Xinshun 1730

Chapter 48 Force Majeure
Of course, Bering didn't know that he had become the prey of a certain hunter.

Several years of exploration had destroyed his body.Suffering from gastric ulcers, he had to hold his aching stomach tightly with one hand in order to free up energy to continue drawing the map.

On the table in the captain's cabin, there is a 6x10 feet world map, only a few places are still blank.

There is not much space left for explorers. When the coastline is drawn in the last blank space, explorers who want to leave their names in the memory of all mankind can only go to the moon, Mars or even go outside the solar system. .

In fact, Bering was not very satisfied with the choice of the expedition route this time.

For the Russian Empire, finding a route from Heilongjiang to Japan would help to strengthen its national power.

But for Bering personally, as an explorer, his greatest hope is to be able to leave his name on the future world map.

Like... determine if Asia and America are connected?

There are only two blank places on the map on the table.

One is the mysterious southern continent. People believe that there is a vast continent south of the vast Pacific Ocean, but people cannot reach it because of ocean currents and wind directions.

The other is the American coast from California to the north.Is it directly connected to Asia?Or is it across the sea from Asia?
Originally, his dream was to find the mysterious southern continent.

For this reason, he studied cartography, astronomy and navigation hard, and worked as a researcher at the Amsterdam Ocean Institute in the Netherlands, hoping to board the expedition ship of the Shanghai coachman.

However, the Dutch are full of interest in gold coins, but they don't have much willingness to draw a wider sea chart.

Until many years ago, a few Russians who were regarded as barbarians by Western Europeans came to Amsterdam and spent a lot of money to hire a large number of talents.

Bering decided to change the direction, no longer looking for the mysterious southern continent, but to draw a map from Asia to the northern coast of America.

Most of his expeditions were non-Russian, many recruited by Peter from Holland.The first officer's name was Sven Wickhill, a standard Swedish surname.Only the deputy captain and some young boys from the Russian Academy of Sciences were intern draftsmen, and they were Russians.

During a previous expedition to Siberia, his expedition lost supplies.

On the premise of keeping enough horses, Bering cooked the leather boots of his dead teammates to satisfy his hunger, survived the blizzard, and left many people in the expedition with serious stomach problems.

Fortunately, this time, the above prepared a ship for them in Heilongjiang, and also prepared enough supplies.Fishing and hunting can be done along the way to ensure that the team has enough food to survive the long journey at sea.

In mid-May, there is a tendency of ice melting in Heilongjiang.As soon as the ice flood was over, Bering couldn't wait to set sail.

The weather in the north is always cold, and even the sea may freeze. He wants to find Japan before winter comes.If you are lucky next year, you can follow the northern coastline to find the legendary sea route to America.

In early June, the expedition team had already crossed the Ussuri River, and the journey went smoothly.Sailing on the river, with plenty of fresh water, and no one on board has died so far, which is a good start.

Like every sea ship, there will be a cat in the captain's cabin as the spirit of the ship.A cat that can't swim at all is chosen as the ship spirit, probably because the cat will fight wits and courage with the mouse that steals supplies.

The golden civet cat lay lazily on the map, purring, just like every day on the expedition road: quiet, dull, and boring.

This quietness and boredom was interrupted by the first mate Wakehill pushing the door.

"Captain, there are some Cossacks on the shore. They are shouting somewhere, as if they have captured a Frenchman. This Frenchman came from America."

This news is like a hunter carefully preparing for the prey.Deer's favorite bitter vegetable, cat's favorite mouse, Bering's favorite American and Asian routes.

Hearing this news, Bering stood up excitedly and ran to the deck.

You don't need a telescope, you can see the few "Cossacks" on the river bank, waving there.

The standard Cossack uniform, with tape on the trousers, some flintlock guns with bayonets on their backs, and a flipped hat covering their faces.

Someone is shouting in Russian, and if you listen carefully, you can hear words like America.

"Dock! Dock!"

Seeing that it was a Cossack, Bering was not alert at all. It was quite normal to see a few Cossacks in this kind of place.

Coupled with the phrase "French drifting over from America", it is exactly what it likes.If true, then perhaps some clues about the northern coast of America could be asked from the Frenchman.

The current here is not turbulent, and there are sandbars and river islands formed by erosion everywhere.The expedition ship can only accommodate 50 people, it is not big, and the draft is not deep.

He chose a place close to the river bank to anchor, lowered the boat, and Bering took several people ashore in the boat.

"How are you, Cossacks. Where is the Frenchman who drifted from America?"

His question was asked, but the answer he got was not what he expected.The men in Cossack clothes suddenly rushed to the side of the boat, pulled out their knives and put them on the necks of several members of the expedition team.

In the distance, several small boats made of birch bark suddenly jumped out of the reeds and rowed frantically towards the expedition ship.

Out of the crowd on the shore, a man with a face covered in oil came out.

