Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Five warships and seven merchant ships headed eastward carrying 3,000 soldiers and a large amount of supplies.

Xue Daoguang, who had recruited disciples in Zhejiang and taught the Taoism, finally led the fleet to sea again.

The navy commander was Yingxuan, who was a former puppet Chu general, and the army commander was Zhu Ming's adopted son Zhu Xiaozhong.

Ju Ming stopped adopting orphans in his own name four years ago.

Among the earlier orphans, a total of thirteen people stood out and were officially adopted as adopted sons and daughters by Ju Ming.

The remaining orphans continue to be raised. Many of them have joined the army, and some have taken the civil service path. Starting from senior officials in the General Council and the Privy Council, they can become low-level officials in a few years.

Some orphans even joined Shi Yuangong's intelligence department!

"After we get to the island, don't kill indiscriminately, and let the islanders farm their land. Do you understand?" Zhu Xiaozhong said to Xia Yuqing.

Xia Yuqing smiled bitterly: "What does the general think of us? Who likes to kill people for fun?"

Zhu Xiaozhong pouted.

Fifty of the three thousand soldiers under his command were orphans who grew up together, and they were even equipped with the latest flintlock rifles. There were more than a hundred people who were soldiers from the former Song Dynasty who followed Xue Daoguang across the sea.

Most of the rest are from Salmon Island, and one or two of them have cannibalism experience.

This time I went to Japan to find money.

First stop, Jeju Island.

Second stop, Tsushima Island.

…

Jeju Island was called Tamna County at this time, and it had three officials: the county envoy, the deputy envoy, and the judge.

More than a hundred years ago, Goryeo also had a garrison on the island to prevent the remnants of the annexed Tamna Kingdom from rebelling.

There is also a garrison now, but the soldiers have been reduced to slaves, and officials can do whatever they want.

The hometown of the county envoy Jin Fu is in Gyeongsang Province. His imperial examination results were excellent, but his family's strength was too weak. After going round and round, serving as an official for twenty years, he ended up being thrown into a place like Tamluo where no one can shit.

There is not much oil and water to catch, there are few entertainment activities, and it is difficult to even eat white rice, so I can only lie down and go about my days.

"Envoy, envoy, a ship has docked!" The officials rushed in.

"How many ships have come?" Jin Fu asked quickly.

If there is more, we will trade peacefully; if there is less, we will rob by force.

Before Tamna Kingdom was annexed by Goryeo, it had been paying tribute to the Northern Song Dynasty, and it could make some money from tribute trade every now and then.

After that, contact was cut off, and this poor place was so poor that even pirates didn't come.

"There are not many ships coming, but every ship is very big. The sun and moon flags are hung on the ships. I don't know which country they are from," the official said.

There is no news on the island, and the officials do not know that there is a Ming Dynasty.

However, through writing letters and communicating with friends, Jin Fu learned that the Ming Dynasty had risen and even became the suzerain of Goryeo. He shouted in panic: "Quickly summon the county officials to welcome the Chinese fleet!"

A group of people gathered and rushed to the dock, but when they saw a large number of soldiers landing, their faces turned pale with fear.

Jinfu hurriedly came forward to pay homage, and said bravely: "Kimfu, the governor of Tamra County in Goryeo, pays homage to the noble man of the kingdom!"

Xue Daoguang had no intention of showing off his power, and just asked: "Can you speak Chinese?"

No one answered.

The translator on board the ship came forward: "Who can speak Chinese?"

Jin Fu quickly replied: "You can write Chinese characters with your pen and your senses."

The translator said: "This is Xue Daoguang, the Ming Dynasty's sea exploration envoy, Xue Zhenren. The leading general is Zhu Xiaozhong, General Zhu. There is also a navy general, General Ying, who has not disembarked from the ship."

Jin Fu quickly led the officials to worship again.

The translator added: "The fleet of the Ming Dynasty often travels to Tamna Island to replenish fresh water and food. I will not take yours for nothing and exchange it with you for cloth. Remember to repair and expand the port, and then set aside an open space to It is for the Ming Dynasty soldiers to set up camp. The couch pavilion must also be renovated and expanded to provide a rest for the Ming Dynasty nobles."

"Definitely, definitely!" Jin Fu nodded repeatedly.

The crew and soldiers brought some cloth, and Jinfu went to check it out in person. He quickly said excitedly: "Is this ten liters of cloth?"

The translator said with a contemptuous smile: "We will use this as a trade from now on. When the fleet returns, you can also exchange it for the island's specialties."

Jin Fu said: "If the citrus on the island is particularly sweet in winter, it will be presented as a tribute to the king. There are also other fruits and vegetables, and there are many seafood. By the way, there are pearls, and they are all good pearls!"

"We'll discuss trade matters when we return home," the translator said arrogantly. This guy is actually from Pyongyang, but now he considers himself a Ming citizen, and even the governor of Goryeo doesn't look down on him.

After settling the matter on Tamna Island, everyone rested for two days and then headed towards Tsushima Island.

…

Tsushima Island was under the jurisdiction of the Chikuzen Kingdom of Japan at this time, and was governed by powerful officials appointed by the Dazaifu of the Chizen Kingdom.

This powerful man is the Abiliu clan.

Abiriu Motosei is forty-two years old this year. His family has been operating here for several generations. He led troops to the island after the "Toi Invasion".

The so-called Daoyi invasion occurred during the reign of Emperor Zhenzong of the Song Dynasty. A group of Jurchen pirates from the Liao Kingdom, led by Korean pirates, crossed the sea and captured Tsushima Island as a springboard. Then they captured Iki Island, killed all the Japanese on the island, and then ran to plunder the coast of Japan.

After looting for more than half a month, the Japanese court had no choice but to ask local wealthy families to send troops to resist.

