"Three points are destined, seven points depend on hard work, and only if you love hard work will you win..."
Guangzhou Chengtianfu, on the Tianzi Pier, the military song is loud!
The weather today is not very good, the autumn rain has fallen mist, and there is still some wind and waves on the Pearl River. However, in the midst of this storm, the morale of the officers and soldiers of the Army's Second and Seventh Towns was high as they embarked on the journey singing the "vernacular military song" "You Will Win If You Fight Hard". The people of Guangzhou, organized by the original Confucian school, cheered hoarsely in the distance while waving the sun and moon as the bright flag, the world as the public flag, the human world's Datong flag, and the newly-appeared Taitian Xingdao flag - this is the new flag. The flag of the established Nanyang Trading Company!
Currently moored at the Tianzi Pier are several brand new "Great Eastern" class armed merchant ships. They all fly the blue flag of the world and the flag of Datong in the World, which are the military flags of the Ming Dynasty Navy.
The galley warship of Nanyang Trading Company, flying the flag of Taitianxingdao, was cruising further on the Pearl River, waiting for the transport fleet to be loaded.
In fact, the newly launched Nanyang Trading Company does not have its own fleet. The warships now under the banner of Taitian Xingdao are also the property of the Ming Navy.
The reason why the warships of the Ming Navy were allowed to carry the banner of the Nanyang Trading Company was, of course, to allow them to act as the main force in the next battle with the Dutch and Spanish... The Dutch and Spanish were flying under the banner of the Nanyang Trading Company. Isn't it that the Qing Dynasty's Longqi went to war just to avoid a complete break with the new Ming Dynasty?
Then Zhu Heji followed suit and let the Ming warships fly under the flag of the Nanyang Trading Company. If the Dutch and Spanish recognized this rule, they would see this in the future off the coast of Batavia and Manila. Face to face the flag of Tianxingdao!
In the corner of Tianzi Pier, there is a newly built pavilion. Zhu Heji, who is in yellow clothes and yellow scarf, is sitting in it with a golden sword. He is saying goodbye to a group of Guangdong elders who came to see him off. In the pavilion, except for him and these people A group of elders, as well as Qiu Hui, Eunuch Pang, Mr. Yu, Mr. Guo, and a group of young men and women wearing blue cross-collar cloth and black scarves on their heads, all carrying baggage, crying. Like a tearful person.
An old man dressed as a member of the Communist Party of China, holding a long box in his hand, walked up to Zhu Heji and was about to kneel down. Zhu Heji quickly stretched out his hand to help him, "Uncle, don't kneel down. We have a new era in the Ming Dynasty, and we don't want to do this anymore."
Mr. Yu beside him smiled and said: "Qizai, this is Su Abo from Foshan. His family has been a furnace owner for generations. His youngest son Su Zhe will also join the army in the Northern Expedition."
"Oh." Zhu Heji smiled and nodded, "Uncle Su, are the refractory bricks and crucible still useful?"
"It's easy to use, easy to use, so easy to use! Saint, look at this..."
As Su Abo spoke, he opened the box. Inside was a flintlock musket about four feet long and a steel sleeve bayonet more than one foot long.
"Good gun, good knife..." Zhu Heji took out the musket inside and looked at it carefully, and then took out the polished bayonet inside. He couldn't help but praise a few times, his face full of emotions. With a joyful expression, "Abo, is this made of iron smelted in a white stone furnace and a graphite crucible?"
"That's right, but saint, that's not iron, that's steel! The whole pot is made of steel!" After speaking, Old Man Su knelt down to Zhu Heji again, "Sage, you'd better accept my words. Goodbye, you are the founder of our Foshan Iron Industry!
The little old man's family has been blacksmithing for generations. It has been passed down for three hundred years, and there has never been so much steel smelted in one furnace..."
That’s right!
The ore contains excessive sulfur and phosphorus, and there is no coke that burns powerfully, a blast furnace that can withstand high temperatures, or a graphite crucible that can withstand the high temperatures when high-purity molten iron is melted. Wouldn't it be a fantasy to get that much steel in one furnace?
Although Zhu Heji was not a metallurgist, he still knew about dolomite alkaline furnace, graphite crucible steelmaking method and coal coking.
