Chapter 155: Maritime merchants building forts
Another month later, the fleet led by Li Nai set off from Guangzhou Port. During this period, "Furuifeng" purchased two more large-scale ships and other supplies for the Haihan people, and recruited a group of craftsmen and crew members that the other party specified. Li Jifeng hoped that by sending Li Nai to visit and provide these personnel and materials, he could show enough goodwill to the Haihan people in Yazhou and lay a good foundation for the long-term cooperation between the two parties.
This was not the first time that Li Nai went to sea by boat. When he went to Beijing to take the exam, he took a boat north from Guangzhou. After landing in Hangzhou Bay, he visited some local teachers and friends, and then went to the capital by land. However, being able to travel as the leader of a caravan this time was indeed a new experience for him. Along the way, he was thinking about how to communicate with the Haihan people when he arrived.
According to Yazhou Shopkeeper Li, although these overseas visitors are dressed a little strangely, it can be felt that they are all well-educated and polite in speech and behavior, not at all vulgar like those Western barbarians. But Shopkeeper Li also mentioned that these people did not agree with many of the Ming Dynasty's rules. At a small level, they could be regarded as informal, but at a large level, their words and deeds were somewhat lawless.
Li Nai didn't particularly care about these details. If he was really a law-abiding maritime merchant, would he have the courage to make and sell illicit salt? "Furuifeng" has been able to expand to the scale it is today in Guangzhou step by step, but not all of it is a legal business - in fact, any owner who is engaged in maritime trade, who dares to say that his butt is clean?
For maritime merchants, the definition of breaking the law does not depend on what is written in the Ming Dynasty Laws, but on whether they are caught. As long as they are not caught by the government, it does not matter whether it is smuggling or tax evasion. It falls into the category of "legal". If you want to make a lot of money from maritime trade, you must take this risk.
Perhaps because of the addition of Li Nai, an important figure in the fleet, the relevant personnel did not want to risk sailing into the open sea, so the fleet's route became more conservative. After the fleet left the Pearl River Estuary, it went all the way west, passing Yangjiang, Maoming, and Zhanjiang, and then went south along the Leizhou Peninsula. After crossing the Qiongzhou Strait, it stopped at Qiongzhou Fucheng for a day for supplies and rest, and then continued along Hainan. The east coast of the island goes all the way around to Sanya.
Following such a route was a full third further than the direct route from the Pearl River Estuary to Hainan. The fleet stopped and stopped along the way, and it took more than ten days to calculate the destination.
When the fleet passed by Xizhou Island in Yalong Bay, it met the "Hai Xun 01" ship which was collecting guano here and preparing to return to the port. After a brief communication at the top of their lungs, the "Hai Xun 01" took the lead. , leading the fleet to the Port of Victory.
"Third Young Master, the promontory in front of you is Jin Mu Cape. If you go around this place, you will find the port of the Haihan people." The person who spoke was the person sent by Li Jifeng to assist Li Nai this time, the deputy of the "Fu Ruifeng" general counter. Steward He Qiang. He has worked for "Fu Ruifeng" for many years, and has been promoted step by step from an errand boy. He is also one of the few people with a foreign surname among the top managers of "Fu Ruifeng". Li Jifeng was worried that the fledgling Li Nai would suffer losses and be deceived when trading with the Haihan people, so he sent He Qiang to follow him. He could help Li Nai feel the pulse and provide some reference opinions at critical moments.
He Qiang had been to Yazhou several times before, so he was familiar with this route. He continued to introduce: "The harbor where the Haihan people stayed was called Yulin in ancient times. Victory Harbor changed its name after they came here. Well, you Looking at the strait in front, the promontory on the left is called Yulin Point... However, this place is too far from Yazhou, sparsely populated, and suffers from pirate attacks every year. It is said that it is not a good place because there are not many people here. In the past few years, the Yazhou government had removed its administrative office, and only some Li and Miao people lived a dozen miles inland. I really don't know why those Haihan people chose such a desolate place. ”
"According to what Shopkeeper Li said, these Haihan people are extremely smart people, and they act carefully before taking action. They must have a reason for doing this." Li Nai did not think of things simply. Just like Li Jifeng, these Haihan people do things boldly and cautiously, but they are by no means aimless and chaotic. You must be more careful when dealing with them.
While the two were talking, a white sloop suddenly emerged from the bay on the right. The hull of this ship was flat, but its sailing speed on the sea was astonishingly fast. It made an arc far in front of their fleet, and then headed towards the sea to the west.
"This is the Haihan people's fast sailing ship that shopkeeper Li said!" Seeing this legendary ship appear in front of him, Li Nai immediately went to the side of the ship and looked at it: "It is said that there are only two such sailing ships, and one is named It’s called ‘Lightning’, and the other one is called ‘Speed’, but we don’t know which one it is.”
