I heard that you can earn 300 silver coins by killing a Tatar soldier. Although only 60% or even 30% will go to you, it is still high enough.
Almost no employer in Europe can offer such a high reward. The Eastern world is indeed incredibly magical. It is not an exaggeration to describe it as being filled with gold.
Captain van der Williams, Captain Haken Meyer, and Captain Victor Ghazi heard the price offered by the Ming Crown Prince and looked at each other. They all saw and understood what the other party meant.
This deal must be done!
Although it is unclear how effective the Tatar soldiers are in combat, as long as they kill ten enemies, they can earn nearly a thousand silver coins at least.
Even after working hard for the East India Company for five or six years, he might not have made so much money. In comparison, he was almost wasting his precious time before.
"You can choose weapons and equipment as you like. I will send someone to pick up a Tatar prisoner. He will arrive in a moment. You can compete soon. If you win, this bag of silver coins will be yours. Otherwise..."
"I won't lose!"
Hans Bruck responded categorically that he was here to make money. If he couldn't make money, wouldn't it be in vain?
For the sake of wine, meat, women, and a better life, no one can stop him from making money!
"Confidence is a good thing, but you must let your strength speak for itself on the battlefield. This is your battlefield for the time being. I will wait and see your performance!"
A certain prince believed that the combat effectiveness of mercenaries was no worse than that of any regular army. Especially in this era, the management methods of many armies were not standardized compared to those of later generations.
This means that the most primitive way to drive soldiers to fight-money!
Humans are inherently material animals, and soldiers are even more so.
Most soldiers serve not only to earn a living, but also to make money!
With money, there is motivation to fight.
On the contrary, it is almost the same as many Ming army troops.
"Did you eat?"
"Breakfast is over!"
"If you feel hungry again, you can go and eat some. You can eat, drink and rest as you like before your opponent arrives here!"
"Thank you, Your Highness!"
A certain prince asked Zheng Zhilong to lead the four people, accompanied by Yang Jinchao, to a nearby side room for dinner.
There is no need to cook special meals for these people, and there is no time. Just the leftover food from last night, plus pastries and some hot water.
But for the four mercenaries, this was simply the most delicious food they had ever eaten. The taste was beyond imagination.
It would have been better if he had some wine, but Hans Brooke was going to have a fighting contest soon, so it was inconvenient to drink.
It's not that Brooke doesn't drink well, it's just that he was too embarrassed to ask the prince of the Ming Empire for a drink before he won.
Barbarians!
Barbarians!
Yang Jinchao looked at the four Hongyi who were devouring their food with an expressionless expression, feeling extremely contemptuous in his heart.
If the little master didn't want to control this kind of red barbarian, he wouldn't even feed the leftovers to the dog.
"Ai Qing has given me more than three hundred such elite mercenaries, so I must give you a gift in return!"
"This is a matter within my responsibilities as a minister. You must not ask for anything else!"
Zheng Zhilong presented these Red Yi soldiers as a New Year's gift to the Crown Prince. He had no hope of receiving a gift in return, and he did not dare to take the initiative to ask for it.
"I have prepared for Aiqing a long time ago. Aiqing led his troops to attack Dongfan. He has worked hard and achieved great results. He will also attack Luzon in the future, and the consumption of men and horses is extraordinary. This gift is a gift from me to Aiqing. My beloved, you can order him to fight as much as you like."
"this……"
"Without him, in the previous defense battle of the capital, the King's Division captured more than 5,000 Donglu armored soldiers. After taking into account the serious injuries and disabilities, as well as those who died of injuries and diseases, there were still 4,000. All of them were soldiers who had followed Taiji, the leader of the captives, for many years. The soldiers are brave and good at fighting, but I don't want to let them go back to the mountains. The generals, captains, soldiers, and establishments are all ready-made. When they arrive in Fujian, these Donglu will be armed. The Donglu don't know how to swim. To fight on the island, we can only rely on battleships for supplies. Aiqing is under strict supervision, but this department can do something. How to use it, I cannot interfere with it, and it is all commanded by Aiqing. These people are considered slaves, and Aiqing will be among them in the future. Master, the power of life and death rests with Aiqing."
