The Dengzhou Governor's Yamen was newly established during the Tianqi period, and it is really impressive: a large sedan with a green woolen top is placed in front of the door; there are several vermilion "high-legged plaques" under the wall, and the official titles and honors are written in gold and gold imitation Song script. [No pop-up novel website] There are so many kinds of flags hanging, it is dazzling to see.
Looking further into the yamen, two lines of soldiers with swords stood from the gate to the front of the hall, and there were also several third- and fourth-grade military attachés. Seeing this, Zhao Yingong knew that he might not even be able to speak if he rushed forward. He immediately stepped aside, took out the famous post and an "eight-line" letter written by the Xu family, and asked Jiying to post the post.
"Use one or two door bags." He reminded Jiying.
After a long time, I saw a personal attendant coming out, holding his name card in his hand, calling: "Who is Mr. Zhao from Hangzhou?"
Zhao Yingong nodded, paced in all directions, stepped forward and replied, "That's the student."
"Your Majesty, please see me."
"Yes. Please lead the way."
Feng Hua had learned the routine long ago. He immediately held up Zhao Yingong's name card and led the way inward. The governor's Yamen is quite large and has a strict atmosphere along the way. When he arrived at the door of Dehua Hall, a footman had already opened the door curtain and motioned for him to enter.
When I walked in, I saw a capable middle-aged official in casual clothes, sitting on the mahogany Kang table in the middle of the flower hall, holding a letter in his hand. Zhao Yingong knew that this person was probably the famous Sun Yuanhua.
After he calmed down for a moment, he picked up his clothes to say hello and signed up at the same time.
"Oh, you are Mr. Zhao!" Sun Yuanhua's eyes were quite majestic. Although he was a civilian official, he had served in the army in Liaodong for many years. The oppressive force of his majestic demeanor developed through years of military life made Zhao Yingong feel slightly timid.
The person in front of me is the governor of Denglai, a real high-ranking official with heavy military skills. He can make people's heads fall to the ground with just one order. Facing such a person, it is certainly difficult for an ordinary person to resist. Zhao Yingong, who was so powerful, defended himself with cold sweat on his back. He had never been so clearly aware of his weakness after leaving the group.
Fortunately, Sun Yuanhua had a good impression of Zhao Yingong: he was tall, dignified in appearance, graceful in his actions, humble and confident. He nodded secretly in his mind.
He had received a letter from the Hangzhou church in advance, and this time he received eight lines from the Xu family. There were many praises for this "Mr. Zhao", especially the man in front of him who worked for the church in the Hangzhou missionary plan and made a lot of mistakes. The power of the church has defused the local hostility against the church, which is a great contribution to the powerful Chinese church. He couldn't help but smile and said: "Sir, please sit down!"
Zhao Yingong sat down, and the footman placed a bowl of tea on the coffee table next to him.
"Looking at Mr. Zhao's accent, he doesn't seem to be from Cantonese."
"Yes, the student's ancestral home is Hangzhou. His ancestors settled in Sanshui, Guangdong because of their business dealings." Zhao Yingong said cautiously.
Sun Yuanhua was very enthusiastic about this "catechumen" introduced by the church, not only because of his religious beliefs, but also because the letter mentioned that Mr. Zhao was proficient in "Western learning". In particular, he knows a lot about "Australia". Sun Yuanhua has also seen the "Australian products" that have just become more popular in the past two years. He is more knowledgeable than ordinary people. He knows that these are not just simple tricks, but seem to be something more profound than his Western knowledge. Plant new knowledge.
Sun Yuanhua was most interested in the Australians' battle in Qiongzhou. He had collected a lot of information about this battle piecemeal. The Jesuits in Lingao passed the collected information about the Battle of Chengmai to Macau. Sun Yuanhua was not only surrounded by There were Jesuit priests and quite a few Portuguese soldiers. The information he got through this channel was much richer and more accurate than the information the court got.
The reason why Sun Yuanhua was particularly interested in the Battle of Chengmai was because the Australians' fighting pattern in Chengmai was very similar to that of the Ming army. It is also taking advantage of one's own firearms to defend instead of attack. First there are high walls and deep trenches, on which firearms are arranged to neutralize the enemy's impact. Then wait for a maneuver to counterattack.
The problem is that there are few successful examples of this kind of combat practice of the Ming army. Sun Yuanhua served in the army in Liaodong for many years. Except for the "Guangning Victory" when he was under Yuan Chonghuan, in most cases the Ming army's combat method of using fortifications, vehicle formations, and firearms to defend the enemy was defeated again and again.
In Qiongzhou, the Australians used similar tactics to defeat officers and soldiers several times their number - you must know that the troops in Hezhen also had Hongyi cannons, and their firearms were obviously much better than those of the Francois. As a result, his interest in Kun Thief has greatly increased.
So without a few polite words to each other, Sun Yuanhua turned the topic to the Australians.
"Since you live in Guangdong and are engaged in the business of buying and selling Australian goods, you must know the ins and outs of Australians very well?"
Zhao Yingong nodded and said, "Students know a thing or two."
Sun Yuanhua immediately asked about the military situation of the Australians, especially firearms.
