In the end, Ping Qiu Sheng did not forget to use his own camera to take some close-ups of Cam Ranh Bay. "It's a pity that I don't have a wide-angle lens. I have to try hard when I get back. [No pop-up novel website]" Ping Qiu Sheng took a breath. By the way, I also secretly took several photos of Zhao Xue from the remote exploration team in her swimsuit. In order to facilitate her activities on the boat, she wore a swimsuit on the boat.
Zhao Xue is not very beautiful, and she wears an unsexy one-piece swimsuit. However, she is one of the few modern women among the elders. She is tall and fits the aesthetics of the elders. To the elders who see the skinny maid every day, she is nothing less than a peerless beauty.
Looking at the long-distance lens of Zhao Xue who was leaning on the side of the boat to explore the water depth and temperature, Ping Qiusheng couldn't help but have some physiological changes, and sighed slightly: Zhao Xue has been whitewashed. The seduction of the national scholar near the water and the tower went away. But he didn't feel that he had too many regrets. After all, there were many restrictions and taboos on marriage between elders. Wouldn't it be very disappointing to have an unhappy ending like Liu San's?
There is a large bauxite mineral belt in East Asia about 50 kilometers west of Cam Ranh Bay. The exploration team has certain expectations about whether there are small-scale bauxite deposits along the coast of Cam Ranh Bay. Aluminum is a very useful light metal. Not only is it extremely useful in industry, but the financial sector also relies on aluminum to make coins. Although high power levels still have a long way to go to support industrialized aluminum smelting.
However, the exploration team obviously did not find any resources worth mentioning, so Zhao Xue has been wearing a swimsuit at the beach of Cam Ranh Bay these days, causing Ping Yuan to secrete a lot of adrenaline.
Ping Qiusheng's maid was mediocre in appearance, and after solving the problem, she gradually lost his interest, so she simply didn't take her on board this time. Although he thinks about the position of Japanese Governor every day, he also knows that Japanese women in this time and space are mediocre and meaningless no matter how noble they are.
He often communicated with Quark on the ship about slaves. Of course, Senator Ping was not interested in Quark's products. The appearance of the Malay race does not conform to his aesthetic sense. He was more interested in what Quark mentioned about the slave market in Basra: female slaves of all skin colors and nationalities gathered here, waiting to be sold. Every time he heard it, his blood would surge, and he would have trouble sleeping at night.
Quark, this ignorant person, should immediately go get a batch for the Senate! Although Ping Qiusheng hinted several times that these female slaves would be very marketable in Lingao, he did not expect Quark to be completely unaware of this. He always brought up the issue of quality comparison between Southeast Asian slaves and black slaves.
After resting for two days in Nha Trang, the fleet set off for the next stop. At this time, Quark's fleet should be said to be safe, but with a keen sense of business opportunities, he decided to temporarily follow the Australian fleet to Siam, where he might have more opportunities to make a fortune.
Ping Qiu Sheng was sorting out the information of the past few days on the boat. Although Nha Trang has been occupied by the Nguyen family of the Later Le Dynasty, there are still many traces of the Champa Kingdom. The stone towers everywhere are proof: Champa has played an important role in culture. Deeply influenced by India, Brahmanism was once very popular and there was also a caste system.
In terms of ruling power, the Ruan family's control here is relatively loose. There are not many forts and there are almost no signs of military activities. We learned from local residents that the Ruan family’s officials and troops only requisitioned local grain and goods, and occasionally forcibly recruited strong men, but other than that they had few other activities.
Ping Qiu Sheng discovered that there were some Chinese immigrant villages here. The Ruan family had limited territory under their control, a smaller population, and had to cope with the expenses of large-scale military operations. Therefore, it attracted a large number of Chinese immigrants to reclaim land in the New South and pay taxes. As an encouragement, Ruan also awarded various names and titles to the leaders of the Chinese immigration group.
Obviously, it is not difficult to establish a solid stronghold in this generation after starting the Southeast Asian strategy. There is no need for a particularly powerful fortress, just a small fortress similar to Yulin Fort. Due to its geographical location, Nha Trang is able to obtain a large amount of rice.
The so-called Champa rice is widely grown in this area. Champa rice is drought-resistant and has a short growing season. It only takes more than 50 days from sowing to harvest. It was introduced to Guangdong, Guangxi and Fujian during the Song Dynasty. It is a time-travel artifact from before the Song Dynasty. As a native site and with enough light and heat, the yield is obviously higher. It’s not good for monkeys to have these grains for free. Taking Nha Trang and Cam Ranh Bay as soon as possible will continuously absorb the grain resources of central and southern Vietnam, especially the Chao Phraya River Delta, Ping Qiu Sheng thought.
However, in the long run, the value of resources in Nha Trang is not very great. There are no special resources except for rice. Perhaps after completing the entire East Asia layout, this place will return to its traditional positioning: a veteran resort port plus a naval base. Of course, it would also be good to serve as an entrepot trade port for Australians and Southeast Asia before taking Malacca.