And he doesn't plan to hide these skills to open a steel factory to make money, but to use them to benefit the elders of Guangdong... Although his purpose is to get more high-quality weapons as soon as possible so that he can benefit himself The zero-yuan purchase industry adds a little more core competitiveness, but objectively it has indeed become the "grandfather" of Foshan Iron Industry.
Foshan Iron Industry, which acquired dolomite furnaces, coke, and graphite crucibles, can be said to have led the world overnight!
The "flintlock problem" that has troubled Foshan Iron Industry for a long time is no longer a problem now that good materials are available.
When Zhu Heji saw that old man Su wanted to bow, he quickly helped him and said with a smile: "Old man, you don't need to bow... Remember the words of the Gu family, firstly, don't pass on your true skills to the foreigners. , You should know the reason why apprentices and masters starve when they meet, but it is not a matter of starving after teaching foreigners, they might get beaten!
The second is to prepare for a rainy day. Foshan has neither iron ore nor coal, so it all depends on transportation from elsewhere. The cost is always too high. If your iron factory wants to grow bigger, you still have to open the iron factory next to an iron ore mine or a coal mine... Of course, you have to be cautious in this business matter. You can take the big ideas yourself. !
As for your son Su Zhe, the Gu family took him north not to serve as a soldier, but to help him open an iron factory in Nanjing. He will be a disciple of the Gu family from now on. You can rest assured that the Gu family will not treat him badly. "
As he spoke, Zhu Heji ordered his eldest disciple Yan Yuan to bring a "big gift package" to Old Man Su, and asked Yan Yuan to see the old man off in person.
After Mr. Su left, several master porcelain craftsmen from Chaozhou and Zhangzhou were brought in. They also came to express their gratitude. The secret method of "bone china" given to them by Zhu Heji is really great. "Bone china" not only has a beautiful color, but is also very strong. It can be made very thin, so thin that it is slightly translucent. It is definitely the best among porcelains. !
With the secret method of "bone china", the porcelain industries of Chaozhou and Zhangzhou can keep pace with the Dehua white porcelain products of Jingdezhen.
It is even more difficult for Europeans to challenge China in ceramic manufacturing!
After meeting the master porcelain craftsmen of Chaozhou and Zhangzhou, Zhu Heji went on to meet with the leaders of the Guangdong Sugar Chamber of Commerce, the Liquor Chamber of Commerce, the Salt Chamber of Commerce, and the Qianye (Qianzhuang) Chamber of Commerce.
Needless to say, these industries were all favored by Zhu Heji.
Although he only ruled Guangdong for a short time and was busy fighting wars most of the time, he not only spared no effort in supporting industry, but also seemed quite selfless.
The Guangdong Sugar Industry got "special white" from him, and also made a lot of money because of the price increase after the military use of white sugar.
Guangdong's liquor industry has also developed rapidly thanks to the brand effect of sugarcane wine and Damingchun liquor.
With his help, Guangdong Salt Industry developed sun-dried salt technology and obtained white salt of very high quality.
The Qianye Chamber of Commerce established a peer market with the help of Zhu Heji, and also developed many kinds of bills. In addition, many large banks in Guangdong also benefited from "national treasury banks" and "official debt issuance"... Of course, official debt was just a test of the waters, and Zhu Heji's court was not short of money.
In short, although Zhu Heji did not rule Guangdong for a long time, the people of Guangdong, including the industrial and commercial circles and ordinary farmers and fishermen (the household registration of Dan households was merged into the civil registration), all benefited a lot.
Therefore, when he was on his own expedition this time, more than 100,000 people came to see him off at Tianzi Pier.
By the afternoon of that day, when Zhu Heji officially boarded the armed merchant ship "Chengtian", the dock was already crowded with people. I don’t know who took the lead. Suddenly someone on the pier sang "You will win if you work hard", and then more and more people sang along. Soon, the words "Destined in three days" were all on the Tianzi Pier. , seven points depend on hard work" sang.
The armed merchant ship Zhu Heji was riding on slowly sailed away from Tianzi Pier amidst the chaotic but extremely high-pitched singing, and gradually disappeared from the sight of the elders of Guangdong!
