Daming Yinghua

Chapter 25
"Anchor..."

"Raise the sails..."

With the well-trained slogans and movements of the sailors, the bird boat set sail slowly.

Standing on the deck, Mao Wenlong and Zheng Haizhu waved goodbye to Yan Siqi who stopped by the cliff to see him off.

When the boat leaves the harbor, it will pass by the salt field on the island. Looking over it, Mao Wenlong can't help but sigh: "Yan Dang's family is indeed slapped in the clouds for a long time-a master. The salt produced by the sun on Daishan Island, which is as big as a chicken coop, is not as good as it is. It can equal the output of Fuzhouwei and Jinzhouwei combined."

Zheng Haizhu was thirsty for knowledge about the real situation in various parts of Ming Dynasty, so he asked curiously: "Why? There are many strong men and guards in the fort, and they are paid by the court. Is it not as good as 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 a mountain king has the final say? The cooking salt of the seaside guards, and the iron smelting in Liaoyang Mountain all require large sums of money to raise Dingkou and repair water conservancy mines." Dao. The food and salaries allocated by the imperial court have been exploited layer by layer, not to mention that they are given to Yan Ding and the fried iron army. Even Lao Tzu's soldiers who are serious about fighting the Mongols and Jurchen Tartars can't get a few coppers Son."

Zheng Haizhu took advantage of the situation and said tentatively: "Then this time, General Mao brought the money back to Liaodong. Can you try 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 leftovers from buying mules and horses, sell some mountain products and give some lucky money to soldiers."

Suddenly, his eyes changed, and he put on a gesture of sincere condescension and sincere thanks, and smiled at Zheng Haizhu: "Miss Zheng, I will keep in mind the benefits you let Mr. Yan give to this general. It's a good word, we warriors I don’t want to say more, but in the future, I will get some high-quality wild ginseng and mink fur, make up the name of some distant relative, and send it to Songjiang to support you in the Han family.”

Zheng Haizhu hurriedly bowed to return the salute, his eyes fell on the patches of different shades on the hem of Mao Wenlong's robe, and his heart suddenly felt a little sour.

After all, he was the garrison of an important military town, and his clothes were not as good as those of the servants of the noble gentry of Songjiang Mansion.

No matter what later generations think of this Liaodong general, whether he is rebellious or unruly, or monopolizing the trade between Liaodong and North Korea, after a few years, he has actually resisted foreign invasion for the Ming Dynasty under extremely difficult conditions. .

And these few days of contact and various details made Zheng Haizhu truly feel that Mao Wenlong's three points of decisiveness, two points of cunning, and one point of simplicity, as well as the blood of defending against the enemy revealed from time to time, made him at least like a passable cute It would be a pity if I just leave the person I made friends with.

"General Mao, I heard that you are from Hangzhou. It's a good place. Do you have any relatives there?" Zheng Haizhu continued to chat with Mao Wenlong.

"Well, yes, there are quite a few," Mao Wenlong said, "My grandparents were originally salt merchants. My father abandoned merchants to study, but unfortunately passed away early. My uncle died in battle. Alas, the north is too bitter, and there is only one concubine there. Served me and raised two daughters for me. My mother, daughter-in-law, and eldest son are all in Hangzhou. My uncle is an official who is not a sly official, and my family members also stay in Hangzhou. This time, I came to the south to secretly meet Yan Dangjia , the excuse for leaving Liaodong is to return to Hangzhou to visit relatives."

"Oh, that's right. Has the general thought about bringing some silk yarn and satin from Hangzhou and selling them back to Liaodong?"

Mao Wenlong rubbed his chin, narrowed his eyes and said, "You're right, we can't let the hard work of the elders be in vain, we have to transport some southern goods back. But to buy silk, I need the principal, my 500 taels of gold , I have to exchange it in Dengzhou to buy mules and horses.”

Zheng Haizhu said without hesitation: "General, I have to exchange my 200 taels of gold at the Dengzhou wharf. Why don't I hand over my own banknotes to you as the capital to borrow you to sell Hangzhou silk to Liaodong?" When you return to Hangzhou this time, you will take the goods to Dengzhou with your house as security, and after you take my money, you will entrust the escort to send it back to Hangzhou, and transport the silk to Liaodong just across the sea, how about it?"

