Chapter 217
The Yangtze River water in December made General Wu Sheng realize one thing clearly. His life was in the hands of Cheng Shijie. If Cheng Shijie asked him to die, he would die immediately. No matter how he was allowed to live, he could live or not. Live a very nourishing life.
"I'll give you two ways!"
Cheng Shijie looked at General Wu Sheng who was shivering in the cold wind and said: "First way, you guessed it right. Although I hold Shangfang Sword, you are indeed not under my jurisdiction. I use Shangfang Sword." I can't kill you, so don't be complacent. I can impeach you to His Majesty and the Ministry of War, and report your actions to the Ministry of War, so that the Ministry of War can take care of you! You... damn, you are a bunch of trash who only eat and do nothing. Such a strong fortress was easily occupied by a bunch of rabble, I really want to kill you..."
When Wu Sheng heard this, his face turned green with fright: "Cheng Shuai, I will choose the second way!"
"Do you know what the second way is?"
"No matter what path it takes, I will do whatever Cheng Shuai tells me to do!"
"Very good, very smart choice."
Cheng Shijie pointed at the Yangtze River and said with a smile: "The boats running up and down the Yangtze River are not ships, but money! Just take a little from each ship, and we will all make a fortune! But no one of you thought before Did you collect taxes in the past?”
Wu Sheng smiled bitterly and said: "Cheng Shuai, it's not that you don't want to, but that you don't dare. The ships that dare to pass through Wusongkou are all with heel, and you won't be able to offend them in the end!"
"If you can't afford to offend them, why don't you find someone who can?"
Cheng Shijie smiled lightly and said, "You don't think that no one can control them, do you?"
Cheng Shijie did not immediately state that Ning Haijun wanted to occupy Wusongkou, but instead used the method of blocking the river to make money. While speaking, Cheng Shijie had someone invite Gao Qiqian over.
"General Wu, let me introduce you to someone. Eunuch Gaoqiqian, the famous man in front of His Majesty, the eunuch who oversees the warrior camp, the eunuch who heads the imperial palace, the palm of the imperial horse supervisor, and the military supervisor Ning Haijun. Think about it, Gao Father-in-law can’t afford to offend these people!”
Gao Qiqian naturally knew that there was too much oil and water on the Yangtze River, but this oil and water was not controlled in Wusongkou, but in Nanjing. Wusongkou was the treasury and money bag of the Sixth Department of Nanjing and the guarding eunuchs.
Gao Qiqian said: "General Cheng, those people are not easy to mess with!"
“What if we say several million taels of silver per year??”
"What?"
Cheng Shijie smiled and said: "These Jiangnan wealthy merchants account for one-third of the protection fees that Zheng Zhilong collects every year at sea. If we occupy Wusongkou and collect 10% from each ship, that will be six to seven million taels of silver. If we collect two The tax is 15 to 6 million taels of silver. Is this money worth offending them?"
Gao Qiqian's face became serious: "Our family has always shared the emperor's worries, and we are inseparable from these moths!"
"Cheng thinks this silver should be divided into three pieces!"
"One part belongs to Eunuch Gao, which accounts for 30%, and one part belongs to His Majesty, who has to take 40% anyway. Cheng is not talented, so he takes 20%, and the remaining 10% is left to the father-in-law to take care of!"
Wu Sheng opened his mouth and bravely said, "What about the general?"
"Who do you think you are?"
Gao Qiqian stepped forward and kicked Wu Sheng without waiting for Cheng Shijie to speak.
Cheng Shijie smiled and said: "Hey, Eunuch Gao, this is not right. The emperor is willing to starve his soldiers to death. If he doesn't let these soldiers have enough to eat, how can they do things with their heart? So be it, Mr. Wu, your share is yours, Commander-in-Chief Once you get out, I’ll give you one hundred thousand taels of silver every year!”
Wu Sheng was ecstatic.
However, he was stunned by the great news in front of him.
Gao Qiqian was a little unhappy: "General Wu, why are you still not satisfied? You can't be too greedy..."
"Father-in-law, I am very satisfied!"
Of course, Cheng Shijie's promise to Wu Sheng was just empty words, one hundred thousand taels of silver. How could Cheng Shijie give it to him? It was only in name.
Cheng Shijie said: "Not only will I give you one hundred thousand taels of silver, but I will also provide you with equipment and supplies for his subordinates. At Ning Haijun Navy, I will transfer a hundred ships for you, so that you can have enough Intercept all smuggling boats on the river!"
