Ming Dynasty, capital.
Zhu Yunwen put his hands behind his back, stared at the direction of Fujian on the map, and said to Xie Jin, Yang Shiqi, Tie Xuan, Xu Huizu and others: "Yu Xin should have arrived at Yanping Mansion by now, right?"
Xie Jin's face was a little solemn: "According to the date, a big account should have been set up in Yanping Mansion by this time to coordinate the prevention and control of the epidemic among the three governments."
Zhu Yunwen pointed to the documents on the desk: "After receiving a secret report from the Security Bureau, I am afraid that the problems in Fujian are not small. There may be problems with the Chief Envoy and the Commander-in-Chief. Do you think it is necessary for the imperial court to dispatch the Beijing army to arrive in Fujian? To deal with these problems?”
Xu Huizu and Tie Xuan looked at each other, secretly shocked.
If something goes wrong in the Chief Envoy's Department, the Ministry of War and the Fifth Army Governor's Office cannot be blamed. But if there is something wrong with the Director General's Department, neither the Ministry of War nor the Fifth Army Governor's Office can escape.
Yang Shiqi thought for a while and said cautiously: "The Fujian Security Bureau can report the news to the capital, and I think I will get the news when I come to Yuge. If Yuge feels danger, he will definitely send an emergency report for help. I think that in Yuge Before taking action, we might as well wait patiently. If we rashly mobilize the Beijing army, it will easily worsen the situation and put Yuge and the people of Fujian into a dangerous situation."
Tie Xuan seconded: "The Fujian issue has not yet been clarified, so we should wait patiently."
Xu Huizu did not recommend using the Beijing army directly, but considering the development of the situation, he still advised: "Your Majesty, the Beijing army must not act rashly. However, the navy has the mission of patrolling the southeast. I suggest that some of the navy be deployed into the waters off Fujian. Once Reinforcements can be made quickly if necessary.”
Zhu Yunwen took a deep look at Xu Huizu. Of course he knew that Fujian's affairs did not require the participation of the Beijing army, but it was in line with the strategic plan to make Fujian's affairs bigger and divert water divisions into the southeast.
Some things can be delayed, but they always need an end. The rope has begun to wind up, and all that is left is to tighten it with force. The force here is the water master!
Zhu Yunwen summoned Chen Hui, deputy commander-in-chief of the navy, and had a secret conversation for more than an hour. Chen Hui then hurriedly left the palace. That night, he began to mobilize the navy fleet.
Countless courtiers were staring at Southeast Fujian, but Zhu Yunwen's eyes did not stop at Fujian.
The plague is a nuisance, but it is by no means uncontrollable.
As long as the area is tightly sealed, the epidemic will not spread to a large area. In addition, Fujian is a place with many mountains and few roads, so guarding some important roads is enough to achieve large-scale lockdown.
The problems in Fujian should be left to the medical officer and Yu Xin to solve, and the problems in the southeast of Ming Dynasty cannot be put off again and again.
The southeast coast in July is the last busy time for maritime merchants. Countless merchants rush to the Ming Dynasty. The goods loaded with goods will bring considerable profits. These merchants include people from the Ming Dynasty, people from various countries in Southeast Asia, and even There are also merchants from Guli and Kochi.
The southeast monsoon is almost over, so we always need to arrive at Shibosi when the west wind blows.
Qian Chao was an ordinary Fujian maritime businessman from Hui'an, not far from the port of Quanzhou. After the imperial court lifted the maritime ban, he gambled all his family property and bought three ships to sail to the Southeast Asia, using silk, ceramics, wine, Rice, salt, sugar and other goods were exchanged for a lot of spices, ivory, rhinoceros horns, yellow wax, real incense, instant incense and other goods. After returning to Quanzhou Port, after selling the goods, besides the cost, they also made eight times the profit, and their net worth skyrocketing.
Although the imperial court later implemented a floating tax rate, which was a severe blow to the merchants, even so, they could still make three to five times the profit, which was much better than doing small business in Hui'an.
Qian Chao has traveled between Quanzhou Port and Old Port three times, so he is quite familiar with it. The fleet has also increased from the initial three ships to seven ships. Although it is not a big ship, it is much larger than the awning ship.
"My boss, I have gained a lot this time. You should celebrate it well when you go back."
Shopkeeper Chu Linshan rubbed his hands and said with a smile.
Qian Chao smiled heartily: "It's great luck to be able to exchange for one or two pieces of ambergris this time. I heard that the nobles in the capital are constantly asking for it, but there are few in the market."
Chu Linshan said excitedly: "Ambergris is something that can be found but cannot be sought. Someone once said that one or two pieces of ambergris are worth thousands of gold. Although there are many other goods, they are far less valuable than this thing."
Qian Chao looked at his fleet, one, two, three...eight, nine!
Well?
I don’t only have seven ships. When did I get two more ships?
"Are the two ships at the back our ships?"
Qian Chao asked doubtfully.
Chu Linshan set up a pergola and looked out. Behind his own fleet, there were actually two ships following him. However, it looked like they didn't understand any rules. They didn't even hang a Ming flag, and they weren't afraid of being robbed by pirates. Plundered.
"It must be the ship of other merchants. There are many merchants who want to go back before the monsoon ends."
Chu Linshan didn't think much about it.
Qian Chao thought about it. In August, the southeast wind and northeast wind will stop, and then the northwest wind will come. It is the time to set sail southward, which is not a good time to go north. Now that July is nearing the end, the seamen rushing back There are many merchants, so it’s normal to encounter a few.