"Ah?" Mao Wenlong was a little dazed. He first tried to understand Zheng Haizhu's arrangement of buying and selling, and then asked doubtfully, "Aren't you afraid that I will get away with money?"

Zheng Haizhu thought to himself, you have strategic cooperation with Yan Siqi, and you know my friendship with him, how dare you.

But when it came to his mouth, it became a face-lifting word from a sedan chair: "The general is a senior who understands right and wrong, so don't make self-deprecating jokes. I am a female generation, and I live in the family of a gentry master. It is very inconvenient to do business. .My little fortune, let me point out to you, sir, to help you make money."

Mao Wenlong got a lot of capital again, so he was naturally happy, and he praised heartily: "Little girl, you are not simple."

Zheng Haizhu humbled himself a few words, and immediately took out the banknote, told Mao Wenlong the exchange code that Yan Siqi had told him, and cheered him up: "General Mao, Songjiang Mansion has long been full of Huizhou merchants, and they shipped Songjiang cotton cloth to Liaodong. They earn a lot of money. I asked them why they didn’t carry Wu silk and brocade. They said that the northern land is not as rich as the capital and southern Zhili, and even middle-class people can’t afford silk and satin. They didn't find a way up any further..."

Mao Wenlong pursed his lips: "That's natural. No matter how poor the hills are, there are also rich temples. Little girl, you are about the same age as my eldest daughter. I admit that calling Uncle Mao is not taking advantage of you, right? Uncle Mao is not with you. Bragging, I can also go in and drink in the house of the Liaodong General Army. The family members of the adults wear Hang Jin. What's more, Kaerqin likes the good silk and satin of our Daming very much. "

Zheng Haizhu pretended to be very interested and asked, "Karqin? Is it a tribe of the Mongolians?"

During the following voyage, Mao Wenlong knew everything about Zheng Haizhu's questions, and he talked about Liaodong border affairs and interpersonal relationships, as well as the transportation situation of the Grand Canal from Jining to Hangzhou.

Zheng Haizhu was very satisfied.

To do something in an unfamiliar time and space, you must first reserve all kinds of information.

……

Two days later, the bird boat approached the waters of Nanhuizui, Songjiang Prefecture.

The old man who led Mao Wenlong to the boat that day was Tang Minghong. He was the uncle of Tang Ayuan, the manager of the Daishan Island saltworks. Like his nephew, he was Yan Siqi's confidant.Yan Siqi asked Tang Hong to buy a house near Nanhuizui, which was specially 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 with a sand boat, and went to the house to rest overnight.

The next day, Mao Wenlong took his men and horses to Hangzhou Mansion, while Tang Hong led Zheng Haizhu to Huinan Town to hire a car and returned to Han's house in Songjiang Mansion City.

Knowing that the relationship between Zheng Haizhu and Yan Dang's family was unusual, Tang Hong was very cautious. He didn't dare to find a coachman near Sifang City, but led Zheng Haizhu to Jinshanwei, Erli Road, to find the carriage driven by the officer's family. shop.

Jinshanwei, together with Tianjinwei, Weihaiwei, and Zhenhaiwei, is also known as the Four Davids.

The Ming Dynasty has a long eastern coastline, and the wheel of world history has entered the era of great navigation. The coastal defense of a country is particularly important. Therefore, in the middle of the Ming Dynasty, the status of the four Davids in the east facing the sea has far surpassed that of the Mongolian tribes in the north. Dozens of guards.

The distance between Jinshanwei and Songjiang Fucheng is hundreds of miles, which was considered a long distance in ancient times. Zheng Haizhu took refuge in Songjiang Han's family for more than half a year, and had never been to Jinshanwei.

Looking at it on the ground today, I can see that under the scorching sun, the mirage is transpiring, and a row of bluestone fortress walls stretches on the inside of the seawall, guarding the tall city at the most critical point, as if thousands of animals greeted the Zhenhai Beast King generally.

Tang Hong showed Zheng Haizhu's guide to the gatekeepers, and the two entered the Acropolis. After walking a few steps along the cross street paved with bluestone slabs, they saw a pair of men and horses galloping towards the other side of the street. .

　Friends in Shanghai know that Huinan Town is actually quite a distance from Jinshanwei, and the novel needs to make them closer.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)