Wearing a beaver fur hat that is so greasy that you can make noodle soup with a twist, and a Cossack captain's military uniform, there is a weird smile under the fluffy beard on his mouth.

"Mr. Bering, hello. We meet again."

The Russian pronunciation is very inaccurate, and there is a feeling of rolling your tongue with a stick in your mouth.

In astonishment, Bering recognized the person opposite him.He remembered the lunch in Stepanovsk during the winter, the Chinese Protestant who could not speak Dutch or German but knew Latin.

The bayonet was clearly pressed against his chest, Bering raised his hand obediently, his heart was in a mess.

What are these people going to do?
robbery?

No... it won't be a robbery.

Looking back, the expedition ship, which was unable to move after anchoring, was surrounded by more than a dozen birch bark boats. The people on board were vigilant with muskets, and the people under the boat did not attack immediately, but seemed to bite Dead grasshoppers surrounded the expedition ship like ants.

Bering had already forgotten the name of the Protestant opposite, so he could only ask, "What do you want?"

"Knowledge."

It was a weird answer that surprised Bering.

Bering was eye-opening. The scene of asking for knowledge can actually be associated with the bayonet on his chest.

"You are not a businessman?"

"No. I'm not a businessman, and I'm not a Protestant."

Liu Yu stretched out his hand to the back, and the companions handed over a compasses, a telescope, and a copy of "Table of Trigonometric Functions".

Bering understood, is this a colleague?
"Are you an explorer sent by the Emperor of China?"

Liu Yu nodded, and Bering immediately reprimanded loudly: "A true explorer and navigator should sail to find new worlds by himself. Instead of snatching other people's charts."

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Liu Yu didn't feel ashamed in the slightest, she leaned back and forth with a smile.

"Route exploration is the cause of all mankind. I will not rob you of your name on the map in the future, I just want some maps. Because I have no way to go to Siberia. Mr. Bering, I know you are Danish, employed by Russia."

He took out a golden key from his bosom and handed it to Bering.

"Make an offer. You can go on exploring, but your employer is the Emperor of China, not the Tsar of Russia."

"money is not a problem."

The heavy gold is in the palm of your hand, very heavy.It seems to have verified the European legend that China is full of gold.

Yet Bering had a great work ethic.

"I can be employed by the Chinese emperor to continue the expedition. But, regarding the previous map, it was funded by the Russian Empire, and I cannot give it to you. It is not my private property, but the Russian Empire, and I have no right to dispose of it. That expedition ship is not mine, but the Russian Navy."

"Even if I am hired by you, I must complete this expedition before I can be hired by you. Because the tsar and the admiral paid enough money in advance for this expedition."

Liu Yu nodded, applauded for his work ethic, and took the golden key back.

He waved his hand to the back, and there were three bang bangs, and the captured artillery fired three shots near the expedition ship on the river.

It was not aimed at the boat, but at the water in the center of the river.

More birch-bark boats burst out of the reeds along the river's edge toward the expedition ship in the middle of the river.

Soon, the Russian navy flag marked with a blue X on the expedition ship was lowered, and the white flag was raised, declaring surrender.

This is just an expedition ship, not equipped with artillery, and there are not many soldiers on board.Moreover, most of the people were foreigners, and they were anchored again, unable to run, and had no other choice but to surrender.

After rowing the boat to the expedition ship, all the captured personnel were taken to the deck and the weapons were collected.

"Now, this ship has been captured by me. You are prisoners of war, and everything on board is my spoils of war. Including your map."

Sitting in front of the table in the captain's cabin, Liu Yu took out Bering's quill, wrote a sentence on the paper, and said back, "I'll issue you a certificate."

"Due to force majeure, Vitas Bering has been unable to continue this expedition."

"The employment relationship between Bering and Russia will be terminated due to force majeure from now on... According to your calendar, what date is it today?"

"Eleventh of June, 1727."

He picked up a pen and wrote down the date, took out his own seal and printed it on it, and signed his name in a fluttering manner.

"Xunwei and Liu Yu of the Forbidden Palace of Dashun. 6, 11, 1726, written in the lower reaches of Heilongjiang, China."

Shaking the piece of paper, he said with a smile, "Look, these charts are all my trophies and have nothing to do with your professional ethics. Now you are also my captive. Captive, death, scurvy, shipwreck Wait, these are all force majeure."

"Otherwise, Magellan was shot to death in Luzon, can it be considered that Magellan failed to fulfill his employment obligations to Portugal? Right?"

"After a while, I will send someone to send this to St. Petersburg. Do you have any debts in Russia? If so, I will help you pay them out of personal morality. In addition, your wife and children, Dashun also Will ask for it for you through diplomatic channels, if you have it."

"If you want to continue exploring, there is no problem. We have plenty of money, and we can build ships for you. Do you have any questions? Dashun has always been interested in the mysterious southern continent. You may be the discoverer of the southern continent."

(End of this chapter)