At noon, Zhang Yanling held a banquet for Zhang Zhong and others. The dishes were still rich, but there was only one glass of wine per person, because Zhang Yin, Zhang Zhong and others were about to travel far, so it was not advisable to drink too much.
The banquet was very short. Everyone ate and drank quickly and headed to the pier. Zhang Yanling, Chen Shiyi and others also came to the pier to see them off on horseback.
On the dock, the Liaoyuan was ready for departure, with the dragon flag on the mast and hundreds of soldiers on the deck standing in silence on the ship's side.
"I will send you here. You two can get on the boat and set off. I won't send you out to sea either. I wish you both a smooth journey and a safe return to China." Zhang Yanling stood on the pier and said with a smile and cupped hands.
Zhang Yin bowed and said: "Master, do you have anything else to say to me? I humbly listen to my teachings."
Zhang Yanling waved her hand and said with a smile: "I have said what needs to be said, do you still want me to teach you about the war?"
Chen Shiyi smiled and said: "Brother, you are returning to the country on behalf of the father-in-law to put down the rebellion, so don't let your guard down."
Zhang Yin cupped his hands and said, "I won't embarrass you. Don't worry. I will definitely live up to my humble duty."
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "Don't put pressure on yourself, just lead the troops in the battle."
Zhang Yin nodded, turned to Chen Shiyi, Wang Hong and others and said: "Guys, I have to leave it to you to fight the Fo Langji people later. I don't ask for anything else. I just hope that you will protect the father-in-law thoroughly. If
If my father-in-law is missing a hair, I will definitely not agree to it."
Wang Hong, Chen Shi and others laughed and said, "Don't worry, just take care of yourself and don't worry too much."
Zhang Yanling smiled slightly, looked at Zhang Zhong and said: "Eunuch Zhang, I wish you a safe journey. It will be better to go back and take the Liaoyuan armored ship. The wind and waves will be better."
Zhang Zhong knelt down with tears in his eyes, kowtowed to Zhang Yanling and said, "I bid farewell to you, sir. Please take care of me, sir."
Zhang Yanling hurriedly helped him up and said with a smile: "Don't do this. You must take my memorial with you and don't fall into the sea again."
Zhang Zhong laughed bitterly, stretched out his hand and patted his chest and said: "Don't worry, sir, I sewed it in the pocket of my personal clothes and wrapped it in cowhide, which is waterproof and sweat-proof. Even if I die, the things will be here, and I will never lose them."
Zhang Yanling laughed.
After a pause, he put away his smile and said in a deep voice: "Well... after you go back, remember to follow what I said and tell several princes, and ask them to report to the emperor to enable Wang Shouren to counter the rebellion. Tell the British Duke Cheng and the young prince
Lord, ask them to cooperate with Wang Shouren in using troops. Only Wang Shouren can put an end to this chaos. If they ask why, just say, I will explain it to them personally after I return to Ming Dynasty, and ask them to believe me."
Although Zhang Zhong had a puzzled look on his face, he still nodded and said: "I obey, sir. Please rest assured."
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "That's it. The journey back should be easier, because it follows the southeast monsoon. After leaving Manlajia, it will be a smooth journey. But you should seize the time and travel day and night, because it is already September.
, the monsoon will change after October. Before that, you have to return to Daming before the northeast monsoon comes. At the speed of the Liaoyuan, one month is enough. You two, please get aboard."
Zhang Yin and Zhang Zhong both raised their hands and saluted Zhang Yanling, and then saluted General Chen Shiyi. Then they turned around and boarded the ship. Soon after, the Liaoyuan lifted anchor and slowly left the dock. Zhang Yin and Zhang Zhong stood on the deck and waved to the shore.
Everyone on the shore also waved to them.
Amidst the sound of saying goodbye, the Liaoyuan raised its main sail, and the ship began to shake rapidly, speeding up, and soon left the port bay and entered the sea. In the time of a stick of incense, it headed east and disappeared behind the coastal cliffs.
.
Zhang Yanling stood on the dock with a complicated expression, watching the Liaoyuan disappear, then sighed softly and looked away.
