prosperous age

"This is Ming Dynasty Guangdong, and then Fujian and Zhejiang."

Yu Dayou pointed at a corner of the nautical chart and began to explain to Li Rusong, "Go south from Guangdong to Luzon, go to Jiugang after replenishing supplies, and cross the Mancijia Strait to reach Pegu."

Yu Dayou told Li Rusong about the entire sea journey. It was also the first time that Li Rusong knew that there was such a vast land outside the Ming Dynasty, especially the ocean, which had a huge impact on Li Rusong.

“This is Myanmar, so where is this?”

Li Rusong was relatively familiar with the terrain of Liaodong, but as for the southwest, all he had seen before was the Ming-Myanmar border, and he was completely unfamiliar with the surrounding areas.

"That's Siam and Laos, this is Annam."

The place that Li Rusong pointed to was Southeast Asia, so Yu Dayou talked to Li Rusong about these countries and the kingdoms on the islands.

"You said that Jiugang is also the territory of our Ming Dynasty?"

When Li Rusong heard Yu Dayou mention Jiugang, he felt it was somewhat familiar, but he couldn't remember where it was.

After all, this enclave was too unfamiliar to the people of the Ming Dynasty, and they had not paid attention to it for more than a hundred years.

“Jiugang was separated from the Ming Dynasty more than a hundred years ago. After the voyages to the West were completely stopped, Jiugang was occupied by foreign vassals.

This time we are also ordered to patrol the old port and bring it back into the territory of our Ming Dynasty."

Yu Dayou said with some pride.

"Admiral, brother, what are you looking at?"

Yu Dayou and Li Rusong were looking at the map in front of them. Li Rubai had just finished the inventory task and came over to see it.

However, Li Rusong did not answer, but just waved his hand, signaling him not to care, but his eyes never left the nautical chart.

Li Rubai was helpless, but still spoke in a low voice: "The valuables in the box have been counted. I'll have them seal the box."

"it is good."

This time, Li Rusong finally gave an answer.

"Sir Admiral, what's going on here?"

"Bengal."

The place Li Rusong pointed to is Bangladesh in later generations, which was still the Sultanate of Bengal at that time, and the Ming Dynasty called it Bengal.

Yu Dayou commanded the navy. Although the court had not allowed them to continue sailing westward to visit the places that eunuch Sanbao had been to, he still often looked at the nautical charts and became familiar with the countries to the west.

"Bengal is not a very big country. To its west is a huge country called India, which we often call Tianzhu."

Yu Dayou continued, “However, the court has not ordered us to continue our journey west, so after this battle in Burma, we will return.

I will then leave a fleet in Pegu and Dagon to patrol and protect the Burmese coast.”

The court did not have a clear decree on whether this navy should accept Li Chengliang's orders, so Yu Dayou did not say much. He had to go back and report the matter before a decision could be made.

If it is incorporated into the Myanmar garrison, the natural navy will be allocated to Myanmar.

But it's hard to say. Wei Guangde obviously planned to separate the navy from the garrison, or the land division, and form an independent army.

"Indeed, the navy still has more than 10,000 soldiers, all of whom will be stationed in Pegu and Dagon."

Yu Dayou said.

"Please rest assured, Admiral. The two cities will be temporarily guarded by our navy brothers. We will report to the court and execute the decision once it is made."

Li Rusong was very straightforward and he didn't care about these two cities.

When discussing with Yu Dayou before, Yu Dayou mentioned that the navy needed to garrison in these two port cities, and the navy's combat troops would also be stationed there.

In fact, the subtext is that he does not want Li Rusong to send troops into the city for the time being.

After all, if two groups of people appeared in one city, it would be easy for friction to occur and cause trouble.

Both Yu Dayou and Li Rusong were well aware of the Ming army's ability to fight among themselves.

It seems that such contradictions exist in almost all countries in the world. In order to compete for national defense resources, the three armed forces are mostly at odds with each other, and there is no one like it.

The Ming Dynasty’s navy has not completely separated from the garrisons, but conflicts between the garrisons still exist.

These details were not considered by Wei Guangde earlier. Only after the subordinates discovered them and reported them, the Ministry of War finally decided on the system.

This is actually very important, especially in wartime, who obeys whose orders.

Now, Li Rusong made it clear that he would not send troops to take over the defense of these two cities before the imperial court made it clear.

The reason for this is naturally that no matter whether it is Li Chengliang or Yu Dayou, the same person is standing behind them. If there is infighting below, it will be bad for the people above.

"By the way, Admiral, I looked at this sea chart. If the navy takes a detour here, will it be faster and the distance shorter?"

