After the fleet returned to the old port to rest, they did not wait for Han Du to find Zhu Biao.
Zhu Biao took the initiative to find Han Du and asked, "What happened to the three pirates you caught and the Western businessman?"
"Your Highness, are you talking about Hade?" Han Du was stunned for a moment, and then replied: "He has nothing, his goods were robbed, and now he is not only penniless, but also owes a lot of debt to his hometown.
He has been pestering me these past few days, asking me to lend him a sum of money so that he can purchase a batch of goods from the Old Port and go back to pay off his debt."
"As for the three pirates," Han Du frowned, "the leader was a bit stubborn and refused to tell where they hid the goods even if I beat him to death. However, the other two, under the seduction of the minister, confessed that they hid the goods.
The place."
"Oh? Are their words credible?" Zhu Biao seemed to suddenly be interested in those pirates.
Han Du looked at Zhu Biao and nodded: "It's credible. I specially separated the two for interrogation. They confessed in the same place, so there should be no problem. Moreover, I still keep them, if they dare to tell lies."
, you can throw them into the sea to feed the fish at any time.”
"You're not interested in these pirate things?" Zhu Biao asked with a smile. .??.
Han Du was stunned for a moment and immediately understood Zhu Biao's plan. After lowering his head and pondering for a while, he looked up and shook his head with a smile, "To be honest, I'm really not very interested in this."
Zhu Biao widened his eyes curiously and asked, "Oh? Why is this?"
Han Du had no choice but to explain: "Your Highness, please don't listen to Hard talking about how powerful these pirates are, but in fact they are just a group of rabble. Your Highness, you can think about it, they can only rob businessmen like Hard. Hard has only one
Ship, how much cargo can he carry each time? Even if these goods are worth tens of thousands of dollars in the Western Ocean, to us, it is just that, and it is not worth our effort. Besides, the Western Ocean is thousands of miles away, and our country
I’m afraid the pirate stuff won’t make up for the cost of one trip.”
The Ming Dynasty Navy has eighty warships and forty other large ships, with a total of more than 50,000 men. If such a huge force went thousands of miles away to search for the so-called treasures of dozens of pirates, that would be true.
It's a joke.
Seeing that this reason was not enough, Zhu Biao found another reason, "But, didn't you say that we can't allow pirates to overflow in the Western Ocean? If there are too many pirates and block the shipping route, it will also be a huge loss for us.
ah."
"There is no need to go to such great lengths to clear out the pirates. I am planning to send ten warships to the west to clear out the pirates. Your Highness has also seen the pirate ships. They are not big, and there are not many cannons. Ten warships are enough." Han Du has already said.
some
Guessing Zhu Biao's plan and not wanting to go to the West, he quickly silenced Zhu Biao with words.
Zhu Biao glanced at Han Du with a complaining look, but faced with Han Du's words, he really couldn't insist on going to the West.
He coughed twice, turned to look at Tang Ding, and asked, "What do you think?"
Tang Ding naturally understood the differences between Han Du and the prince, but in this case, no matter how close he was to Han Du, he did not dare to stand on Han Du's side.
Tang Ding's origin and identity were decided. At this time, he could only speak for Zhu Biao. He gave Han Du an apologetic look, Tang Ding smiled and nodded and said: "Your Highness, I thought that since there are many Western kingdoms, and also
It is a huge world. I am afraid that many of them are people who do not know the majesty of our Ming Dynasty. If ten warships are sent there, I am afraid there will be unnecessary trouble. I think that the entire naval fleet should go to clear out the Japanese pirates.
Only then can we ensure nothing goes wrong.”
Zhu Biao looked away from Tang Ding with satisfaction, looked at Han Du, and said with a smile: "Did you hear that? Those Kingdom Yelangs are used to being arrogant, can you guarantee that they will not attack the fleet you sent? Gu Ye
I think Tang Ding is right, so it would be prudent for them all to go."
Of course it is safe to send out all the naval forces. Fifty thousand naval forces are enough to run rampant.
But, I promised Anqing
Han Du saw the expressions of the two men and naturally knew what Zhu Biao was thinking. He smiled bitterly and said to Zhu Biao: "Your Highness, if it were other times, I would not object to the navy going. But I promised Anqing this time."
Zhu Biao waved his hand casually, "Don't worry about this. Go back to Gu and explain it to her in person. I think Anqing won't embarrass you since Gu will speak for you."
Anqing would not embarrass me when you were here, and would even smile at me, but what happens after you leave? Do you want me to face her cynicism?
"But" Han Du still said unwillingly.
However, Zhu Biao directly waved his hand and interrupted Han Du's words, saying: "No, it's settled. After the navy has rested, it can go to the West to eliminate pirates and ensure the shipping route."
