Late Ming sea owl

Chapter 112
"Secretary Qin, I would like to ask you again, how many fields are there in Zhoushan and how much grain can it produce each year?" Lin Hai encouraged Qin Cheng and then asked.

"This... humble position committee is really hard to estimate." If this topic continues, it may become a question. Qin Cheng is not sure whether Lin Hai is really asking casually or if he has other motives, so he does not dare to accept it anyway.

He is not afraid of offending Governor Qian, that's because he knows the details of Qian Shouli very well. Like Qin, he has no one above him, otherwise he wouldn't have been thrown to such an island for seven or eight years.

The civil servants in Zhoushan are like this. It doesn't hurt if the grandma doesn't kiss the uncle, but it's different for the military attache.

Three of the Dinghaiwei leadership team were promoted from the two thousand households in Zhoushan, and one of them was promoted not long ago in order to move his position to Lin Hai.

Therefore, there are many people in the Qianhu, deputy Qianhu, Baihu, Zhenfu and even the general banner and small banners of the two institutes.

As for the large and small generals in the garrison system of the General's Office, that's even worse.

Dinghai is where the governor and the general of the army are stationed in Zhejiang, and Yin County, where the Haiphong Road is located, is not far from Zhoushan. The generals and sentry officers under Zhoushan's generals may be able to talk to the people around these big bosses, but far from it. The military attaches still hanging around in the guardhouse can't compare.

"Since Chief Qin doesn't know, then forget it."

Lin Hai didn't embarrass him anymore. He knew that land was a more sensitive issue than population. The former involved the core interests of almost all military attaches, while the latter mainly only involved civil servants and subordinates in the experience department.

After all, occupying military camps is the main source of income for the military attachés of the garrison, and the oil and water here is much greater than that of the Qing army.

However, land occupation requires decades or even hundreds of years of continuous accumulation. It is a family property passed down from generation to generation by hereditary military attachés and local gentry. It is impossible for civilian officials from the Guard to get involved.

Just as the disintegration of the land equalization system led to the decline of the imperial troops in the Tang Dynasty, the various occupations of military camps were the core reason for the large-scale flight of military households in the Ming Dynasty. Those who did not escape were basically reduced to serfs of military attaches at all levels or local gentry.

How serious is this problem?Later, Sun Chuanting's experience as governor of Shaanxi may provide a glimpse of this.

Sun Chuanting inspected the military camps of three guards in Xi'an, and found out a total of nearly 15 taels of genuine and discounted silver. In addition, the right guard of Xi'an also found more than [-] taels of genuine wheat beans.

Just by checking three guards, Sun Chuanting used this to feed more than 1 soldiers.At the end of the Ming Dynasty, there were more than 400 guards in total, plus hundreds of garrison posts directly under the command of the capital. If we could check all the guard posts and military camps across the country, it would be enough to feed the country's garrison troops, and then give them to the emperor. Tai Chi builds a grave.

But this problem is not something that Lin Hai can think about at the moment. Sun Chuanting can do this in Shaanxi because the local Jin gentry forces have been defeated by the peasant army.Otherwise, Chongzhen and Yang Sichang were not fools, and they would have left this method alone and had to drink poison to quench their thirst to collect three wages.

Of course, because Zhoushan moved Changguo County inland in the early Ming Dynasty, it can be said that there is no Jin gentry power. If you want to check the military settlements, there will be relatively little resistance.

But this matter is still not something that Lin Hai can touch now. At least he has to wait until he reaches the level of He Rubin, and he must obtain the support of the Zhejiang governor or inspector. There is really no need to delve into this issue at the moment.

Besides, Lin Hai had a rough idea of ​​how much grain Zhoushan could produce.

When he was staying at Cengang Division a few days ago, he asked the inspector there about the number of grain ships that came here every year. After all, Cengang is the main material entrance and exit of Zhoushan Island.As a result, the inspection told him that the main island of Zhoushan basically does not rely on external food supplies.

Based on Qin Cheng's estimate of Zhoushan's population, Lin Hai believed that Zhoushan's annual output of 20 shi of grain on the main island alone was no problem, but the surrounding islands with fresh water, such as Lan, Xiu, Dai, and Jintang, were unknown.

Compared with the area of ​​Zhoushan Island, this grain output is actually relatively low.This is mainly due to the serious shortage of fresh water resources in Zhoushan. On the one hand, there is no transit passenger water on the island, and on the other hand, the lack of high mountains in Zhoushan also results in less precipitation.

"Sure enough, the world in Zhoushan is still not broad enough. Moreover, there are small demons in the temple, and there are many bastards in the shallow pool. If you want to farm, you have to go to Dongfan." After sending away the six-fang secretary, Lin Hai secretly muttered in his heart.

The Zhoushan Islands play an important role in his strategic plan, but that is in the future. At the moment, his focus is still on Dongfan, and Zhoushan is just a trade bridgehead.

To be honest, if it weren't for Xu Xinlan, Lin Hai wouldn't have any intention of taking over the power of Zhongzhong Institute, and he would just be a hands-off shopkeeper who doesn't ask anything.