The fleet sailed past the coastline of Champa. Champa has a long history. It has established fifteen dynasties since it rebelled against the Han and established itself. It was once a famous country on the Indochina Peninsula and has now become a state that is barely surviving. There are Le Nguyen in the north and Khmer in the west. If it were not for the constant internal and external troubles of the two countries, they would have been annexed and divided long ago.
On the way, they landed several times and were investigated by the special reconnaissance team. They found that calling this place a "country" was a bit reluctant. There were only villages and ragged people living in hut-like residences without any daily necessities. . Not even the basic stoneware.
Pottery and wooden utensils were used, and large shells were used when available. Whether rich or poor, the only pastime is betel nut. Almost everyone chews it.
In the scope of the special reconnaissance team's investigation, they found nothing that could be called a "city", only some large-scale villages. It is heavily guarded and seems to be always on guard against the invasion of the Ruan family.
However, in some harbors on the seaside, you can still see the ruins of past ports. The ruins of some ports are quite large, and it is obvious that there were once prosperous cities.
As a country that was once an important transit point on the Maritime Silk Road and prosperous in commerce, it is really surprising to Ping Qiu Sheng that it has fallen to such a state.
In Ping Qiusheng's opinion, the situation in the Champa Kingdom was like having his head caught in the door. Originally, the Ruan family had a peaceful relationship with Champa and tried to win over Champa through marriage. After all, maintaining military pressure on the north and south fronts is not a good situation for the Nguyen family. However, at this time, the Champa State was too hot-headed. Perhaps it was inspired by the war between Burma and the Portuguese, or perhaps because of its faith. When it was too busy to take care of itself, it actually Send troops to assist the Sultanate of Johor in attacking Malacca. The Nguyen clan had an alliance with the Portuguese at that time and had to rely on Portuguese warships to fight against Lord Zheng. Without Portuguese naval support, it would be difficult for the south to compete with the Zheng clan. So he turned around and launched an attack on Champa, which not only eliminated the threat, but also opened up territory.
It seems that the situation in Champa City is promising. Ping Qiu Sheng realized that as long as he had a little resources, he could get involved in the complicated relationship between Zheng, Ruan and Champa and gain great benefits.
It was another two days of sailing, and the route had turned to the southwest. On the morning of the third day, at dawn, a large trumpet-shaped strait entrance appeared in front of the fleet. Along the impact of this delta entrance were scattered large and small ships. Small island. This is the outlet of Saigon, Ho Chi Minh City in the original time and space.
But this place is now Cambodia’s sphere of influence. Although the people call it Saigon, the Khmer people who occupy this place call it Priango, which means the king's forest. It is the territory of the deputy king of the Kingdom of Cambodia. The specific location is probably around the proposed area in today's Ho Chi Minh City.
With the melee between the Northern and Southern Dynasties, a large number of Vietnamese and Champa refugees came here to seek refuge and settle down. In addition, there were a large number of Chinese people who settled and did business here, so it seemed prosperous on the surface. However, the Kingdom of Cambodia itself is also precarious, with pressure from Siam to the west.
Not long ago, after the mysterious "war death" of Yamada Nagamasa, a Japanese official and businessman in Siam, conspiracy theories spread in this area. Because it was suspected that the rulers of Siam were about to be unfavorable to the Japanese, a large number of Japanese immigrants who were originally doing business and work in Siam They also entered Cambodia to seek refuge, and many people ran to Saigon. This place is like a refugee camp in Southeast Asia.
Compared to the huge fleets of the Dutch and Portuguese here, the arrival of Quark's two ships plus the two ships of the Southeast Asia Company was already quite large, giving local residents another chance to watch the diorama. No ship flying the flag of the Southeast Asian Company has ever been here.
The Khmers had no local maritime power, and Saigon was pretty much a free port. The hydrological conditions of the port are very good, and many foreign merchant ships will stop here for trade and supplies. However, it is summer and there is a threat of typhoons. There are only a few Chinese merchant ships sailing along the coastline in the port, and there are not a single European ship.
The fleet anchored on a sandbank in the middle of the estuary and set up camp there. After going through the necessary negotiation procedures, they were led by a guide who was familiar with the local area and headed all the way to Puliango City. Those preparing to enter the city included Taira Qiumori, Quark and others. There was also a escort of marines, carrying gifts for the local rulers.
The natural conditions of the port here are quite good. According to the memory of the old time and space, there is no big problem in accommodating 20,000-ton ships to berth with a little modification.
Along the way, we saw many shacks along the way before we even reached the city. They were probably refugees from the north. Some people saw that the group was quite respectable, and they probably wanted to ask for some food and money, but everyone in this group looked serious. , and there was an unknown shotgun on his back, so he didn't dare to come near.
Ping Qiucheng saw that although these people were in ragged clothes, they were in good spirits. It seemed that they could still eat some food, so they would not go elsewhere to escape the famine. The richness of the Mekong Delta is indeed extraordinary, but it is a pity that these people have ruined it. ! .