Soon, Ning Haijun's supply ship docked at Wusongkou Pier, and a large amount of food and materials were unloaded from the ship. Soon, Wusongkou became a huge construction site like Chongming Island.
A large number of civilians and guardsmen were wielding hoes and shovels, building warehouses and trestles in full swing. Wusong's nickname is the Fortress, but in fact, like the original Dengzhou Weizuo Qianhu Station, it is in a mess, and many of the fortifications can be knocked down with one kick.
The weapons warehouse was already empty, and not even a single cannon could be found in the entire Wusongkou Fortress. After asking, I found out that those cannons had been secretly melted down and cast into copper coins by successive commanders-in-chief.
Cheng Shijie finally understood why Zheng Zhilong's pirate group could easily capture Wusongkou. Can a fortress without a single cannon be called a fortress? He had no choice but to instruct the civilians and guardsmen to rebuild the fort and mount the five-inch naval gun that was originally assigned to his giant shark-class battleship.
It's not that Cheng Shijie didn't use the huge naval gun. It was because the five-inch naval gun was too heavy for the sail battleship. In the naval battle at Wusongkou, the five-inch rear-mounted thirty-fold caliber naval gun opened fire. After one shot, the entire battleship retreated tens of meters, and no one dared to fire a second shot due to the huge recoil.
If the second shot is fired without the enemy hitting it, the giant shark-class battleship will fall apart. The Ning Navy and Army have nothing to do with these behemoths. Two naval guns with a range of more than 4,000 meters are enough to block the river.
What convinced Cheng Shijie the most was that Wu Sheng and others, who were responsible for building forts, docks and trestles, actually tried to cut corners right under his nose! For example, if they were asked to dig the foundation, the foundation would only be dug less than one meter, and the wood used to build the trestle would be shoddy as much as possible. As for the food provided to the peasants...
It can only be said that eating will not kill people. The rice, salted eggs, salted fish and other good things that should have been given to the people were all sold by them.
But the problem is that Wu Sheng, a bastard, still needs to be used. Cheng Shijie played a trick and reported the Wusongkou counterattack to the Ministry of War. Gao Qiqian endorsed him. Therefore, Wu Sheng, the commander-in-chief of Wusongkou, He became Cheng Shijie's personal guard commander Wu Sheng. Wu Sheng also had the original generals and was promoted to commander-in-chief.
He directly occupied the magpie's nest and became the de facto commander-in-chief of Wu Sheng. As for the original Wu Sheng, this guy had no military morale. Cheng Shijie had Wu Sheng sealed in a concrete pillar directly as a final contribution.
As for the other guard officers who had unclean hands and feet, Cheng Shijie also divided two by three, and killed every one he found! Ning Haijun's internal supervisory force dispatched by Chen Guodong would walk around the construction site several times every day and then eat with the workers, killing every one they found. Soon, the construction quality of Wusongkou Fortress improved tenfold. When digging the foundation, I wanted to dig out all the magma. The quality of the workers' food was also greatly improved, even better than some officials. !
Just when Cheng Shijie began to build fortifications in Chongming, Changxing, and Wusongkou, a Karak warship with official letters from the Portuguese arrived at Wusongkou.
Carrack battleship The Carrack battleship is a three-masted or four-masted sailing ship. Also translated as Carrick Battleship. Japanese history books of the same period called it the "black ship". It is characterized by its huge curved stern and huge bowsprit. It was equipped with several square sails on the foremast and topmast, and a jib on the mizzen mast.
The Carrick was the first ship used for ocean voyages in European history. This was because its large size allowed it to remain stable in the vast ocean. In addition, it was divided into a large amount of space to accommodate enough supplies for ocean voyages.
Carrack warships are large in size and well-protected. The addition of the military has turned some Carrack-type sailing ships into super sailing ships weighing two thousand tons, three masts, and multiple decks. The multi-layered decks can accommodate heavy artillery, and can also be used to launch side-by-side side artillery. The firepower is very powerful and terrifying. It can be said that it exceeded any warship in Asia at that time.
European navigators also continued to improve the Karak warship. In addition to improving the masts of ships and sails, cast iron replaced welded forged iron on naval guns. The breech-loading cannon, which could be mounted on a rack, replaced the front-loading cannon mounted on a wheeled cart. These all enhance the performance of naval guns.
