Picturesque Rivers and Mountains in the Red Chamber

Chapter 397 5.79 Foreign vassals come to court to congratulate the Holy King

Volume [-]

5.79 Foreign vassals came to court to congratulate the Holy King.

After watching the maple leaves, Zhou Yang was planning to rest for a few more days, but he had to rush back to the military camp on October [-]th. There was just a backlog of military affairs. Isn't that what he did to support three thousand households and two town governors? of?However, news came from Xuezihao that Xue Biao had arrived with a large amount of supplies, which was definitely not something outsiders could interfere with.

"Brother tadpole, long time no see!" Before he arrived at the military camp, he saw a stream of motorcades entering the gate. There were more than thirty vehicles in front of him. It seemed that there were a lot of things. A young man was talking to Zhao Tong at the gate. During the conversation, it was Xue Biao who came in person, "Originally, I thought you would come later, but I didn't expect you to come now. You really helped my brother a lot!"

"Brother Zhou, please forgive me. There are a lot of things this time, but I can't transport them all at once, so I can only ship them separately. It is estimated that it will last until the end of the month." Seeing Zhou Yang dismounting and rushing towards him, Xue Biao hurriedly raised his hand. He cupped his hands and said with a smile, "The main reason is that transporting them together is too eye-catching. Even the brothers in the camp can't get them all in a short time. It's better to do it slowly."

"No problem, just take your time - let's go in and talk!" Zhou Yang carefully observed the fleet and saw that although most of the carriages were covered with canvas, they looked angular, obviously a The long wooden box was packed and tightly tied. If nothing unexpected happened, this batch should all be brand new flintlock guns.

The last few vehicles are different. Their appearance is basically the same as that of ordinary passenger carriages, but the underground wheels have made obvious ruts. They are obviously heavier and should be important items disguised for transportation. However, the last one is the most special, and the same There were ruts in the carriage that were twice as deep, and he couldn't guess what they were.

"Brother Zhou, please take a look," he said as he walked. It wasn't until he passed behind the Chinese army's tent that Xue Biao signaled Zhao Tong to send someone to unload the truck. He also pointed to the unloaded equipment and introduced it, "This batch of flintlock guns has been carried out again." In order to simplify, the production speed is faster and the cost is lower, but the performance is similar; the latter few are disassembled and shipped infantry cannons, which can be used after being installed. This time they are half a hundred households, six guns.

There is a car with simplified military uniforms and cotton-padded clothes according to Brother Zhou's requirements. This time, only thirty sets were brought, which are considered samples; the last car was specially brought by my father, who was worried that Brother Zhou would not have enough money, so he asked his younger brother to bring 1 taels. In cash, a total of 20 Lianghui will be shipped over the next half a month. "

"Thank you for your hard work, brother." Zhou Yang smiled and nodded, without saying anything like "thank you". If the two sides had the intention of "taking advantage of each other" in the past, now they have become a grasshopper on a rope. The literal meaning is "Every loss brings loss, and every gain brings prosperity", "There are many things before the end of the year, and there may still be many things to worry about."

"Family, why are you so polite?" Xue Biao didn't say any more, pointing to the infantry cannon that had been unloaded and being assembled by a few people, "Brother Zhou, these small cannons are easy to say, just dismantle them and transport them; only this time A total of six ten-pound field cannons were transported on the ship, and there was really no way for these things to be transported without leakage."

"You transport it to Tongzhou first, and I will think of a way." Zhou Yang was also helpless. It was difficult to secretly transport a big piece of slightly more than a ton in this era. Fortunately, Emperor Yonghe told him a few days ago that he might as well smoke one The time was reported directly, and His Majesty the Emperor was asked to think of a solution, "For silver, add another 20 taels. You can guess the use."

"No problem!" Xue Biao nodded in agreement without hesitation, then hesitated and asked, "Brother Zhou, have you really reached this point?"

"Brother Tadpole, what step did I discuss with my second uncle when I came back from the island last time? What's the current progress?" Zhou Yang did not answer directly, but pulled him to avoid the crowd and changed the question to another question.

"I would also like to thank Brother Zhou for your advice." , now two families have been destroyed, only the Shang family has chosen to surrender, and my father is taking care of it."

"Send the things over as soon as possible, and then go back to assist your second uncle and complete the combing of the entire archipelago with all your strength." Zhou Yang said with a slight smile, "If we increase the number of troops, it will take 5000 to [-] people to stabilize the situation by the end of the year. If this matter doesn't go through, I can only say sorry here, but as long as it can go through, the things that my second uncle and I have discussed should be inseparable."

“Seriously?”

"Brother Tao has been doing business with his second uncle for many years, so he should know the court's practices." Zhou Yang interrupted him with a smile and continued to explain, "Even if this matter can be over, there will still be a lot of things that need to be sorted out, and they can be sorted out next year. It's good to be quick and easy; at this time, if there is a sensational event to take place, His Majesty will certainly not hesitate to reward him, such as "

"The foreign vassal has come to court, congratulations to the holy king!"

