Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 347

On December 1642, 12, at the Zhenhai Port Wharf, the southwest wind was level 10, and there was light rain.

Wearing a dark blue top, Mo Ming stood on the cemented Yonggu Wharf, waiting for the last busy work of the dock workers, while taking a walk with Shao Shude, the material committee member who came to see him off.Neither of them opened an umbrella, letting fine raindrops fall on their thin coats.

"Recently there is an undercurrent in the capital, and all kinds of ghosts and snakes have come out. There is no way, the general election will be in two days, and by the end of the year, our government will be disbanded, and we will give way to the new one. Therefore, the water over there has been a bit muddy recently, and some shuffling actions have been quite violent, and many people have been transferred from their posts, hehe, including you." Shao Shude patted Mo Ming on the back, and said with a smile .

"I don't worry about those people. I'm afraid they will ruin the country after they come to power." Mo Ming frowned and said, "I'm not worried about Liu Weimin, who is scheduled to be the chairman of the executive committee. He is relatively low-key and pragmatic. But I don't worry about other people. Those people don't have overall experience, and once they take power suddenly, I'm afraid there will be some troubles that will undermine the stability of the country."

"Hehe, you are all people who have been kicked to the Far East, why worry about this and that. Our old guys have retired, but they are not dead yet. If anyone wants to mess around, they have to watch Do you agree or not?" Shao Shude smiled and said cryptically.

Mo Ming didn't speak any more, just looked at the slightly rippling lake in confusion.

"As for your transfer from the South African Pioneering Team this time, don't blame Lao Peng and the others for not suppressing you. It's not easy for him. With so many executive committee members stepping down this time, Lao Peng's face is a bit embarrassing now. Now, some new people who are about to come to power don't buy it. Alas, they all want to install their own people. You kid is too, so ostentatious! Torricelli invented the pendulum clock, and you start a factory with him, making money every day. Said, you are still so high-profile, you don't know how jealous those people are about you! We usually don't know how many backstabbing shots you have blocked, you boy, restrain yourself in the future!" Shao Shude said after a moment of pause.

"Hehe. I can imagine who is talking bad about me, isn't it just the white shirts! Watching my watch factory make money, everyone wants to take a share of the money, want to buy shares! Damn, when I am Mud Bodhisattvas, if they were in South Africa, I would have thrown a bundle of them into the crocodile's mouth, what the hell!" Mo Ming said with a sneer and disdain.

"You should change your temper!" Shao Shude said with a slightly heavier voice, "If you continue to be so playful and arrogant, how can Lao Peng and I hand over power to you in the future? You should Someone is in charge, by the way, why aren’t you married yet? Didn’t you just turn 31 last month? Hurry up and find someone to marry! Didn’t Frank introduce his youngest sister to you a while ago? You Why didn't you agree? After all, she is also the daughter of a powerful French baron. She has a huge family fortune. Why are you so picky? Look at your friend Frank, who is not a few years older than you, and has a bunch of children. Daughters are 15. Damn, you're not waiting for Frank's daughter to get married, are you?"

"What nonsense are you talking about." Mo Ming's face was full of black lines, and he said with some dissatisfaction: "I'm not someone I didn't like. What's the hurry, I'm only 31 years old, and I won't be too old in a few years. When the time comes The country has become stronger and its status has improved. With my conditions, what kind of woman can't get it? I'm afraid that those girls from European aristocratic families will come to marry me crying, so I'm not in a hurry Ha. Look at those of us who married early, they married ordinary people; those who married later, married daughters of native white families in the nearby New World, or French, Italian businessmen who did business with us , the daughter of a small noble family; when I get married in a few years, I am afraid that even the princesses of European countries will be able to marry."

"Those princesses who don't take a bath all the year round?" Shao Shude teased a rare sentence.

"Then I want to too. The dowries of those princesses are very generous, and they may even come with a piece of land. For a smart person like me, of course I have to invest in this kind of person. On the contrary, you old men will have no chance." Mo Ming retorted.

A few pedestrians with umbrellas walked slowly in front of the two.Mo Ming glanced casually, and soon saw a somewhat familiar figure, but he couldn't remember where he saw it.

It was a tall and delicate girl who looked about seventeen or eighteen years old, wearing a pair of gray loose clothes that were standard for technicians in the shipyard, wrapping her curvy figure inside.She walked in a hurry, looking flustered, and glanced at Mo Ming standing on the roadside trestle from the corner of her eyes from time to time.

"Oh, it's her! It's that person's daughter!" Mo Ming suddenly realized who the girl who ran away in panic like a deer was, "But, is she going to Heishui Port too? Hehe, what a courage What about Jia?"