After all, his biggest request for the middle school is the title of Qianhu, and then the barracks and school grounds.

It was nothing more than a hundred shabby houses and a piece of land, and probably no one took it seriously.If he wants to use his palm to seal thousands of households for his own use, everyone will always give him the favor.

As for the other resources of the Zhongzhong Institute, except for the people and the land, which he can't eat at the moment, the rest are just rags to Lin Hai. There is no need to play those bureaucratic games for this benefit. He is I really don’t have the energy and leisure time.

But since the Xu family sent a core figure like Xu Xinlan, Lin Hai had to find something for him to do.

First, Xu Xinlan was locked in Zhoushan and couldn't get away, so as to avoid the discomfort of having a monitor around her. He had no intention of letting the Xu family know everything.

Secondly, there is nothing wrong with letting Xu Xinlan take over the power of Zhongzhong Institute. There is still some oil and water here, so don't give it up for free, and it won't consume your own energy anyway.

"Dong Weng's performance today was really wonderful. Xu is really impressed." After seeing off the clerks in the sixth room, Xu Xinlan returned to the signing room and smiled at Lin Hai.

Today's scene was all directed by Lin Hai. Of course, he had discussed it with Xu Xinlan beforehand during lunch. Xu Xinlan was very satisfied with it, especially since Lin Hai told the six-room clerk in person that he was the plenipotentiary representative of Qianhu.

"I just sang this way, and I will be the boss from now on. It depends on the master how to sing the next scene." Lin Hai also smiled at Xu Xinlan. He has now figured it out and is a little dissatisfied with the Xu family. It has long since disappeared.

He and the Xu family are considered allies. Who will lead the cooperation between the two parties is a matter of strength, including Li Guozhu's side.

Although Lin Hai and Li Guoshu worshiped each other, they were not as good as the fourth-generation friendship between the Li and Xu families.Based on the background of these two companies in the Ming Dynasty, Japan and even the East Asian waters, he can only stay low and small in the alliance between the two parties.

But if one day his strength overwhelms the Li and Xu families, the relationship between the two parties will naturally change. Lin Hai believes that this day will not take long.

After all, where Li Guozhu and Xu Xinsu are, the white gloves will form path dependence if they are used for a long time. If Li Dan is still there, it will be another matter.

In this case, what's wrong with letting Xu Xinlan take over Zhongzhong Institute?By the time Lin Hai became the talker of the alliance, this was not yet on his plate.

After all, Zhoushan occupies an important position in his future plans, and he doesn't have time to invest too much energy here at the moment.

"Don't worry, Mr. Dong, there is someone here, and everything in Zhoushan is at your fingertips." Xu Xinlan did her part.

"Very good, then I will concentrate on recruiting and training troops. When the initial results are achieved, as long as Uncle Xu calls me, I will lead the army south at any time."

Xu Xinlan was very satisfied with Lin Hai's statement. In fact, Xu Xinsu sent him here mainly for this purpose, to see if Lin Hai was fulfilling his promise when he asked for an official position.

"Xu knows nothing about military training, so he can only work hard for Dong Weng and do it himself. If Dong Weng needs anything, Xu will do his best to raise it."

"Mainly the barracks and school grounds. No matter who is occupying them now, they must be handed over. If no one uses it and it is in disrepair, then we should send people to repair it as soon as possible." The military households in the Ming Dynasty were the first to live in the guardhouses. All together, there were barracks for centralized living in the guardhouses. Later, due to the need for farming, the barracks were gradually dispersed, and the original barracks were often used by local states and counties.

There are no prefectures or counties in Zhoushan, so these barracks are naturally occupied by the military attachés of the garrison.

"Okay, this Dong Weng has said before that Xu should do it as soon as possible." Xu Xinlan nodded to Lin Hai.

Lin Hai then added: "The other one is the Ordnance Bureau. After you finish handling the affairs of the barracks and the school grounds, the two of us will go and take a look."

In the Ming Dynasty, every garrison had an weapons bureau. Although the responsibilities of war and defense were gradually transferred to the camp system, the weapons for the camps were generally manufactured by nearby guards. Therefore, the weapons bureau of the garrison was still in operation until the end of the Ming Dynasty.

Although the official weapons industry in the Ming Dynasty was not as reliable as private workshops, the production quality of cold weapons should still be guaranteed to a certain extent, not to mention that generally no private workshops dared to make armor.

As for firearms, before the arsenal in Dongfan is built, it is more reliable to buy them from Xiamen or Macau, if you don’t want to blow up the chamber every three days.

Xu Xinlan nodded in agreement, and then asked: "What about the food and salary? Since Dong Weng is the master of thousands of households, he should occupy some land. In addition, there are many ways to make money in the guard station, so he can pay some food and salary."

"Don't occupy the field. I expected that the field has been occupied for a long time. There is no need to offend anyone for this."

What Lin Hai told Xu Xinlan was only for one reason, but more importantly because he really planned to clean up the military settlement in Zhoushan in the future. To do this, it was better to stand upright.

"As for the ways to get money that Master mentioned, you can just take care of it. I don't want it."