It can be said that Portugal's ability to become a maritime overlord relied on the Karak battleship. The appearance of this battleship attracted Cheng Shijie's attention. Now that the Ning Navy's main battleship is not in Wusongkou, this battleship is not easy to deal with.
Cheng Shijie ordered: "All four hundred gunboats are ready to attack with fire ships!"
However, just when the war was about to break out, the battleship put on a gun jacket. Putting on the gun jacket was like an infantry putting away a rifle. This was not in a combat state. Soon, a small speedboat was dispatched from this behemoth. , contact Ning Haijun Navy and express your intention.
Of course, the Portuguese have now gone downhill. With the Dutch as a troublemaker, they have begun to attack Portuguese settlements or colonies around the world.
Although the Portuguese settled and did business in Macau, they had to pay taxes to the Ming Dynasty. If they didn't pay taxes, there would be no negotiation. Some idiots and idiots use the topic to think that Macau was lost by the Ming Dynasty. In fact, the Ming Dynasty really cannot be blamed for this debt. After all, the Portuguese people in Macau during the Ming Dynasty were very honest and did not dare to assassinate them. After Macau is cut off from China, we have to wait another two hundred years for the glorious Qing Dynasty to turn the entire land of China into a place where stupid people are everywhere and thousands of horses are in silence.
The Portuguese are now allies of the Ming Dynasty. When the Manchus attacked Beijing, they sent troops to support them in the name of mercenaries. Of course, the Western-style army trained by Sun Yuanhua in Dengzhou was the Spanish-style army trained by the Portuguese. After all, Portugal is not yet a sovereign country, but a vassal state of the Spanish Empire.
"Meet the Governor of Liaodong!"
If he hadn't seen this foreign devil with his own eyes, Cheng Shijie would have found it hard to believe that the bearded representative of the Portuguese, whose Chinese name was Zeng Dezhao, was very fluent in Chinese. He came to Nanjing to study Chinese in the 41st year of Wanli (1613) and was named Xie Wulu. In the forty-fourth year, Shen Zuo, the minister of the Ministry of Rites, was escorted to Macau when he asked for a ban on teaching. This name was changed to Yue four years later.
Now that he has lived in Ming Dynasty for more than 20 years, it is not surprising that he can speak Chinese.
"Zeng Dezhao, what are you doing here?"
"Dear Governor, on behalf of Portugal, we want to trade with Liaodong!"
Zeng Dezhao said with a smile: "Our church members in Liaodong said that Your Excellency the Governor has phosphate ore, seaguano, tin ore, manganese ore, copper ore, silver ore, sulfur, saltpeter, and a large amount of wood!"
"Yes, I wonder if the Governor can allow us Portuguese to go to Liaodong?"
"Can!"
Cheng Shijie thought for a moment and said, "Three things must be followed!"
"Please say!"
"First, you are in Liaodong, and my soldiers are protecting your safety. You cannot bring weapons and equipment to land in Liaodong. You still want to go ashore with swords and guns. This will make people say that public security under my command is not good!"
"Can!"
Zeng Dezhao did not hesitate or object. They had few people and few guns. Facing Ning Haijun was not enough, especially the Spanish Army, which they were proud of. They did not even insist on confronting Ning Haijun and surrendered directly. .
"The second thing is that you must abide by the laws of the Ming Dynasty. If the Portuguese in Liaodong broke the law, they must be dealt with according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty. You must not only abide by the laws of the Ming Dynasty, but also abide by the customs of the Ming Dynasty. After all, the Ming Dynasty has a saying As the saying goes, when you are in the country, do as the Romans do, you should understand it since you have been in Ming Dynasty for more than 20 years!"
Zeng Dezhao said: "This is what it should be!"
"The other thing is that you have to pay taxes according to Liaodong's system. Of course, after paying taxes, you will enjoy the protection of Ning Haijun, and you can also have the right to buy property in Liaodong!"
Cheng Shijie smiled and said: "You can buy land in Liaodong or build a church!"
The Portuguese were so moved that they wanted to cry. They thought of countless ways to preach, but the problem was that they didn't know that the Ming people were actually the most pragmatic. When it came to faith, they only believed in their own ancestors.
Being worthy of one's ancestors is the criterion of morality and behavior, and shining one's lintel is the greatest goal and motivation.
Cheng Shijie is not worried that the missionaries will pull away people's hearts. If they had this ability, they wouldn't have such a headache.
