Just after the Shangyuan Festival, the Dai family received bad news. Their secret port was seized by Zheng He.
None of the more than 30 ships were spared, and more than 400,000 taels of cargo and gold and silver were lost.
Money is a small matter, the key is boats. These more than 30 boats and more than a thousand sailors are the old foundation accumulated by the Dai family for decades.
Without these things, the Dai family has completely lost its ability to sail, and will never be able to compete with other forces on the sea from now on.
This news was told to Dai Deqing by the old man of the Dai family.
"We still have so many ships overseas, why didn't I know about it?" Dai Deqing immediately asked.
"There are so many things you don't know, what's the fuss about?" Dai Dehai said coldly.
Dai Dehai was in his fifties, short and lean, and glanced at Dai Deqing with his wolf-like eyes.
In the past, Dai Deqing would have been trembling with fear. This brother had a vicious and cruel personality, and he had many horrific memories.
But now, Dai Deqing elegantly picked up the tea bowl and took a sip, no longer taking him seriously.
"I don't deserve to know, but let me guess, the traitor Lao Shiba knew about it, and then he was taken care of by Zheng He.
But why did Lao Shiba betray? Knowing that Lao Shiba had betrayed him, why didn't he just change places? Whose fault? "
Dai Deqing put down his tea bowl and stared at Dai Dehai contemptuously and asked.
Dai Dehai smashed the tea bowl on the table with one palm, and suddenly stared at Dai Deqing fiercely like a hungry wolf.
However, he was stopped by a slight cough from his father. Although his teeth were clenched and his cheeks were beating constantly, he slowly sat back down.
"This matter may not have started because of Lao Shiba. Xu Qin just used him as a bargaining chip to blackmail us. Even if Lao Shiba said it, Xu Qin might not be able to let Zheng He go."
The old man coughed and then spoke. He didn't believe that Xu Qin was so capable that he could let Zheng He take the fleet that sailed to the West to deviate from the course and make a special trip.
"It's not just our family that is unlucky, the guys in Fujian and Guangdong are also unlucky. Who knows why Zheng He suddenly changed his course. That was not the place he should have gone."
Dai Dehai said gloomily.
Dai Deqing sneered, explaining that he had a guilty conscience. The brother is now weak. How could he have said such cowardly words before?
You might be able to take advantage of this opportunity to kill him, but you will need the cooperation of the young Duke. At this time, Deqing had other thoughts.
"Without the boat and those things, I'm afraid the big names in the south will no longer be friends with us. Those Japanese pirates will also come back to bite us."
The old man analyzed the current situation.
Dai Dehai looked ugly after hearing this.
"In fact, nothing has changed. The Japanese pirates have to be eliminated in the first place, and we are not afraid of them showing their teeth. If we don't have a fleet of our own, we can borrow chickens to lay eggs."
Dai Deqing talked eloquently, as if he had pearls of wisdom in his hand.
"How can we borrow a chicken to lay eggs? There is no ship, no cargo, and we can't reach Japan. Which chicken should we use to lay eggs?"
Dai Dehai glared at Dai Deqing coldly.
"Sea Fan Division..." Dai Deqing responded calmly.
Dai Dehai was stunned, what was that? He had just come back from outside, so naturally he didn't know what was going on in the court.
But the old man understood.
"You mean the chief officer of Haifan Division will be Xu Qin?" He immediately thought of the key.
"Yes, Mr. Xia, who is with Xu Qin, has clearly told me the news. The imperial edict will be issued as soon as the office is opened.
Moreover, he also promised to find me an official position in the Maritime and Maritime Affairs Department. I would be able to choose between shipping, inspection, shipyard, and nuclear power stations. "
Dai Deqing said confidently.
The old man's eyes were bright, and he actually stood up with the help of the moist and beautiful woman.
"Okay, it's a good idea. In a few years, Haifansi will be another salt class manager. By then, there will be many ships to Japan."
The old man said excitedly.
"So, now we need to hand over the Japanese pirates to Xu Qin and let him secure his position. The Japanese trade is a fat piece of meat. He doesn't need us to push it deliberately. He will be anxious on his own."
Dai Deqing said easily, looking at Dai Dehai's expression, he felt extremely happy.
"Do it well, and all the resources in the family are at your disposal." The old man patted his shoulder happily.
Dai Deqing was so excited that he almost jumped up on the spot. This is unprecedented treatment.
When Dai Deqing left, Dai Dehai was completely depressed. He was just holding on. The competition between these brothers is brutal.
If you show any signs of weakness, you will be ruthlessly dealt with and even killed. The cruelty he dealt with Dai Demin is likely to happen to him again.
