After the fleet commanded by Zheng Zhiwan returned home, it brought a problem to everyone in Chongguo, that is, when they came out to mine, they had to walk back without a boat to ride on.
Except for a very few people with horses such as King Chong Zhu Youfan, King Huai'an Zhu Youza, and King Heyang Zhu Youcai, including two thousand miners, others must "start with a single step."
But the miners were very happy. In less than 2,000 yuan, they had earned five taels of silver. Although they had not received the silver yet, since King Chong had spoken, he must have spoken the truth and would not regret it.
Apart from being relatively desolate and having to build their own houses, the new fiefdom was better than the mainland, especially the fish and meat they could eat. It was like a dream.
Many people can't get a trace of meat in their mouths all year round, but they can be so excited that they shed tears when they can catch a big fish all at once.
Henan is a disaster area, and suffers from disasters all year round. The court does not provide adequate support, and the price of food is as high as sixty-seven taels of silver per stone. The money earned by the craftsmen's hard work is not enough to feed the whole family, so there is no money left to buy meat.
Earning two taels of silver a month is a lot, but it only amounts to fifty kilograms of rice. After eating, the whole family will have nothing left. Life is tight and they can't have enough to eat.
There are still people bidding for this job, and it would be nice if the other party gives me a tael or two of silver. I have to thank God for treating my employer as a real parent who provides food and clothing.
Low wages and high food prices. Driven by this abnormal dependence, coupled with constant natural disasters and crop failures, more and more farmers have become victims of disasters.
Most of the craftsmen lived in the city, but they had no choice but to follow King Chong to the capital. At least it was at the feet of the emperor and not as miserable as the Central Plains.
They never expected that after leaving their hometown and arriving in a new fiefdom, they would live a good life without worrying about food. Most craftsmen and their families would not even dare to think about it.
They had never heard of such a place overseas, and only after seeing it with their own eyes did they begin to believe it. After seeing the fertile land on the island, everyone regarded Kamchatka Peninsula as a paradise.
"Order the boatmen to quickly repair the damaged boats so that they can go out to sea to catch seafood as soon as possible!"
"Yes! Your Majesty!"
After seeing off the fleet and appeasing the miners, Chongwang Zhu Youfan focused on repairing the ships. The ships Zheng Zhiwan gave him were food items, so there must be no mistakes.
After an inventory, it was found that there were six large ships, seventeen medium ships, and twenty-eight small ships, for a total of fifty-one. These were ready-made fishing boats, which were much faster than building them by yourself.
On average, a boat catches 200 kilograms of seafood a day, and the fleet's total catch can reach more than 10,000 kilograms. After excluding the portion distributed to the people of Chongguo, some can still be saved.
Zhu Youqi's initial plan was to catch one day's supply so that the Zimins could eat it for one day, and he would save another day's supply for winter consumption. It would be great if he could save it for two days or even longer.
As long as the weather permits, sea fishing cannot stop for a day, otherwise the people will quickly consume the meat they have finally saved.
Zhu Youqi attaches great importance to his fishing fleet. When he comes back from the mining area, the first thing he does is to see what the harvest is like today.
The fleet did not load the people and return from the mining area, but went directly to fish. After all, fish were much more important than people at this time.
Using precious fishing boats to transport miners home, thus delaying half a day, seemed to Zhu Youfan to be a huge waste.
"Your Highness, this time we go to sea, the fleet will catch more than 7,200 jins of fish, more than 1,100 jins of crabs, more than 1,500 jins of shrimps, and more than 3,200 jins of shellfish, totaling more than 13,000 jins. Thousands of catties.”
"Good! Very good!"
Although shelled seafood accounts for nearly half of the weight, after Zheng Zhiwan's fleet left, the sea catch could still exceed 10,000 kilograms, which made Zhu Youqi very happy.
"I am ordering you to give a pound of fish to people, and give each household a crab, a shrimp, and two shells!"
"yes!"
Fish can be dried into dried fish, but it is difficult to do so with shelled fish. Once dried into dried meat, it can only be made into soup. Obviously, freshly caught seafood is more suitable for stewing and steaming to make dried meat. wasted.
The sea fishing team can achieve such excellent results, which is inseparable from the generous treatment provided by Zhu Youfan.
First of all, each member of the fishing team gets a commission based on the catch of each boat.
If a boat catches a thousand kilograms of seafood, if it is divided equally among ten crew members, each person can catch a hundred kilograms.
Each catty of seafood is worth one yuan, and one hundred catties is one hundred yuan.
It looks very high, but you can’t go out to sea every day.
If you can go to sea for twenty days a month, you can only earn two taels of silver a month.
