withstand the test of the ocean and transport enough goods for us. We need to have a bigger picture, my brother. Expand your vision and don't always stare at this small piece of land. Although Jiangnan is rich, the materials produced in one place are always limited. So we have to use trade to exchange our redundant things for what we want. Although the Ming Dynasty is a poor place, there are many places with stupid people and a lot of money."

"Then, if you want to trade, Brother Jiang must have a target in mind, right?"

"good"

Jiang Han nodded: "It will take some time to develop before, but now that we have the treasure ship, everything will be much easier to solve. At present, we cannot build a galleon, and the treasure ship is the best ship we can get at present. With it, my plan can be implemented in advance."

"plan?"

"Yes, with the current navigation technology of the Ming Dynasty, even with the treasure ships, we can only operate in the near seas, and the farthest we can go is Japan. The reason is that the maritime ban has been implemented for so many years, and we lack navigators with sufficient navigation experience. I only have four treasure ships, and I can't do random trial and error. Therefore, our only choice for ocean trade is to cooperate with those foreign barbarians. In the Ming Dynasty, we have a total of three groups of people who can have a say."

"Portugal, Britain, and the Netherlands." Jiang Han slowly stretched out three fingers.

"Cooperation with these three countries has its pros and cons. Portugal is the most stable, but their maritime power is gradually declining, and the share of shipping routes they control is gradually shrinking. It is a safe choice."

"The second is the Dutch East India Company, whose full name is Vereenig de Oostindische Compagnie. Their logo is a light blue flag with the four letters AVOC on it. The A at the top is the abbreviation of their capital, Amsterdam. They are experienced and powerful at sea. They control the golden route from the Indian Ocean to Europe. Cooperating with them is the best choice."

"Oh, and there are Daiying. The British are ambitious and want to overtake others. I predict that they may kick the Portuguese out in the future battle for maritime status. So for now, they need money very much. As long as you have money, they will dare to sell you anything. Theoretically, if we want a galleon, trading with the British is the only feasible way. Only now they are so poor that they dare to sell this thing. I can only say that they are worthy of being Daiying."

"These three families are very jealous of the wealth of the Ming Dynasty. They want to buy goods from the Ming Dynasty and sell them in Europe at a high price. However, they have no choice but to endure it because of the maritime ban. If we propose trade, they will be happy to accept it."

Everyone present was stunned, especially Pei Huayu, who was trapped in the brothel, listening to a bunch of old people bragging every day. Even their bragging was full of intrigue, political tug-of-war, and mutual hindrance. There was no structure at all. Now Jiang Han's words were a completely different world to her that she had never seen before. In this world, there could be someone who was so confident and eloquent about the affairs of other countries in the world, as if the whole world was like a scroll unfolding in his mind. Looking at the confident Jiang Han in front of her, Pei Huayu's eyes were full of surprise.

Otherwise, how can you say that girls with little experience are easier to fool? She was fooled by just a little bragging. This is the reason why girls should be raised in wealth. However, there is no other way. Pei Huayu was already raised in wealth. Meeting someone like Jiang Han is really a dimensionality reduction attack.

"Every time I talk with Brother Jiang, I am shocked by his broad knowledge and wisdom. It really broadens my horizons. This is what Brother Jiang learned when he studied abroad in the West, right?" Wang Dang couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

"Ah? Oh... yes, it is true..." Oh my god, I almost forgot about this. It's okay if I didn't remember the nonsense I made up. Jiang Han quietly wiped the non-existent cold sweat from his forehead.

"But, even so, those foreign barbarians are not of our race, and their hearts must be different. I'm afraid they have bad intentions. If we trade with them like this, will there be any traps?"

Wang Dang still has some concerns. He has always been taught that these foreigners have no fathers, they buy things for free, they rob and rap every day, and they don’t wear their pants properly and reveal half of their waists…

Ahem, I made a mistake, it's actually these barbarians who don't know etiquette, they make loud noises in public, their chests are wide open with hair covering their chests, they smell bad and have no manners...

Not to mention, although there are many subjective factors involved, the people of the Ming Dynasty are still quite proud. They are in a state where the master of the Ming Dynasty is the master, and beggars are also the masters. They look down on foreigners. In addition to their different appearances, the characteristics of these white people do not quite conform to the aesthetics of the Ming people.

White people have coarse pores because their ancestors lived in high and cold mountainous areas, so they have thick hair, larger nasal cavities to warm the air, and for some reason, these white people have some minor problems with their sweat glands.

About 90% of the white population has body odor. Yes, 90%, which means that nine out of ten people will be killed within ten meters if they raise their armpits. Compared with the yellow race, who have delicate sweat glands and only one-tenth of the body odor rate, they suddenly seem less attractive.

Of course, the same goes for black people.

People in the Ming Dynasty were very sophisticated. Not only did they want to have no body odor, they also wanted to smell good. Families with better conditions would have women making sachets, flower petals for bathing, aromatherapy and a series of other skin care products. Even clothes had to be fumigated with flower petals, and they insisted on having a subtle fragrance every time they waved their sleeves.