Zhao Bie Gong didn't dare to say too much about this, nor did he dare to talk nonsense. He knew that the person in front of him was an expert. More importantly, Sun had the Jesuits as an intelligence channel. If he was serious, he would be able to fully understand many things. To gain his trust yourself, you must have a good grasp of the scale and try not to tell lies in what you can say.
Therefore, although he only talked about some relatively superficial content, he still talked about some details that might be of interest to Sun Yuanhua, especially some simple explanations about the power, range and types of shells of Australian cannons.
Then they talked about Australian muskets. Sun Yuanhua had a strong interest in Minie rifles and revolvers. Zhao Yingong learned from him that a number of Minie rifles and revolvers were lost in the hands of the Ming army and were transported to the mainland. Therefore, Sun Yuanhua knew the shape of this kind of gun very well, and he also produced a drawing with incorrect proportions. Zhao Yingong felt that many details were missing after taking a look at it, and he was immediately relieved.
"I have always wanted to find a real gun." Sun Yuanhua sighed, "I heard that it is different from the red-haired bird muskets of this dynasty. Not only is it not afraid of wind and rain, but the lead can shoot one or two miles. Do you know what kind of magic the thief Kun uses?"
"Where is the real gun now?" Zhao Yingong was very concerned about this.
"Still in Guangdong, I sent people to get it, and only got this picture. I heard that a few fell into the hands of Governor Xiong of Fujian." Sun Yuanhua seemed to regret this. He was training the new army in Dengzhou and casting firearms. , of course he has a strong interest in "new firearms".
Zhao Yingong immediately explained the function of the rifle's rifle: It was revealed that this technical secret was approved. Rifles were not a technical secret even at the time. Early rifles had already appeared in Europe, but they had no practical value. It would be even more difficult to copy them in the Ming Dynasty. As for the mini bullet, it seems that the principle and structure of the warhead are very simple. No one can manufacture it based on the industrial level of this time and space, let alone a key flash cap.
Sun Yuanhua listened very much and asked a few questions from time to time. At this time, Zhao Yingong felt that Sun Yuanhua was more like an engineering technician than a Ming Dynasty bureaucrat. I couldn't help but feel a little more fond of him.
He felt that although Sun Yuanhua was very impressed by the "orderly troops" and "dare to fight" of the Australians, he was most interested in "Australian firearms". He couldn't help but shake his head inwardly: Obviously, Sun's thinking mode is still It is the idea of the "Westernization School", which focuses on "instruments".
Regardless of whether it was Xu Guangqi or Sun Yuanhua, although they were very dedicated in introducing Western weapons and technology, they had very little involvement in the modern European military theories and systems that had begun to take shape at that time. Zhao Yingong remembered that Sun Yuanhua was most interested in European-style fortresses in addition to firearms in Western military affairs. He also personally designed some fortifications that "combine Chinese and foreign".
"... I didn't expect that sir has such profound knowledge of firearms." Sun Yuanhua admired him greatly. He told the waiter: "Please ask Mr. Zhao to rise to the Kang!"
This is another sign of an upgrade in etiquette. It is a great honor for the governor to invite a scholar to sit opposite him on the Kang. Even Zhao Yingong felt flattered.
I couldn't help but feel very proud, and I felt more confident about dealing with Governor Sun.
When the footman moved the bowl of tea to the kang table, Zhao Yingong thanked him and sat down.
Sun Yuanhua then said slowly: "Mr. Zhao has such a deep understanding of Australians, I'm afraid it's not as simple as doing business, right?"
Zhao Yingong was stunned, then quickly stood up and cupped his hands and said: "Sir, the candle shines thousands of miles away! The business between students and Australians is indeed very deep."
The so-called "deep business" means that they also traded contraband with the Australians, which was not surprising in the maritime trade at that time.
"Sit, sit," Sun Yuanhua raised his hand and said, "How does it compare to Gao Gong?"
Zhao Yingong thought that he even knew about Gao Zhi, so he immediately made an expression of shock and respect, and said: "How dare students stand shoulder to shoulder with Gao Gong?"
Sun Yuanhua smiled slightly and asked, "Sir, you have come a long way from the gentle countryside of Hangzhou to get here. Why are you here?"
Zhao Yingong knew that this question must be asked, so he said cautiously: "Although the student has entered school, he failed in the examination. He can only practice the old skills of his ancestors and learn the skills of Guan Zhong, Tao and Zhu."
The Dengzhou area is the frontier of the imperial captors. Not only do millions of grains, military supplies and wages have to be shipped here every year, but the local garrison consumption is also a considerable figure. As a businessman, it is not surprising that he wants to get involved here. , and it can be explained very well.
Sun Yuanhua said: "Although there are many military supplies and sales here, the risks are also high." Because of his relationship as a fellow "religion member", he felt it was necessary to remind the other party that the Denglai area has always been an important logistics area for the Liaodong military. Business opportunities are everywhere, but going to Liaodong is risky, and many ships and cargos are lost every year. Although there is no navy of Houjin at sea, the navy of the Ming Dynasty is not a good man, and they secretly kill and plunder merchant ships. There is life. ! .
