King Luhuang of the Ming Dynasty: My father, Ming Taizu

When Wu Ning heard Zhu Tan say this, he felt his head buzzing and he almost fell to the ground without being able to sit still.

Originally, originally, Wu Ning still felt that his country's strength was good enough, and his military was capable enough to surpass Ryukyu.

But after seeing the Ming Navy today, he realized how narrow-minded he was.

Not to mention compared with the Ming Dynasty, even compared with the Japanese, the generals under his command as King Zhongshan are not even worth mentioning.

The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty ordered him to help conquer Japan?
Isn't this just letting him die?

Zhu Tan's words frightened Wu Ning so much that his face turned pale.

He is dissolute and tyrannical, but that doesn't mean he is a fool.

He felt that he could rest assured in Ryukyu, and might even be able to unify the entire Ryukyu Islands, but he also knew that both Japan and the Ming Dynasty were behemoths in front of Ryukyu.

He accepted the title from the Ming Dynasty, but that didn't mean he would fight to the death for the Ming Dynasty and another behemoth.

Seeing Wu Ning like this, Zhu Tan sneered in his heart. He had seen through everything, but he still pretended not to understand and asked softly.

"King Zhongshan, are you feeling unwell?"

"No, no, no."

Wu Ning quickly waved his hands, trying his best to appear less cowardly.

But what Zhu Tan said just now kept circling in his mind, like a sword hanging over his head, as if it could fall at any time.

"Um... His Royal Highness Prince Lu."

Wu Ning looked at Zhu Tan at this time, his mind was in a mess. In addition to Zhu Tan's just words, there was also a handsome face hovering in his mind.

"Your Majesty, have you really ordered me to send troops from Zhongshan?"

"Send troops? What troops?"

Zhu Tan decided to tease the King of Zhongshan, he was such an interesting guy.

Zhu Tan has traveled far and wide and met almost all kinds of people, but he has never seen a ruler of a country who could be so cowardly. It was really funny to see.

"Ah? That... you didn't say... you said the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty issued an order."

"Yes, that's right." Zhu Tan nodded: "Father has issued an order to have Zhongshan Kingdom help the Ming Dynasty conquer Japan."

"Didn't King Zhongshan receive the imperial edict?"

"Yes, I got it."

Wu Ning was sweating all over at this time. He had no idea what Zhu Tan meant. Zhu Tan's just two words were enough to make him dizzy.

As for the strategy his adviser had given him before, which told him what to say after he met Zhu Tan, how to cleverly shift the conflict to the Shanbei and Shannan countries and create more space for their Zhongshan country, he had completely forgotten it all.

"But, but the imperial edict didn't say..."

"Since I'm here, I've already made my father's intention clear. Do I need to make it so obvious?"

Zhu Tan picked up the wine glass and subconsciously wanted to drink it, but when he smelled the sour smell coming from the glass, he put it down in dismay and asked, "What does the King of Zhongshan mean? Are you not going to follow the order of the emperor?"

"No, no, I would never dare to do that."

Wu Ning waved his hands again and again, and the sweat on his head increased. Although his thoughts were running frantically, he felt that his brain was empty and he could not think of anything.

"Um... Your Highness Prince Lu, um..."

"It's best if they don't dare." Zhu Tan smiled and said, "You don't need to send troops from Zhongshan. I have also seen that you don't have many soldiers and generals. Even if you send troops, they will not pose any threat to the Japanese."

The entire Zhongshan State will have a total of one thousand active troops. If all the combat-ready men in the country are added together, at most five to six thousand men can be gathered.

When the Ming Dynasty fought wars and attacked cities and strongholds, the number of vassal troops in the vanguard camp was more than this.

But this number is almost all the troops of Ryukyu Zhongshan Kingdom.

Although Zhu Tan's tone was smooth, it contained obvious contempt and disdain of a superior.

However, when Wu Ning heard these words, he breathed a sigh of relief, as if the huge rock pressing on his heart had suddenly disappeared.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead, looked at Zhu Tan with a wry smile, and said softly: "Then... if Zhongshan Kingdom doesn't send troops, how can it help the Ming Dynasty conquer Japan?"

"It's easy."

Zhu Tan picked up his chopsticks and took a look at the dishes in front of him. His appetite was instantly uncontrollable. He put down his chopsticks and said, "King Zhongshan, have you seen my Ming ironclad warship?"

"Look, I see it." Wu Ning swallowed his saliva: "There are rows and rows of them."

Zhu Tan rolled his eyes. How do you use the word "lincizhipi"?

But he didn't care, instead he smiled and said: "My Ming Dynasty has dozens of such warships."

Wu Ning was stunned and felt his mouth dry.

