Chu Sheng watched the cargo ship slowly leave the English port.
He returned home on the Li family's merchant ship and did not choose the official ship.
Just to minimize the impact of his departure at this relatively sensitive moment.
England is now in a civil war, and they don't care much about Chu Sheng's itinerary.
But if Chu Sheng wants to leave with great fanfare, he is likely to encounter some setbacks.
Chu Sheng was filled with emotion. His most glorious moment was in England.
He was a pioneer in the diplomatic career of the Great China Empire, and what he did in England was appreciated by His Majesty the Emperor.
In the past few years in England, his abilities have been truly honed, and he is no longer a naive scholar.
Chu Sheng had been away from the officialdom of Dahua for many years. He didn't know what storm would be waiting for him after he returned to China.
He secretly made up his mind to overcome obstacles and solve all the problems he encountered.
Chu Sheng watched the seagulls on the boat flying up one after another. He took one last look at the British Isles with affectionate eyes.
This will probably be the last time he sees the British Isles in his life.
Li Xingge, the person in charge of Nanyang Li's ocean shipping, walked to Chu Sheng's side and never dared to disturb him.
He has received news that this is the incoming minister of the Ministry of Rites and a third-rank official of the Great China Empire.
The imperial court also had some official ships. I wonder why Chu Sheng didn't take them?
Chu Sheng returned home on their ship, which proved the Li family's safety.
All high-ranking officials of the imperial court need to take their ships back home.
In recent years, the number of merchant ships from the Great China Empire to Europe has increased.
The cargo on the ship is either precious medicines and goods, or it is full of gold and silver treasures.
This is too attractive to pirates, and some European countries are adding fuel to the fire.
The routes are filled with pirates of all sizes.
Businessmen without certain strength can only choose to hand over their share of money and follow the large caravan.
Big businessmen also need the votes of other businessmen, plus a good reputation, in order to enter the parliament and gild their family.
They are also willing to protect these small businessmen.
An official of Chu Sheng's level is already a central official of the Great China Empire.
The Nanyang Li family has close personal relationships with many important officials in the country, but a business family like them will not make enemies for themselves at will.
Chu Sheng chose to take their ship back to China, which was a good start.
They are likely to establish some friendship with Chu Sheng.
If you make more friends, your network will expand, and you might be able to use it at some point.
The violent shaking of the ship caused Chu Sheng, who was in a daze, to suddenly lean forward and almost fall to the ground.
Li Xingge immediately stepped forward to support Chu Sheng. He quickly apologized: "Master Chu, the wind and waves are high today, and the helmsman is not very stable in steering the boat. I'm really sorry."
Chu Sheng stood firm, waved his hand and said: "It's not your fault, I also came to England by boat.
The sea is rough and the waves are rough, and it is normal for the ship to shake slightly. "
Chu Sheng is not the kind of arrogant and domineering person. This is obviously not the boatman's fault. He will not spread his anger on irrelevant people at will.
Through this contact, Li Xingge knew Chu Sheng's character.
He invited with a smile: "Master Chu, the sea is very windy and rough, it is winter again, and it is relatively wet and cold outside.
We headed to the cabin for a cup of hot tea. "
Chu Sheng and Li Xingge entered the cabin to drink tea. They did not talk in depth, but just talked about some common things.
…………………………
Chu Sheng was strolling on the deck when he had nothing to do. He suddenly saw the sailors on the deck looking nervous.
The naval guns have been rolled out, and some stewards in silk are blowing whistles and directing the sailors to operate the naval guns.
Chu Sheng saw Li Xingge looking nervous. He was holding a signal gun with his hand, ready to fire the signal gun at any time to put the fleet into a state of war.
The seagulls on the ship were frightened by the busy sailors and flew around.
Chu Sheng picked up the telescope and looked at the surrounding sea.
There were no pirate ships around, and there was just a narrow strait ahead.
He did not disturb the nervous Li Xingge, but called a steward and asked: "What's going on in this situation now?
I didn't see any pirate ships around. Are there a lot of pirates on the other side of the strait? "
The steward explained respectfully: "Pirates are easy to deal with. These are Spaniards who are more hateful than pirates.
Ahead is the Strait of Gibraltar, a very narrow strait that guards the passage into the Mediterranean.
Merchant ships passing through this strait are required to pay a toll.
These Spaniards were not on good terms with us and saw a weak caravan.
They will also rob directly, and if they can escape with a life, it is the blessing of their ancestors. "
Chu Sheng looked at the terrain of the Strait of Gibraltar. Only a small number of troops needed to be deployed here to block the Mediterranean Sea.