After several hard battles and a total of hundreds of pirates killed, the Jurchen and Goryeo pirates escaped by boat. Encountering the Korean navy halfway, they defeated the pirates and returned 259 Japanese young men who had been kidnapped.

The main task of the Abiriu family is to guard Tsushima Island for generations to prevent pirates from killing the Japanese mainland.

Even the Jurchen pirates knew to use Tsushima Island as a springboard. How could the Ming army not capture it?

But there are very few soldiers on the island, and they are all soldiers and farmers. There are not even a few professional samurai.

At noon one day, the fishing boat returned to the harbor in a panic, bringing news of the arrival of the fleet.

Abiriyu Yuan Sheng was so frightened that he urgently summoned only a few warriors, and then asked the warriors to summon peasants and soldiers.

The peasants and soldiers are still busy in the fields, and the assembly speed is too slow.

When the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty landed, Abiliu Yuansheng was surrounded by only a few warriors, including his son, and dozens of sparse peasant soldiers.

When he saw those big ships, he was almost scared to death. When he saw the soldiers in full armor, he felt even more desperate.

Abiru Motomori personally rode up to ask: "I am the Tsushima Shou appointed by the Dazaifu of Chizen Province. Where are you from? Why did you bring soldiers to the island?"

This time the translator came from Zhejiang and scolded: "A few years ago, the Emperor of Japan attacked the Chinese fleet without permission. My Majesty, the Emperor of China, was very angry. Today I sent a large army to conquer. If you know what I am doing, you will kneel down and surrender immediately, and you will join the Ming Dynasty from now on." Tomorrow!"

Abiliu Yuansheng was frightened and hesitated. He had no loyalty to the Japanese court. Historically, his grandson even went to war directly with Japan and was eventually beaten to the point of losing the territory of Tsushima Island.

Zhu Xiaozhong took a look at the little pony under the opponent's crotch. This thing was not even as good as the Southwest War Horse.

He simply got on the war horse he had brought with him on the ship, rushed over with a spear in hand and shouted: "Don't say more, do you dare to challenge me to a duel?"

The translator shouted: "Listen, General Zhu!"

Abiliu Yuansheng looked at the tall and mighty Zhu Xiaozhong, and then at Zhu Xiaozhong's tall and mighty war horse, and instantly lost the courage to fight alone.

This guy jumped off his horse and ran swiftly on his knees: "Meet the general of the Celestial Dynasty. The Abiliu family is willing to serve the Ming Emperor!"

Zhu Xiaozhong asked: "Your name is Abiliu Yuansheng?"

"Yes." Abiliu Yuansheng replied on his knees.

Zhu Xiaozhong said: "The name is too long. From now on, let's call him Yuan Sheng." He also used a spear to write on the ground, "The surname is Yuan and the name is Sheng. Your descendants will also have the surname Yuan."

After the translator finished speaking, the guy immediately kowtowed: "Thank you for the surname!"

Yuan Sheng, who changed his name from then on, took his son and subordinates to guide the Ming soldiers to rest.

This place is poorer than Tamluo Island, and the government office where Yuan Sheng lives is not even as good as the wealthy locals in the countryside of the Ming Dynasty.

Glancing at the shabby food, Zhu Xiaozhong said to the soldiers: "Get some food!"

Forty minutes later, Yuan Sheng was eating white rice and drinking corn wine, and he felt a sense of happiness. He asked curiously: "General, can the warriors of the Ming Dynasty eat rice every day?"

At this time, Jeju Island, Tsushima Island, and Hokkaido did not produce rice.

If Yuan Sheng wants to eat white rice every meal, he has to trade with the Japanese.

Zhu Xiaozhong smiled and said: "As long as you work faithfully, you can eat as much rice as you want every day."

Yuan Sheng quickly took his son and knelt down: "You must serve the Ming Dynasty faithfully!"

Zhu Xiaozhong asked: "There is a place called Ishimi in Japan. You should know about it, right?"

Motosei replied: "I know. If you take a boat from Tsushima Island to the east, you can reach Iwami Country."

Zhu Xiaozhong said: "The prince of our country dreamed of an immortal, and was taught by the immortal in his dream. The Japanese stone saw the national silver mountain. This is a treasure given by God to the Ming Dynasty. You don't want everything on Tsushima Island. Take your family and warriors with me. Let’s go to Ishimi Country together. I will give you a new territory there.”

Yuan Sheng was overjoyed and kowtowed repeatedly to thank him. The territory of Iwami Country was much richer than Tsushima Island.

Since Ming Dynasty wants this ruined island, then donate it to Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Xiaozhong asked: "Look at my army, can Shi Jianguo stop it?"

Yuan Sheng replied: "The general's soldiers are tall and burly, and protected by strong iron armor. Even ten Shijian countries can't withstand them. In recent decades, the system of state affairs has been corrupted. Many state affairs are guarded by remote leaders, and the affairs of a state are handled by the officials in the department. They are handled by people. These officials in the department are hereditary members of the local wealthy families and have actually become warriors."

"The general led his troops to kill Ishijian Kingdom. The enemies he encountered must be the wealthy families of Ishijian State. They needed to temporarily summon warriors and peasant soldiers, and each had their own interests. As long as they won a battle and demonstrated the Ming Dynasty's military power, those wealthy families They will not work together. They will give in and fight cowardly again and again, waiting for the emperor to send troops to rescue. Even, as long as they have enough strength, they can secretly win over some wealthy families. "

"If the Emperor's army is defeated one after another, all the wealthy families in Ishigami will secretly cooperate with the general. They only care about their own interests. As long as their estates are not taken away, they will not care even if the general kills the emperor."

This is the role of the leading party. Xue Daoguang and Zhu Xiaozhong cast a dark eye on Japan and urgently need insiders to provide them with information.