In the Southern Song Dynasty, I competed with Mongolia for the world

Chapter 587: Father is still alive, what does he want to do?
"The situation is different now." Yan Le said, "Your Majesty is in Dayuan, inspecting the country, and the princes should wait in their respective fiefdoms."

"The Prince of Yan wanted to go to Goryeo, and His Majesty told him not to move."

"My father did not issue an imperial decree for us to stay in our fiefdoms. I came to Singapore from Malacca."

"This is different. The king is still in his own fiefdom. He has to pass through the king's fiefdom?"

"General Meng, please say something." Yan Le looked at Meng Zhian at this time.

Meng Zhian is the son of Meng Gong's younger brother Meng Ying.

Meng Ying was originally the commander-in-chief of Borneo Province, but he retired early because of his old age. His son is now the commander-in-chief of the Lion City Army and can be considered the descendant of a famous general.

Meng Zhian had a conflicted expression and hesitated before saying, "This matter is indeed inappropriate. Your Majesty, why don't you wait a little longer."

"Governor Qin's matter will definitely be reported to His Majesty by telegram, and His Majesty will issue an order by then."

It is possible that the emperor asked several princes to go to Hanzhou to visit Qin Chen together, after all, they are all relatives.

"The telegram has been sent. Let's wait until my third brother arrives." Zhao Qi said, "He will have to pass through Lion City anyway."

Yan Le thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty should limit his number of warships to no more than two, and his number of men to no more than two hundred."

"Commander Yan, what are you thinking about?" Zhao Qi looked at Yan Le in disbelief.

Yan Le's face flushed, but he didn't avoid looking at her. He said again: "Please order the king to limit the number of ships to no more than two, and the number of accompanying personnel to no more than two hundred."

"Asshole, you want us to quarrel with each other."

Yan Le fell to his knees in front of Zhao Qi.

Meng Zhian's expression changed from time to time and he sighed secretly.

"How can this be possible?" Zhao Qi was confused and stood up, turning away.

But Yan Le just kept kneeling there and didn't get up.

About half an hour later, Zhao Qi heard that Yan Le had not gotten up yet, so he had to send someone to tell him, "Okay, okay, I'm afraid of you. Send power again and tell them that there cannot be more than two ships and no more than two hundred people."

Unexpectedly, the other party called back quickly and said, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? King Ming has already left the port."

Yan Le was furious: "Tell them to send a speedboat to chase them. Ask them how many ships they have on their trip?"

The other side called back and said they didn’t know the amount, because this was King Ming’s itinerary, it was top secret, how would the people who sent the telegram know?

He also said that a speed boat had been sent out and he would call back when they caught up.

But Yan Le knew that this call back might be a long time coming.

Yan Le thought for a moment with a sullen look on his face, and immediately said, "Send a telegram to Tan Cong, and when the Ming King's ship passes Malacca, only two ships can be allowed to go, and no more than two hundred people can accompany them, and the rest will be detained."

"Anyone who dares to resist will be disarmed."

Tan Cong is currently the deputy commander-in-chief of the Singapore and Malaysia Provincial Commandery, and also the commander of the Singapore and Malaysia Provincial Navy.

He was one of the first colonists to go to Nanbaozhou that year. Later, he returned to his country and presented sweet potatoes to Zhao Qi, which was considered a contribution to the grain output of the Song Dynasty. After returning to his country, he also intended to join the eldest prince Zhao Qi.

Tan Cong's family background was originally ordinary. His father, Tan Hai, was an ordinary official in the Intelligence Department. Later, in order to make meritorious service, he personally signed up for his son and followed Pu Shougeng to South America in the first group to look for oak seeds.

With this achievement, Tan Cong entered the ranks of military officers. The court's reward to them at that time was hereditary status for five generations without demotion, 50,000 strings of cash, and 100 acres of land.