Lin Hai gave this small profit directly to Xu Xinlan, even if it was his hard-earned money.Although the Xu family is wealthy, they can't let people work for them for nothing.

That's right, since she corrected her mentality, Xu Xinlan has changed from a monitor to a free wage earner in Lin Hai's eyes.

This wage earner is very efficient. In less than two days, all the barracks in Zhongzhongsuo have been vacated.

Lin Hai went over and took a look. There was no collapse or damage to the house. It seemed that someone had been maintaining and renovating it. However, the smell was quite strong, and there was no furniture inside.

Lin Hai asked Xu Xinlan: "What's going on? What was this barracks used for before?"

Xu Xinlan replied: "Stay dried fish. Zhoushan is rich in yellow croaker. When I came two days ago, these barracks were full of dried yellow croaker."

Lin Hai nodded. Yellow croaker is the most important economic fish on the southeast coast, and Zhoushan is the largest yellow croaker fishery. It seems that the benefits of fish and salt are not empty talk.

He then asked: "Who is doing this business?"

Xu Xinlan said: "All the military attachés in the camp have a share. The leader, Sun Qianshu, said that he would give Dong Weng [-]% of the shares. I didn't ask for it, so I just asked them to vacate the barracks."

"Very good, very good." Lin Hai nodded frequently. Sun Qianshu was his second-in-command. He was over 50 years old. There were many clan members in his family. Most of the military attachés in the two offices in Zhoushan were related to his family.

His family's official position is Deputy Qianhu of Zhoushan Zhongzhong Office, and he can be said to be a real local snake.However, this person doesn't take care of things very much and concentrates on his real estate and fisheries. It's good for both parties to live in peace and harmony.

If he takes the initiative to send you the stock, it will be disrespectful to you, and it will make people think that you are deliberately keeping a distance from him, and maybe you are playing some conspiracy.

But now Lin Hai sends people to ask for the barracks. At this time, they say they will give you shares, and they give you as much as [-]% at once. They are probably testing whether you really want the barracks or want his yellow croaker business.

If you accept it with a smile, then the feud between the two parties will be settled, and they may not know what obstacles they will put in your way later.This Sun Qianshu is not a loser like Qian Shouli. His family has been living in Zhoushan for more than ten generations, and even Lin Hai may not be able to fight for it.

Xu Xinlan is sophisticated and can handle such matters with ease. With him in Lin Hai, she can sit back and relax.

"This barracks needs to be cleaned, and it must be clean and tidy. In addition, furniture needs to be purchased. Master, please do this as soon as possible. Let me know how much money it will cost when you calculate it later."

"How many soldiers does Dong Weng plan to recruit?"

"This is originally a barracks for 1000 people, so let's buy the furniture needed for [-] soldiers. The exact number of recruits depends on Hong Daozun's attitude."

"Then what if Hong Daozun refuses to recruit troops?"

"Then we can only recruit among the fishermen. In the name of recruiting sailors, we actually recruit land soldiers."

Seeing that Lin Hai had already thought about it, Xu Xinlan stopped asking any more questions.

After leaving the barracks, Lin Hai asked Xu Xinlan to take him to the Ordnance Bureau. To his surprise, the person in charge of the bureau was not the military craftsman from the Zhongzhong Institute, but a domestic slave sent by Zhoushan General He Rubin.

That slave was very strict in managing the weapons bureau, and the weapons produced seemed to be of good quality.

Lin Hai then went to the military craftsman who was originally in charge and asked him. The military craftsman told him that He Rubin inspected the weapons bureau of the two institutes in Zhoushan as soon as he took office, and scolded Qianhu, the palm print of the two institutes, on the spot. So he sent two domestic slaves to take over the two weapons bureaus.

Now Lin Hai looked at He Rubin with admiration. He imagined He Rubin angrily scolding two thousand households, but it couldn't match the image of him flattering Xie Sixin that day...

He suddenly remembered that Qi Jiguang was actually an arty person. He liked to associate with literati most in his life, and he was also nicknamed "Mr. Yuan Jing Ci Zong". The then literary leaders Wang Shizhen and Wang Daokun all had close friendships with Marshal Qi.

Even in terms of flattery, Qi Jiguang and He Rubin are actually no different.

In his letters to Zhang Juzheng, Qi Dashuai often called himself "Qi, the little lackey under the sect", and in view of Zhang Juzheng's lust, he sent both a daughter and a sea dog whip, which was simply flattering to the extreme.

But so what, Qi Jiguang obtained the best resources for his army, and finally built the strongest army in the Ming Dynasty, truly realizing his ambition of "I don't want to be crowned a prince, but I hope the sea will be peaceful".

Lin Hai realized that he might have misunderstood He Rubin. This late Ming military strategist whose name he had heard for a long time did not seem to be a mediocre general. Perhaps his arty and flattery had the same purpose as Qi Jiguang?

That night, Lin Hai found Ruan Mei, handed him a package and said: "Go to Hangzhou. To the east of the Broken Bridge in the West Lake, there is a famous prostitute named Cao Yi Taoist Wang Wei. Find someone to find out about her. her abode, give her the things in it.”

(End of this chapter)