Li Rusong asked, pointing to the coast of Annan and Siam.

Yu Dayou understood what Li Rusong meant and said with a smile: "Indeed, this is the shortest way to travel and takes less time, but there is a lack of supply points and the risk of sailing is a bit high."

"Is it because the navy has no harbor here? Just take it down."

Li Rusong said puzzledly.

You can also see from the nautical chart that those countries are very small, and I heard that they have been plundered by Myanmar before. What does this mean?
This shows that these countries have no fighting power at all, and as long as the army goes there, it will be an easy task to capture them.

Li Rusong was full of confidence having just arrived in Burma. Naturally, he wanted to accumulate more merits and gain better rewards for himself.

"Rusong, I understand what you mean. It's not impossible to do it."

Yu Dayou shook his head and smiled, "I see that you are also a well-educated person, so you must have heard of the story of Taizu's 'unconquered country'."

"What you mean, Admiral, is that they are all countries that Taizu has designated as unconquerable?"

Li Rusong was shocked, and then he understood. No wonder Yu Dayou did not attack these countries. He just wanted a seaport, which was not a big deal at all.

Knowing that it was Taizu's order, Li Rusong could not continue speaking.

“Actually, it doesn’t mean that we can’t attack a country that we don’t conquer, but it depends on the situation.

During the reign of Emperor Chengzu, didn’t we conquer Annan? That was one of the countries that we did not conquer.”

Yu Dayou smiled, and finally pointed his finger at an island off Fujian on the sea chart and said, "This place is called Xiaoliuqiu, and it is also one of the countries that Taizu did not conquer. But now this place has become the camp of the South China Sea Navy, and the entire island is."

Yu Dayou's words opened Li Rusong's eyes.

He knew that Chengzu had attacked Annan, but he was also very clear that the Ming army was defeated later. People were saying that it was because they did not listen to Taizu's advice that the Ming army suffered heavy losses in Annan, so he had to listen to the ancestral teachings and implement them seriously.

However, the navy occupied Xiaoliuqiu without any fuss, and this was the first time Li Rusong knew about this.

Not many people in the court knew about it, and everyone was warned not to talk too much about it.

Therefore, Li Rusong only found out about this now.

So he asked curiously: "Admiral, then no one in the court objects, and Little Ryukyu is also one of the countries that will not be conquered."

"What unconquered country? There is no king on Xiaoliuqiu Island. There are only some large and small villages that govern themselves independently. That's why the cabinet issued an order to enter Dongfan in the name of suppressing the Japanese pirates. Now, whenever the court mentions Dongfan Island, it is actually Xiaoliuqiu." Yu Dayou said with a smile.

"Oh, I see. They just changed their names."

Li Rusong nodded slightly. If he continued to use Xiaoliuqiu, there would probably be criticism in the court.

When it comes to Dongfan, most people probably can’t react for a while.

“As for the west, Rusong, you’d better not think too much about it.

I remember that Lord Wei once said in his early years that the territory of the Ming Dynasty had basically been finalized. Unless there was a faster way of communication, it would be difficult for the court to effectively control it if it could not establish effective contact with remote places.

Just like the previous Emperor Yuan, his army marched westwards. It is said that the journey was tens of thousands of miles away, but the emperor was far away and the army had no way of controlling it. In the end, the army could only break away from Emperor Yuan's control and split into several kingdoms.

If the army that went west was still there, Taizu's northern expedition would not have been so easy to succeed. Dividing the river and governing separately would have been the best outcome."

Yu Dayou was also very optimistic about Li Rusong, who was young and hardworking, so he told him about the things that Wei Guangde had mentioned in his past letters to him. This was because he could see that Li Rusong was not a person who would settle for less, and might even have his eyes on Bengal in the west, or even India.

It’s not that they can’t fight, but it’s mainly because it’s difficult for the imperial court to exercise effective control.

Myanmar alone is actually not easy to control, otherwise there would not have been several Xuanweisi set up here to carry out the so-called management, and it would have been directly designated as a province.

6◇9◇Book◇Bar

"Admiral, I am grateful for your advice."

Li Rusong was not stupid. He knew that it was Yu Dayou who was teaching him, so he bowed and saluted hurriedly.

The last batch of property was counted, those that needed to be packed were packed, those that needed to be sealed were sealed, and the list was made in triplicate, all of which were signed and sealed by Li Rusong and Yu Dayou.

The navy and the army each kept a copy, and another copy was prepared to be sent to the capital to await orders. Li Rusong also asked Yu Dayou for a map of the South China Sea.

In the afternoon, Li Rusong went to see the grain being loaded onto hundreds of carts, which were being transported north to Ava City by five thousand Ming troops led by Li Ruzhen.

