My son A Fei has the appearance of a sword master

Chapter 137 Absolute Overlord

On the southeast coast of Ceylon Island, five warships are lined up on the sea 300 meters away from the coast.

Li Tianxin, Shen Lang, Panda'er and others stood on the deck, each holding a monocular telescope, observing the smoky coast.

In later Sri Lanka, only 30% of the forest coverage remained, but today, the island of Ceylon still has more than 50% coverage.

Not far from the beach, there are dense forests.

At this time, at the edge of the forest, there were many shirtless people with whiter skin and Western faces, holding large iron pots and lighting fires under the pots.

The arrival of the five giant warships naturally alarmed those people, who gathered on the shore to watch. Not long after, a group of sergeants carrying swords, spears, and armor arrived.

The five giant ships obviously shocked those people. Zheng He's last voyage to the West was more than 40 years ago. Naturally, these younger generations had never seen the Ming Dynasty's treasure ships.

Panda asked while observing: "What are they doing?"

Li Tianxin put down the telescope and explained: "Fried salt. In the past, when we in China had not mastered the sun-dried salt method, we also used this method to get sea salt."

"This method not only consumes a lot of firewood, but is also very inefficient. However, the island of Ceylon is not big and has a small population. It is more than enough to make salt using this method."

"It's a pity that there is a lack of mineral resources here, and there is no coal. Just replenish food and fresh water. The coal will be replenished in the area around Ci'erkodong and Pampaluo."

Shen Lang and others had no objection. When they came from the Great Strait, they had just replenished a wave of coal, and there was still enough coal to support them all the way to Ci'er Kedong.

The Middle-earth dynasties were accustomed to locating foreign countries by location. For example, the east was called "Yi", the north was called "Hu", the south was called "Man", and the west was called "Di" or "Rong".

There is no unified name for Africa, only a specific name for a certain region.

For example, Mombasa in Kenya is called "Manbasa", and the Abadan area in Iran is called "Hurumos".

The "Cier Kedong" mentioned by Li Tianxin is the Ming Dynasty's name for the Gulf of Aden area, while "Biparo" refers to Somalia.

Zheng He's voyages to the West took him as far as the Mozambique Strait, that is, Madagascar, and he had a certain understanding of Africa.

Black Africans are collectively called "Kunlun slaves" and Europeans are "Europeans".

Among the European countries, the Roman region was called "Da Qin" by the Ming Dynasty, France was called "Gaul", Spain and Portugal were called "France", Britain was called "Saxon", and Russia was called "Kievan Rus".

The dozen or so linguists accompanying the team studied the various languages ​​of these countries.

The leader of the linguist team is Xu Faming, a middle-aged man in his 40s who is proficient in more than a dozen Tianzhu languages ​​and has also done considerable research on the French language.

There are also people who are proficient in Saxon, which is Old English. Li Tianxin passed CET-[-] in English in his previous life, but Old English is somewhat different from later generations.

After studying with a linguist in the team for a period of time, and comparing the two, Li Tianxin was able to speak fluent Old English.

However, the United Kingdom in this era was not yet the "Empire on which the Sun Never Sets", and it had not even begun the colonial era. They would not begin their path to hegemony until after the [-]th century.

At present, the main ones are Franji, which is the "Age of Discovery" of Spain and Portugal.

Therefore, unless he takes the initiative to go to Saxon, Li Tianxin's ancient English is basically useless.

Zheng He's voyages to the West only went as far as the east coast of Africa. After passing this range, everyone else's eyes darkened, and only Li Tianxin understood.

But he can't say that he understands, after all, he shouldn't have a way to understand.

Geographic knowledge is different from mathematics, physics and chemistry. The latter can be said to be understood and studied by oneself. The former is impossible for you to know if no one has actually been to that place.

After Li Tianxin finished speaking, he ordered the boat to be put down and prepared to land.

Treasure ships generally do not dare to approach the shore. It is not just a matter of safety. The biggest problem is the fear of running aground or running aground.

Just as the officers, soldiers and sailors put down the boats and prepared to board the ships to land, there was a sudden noise on the coast.

The officers who had telescopes on the ship quickly opened their monoculars again and looked toward the shore.

But at this time, there was a huge chaos on the shore. A cavalry team of about a thousand people suddenly rushed from behind the corner of the beach.

Because the beach was relatively soft, there was almost no hoofbeat sound when the horses stepped on the ground, so this cavalry team played the role of a surprise trooper.

