Chapter 4 Chapter 138 Geographical Advantage

The huge ship broke through the waves and advanced mightily, with the banner on the prow fluttering in the sea breeze. The Ming Fleet left Managa, and some merchants stayed there.These merchants did not continue westward with the fleet. It cannot be said that they were short-sighted. On the contrary, they were all far-sighted people. Most of the people who made such decisions were people whose families did not have the ability to continue ocean voyages. They felt that, Instead of joining the ranks of the ocean-going gold rush and competing with other advantageous families, it is better to find another way.

They stayed in Malawi and used cheap local labor and abundant timber to build seaports, build warehouses and factories, and open hotels, restaurants and casinos.Since the Ming Dynasty opened up the ocean trade, it is foreseeable that as Zheng He's fleet went west this time, merchants from all over the world would flock here soon after hearing the news. Manga is an important port. Western merchants need to stop here to clean up and disassemble their goods so that they can be sold to different countries in the east. When they return, they also need to stay here for a long time to wait for the monsoon. During this time Here, of course, they also need to consume.These people who live on the sea travel thousands of miles and face many risks, so they are especially willing to spend money and enjoy themselves.

Therefore, operating here may not fail to make a lot of money.And this is also in the interests of Daming. As Da Ming goes all the way west, it will build its own bases in many important places. They have seized the control of ocean trade, so the fleet is very supportive of their choice, and has negotiated with King Managa on this to create convenient conditions for them as much as possible. At the same time, Zhou Man, Hong Bao, Zhou Wen, Yang Qing and others also led a fleet and embarked on their journey, visiting countries on different routes and exploring the edge of the ocean.However, their departure did not make the fleet shrink. On the contrary, the fleet became larger, because not only Managa, but also many wealthy businessmen from small countries nearby joined Daming's fleet and traveled westward with them.

The sea water is blue, the sky is clear, the giant ship moves forward, and the land behind the ship gradually turns into a blurred black on the map. The fleet travels along the bay, and small islands are on the side of the fleet. Seagulls are flying, and the waves are surging . At the bow of the boat, Tang Saier enthusiastically admired the seascape that changed with the boat and constantly brought forth new ones, chatting and laughing with Su Ying from time to time. Su Ying is naturally familiar with the ocean, but the scenery of the East China Sea and the South China Sea are completely different, and she is also very interested in seeing it.

Fei Yinglun jumped up and down the ship like a mouse that lost its soul. After a while, he ran into the cabin to see Xia Xun who was leisurely playing chess with the cook, Master Yu. After a while, he ran to the bow to see Su Ying and Tang who were talking and laughing freely. Sai'er was so anxious that he scratched his head. All the signs in front of us showed that the Ming army was completely defenseless, and everyone was happily waiting to accept the surrender, but that sinister pirate king really surrendered to the Ming fleet so easily? Fei Yinglun didn't believe it, he firmly didn't believe it, that guy Chen Zuyi didn't even understand the basic morals of being a pirate.

Aunt Ying, look, look, what's that in the water?So beautiful, like a blossoming umbrella, it opens and closes! Tang Sai'er suddenly leaned over the side of the boat, excitedly looking at groups of white phantom-like things in the blue water and asked. It was a group of jellyfish wandering around looking for food. Su Ying was quite used to it, so she smiled at Tang Sai'er: "This thing lives in spring and dies in winter. The big ones are like beds, and the small ones are like fights. They don't have eyes, stomach or stomach. It's a very strange thing." But it is very delicious when shredded and mixed with cold dishes. I don’t know what it is called here. We call it Haiyue or Mingyue there.

Speaking of this, Su Ying's face suddenly felt a little hot, probably because she suddenly thought of the bright moon that was played by her husband-in-law last night. The lookout whistle on the high pole on the bow blew the horn, announcing to everyone in the fleet: Bolingbang has arrived. The bow plows the waves, and the waves splash. When Xia Xun heard the sound of the horn, he walked to the bow of the boat. He was dressed in a straight dress of lake silk and wore a square scarf, just like a polite businessman. Standing on the highest deck, looking into the distance, he saw the faint shadow of the harbor in the far distance, and the visibility is very high today.

Xia Xun blinked and looked at the flagship again. The signal from the flagship was coming this way, and the ship Xu Hu immediately waved an orange flag and responded to the main ship. Xia Xun couldn't help smiling. After the flag was communicated, Xu Hu walked to Xia Xun's side.He was dressed in a military uniform, and in his forties, for a martial arts practitioner, he was at the peak of his mental and physical strength. With his black and red face, he was extremely imposing. Xu Hu said to Xia Xun: It's all right for Chen Zuyi to surrender obediently, if he really dares to do something, hehe!

