Thirty miles away from Fucheng Gate in the western suburbs of the capital, this place used to be a royal village. However, if an old man comes to take a look, he will be shocked to find that the place has changed drastically after just a year or two.

A five- to six-meter high wall stands tall, and the flat, gray, smooth and weird wall surface makes people extremely curious about this place. Directly to the east of the tall wall, a gate stands, and the huge iron gate is dark and gives people a solemn feeling.

There is a huge plaque on the gate with the words "Tiangong" written on it.

This is the famous Tiangong Workshop.

It is said that Tiangong Workshop has also emerged in the past few years. The products here are extraordinary and everything is hot-selling throughout the Ming Dynasty. After several years of spreading and fermentation, even ordinary farmers in mountain villages know that there is such a workshop.

There are immortal methods inside, and the things made are extremely exquisite.

Directly opposite the gate of Tiangong Workshop, the dense flow of people formed a bustling market. The only wine shop in the market was bustling with businessmen from all over the world who dared to come here to purchase goods.

"You two are objective, please come in!" Suddenly, the waiter shouted and welcomed the two middle-aged businessmen who came together. After ordering a few dishes and a bottle of wine, the two of them

Done.

"Brother Zhao, this Tiangong Workshop is really impressive. All the houses here are made of cement. Look at the tiles on the walls. There is nothing to stick them on except cement." One of them was wearing a silk robe.

The businessman took a sip of tea and looked around with admiration.

"And these glass windows are really bright. I wonder if we can buy some this time." Brother Zhao answered with some emotion.

"Brother Zhao, are there any joints here? How can we still buy goods with so much money?" the silk robe merchant asked curiously. It was his first time here and he didn't know anything about this place.

clear.

"Hi!" Brother Zhao smiled bitterly and pointed around, "Look, they all come here to purchase goods. Do you think you can easily buy them with money?"

The merchant in silk robes looked around and immediately discovered that the guests sitting in this restaurant were all extraordinary. Whether it was their manners or their conversation, they all had the style of everyone.

"That is?" Suddenly, the silk robe merchant seemed to see something, and his eyes suddenly shrank, "The Xu family of Songjiang Prefecture?"

The Xu family is the first gentry family in Songjiang Prefecture, and the most famous among them is the chief minister Xu Jie. His disciples and former officials are all over the world, and they are extremely powerful.

"That's not all. Well, that table over there belongs to the Wang family in Zhangjiakou, and that table belongs to the Liaodong Jiangmen, and..." Brother Zhao pointed them out one by one. Each one is a giant in their respective places.

The existence of the toubano king, but now they are all gathered here, drinking weak tea and waiting boredly.

The more the merchant in silk robes looked, the more shocked he became. The disapproval he had in his heart suddenly disappeared. Compared with these people, he was just a little grasshopper.

"It's coming, it's coming!" There was a loud shouting, which made the businessman ignore his frustration and quickly looked at it curiously. A man wearing strange short-sleeved clothes came over. He was only in his thirties and over 10 years old.

My head was sweating profusely and the clothes on my body were soaked.

Walking to the table in the center of the lobby, he wiped his sweat and said loudly: "Everyone, today the Tiangong Workshop has fifty altars of palace wine, forty round mirrors, thirty square mirrors, and eighty bottles of various perfumes. Now,

The bidding for palace fine wine has begun, and the base price is one thousand taels."

After the visitor finished speaking, the merchants below quickly raised their hands to bid.

"I'll give you one thousand one hundred and two hundred taels!" People from the Xu family in Songjiang Prefecture stood up and shouted.

"Two hundred and two hundred taels!" The Wang family members stood up. They were engaged in foreign trade. On the grassland, soju was the hard currency and could be exchanged for anything.

"One thousand three hundred taels." The Li family member of Liaodong stood up, glanced at him, and said in a fierce tone, "I hope everyone can give our Li family some face."

"Oh, after Li Liaodong's death, I don't know how much face your Li family can still have." The Wang family stood up and said in a calm tone. The reason why he was so confident was that behind him was not just the Wang family, but the entire Wang family.

Shanxi merchants doing export business all supported him, and these did not belong to his family. Everyone had a share.

"One thousand five hundred taels."

"One thousand eight hundred taels!" The Li family said without hesitation. Judging from their attitude, they were bound to get this batch of shochu.

"Two thousand..." The Wang family members were still bidding softly, but before they could finish their bidding, the Xu family members of Songjiang Mansion stood up and interrupted them.

"In my opinion, since all three of our families want this batch of wine, why not just give it 1,800 taels and divide it equally between the three of us. Don't get angry and compete with each other, so as not to let unrelated people get an advantage." The Xu family made a suggestion.

His eyes glanced to the side, as if he was hinting at something.

"So good."

"I agree."

The Wang and Li families agreed in unison. Zhu Youxiao's bidding here gave the top forces in the world a place for external exchanges. If it was not absolutely necessary, these forces would not want to offend each other.

"One thousand eight hundred taels, deal." The short-sleeved man who presided over the auction spoke calmly, and there was nothing unusual about it, but the heavy disappointment in his eyes could not be hidden from the businessmen who were doing it. While they sneered in their hearts, they also

The unspoken rules for joint discussions in private were strengthened.

"You should also suggest to me that the owner should change the way of selling." Looking at the disdainful eyes of the businessman, the short-sleeved man felt very helpless. In the first year or two after he came out, he could still get high prices in the auctions, and in the following year

It's not as good as a year ago. These people from the top forces in the Ming Dynasty don't know if they have reached an agreement. Whenever several forces want it, they stop at a price and divide it equally between them. This is how the auction is done.

