"They can't finish the food they grow every year. They pile it up in mountains and seas and can't sell it. In the end, they have to save it. No matter where they put it, they are happy. Oh, the last sentence is
Those are the exact words they said!" Zhu Shou's face was full of helplessness, and the more he spoke, the more aggrieved he became.
He himself never thought that one day he would feel that there was too much food.
Han Du was also dumbfounded. After Zhu Shou finished speaking, it took several seconds before Han Du came back to his senses and asked curiously: "Who are these people that Brother Zhu mentioned?"
"Who else could it be? Those people who were exiled from the Ming Dynasty." Zhu Shou's speech speed obviously increased a lot, obviously he didn't want to mention these people.
On the contrary, Han Du understood a little after hearing Zhu Shou's words. How could the people of the Ming Dynasty ever live without enough food? No matter how much food they had, they would continue to grow and store food without hesitation.
There is food in your hands, don’t panic in your heart!
This is no longer a simple sentence, but a teaching of blood and tears engraved deep in the genes. Even if there is endless food, even if you can make more money by growing sugar cane, the people of the Ming Dynasty will still not care.
They choose to grow food without hesitation. Even if food is worthless in Luzon, they will not give up.
Shaking his head, Zhu Shou sighed and said: "Forget it, let's not talk about them. But since you want food, then their food finally has a source."
Han Du smiled and nodded to Zhu Shou. Everyone was happy. Of course, there was nothing to hesitate about. He said in a calm tone: "I'm afraid Brother Zhu bought these grains. In that case, let alone give them away. His Highness King Qin has
Money, I think even if Zhu Shou is sold at a high price, His Highness will accept it."
Zhu Shou said that he would give it to Han Du, but Han Du did not dare to accept it. Firstly, this was the food Zhu Xi wanted, so why should he owe this favor himself? Secondly, if it was ten thousand to twenty thousand dan, Handu might
I accepted it, but five million stones was too much and the weight was too heavy. Even according to the current price of grain in the Ming Dynasty, one stone was about seven or eight hundred coins. If five million stones were converted into silver, it would be four million taels.
How could Han Du accept such a huge fortune with just a nod?
Zhu Shou thought for a moment, and seeing that Han Du insisted on doing so, he had no choice but to nod and said: "Okay, let's calculate it according to the market price."
When Han Du left Annan, he took away the money given by Zhu Ping to buy food. After all, Zhu Ping was in urgent need of food. He was thankful to be able to buy it with real money. How could he naively think that he could really borrow five dollars?
Millions of stones?
After the banquet, Zhu Shou did not delay at all and immediately ordered the mobilization of food. Han Du moved boxes of gold bars and silver ingots from the ship in advance and sent them to the governor's palace.
Fang Xiaoru took advantage of this period of time to wander around Luzon Port. Although most of the people living in Luzon were from the Ming Dynasty, due to the occasional Western businessmen coming here to trade, you could still occasionally see Western merchants on the streets.
Human. As for the various Western gadgets, there are more of them than humans.
Fang Xiaoru walked on the street, his eyes blowing over all kinds of people and things like a breeze. All kinds of people and things gave him completely different feelings. Even in the past few days, he walked through the streets of Port Luzon.
Over and over again, but he didn't feel bored at all by showing off his power. On the contrary, it made him feel deeper and newer every time.
Perhaps there was indeed too much food in Luzon, so Zhu Shou collected the food in just a few days. He also offered to send someone to deliver it to His Highness the King of Qin.
It just so happened that Han Du was not going to return to Annan. Since Zhu Shou was interested, he just went with the flow. Han Du handed over all the ships except the navy warships to Zhu Shou, and then led the navy with his mighty force.
Swinging down to the south.
Arriving at Old Port, Fang Xiaoru was shocked again. He really couldn't imagine why there were so many people and such a prosperous place thousands of miles away from the Ming Dynasty.
Standing on the bow of the ship, Fang Xiaoru looked at the motionless port in front of him and murmured to himself: "There seem to be more people here than in Luzon. How can there be so many people in this overseas place?"