After Zhou Yang proposed the topic of "overseas nation building" last time on Miyakojima, Xue Xun and Xue Biao and his son began to push forward with all their strength. On the one hand, they naturally carried out a military sweep to capture all the modern "Ryukyu Islands"; on the other hand, they , Xue's family is from a merchant family, and their understanding of this aspect is really limited, so they can only spend money to inquire.Coincidentally, the three generations of the Zhen family in Jinling have worked for the royal family, and they can be said to be "clear" about the matters here. Xue Tu gritted his teeth and prepared generous gifts. Just inquire about everything that can be inquired, and the Zhen family is very confused, not knowing what the two of them want to do.

"If people from afar are dissatisfied, then they should cultivate their virtues and come here." Zhou Yang smiled slightly, "Since the foreign vassals have come to court, it is natural that your Majesty's civilization and virtues are prosperous. When the time comes, don't forget to make it bigger and make it more auspicious and magical. You can go to Beijing in the name of the vassal king with great fanfare, and then request the imperial court for canonization, so that even if someone recognizes you, no one will have the guts to say anything nonsense."

"Brother Zhou, don't worry, I understand!" Xue Biao's face turned red this time.

"Once this is done, Brother Tad will naturally needless to say, even Sister Qin, she will call her 'princess' when she sees her in the future." Zhou Yang smiled and cupped his hands.

"I would also like to thank Brother Zhou for taking care of me." Xue Biao endured for a long time before he could control his emotions, and then said politely, "Originally, I wanted to pick up Qin'er and go back this time, but I just heard from Brother Zhou that there are too many things. It’s too complicated, I’m afraid I’ll have to continue to work; as for the things the army is lacking, please rest assured, I will get them as quickly as possible.”

"Don't just think about me here, you should also do well over there." Zhou Yang took him back to the back tent of the Chinese army's tent and poured twice the tea himself. "You also understand things at sea. There are no rules or regulations." It's morality, everything depends on guns and cannons. After all, your future foothold is a string of islands. If you don't have matching combat power, especially warships, you may be like the so-called "Three Kings" on the original main island of Ryukyu. Same thing, I can’t even control a small island.”

"Brother Zhou, don't worry, little brother, don't worry." Once he stabilized his mind, Xue Biao was actually very capable, "The 46 or even [-]-material warship you mentioned last time is too difficult to break through in a short while. However, there are [-] warships with a displacement of [-] tons and [-] guns, including [-] [-]-pound heavy guns. Four of them are already under construction on the island and they will all be used by the end of the year.

My father wanted to build ten to fifteen such warships, coupled with four thousand-five-hundred-year-old warships. No one in the entire Dazhou Sea area had the courage to say more; as for the red-haired people in Nanyang, Although this kind of combat power is enough, my father means to wait for a few years to wait until the two thousand material warships and thirty kilograms of heavy artillery that Brother Zhou mentioned are ready. "

"Play steadily, step by step." Zhou Yang nodded, "But before that, you must have a good name. As the saying goes, 'If the name is not right, the words will not be right.' What I mean is that once the matter in the capital is over, you will find a suitable one next year. On this festival, get some more shiny and beautiful things and go to Beijing to pay homage, but you must say hello in advance."

"Brother Zhou, don't worry, my father will definitely come to Beijing for the Lantern Festival next year!" Xue Biao nodded vigorously.

That afternoon, the palace, the royal study room.

"Is this the 'Two Thousand Jin General Cannon' that Zhou Aiqing said?" Looking at the realistic oil painting materials placed on the imperial desk, Emperor Yonghe said in surprise while flipping through them, "It's really as described, and its power is far more powerful than mine. The army's three-thousand-pound 'Weiyuan General Cannon' can even accurately hit a target two and a half miles away?"

"As long as the gunner does not make mistakes, this kind of artillery can accurately hit a barn at a distance of two and a half miles." Zhou Yang said confidently. This is because the technology in Ryukyu is not good. In reality, the twelve-pound Napoleon cannon can hit a barn at a distance of three and a half miles. The same accuracy is achieved in distance, "but this kind of artillery weighs a little more than two thousand kilograms. In the end, the general can only transport it to Tongzhou, but he does not even dare to unload it."

Another thing is that this kind of artillery is extremely expensive. Originally, the red-haired people were not willing to sell it. Uncle Xue gritted his teeth and sold it at 8000 taels per gun, and then raised the price to 5 taels for six guns. This was considered to be a profit-seeking gang. The thing was so tempting that they just tore it out of the warship and sold it. Even so, they didn't have the guts to sell more. There were only six in total. "

"Don't worry Zhou Aiqing, I will ask Zhao Quan to help deliver it to you." Emperor Yonghe nodded with satisfaction. It would be better if the quantity is not unlimited. "Also, Qi Jianhui said last time that he wanted more infantry cannons like yours. , have you made arrangements this time?"

"For a hundred households and twelve families, the Xue family said that they don't need money from the imperial court, so they treat it as their own filial piety." Zhou Yang said quickly, "Within half a month, someone will be sent to the Imperial Guard. Combined with the previous one hundred households, Commander Qi should be enough."

"I remember the Xue family's heart." Emperor Yonghe said with a smile, "Okay, seeing as the sky is getting dark, Zhou Aiqing might as well accompany me to finish dinner before leaving."

"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty!"

(End of this chapter)