Chapter 108 The inevitable war
Of course, King Xi tried his best to avoid war, but when it came to the end, he was ready for war. To deal with war is to put the battlefield on your own preset battlefield.
Where is this battlefield?
It's the old port.
To be precise, the sea off the old port. After all, it is the navy that really determines the outcome.
If a war breaks out here, the Javanese side has absolutely no moral responsibility. Moreover, the first battle hurt Daming, which paved the way for subsequent negotiations.
This is the clearest understanding of King Xi. For a behemoth like Ming, unless he shrinks back himself. Otherwise, if you fail a hundred times, there will still be no problem. Based on the situation of the King of the West in Java, even if he wins three or five times in a row, it is estimated that there will be changes within Java.
And neither King Wulu nor King Dong would let him win consecutive battles.
The best result is to fight and then make peace.
In his opinion, this is also the best result for Ming Dynasty. It was a mistake for the Ming Dynasty to go south.
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Chen Zuxiao returned to Old Port with such a peace agreement.
After telling Chen Zuyi all about the peace agreement, Chen Zuxiao said: "Brother, the younger brother is incompetent. This is all he can do. But, let me tell you, what is the use of an agreement? In a few decades, there will probably not even be one descendant of the Chen family. I can’t even write the word ‘Chen’ anymore. What’s the point of working my ass off like this?”
When he talked about the pain, his words were filled with sobs.
Chen Zuyi was expressionless. Said: "Now that things are like this, what's the use of saying this? Even if I am willing to surrender to the Ming Dynasty, will the Ming Dynasty still be willing to accept me?"
When Chen Zuxiao heard this, his eyes lit up and he said, "Brother, I'm going to Longyamen. The current director of the Nanyang Governor's Palace is He Xi, He's consort. I've done business with him, so I have had contact with him. Maybe it can be done ------"
Chen Zuyi said: "That's enough, I don't want to bow to them."
When Chen Zuxiao saw Chen Zuyi, his voice was fierce and he did not dare to say any more. But deep in his heart, there was one saying, that is, he could be so humble to the Javanese, but he would put on such airs when he met the Ming Dynasty court. Isn't it contradictory?
In fact, quite the opposite.
Chen Zuyi would rather bow to the Javanese and be humiliated by the Javanese. Because he is confident deep down. I have thrown my confidence to you now, but I will definitely take it out in the future. The humiliation now will definitely be washed away with blood in the future.
But for Daming, Chen Zuyi did not have this confidence.
Secondly, many people feel that some things are shameful and left out. But there are some people who would rather throw people outside than lose face to their own people.
Chen Zuyi is a talented person. But fleeing the Ming Dynasty in embarrassment was the lowest point in his life. There may not be any anger in his heart, and he must let the Ming Dynasty see what kind of person he, Chen Zuyi, is. At this time, if he was asked to surrender to the Ming Dynasty, he would be unwilling to do so.
As for Java, he is an irrelevant person. If a man can be humiliated under his crotch, what does that mean?
One last reason.
Java is an outsider. Chen Zuyi has been in Nanyang for so many years. He knew that Javanese grammar was vulgar. The text is simple. There are not even many serious history books. After he gains power in the future, if he cleans up a little, who will know what he has done. But what was the situation in the Ming court?
It is estimated that there are several people in the Nanyang Governor's Mansion currently writing diaries of the Southern Expedition and Nanyang Chronicles. Records of Nanyang customs, diary of military expeditions, and other notes. There are even official records sent from here to Nanjing.
To bow the knee to the Ming Dynasty would be a disgrace to the annals of history. Java had no say in the Ming Dynasty's historiography system.
No one cares what happens in Java. It's like no one cares what happened to the Indians.
Chen Zuyi's thoughts were beyond what Chen Zuxiao could understand.
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A few days later.
The Javanese army numbered fifty to sixty thousand, with thousands of warships, covering the sea outside the old port with darkness. For a moment, it felt like the sky was being blocked.
And Chen Zuyi also changed his Han attire. Dressed as an Indian. He even had a piercing in his nose and a gold nose ring. He looks like a Brahmin.
Chen Zuyi not only asked himself to change, but also asked most of his subordinates to change their costumes. Although I couldn’t find so many clothes at the same time. But the leading ones all changed their costumes.