Those who were frying salt were mercilessly slaughtered.

The previous group of sergeants carrying knives and spears were also caught off guard.

They did not have time to form a battle formation to respond to the enemy, and were quickly dispersed by the cavalry. They fell into fighting on their own, and were then strangled back and forth by the well-organized cavalry.

Ceylon is relatively backward and is still in the cold weapon age and has not developed firearms.

This is also the reason why, decades later, when the Europeans from France came to Ceylon, they could easily colonize it.

Seeing this, Li Tianxin said to the ordering soldier behind him: "Go ahead and let the brothers shoot freely, specifically shoot the cavalry, aim at some, and don't waste bullets."

"Yes."

The messenger carrying the shortwave radio immediately conveyed the order to the other four ships through the radio.

Now that there are shortwave radios, there is no need to use semaphore, but there are still people in the team who understand semaphore, which can be used to communicate with strange ships encountered on the way.

"Mr. Li, isn't it inappropriate for us to rashly intervene in other countries' wars?"

Linguist leader Xu Faming said to Li Tianxin cautiously.

He didn't do it out of justice or morality, but he was worried that Li Tianxin would cause trouble.

Li Tianxin smiled calmly and said: "There is nothing inappropriate. This place is southeast of Ceylon Island and belongs to the territory of the Tamil Kingdom."

"Since we have arrived here, if we can establish a good relationship with the Tamil Kingdom, it will be much easier to obtain supplies in the future."

"Besides, the Sinhala Kingdom's army is obviously the invading party. They wantonly kill civilians, which can be described as unkind and unjust. We can also be regarded as chivalrous and righteous."

After saying these words, he turned to look at Xu Faming and continued: "The other thing is that this world has always been about the jungle and the survival of the fittest. The Ming Dynasty was not strong enough at that time, so it was always harassed by the surrounding small countries, and the Tatars bullied me even more. Too much."

"But today's Ming Dynasty is strong enough. We can fight whoever we want, so you have to change your mentality. Today's Ming Dynasty is the absolute overlord of the Eight Wastelands and Liuhe. No country can compete with it, even if they unite."

What he said made Xu Faming and others speechless, but they were also very proud.

Li Tianxin's current attitude towards the West is somewhat personal.

In the original history, eight Western countries joined forces to bully the Middle-earth Dynasty. In today's world, Li Tianxin wants to use the power of the Ming Dynasty to sweep across the Western countries.

As long as the Ming Dynasty's population develops, the first choice for Western countries is to annex and integrate. If it cannot be done in a short time, it will start with colonial rule.

If they dare to resist, they will be beaten and their backs will be broken until no one dares to resist anymore.This is not a dragon slayer who eventually turns into an evil dragon. Li Tianxin wants Daming to turn into an evil dragon first, and then kill everyone who wants to slay the dragon.

"Bang bang bang..."

As he spoke, gunshots like exploding beans rang out continuously, and the Sinhalese cavalry who were strangling the Tamils ​​over there began to fall off their horses in groups.

Everyone uses single-shot precision shooting. At such a long distance, using burst fire and strafing is a waste of bullets.

However, the Sinhalese cavalry's tactics are still a typical cavalry charge formation. The people are very dense. As long as they shoot in the general direction, they can basically hit.

The Tamils ​​had no cavalry and all used spears that were four meters long.

Originally, if they had not been scattered and formed a spear formation, they would have been the enemy of the cavalry.

But because the Sinhalese cavalry arrived so suddenly, they were completely unprepared and could not exert the power of their spears.

When the gunfire rang out, both Tamils ​​and Sinhalese were stunned.

But looking at the Sinhalese cavalry who kept falling off their horses, both sides quickly realized that the people on the mysterious giant ship were helping the Tamils.

The Sinhalese cavalry were shocked, angry and frightened, while the Tamils ​​were surprised. Under the shouts of the generals, they gathered one after another while the Sinhalese cavalry was in chaos.

Small spear arrays appeared one after another, like forests of thorns forming in the field, and the Sinhalese cavalry were knocked off their horses one after another.

The Ming sergeant fired less than three rounds and consumed more than [-] bullets. The Sinhala cavalry had basically suffered all casualties.

The remaining cavalry were surrounded and annihilated by the Tamil sergeants. There were more than a thousand cavalry when they came, but in the end only a few dozen cavalry survived.

Li Tianxin ordered: "Stop shooting, put down the boat, and prepare to land."