"Okay, I won't talk to you about anything else, I have to check the supplies." Mo Ming and Shao Shude finally shook hands, then made a V gesture with their right hands, then turned around with a smile and walked towards the cargo ship .His mood suddenly became very happy, and he didn't know why.

One of the two flute-shaped transport ships of the Nanhai Transportation Company was fully loaded with weapons and ammunition, and the other was loaded with warm clothing, cloth, wine, shredded tobacco, leather goods, dyes, iron pans, knives, agricultural tools, fishing nets, tin stoves, briquettes, etc. Miscellaneous goods; in addition, a [-]-ton armed transport ship "Businessman" was transferred, which was loaded with a boat full of grain, most of which were wheat and rice, and a small amount of soybeans and potatoes.

In addition to these three ships, four multi-purpose expedition ships are also lined up along the No. 2 stone trestle in Zhenhai Port.In addition to carrying many spare canvas, ship boards, weapons, naval guns, steam engine parts, coal and construction materials (transported to Baleen Whale Harbor), these ships have a total of more than 650 various personnel (102 officers and soldiers of the 240nd Company of the Army) and a large number of technicians, artillery, and 200 French immigrants sent to Baleen Harbor) were also housed in the cabins of these ships.Of course, they are not the only passengers. After the fleet arrives at Baleen Whale Port, they will also load a batch of military horses and transport them to South Africa.After all, the maritime capacity of the East Coast Republic is extremely tight now, and the cargo space of each ship must be fully utilized.

The navy only arranged for one fast cruiser "Yangwu" to participate in the escort this time.It is also understandable that among the many ships that set out, the two transport ships of the South China Sea Transportation Company are actually the ones that have no combat effectiveness. Transport ships are all equipped with a certain amount of artillery, so they will not be completely helpless when encountering an enemy.

After everything was confirmed, Mo Ming and the port officials completed the handover, and then boarded the multifunctional expedition ship "Fubo".After communicating with the flagship, the expedition ship "Chopper" commanded by Captain Li Yi, this huge fleet of eight ships left the Zhenhai Port wharf one by one under the watchful eyes of a large number of dock workers. , turned south, heading for Baleen Whale Harbour.

On December 12, the east coast fleet sailing along the coast of La Plata arrived in the rough waters off Baleen Whale Harbor.The violent westerly wind blew the flags on the mast whirring. Facing the narrow and turbulent waterway, everyone carefully controlled the ships. It took a full half a day to enter the port one by one. Baleen Whale Harbor Wharf was full.

After unloading two hundred French immigrants, a batch of weapons and ammunition, and all building materials, Mo Ming ordered everyone to go ashore to rest.Baleen Whale Harbor is the necessary port between the mainland and the colonies on the east coast, and several rows of large hotels have been built for passing sailors and passengers to rest.

On December 12, after a two-day rest, the entire fleet set sail again.This time, the cabins of the four expedition ships ushered in new guests. Forty war horses and a large number of llamas bred in the Maldives Island were transported into the cabins. Their destination will be the port in the South African river.Since there were several transport ships that were seriously slowed down in the fleet, it took them a full 22 days to reach the South African river port this time.

Knowing that the resigned old chief had returned again, all the main military and political officials in South Africa rushed to say hello.Especially Mo Ming's adoptive son, Mo Dazhong, after receiving the urgent report from Hezhong Fort, he galloped all night in Gaoda Fort, and hurriedly met Mo Ming before he left.

After the general horse and some llamas were handed over to the Fort in the River, everyone rested in the local area for two days as usual, and the sailors also took the opportunity to maintain the ship. On January 1643, 1, after the first battalion of the Eight Banners New Army boarded the ship, they loaded some South African cattle, sheep and other livestock, and then they sailed through the waves and arrived at Xinhua Bay in the early morning of January 13. .

The original wooden trestle in Xinhua Bay has now been replaced by a permanent trestle made of stone and cement, and there are as many as five of them, enough to berth more than [-] large ships at the same time. It can be said to be the leading port in East Africa.It's a pity that today's Xinhua Harbor is empty, except for a few small fishing boats, there are no other ships.According to Shi Qinjie, only two Portuguese ships that were supposed to come to carry out population transactions have come so far this year, bringing only about [-] immigrants, and no new ships have come.It seems that they are in trouble. Maybe after losing the city of Malacca, the Portuguese are becoming more and more powerless in the face of the Dutch sea interception. This is not good news for the people on the east coast!

(End of this chapter)