Fu Song

Chapter 381: Three hundred and eighty-one
At this time, the maritime trade of the Song Dynasty was almost the economic pillar of the Song Dynasty. There were more than [-] kinds of imported and exported goods, which were divided into treasures, cloth, spices, leather goods, groceries, medicinal materials, etc. Up to six.To Sanfoqi is the only place where the Song Dynasty communicates with the South China Sea. The route to Polu is mainly to trade pepper. The route to Lanli and Gulin, ivory, sumu, etc. are the main goods on this route. , to the Dashi route. At this time, Baghdad, the capital of the Arab Empire, was an international trade center. The Song Dynasty transported silk, porcelain, paper, etc. there, and then brought back spices, medicinal materials, rhino horns, pearls and jade, etc., to East Africa. Japan and Koryo routes.

At this time, the sea-going ship technology of the Song Dynasty also reached the peak of the world, and almost all the ships on the route between China and the West were built by the Song Dynasty.It can be said that under the situation where the Song Dynasty was squeezed terribly by the Liao Kingdom on land, maritime trade was the key to maintaining the dignity of the empire and trying to form a confrontation with the Liao Kingdom.

This is why Xiao Cheng attaches great importance to Zheng Zeshi.

For Da Song, sea trade may only mean money, but for Xiao Cheng, sea trade also means a powerful navy and the maritime hegemony formed through the navy in the future.

Whoever controls the sea will control the future.

Zheng Zeshi was not a serious maritime merchant, he was also a pirate.But he can only dare to start looting when he is far away from the coastline of the Song Dynasty and enters the depths of the sea.

But in the vast sea, it is not easy to meet the fat sheep.

If you encounter it, you must catch up.

Moreover, there are some fleets that are untouchable, such as the official trading fleet, such as the fleet with a deep background in the imperial court.

If these people were really angered, the Zheng family would no longer be able to survive in Quanzhou.

Even if they fled to the island run by their own family, they might not be able to escape the wrath of the court.

The navy of the Song Dynasty is still very good in combat effectiveness.

The shipbuilding level of the Song Dynasty is undoubtedly at its peak in this era.

An ordinary cargo ship is about ten feet long, three feet deep, and two and a half feet wide. It can carry two thousand dendrobium millet and more than sixty sailors.

What really embodies the level of shipbuilding in the Song Dynasty is the big ship called Shenzhou.

The largest Shenzhou has [-] materials and can carry [-] to [-] people. The ordinary Shenzhou also has [-] to [-] materials and can carry [-] to [-] people.

But such a huge ship cannot be bought or operated by ordinary sea trade merchants.

Except for the fleet of the imperial court, only the sailors own this kind of ship.

It can be said that if the Zheng family's fleet encounters an imperial navy with Shenzhou warships, it will be the end of an egg hitting a rock.

Fortunately, the navy of the imperial court spends most of their time patrolling the coastal waters. Their main task is to ensure the smooth flow of water transport at sea and some offshore accommodation. The farthest time is just a trip to Koryo under the order of the imperial court.

It is said that it was this time that several huge boats arrived in Koryo, which made the Koreans change some of their national policies. They no longer sat on the Liao side as before, but began to sit on the wall between the two countries.

Naturally, the Zheng family's fleet can only have ships like passenger boats.

Like Shenzhou, you can't buy it with money.

"Duke Zheng, you have traveled to many places and visited many countries, so you have naturally met sailors from those countries. Do you think that with your strength, what are your chances of winning? "Xiao Cheng asked.

"Signing and judging, it's hard to say." Zheng Zeshi said: "Some are strong and some are weak. There is no fixed rule, but if everyone's ships are not much different in size and number, my Zheng family will I am not afraid of any force, but after all, my Zheng family is just a family, and it is impossible to have a direct conflict with the main navy of any country."

"What if you have a ship like Shenzhou?" Xiao Cheng asked with a smile.

Zheng Zeshi's eyes lit up all of a sudden. "Signed, the Shenzhou of the Song Dynasty is a giant on the sea. A ship like Lingfei Shunji Shenzhou is invincible on the sea. If my Zheng family can have a warship like Lingfei Shunji Shenzhou, haha, Who else am I afraid of on the sea? It is the Quanzhou navy and Mingzhou navy of the Song Dynasty. I dare to touch them head-on. Speaking of them, I am afraid of them, more because of their warships than their warships. I'm afraid of their fighting ability. If we really want to fight, people like us who have to walk between life and death as soon as we go to sea are really much better than those pampered men in the court."