But hereditary succession is a title, not an official position, which is different from the previous Song Dynasty. Of course, Zhao Yurui did not let their father and son down. Tan Hai was also promoted to a military officer due to his merits, and then he had been working in the navy.

When Tan Hai joined Zhao Qi, he also wanted to find a prince to rely on, but later he found that Zhao Qi was a little unreliable.

Once when he was out with Zhao Qi, a large number of immigrants fell into the sea. Tan Hai was afraid that it would affect the speed of the fleet, so he ordered them to be shot, and was reprimanded by Zhao Qi.

Zhao Qi also believed that Tan Hai was bloodthirsty, and from then on the relationship between the two sides was not as close as before.

Of course, Zhao Qi still valued Tan Hai and had him stationed in several provinces including Singapore, Malaysia, Borneo, and Java over the years.

Currently, Tan Hai is almost 50 years old and is close to retirement. Last year, he was transferred back to Malacca and stationed in the Strait of Malacca.

The Singapore and Malaysia Navy Headquarters is located in the Strait of Malacca. There is a permanent army stationed here, spread across both sides of the Strait of Malacca.

Half of it is on the Malay Peninsula, and the other half is on the opposite island of Sumatra.

The headquarters is located on the Malay Peninsula, on the coast outside Malacca.

March 19th.

Malacca Naval Camp Headquarters.

Tan Cong was lying on the ground like a child, with a six-year-old child riding on his neck.

This is his little grandson Tan Bao. Tan Cong really treats him like a treasure.

Tan Cong had four sons. The first three gave birth to six granddaughters, and finally it was the youngest son, Tan Yuan, who gave birth to a big fat grandson for him.

In the past few years, Tan Cong has kept his grandson by his side, holding him in his hands for fear of dropping him, and holding him in his mouth for fear of melting him. He really treats him like a treasure.

"Gee, gee, gee, ride a horse, ride a horse--" The grandson Tan Bao rode on the neck of the veteran Tan Cong. Tan Cong lay on the ground with a happy face, looking very happy.

Not far away, four personal guards were guarding the gate of the courtyard. It was unbearable to look at them. Was this still their wise and mighty Commander Tan?
Fortunately, these four guards were used to it. If someone else came in, they would definitely be shocked.

Tan Cong was having fun playing with his grandson when suddenly someone strode towards him from outside.

"Report."

Tan Cong looked up and saw that it was Qi Ying. He couldn't help but frowned: "Hold him down, hold him down." He said loudly.

A maid came up from behind him and said, "Master Sun, come down. Come down and have some candy."

"No, no, I want to play more." Tan Bao said in a baby voice.

"Be good, baby. Grandpa will play with you later." Tan Cong coaxed his grandson with a smile.

It was with great difficulty that I finally got my grandson off my neck.

"What's the matter?" Tan Cong motioned Qi Ying to come into the house and talk.

Qi Ying was from the Navy Intelligence Department, which meant he was in charge of military intelligence via telegrams. He seldom came to report in person.

As the two entered the room, Qi Ying immediately whispered, "We just received two telegrams, one after the other, with less than a minute's difference."

"Yeah." Tan Cong responded.

"The first one was from the Third Prince Ming Wang. He said that the Governor of Hanzhou, Qin Chen, was seriously ill and in a coma. He wanted to go to Hanzhou to visit him and would pass through Malacca in a few days."

"..." Tan Cong's expression froze in an instant. This was not a big deal, but it was not a small matter either, but it seemed unnecessary for Zhao Yi to send such a telegram in person.

"What about the second one?" he asked immediately.

"Commander-in-chief Yan Le sent a telegram in the name of King Han, saying that King Ming's fleet cannot have more than two ships and no more than 200 people passing through Malacca. If anyone dares to resist, they will be disarmed."

"Hiss" Tan Cong suddenly took a breath of cold air.

"Damn it." He cursed and paced around the room with his head tilted.

I'm going to retire in a few years. Can you let me retire in peace?

Why are you causing so much trouble at this time?