But in addition to this, there is also the added bonus that when dining at sea, the crew can eat seafood, as long as it is not too much.
Then there are the standards for people on the shore to receive seafood, and the crew can also enjoy it.
You can make money, eat, and receive meat. This job is like three things in one.
Yu Min, who came from Runing, had never seen such a good job and such a high catch.
Almost all the rivers in the Central Plains area have stopped flowing, and all Yumin in the Runing area are unemployed.
Either he would go to the capital with Prince Chong or Prince Runing, or he would become a hungry wanderer and die miserably.
Under natural disasters, craftsmen still have to make ends meet.
The river flow has stopped and the crops have failed, making it difficult for the fishermen to survive for a day.
Yu Min, who came to Kamchatka Peninsula with King Chong Zhu Youfan, had been in this situation before.
The sea is very rough and rough, and due to its vastness, fishing boats cannot dock in time, making fishing far more dangerous than inland rivers.
But the fishermen are all good at water and have good water skills. They fish in teams, so they can protect each other and minimize the risk.
Zhu Youmin gave each Yumin leather clothes to keep out the wind and cold.
In Chongguo, no matter what kind of work, as long as one person is lost, it is one less person, and it will be difficult to replace it in the short term.
Based on this, Zhu Youfan paid special attention to Yu Min in the fleet and provided everyone with a batch of clothes free of charge.
As long as there is no large loss of fish stocks, the fleet can go fishing in groups when the weather is good.
With a large supply of seafood, everyone in Chongguo will have peace of mind. The current fleet is Chongguo's safety guarantee.
In addition to ship repair and shipbuilding, Zhu Youfan also made a list for Zheng Zhiwan, who had left Chongguo before.
It listed in detail the names and quantities of the items he wanted to buy. As long as Zheng Zhiwan could deliver them to Chongguo next time, he would accept them all.
The purchase price is definitely higher than that in the Ming Dynasty, but this can be regarded as a benefit to Zheng Zhiwan, and the trip cannot be in vain.
Although Zheng Zhiwan has made a lot of money from the sulfur business, one yard is the same and cannot be compared.
When both sides make money, people are willing to take their fleets to travel such long distances to deliver goods.
If Chongguo wants to develop, it depends entirely on the tools provided by the local people. Without this prerequisite, life will be much more difficult.
Zhu Youfan also wanted Zheng Zhiwan to bring him dozens of large and medium-sized fishing boats next time, and the price would naturally be very generous.
If you rely solely on small fishing boats, you can only operate offshore and cannot fish far away from the shore.
Moreover, the larger the hull, the stronger the ability to withstand wind and waves, and the higher the level of safety, which can effectively reduce losses.
Whether Zheng Zhiwan robs or buys it, if he can bring the ship to Chongguo, Zhu Youfan will buy it all at a high price.
The boatmen brought to Kamchatka this time can build medium-sized ships, but the cycle is too long and they will have to wait until next year to build and launch them.
The distant water cannot quench the near thirst, so Zhu Youqi can only ask them to build some small boats first, and they must get into the water as soon as possible to fish in order to generate returns.
On the list listed by Zhu Youqi, there are boats, nets, cages, ropes, harpoons, and even ballistae. In short, anything related to fishing will appear on it.
Ballistas are used to hunt whales, but Zheng Zhiwan's fleet was already satisfied with catching fish, so they didn't attack the big guys in the sea.
The fleet that Zhu Youzhi had just formed was small in scale, and most of the crew members were inland river fishermen. Let alone whaling, they had never even seen a whale. After seeing the real thing, he was so scared that he knelt on the boat and kowtowed to the whale...
Due to the large size of the prey and the inexperience of the crew, Zhu Youzhen really couldn't afford to lose the fishing boat and manpower, so he had to give up for the time being, but he still had to buy the ballista, at least to prepare for going out to sea to hunt whales in the future.
At night, the Sublime City is naturally dark, with only a little bit of faint firelight visible. Most people go to bed after sunset.
Those who could light oil lamps were numerous wealthy households, including the feudal lord Zhu Youzhen and his family.
Zhu Youfan used a new oil lamp that the prince imitated from the fairy world, which could clearly illuminate the situation in the tent.
In order to be able to use it for a long time, Zhu Youfan specially sent people to purchase enough lamp oil for him to use for a year.
Every night, the main personnel under Zhu Youfan would report to the vassal king the relevant situations that occurred during the day.
The chief bookkeeper is in charge of the accounts, the general is in charge of the soldiers, and the military advisor is in charge of making plans.
Zhu Youfan followed the advice of a certain prince and had no plans to open a mansion immediately.