He Qiang, who prides himself on being well-informed, opened his mouth in surprise at this time. Seeing the speedboat passing by the sea at an alarming speed, he could only murmur: "It's so fast... what a fast ship." …”
"Uncle He, in your opinion, if this ship wants to go to Guangzhou, how long will it take?" Li Nai asked with interest.
He Qiang did a little calculation in his mind before saying: "The route we took when we came here was likely to be a detour. If we go straight from the Pearl River Estuary to Qiongzhou Island, we can reach here in six to seven days. But at the speed of the ship, I'm afraid it will take at least two days! I have seen the speedboats of the Folangji and the Red-Haired People, and they are absolutely nothing like this ship, and their speed is far less than this ship."
"Since the Haihan people have such a fast ship, why did they come all the way to ask us to buy a second-hand ship from Guangzhou?" Li Nai frowned. "There may be several reasons. For example, the Haihan people have a huge volume of maritime cargo. This ship is fast, but the hull is flat and the loading capacity is definitely limited. It probably cannot meet their requirements. And the construction of such a ship may be very The difficulty is evident from the fact that the Haihan people only have two ships on hand." He Qiang boldly guessed. His guess basically hit the mark. The Haihan people originally bought the ship because of insufficient transportation capacity, and the materials and technology required for the construction of catamaran fast sailing ships are not currently available.
The fleet slowly sailed into the strait next to Yulin Point. After passing here, it officially entered Victory Harbor. Looking around, He Qiang suddenly turned pale and said in shock: "Third Young Master, look at the coast on the right... what is that?"
Li Nai turned around and looked around, and saw a row of low stone buildings on the coastal slope there. Many migrant workers were carrying stones and shouting slogans to construct there. It seemed that it was an unfinished project. Looking at the already built section, there are very obvious battlements, which looks a bit like a city wall.
Li Nai shook his head and said: "Why do these Haihan people build a city wall by the sea?"
As soon as the words came out, he already noticed something was wrong. Sure enough, He Qiang responded tremblingly: "Third Young Master, that's not a city wall, that's a fort!"
"Fort?" Li Nai was also startled: "Uncle He, did you really see clearly that it was a fort?"
"When the fort was renovated in Humen two years ago, the chief shopkeeper pledged a cannon. The prefect met the Guangzhou gentry who pledged the donation at the fort. I have seen the fort in Humen, and it generally has this shape. Look, every place surrounded by battlements is where the artillery will be placed in the future!" He Qiang also had some knowledge and lowered his voice and explained to Li Nai.
At this time, the place where the boat was sailing was less than a hundred meters away from the coast, and the situation on the slopes of the shore could be clearly seen. When He Qiang said this, Li Nai also understood clearly, the places surrounded by arc-shaped battlements. , aren’t they just like forts?
Li Nai's expression also changed at this time. Building a fort is no joke. If the Haihan people really built a fort here, it means at least three things: First, this place is no longer under the jurisdiction of the Ming army, otherwise It is absolutely impossible for the Ming army to watch outsiders build such military facilities here. Second, the Haihan people had artillery, and it was most likely not the short-barreled, thick-bodied earthen artillery that maritime merchants usually equipped on ships, which could only shoot stones and nails, but the real Hongyi artillery that actually fired cannonballs! Third, even if the Maritime Chamber of Commerce equips the ship with some weapons to defend against pirates, no Maritime Chamber of Commerce will ever build a fort in the port. The Haihan people will do this, and their purpose and motivation are very questionable.
Li Nai thought for a while, then forced a smile and said: "Uncle He, maybe we are overthinking. Since even us in Guangzhou know the existence of the Haihan people, of course the Yazhou government has already known about it, maybe The government has already restored its headquarters here, and the Yazhou garrison is presiding over the construction of this fort. ”
He Qiang sighed with hatred: "Third Young Master, if it is such a simple thing, how could I not think of it? I have been to Yazhou several times, and there has never been a fort built there. When I went there last year, There is not a single artillery piece on the city wall there, only a few cannons that can't shoot far! If a fort is really going to be built to protect the coastal port, it should be built in Yazhou, not here!"
At this moment, Li Nai couldn't think of any reason to explain the situation he saw, but when he sailed into the harbor, he saw clearly two Navy Cangshan ships on the sea with the flag "明" on the top of their masts. Heading to the open sea. The soldiers' uniforms, weapons and military flags on the deck are all clearly visible, and they are indeed the Ming Navy of the Yazhou Water Village.
The two looked at each other and both felt that the situation here was extremely strange. He Qiang looked confused and said: "Could it be...that I was wrong?"
(End of chapter)