He saw the Ming Dynasty's ironclad warships with his own eyes, and fantasized that one day he would also have such huge warships. Wouldn't it be great if he could gallop across the seas and travel the world?
But the Ming Dynasty actually had dozens of such huge warships that were beyond his reach?
"During this expedition to Japan, my father ordered me to dispatch twenty of them."

Zhu Tan's smile deepened as he looked at Wu Ning quietly, and said, "If we go straight to Japan, it will be a long journey and there may be accidents."

"Therefore, the Ming Dynasty plans to build a port in Ryukyu."

"My father once proposed to build it in two other countries, but I told my father that Zhongshan has always been submissive to the Ming Dynasty and is the most powerful vassal state of the Ming Dynasty. For the construction of this port, we must choose Zhongshan first."

"If Zhongshan State is unwilling, it won't be too late to choose someone else."

"Therefore, my father proposed to issue an order for me to come here to ask your opinion, King Zhongshan."

Wu Ning felt his heart beating faster and faster, and it was about to jump out of his throat.

Building a port for the Ming Dynasty in Zhongshan State? Isn't this a piece of cake?

If it is completed, and the Ming Dynasty's ironclad warships stop at the port, the other two countries will immediately submit to it and kneel down and kowtow before it.

Thinking of this, Wu Ning finally smiled, but he did not speak immediately. Instead, he was immersed in his own fantasy.

Of course Zhu Tan didn't know what Wu Ning was thinking, but seeing that he seemed to be thinking about something, he spoke directly.

"If King Zhongshan feels that this is inappropriate, then I will go somewhere else."

"No, no, it's fine! It's absolutely fine!"

After hearing this, Wu Ning suddenly reacted and immediately said, "Your Majesty has ordered, and I dare not disobey."

"As for the matter of Daming Port, our Zhongshan Kingdom will do its utmost to help His Royal Highness Prince Lu achieve it!"

"No difficulty?"

Zhu Tan showed a worried look on his face and asked softly, "This port is a big project. It will take a long time and cost a lot of money and food."

"It's not difficult, Your Highness Prince Lu, rest assured!" Wu Ning patted his chest and said, "Whenever the Ming Dynasty has a demolition, Zhongshan State will not dare to disobey!"

"Just tell me when to start construction."

"How many craftsmen do you have in Zhongshan?"

"Forehead……"

This question confused Wu Ning. Craftsman? What craftsman?
Do we need craftsmen to build a port?
Once the order is passed down, let the people below repair it, no matter whether they are craftsmen or not.

But since King Lu asked this, Wu Ning had to answer, so he thought for a long time and stretched out a finger.

"Ten thousand?"

Wu Ning shook his head.

"one thousand?"

Wu Ning shook his head again.

"It can't be a hundred!"

"No." Wu Ning said: "Ten."

Wu Ning spoke seriously and told the truth.

In Zhongshan Kingdom, only craftsmen who can serve the royal palace can be called artisans. In Wu Ning's eyes, there are no more than ten such people.

But these ten people are all powerful people. Usually, when a house is built, a canal is repaired, and even his palace is built with the help of these people. Isn't it well built?
Looking at Wu Ning's serious expression, Zhu Tan finally understood what helplessness meant.

Now he realized that he had misjudged things and had overestimated the power of Zhongshan State.

Zhu Tan had deliberately set a trap for Wu Ning to fall into, but now it seems that this was completely unnecessary.

Even if ten craftsmen worked themselves to death and worked twelve hours a day, starting now, they would still not be able to repair it by the 22nd century AD.

He knew that Ryukyu was a small country with few people and few capable people, but he did not expect it to be so weak.

Zhu Tan sighed softly at this time, and asked again: "How many people in Zhongshan Kingdom can be laborers?"

"what?"

"Those who can work! How many people are there to help repair the port!"

Zhu Tan felt choked up. He could no longer talk to the King of Zhongshan on an equal footing. He was afraid that he would be angry to death.

"Oh." Wu Ning nodded: "There are about three to four thousand people."

This quantity is acceptable and is barely enough.

However, these people certainly don’t know how to build the port, so the relevant craftsmen still have to be dispatched from the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Tan pinched the bridge of his nose gently, and then whispered, "Then let's count it as 4,000 and start gathering tomorrow."

"I will have someone supervise the work, and the sooner it's done, the better."

"well!"

Wu Ning nodded repeatedly, the joy in his eyes could not be concealed.

It is understandable that he has this idea. After all, Ryukyu is a small country. If they can have a huge port that can dock Ming warships, their status will rise and no one dares to look down on them.

After saying this, Zhu Tan stood up and said, "I am a little tired, so I will go back first."

"Your Highness Prince Lu."

Seeing Zhu Tan was about to leave, Wu Ning immediately stood up and said anxiously: "The prince has arranged a place for Your Highness to stay. Please…"

"no."

