Ming Zhengzhi, I am Zheng Kezang

Under the sunshine of August, two boats, one in front and the other behind, were chasing in the cloudy Eastern Ocean.The one running in front is a flat-bottomed sand boat that is common in the Eastern Ocean, while the one behind uses both oars and sails, so it is faster in speed.Seeing that the boats behind were getting closer and closer, the sand boat that could not escape suddenly turned the rudder and fled towards the land, but accidentally rushed onto the submerged sandbar and couldn't move immediately.

Hearing the cries in the wind, a stern light flashed in Liu Ling's eyes: "Be careful, don't fold us in."

With these words, the galley did not approach immediately, but stopped, and cautiously entered.Watching the pirate ship gradually approaching, several sailors with good water skills jumped into the sea holding the wooden pieces. With their abilities, it was not a problem to swim up and down seven or eight miles to land with buoys.But what they could do was not what most people on board could do, so the cries of women, children, old and weak became louder and louder.

In the midst of crying and shouting, two wet figures climbed onto the sand boat. Seeing them coming, the people on board were so frightened that they fell silent at that moment, which made the two of them quite embarrassed: "You son of a bitch, why are you so scared?" Do not cry?"

Watching the two pirates tie the rope tied around their waists to the two masts separately, several passengers on the ship suddenly realized: "They are going to drag the ship out of the sandbar, and then send more people on board to kill We, elders, we can't wait to die! Kill them, kill them!"

The hysterical passengers rushed forward with their teeth and fists to fight the pirates, and they overwhelmed two big men holding weapons at once. They were horrified to find that the ship had begun to move outward.

The few people who knew something was wrong tried their best to chop the ropes with iron tools, but the rough hemp that had eaten enough water was as strong as fine iron, and it was not something they could deal with in a hurry. Floating on the free sea.

The huge iron claws quickly connected the two ships, and a group of pirates came in a blink of an eye, and quickly took control of the entire sand ship.

Immediately, the pirates carried the two people who had boarded the boat before and reported to Liu Ling: "Brother, the fourth brother and Du Mazi were beaten unconscious by them."

"Brother, how many times have I told you to call me your lord?" Liu Ling glared at the group of thieves. "We are the official army, the official army of Daming." Speaking of this, Liu Ling pointed to the fourth and fourth two. "Pour some water to wake them up." A bucket of sea water was poured on them, and the two opened their eyes vaguely, as if they were still swearing, Liu Ling waved his hand. "It's nothing serious, let's send them back first." After this little episode, Liu Ling stood in front of the men and women on the boat. "Whoever injured my subordinate just now, stand up, and stand up for me." The crowd shrank inward. "No one admits it is?"

Liu Ling sneered, then walked up to a young man, grabbed him by the throat and dragged him out.The young man seemed to have two companions who were ready to go out and grab someone when they saw that the situation was not good, but Liu Ling's gaze swept them away and they retreated on the spot.

"Boy, I just thought you said Mu Guan Erhou, why, are you not convinced by Lao Tzu's claim to be an official of the Ming Dynasty?"

After saying this, the people on the ship noticed the buns of the pirates, some with bald heads, and some obviously dressed like Ming people. They still keep this hairstyle, of course Dongning is also like this, but the people along the coast of northern Jiangsu naturally don't think so far.

"My lord, since you are an officer of the Ming Dynasty, please let me wait for the little people." An older businessman among the passengers stood up and bowed to Liu Ling. At this time, almost no one except the small merchants and big merchants in Chaoguan is willing to take the sea route, which is much more dangerous than land transportation. "When I get home, I will definitely set up a longevity tablet for the official, and burn incense day and night to worship."

"Worship? I'm neither a god nor a ghost. There's no need for it." Liu Ling let go, and the young man fell to the ground coughing while clutching his throat. "Don't say anything, go back to the cabin and wait honestly. When you get there, you will naturally be released. If anyone dares to resist and escape." Liu Ling chuckled. "Then try"

A group of men and women were so frightened that they didn't dare to speak out, and then they were driven back into the cabin. At this time, only one monk stood still.

"Why does this master want to try a certain knife?" Four or five pirates gathered around with their weapons in their hands. "Don't think that we have any taboos against monks, but we have nothing to fear except the Dragon Lord."

"Poor monk Shi Mingcheng (recommended by You Yunshuixing), a native of Nantong, Jiangsu, has been a doctor for generations in his family, and he studied Confucianism when he was young and became a monk in middle age," the monk bowed to the pirates. "This poor monk is going to Qixia Temple in Qixia Mountain to place an order. The monk originally traveled around the world, but now being held by the Lord is the meaning of a Bodhisattva. The poor monk implores the Lord to send it to Dongning."

"Dongning?" Liu Ling froze. "The monk is talking nonsense." Speaking of this, Liu Ling waved the weapon in his hand. "Go back to the cabin quickly, don't blame me for being rude."