Return to Liaodong?
Go ahead and dream!
Even if you die of heat in the Philippines, I won't let you go back!
"I thank His Highness for His grace, and I will take back Dongfang for Your Highness!"
Of course Zheng Zhilong knew the combat effectiveness of the Donglu armored soldiers. The naval battle was not as good as his own troops, but the land battle was quite powerful.
With these four thousand people, he can send them to charge into battle for him when he fights Hongyi in the future.
"Okay, there's no need for this!"
"Your Highness, if they are slaves, they must be bought and sold. I am willing to invest one million taels to buy all these four thousand slaves!"
The prince said it was a return gift, which meant that Zheng Zhilong owed a huge favor.
According to the price of a Donglu, which is two hundred taels of silver, four thousand people are also worth eight hundred thousand taels of silver.
What's more, there are generals and captains inside. If you include these parts, the price tag is one million taels, which is not an exaggeration in the slightest.
"I appreciate Aiqing's kindness, but I don't want to sell it to Aiqing. I just treat it as a return gift!"
"Your Highness must not do this. I know that it was very expensive to fight against the Donglu siege before. I have no way to repay you, so I can only do my meager efforts. I hope your Highness will do it!"
"Well..."
"I still have something on my mind!"
“I love you, but it’s okay to say so!”
"I dare to ask Your Highness to help me train five thousand elite land division officers and soldiers!"
Zheng Zhilong originally wanted to see the more than a thousand direct descendants before talking about military training, but then he thought, he had to find another opportunity to mention it, so it would be more convenient to ask for instructions here.
"It's not difficult, I love you, you can rest assured. Let's do this. In return for your loyalty, I will reward you with another 10,000 boxes of special refreshing medicine. I can't take your money in vain."
Vaseline is a by-product of petroleum. As long as the Yanchang Oilfield is not destroyed, the raw materials for making Vaseline can be continuously produced and then transported to the capital.
Ever since a certain prince ordered the large-scale development of the Yanchang Oilfield, this place has overtaken the Weihe Plain and become Shaanxi's number one source of tax revenue.
Last year, a certain prince purchased 200,000 barrels of oil from the oil field in the name of Imperial Oil Company, worth one million taels of silver.
It is expected that the purchase volume will double this year due to the large-scale sales and export of new oil lamps and their military applications.
There are two ways to transport oil from Shaanxi to the capital. One is to cross the Yellow River, the boundary river between Shanxi and Shaanxi, and go to Beizhili via Shanxi.
The other one goes down the river, passes through Henan, reaches Shandong, then enters the canal and reaches the capital.
However, when the Yellow River is cut off, water transportation is not feasible and all transportation must be carried out by land.
The interruption of the Yellow River is not entirely a bad thing. At least we can take advantage of this opportunity to install cableways in areas where the river is narrower.
Iron towers are erected on both sides, with steel cables connected in the middle. Two towers form a pair, and two pairs form a group.
In this way, a pair with high west and low east can slide the oil from Shaanxi across the river to the border of Shanxi.
On the contrary, the returned empty barrels can be sent from Shanxi to Shaanxi for refilling without shipping.
This project plays a decisive role in bringing together the economic development of the two places. Therefore, under the joint promotion of Shaanxi Governor Zuo Maodi and Shanxi Governor Cai Maode, ten sets of ropeways were built in just two months.
Under good weather conditions, each group of ropeways can transport more than a thousand times to the opposite shore. One barrel at a time, ten groups can transport ten thousand times, even exceeding the scale of shipping.
Only after the oil field production capacity is gradually increased, the role of the ropeway will be truly demonstrated.
Therefore, as a large amount of oil was transported to the capital, a certain prince could now easily take out tens of thousands of boxes of Shushuang to reward Zheng Zhilong.