"Okay!" Xiao Cheng clapped his hands and said, "I've prepared the construction blueprints for the Great Song Shenzhou, etc., and you can take them with you when you leave. There are two big boxes of blueprints, but Mr. Zheng , Do you have enough experienced craftsmen? If not, you can only look back and sigh when you get these construction drawings, and you can't make them."

Zheng Zeshi looked at Xiao Cheng in shock: "Declaration, where did you get such blueprints? The imperial court has no relevant blueprints in the big shipyards like Quanzhou and Hangzhou."

"Have you looked for it?"

"Of course!" Zheng Zeshi nodded, "It took a lot of money to prove this matter. The relevant technologies are all in the Bianliang craftsman camp. In these shipyards, only a few master craftsmen know how to make them. And these People, obviously not something we can touch. That's pretty much a hornet's nest."

Xiao Cheng chuckled: "Don't forget, my father has been the deputy envoy of the Third Division for many years, and he has also been a serious planner. It's not too difficult for me to get these things. Got the blueprint, can you make it?"

In those years, Xiao Cheng was like an ant, quietly moving things from the craft camp to his home. He was not very old, and he wandered around these places with Xiao Yu, the deputy envoy of the third department at the time. Who would have known that this guy Actually look too far away and have a bad heart?
"It can be built, it can be built, just give me two or three years of work. My family has a shipyard. In the past, it was mainly repairing ships and building passenger boats. But there are many masters and rich experience. As long as After getting the blueprints, build a medium-sized Shenzhou first, and after building a few ships, you will naturally be able to build a large ship like Lingfei Shunji."

Speaking of this, Zheng Zeshi closed his eyes slightly, and said happily: "Signing the judgment, it is really going to build a big boat like Lingfei Shunji, where can we go in this sea?"

"You arrange your nephew to come to me, and I will send some people to follow you back." Xiao Cheng said: "They are all carefully selected, capable of writing and martial arts, and follow you to polish for a few years. In the future, there will be more talents on the water.”

"Don't worry about the signing, Zheng will definitely cultivate it carefully!" Zheng Zeshi nodded.

This is a matter of course.Since Xiao Cheng wanted to develop his own fleet in the direction of the Navy, and paid a lot of money, it was natural to add people to it.So when Xiao Cheng said it, Zheng Zeshi agreed without hesitation.

This is the truth, if you really want to trust yourself with everything, Zheng Zeshi will be suspicious.

Check and balance each other, no one can dominate one side, this is the long-term way.

"You are not in a hurry. You will not be needed for a few years!" Xiao Cheng said, "Make money well, make a fortune, quietly build ships, cultivate talents, and plunder at sea in silence, but don't do anything along the coast of the Song Dynasty." Also, don’t grab Da Song’s boat, go for the Srivijaya, the Bolu country, the big cannibals, or even those with high noses and blue eyes. We don’t feel burdened to snatch them, Da Song They will not come to trouble us."

Zheng Zeshi laughed out loud, he realized that the student in front of him who had become a Jinshi judge was really just like himself, a robber.

"If one day, we can plant the flag of our Great Song Dynasty in every corner of the world through your warship, no matter what time, as long as the sun rises, we can always see our flag bathed in the sky. Under the rising sun. I call it: the sun never sets on the empire. Mr. Zheng, isn’t such a scene very enjoyable?” Xiao Cheng said with a smile.

"It's not just cool, if it's really like this, the bones of the old man will be crisp." Zheng Zeshi took a deep breath.Presumably at that time, the warship with the Zheng Zijiang flag on the sea will inevitably become a god-like existence.And he, Zheng Zeshi, will of course be famous in history and will last forever.

Where will it still be like now, where you are clearly a rich man and secretly a pirate, and you are always worried that when will you be spotted by some powerful people, skinned and deboned, and you will be cleaned up?

Xiao Cheng left satisfied.