Tan Cong certainly knew that the emperor was making a big show of inspecting the country, and it was said that he was also preparing to appoint a crown prince.

Obviously, this critical juncture is where accidents are most likely to happen.

But please don't cause trouble in my territory. I just want to retire peacefully.

Tan Cong’s mind was spinning like crazy.

I just received the telegram. The fleet on King Ming's side must have sent the message after it came out. It might take a day or two for it to send the message.

It would only take a dozen days for the fleet from the Persian Gulf to reach Malacca, so we must make plans as soon as possible. Tan Cong didn't want to get involved, but he had no choice. Military orders were as strong as mountains, and his immediate superior Yan Lelai had given orders. No matter what else, he had to start this matter first.

"Someone come here." Tan Cong immediately shouted to the outside world: "Call the navy to command the whole army."

An army was stationed in Malacca, with Tan Congjian as the commander and two deputy commanders, one of whom was Qi Zhiquan, his confidant.

Qi Zhiquan is still on the way, and Tan Cong has called back.

Qi Ying waited silently.

Tan Cong paced back and forth a few times in annoyance: "Call the commander first and tell him that we have received the order and will definitely execute it."

"Here."

After Qi Ying responded, he asked cautiously, "What about King Ming?"

"Is there a telegram on the ship?"

"No, they are from Peace City."

"Damn it, how can there be no telegraph on the ship?" The Song Dynasty already had steamships at that time, and there were telegraphs on steamships in various places. Of course, not every ship had one. Generally, only the flagship of each army and important warships had one.

Zhao Yi said that he didn't bring any large warships, so it was normal that there was no telegram.

"Go back to Heping City - got it." After Tan Cong thought about it, King Ming used the excuse that there was no telegram, so it was not easy for him to go back, so he could only deal with it for the time being.

"I understand." Qi Ying left quickly.

What Tan Cong would do when he called Qi Zhiquan later was not something he considered.

However, before leaving, Tan Cong called Luo Bin, a personal guard in the palace, and asked Luo Bin to go back to the Intelligence Department with Qi Ying.

"From now on, all telegrams sent and received by the army will be delivered by Luo Bin."

"Yes." Qi Ying also secretly groaned.

The Intelligence Department's affairs have always been handled by the Department alone. Now that Tan Cong has asked his personal soldiers to participate, it is obvious that he wants to monitor the Intelligence Department. From now on, all orders will be given by Tan Cong.

Tan Cong's personal soldiers are not considered members of the intelligence department, but they are military personnel, so their actions can be said to be compliant or not.

After a while, Qi Zhiquan came.

Tan Cong asked Qi Zhiquan to come to the map and pointed at it, saying, "King Ming's fleet wants to go to Hanzhou. There are two routes."

“One is to go through Malacca, which is a normal route and is closer.”

"One is to go around Sumatra from the west, through the Sunda Strait between Sumatra and Java, which would avoid Malacca."

"My navy is mainly in Malacca and Palembang, and the closest one is the navy in Banten City (Jakarta)."

"When you return, do not send a telegram. Send five fast ships with the King of Han's order to the navy camp in Banten City and ask them to guard the Sunda Strait."

Tan Cong was still relatively cautious. Although Ming King Zhao Yi said he would pass through Malacca, he might not really take this route.

If we take the Sunda Strait route, it would be about a thousand miles farther, and would take about two more days.

The key point is that the navy stationed in Java is not under his command. The commander of the navy there is Niu Jun.

Niu Jun used to be the deputy commander of the navy in the Persian Gulf, in the territory of Ming King Zhao Yi.

Later he was transferred to Java, where he first served as the commander of the navy and concurrently as the deputy commander of the capital, which was the same official position as Tan Cong's current one.

Tan Cong didn’t know what the relationship between Niu Jun and Zhao Yi was, but since Niu Jun had worked under Zhao Yi, he had to be on guard.

After hearing this, Qi Zhiquan said, "Should I tell the King of Han if I go to Java?"

