"Weighing anchor..."
"Raise the sail..."
Following the well-trained slogans and movements of the sailors, the bird ship slowly set sail.
Mao Wenlong and Zheng Haizhu stood on the deck and waved goodbye to Yan Siqi who stopped at the edge of the rock cliff to see him off.
When the boat leaves the harbor, it will pass by the salt field on the island. As Mao Wenlong looks at it, he can't help but sigh: "Master Yan is really clapping his hands in the clouds for a long time - master. The salt produced by the sun on Daishan Island, which is as big as a chicken coop, is... It can be equal to the output of Fuzhou Guard and Jinzhou Guard combined."
Zheng Haizhu was thirsty for knowledge about the actual situation in various places in the Ming Dynasty, so he asked curiously: "Why? There are many strong soldiers in the military guards, and they are paid by the court. How can they not compare with these old and weak women and children? "
Mao Wenlong snorted coldly: "Do you think that the imperial court is like this Daishan Island, and only one mountain king has the final say? The guards on the seaside cook salt, and the Liaoyang mountains smelt iron. They all need a lot of money to raise Dingkou and repair water conservancy and mines. Dao. The food and salary allocated by the imperial court were exploited at all levels, not to mention the saltmen and the iron army. Even the serious soldiers under me who wanted to fight the Mongols and Jurchen Tatars could not get a few coppers. Son."
Zheng Haizhu took advantage of the situation and probed: "Then this time, General Mao brought the money back to Liaodong. Can he try to set up a small mine? Isn't the general stationed near Liaoyang?"
Mao Wenlong waved his hand and said: "I don't dare to touch salt and iron. At most, if I have some leftovers from buying mules and horses, I can sell some mountain products and give some new year's money to the soldiers."
Suddenly his eyes changed, and he put on a posture of sincere condescension and sincere thanks, and smiled at Zheng Haizhu: "Miss Zheng, I will remember the benefits you gave Master Yan to share with me. Nice words for us warriors. I don’t want to say more, but I will get some good wild ginseng and mink skins later, make up some distant relative’s name, and send them to Songjiang to support you in the Han family.”
Zheng Haizhu quickly bowed to return the salute, her eyes fell on the patches of different colors on the hem of Mao Wenlong's robe, and her heart suddenly felt a little sour.
After all, he was a garrison member of an important military town, and his clothes were worse than those of a servant of a wealthy gentry in Songjiang Prefecture.
No matter how future generations evaluate this Liaodong border general, whether he was unruly or unruly and monopolized the trade between Liaodong and North Korea, a few years later, he actually defended the Ming Dynasty against foreign invasion under extremely difficult conditions. .
In these few days of contact and various details, Zheng Haizhu truly felt that Mao Wenlong was three parts decisive, two parts cunning, and one part simple, as well as the spirit of fighting against enemies that he showed from time to time, making him at least look like a passable person. It would be a pity to say goodbye to the person I have made friends with.
"General Mao, I heard that you are from Hangzhou. It's a great place. Do you still have relatives there?" Zheng Haizhu continued to chat with Mao Wenlong.
"Well, yes, there are quite a few," Mao Wenlong said. "My grandfather was a salt merchant. My father gave up business to study. Unfortunately, he passed away early. My uncle died in the war. Alas, it is too hard in the north, so there is only a concubine there. He served me and raised two daughters for me. My mother, daughter-in-law, and eldest son are all in Hangzhou. My uncle is away working as an official, and his family members are also staying in Hangzhou. This time, I came south to meet the head of the house secretly. , the excuse for leaving Liaodong is to go back to Hangzhou to visit relatives."
"Oh, so. Has the general ever thought about bringing some silk yarn and satin from Hangzhou and selling them back to Liaodong?"
Mao Wenlong touched his chin, narrowed his eyes and said: "You're right, we can't let the good efforts of our gentlemen go to waste. We have to transport some southern goods back. But buying silk requires a principal. My five hundred taels You have to exchange gold in Dengzhou to buy mules and horses."
Zheng Haizhu said without hesitation: "General, my two hundred taels of gold have to be cashed out at Dengzhou Wharf. Why don't I give you my own banknote and use it as a loan to sell Hangzhou silk to Liaodong?" Capital. You go back to Hangzhou this time, use your house as security, and bring the goods to Dengzhou. After you take my money, ask the escort to send it back to Hangzhou and transport the silk just in time to cross the sea to Liaodong. How about that?"