He knew that Fujian was digging the Suez Canal.
Once the canal is dug, Gibraltar's strategic position will be greatly improved.
Chu Sheng has been in England for many years and has a good understanding of various European ideas.
He has also formed his own ideas and is writing a book.
The core point of this book is that the Great China Empire does not have the energy to expand around the world, but it must master strategic points.
Gibraltar is the most important strategic point in Europe.
In the future, the Great China Empire must master this strategic point in order to effectively control the situation in Europe.
While Chu Sheng was thinking, the Li family's caravan showed a desperate attitude and handed over a large toll.
They successfully passed through the Strait of Gibraltar and sailed to the port of Cairo in Fujian along the southern coast of the Mediterranean Sea.
In the Mediterranean in winter, you only need to wear a thin sweater, it is not cold at all.
Europe is truly a chosen land. The latitude of England is similar to that of Heilongjiang in the Northeast.
However, the climate in England is similar to that of Hubei. It is not cold at all in winter, and ten degrees below zero is considered a low temperature.
Temperatures are relatively warm throughout Western Europe, with normal winter temperatures around freezing.
In the Mongolia and Northeastern regions of the Great China Empire at the same latitude, the temperature is around minus 30 degrees.
Chu Sheng was not a geographer, and he did not know the reason for this situation.
But when he looked at the differences between the two places, he felt a little jealous of Europe.
Chu Sheng saw Li Xingge and other people on the boat. They were approaching the coast to get some fresh water and food.
They used the supplies on the ship to trade some local specialties with the locals.
When these people saw the natives of North Africa, they had some unexpected expressions from time to time.
Chu Sheng communicated frequently with Li Xingge during this period, and they also became friends.
He asked: "Brother Li, judging from the performance of you and the crew, you don't often take the Mediterranean route."
Li Xingge nodded and replied: "Brother Chu, this is also my first time taking this route.
Brother Chu should know that Fujian is preparing to dig the Suez Canal.
Before the canal was dug, Fujian began to promote that merchants could use the Red Sea to travel to Europe faster.
I just learned how easy it is to cross the Red Sea.
We have divided the route to the Cape of Good Hope into two routes.
Ship goods from the Great China Empire to Fujian, then transfer the goods to Cairo Port and transport them to Europe via the Mediterranean route.
We traveled an extra land route, divided it into two sections to transport goods, and had to pay transportation fees to Fujian and Spain.
But we can save half a year and create more value.
In addition to products with low prices and high volume, we will continue to use the Cape of Good Hope route, and most products will be changed to this route. "
After Li Xingge introduced the situation of his fleet, he heard Chu Sheng ask them, and when he saw the strange eyes of the North African natives, he immediately explained the reason.
"Brother Chu, as the saying goes, hearing is false, seeing is believing.
We took the Cape of Good Hope route and learned that the African continent is full of black indigenous people.
Now in North Africa, we see a large number of white indigenous people, which is a bit surprising to us. "
Chu Sheng smiled and explained the reason for Li Xingge.
"You should have heard about the Roman Empire, and the Mediterranean coast was the territory of the Roman Empire before.
The population of North Africa was composed of nobles and slaves brought over by the Roman Empire.
They are all white, but their beliefs are different from those in Europe.
North Africa is isolated from the African continent by the Sahara Desert.
Egypt is one of the four ancient civilizations. It has a unique civilization and looks down upon the black indigenous people on the African continent.
This also creates completely different scenes in North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. "
Chu Sheng usually loves to learn about the history of Europe. After describing this situation, he briefly introduced the history of Europe to Li Xingge.
Li Xingge listened to Chu Sheng's narration, he gave a thumbs up and praised: "Brother Chu is really knowledgeable. After listening, I understand the situation here in North Africa more clearly."
The fleet sailed very smoothly in the Mediterranean, but occasionally encountered pirates.
However, the Li family's armed merchant ships are equipped with many naval guns. When the pirates realize that they cannot take down the fleet, they will retreat.
The ship's whistle suddenly reminded him of Chu Sheng, who was drinking tea in the cabin, and he immediately came to the deck.
This time the air horn sound was very urgent, and the pirates encountered were no small matter.
Chu Sheng picked up the telescope and looked forward. He saw four large warships on the left front, heading towards their fleet.
This is a large warship, not a pirate ship converted from some cruiser. The danger is different from that of ordinary pirates.
Li Xingge trembled when he saw this situation.
He blew the whistle anxiously, the pitch of the whistle rising and falling.
Use noise to order armed merchant ships to surround the cargo ship.