The Ming Navy has not been equipped with motorboats yet, because the internal combustion engine was only developed by Li Tianxin a few months ago and has not yet been widely used.

The small boats used to land on the beach today are called "Zou Ge", and each boat can carry 21 people.

However, the new type of walking boat does not use paddles to row, but is equipped with a manual propeller at the stern.

Just hold the handle and shake it, and the propeller at the end of the bottom of the boat will rotate rapidly. The power it provides is equivalent to twelve people paddling at the same time.

The speed can reach about fifteen knots, which is about 28 kilometers per hour.

It's a short distance of 300 meters and it takes just over two minutes to reach the shore.

Each warship is equipped with eight walking boats, and forty walking boats can transport 840 people at a time.

Every time they disembark, only half of them will disembark, and the remaining half will need to guard the ship.

If you plan to go ashore to rest, you should take turns in batches.

At this time, a group of Tamil sergeants were gathering on the beach. They looked at the Ming army officers who disembarked from the boat, with gratitude and deep awe on their faces.

A Tamil man who seemed to be a general with a machete hanging from his waist came forward with several followers.

He faced Li Tianxin who was walking in front and was obviously the leader. He put his right hand on his left chest, bowed and said something.

Li Tianxin looked at Xu Faming and saw him stroking his beard and smiling confidently. It was obvious that he understood what this man said.

Xu Faming translated: "He expressed his sincere gratitude to us for helping."

Li Tianxin knew that these Westerners couldn't handle twists and turns, and they couldn't understand the Chinese politeness with them, so Li Tianxin was not polite to them.

He just smiled and nodded at the general, and then said to Xu Faming: "Tell him that we are travelers from the Ming Dynasty in the East. We are passing through here and need to replenish some fresh water and food."

"We helped them annihilate the Sinhalese cavalry and hope to get their help."

Xu Faming immediately translated it to the general. After listening, he smiled, nodded, and said another sentence.

Xu Faming translated: "He said there was no problem. Compared with the help we gave him, it was just a small matter."

"He hopes to invite us to visit the nearby 'Lahu City' as a courtesy to the landlords. The food and materials we need can only be found in the city."

In the Tamil language, there is no such word as "loyalty to the landlord", but it has a similar meaning, so there is nothing wrong with this translation.

Li Tianxin said happily: "Okay, just think of making a friend and ask him what to call him."

Xu Faming said to the general: "Our Grand Duke said that he is willing to make friends with you. How should we call you?"

Grand Duke?

The general was shocked. He didn't expect that the man in front of him, who was younger than him, turned out to be a grand duke.

The general couldn't help but be more respectful, bowed slightly and said: "Dear Grand Duke, my name is Ashma Roy. I am a captain of the Tamil Kingdom. I am very honored to be friends with you."

After Li Tianxin chatted with him for a few more words, he ordered his men to set up camp on the spot. He followed Ashma to Lahu City with only three people from Baihusuo.

Nearly an hour later, the so-called Lahu City was in sight, about ten kilometers away from the coastline.

Ashma had already sent someone to go to the city to inform the city lord. Therefore, when Li Tianxin and his party arrived in Lahu City, the city lord's palace was already ready to receive the team.

The architectural styles of the two kingdoms on the island of Ceylon are basically the same as those of Tianzhu.

As one of the four ancient civilizations, Tianzhu’s architectural culture has a long history and has its own unique charm.

Bai Feifei, Zhu Qiqi and other girls looked around with interest along the way, commenting on the dome-topped building and the Tamil people on the street.

Many Tamil people on the roadside also observed them curiously and were also talking about them.

Lahu City is not big, not even comparable to a county seat in the Ming Dynasty. The distance from the city gate to the city lord's palace is less than one mile.

The person who reported the news arrived only half a stick of incense earlier than them. When the team arrived, the city lord led a group of subordinates and servants to greet them outside the door.

The city lord is a fat man with gray hair, about 60 to [-] years old, and a slightly plump build.

With a smile on his face, he took the initiative to greet me and said: "Dear Duke of Ming Dynasty, I am Sam Singh, the lord of Lahu City. Welcome to Lahu City."

In accordance with local etiquette, Li Tianxin returned the gesture with a chest caress and said with a smile: "Thank you City Lord for your warm hospitality. It's an honor to come to Guibao Land."

With Xu Faming around, Li Tianxin had no problem communicating with the city lord. After some pleasantries, the city lord invited the group into the city lord's mansion and ordered his servants to prepare food.

(End of this chapter)