The cost of ten thousand boxes or ten thousand kilograms of Shushuang is less than five thousand taels of silver. This reward is really a bargain.
"Thank you for the reward, Your Highness, I am deeply grateful!"
This batch of special medicine alone is worth a million taels of silver, which is equivalent to getting four thousand Donglu armored soldiers for free.
Zheng Zhilong was so happy that he could sell the medicine later. Doing business with the prince was indeed profitable.
Ten thousand boxes of Shushuang were given as a reward, and the prince spent generously, which made Zheng Zhilong feel extremely happy.
"There is no need to be so polite. Aiqing has regained the lost territory for the Ming Dynasty. Naturally, I can't let Aiqing lose money, let alone feel cold! Anyone who was injured in the battle in Dongfan can be sent to the capital for treatment. The medicine used will be provided by me. The full amount will be paid, and Aiqing only needs to pay for his bed and food."
At present, Zheng Zhilong is the most relied-upon partner of a certain prince, because the money earned by the Dutch from maritime trade will not be distributed to him, but the prince has a way to take out the money in Zheng Zhilong's pocket.
Shushuang has a large production volume, but a certain prince has no intention of selling it at a reduced price. Wounded soldiers in the battle can enjoy free trial treatment. If the rich want to buy it, they must spend real money.
Why should the price of the only medicine in the world be reduced? ? ?
I will use this thing to jam you to death!
"I treat the wounded soldiers, thank you for your kindness, Your Highness!"
Compared with the capital city, which is crowded with names, the ability of local doctors in Fujian is really limited. Even if many injured people take special medicine like Shushuang, they can only save their lives. It is a helpless move to become disabled.
Zheng Zhilong adopted Zheng Zhiwan's suggestion and sent all the wounded soldiers who could not be treated locally to the capital, and then returned to their hometown after they recovered.
"After the cold weather, the production of sulfonamides increased. This time, I will reward Aiqing with one hundred kilograms of this medicine, plus twenty bottles of true spirit!"
It's really a rebate for big customers. Others definitely don't have this treatment, and they don't even have the qualifications to listen.
Each box of Shushuang sells for 200 taels of silver, and the price of sulfa is as high as 500 taels.
The true spirit, that is, penicillin, has only been sold in small quantities, and must be used clinically, and is not allowed to be stored privately!
Either give it to Zheng Zhilong for free, or treat seriously injured people in an army hospital.
Ordinary people want to buy?
Then take ten thousand taels of silver first!
If you think your life is worth ten thousand taels of silver, then apply.
On the contrary, you can just leave it to fate and no one will stop you from dying!
"Thank you, Your Highness, for the medicine. It is truly a blessing to our officers and men!"
Now Zheng Zhilong was satisfied. The total price of so many special medicines far exceeded one million taels of silver. After a rough calculation, he had made a profit.
It was really a wise move to bid for these Donglu just now. If something similar happens in the future, we will continue to do so.
Calculated based on selling price, the total price of these three medicines is as high as 2.25 million taels of silver.
Of course, the cost is not even 50,000 taels, but what counts now is not the cost, but the sales and use value.
Zheng Zhilong can naturally guess the profit based on its scale, but without relevant technology, it is absolutely impossible to create a special medicine.
Even if I explain it to him and send him the drawings, Uncle Zhenhai can't understand it. For example, he can just reward him with some finished products.
With one million taels of silver, I bought more than two million taels of special medicine, supplemented by four thousand braided soldiers. Isn't it a great deal?
"If these medicines can save the lives of the injured soldiers, I will be very pleased. Enter the court and bring over the revolver on the table!"
"yes!"
"My dear, this is the latest self-defense weapon developed by Ouchi. It adopts breech loading method and does not require the use of an open flame. After loading, you can fire bullets by pulling the trigger, six rounds in a row, which is extremely convenient."
"Thank you for the reward, Your Highness!"
