I was the emperor in the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 519 Waterway
However, since Chen Yizu was wiped out, the Nanyang shipping lanes became clean for a while, and there were no more pirates.

It's not that there are no pirates anymore, but they were driven to the East China Sea by Zheng He.

It was precisely because Akagi Yoshio subdued Chen Yizu's remnants and defeated generals that he rose rapidly in just a few years and became another disaster for Ming Dynasty.

It can be said that without Chen Yizu's defeat, there would be no possibility of Akagi Yoshio's rise.

After Zheng He said this, he sighed slightly and continued.

"Your Majesty, ever since the sea passages between my Ming Dynasty and the western countries were opened, there has been an endless stream of fleets of private voyages. Some of these people are sailing smoothly and making a lot of money, while others are encountering storms and destroying their ships. Death.

It can be said that risks and benefits coexist.

But there are always some people who want to get something for nothing, and they gather on certain roads that must be passed to plunder the passing ships.

Some of these people are real pirates, while others are desperate sea merchants.

If it is only pirates, although it may take some time, there will always be a day when they will be wiped out.

But those people who usually pretend to be serious merchant ships and turn into pirates when they find an opportunity, there is nothing our family can do, we can't check and confirm every merchant ship..."

Hearing this, Li Tian finally had a preliminary understanding of the current situation of Daming's overseas trade at this time.

Only then did he know that in fact, since the middle and late Song Dynasty, overseas trade has gradually begun to rise.

It's just that the scale is far from as large as it is today.

From the original history, Li Tian also knew that despite the fact that Haimao seems to be very powerful now.

But it is not even one-tenth of the peak period.

Not to mention anything else, in the original history, the fleet and caravan under Zheng Zhilong alone in the late Ming Dynasty was enough to rival the entire overseas trade of the Ming Dynasty at this time.

Not to mention the East India Company, which had been at sea for many years at that time, was founded by countries such as the Netherlands, Spain, and Britain, and was known as the Sea Coachman.

Usually merchants, maritime merchants who turn into pirates when the time is right are not unique to Ming Dynasty.

In the age of great voyages, which slowly moved from barbarism to civilization, this kind of situation cannot be eliminated at all.

After thinking about this, Li Tian also understood what Zheng He wanted to express when he said so much to himself.

He just wanted to tell Li Tian through this incident that the matter of pirates is actually very difficult to deal with.

It is easy to destroy three pirate ships with two or three masts. You don't even need to dispatch treasure ships with nine or even eleven masts. Ordinary ships with three or four masts alone are enough to destroy them.

The imperial court didn't even need to send troops at this time, as long as they sent an order to Chen Hong and others who were on missions outside, it was enough to send them back to their hometown.

In fact, Li Tian didn't need to make a fuss about this matter at all.

However, although these three pirate ships are not a cause for concern, the problems exposed in them are still very acute.

That is, the East China Sea is not calm at this time.

In the past, when Zheng He's fleet went to sea, there were hundreds of warships and supply ships, and more than 2 sailors and soldiers. Such a force, even the most courageous pirates, would not dare to provoke it easily.

In addition, Zheng He easily wiped out the former great pirate Chen Yizu, and his power grew day by day, so no one dared to draw the attention of the Ming Fleet.

There has been no bad news for many years, which made the court and even Li Tian feel that the sea has always been calm.

If it weren't for this secret report, Li Tian might always think so.

This is also one of the reasons why Zheng He is a little panicked today.

When Li Tian first learned about this situation, he was indeed a little annoyed.

But after listening to Zheng He's analysis, his anger somewhat dissipated.

Gently pinching the sore brows, Li Tian sighed,

"I know these things, although there is no way to completely eradicate the pirates, but it should be possible to ensure the safety of several routes.

Uncle Bao, you are the person who has the most right to speak about navigation in our Ming Dynasty. What do you think about this matter? "

Zheng He thought for a while and said,
"Actually, securing a few routes is not a problem for the Western Fleet at this time. At most, it is to separate a few smaller fleets to cruise the sea and escort the passing merchant ships.

However, in this way, the manpower and material resources of the fleet are not only consumed, but also very detrimental to long-term development.

Our family believes that, as His Majesty said earlier, the method of establishing supply bases and carrying out overseas colonization is the fundamental solution to this kind of thing. "

Li Tian nodded to agree with Zheng He's plan.

Establishing supply bases overseas is actually similar to the practice of building military bases everywhere in the United States in later generations.

As long as there is a place to be stationed overseas, it is equivalent to the radiation range of the base, and they are all within the protection range of the fleet.

Once there are traces of pirates in a certain area, a team to clear them can be organized as quickly as possible.

Similar to today's situation, if Tongchi Island has a supply base within a three-day voyage.

There is no need to report to the court at all, and the fleet stationed in the supply base can easily solve this problem.

If there are supply bases along the route, the safety of that route can be guaranteed to the greatest extent.

In addition, the steamship will soon be launched into the water for trial voyage. With the addition of the steamship, it is not impossible for the imperial court to completely trap the pirates out of the waterway.

Li Tian spread out one hand, clenched a fist with the other, and hit him lightly.
"That's right, Uncle Bao, you're right. As long as we build enough sea supply bases, we can easily deal with such situations in the future."

"It seems that the construction of some supply bases in coastal areas must be implemented as soon as possible!"

After finishing speaking, he turned his head to look at Zheng He again,

"Uncle Bao, do you have any opinions on this? There are only you and me here, and you can speak freely."

After Zheng He heard Li Tian's words, a strange brilliance suddenly appeared in his eyes.

I felt that my whole waist straightened a lot.

In fact, whether it is now or when Zhu Di was in power, Zheng He's position is very embarrassing.

His meritorious deeds are obvious to all, but because of his special status, even though he has achieved great meritorious deeds, he is still not welcomed by civil and military officials.

Let’s take what happened to Liu Rong as an example. He also severely injured the pirates and made great contributions to Ming Dynasty, but Liu Rong was able to be promoted and promoted, but Zheng He received a commendation and a little gold and silver. Nothing more.

Although Zheng He never said these things, he never cared about them.But he still had some murmurs in his heart. At this time, he was so respected by Li Tian, ​​and at the same time, he was moved and excited.

(End of this chapter)