Xu Hu laughed, and said again: Someone has reserved this Bolin State. If this island is won, it will be operated according to this island. Xia Xun didn't look back. Facing the sea breeze and sunshine, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and asked: Oh, who made the reservation? Xu Hu said: "It's the three big wood merchants in Fujian, and the leader is General Chizhong's brother-in-law. The three of them are very powerful together, and they have the great backing of Chizhong, so Eunuch Zheng He has already agreed."Now that these people are gearing up, they are afraid that Chen Zuyi won't do anything.

Xia Xun said with a smile: "I've met Chi Zhong's brother-in-law, and he is indeed a clever man."The merchants next to him are all competing alone. He has the support of his brother-in-law Chi Zhong, and he has to cooperate with the other two big timber merchants. Xia Xun pointed to the lush island, and said: This island is rich in precious wood such as wenge and rosewood. If these three big businessmen stay here, they will make a fortune.If they want to cut and transport logs, they have to hire a large number of local mountain people. As long as they organize a team of 3,000 people with big axes, they can have a considerable say in the local area. The local economic lifeline and port, hehe

Xu Hudao: Well, people in the Nanyang Islands don’t have to worry about eating. There are so many fish schools here that they don’t even need to go into the water to fish. They just need to build a low dam with stones on the seashore. When the tide goes out, just pick them up and there will be countless fish. Shrimp, there are many birds and animals in the mountains and forests, and there are all kinds of fruits throughout the year, but apart from eating, everything else is very poor. In this way, if they want to get all kinds of living things, they have to use money to buy them, and if they want money, they have to work, and the family does not have to worry about food. It's easy and cheap too.The timber merchants had all planned well. Xu Hu leaned on the side of the boat and said with a smile: Haha, now that I have said that, I also began to expect Chen Zuyi to do something to us, otherwise how could he become famous as a teacher. Xia Xun glanced at him and said with a smile: I'm afraid you also invested your capital here, right?Otherwise, Master Xu, why would you be so interested in business? Xu Hu blushed, and smiled embarrassingly: I knew I couldn't hide it from the Duke. Xia Xun laughed out loud. At this time, Fei Yinglun rushed to the top floor, but was stopped by two soldiers. Fei Yinglun struggled, and shouted at Xia Xun angrily in the Venetian accent he had just learned for two days: Mr. Xia, shopkeeper Xia, you can’t , can't! Seagulls were twittering and circling in the sky. The fleet slowly sailed into the harbor at the mouth of the trumpet. More than 30 warships were moored neatly in the harbor. The battleships were full of soldiers. They were not neatly arranged, so they could only wear a vest of the same style and color, and the weapons in their hands were also varied. They stood in line on the deck, with their heads held high, and tried their best to look like they were being inspected. There was a crowd of people's heads on the dock. The decorations on the front and back of the crowns of emperors and nobles are made of jade strings tied with silk ropes.) The crown is waiting eagerly. Chen Zuyi didn't intend to overstep, but because he didn't know what kind of crown the king should wear. His predecessor didn't leave him a decent set of crowns, and the country didn't have a crown system at that time.Chen Zuyi had no choice but to use his imagination, drawing on some New Year pictures and folklore, to piece together such a set of king's crown clothes. If he walked around in front of Emperor Yongle wearing this crown dress, Emperor Yongle would never be furious, because his so-called hanging crown dress is completely specious. The snake looks like a dragon.As for the crown, the emperor's crown (that is, the clothes and crowns, is the formal attire worn by the ancient emperors and other princes and nobles in major celebrations such as offering sacrifices to heaven and earth.) Twelve 旒, nine princes, seven upper officials, five lower officials, and Chen Zuyi's suspicion Too many slacks affect the sight, and because I often sail on the sea, I think the number six is ​​very auspicious, so I came up with six slacks in an ingenious way. What kind of arrogance is this? Although Chen Zuyi was crowned with a monkey, it was a joke, but at least he had prepared a band as the concierge, and this band was also the signal for him to make an agreement with all the troops.Seeing the Ming Fleet slowly entering the harbor, Chen Zuyi couldn't help swallowing his breath. The spectacular scene that covered the sky and the sun gave him a lot of psychological pressure. Can this majestic team really be shaken by him? But then he thought about the infinite wealth carried by this fleet, and thought that after these large ships fell into his hands, he would be able to travel across the east and west undefeated. His heart was burning, and his eyes were covered with blood from greed.He stuck out his tongue, and slowly licked his lips, like a wolf that chooses to eat people, with a sinister smile hanging on the corner of his mouth. Woo Seeing that the fleet had completely sailed into the harbor and was slowly slowing down, an official in a white robe and a wingless veil could be clearly seen standing at the bow of the ship surrounded by a large group of officials , the sail on the mast was slowly falling, and the big anchor on the side also crashed into the water Chen Zuyi let out a grin, and under the command, the horns sounded first, followed by the gongs, cymbals and drums, and the high-pitched sounds. The warships lined up in the port suddenly moved together, and quickly moved forward like a pack of wolves to outflank the past. The main battleships headed by the Zheng He battleship.