Zheng Zhilong was still hesitant when he saw the strange appearance of these firearms and didn't know how powerful they were. But after hearing the introduction from the prince, he suddenly felt how powerful this thing was.
When I got it in my hand and played with it, I saw the exquisiteness of it. The workmanship was excellent and the mechanism was very clever. It was a work of miraculous craftsmanship. Zheng Zhilong fell in love with it immediately.
"Successful has already learned how to use it specifically. After Aiqing understands it, you can compete with Shengsheng in shooting skills."
Because of their effective fighting in the capital and their great contributions, a certain prince had already awarded Zheng Chenggong and Zheng Shengying a revolver each.
But there are also prerequisites. First, you cannot lose your gun at any time or anywhere. Second, you are not allowed to open fire on Akira.
The two boys naturally agreed wholeheartedly and carried it with them as a compliment. They slung it around their waists and showed it off everywhere.
"Yes, yes! Your Highness is wise, and I will live up to the divine grace!"
Zheng Zhilong had carefully looked at his son's gun, but since it was a gift from the Crown Prince, he couldn't take it for himself, so he could only ask for one at the right time. Now he just followed his wish.
"Your Highness, I have brought Donglu!"
"Okay! Please help me by inviting the Dutch mercenaries!"
"yes!"
Fang Zhenghua brought three Donglu soldiers. They were not too tall, the tallest was only 1.7 meters. The other two were around 165, but they were extremely strong, otherwise they would not be able to fight in armor.
"Can you speak fluent English?"
"..."
"Tell them that if they kill Hongyi, they will be released and given war horses, food, and roads, so that they can return to Liaodong safely!"
"yes!"
After the translator spoke, the three Donglu soldiers all showed their desire to survive in their eyes.
"One against one, those who haven't eaten can eat first. I won't let them fight on an empty stomach!"
Even if this is a meal on the road, they are not given as good treatment as the mercenaries. Each person has a snack, a bowl of hot porridge, and two taels of cooked meat.
"Hans, you have the right to choose your enemies!"
"Okay, Your Highness, I will choose the tallest one!"
"Okay, let's choose weapons and armor!"
Hans Bruck, who was full of food and drink, looked at the short enemy and picked out a hammer, a small shield and a set of chain mail jackets.
According to Fang Zhenghua's introduction, the selected Donglu was not a good person. He was considered the most elite Bagara in the Donglu, and his combat power was extraordinary.
This Bajala put on his standard cotton armor and picked an extremely sharp waist knife as a weapon to kill the enemy.
The courtyard is very large, and is surrounded by masters from the inner factory and the Dongchang sect members who are responsible for escorting prisoners.
Coupled with the revolver for self-defense and the lack of hidden weapons on the other side, a certain prince was not afraid that these pigtails would assassinate him.
At this time, the Second Assistant Wu Zong, the Minister of Rites Feng Quan, the Minister of War Wang Jiayan and others who were in the Military Aircraft Department received a phone call and came to watch the excitement. Even during the Chinese New Year, the Military Aircraft Department had to have ministers on duty.
They all know that the prince has sent Western warlocks back to Europe to recruit mercenaries, but there is still doubt about the strength of the red barbarian mercenaries. Hearing is not as good as seeing, and seeing is necessary.
"Hmph!"
"Why are you laughing, Your Highness?"
"This guy named Hans is a master!"
"Oh? I wonder how His Highness found out?"
"In the West, anyone who is good at using a hammer is a master! Don't look at this Donglu wearing cotton armor, which can protect the whole body. A hammer is a weapon that can break armor through blunt blows. After it is hammered, it will not be visible on the surface, but in fact it will Internal injuries. In mild cases, the skin and flesh may be swollen and painful, in severe cases, the bones may be broken and the internal organs may be broken.”
How many people can bear the weight of a big man like this, who is 1.9 meters tall, if he hits you with a hammer?
Not to mention fighting on foot, even if you fight on horseback, the opponent can knock you off your horse with a large hammer!
