Chapter 2183
Yuan Tao's answer made Ma Zhengping a little disappointed. Of course, he hoped that Haihan would take more powerful measures, the better. The best thing would be to send troops to directly push down Yangzhou's competitors.
Of course, the possibility of such an extreme situation is slim. The Haihan people have made it clear that they will not directly send troops, and they will certainly not go back on their word so soon. Jindun sent a small number of unofficial armed personnel to Yangzhou to station. This was of course not to start a war, but to show the local salt merchants and the officials behind the salt merchants that Haihan had decided to support the Huizhou salt merchants.
However, Haihan's support methods will not easily cross the line, so as not to affect the diplomatic relations between the two countries. The process of truly defeating the Shanxi salt merchants still needs to be completed by the Huizhou salt merchants themselves.
Yuan Tao explained: "While we are sending personnel to Yangzhou, we also hope that you can organize a group of people to go to Zhoushan for training as soon as possible. If you hope to defeat your opponents with force, then this group of trainees is your real hope. ”
Haihan's unwillingness to do it himself is not entirely a bad thing for Ma Zhengping. At least they get the opportunity to train personnel, and these trainees will definitely be selected from the core circle of the "Seven Surnames". In the future, a private armed force with strong combat effectiveness will finally be available.
Since it was training, there would definitely be expenses, so Ma Zhengping took the initiative to ask Yuan Tao about it.
Yuan Tao responded: "The training fee is five taels of silver per person per day, including food and accommodation. However, the ammunition and other weapons and equipment consumed during the training need to be calculated separately. The training process is not the responsibility of our Golden Shield, but of The Zhoushan garrison sent a special officer to take charge, and if nothing unexpected happens, it should be Major Duan Tiancheng whom Boss Ma had met before.”
"Master Duan is in charge? That's great." Ma Zhengping's eyes lit up when he heard the news.
Although he and Duan Tiancheng had just gotten to know each other in the past few days, Ma Zhengping thought that he could still get along well with Mr. Duan. Duan Tiancheng collects money quickly and does things quickly. This style is exactly what Ma Zhengping likes. If Duan Tiancheng is also responsible for the subsequent personnel training, it will be more convenient.
It didn't matter whether Duan Tiancheng regarded him as a friend. As long as Duan Tiancheng could get things done after collecting the money, Ma Zhengping wouldn't mind giving him a few more benefits.
As for the training cost mentioned by Yuan Tao, although it is indeed not cheap, since it can be solved with money, it is not a big problem in Ma Zhengping's view. When he came to Zhoushan, he had the attitude of spending money to solve the problem, but now his wish was fulfilled. Such a simple and clear condition saved a lot of extraneous trouble.
"Then I wonder how long it will take for training to produce results?" Ma Zhengping asked with concern. Although he also knew that military training could not be achieved overnight, he still hoped to produce results sooner. This was not because he was worried about money, but because he wanted to settle the grudges with the Shanxi salt merchants as soon as possible.
Yuan Tao responded: "If it is based on our country's standards for training new recruits, it will take at least a hundred days of training. Of course, we will flexibly adjust according to the progress of the training, and it may end early."
If Ma Zhengping was asked to wait for three months, he would definitely be a little panicked, because three months is enough time for a lot of things to happen, and his opponent would definitely not stop and wait for his side to slowly train his troops. Fortunately, Haihan will send people to Yangzhou, so the situation will not deteriorate too quickly.
Ma Zhengping actually calculated very clearly. If one hundred people were selected to be sent to Zhoushan for training, according to the cost mentioned by Yuan Tao, the basic cost would be only 500 taels of silver per day. In three months, it would be 40,000 to 50,000 taels of silver, plus the other party The ammunition consumption and other expenses mentioned should not exceed one hundred thousand taels of silver.
The training cost is indeed not low, but if you consider that it will obtain an armed force directly inherited from Haihan and establish a long-term cooperative relationship with the Zhoushan authorities and the Haihan military, it seems acceptable.
Of course, the main reason is that all these expenses will not be borne by Ma Zhengping, but will be shared among the "seven major surnames". After averaging, the figures are not too outrageous.
Yuan Tao was also a little surprised by Ma Zhengping's endurance. He agreed to his terms without even blinking. It seemed that his offer was far from enough to make the other party hesitate.