"Ah?" Mao Wenlong was a little dazed. He first tried to understand Zheng Haizhu's business arrangements, and then asked with confusion as if he had reacted, "Aren't you afraid that I will take away the money and run away?"
Zheng Haizhu thought to himself, how dare you and Yan Siqi cooperate strategically and know my friendship with him.
But when it came to his lips, it became a remark made by a sedan chair: "The general is a senior who knows the right and wrong, so don't make self-deprecating jokes. I am a female generation, living in a gentleman's house, so doing business is very inconvenient. . With my little fortune, I’d better help you, sir, to make a profit.”
Mao Wenlong got another big sum of money, so he was naturally happy and praised heartily: "Little girl, you are not simple."
Zheng Haizhu humbled himself, then took out the banknotes, told Mao Wenlong the secret exchange code Yan Siqi told him, and encouraged him: "General Mao, Songjiang Prefecture has long been full of Huizhou merchants, and they transported Songjiang cotton to Liaodong. I made a lot of money. I asked them why they didn't transport Wu silk and Hangzhou brocade. They said that the north was not as wealthy as the capital and south Zhili. Even middle-class families could not afford to wear silk. But I felt that that was They found no way up..."
Mao Wenlong pursed his lips: "That's natural. No matter how poor the mountain is, there are rich temples. Little girl, you are the same age as my eldest daughter. If I call you Uncle Mao, it doesn't count as taking advantage of you, right? Uncle Mao is not with you. Bragging, I can go in and drink in the Liaodong General Soldier’s house. The family members of Lord Zhang are wearing Hang brocade. Besides, Harqin likes the fine silks and satins of our Ming Dynasty. "
Zheng Haizhu pretended to be very interested and asked: "Kharqin? Are you a Mongolian tribe?"
During the ensuing voyage, Mao Wenlong answered Zheng Haizhu's questions and told him everything about the border affairs and interpersonal relationships in Liaodong, as well as the transportation situation of the Grand Canal from Jining to Hangzhou.
Zheng Haizhu was very satisfied after hearing this.
To do something in a strange time and space, you must first store up all kinds of information.
…
Two days later, the bird boat approached the waters of Nanhuizui, Songjiang Prefecture.
The old man who brought Mao Wenlong to the boat that day was named Tang Minghong. He was the uncle of Tang Ayuan, the manager of the Daishan Island Saltworks. Like his nephew, he was a close confidant of Yan Siqi. Yan Siqi asked Tang Hong to buy a house near Nanhuizui, specifically responsible for receiving important guests.
Tang Hong had already calculated the arrival time of the bird boat from the fishermen who delivered the news, and smoothly picked up the group of people ashore on a sand boat and went to the house to rest for the night.
The next day, Mao Wenlong took his troops to Hangzhou Prefecture, while Tang Hong led Zheng Haizhu to hire a car in Huinan Town and return to the Han family in Songjiang Prefecture.
Tang Hong knew that Zheng Haizhu had an unusual relationship with the Yan family, so he was particularly cautious and did not dare to find a coachman near Sifang City. Instead, he led Zheng Haizhu to Jinshanwei, two miles away, to find the carriage driven by the officer's family. shop.
Jinshan Guard, together with Tianjin Guard, Weihai Guard and Zhenhai Guard, are known as the Four Guards.
The Ming Dynasty had a long eastern coastline, and the wheel of world history had entered the Age of Discovery. A country's coastal defense was particularly important. Therefore, by the middle of the Ming Dynasty, the status of the four military bases on the east coast far surpassed those facing the Mongolian tribes in the north. Dozens of health clinics.
Jinshanwei and Songjiang Fucheng are hundreds of miles apart, which was considered a long distance in ancient times. Zheng Haizhu has been with the Han family in Songjiang for more than half a year and has never been to Jinshanwei.
Looking at the site today, under the scorching sun and with mirage steaming from the sea, a line of bluestone fortress walls stretches along the inside of the seawall, guarding the tall city at the most critical point of the terrain, as if thousands of animals are paying their respects to the sea beast king generally.
Tang Hong showed Zheng Haizhu's directions to the gatekeepers. The two entered the Acropolis. After walking a few steps along the cross street paved with bluestones, they saw a pair of people galloping towards them from the other end of the street. .