"The death squads are out, preparing the kerosene tanker."
Among the cargo ships, there were several relatively empty vessels, and the crews on them traveled to other cargo ships in small boats.
There are only a dozen veteran sailors over fifty, who operate the ship alone.
The sails were raised rapidly by the steam engine.
A crew member came to the cabin and poured out the kerosene sealed in the barrel.
A pungent smell of kerosene filled the cabin.
When ordered to do so, they would use their knives to chop off the flint and ignite the kerosene in the cabin.
These fireships had ramming angles in front and hit the enemy warships at high speed. The fireships and the warships perished together.
Chu Sheng saw what these crew members were doing and knew that they were deterring the pirates by dying together.
The caravan traded minor casualties in exchange for the survival of most of the ships.
When Li Xingge saw that everything was ready, he walked to Chu Sheng and explained: "Brother Chu, this is also a helpless move for us.
The only way to scare away the pirates is to use this method of perish together.
Pirates have no credibility at all. We must let these pirates know that our caravan is not easy to attack.
There will be room for negotiation with pirates in the future.
These people who fired the ship have already avenged their determination to die.
Their sons are also on the cargo ship in the rear, and these people will not give up halfway.
For the high pensions provided by the Chamber of Commerce, their own descendants can also receive funding from the Chamber of Commerce.
Kerosene is a liquid that is extracted from petroleum and burns violently.
It can float on the sea and ignite a raging fire. As long as the fire ship hits the pirate ship, only those of us will be safe. "
Chu Sheng knew that this was a helpless move.
Sacrifice some people, but can win the life of most people.
He is not a rotten scholar, and he will not use his righteousness to kidnap others while benefiting himself.
The reality is very cruel, and the lives of different people have completely different values.
As long as the caravan does not use coercion, he will not care about it.
Chu Sheng could feel the pressure of the warship ahead.
The fleet and fleet are gradually approaching. There are too many ships in the fleet, and they are mainly large cargo ships. It is difficult to complete the turn in a short time.
This is also the reason why Li Xingge did not give priority to evacuation, but chose to fight for his life.
Chu Sheng saw the whole picture of the warship through the telescope, especially the flag on the mast of the warship.
He smiled and said in a relaxed tone: "We are too nervous. This is not a pirate warship, this is the Fujian Navy."
Li Xingge's hand holding the telescope was also shaking.
He took a look at the golden lion flag in front of him, and suddenly felt particularly cordial.
Li Xingge breathed a long sigh of relief and said apologetically: "Brother Chu, I shocked you just now.
My friend Wang Sen wrote to me, telling me that there are powerful pirates in the land.
Only then did I worry that the fleet would be robbed by pirates, and that’s why I reacted just now when I saw a strange warship. "
Chu Sheng waved his hand and said, "Brother Li, this approach is the right choice.
We had better luck when we encountered the Fujian Navy.
If you do encounter pirates, you must be fully prepared to minimize losses. "
Li Xingge was recognized by Chu Sheng, and he immediately ordered the crew to stand on the mast and wave the national flag of the Great China Empire.
He was worried that the Fujian navy would be nervous and regard them as enemies.
The merchants of the fleet also knew that the navy opposite Fujian was not the enemy.
The people on the boat felt like they were surviving a disaster, and they waved to the warship.
The Fujian navy passed the caravan and sent destroyers to approach the convoy.
Officers on the ship identified the traders.
Warships and merchant ships, the two ships were very close, and the officer shouted: "The Ottoman Turkish Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, France and other countries support pirates or their navies pretend to be pirates to rob ships traveling in the Mediterranean.
When you encounter pirates, use a red salute to signal that you are under attack.
The Fujian Navy dispatched warships to patrol the Mediterranean to eliminate pirates and escort merchant ships. "
After the Fujian navy officer finished speaking, he asked his subordinates to throw over a dozen salutes to the merchant ship for help.
Li Xingge was saying thanks when he saw the destroyer in front of him, far away from their caravan, and the warship rendezvoused with the main force of the navy.
Chu Sheng heard this happening on the sidelines. He knew that during this period in Europe, all countries were reaching a secret agreement to jointly deal with the Chinese forces.
He did not expect that these countries would act so quickly. They had already begun to support pirates and attack merchants doing normal trade.
Chu Sheng only hoped that Zhang Yuliang, the king of Fujian, could be more powerful and protect the safety of the Mediterranean route while withstanding the attack of the Ottoman Turkish Empire.
The fleet arrived at Cairo Port without any danger.
They saw the huge coastal defense guns at the port, and the merchants immediately felt at ease.
(End of chapter)