Hearing this, Han Du turned his head to look at him and said with a smile: "It's not just the Ming Dynasty in this world. The world is so big that there are naturally many people."
Fang Xiaoru was puzzled that it was not because of Han Du's words
But relieved, he turned around and asked reluctantly: "How big is this world and how many people are there?"
Han Du was stunned for a moment, then suddenly laughed, looked at Fang Xiaoru interestingly, and asked: "How big is the world? What do you mean? Is it the land, or does it include the sea?"
"What if it's land?" Fang Xiaoru was surprised when he saw that Han Du could really answer. Then he asked for advice with an open-minded attitude.
Han Du lowered his head and made an estimate, and said in an uncertain tone: "If we just talk about land, the land in the world should be more than ten times the territory of the Ming Dynasty."
Han Du didn't know what the specific ratio was, so he could only give a rough answer.
When he heard that the world's land was more than ten times that of the Ming Dynasty, Fang Xiaoru was shocked and his eyes widened. He quickly asked: "What if we add the sea?"
"If you add the sea, it might be almost a hundred times the size." Han Du said casually, then smiled and asked Fang Xiaoru, "What? What do you think?"
Fang Xiaoru did not answer Han Du, but asked directly: "Aren't there many people in this world? Just like those Westerners you mentioned?"
Hearing this, Han Du nodded solemnly and said: "Of course, since there is so much land, the people are not much different. Not to mention ten times, I'm afraid there are still ten times."
Fang Xiaoru always believed that the Ming Dynasty was the kingdom of heaven and the center of heaven and earth. The territory and people of the Ming Dynasty should account for the majority of the world. But Han Du told him that the Ming Dynasty was only a tenth of the world.
"I won't talk about the small countries around the Ming Dynasty. Do you still remember the former Western Chagatai Khanate?" Han Du was about to continue explaining to Fang Xiaoru.
Fang Xiaoru looked at Han Du and nodded subconsciously. When Han Jingyun suppressed the Western Chagatai Khanate in the Fengtian Palace with his mathematical skills, he made a big fuss. Naturally, he had heard about it.
Han Du turned to look at the busy port and continued: "The Western Chagatai Khanate was located in the original Western Region during the Tang Dynasty. It was just dozens of small countries in the original Western Region that were unified after being conquered by the Yuan Dynasty.
It became the current Western Chagatai Khanate. In the heyday of the Yuan Dynasty BC, there were four khanates, two of which were further away than the Western Chagatai Khanate. In terms of territory, the Western Chagatai Khanate
, in terms of population, it is almost the same as the Ming Dynasty."
Fang Xiaoru suddenly understood what Han Du wanted to say, and asked with some disbelief: "You mean, there are two countries about the same size as the Ming Dynasty further to the west than the Western Chagatai Khanate.
?”
Han Du nodded first, and then shook his head. Facing Fang Xiaoru's confusion, Han Du responded calmly: "It's not right to say that. There used to be two similar khanates there, but now I'm afraid they have become dozens.
It’s a small country. But no matter how divided it is, the overall territory and population are about the same.”
After finishing speaking, Han Du suddenly thought of something, frowned slightly, and murmured to himself: "No, maybe among these small countries, another unified power has risen."
Fang Xiaoru slowly came back to his senses and had to agree with Han Du's statement. Even if a big country is split into dozens of small countries, the overall territorial changes will definitely not be big. As for the population, although it will be reduced due to war, it will still be small.
It will slowly recover as it settles down.
While the two were talking, Handu's flagship was slowly approaching the port. During this process, Handu also took a special look at the port. A tall gantry crane stood on the pier. Three tall figures side by side,
It's shocking.
Han Du grinned. It seemed that Fu Yong's speed was really not slow. It had only been three or four months, and he actually stood up. Although he didn't see the goods being hoisted, it was obviously because they had just been installed and could not be used yet.
Because. However, it should not be long before you can see cargo taking off and landing at the port.