Let's make a comparison at this time. To be honest, it is hard not to discriminate against a scholar who takes care of his skin every day, pays attention to his beard and hairstyle, and smells good, when he sees a foreigner who has been going out to sea for many years and has his chest open, with his pubic hair showing, and smells bad when he raises his arms. Especially in the case of the Ming Dynasty, where the Ming Dynasty has a very high status and is quite superior. After all, these foreigners who came to the Ming Dynasty were all crushed by the navy. If we haven't fought them, doesn't that mean I'm stronger than you?

"Be more confident. Remove the question of whether or not. There will definitely be traps. Whether it's the Sea Coachman or the Ansa, their ancestors were born as bandits and pirates. Being a bad person has been deeply engraved in their DNA. But, these days, when you fight for the world outside, isn't it all about seeing who has the bigger fist?"

Jiang Han smiled and said, "I am confident that as long as I am given some time, no one's fist can be bigger than mine. If he dares to play tricks on me, I will swear to God."

"Sign a pledge with the gods? How do you say that?"

"Kill your mother with one punch"

"Ah this..."

Volume 224: Chapter Chapter : Heading to Zhenjiang

"The trade line with the Ansa people is quite complicated. At present, it is not easy to operate in the short term."

These days, it is not easy to do business with foreigners.

It’s not that these old white men are difficult to approach. They are almost going crazy wanting to do business with the people of the Ming Dynasty. They think about it during the day, cry at night, and dream of going to the capital to open the door to free trade in the Ming Dynasty.

"Free trade"

This originally positive word, when applied to this group of old white men, is not so complimentary. On the contrary, in the modern language environment, it has become derogatory.

In fact, in this era, free trade is really a compliment, because the Ming Dynasty is still as strong as ever. It just beat the Netherlands five years ago, and defeated the Britain two years ago. With such a record, it can be said that the Ming Dynasty has the biggest fist. Therefore, these countries dare not fool the Ming Dynasty. At most, they will slightly lower the prices of goods.

It was from this time that silver from Europe began to flow out to China in large quantities. By the Qing Dynasty, Europeans could no longer hold back. They thought, "Oh my god, you have made all our wealth. How can this work? It has always been me who wins. How can others win?" So, the prosperous Daiying took his fleet to test the Daiqing. This test was not a big deal. He almost tested the capital. Daiying immediately found that the current Daiqing Dynasty was a paper tiger. Then we can increase our efforts in free trade. You continue to sell things to me, and I have the final say on how much money you give me. I also sell things to you, and I have the final say on what I sell to you.

Freedom under the Western system has always been the freedom of the strong, while the weak only have the freedom to be exploited.

If the Qing Dynasty at that time could have kept this group of British troops on this land completely like the Ming Dynasty did, then Britain would have pretended nothing had happened, paid some money and continued to engage in this free trade on unequal terms.

Just make do with it, what's the point of getting divorced?

What civilization, what human rights? Those are all things that were brought up by later generations to deceive people. In the face of wealth, what are human rights? What is that? Can you eat it?

Nowadays, these foreigners doing business in the Ming Dynasty are under the supervision of the Ming government. No matter what business they do, they have to report to the Ming government. The Portuguese set up a concession in Macau, which was a gathering place that the Ming Dynasty spent a considerable amount of money to get for themselves. People like the Dutch were directly driven out.

In this case, if you want to do business with the other party, you can't avoid one person, Zheng Zhilong. Zheng Zhilong is now the commander-in-chief of the Fujian Navy and the maritime guardian of the Ming Dynasty. But, don't forget, what did this man do before?

It sounds good, but the Fujian Navy Commander-in-Chief is actually a large pirate organization hired by the Ming Dynasty. In the past, they might have to be a little concerned about the officers and soldiers when robbing at sea. But now? They don’t care about anyone! I am an officer and soldier! I robbed you, and you are going to sue me?

First-rate people set the rules, second-rate people set the market, and third-rate people play robbery.

After becoming the commander-in-chief of the navy, Zheng Zhilong deeply realized this point, so he set a rule for the southern coast: all merchant ships sailing here must fly our flag. Without the flag, there is a 50% chance that you will be stopped by pirates in the coastal areas of Asia. If you reach Fujian, you will be stopped 100%.

Where did the flag come from? Of course I bought it with money! Don't worry, it's definitely a discounted price. Compared to your life, this amount of money is definitely worth it, right?

This is much faster than robbing money!

Zheng Zhilong himself was also doing business with these foreigners, of course, bypassing the Ming court. He could earn hundreds of thousands of silver coins every day through smuggling. If you want to do business with foreigners, it is equivalent to robbing them of their money, which is definitely not allowed.

If you dare to steal my money, you are trying to kill me! I must slap you in the face and even pull off your hood!

Zheng Zhilong's power is not small. Judging from the armed forces that Jiang Han has now, he can definitely win the battle. However, the cost will be very high. Simply put, it is not stable enough, especially since this is a battle on the water. He only has four treasure ships, and it would be a pain to lose one. What's more, if he wants to engage in trade, Jiang Han has to talk to the other party in person. Otherwise, he would not feel at ease if his subordinates did it.

These old white men are so bad!

The Western path is not easy to take at the moment, but one can still take other paths, such as the country of Wano where life is good.