Established a thousand-year family from the end of Qin Dynasty

Chapter 670 Great Voyage ([-])
Republic 460 Seventh Year Spring (677)
China-Zhenghe Trade Transit Station (Cheduba Island)
After Zheng He opened up the Tianzhu route, he successively established many trade transfer stations along the route, three of which were far away from the Spice Islands.

The one on the upper leg of the route is the Shangzhenghe Trade Transit Station, the one on the middle leg of the route is the Central Zhenghe Transit Station, and the one on the lower leg of the route is the Lower Zhenghe Transit Station.

The Shangzheng He transit station is located on a volcanic island (Andaman Islands), which is also named [Wang Rui Islands], because the first to discover these islands was Wang Rui, the ancestor of the Republic, but in the past few hundred years, The Republic has been busy developing the Spice Islands, and has no time to reclaim the further volcanic islands.

The large group of small islands where the Zhenghe trade transfer station is located is named [Zhenghe Islands].

Although Wang Rui discovered this place very early, Wang Rui did not land here, but just passed by while sailing. Zheng He was the first person to land here and build a port wharf.

The lower Zhenghe trade transfer station is located in the north (Jaffna) of Lion Island (Sri Lanka) in the Kingdom of Zhulia.

From Zhongzhenghe Station to Lower Zhenghe Station, it is a very long east Tianzhu coastline. There is no trade transfer station of the Republic here. Merchant ships must replenish enough supplies at Zhongzhenghe Station, otherwise they can only turn to the Tianzhu mainland. Coastal states help.

The next Zheng He trade transfer station was rented (cheat) by Zheng He.

Ten years ago, Zheng He's fleet was resting in the north of Lion Island. He claimed that the fishing goods were affected by moisture and needed to dry the fish on the island. He was willing to pay some wine/five-stone powder every year as rent.

When the local indigenous leader of the Zhuliye Kingdom asked Zheng He how much land he needed to dry fish.

Zheng He replied: Only a piece of land the size of a cowhide is enough.

The leader happily agreed, and then he regretted it.

Because Zheng He cut the cowhide into lines, and used the cowhide lines to surround a large piece of fertile land, which is equivalent to the size of a county in the Central Plains. In this way, Zheng He rented the cowhide land into his hands, and the price was only It is to send a can of fine wine to the local chief every year.

Zheng He stored a hundred cans of fine nectar in the warehouse of the trade war, and neither sold nor drank it. He specially kept one can and sent it to the local leader every year. This is called honesty. Whoring for nothing.

For one hundred cans of fine wine, a fertile land the size of a county town is rented for 100 years.

"Can I not eat fish today?"

After getting off the boat, Wang Bo, the great poet, first cared about whether he could eat some other food, instead of eating fish every day, or the fishy and smelly dried fish.

Shangzheng He Trade Transit Station is a volcanic archipelago with little arable land. The main source of food is fishing, and the source of fresh water is coconuts.

Wang Bo ate dried fish for a month at Zhenghe Station, and he already had a psychological shadow on dried fish.

"You are my slave, why are there so many demands?" Li Huamei, a pirate girl, glanced at Wang Bo.

Wang Bo's reputation has spread beyond the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, when the pirate girl learned that there was such a great poet from the Central Plains among her captives, she took the initiative to turn this special captive into her own exclusive slave. , not sold to the guild.

Having a talented poet as her exclusive slave is enough for her to show off.

In the port, many indigenous slaves wearing anklets are working. They are building this small port, and they have used their lives to shine on this trade transfer station.

These indigenous slaves are all "Rakhines" on the land on the other side of the strait. These people are descendants of immigrants from Tianzhu/poisonous and local aboriginals intermarrying.

We are still in the era of tribal alliances. There are some city-states that can smelt bronze, weave cloth, and farm. They have spoken and written languages, and they believe in Buddhism. There is no unified country, and it is internally divided into many large and small city-states and tribes.

For these Arakaneses, the Republic's strategy was also simple.

To start trade with them, the city-states that are willing to trade will cooperate with him, and the city-states that are not willing to trade will unite with other city-states to attack him.

These Rakhine city-states fought with each other, and the captured prisoners were generally sold to the trading post of the Republic on the island across the strait.

The trading station will buy some goods from the merchant ships of the Republic passing by here, and then sell these goods to the Rakhine people across the strait at a high price, and exchange the goods for the slaves of the Rakhine people.

The Rakhine people have no currency, and they are still in the stage of bartering, so they cannot trade with them with gold, silver and copper coins, and they can only be forced to barter with them.

Rakhine people's favorites are the Republic's spears, bows and arrows, armor, iron farm tools, sea salt, and woolen cloth.

As the Republic came here to trade, wars between the various Rakhine city-states intensified.

In the past, they had no motivation to fight. If they won, they would only have more slaves. The slaves would resist and bear the risk of death of their own people.

But now, if the war is won, the slaves can be sold directly to the trading post across the strait. Is there any reason not to fight?

There are only 10 residents and [-] soldiers in the Zhenghe trade transfer station in China. However, it has to guard against the Rakhine city-states with a population of several [-], and the pirates who have blood pumping. The pressure is very high.

These one hundred soldiers not only have to protect the safety of the trade war, but also maintain security at the port and dock and supervise the work of the indigenous slaves.

Generally, no pirates will come to rob. Although the Republic encourages pirates to rob the Tang Empire, those pirates who dare to rob the Republic must be resolutely, severely, and cruelly suppressed!

Only pirates are allowed to rob the Central Plains, but no pirates are allowed to rob the Republic!

The Republic will also issue a wanted order, calling on other "righteous pirates (pirates who do not rob the Republic)" to assist the Republic Navy in encircling and suppressing those "evil pirates (pirates who rob the Republic)".

In Zhenghe Station, there is also a brothel, a medical hall, and a ship repair yard.

The brothel is multi-functional. There are five girls who provide services. There are also rooms for eating, drinking and lodging. There are also some business information trading services.

There is only one doctor in the hospital, and he is a newcomer doctor who has just debuted. His medical skills are not mature enough. He has had fatal accidents. The sailors call him "Turkic doctor" because his medical skills are the same as the Turkic witch doctor. .

The ship repair yard is the core of the port and the main source of income for the trading post.

Most of the [-] residents of the trading post have mastered ship repairing skills, and rely on repairing ships to maintain their lives.

After entering the port, the pirate group began to replenish their supplies, buying a large amount of dried fish and coconuts (fresh water), and by the way, selling some spears, armor and the like bought at Hangu Port to the trading station.

The pirates of the Republic are not pure pirates, but mainly engaged in maritime trade, just passing by the Central Plains waters, and looting by the way.

After all, maritime trade in the Central Plains is underdeveloped. Simply by robbing Central Plains merchant ships, it is easy to have no income for several months.

They are both merchants and pirates!
"Can't you buy some flour or rice? Fish, fish, fish again!"

Wang Bo looked at the boxes of smelly dried fish shipped to the ship and felt desperate.

"Fish is the cheapest here. If you don't eat fish, what else can you eat?" A sailor/pirate laughed.

Although Wang Bo is a slave, he is the exclusive slave of the eldest lady. They, sailors/pirates, naturally do not dare to be arrogant and prejudiced.

"I see that Missy seems to be interested in this kid."

"Don't talk nonsense, the eldest lady has already made a marriage contract with a noble heir of Yan country, how can she find someone else?"

The sailors/pirates were gossiping privately, and some sailors/pirates were counting their money to see if the money they had saved would be enough to find a wife.

Most sailors/pirates play bamboo tiles (mahjong) on ​​the deck.

(End of this chapter)