The gantry crane was disassembled and transported here, so it naturally needs
Reassembled. Originally, Fu Yong wanted to go to the academy to ask Sun Xian to help, but Sun Xian was busy studying Han Du's 100,000 gold reward, so how could he have time to pay attention to Fu Yong?
Seeing that Fu Yong was an acquaintance with the academy, Sun Xian pointed out two students to Fu Yong. He bluntly said that the two of them could do such a simple thing well without any effort on his part.
These two people are also Sun Xian's favorite disciples, and they were also involved in the production of the gantry crane. But now they are also fascinated by the reward offered by the Marquis of Zhenhai, and they are not willing to go to sea.
However, they reluctantly agreed under Fu Yong's strong financial inducement. The price Fu Yong offered them was one hundred coins a month, counting from the moment they left the academy until they returned to the academy again.
Such an unheard-of sky-high price attracted the curiosity of countless people as soon as it was spread. Some people even couldn't wait to laugh at Fu Yong, saying that he was a nouveau riche who just wanted to spend money to attract everyone's attention and improve his own status.
But later, Fu Yong bluntly said that the price he gave was too low and he had treated the two gentlemen of the academy badly. He even visited the house again and took the initiative to give them a big gift.
As soon as such news came out, it caused an uproar in the capital. Everyone speculated about what kind of skills two people who had not yet graduated from the academy had, so that Fu Yong could pay so willingly?
In this world, money is a favorite and no one can live without it. Seeing that the students in the academy are so valuable naturally attracts people's attention.
Even the officials in the capital did not look envious at the people in the academy after hearing this. One hundred qian a month, this is simply more money that others earn in a month than many officials in the capital earn in a year. Moreover, if it can be done
After going to sea for five or six months, this means that five or six hundred strings are obtained. If it can be postponed to seven or eight months, this means that seven to eight hundred strings are obtained. In addition to the big gift given by Fu Yong later, some people speculate that these two people only went to sea.
In one trip, I made over a thousand dollars.
Earning thousands of dollars in one trip, many officials suddenly felt that their official positions were no longer good.
Shi Jinqing naturally did not dare to neglect Han Du's arrival and brought out the best things to entertain Han Du.
Hearing that Fang Xiaoru was the minister of the East Palace, Shi Jinqing repeatedly praised Fang Xiaoru for his scholarly talent, "Mr. Fang looks young, but I didn't expect that he was already the minister of the East Palace. His future is limitless. I wish Mr. Fang all the best and a smooth career!"
When Shi Jinqing heard Han Du introduce Fang Xiaoru, his eyes obviously lit up a few times. Even though Fang Xiaoru was just the minister of the East Palace now, to be outrageous, when the prince came to the throne in the future, this person might be the emperor's favorite minister.
Shi Jinqing must make friends with such people and maintain good relations with them no matter what. Because the Shi family is now the Xuanwei Department of Jiugang, and he, Shi Jinqing, is the Xuanwei Envoy. But those who have been to the capital of the Ming Dynasty
He knew deeply that Jiugang was nothing compared to the Ming Dynasty. If it was the emperor's decree, no, it didn't even need an emperor's decree, it just needed to reveal a little bit about wanting to replace the Shi family, then the entire Shi family would
He was knocked to the bottom instantly.
However, the Shi family is so far away from the Ming Dynasty and far away from the court. If there is any trouble, the Shi family will not be able to react in time. Therefore, it is particularly important for someone to say a few good words for the Shi family in the court.
Therefore, of course, Shi Jinqing must win over someone with a bright future like Fang Xiaoru. For no reason, just for him to help the Shi family before they fall into trouble, that would be worth a thousand dollars.
Under Shi Jinqing's flattery, everyone enjoyed the banquet.
At least Han Du didn't see any dissatisfaction on Fang Xiaoru's face.
The next day, a man came to Han Du's station.
"The general will pay homage to the Marquis." Zhang Chao, wearing an earl's brocade robe, knelt down to Han Du as soon as he entered the door.
After hearing this, Han Du put down the brush in his hand, stood up, and said with a smile: "You are also a person with a title. Don't kneel down all the time. Do you think the title is so worthless?"