Zheng Zeshi is the kind of guy who looks amiable, but is rebellious in his bones.It is impossible to capture such a person without spending a lot of money.So Xiao Cheng first provided him with protection so that he would have no worries.Then there is the marriage, which makes him feel his sincerity. With this relationship, the trust between the two parties will naturally be strengthened.The third step is to give treasures. For such a family, the more advanced shipbuilding technology is the foundation of their family. It can make them more grateful than giving them countless silver coins.The fourth step is to make a name for yourself.At the level of Zheng Zeshi, there is not much to ask for. To cleanse them, or even let them be famous in history or at sea, has become the best temptation.

Maybe within two or three years, Zheng Zeshi will be able to build a big ship like the Shenzhou. In the future, if you want to come to the sea, there will be a group of frightening pirates, and the endless wealth will flow to the Federation like water. on the books.

In the future, there will be many places to spend money!
Production is of course fundamental, but if you can get quick money by robbing, Xiao Cheng is not afraid to use it.

Anyway, it’s not about grabbing something on your own territory, grabbing it in a distant overseas country, and then taking it back for use, this is called capital accumulation.

very good.

Zheng Zeshi is a sensible person and a smart person, which is also very good.

Regarding his thoughts on the sea, Xiao Cheng is not going to say anything more to Yang Qing, Tian Chou and even Cen Zhong. Expeditions in distant places.In their view, the Great Song Dynasty is the core of the world, and this is the upper kingdom of China, a place full of treasures, and other places are basically barbarians.

Even if Zheng Zeshi is so well-informed and sees the prosperous people outside, doesn’t he just want to live in Song Dynasty, and if it is not a last resort, he never wants to leave this place?
Of course, when it comes to the degree of civilization, the current Song Dynasty is really much better than other places.

So now to increase the importance of Zheng Zeshi in the federation, it is necessary to impress people like them from the huge profits of maritime trade.Anyway, how Zheng Zeshi's huge profits came from, the people who come here are also very clear.Make him stronger and earn more profits for everyone, and everyone will be happy.

Xiao Cheng walked out of Zheng Zeshi's yard, and several soldiers stepped into the yard carrying two boxes.

In the next few days, it is estimated that Zheng Zeshi will soak himself in these materials.

After leaving Zheng Zeshi's courtyard, Xiao Cheng never went to other courtyards, but went straight back to his study. Outside the study, he saw a middle-aged man sitting in a small hall outside the study. , talking with Jiang Yingxue.Seeing Xiao Cheng come in, both of them stood up.

"Shui Ziliu has seen the signing!" The middle-aged man crossed his hands and bowed, saluting.

"Shui Dong's family, come in and talk!" Xiao Cheng nodded and walked straight into the study.

Shui Ziliu took a deep breath, and in his heart, he was a little afraid of Xiao Cheng.

He felt that he was a good citizen of the Song Dynasty, a person who obeyed the rules and regulations, and the person in front of him, his father was caught in the rebellion against the king, and his elder brother became a rebel who was worthy of the name.

But, then again, as a law-abiding person like myself, he is now facing the brink of bankruptcy in his family's business. Once he goes bankrupt, the terrible situation that his family will face makes him shudder.But Xiao Cheng, who was missing in name, lives here like a princely marquis.

In the past two days, in this Zhuangzi, the people I met by chance, if I picked one at random, they were all characters who made the water flow open-mouthed.

Although I don't know why Jiang Yingxue came here, but for a person who is about to drown, it is good to grab a straw.

Or, the person who can save the Shui family is Xiao Erlang in front of him!
What can the Shui family be plotted by others?

I will soon have nothing!
"Shuidong's family, Jiaozi of the imperial court, why is it almost impossible to keep going?" After sitting down, Xiao Cheng asked as he watched the water flow by itself.

"Loss of credit, excessive issuance." Shui Ziliu said: "Especially this year, because the imperial court has taken too much debt, it has printed Jiaozi indiscriminately, causing the value of Jiaozi to rapidly depreciate. I found out again and again that such days, as long as there is another year, the imperial court's diplomatic policy will inevitably be ruined."

"Yes, the key to something like Jiaozi is a credit issue. Two years ago, a thousand Jiaozi could be exchanged for [-] Wen, but this year, it can only be exchanged for [-] Wen. How can it not be corrupted? The truth!" Xiao Cheng said with a chuckle.

(End of this chapter)