Back to the end of Ming Dynasty to be a warlord

Chapter 314
Zheng Hongkui is not an ordinary character, he is a ruthless character who crosses the sea, he was just bluffed by the people above who Yang Chao suddenly brought out last night, his mind was confused at that time, and he gave up too much profit in the end.

After waking up today, I suddenly felt that this matter was not so reliable. The emperor's smuggling was unheard of. Maybe he was really deceived by Yang Chao, because only five people knew what Yang Chao said. , but these five people are impossible to be exposed.

It is impossible for the Zheng family to verify with Shi Kefa. Even if they can meet Shi Kefa and ask about such a thing, if it is false, Shi Kefa will be furious and accuse him of slandering the emperor. Yes, if Shi Kefa can't handle it, he will directly kill him to silence him. After all, this matter cannot be revealed.

It is even more impossible for him to verify the emperor. The Zheng family has not been able to meet the emperor, let alone the emperor, even if they meet the court officials, they may not be able to see it.

The only thing that could be verified was the eunuch Wang Cheng'en, but it was not easy to ask directly about this matter. After much deliberation, Zheng Hongkui really thought of a good way. .

Thinking of this, Zheng Hongkui gritted his teeth, gave another big gift, and entertained Wang Chengen again.

After probing the words for a long time, and getting Wang Chengen half drunk, he finally got some useful news. Wang Chengen's visit to Nanjing this time was indeed to send a decree, asking Yang Chao to go to Jinhua Mansion to suppress the bandits.

In the end, Zheng Hongkui finally resorted to his trump card and told Wang Chengen directly that the transaction between himself and Yang Chao indicated that the sea trade business was profitable, but the relationship must be strong enough, otherwise the business would not last long and would not be stable. The Zheng family could do this with Yang Chao. business, and do business with other people.

Openly told Wang Chengen that the Zheng family was willing to do business with Wang Gonggong, and complained that Yang Chao's asking price was too dark, and asked Wang Chengen what he meant.

As a result, Wang Chengen waved his hands again and again, saying that he could not do this business, and told Zheng Hongkui to do well with Yang Chao and not to have other thoughts.

Now Zheng Hongkui is not confused, such a huge profit, such a greedy eunuch, but he dare not do it. If he is afraid of Yang Chao, the Zheng family will not believe it. This is enough to prove that there is even a Wang Chengen in this business Who else is there besides the emperor?
So Zheng Hongkui was not suspicious, but he was even more shocked by Yang Chao. He had already investigated Yang Chao's background clearly. Zheng Hongkui was amazed by the fact that he was able to do business for the emperor instead of the scholar who caused everyone a headache, but he only admired him.

There are not many people in the world that Zheng Hongkui can admire, and since then there has been another Yang Chao.

On the same day, Zheng Hongkui handed over the silver ticket to the Jinchai Tower and handed it over to Kang Xiaobao.

Then he wrote a secret letter and reported the matter to Zheng Zhilong, explaining why he gave Yang Chao a double profit. As a result, Zheng Zhilong not only did not blame Zheng Hongkui, but wrote back saying that he did the right thing and praised him. Fan, told him to continue to cooperate with Yang Chao, and at the same time explained to him in detail that the Zheng family is not short of money now, but the foundation.

Especially now that the family has a big business, it is not so easy to keep this foundation. It is naturally important to have one's own strength, and it is also important to find a backer. Tell Zheng Hongkui, if the one above has a big appetite, let him make the price, as long as the Zheng family can To save capital, he can do it for nothing!
Of course, this is something for later. At this time, Yang Chao, the celebrity in the Zheng family's eyes, had already set foot on the warship, and rushed all the way to Zhenjiang smoothly.

Zhang Dawei in front had already contacted the people of the Wang family. The shopkeeper of the Wang family in Zhenjiang could not be the master, but he also provided a batch of ships to help transport the supplies to Hangzhou, and soon there was news from Hangzhou, asking all the shops along the canal to help Yang Chao, when necessary, stop the business of the Wang family and free up the boat for Yang Chao.

It's not that the Wang family is righteous, but because it's an alliance, an alliance of power and interests. If it weren't for Yang Chao's banner, the Wang family would not be able to enter the salt industry in Huai'an for eight lifetimes.

In Yang Chao’s view, there is nothing shameful about this. It is the same in ancient and modern China and abroad. Every country has political and business relations. When commerce develops to a certain level, it is a kind of power, and all power needs military protection. of.Behind every war in the West, there is not a group of capitalists who are sharpening their knives.

China is not bad, but capital’s infiltration of state power is not so thorough, because Chinese ruling culture has always been born out of the culture of the landlord class of farming. They have despised businessmen for thousands of years, so businessmen have to curry favor with them instead, forming a unique Chinese political and business culture.

Yang Chao provided convenience to the Wang family to obtain commercial benefits. The Wang family supported Yang Chao and won military victories. This is an alliance, not written on paper but everyone tacitly.

Therefore, Yang Chao accepted the service of Wang's cargo ship with peace of mind, not only allowing them to transport military supplies, but also transport people.

This is not a small pressure, because Yang Chao brought more than 2 soldiers. Don't think that Yang Chao just accompanied Wang Chengen in Nanjing City to fight the autumn wind these days. They recruited [-] people. This is not a private expansion of the army, because these people are just civilians, helping Yang Chao to transport supplies. The army of the Ming Dynasty went out without civilians and auxiliary soldiers.