Seeing that Han Du still looked reluctant, Zhu Biao's face darkened and he said: "Of course, if you really don't want to go, I won't make things difficult for you, just go ahead.
Just go back to Beijing."
You have gone to the West, how can I return to Beijing? Even if I return to Beijing, I am afraid I will be hung up and beaten by Lao Zhu! If Zhu Biao makes a mistake, then Han Du will never die to atone for his sin. Han Du
He glared at Zhu Biao complainingly, reluctantly raised his hand and replied: "I am willing to go to the West with your highness."
"Hahaha, isn't that right~" Zhu Biao laughed happily and took the initiative to stand up and pat Han Du on the shoulder.
Now that he decided to follow Zhu Biao, Han Du no longer hesitated and started thinking about going to the West.
After pondering for a while, Han Du said to Zhu Biao: "Your Highness, since the Navy is going to the West, I think we should just open up this route to the West."
Zhu Biao motioned Han Du to sit down again and asked in confusion: "Isn't the sea route ready? Didn't those Western merchants come to the old port through this sea route? We just need to clean up the pirates.
.”
Han Du shook his head and said: "I have learned from Hader that the route used by these Western merchants is not mature at all. They just sailed into the sea and then sailed towards the east. As for where they sailed, it all depended on God's will.
.They didn’t even have a decent supply point along the way. It can be said that the Western merchants were risking their lives.”
"And the shipping route I'm talking about is a shipping route from the capital to the old port. There are various ports along the way that allow merchant ships to dock for supplies. The governor's palace will guard one side and eliminate pirates."
"Of course this is the best, but is it feasible to set up ports along the way? If there are other kingdoms' territories, then" Zhu Biao is still a little embarrassed.
Han Du snorted and said: "What kind of territory is there? It's just some unclaimed land like Nanyang. Since it is an unowned land, whoever occupies it first will own it, and whoever owns it will own it."
I can't say anything."
If it is possible, Han Du can have a good argument with him if he stands within the shooting range of the naval warship. Otherwise, Han Du cannot hear him if he is too far away.
"What if there is a land with an owner?" Zhu Biao asked worriedly.
Han Du said calmly: "That's easy, let's just borrow some from them."
"Borrow? How to borrow?" This was the first time Zhu Biao heard that even territory could be borrowed.
That's territory. Who can lend it to you, and who is willing to lend it to you?
"Didn't Liu Bei also borrow money from Jingzhou? Let's borrow whatever he borrowed." Han Du said lightly: "Of course.
However, even if some people refuse to lend it to us at first, I believe that when they see the naval warship, they will agree to lend it without hesitation."
"Hahaha" Zhu Biao was immediately amused by Han Du's words and leaned back in laughter. "Liu Bei borrowed Jingzhou" does not mean it is too straightforward.
If it were in the past, Zhu Biao would definitely feel that Han Du's move was suspected of bullying small countries and was against the trend of the Ming Dynasty. But now, Zhu Biao does not think so. One Nanyang can bring countless benefits to the Ming Dynasty.
Wealth, this golden waterway in the Western Ocean will not be bad either.
Since Zhu Biao knew the importance of land to the people, and the people were related to the stability of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Biao would naturally put the expansion of territory in the most important position. Just like Nanyang, although the people who come here now
There are not many, most of them are exiled criminals, but Zhu Biao can already imagine that one day in the future, when the land within the Ming Dynasty cannot satisfy the people's survival, a large number of people will choose to come to Nanyang in order to make a living.
The same goes for the West. Although no people will go there yet, it is good to prepare some things in advance.
After Zhu Biao stopped laughing, Han Du suggested again: "Your Highness, since the navy is going to the West, why not ask first to see if there are any maritime merchants who are willing to follow us."
"Oh? Why is this?" In Zhu Biao's opinion, this was to eliminate pirates and fight a war. What was he going to do with the maritime merchants?
Han Du smiled and explained: "When I came to the old port, I also brought the merchants with me. The merchants followed the navy and naturally became familiar with the waterway, so they can go there on their own."
Zhu Biao pondered for a while, then asked after a few breaths: "Well, do you think there are maritime merchants willing to take the risk and follow?"
What kind of adventure is it to follow the navy? Not to mention that there are 50,000 navy on the side. When Han Du came to Old Port, there were only a few thousand sailors. Didn't he also have a large group of maritime merchants following him?
But now, which of those maritime merchants who were bold and adventurous in the past have made overseas trade prosperous? They have already made a fortune.
"Your Highness, the price of shipping goods from the Ming Dynasty to the old port is one, and shipping to the West is another price." Han Du said with a smile: "As long as we promise to ensure their safety, I think there are still some enterprising maritime merchants who are willing to cooperate with us.
We went together. After all, for them to follow us is not just to get a head start. Just being able to familiarize themselves with the route in advance will give them an advantage over other maritime merchants and make a lot of money.