Duan Tiancheng had previously reminded him that he could be a little bolder when setting prices, but judging from Ma Zhengping's current reaction, it was obvious that he was not bold enough. However, the salt merchants will definitely have to purchase a batch of weapons and ammunition from Zhoushan in the future, and then they will have to remind the military to raise the price. After all, this is a rare fat sheep. If you let it go easily, it would be a bit sorry for God's arrangement.
Ma Zhengping didn't care so much anyway, as long as the other party's conditions were not too outrageous, he would agree to it first and eliminate the possibility of the other party regretting it during the bargaining process. He also knows that Haihan people attach great importance to business reputation, and as long as the conditions are negotiated during the transaction, they will basically not change them.
We talked about everything and the meal was almost done. After Ma Zhengping asked Yuan Tao, he asked people to remove the banquet and replace it with hot fruit tea. Then he asked Yuan Tao when he would be ready to leave for Yangzhou and whether he needed to hire another ship to transport Jindun's manpower and supplies.
Yuan Tao responded: "Three days. We can set off from Zhoushan in three days. We have our own ship and there is no need to hire another ship."
Due to its special attributes, Golden Shield Escort has always had sufficient operating funds. Almost every branch has its own transport ship, and some branches even have more than one or two ships in their name. For example, Zhoushan branch has four comprehensive transport ships, which can carry both people and cargo. Before the East China Sea Fleet went to Hirado, it had requisitioned two of them as supply ships.
Yuan Tao has already planned to dispatch three of them to carry out this mission, leaving one in Zhoushan for emergencies. But after taking this big order from Yangzhou, I'm afraid there won't be enough manpower to take on other business in the next two or three months.
Yuan Tao asked: "Will Boss Ma go to Yangzhou with us, or stay here in Zhoushan to coordinate follow-up affairs?"
Ma Zhengping said: "I am planning to build a business store in the port area. I have already contacted the construction personnel. In addition, there will be people coming here for training in the future. It just happens that I can stay here and take care of them. Shopkeeper Yuan can rest assured. , I will send someone back to Yangzhou today to deliver the message, so that someone will be ready to receive you in advance. I will make sure that there will be no delay in the business.”
Yuan Tao said: "It would be best if Boss Ma has a thorough arrangement. Later I will have someone draft a document and send it over to state the contents of the transaction. If Boss Ma has nothing else to add, please sign the agreement. "Deposit." It is necessary for large-scale transactions to have contract documents in black and white. Even if Yuan Tao didn't take the initiative to mention it, Ma Zhengping would definitely not ignore this link. As for who will draft the contents of the contract, this is not a big problem. Anyway, the conditions have been basically finalized during the meeting, and there should be no more changes.
When Yuan Tao said goodbye and left, Ma Zhengping didn't forget to give him a favor. Yuan Tao didn't refuse much, accepted it with understanding, and then left the inn in a carriage.
After settling this important matter, Ma Zhengping finally felt a lot calmer. As long as the personnel sent by Jindun arrive in Yangzhou, the situation should be able to ease a little.
When Yuan Tao returned to Jindun's base, he immediately summoned several of his leaders, conveyed the mission to them, and announced that everyone would cancel their recent vacations and other work arrangements, and focus on dealing with the Yangzhou mission first.
Yuan Tao also emphasized one thing during the meeting: "We suffered losses near Yangzhou last year. If we go again this time, we will probably fight with those people again. If a situation similar to last year occurs again, then we will be a little bit Don’t hold back, I’ll kill you all!”
Last year, Jindun encountered a sneak attack by armed Yangzhou salt merchants while carrying out a salt transportation mission, and suffered casualties during the battle. This matter has always made Yuan Tao worried. Even if Haihan later sent people to Yangzhou to deal with the musketeers, Yuan Tao still hoped to have the opportunity to personally retaliate against the mastermind behind it.
Of course, Yuan Tao is not a hot-blooded young bird. In the past few years in Golden Shield, he has long learned to deal with things calmly and will no longer be as impulsive as when he was in the army. Moreover, the nature of the mission this time is very clear. It is not to send Jindun to Yangzhou to kill the enemy, nor can he take the initiative to attack. Therefore, the possibility of Yuan Tao's wish coming true is actually not very high, but using this matter to encourage his subordinates will have the effect. It's definitely not bad.
