"Oh my God, what kind of ship is this? Is it so huge?" Whenever local people passed by and saw the treasure ship, they were all very interested. "Could there be another red-haired barbarian merchant here? Such a big ship, these barbarians are so wealthy!"
During the Yuan Dynasty BC, barbarians often came from far away. Although the local people may not have seen them with their own eyes, they had heard from their fathers and ancestors that barbarian merchants were good at building boats and could cross the oceans.
"Bah, you are blind! Didn't you see the sun and moon flags on the ship? Then there are some barbarian merchants, they are clearly the ships of the imperial court!" someone scolded.
"It's not like I haven't heard from my father and ancestors that those Yi people's ships are only made of hundreds of materials at most. How can they be so huge?"
"When it comes to shipbuilding, how can the foreign barbarians compare to me, the Chinese? It was the Yuan Dynasty that was useless before. Our vast Chinese people have been occupied by them for hundreds of years, but they are actually outclassed by those red-haired barbarians. My family was in the Tang Dynasty. Time is about shipbuilding, and when it comes to shipbuilding, who can be better than us in China?"
"Yes! Don't just say that the good things are from the barbarians when you see them. What things in China are not better than the barbarians? Previously, it was because of the influence of Yuanting. Now that the Tartars have been expelled and China has been restored, will we compare the barbarians to the barbarians again? Got down?"
"That's right! When our ancestors set sail to the sea, those barbarians were still eating their hair and drinking their blood!"...
When the people saw the big ship, they stopped to discuss it. Fortunately, Zhu Su had already arranged for officers and soldiers to blockade the area, otherwise the excited people would swarm in and they would not be able to load the goods onto the ship. Despite this, the proud comments of the people also reached the ears of Zhu Su and others.
A large ship allowed the common people to see China's former glory far beyond all nations, and made Tie Xuan and others inexplicably more excited about their mission this time.
"I have told you countless times that I am going to travel across the ocean and it will be difficult and difficult." Zhu Su pursed his lips and looked deeply at the people in front of him, as if he wanted to remember their faces in his mind.
"The sea is far and wide, and we are all men, so I won't say anything else. I only ask you to return in triumph."
"When the time comes, I will invite you all to go to Lingyan Pavilion and drink with me the fine wine of the Ming Dynasty!"
In North America, there are no classics and no ancient sages have heard of it. However, these people all believe in their own "map of Kun Yu and Ten Thousand Kingdoms" and are willing to put themselves to the test to accomplish this pioneering feat of narrow escape.
This trip should have been made by me, the advocate. What these people did during this trip was actually the same as dying for him, Zhu Su.
Thinking of this, Zhu Su bowed deeply to everyone in front of him.
Zhang He and Tie Xuan were moved and bowed their heads in return. Zhang He said: "How dare you accept such a gift from His Highness? I was originally mediocre, just an ordinary naval general. It was only after I met Your Highness that I had the opportunity to achieve such unparalleled achievements."
"Not to mention that His Highness has given us a great achievement! Haha, in the Battle of Yingzhou, if His Highness hadn't supported me, how could I have been granted the title of Marquis of Hainan?"
"Enough! When I went to war, my mother at home told me that if I don't get it right this time, I will die on the sea! Your Majesty, Your Majesty, has given me a great favor to the Zhang family, that is, as a son, and I will repay it with death. Why bother? Why expect a triumph!"
Tie Xuan also said: "Master has great ambitions, and Xuan can only know what is possible. The land of America is a top priority for us in China, and we must not miss it. Xuan does not expect a triumphant return, but he just has a request: if We have gained nothing, so please, Your Highness, please do not spread our reputation. Building ships and going to sea will be a waste of time. If we know that this is a dead end, everyone in the world will be afraid and disgusted."
"We must not hinder my Ming Dynasty's plan to go to sea because of our incompetence."
"If that's the case, you should return in triumph. If you can't bring back the divine seeds and gold and silver mountains in America, how can we, the Ming Dynasty's mediocre masters, carry out the plan to go to sea? Don't forget, this king wants to make you a slave. Hai’s model. If model dies, wouldn’t it hinder the country’s plans?”
"My Ming Dynasty has the protection of the ancestors of heaven and earth, so this trip will definitely succeed!"
Zhu Su was moved in his heart, but still smiled. He patted Tie Hyun on the shoulder. But he had decided in his heart that no matter what, he would pass on the names of these pioneers.
"It's my disciple who has lost his temper. This trip will definitely be successful!" Tie Xuan nodded. He had always had a strong ability to adjust his mind. At this time, he had thrown away the pessimism in his heart, and the flame of confidence was rekindled in his eyes.
Zhu Su nodded. Then he looked at Mao Xiang behind him. At this time, Mao Xiang was dressed in ordinary general and military uniforms. How could he still look like the domineering commander of the Imperial Guards in the past? Zhu Su took a few steps closer and said to Mao Xiang in a friendly manner: "Commander Mao, your burden on this trip is not light."
"But I have a word of advice: Don't fall in love with the wealth of the commander of the Jinyi Guards. If this trip to sea is a meritorious service, how can it be compared to that of a mere commander?"
"In this age of change, a real man should hold his head high, seek the blessings of his descendants, and seek fame for all generations... Bowing down in the privacy of the house, although everyone is afraid, is it any different from a brat?"
"How could Mao Xiang not know about His Highness's golden words?" Mao Xiang leaned down and bowed directly to Zhu Su. "Please, Your Highness, please stop referring to me as a commander. I am your Majesty's servant. I am incompetent and should have died."
"Fortunately, His Highness has given me such a heavy responsibility and entrusted me with such an important task. If I continue to be ungrateful, how will I be any different from a beast?"
"Don't worry, Your Highness, Mao Xiang will definitely restrain those prisoners. Even if America is thousands of miles away, Mao Xiang can guarantee that everyone will be loyal to me, His Majesty the Ming Emperor!"
Speaking of this sentence, Mao Xiang's words vaguely restored a bit of the former Jinyiwei commander's demeanor that was enough to intimidate all officials and put corrupt officials in danger.
Zhu Su nodded. Although Mao Xiang is ruthless and greedy, his loyalty is something that even Lao Zhu absolutely trusts. Zhang He and Tie Xuan were both upright civil and military officers, so it was best to let Mao Xiang do the work of interfering with those criminals with evil intentions.
After carefully asking about the preparations for the fleet's supplies, Zhu Su sent Tie Xuan and others aboard. This time the fleet went to sea just to explore the Americas. There are two ways to explore the Americas. One is to follow Zheng He's voyage to the Western Ocean, all the way west to Europe and Africa, and then around the entire African continent to reach the Americas. This route should be easier. There are many ports along the way where you can go ashore for supplies. If you bring goods with you, you can probably earn a lot of gold and silver in the future.
But the journey is extremely long, and it may take several years to go back and forth. Moreover, America is hard to find. You may not be able to find it all the way there. Moreover, there are many wars in Europe. If you get involved in it, you will lose more than you gain. Therefore, Tie Xuan and others chose another more difficult and dangerous route: sailing eastward and trying to find a way to cross the Pacific and reach the Americas.
Although this journey is short, there is a vast sea along the way, making it extremely difficult and dangerous.
(End of chapter)