Zhu Tan waved his hand, said nothing more, and strode out.

Wu Ning immediately followed behind him and said, "Your Highness Prince Lu, I have been preparing for quite some time. I hope you will come and give me a chance..."

"King Zhongshan, please stay."

Before he could finish his words, he was stopped by a pale-faced young man.

Although the young man had a smile on his face, his eyes were cold and even threatening.

"Your Highness will come to visit if there is anything."

The young man said with a smile, then turned around and caught up with Zhu Tan.

The personal soldiers of Prince Lu surrounded Zhu Tan and left quickly. It seemed that he was the only one left in the palace of Prince Wuning.

Wu Ning stood there in a daze, thinking about the conversation he had just had with Zhu Tan. The corners of his mouth couldn't help but rise up and he grinned foolishly.

After an unknown amount of time, a figure hurried in from outside. Seeing Wu Ning standing in front of the main hall with a silly smile, he immediately stepped forward and asked, "Your Majesty, have you told the King of Ming Lu what I asked you to say?"

"Ah?" Wu Ning was startled and asked, "What did you say?"

"Oh!" the young man said anxiously, "It's about the collusion between Shannan and Shanbei countries with the Japanese pirates!"

"Ah!" Wu Ning slapped his thigh upon hearing this and said, "I was having such a great time talking with His Royal Highness Prince Lu that I forgot about it for a moment!"

"I'm going to find Prince Lu now."

"What are you going to do now?"

The young man resisted the urge to vomit blood and pulled Wu Ning to his side, saying, "We can no longer get close to the Ming warships. They are all Ming soldiers."

"If you go now, His Royal Highness Prince Lu will look down on you!"

"Yes, yes, you can't go now."

Wu Ning showed some annoyance on his face, but he changed the subject and said, "Although I didn't say this, His Royal Highness Prince Lu gave me a huge benefit, and I was so happy that I forgot about it."

"Benefits?" The young man felt something was wrong and asked, "What did His Royal Highness Prince Lu say?"

"His Royal Highness Prince Lu said that the Ming Dynasty wants to invade Japan and asks our Zhongshan Kingdom for help."

"I thought the Ming wanted us to send troops, but that's not the case."

Wu Ning said, his eyebrows bright with joy: "Did you see the Ming Dynasty's armored warships?"

"His Royal Highness Prince Lu plans to send twenty ships this time! Twenty ships!"

The young man was shocked when he heard this, but the feeling of uneasiness in his heart became stronger and stronger.

"His Royal Highness Prince Lu said that these armored warships will be parked in Zhongshan."

"But we don't have a port in Zhongshan yet, so we need to build one."

"Think about it, if the port is built, once the Ming warships arrive, won't it be invincible and the enemy will be terrified?!"

"At that time, were the two countries of Shannan and Shanbei still a problem?"

After hearing what Wu Ning said, the young man felt relieved and said with a smile: "If that's the case, it is indeed a great thing."

"Yeah, hahaha."

"Did His Royal Highness Prince Lu say how many craftsmen the Ming Dynasty would mobilize to occupy our land and build a port, and how much money would it give us?"

Wu Ning was stunned when he heard this, and subconsciously asked: "What silver money?"

"The Ming Dynasty occupied our land and built a port, but they didn't pay us?"

The young man was also stunned and asked, "What compensation does the Ming Dynasty plan to use?"

"What compensation?"

"Pfft...cough cough cough..."

"Working for the Ming Dynasty, why do you care so much?"

Wu Ning frowned and said, "Just to build a port, you have to ask the Ming Dynasty for money?"

"The Ming Dynasty is rich, how can it lack such little things from us?"

"Cough cough cough..."

The young man's face turned red from holding his phlegm, and he almost died.

He paused for a long time before he tremblingly asked, "Then...what did His Royal Highness Prince Lu say?"

"Oh, His Royal Highness Prince Lu asked me to gather all the people in the country who can work."

"He said he would get someone special to supervise the work."

"If the port is built one day, then our Zhongshan Kingdom will be established!"

After hearing these words, the young man wanted to find a piece of tofu to kill himself.

What the fuck is this?
It's definitely a case of getting something for nothing!

The Ming Dynasty occupied Zhongshan Kingdom's territory to build a port, not only did it not pay any money, but it also planned to use all of Zhongshan Kingdom's labor for free?

The key is the materials for building the port and the food for the laborers. His Royal Highness Prince Lu didn’t say anything!

Isn't this life-threatening?
Seeing the young man's face full of despair, Wu Ning was quite puzzled and asked softly, "Military Advisor, what's wrong?"

"Ahem... Your Majesty."

"Next time you meet His Royal Highness Prince Lu, please find a way to bring your subordinates with you."

"Please." (End of this chapter)