On the second day, the army headed north, and a long convoy carrying a large amount of food and fodder went away.

On the third day, Yu Dayou led the officers and soldiers of the South China Sea Navy to board the ship at the dock and went downstream directly to Pegu City. However, several Fu ships were left at the dock waiting for Li Rusong to dispatch them.

Now, only Li Rusong and Li Rubai are left in Toungoo City.

In the temporary residence, Li Rusong was also beating his brothers.

"Rubai, I know what you're thinking, but have you ever thought about it? Even Yu Dayou doesn't dare to get those things, so why do you think you can?

Even if my father were here, I wouldn't dare to do this.

Not only is there a list of property, but if we hold those things, it would be beyond the limit, and once leaked, it would be fatal. "

Only two days after Yu Dayou left Toungoo City, Li Rubai kept circling around the warehouse.

Li Rusong sent his personal soldiers to keep an eye on the situation, and immediately called his brothers to his side to teach them a lesson.

At this time, Li Rubai was standing below listening to his eldest brother's admonition. Although he knew that what his eldest brother said made sense, he just wouldn't accept it.

There are several brothers in the family, why should the best things go to the eldest brother while they can't even have a drink of soup.

It doesn't matter how much you take. It's okay to just pick some things from a box and put them in your pocket. People in Beijing may not notice.

Seeing his brother's expression, Li Rusong knew that it would be difficult to convince his brother, unless he used the method he used in Liaodong before, which was to beat the man up.

But now Myanmar has just been pacified and the war is not even over yet. He really can't just go up and beat his brother up just because he did something wrong.

He actually understood his father's arrangement. He was the leader of the next generation of the family, and all the family's resources would be allocated to him so that he could reach a higher position and continue to glorify the family.

Since the little brother just wants money, let's find a way to divert his attention.

After thinking for a moment, Li Rusong came up with an idea and said to Li Rubai, "Well, you take 3,000 troops out for inspection."

"Brother."

Li Rubai spoke hastily, but was interrupted by Li Rusong, who waved his hand and continued, "Do you remember the temples we passed by on the way south?"

"Hmm? Temple?"

Li Rubai was stunned. He had previously thought that his elder brother was going to chase him away, but now when he heard his elder brother mention the temple, he looked confused.

"I heard that those quick hands got a lot of gold foil from those Buddha statues. It's not just one temple, but all the temples."

Li Rusong had made it very clear, and Li Rubai knew what he meant. When he was asked to lead his troops to fight in the wild, he couldn't help but feel something in his heart.

It is said that those Buddha statues are made of real gold. How much gold must that be?

Thinking of this, Li Rubai began to rub his hands, already eager to try.

“Think carefully, you don’t have to take risks to get money.

Myanmar has just been conquered, there are many places to make money, there is no need to risk your life to get money, what do you think? "

Li Rusong tempted him step by step.

"Brother, don't say anything. I understand you. I will listen to you. Don't think about those things. I will lead the troops out for patrol."

Li Rubai quickly expressed his opinion.

At least he could still tell the difference. His elder brother was right. The Buddha statues in Burma were all made of gold. That meant that the people here should have a lot of gold in their hands. If they thought of some way, they could get a lot of it.

"Also, think about the gems in those boxes. Just think about it. A mere Burmese king can get so many gems. What does this mean?"

Li Rusong didn't intend to let it go so easily, so he continued speaking.

“There are mines.”

Li Rubai said with his eyes shining.

"Ha ha."

Li Rusong laughed and nodded.

In fact, Li Rusong was as greedy for money as his father and brothers, but he and his father were not greedy for money just to indulge in luxury. He did not have so many desires, but rather to support his servants.

This is extremely costly. If they cannot find a way to make money, they can only raise funds by withholding soldiers' salaries, engaging in smuggling, or even bullying and monopolizing business in Liaodong, as they did before.

There is so much gold and gems in Myanmar that Li Rusong naturally thought that there must be mines here, especially gem mines.

He had heard a lot about Burmese gems, and even the royal court sent people to purchase them regularly.

If you seize the gold and gem mines, you can provide the family with a steady stream of wealth.

With the silver, there will be money to support the team of servants.

Li Rusong actually had a good idea, and he had already shared the same idea with Feng Bao and Wei Guangde.

Compared with Myanmar's rich mineral resources, it will then be a question of profit distribution.

It is impossible for any company to dominate the market alone.

Even though Feng Bao is the number one person in the inner court, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he is second only to the number one, can he really influence Myanmar?
This place is far from the emperor, and the capital city is not very useful. (End of this chapter)