Tan Cong's expression was a bit gnashing of teeth: "Don't you know what kind of person the King of Han is? If I report to him, he will accuse me of inciting a quarrel between the brothers. I don't need to report to him."

"Commander-in-Chief Yan Du has sent an order, saying it was from the King of Han. Let's just take it as the King of Han's order."

Java was also under the jurisdiction of the King of Han. Yan Le said that it was based on the order of the King of Han. Then Tan Cong was just taking advantage of the power of the King and executing the orders first and reporting later.

"I understand." Qi Zhiquan took the order and left.
-
Yellow Sea.

A large fleet was heading east from the west of the Yellow Sea, and it looked like it was heading towards Kyushu, Japan.

On the huge flagship Far East, Zhao Yu was sitting in the telegraph room, staring at the map on the table in deep thought.

The latest news from the front is that my father finally came ashore after wandering outside Dayuan for a few days.

He did not receive a summons and did not dare to go to see his father, but he was unwilling to return to the Far East, so his fleet continued to wander on the sea.

At the same time, he paid close attention to news from other directions, especially from Persia.

Suddenly, beep, beep! The telegraph rang.

"My lord, there's a call from Sparrow." Someone nearby said excitedly.

"read."

"The eagle left the nest, taking with it about sixty-eight eaglets—"

"What?" bang, Zhao He stood up suddenly with an incredible look on his face.

"Are you sure? Sixty-eight?"

It was soon confirmed that there were at least sixty-eight of them, and they came out at night, so it was impossible to see clearly, and there might be more.

Zhao He's face changed drastically. What did his third brother Zhao Yi want to do?
Without his father's imperial edict, he led so many warships out of his fiefdom? Could he survive his elder brother Zhao Qi's Malacca?
At this time, his general Shi Zhongguo was stationed in the Far East Province, and only his close confidants such as Yang Xiaolin, the commander of the royal guards, and Song Guoquan (Song Tian's son), the deputy commander of the navy, were there.

Song Quanguo has worked in the navy for more than ten years and is considered to be quite experienced.

Zhao Yu was also surprised to hear what he said: "King Ming brought so many warships? Are you sure?"

"Of course." Zhao Yu believed it for sure.

Because the imperial court could not manufacture telegraph machines privately, they sent messages through private telegraph offices.

There was a spy from Zhao He in Pingcheng, who secretly saw Zhao Yi taking a large number of warships out to sea at night.

"He is so bold. What does he want to do while our father is still alive?" Zhao He couldn't believe it. His mind was racing. If the news was false, it would prove that his people had been discovered, or had betrayed him and defected to Zhao Yi, trying to force him to do something extraordinary.

If this news is true, then it means that something might happen to my father?

"Why hasn't Yan Zi called yet?" Zhao Xie was very anxious at this time.

No one knew who Yan Zi was, so she must be Zhao Xie's spy outside.

Zhao Yu paced back and forth in the room anxiously. After waiting for less than a few minutes, the telegram rang again.

"Yanzi called and said Mr. Shen is seriously ill and unconscious."

"What?" Zhao Xie was shocked again.

Mr. Shen is Qin Chen. Qin Chen is seriously ill, but he has not received any official news?

Qin Shouwen sent the message to Zhao Yi and Zhao Qi, but not to Zhao Xie.

Zhao Qi subconsciously thought that everyone would know, so he did not send it to Zhao Chen for confirmation.

"Send a telegram to my eldest brother - wait -" Zhao He originally wanted to send a telegram to Zhao Qi for confirmation, and then he suddenly thought of something.

Qin Shouwen did not send a telegram to Zhao Xie, so how did Zhao Xie know about it?
Hanzhou is Zhao Qi's territory. Do you have any secret sentries in my territory?

At this time, Zhao Xie stood there with a serious expression, already feeling that something big was going to happen.

He was silent for a moment, then turned back again: "Is there any signal from Father?"

"No, my lord."

(End of this chapter)