"Father..." Dai Dehai spoke weakly, almost in a pleading voice.
"The loss of the fleet is not entirely your responsibility, but after all, something happened to you, so you will inevitably have to endure hardship. There must be a shortage of people in the establishment of Haifan Division, so you can become a crew member."
The old man said softly, and sent away his once indispensable son. Whether he can make a comeback depends on his own consciousness and knowledge.
"Haifansi..." Dai Dehai's eyes finally became a little brighter.
He quickly understood what his father meant.
The entire Yingtian Mansion was discussing what they saw and heard in the palace during the Shangyuan Festival. It was said that the palace was like a fairyland that night.
Especially the magnificent fireworks, people talk about it. It is said that half of Nanjing saw it.
There are also many people who don't know the truth and worship the palace, thinking it is an auspicious miracle.
What is even more interesting is that a censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the niece of Yang Shiqi, the chief minister of the dynasty, took each other's lantern riddles.
The only couple among thousands of people, it was Yue Lao who pulled the red rope himself. It is said that Yang Shiqi has invited the censor to his home to enjoy the lanterns.
Both parties are very satisfied and are ready to talk about marriage. It became a good talk for a while.
Of course, there are many unsatisfactory things under this beautiful talk. For example, a talented man fell in love with a businessman's daughter, but immediately backed down after asking about it.
It's obvious that he looks down on other people's origins.
But there are also good things. The son of a merchant fell in love with the concubine daughter of a third-rank official. The merchant couldn't bear it, but the son cried and made a fuss, so he tremblingly asked someone to inquire.
Unexpectedly, she turned out to be interested, and then they got engaged quickly after opening the door with a generous gift.
After the Lantern Festival, while everyone was fine, the female relatives of each family moved around quickly, especially the mahjong game in Zhaixinglou.
Young ladies and romantic talents were matched up in pairs, some were attracted to them, others were not. The Shangyuan Festival hosted by Xu Qin finally turned into a blind date conference.
The brothel bully has become Yuelao. Of course, no one said anything good about him, and everyone blamed Zhu Di for it.
The civil and military officials of the entire court thanked Your Majesty for solving the marriage problems of these young men and women of the right age. During the Lantern Festival, the red luan and stars move, creating a good mood.
Normally, these court officials don't have time to arrange their children's marriages. Now, with the help of the Lantern Festival, they can meet door-to-door and discuss it if they are satisfied.
If you are dissatisfied, it won't hurt your friendship. The words of the parents and the matchmaker finally became looser and freer. Many people are already looking forward to next year’s Lantern Festival.
Zhu Di happily became a god. Although Yuelao's status was not high, he was a good god after all.
"Where's Xu Qin?" Zhu Di asked happily about the initiator.
"Your Majesty, it is said that he fell ill that day. He is still lying at home." Wang Zhong said.
"Well, I didn't think he was good that day. It was hard enough and I asked the Tai Hospital to send someone to take a look." Zhu Di lamented that he actually made this child sick.
Little did he know that it was Xu Qin who had a bad mouth and insisted on kissing the little princess and got infected.
When the imperial doctor came, Xu Qin was already well. Although I still have a bit of a nasal sound, everything I eat tastes delicious.
"When I go back and report to Your Majesty, I say that I am very ill and cannot recover without cannons, gunpowder and ships." Xu Qin was talking nonsense to the imperial doctor.
"Just a cup of Bupleurum Soup will be fine. As for those things, I don't need to look at them anymore."
The old doctor was not afraid of him at all. He was the one who operated on Xu Huizu.
Xu Huizu was greeted with courtesy. Life-saving grace was no joke these days.
"Mr. Hu, don't listen to his nonsense. It's rare for you to come to Duke Wei's mansion, so don't leave. I'll have two drinks with you at noon."
Wei Guogong said next to him.
"Forget it about drinking, we still can't leave the palace. But if you have any extra hot pot ingredients, can you give me some? Also, the face towel that the young prince brought is said to be able to block the wind and cold. I don't know..."
The old doctor said.
"Yes, yes..." Wei Guogong Xu Huizu said politely.
Xu Qin was very angry. I recovered and you came. They took so many things from my house without doing anything.
Needless to say, masks are something that this thief from home is thinking about.
"Little Duke, this scarf can really cut off the wind and cold?" the old doctor asked thoughtfully.
"Complete isolation is unlikely, but it can always be 70% to 80% effective. If both parties are wearing it, it should be possible," Xu Qin said.
The old doctor took away the mask from Xu Qin's home, as well as how to make the mask. But when beaten to death, they call them face masks and say masks don’t sound good.