But things gradually became wrong. There were only two ships at the back, but two ships also appeared in front, and two ships appeared in the southeast, surrounding the fleet from three sides.
Qian Chao didn't know why, but he saw the flag of the Qingyuan Pirates hanging on the other side's ship. His face changed drastically and he shouted sternly: "It's pirates!"
call?
Even if you scream, no one will save you.
Qian Chao cried. The wealth he had worked hard for for nearly a year was robbed by the damn pirates. They moved all his goods away, even the jade pendant on his body!
The only thing to be thankful for is that the Qingyuan Pirates only beat up a few resisting boatmen and did not kill anyone. After searching the goods, they left a sentence: "The little King of Liuqiu took something from you to give you face. Dare to sue?" Officer, kill you all!"
This is not the first time Yang Shan has committed robbery, but it is definitely the first time he has committed it with confidence. From now on, the Qingyuan Pirates will enter a period of robbery. Whether they are returning to the Shipping Department or the caravan going south, as long as they encounter When you arrive, grab the goods and say "Little Liuqiu King".
In just half a month, no less than 20 merchant ships were robbed by the Qingyuan Pirates. Many merchants lost their money. Some big bosses couldn't bear it and simply jumped into the sea. They were rescued by shopkeepers and clerks.
Neither the shopkeeper nor the clerk can let the boss die. Things have been robbed, but our wages have not been settled yet. If you die, how will we get paid?
News that the Qingyuan Pirates occupied Xiaoliuqiu and proclaimed themselves king spread throughout Fujian and Guangdong. Although the navy fleets in the two places repeatedly escorted and protected some merchant ships, the sea was so big and there were so many sea routes that the navy could not How could it be possible to take care of them all? Many maritime merchants were robbed, crying and complaining.
The merchants of the Ming Dynasty were robbed, and they could only knock out their teeth and swallow them in their stomachs. Otherwise, they could go to the government and no one would care. But when the local businessmen in the Nanyang countries were robbed, they became dissatisfied. When they became dissatisfied, the matter became serious.
Nanyang countries such as Siam, Bali, Manchuria, Luzon, and Champa are also aware of the profits from trade. In addition to their local merchants, most of them are maritime merchants supported by the king. In other words, the people in their countries There are shares of the king in maritime merchants. Now the stocks have not fallen, but have been cut off. The goods are gone and losses have been incurred. Who in the Southeast Asian countries is happy?
As the situation became serious, the Champa Kingdom sent envoys to request the Ming Dynasty to send a navy to destroy the Qingyuan Pirates of Xiaoliuqiu Kingdom to maintain the safety of voyage trade.
Following the Champa Kingdom were Siam, Bali, Manchuria, etc. By late August, almost all Southeast Asian countries had put forward initiatives, hoping that the Ming Dynasty would resolve maritime issues that endanger trade security in accordance with the "Republican Book of Trade". The thieves and their ilk caused a letter of confederation to be delivered to the capital...
Fujian, Shaowu Prefecture, Maixi Town.
This is the area hardest hit by the plague. When Wang Chang, Wu Shanqiao and others arrived, there were not many living people left here. Some people escaped, and the only ones left were some old people and lonely children.
But many of these people have died.
Wu Shanqiao saw a child's body rotting in the yard, with flies buzzing around. The broken body and the flowing liquid were disgusting.
Some old people couldn't bear it and when the illness came, they directly hanged themselves and committed suicide.
But committing suicide in the summer is impossible.
When the corpse rots and swells under the heat, it will fall off the rope, especially some of the meat, which will slowly rot, not to mention a swarm of flies disturbing it...
Wu Shanqiao was a little tired. He had been busy for more than a month since he entered the epidemic area. He first treated more than 200 patients with pimple plague in Yanping Prefecture. After several attempts, he finally found a suitable prescription and determined the medication standards.
Pimple plague is different from other diseases. Heavy medicine must be used, urgent treatment, and frequent doses are needed to save people's lives.
For patients who have just suffered from pimple plague, one dose is required. If the symptoms are severe, three times the dose is required. If the patient does not improve after twelve hours, the dose needs to be increased to six times. If the patient improves, the dose needs to be reduced by half. dose.
With the decoction inside and bloodletting externally, it successfully saved the lives of more than 150 people. Although more than 30 people still lost their lives, the death rate has been greatly improved compared to the initial death rate.
With the determination of medication methods and standards, and the steady supply of medication, Wang Chang, Wu Shanqiao and others finally controlled the spread of pimple plague, giving the people of Sanfu hope to survive.
But if we want to completely end the plague, we still need to wait and wait for winter to come. After the weather gets colder, many epidemic diseases will naturally disappear.
But Wu Shanqiao didn't want to simply wait. Instead, he took people deep into Maixi Town and Huangtuguan to investigate the starting point of the epidemic. He hoped that through lime, sulfur and other methods, he could restore an environment that could accommodate the survival of the people as soon as possible. The environment allows the displaced people to return to their hometowns as soon as possible and reduces the pressure on the chief minister and the court.
If doctors dare not go deep into plague areas, dare not live in places where plague exists, and cannot prove that their homes are safe, those people will not go home.
But when refugees are outside, it is easy for problems to arise. Once other epidemics occur, the situation will be even more troublesome.
trouble!
The troubles Yu Xin encountered were far more troublesome than those encountered by Wu Shanqiao and others. The symptoms in Fujian were just like the pimple plague, which was swollen and big!