It's just that Chen Zuyi didn't realize that his attire was incompatible with the attire of the Han people under his command. Many soldiers who had followed Chen Zuyi through life and death were the first to see Chen Zuyi so strange.
It's not that there are no people who are satisfied with Chen Zuyi's appearance.
For example, the King of the West came from afar.
The King of the West looked at Chen Zuyi and said, "Mr. Chen, you are very good. From now on, you will be a noble of the Majapahit Kingdom, and the old port will be your fiefdom. No matter how powerful the Ming Dynasty is, it is still on the horizon, and the sea belongs to Majapayi. .”
Chen Zuyi restrained his sharpness and remained submissive.
After the King of the West arrived at Old Port, he did not stop. Instead, he continued to send envoys to recruit all the big and small forces in Sumatra. The tens of thousands of troops of King Xi are already the most powerful force in the entire Sumatra Island.
There is such a big movement here, it is impossible for the news not to leak out.
Soon the news reached Daming.
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"Hey, hey, hey." Lu Zhongheng was shirtless, revealing his scarred upper body, and together with ordinary soldiers, pounded the earth bit by bit. Built the Ming Dynasty's first city in Nanyang.
This city is not big. It's just guarding the port of Singapore Harbor.
But now it has a name. It’s called Xinzhou.
What day did he get up?
On the one hand, I miss Singapore in future generations. In addition, it indicates that this is a new beginning.
During this period, the navy was trying to get familiar with the water conditions in this area. The soldiers of the Elephant Guard were all shirtless and worked hard with Lu Zhongheng, building the city and reclaiming the surrounding land.
In short, behind the phrase "opening up Nanyang" is the silent work of countless people.
However, He Xi also looked at Lu Zhongheng with admiration.
Before, He Xi felt that Lu Zhongheng had fallen into Qian's eyes. What should I do if I am worried that he is too greedy for money and will not be able to fight in the future?
Now, He Xi can see it. Even though Lu Zhongheng's eyes are full of money, for him, there is no need to think about fighting, it is instinct.
The elephant guards are not Lu Zhongheng's soldiers, but in less than a month, Lu Zhongheng has become one with the superiors and subordinates, eliminated the sense of strangeness, and even learned to speak Guangxi dialect. Communicate directly with the soldiers at the bottom, and even more so, work together with ordinary soldiers.
At the beginning, He Xi thought Lu Zhongheng was just showing off, but as time went by, he knew it was different.
He Xi compares his feelings with his own. If Lu Zhongheng did this, how could he prevent the soldiers from dying?
Lu Zhongheng may not have any clever military plans, but when it comes to commanding troops, practice makes perfect. Even so, how can we dominate the situation in Nanyang again now? But Lu Zhongheng had already won the hearts of the soldiers. Including the Navy.
Facts have proved that Lu Zhongheng’s founding title has no water at all. After all, there are so many people following Zhu Yuanzhang. It is impossible for Lu Zhongheng to be the only direct descendant of Zhu Yuanzhang. Why does Lu Zhongheng have this honor? There is a reason too.
He Xi felt much more at ease.
He Xirang called Lu Zhongheng over. Lawrence Lu was shirtless and sweating profusely. Wiping the sweat with a towel, he said, "What's wrong?"
He Xi said: "Something happened."
He Xi handed the information in his hand to Lu Zhongheng.
Lawrence Lu took it with both hands, pressed it, and there was a wet finger print. He padded it with a towel before taking it. He couldn't help but sigh: "This damn place is so damn hot." Then he looked at the information, and after reading it, he said, "What do you mean?"
He Xi said: "I'm afraid this battle is inevitable. If Java is allowed to reoccupy Sumatra, Prince Zhongxian will be shaken. Without the support of Prince Zhongxian, it will be more difficult for us here. Me too. There is no other way. Although, now is not the time to start a war, but without inflicting pain on Java, we will not have the chance to see the new city built."
In fact, He Xi is also a person who does not want to start a war.
It's not that he's afraid of Java. The biggest problem is that Daming is facing too many difficulties now. He Xi wanted to straighten out these things before going to war with Java.
It’s not that I don’t want to fight, it’s just that the time is not right.