Profits are getting less and less.

"Brother, what's going on...?" the silk robe merchant asked in surprise. The bidding method has emerged in recent years, and there is one in his place, but there has never been such a bidder.

An agreement was reached directly in front of the proprietor.

"This? This is the key to our success in bidding for goods." Brother Zhao clicked and joined the bidding below.

The Forbidden City, where the Yulin Army resides.

On the campus grounds, Zhu Youxiao stood on the rostrum, looking seriously at the square formations being practiced below. Next to him were Qi Jin and Yu Zigao, both in new military uniforms. Of course, Liu Ruoyu, his personal secretary, was also indispensable. Among a few people

Behind him were several capable eunuchs, holding some documents in their hands.

These people were some of the twenty green-clothed eunuchs at the time. They were better at clerical affairs, so they were assigned to Liu Ruoyu to help Zhu Youxiao handle various official documents. Half of the rest were under Wang Chengen and were responsible for accounting.

Wei Zhongxian was responsible for running around and managing the affairs of the Tiangong Workshop.

On the other side of the rostrum, there are some gongs, drums, suonas and flags of different colors. At this moment, some military sergeants wearing armbands are playing with these instruments in a certain rhythm.

As different voices sounded and the flags changed, the huge phalanx below also kept changing back and forth. The formations changed rapidly. The soldiers' movements were agile and powerful, and their minds were concentrated. Between their body movements, they were full of momentum and murderous intent.

.If outsiders saw it, they would definitely exclaim, what a bunch of servants.

"You two, how is the Yulin Army?" Zhu Youxiao asked calmly. Although his tone was calm, the smile at the corner of his mouth betrayed him. It was obvious that he was very proud of himself.

"His Royal Highness trains troops, and he is no less generous than Qi Shaobao!" Yu Zigao sighed, his tone a little sad. The same was true for Qi Jin next to him, with a gloomy look clearly visible on his face.

"But, does His Highness really want to use firearms and give up archers completely?" Yu Zigao cheered up and asked again. He had asked this question several times, but he still did not give up and continued to persuade.

In Yu Zigao's opinion, the spear phalanx practiced by His Highness Taisun was indeed sharp, but it lacked archers and was severely restrained. As for firearms, he was noncommittal and obviously did not trust them very much.

Without waiting for Zhu Youxiao's reply, Qi Jin took over the conversation and said, "Old Yu, why are you so stubborn? I tell you, firearms are the major trend in the future. Your Highness is not training archers, but is preparing to train musketeers."

It’s the most correct choice.”

"What are the uses of muskets? Look at those muskets manufactured by the Ministry of Industry. Can they be used? The chamber explodes as soon as it is fired. Who dares to use it?" Yu Zigao retorted unconvinced. He has been at the beach all year round, so naturally he doesn't think so.

What is the use of a musket?

"That's the fault of those morons in the Ministry of Industry. How can you say that the guns are useless?" Qi Jin also retorted loudly, "As long as the firearms are well-made, strictly supervised, quality controlled, and managed in an orderly manner, the firearms produced will definitely be good.

use."

The two quarreled again, but the people around them were not surprised. Such plays would be staged as long as Zhu Youxiao was practicing. Liu Ruoyu and the sergeants of Yulin had already seen it frequently.

"Your Highness..." Suddenly, Luo Yangxing hurried over and reported, "The Tianjin Shipyard was burned down again, and all the buildings were burned to the ground."

Zhu Youxiao's expression changed, and in an instant he became gloomy and terrifying. Qi Jin and Yu Zigao next to him also stopped arguing. Anyone who was not blind at this moment would know that the anger in His Highness Taisun's heart was rising.

boom!

There was a dull sound, and the entire podium seemed to tremble. The violent noise made the hearts of those standing on the podium tremble. Only they knew at this moment how angry Zhu Youxiao was.

"Here comes the gun." Zhu Youxiao didn't seem to be aware of it. He gave a faint order and walked to the martial arts field. After he left, a deep footprint was left on the spot. The momentum just now was actually caused by him stamping his foot.

produced.

This is already the fifth time, five times in total.

Whenever the shipyard in Tianjin was about to be completed, a group of pirates would always rush ashore and burn the shipyard to the ground, making Zhu Youxiao's hard work in vain.

Even if he arranged for the Yulin Army to protect him, it would be useless. The opponent would not engage in the battle at all. When he saw the Yulin Army, he immediately retreated and used other means to set fire. Zhu Youxiao's Yulin Army only had a total of 900 people, and he still had to divide the manpower.

They came to guard the Tiangong workshop and escort the silver, but they couldn't guard the shipyard all the time.

However, these guys were still lingering. They only waited for Zhu Youxiao to take precautions, and then they struck with thunder. After burning down the shipyard, they left. The Yulin soldiers were held back by the opponent again, and they were unable to defend themselves.

That group of pirates is not mysterious either. Although the other party has never flown a flag, during the battle in the 43rd year of Wanli, Zhu Youxiao discovered a flag with the word "Xu" written on it. With clear clues, it is easy to find out.

, they were the subordinates of the great pirate Xu Xinsu of Fujian.

Although there was no sign after that, Zhu Youxiao determined through clues that the other party was still Xu Xinsu's subordinate. From the beginning of the construction of the shipyard in the 43rd year of Wanli to now in the 48th year of Wanli, the Tianjin shipyard has been burned down five times.
Chapter completed!