Shi Mingcheng took a deep look at Liu Ling, and a smile suddenly appeared on his face: "Young monk, just take orders."

"These days, we explored the upper reaches of the river and the coastal areas on both sides. In addition to the Singkawang Sultanate in the north, there are four or five sultanates of different sizes around us." Unlike the captains of the other two boats , He Zhichao voluntarily stayed in Xiboni. "The big ones have several counties and a population of more than 500, and the small ones are just a few village chiefs, with [-] people. The relationship between each other is also quite antagonistic, and we just want to profit from it."

"The local natives are quite enthusiastic about the Han people, but the Dutch and Franji people have a bad reputation here." Another boat captain, Chen Shuiyou, took off his wet clothes and put them by the fire. A light mist of water vapor began to rise in the room. "It is said that a few years ago, Sultan Machen in the south drove the Dutch out."

"Ma Chen is too far away." Tian Chao looked at the rain scene outdoors like a water curtain, and frowned. "The key is whether we will make the native sultan feel uncomfortable if we stand here." As the saying goes, how can others snore by the side of the couch? It may not be possible to give Dongning, a new enemy, a chance to intervene. "We must be prepared. Once the rainy season is over, we must immediately prepare for war."

"Ready to fight?" Zhuge Fengye (recommended by You Yunye), the civil affairs assistant assigned to Tian Chao, from the Yingtian Division, shook his head like a rattle. "How do we deal with the food? We don't know if the current batch of stored food will last until the next boat, so we must not attack blindly."

"Brother Zhuge misunderstood, I didn't want to attack, but to prevent the opponent from attacking." Tian Chao was also sober. "When the dry season comes, we will go out together in the army and the people in the villages. Of course, the town soldiers will have to rest for half a day and farm for half a day, and the people in the villages will also have to train every three days, so as to ensure their combat power in case there is a police. "

"If that's the case, the lower officials can rest assured." Zhuge Fengye said he was relieved, but he still put forward his own suggestion. "The fleet has to find a way to catch more fish to supplement the lack of food. In addition, the town army may not have enough time to serve the cultivated land. It is recommended to use sweet potatoes, sweet potatoes and kudzu root."

"Fleet fishing is easy, but if you don't have enough salt, you may not be able to survive." The third captain, Gao Cheng, further suggested. "If there is a lot of cement, it is best to build the saltworks by the sea first."

"All the cement was used to build the longhouse." Tian Chao shook his head regretfully. "I'm afraid we can only wait until the next ship comes."

"Then arrange to cook the sea first." Zhuge Fengye suggested a compromise. "There are not many other things in this estuary, but there are a lot of weeds that can be used as fire starters. It happens to expand the reclamation area, and at the same time, they are dried and used as fuel."

"That's right, there must be waterfowl nesting on the river beach, and I happened to capture a batch of them and raise them as poultry." Thinking of the golden fried eggs and the roasted poultry dripping with fat, the corners of the mouths of the people present couldn't help secreting a trace of saliva Come.

"There are also women." Most of Tian Chao's subordinates, no matter the original Zheng Jun or the new attached army, are bachelors. If they hold on like this for a long time, I'm afraid something will happen sooner or later. "Can you find a way to make a deal with several Sudans, and use our rich firearms to exchange some women with them to act as camp prostitutes?"

"Not right, not right." Jiang Tao, the team leader of the second team, firmly opposed the suggestion of Chang Yong, the leader of the first team. "Just now I said that I might meet these sultans, but now I am eager to send the firearms to the other side. Isn't that an enemy?"

"The woman's question can be postponed first." Although Tian Chao was accompanied by the concubine who knew the state with a green hat, it was not the reason why he didn't know how hungry he was when he was full. "After all, they are all unfamiliar with the place. The following guys will definitely not cause trouble easily in a short period of time, so you can trade with them after defeating the sultans, or you can wait for the next ship to come. Help." Tian Chao smiled. "In Dongning, there used to be more men than women, and it was not uncommon for people in their [-]s and [-]s to be unmarried, but now that the people of Qiongzhou have moved there, although not all of these problems have been solved, at least half of them can be solved. In this case, The Lord will definitely not forget us soldiers on the frontier, so don't worry."

"The governor is right." Zhuge Fengye added. "Don't tell the following about this truth for the time being. Wait until there are signs of commotion, and then reveal it, or you can delay it for a little longer."

"What if the sultans don't attack?"

"It would be better if we don't attack, so we can gain a foothold." Tian Chao showed a ferocious smile on his face. "But it's the first year. After another year, even if they don't attack, it's time for us to attack. After all, the Lord sent us here to dig for gold." When gold was mentioned, everyone present saw gold in their eyes. yellow light. "There is a way that God does not take it, but bears the blame. If you don't occupy this land, can you leave Hongyi with gold to beat us?"