But who dares to say that these people were not soldiers who were brought to Dongyang by Yang Chao to accept the baptism of war, and then took up arms?
Reasonable and legal, even Shi Kefa supported Yang Chao in taking these refugees away, after all Shi Kefa couldn't afford to keep these people alive.

Yang Chao's projects have basically stopped now, and there is no need for so many refugee labor, so these people have lost their jobs again.

But Yang Chao is really reluctant to drive these refugees away, because there are talents among the refugees.

Among the 2 people recruited this time, no less than [-] are literate. A literacy rate of [-]% does not seem to be a big deal. It is not much different from the literacy rate of the Ming Dynasty, but they are willing to follow Yang Chao to the battlefield. It is a miracle that more than [-] of the educated people can reach this rate. Apart from the helplessness of the refugees, it is also because the literacy rate among the refugees who came to Nanjing is surprisingly high.

Yang Chao didn't pay attention at first, if it wasn't for the fact that there were so many literate people among the civilian husbands recruited this time, Yang Chao would have ignored it.

After investigation and reasonable reasoning, Yang Chao finally understood the reason.

Some of these refugees are from Jiujiang, and some are from the Huguang area. After investigation, it is found that more than [-]% of them are not ordinary people, but mostly small and medium-sized landlords and businessmen. It is not difficult to understand after thinking about it. In this era, how can ordinary people have the ability? Fleeing thousands of miles to Nanjing, these people also have small wealth, and their families have small assets, so they can migrate with their families during the war.

The literacy rate of landlords and businessmen is obviously much higher than that of tenants and poor peasants, so the literacy rate of this group of refugees is far above the average level. A sample survey found that the literacy rate among men is often close to [-]%, which is simply unbelievable. There are two hundred people who are willing to go to the battlefield with Yang Chao to make a living, and more scholars are actually nesting on the pier doing odd jobs.

In addition to the children of landlords who could read and write, Yang Chao, the son of a merchant who could settle accounts, didn't want to let go. Before leaving, he told Zhang Dawei to let him continue recruiting freely, and put them all on board the ship in the name of accountants.

In addition to landlords and merchant families, the other main body is the boatmen who eat on the water. This group of people is the talent that Zhang Dawei urgently needs, and he is also vigorously recruiting.

And then among them, craftsmen with special skills cannot be let go. Unfortunately, there are too few such people. First, the number is small, and second, it is not difficult for those with special skills to make a living in Nanjing, so they have long been separated from the refugees. group.

The fleet set off from Zhenjiang and went south along the canal. Five thousand soldiers were on board, while [-] civilians were driven off the boats to pull the fibers. Yang Chao gave them enough food and drink. It was a terrifying marching speed to feel Dongyang within [-] days. You must know that Zhenjiang is nearly a thousand miles away from Dongyang, and most of them are waterways, and most of the waterways need to be stretched.

If you can complete such a arduous march, it can be regarded as a kind of military training. Collective cooperation to complete arduous tasks is actually the same as training to go forward. It is to cultivate the spirit of teamwork and obedience.

Hundreds of ships launched on the canal, pulling out a long dragon several miles long.

Standing in front of the first boat, Yang Chao watched the banks of the canal recede north, knowing that he was heading south.

The last time he set off by himself, it was all the way north, but this time it was all the way south. Yang Chao still had a feeling of chasing death and north.

On the first day, the ship departed from Zhenjiang, and it was already dark when it arrived in Danyang. However, the fleet did not stop, but changed shifts. The reason why it brought 2 people was for the rotation. When departing from Zhenjiang, 150 people took the boat , [-] civilian laborers arrived in Danyang, took turns once, and finally arrived outside Changzhou before dawn. They walked more than [-] miles a day and night. Records of the battle.

However, Yang Chao is very satisfied with the physical strength and endurance of these civilians. After all, they have not received formal military training, and they are only supported by breath and physical fitness. Maybe they can persist. Yang Chao is particularly satisfied with their willpower. Even professional trackers can't do the continuous stretching all day long.

Just after the rotation, the pullers went to bed after eating a full meal. They were really exhausted. Not only did they dare not stop, but they couldn't walk too slowly.

On the second day, it was another day and night, traveling more than 150 miles, with a rotation in Wuxi in the middle, and then directly to Suzhou.

On the third day, the folk husbands could finally take a break. From Suzhou, everyone could take a sailboat across Taihu Lake, and then went to Huzhou to rest at night. This time, they simply rested all night.

Not to mention the top-notch organizational skills of the shopkeepers of the Wang family. They have their own way of transporting on the canal year after year, and they have their own arrangements for which kind of boat to use for that section of the canal. Don't worry, it won't delay Yang Chao's march.

I crossed Taihu Lake by sailboat and arrived in Huzhou. After a night’s rest, I continued to march on the fourth day. I had to rush to Hangzhou today. Anyway, this is a canal, so I don’t have to worry about the wind, waves and reefs. I can pull the fibers at night with a torch.

After arriving in Hangzhou, you can no longer take the canal, but there is still a waterway going south. This is the Fuchun River, and the downstream is called the Qiantang River.

From Hangzhou to the south, the Fuchun River is relatively wide, and you can take a rest until you reach Fuyang County. After passing Fuyang County, you will reach Tonglu. The water surface is narrower, and most places have to be stretched to pass through.

From Tonglu to Yanzhou Mansion and enter Dongyang River.

On the sixth day, we arrived at Lanxi County at night. Lanxi County is only more than 50 miles away from Jinhua, and the White-headed Army is in Jinhua Mansion!

There is also a small river connecting Lanxi to Jinhua, and it can be reached in one day, but it only took seven days for Yang Chao to go south!

(End of this chapter)