Zhang Chao stood up with a smile on his face. He was a bit stupid and didn't know how to answer Han Du. He always felt that no matter what he said,
They all seem a bit inappropriate.
Han Du knew that he had little education, so this was inevitable, and he had no intention of blaming him. He stretched out his hand to motion for him to sit down, and then poured tea for him with his own hands.
Zhang Chao was flattered and took it.
Han Du sat next to Zhang Chao, blew on the tea, and took a sip slowly. This tea was far from as good as the tea from the East Palace, but it was pretty good to be able to taste such tea here.
After drinking tea, Han Ducai asked softly: "In the past two years since you have been here, have you noticed any unusual behavior in the Shi family?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chao immediately put down his tea cup and said seriously: "After the Marquis ordered me to do so, I have been paying attention to the movements of the Shi family. However, in the past two years, according to my observations, there is indeed no sign of the Shi family being secretly active.
"
"Well, that's good." Han Du nodded and felt relieved at the same time.
Seeing Zhang Chao looking at him with burning eyes, Han Du was afraid that he would misunderstand, so he said: "As long as the Shi family can sincerely surrender to the Ming Dynasty, I will not break my promise and will definitely give the Shi family a fortune."
"General, I understand." Zhang Chao immediately lowered his head and replied.
Han Du hummed, and then added: "But you still can't relax the surveillance that should be in place, and try not to let the Shi family notice."
"Yes, the general has never taken the initiative to come to Old Port in the past few years. He has always been stationed in Shuizhai. The Shi family has taken the initiative to contact the general several times. The general is neither enthusiastic nor cold, so it remains like this
A plain connection.”
"That's good." Han Du glanced at Zhang Chao appreciatively.
Zhang Chao's greatest advantage is his obedience, which Han Du discovered when he was still in the Navy. As long as Zhang Chao is given an order, he can complete it in full, neither more nor less.
.
"What about those people on the continent? Have any traces of them been found in the past two years?" Han Du put the Shi family aside for the time being and asked about another matter.
"No." Zhang Chao nodded seriously and replied.
"Where is Jiang Ming? Did he find anything?" Han Du asked again.
"The last time the general communicated with him, he hadn't noticed it yet. He just didn't know what the situation was now." Zhang Chao responded calmly. Zhang Chao didn't think Jiang Ming would have any good news now, after all, he had been there for the past two years.
No discovery has been made at all, and the possibility of sudden discovery now is not high.
Han Du pondered and nodded slightly. It was normal for Zhang Chao and Jiang Ming not to notice. The possibility of those people daring to escape was not high. The continent is so big. If they just find a place to hide, it would be difficult for Ming to find them. Why bother?
Run to the sea and expose yourself?
"Master Marquis, I have something to say at the end. I don't know whether I should say it or not?" Zhang Chao hesitated for a moment and asked in a low voice.
Han Du thought for a while and said, "What do you want to say? Let's hear it."
Zhang Chao thought for a while and said, "The general is worried that these people will escape directly from the sea without passing through the old port."
Han Du chuckled and laughed when he heard this. He looked at Zhang Chao and suddenly realized that he didn't know how big the sea was. No wonder he had such an idea. He thought that the sea here was like Nanyang.
It's only a few thousand miles at most.
But the continent is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, and here is another ocean. It is simply impossible to cross it by ship alone without a foothold.
Sailing these days is said to be ocean sailing, but in fact it can only be sailed along the land coastline, or it can only be sailed if there are islands as a foothold.
If they really plunged into the deep sea with a wooden boat, that would not be called escaping, but seeking death. If those people really escaped from the deep sea, then Handu no longer had to worry about these people being alive.
Han Du gave Zhang Chao a little explanation.
When Zhang Chao heard that to escape from the continent directly through the deep sea, the distance required to sail was not thousands of miles, but tens of thousands of miles, he was shocked and clicked his tongue. At the same time, he also understood that since those people could not escape from the deep sea
If he escaped, he would definitely be hiding on the continent now.