A certain prince once said that the cabinet and ministries are institutions that decentralize power from those in power.
Only when power is highly concentrated can it be most effective.
At the beginning of the establishment of the vassal state, as long as you follow the steps, there will be no big problems.
The main thing is to manage money, food, and soldiers well, and treat the people who come with you well, then you can develop with peace of mind.
For the confidants around him, Zhu Youqi provided them with very good treatment.
Civil and military officials have grades and monthly salaries, and additional rewards for meritorious service.
These people lived in the first batch of wooden houses built.
In terms of food, each person can receive two fish, two crabs, six prawns, and twenty mussels every day, plus three kilograms of grain, not counting wild vegetables and animal meat.
The family can have a seafood feast every day. This kind of treatment is something that few vassal kings can provide in the mainland, so the confidants who have no worries are willing to work for Zhu Youfan.
Seafood is already regarded as Zhu Youfan's best and cheapest way to win people's hearts. There is nothing that makes him feel more physically and mentally happy than being able to eat a big crab by himself.
As long as his subordinates work diligently and down-to-earth, Zhu Youfan can provide each of his capable subordinates with ingredients for a seafood dinner every day, which can be enjoyed by just steaming it in the pot.
Eating crabs until you burp is something that may only be heard as a story in other places. But in Chongguo, a country rich in seafood, this is a common reality.
"Mother! Mother! I'm back!"
Guo Dabao, who came back from the fleet, shouted loudly as soon as he arrived in front of his shack.
"Dabao is back!"
An old woman with a wrinkled face was lying on the wooden bed, half of her head sticking out of her coat, and replied feebly.
This is Guo Dabao's biological mother, Mrs. Liu. She was originally quite healthy, but perhaps because of the acclimatization, she fell ill when she came to Kamchatka.
Fortunately, his daughter-in-law Zhang took care of him, so his condition did not worsen. However, he could not work immediately and could only lie down and rest.
Guo Dabao is a fisherman. As long as the weather is good, he must go to sea, otherwise the whole family will have no income.
The fishing team performed well today, and the prince was so pleased that he rewarded everyone with a pile of seafood.
Guo Dabao is a filial son, so he naturally uses these seafood to replenish his mother's health.
Their family of three can receive a fish weighing three pounds, plus a crab, a prawn and two mussels.
Crabs are cold in nature and cannot be eaten by patients, so the couple ate all the crabs in shells, leaving Liu to eat the fish herself.
Poor people are not so particular. They just put all the seafood in the pot, add some wild vegetables picked by the neighbors, and stew it in sea water until it is cooked.
After dinner, Guo Dabao had to go to the nearby area to cut down trees before dark to strengthen the shack and block the wind. Otherwise, his mother would be blown by the wind and break.
It will take at least a month for the wooden house to be built. Until then, the shack made of tree trunks is the only place to live, although you can still feel the draft at night.
Guo Dabao tried his best to prick the area near his mother as densely as possible. It didn't matter to them as a couple. The young man was in good health, and after heating the stone, it could keep him warm all night and it would still be warm at dawn.
Not only them, but even families with two carpenters are in such a difficult situation. Every household relies on hot stones for heating at night...
Usually a family is lying in a simple shack made of wood, with a bed made of a pile of wooden rafts inside, and the beds are covered with heated stones.
The food standard is very good, but the accommodation conditions are very poor.
Those who can live in tents are the upper class. The heating appliance is just a stove, which is similar to burning stones. The principle is the same.
The only advantage of Kamchatka is that there is a lot of wood here. As long as you can carry it, you can cut it casually, and the people will not be frozen due to lack of firewood.
Now everyone in Chongguo spends the night like this. After eating and drinking, they go to the wooden bed and enjoy the remaining warmth of the hot stones.
If you have a wife, you can hug your wife.
If you don’t have a wife, you can hug a stone...
Although the women in wealthy families are not used to living such a hard life, they still have to live it. Returning to their homeland is impossible.
If you persist for a month, the wooden house will be built and you can move in at that time.
If you don't want to live in a tent now, you can only live in a hole in the ground.
A wooden bed must also be placed in the hole and covered with hot stones...
Except that they don't wear hair and drink blood, they are almost the same as indigenous savages.
It is okay to miss the Ming Dynasty, but it will not have any practical effect.
Unlike some pampered people, the people didn't complain much, at least they wouldn't starve to death here.
To them, that's all that matters.
The weather in the mainland is warm, but without food, what good is the light and warmth?
Guo Dabao felt sad when he thought of his father who died fighting for fish with other fishermen.
If he could have come here earlier, his father would not have died because of this.
He came to the Northland just to survive. As long as he could survive, he would endure any hardship.