Sure enough, when several of Yuan Tao's leaders heard him mention this matter, they immediately remembered the situation last year, and immediately expressed their attitude that if they had the opportunity, they would avenge last year's killing in Yangzhou.
Yuan Tao saw that the effect of boosting morale was good, so he asked his men to prepare separately. Then he called the clerk in and asked him to write down the contents of the transaction. This content was basically what Yuan Tao had previously agreed upon with Duan Tiancheng and Ji Yuanqing. Ma Zhengping had already fully accepted it, so there was no need to make any changes. Yuan Tao could just dictate it and write down it in writing.
What is really more complicated is the various preparations that need to be done before departure. Considering that this mission is likely to be stationed in Yangzhou for more than a month, and may even last for two or three months, which is a rare situation in Jindun's usual business of escorting valuable cargo, so the members There are also many more personal items that need to be brought with you than when you usually go on a mission.
Although Ma Zhengping promised that after arriving in Yangzhou, he would try his best to provide all kinds of materials needed by the Golden Shield members, but there are some things that are more practical to bring with him.
In addition, Yuan Tao must consider how to maintain regular contact with Zhoushan while stationed in Yangzhou. The most ideal way is of course to bring a radio, but although Jindun has a certain official background, it is not qualified to equip such an advanced tool as a radio. Yuan Tao still had to submit an application to the military, but he felt that with the assistance of Duan Tiancheng and Ji Yuanqing, he should have a good chance of applying for the use of the radio station.
Of course, even if you apply for the qualification to use it, this precious thing will not be handed over directly to Yuan Tao. The military must send one or two communications soldiers who have mastered the technology of using the radio to join the trip to Yangzhou as a guard. among the team.
This is one of the reasons why Yuan Tao made an appointment with Ma Zhengping for three days. He was also worried that the process of applying for a radio station would not go smoothly. It would probably take a day or two just to go through the process and submit it to Shi Diwen for approval, so he should leave three days. It will be safer.
In addition, Yuan Tao had to apply for another batch of rifles from the military. The Golden Shield itself is equipped with a certain number of rifles, but it is not fully equipped according to the number of field personnel. At most, it is only a little more than half of the number.
Only those who perform escort missions outside can receive guns. After the mission is completed, they will be returned to the weapons depot in the base, so in fact, so many guns are not used. But this mission is quite special. Yuan Tao must have enough rifles according to the number of people traveling, and he also needs to prepare more for safety.
In addition, you need to apply for some short guns for daily self-defense when entering and exiting. After all, after arriving in Yangzhou City, it was impossible to carry a conspicuous rifle when going out. That would be to ignore the local government and garrison.
Because they had already informed Duan Tiancheng and Ji Yuanqing beforehand, the weapons were applied for quickly. In addition to eight revolvers prepared for Jindun, the military even issued four seven-shot rifles that only a few main battle units were eligible to equip. This unexpected surprise also made Yuan Tao very excited.
Yuan Tao actually didn't have much chance to touch advanced weapons like this, so he dedicated half a day and took a few close friends to the shooting range on the island to try out the guns. Of course, it is said to be a test rifle, but actually it is to learn how to operate this new type of rifle that has never been used before.
"You should try not to use this thing unless it is a last resort. We used this when we were in Yangzhou last year. It is indeed very powerful, but it is a standard weapon in the military. If you use it openly as Haihan people, , it might cause unnecessary trouble.”
When testing the gun, Ji Yuanqing also specifically told Yuan Tao to use this new rifle with caution.
Yuan Tao understood that Ji Yuanqing was worried that this would allow the Ming Dynasty officials to seize the opportunity to cause trouble for the Zhoushan authorities at the diplomatic level, so he immediately agreed.
Two days later, the radio station Yuan Tao applied for was finally approved. In this way, Jin Dun could regularly contact Zhoushan through the radio station to report on the situation while stationed in Yangzhou. If some special circumstances occur, Yuan Tao can also ask Zhoushan for instructions in time, so as not to delay the fighter plane.
Three days later, Jindun's personnel and supplies were all prepared, and they set off from Dinghai Port in Zhoushan and headed north along Hangzhou Bay to the Yangtze River Estuary.
(End of chapter)