Just when Cheng Shijie met with Zeng Dezhao, representatives of the Dutch East India Company also boarded Wusongkou and requested to meet with Cheng Shijie.
"Your Excellency the Governor, I am the senior commercial attaché of the Dutch East India Company. I think there is room for us to cooperate!"
Cheng Shijie smiled lightly and said: "Dutch East India Company, how do you want to cooperate?"
Ning Haijun fought with the Zheng Group, which allowed the Dutch to see an opportunity. In fact, the Dutch were very unhappy that Zheng Zhilong had monopolized trade with the Dutch. They wanted to do business directly with the Ming Dynasty, but the problem was that no matter what the goods were, they had to After Zheng Zhilong scraped one layer.
More importantly, the Dutch have taken a fancy to Danguan, which is rich in resources, has a pleasant climate, and has an extremely advantageous geographical location. It is a pearl embedded in the South China Sea. As a big maritime country, the Netherlands naturally covets this pearl and will not hesitate to buy it. Risking war with the Ming Dynasty, he sent troops to occupy it.
However, the officers are really too barbaric. They are completely in the prehistoric era. There are countless venomous snakes and beasts stinging in the forest, and there are also fierce and bloodthirsty natives hiding in the dark and watching covetously. If you don't pay attention to their heads, these terrible people will be killed. The headhunters cut it off and hung it under the eaves to dry.
Of course, the most painful thing is that the traffic conditions are extremely poor, and there is not even a decent road. It's not that they don't want to repair it, it's that it's too difficult to repair. Once it was repaired, it was washed away by floods. The conditions are so bad that you can imagine how difficult it is to develop the big ones.
It is not completely a wilderness. For example, the Taichung area. Due to the development of Taichung King Yan Siqi, after more than ten years of development, the Taichung area now has certain infrastructure. But the problem is that this area belongs to Zheng Zhilong, if they want to intervene, they will undoubtedly be hit by Zheng Zhilong.
However, the Dutch are still not Zheng Zhilong's opponent. In their view, Cheng Shijie's maritime strength is far inferior to Zheng Zhilong's, and they have no choice but to cooperate with them.
The representative of the Netherlands was Putmans, the senior commercial commissioner of the Dutch East India Company and now the governor-general.
Cheng Shijie unceremoniously rejected Putmans' proposal. No matter how he fought with Zheng Zhilong, it would be a civil war in the Ming Dynasty. However, the Dutch intervened and with the help of the Dutch, Cheng Shijie was a traitor. This was a matter of principle.
"Your Majesty the Governor, you must know that Zheng is much stronger than you!"
"I don't need you to worry about this!"
When Putmans saw Cheng Shijie's firm attitude, he expressed great regret.
He also knew that Cheng Shijie had not suffered a loss yet. He had achieved an accidental victory. He thought he could easily defeat Zheng Zhilong, but when Zheng Zhilong really attacked with all his strength, Cheng Shijie would cry and beg them for help.
When Putmans was about to leave, Cheng Shijie smiled faintly and said, "Hans, are you still comfortable in the office?"
Hans Putmans said bravely: "Comfortable, comfortable."
"It's good to be comfortable! But the place where you live is very wild, infested with malaria mosquitoes and ferocious beasts, it's very dangerous, and there isn't even a decent road. You must have encountered a lot of difficulties in settling there, right?"
When Putmans saw Cheng Shijie's tough attitude, he thought Cheng Shijie was going to launch an attack to hold him accountable, but he never expected that he would actually greet them.
Putmans said tentatively: "We are really grateful for the Governor's concern! To be honest with the Governor, we did encounter great difficulties with the senior officials. For example, the traffic conditions were extremely poor, which caused As a result, we can only settle in a few ports and dare not go deep into the island..."
"How can this work? If you want to get rich, you must first build roads. Even children understand that roads do not help develop the economy! When you go back, build roads quickly, and build roads that run through the entire Dayu Island!"
Putmans said with a sad face: "We also wanted to repair it, but it was hot and rainy. It was difficult to repair the road. After several heavy rains, the roadbed was washed away again!"
“You can build concrete roads!”
Cheng Shijie naturally had no good intentions. He persuaded the Dutch to build roads. He waited for the Dutch to build ports, highways, and towns, and then sent troops to knock down the big officials and eat them ready-made...
(End of chapter)