"My lord, let's go. I can't see you." Chen Shi said.
Zhang Yanling nodded, turned around and walked towards the horse.
Wang Hong followed, and suddenly asked: "My lord, there is something unclear about my humble position."
Zhang Yanling said: "What's the matter? Just say it."
Wang Hong said: "My lord, it seems that Zhu Chenhao's rebellion is really powerful this time. Since Brother Zhang Yin has been sent back by you to put down the rebellion, why do you keep saying that Wang Shouren should lead the army to quell the rebellion? And he says it's not him."
Is that the right one? I know that your father-in-law has some friendship with Wang Shouren, and I have heard of his name, but overall, he is just a scholar, and I have never heard of him having any talent in leading an army."
When Chen Shi heard this, he hurriedly said: "Yes, this is also my question. Why do you want Wang Shouren to lead the army? Zhang Yin returned to the country this time, just in time to lead the army to suppress the rebellion. After the success, the prince's face will be bright. No matter what happens,
The British Duke, the Young Duke of Dingguo Palace, the Young Duke of Chengguo Palace, they can also lead the army. Why do we say that Wang Shouren is the only one who can lead the army? It's puzzling."
Zhang Yanling stopped and looked at them, unwilling to answer. But he saw doubts in their eyes, and wanted to know why. Their implication seemed to be that they were aggrieved for Zhang Yin. He felt that he was not confident about Zhang Yin's ability, but instead believed in an irrelevant person.
of outsiders.
However, it is impossible to explain this matter clearly.
Zhang Yanling thought for a while and said, "Brothers, if you have a mouse in your house, the first thing you think of is what to use to catch the mouse?"
"Of course it's a cat. Cats catch mice, which are the natural enemies of mice." Chen Shi said.
Zhang Yanling nodded and said: "That's it. Don't worry about whether this cat has caught mice before. He is the natural enemy of mice. He can naturally catch mice and kill them. There is no need to doubt this. Zhu Chenhao is
That mouse, Wang Shouren is that cat."
"..."
Chen Shiyi was speechless for a moment. What kind of explanation is this?
"Other things can also catch mice, just like dogs can catch mice, but after all, they are not as sure as cats. Since there are cats, why do you need to let dogs catch mice? It is better to quell the rebellion steadily without any surprises.
Okay?" Zhang Yanling continued.
"But... Mr. Guo, why do you say that Wang Shouren is that cat? Wang Shouren is Zhu Chenhao's natural enemy? Where do you start talking about this?" Wang Hong asked with a frown.
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "I just know it. If you ask me why, I said I saw it in a dream and that it was my fortune telling. Do you believe it?"
"I don't believe it!" Chen Shiyi and Wang Hong shook their heads like rattles at the same time.
"Let's put it this way, I know some things that you don't know. But this is a secret and cannot be leaked." Zhang Yanling said.
Chen Shiyi and Wang Hong looked at each other, their eyes full of speechlessness and helplessness.
"I know you don't believe it. But you will know it by looking at the results. In terms of counterinsurgency, maybe Zhang San, Li Si, Wang and Mazi can succeed in counterinsurgency, but they cannot guarantee success. And Wang Shouren will definitely succeed.
Therefore, it has to be him."
Chen Shiyi and Wang Hong no longer wanted to talk to Zhang Yanling. They kept talking, but they said nothing. There was no basis for it, and they also said that it was some secret that could not be leaked. Could it be that the Duke of Guo is a semi-immortal? Can he predict the future?
I made it clear that I just didn’t want to say it.
Zhang Yanling has actually worked very hard, but the explanation for this matter is indeed unclear. Zhang Yanling's reason for choosing Wang Shouren seems to him to be extremely simple, because the Zhu Chenhao rebellion in history was put down by Wang Shouren. That is iron-clad.
Fact: Zhang Yanling did not want to cause trouble, and he could not go back to quell the rebellion, so he naturally tried his best to recommend Wang Shouren to quell the rebellion, because he would definitely succeed.
But there is no way to explain all this. Chen Shiyi and Wang Hong rolled their eyes, but they could only pretend not to see it.
Changshun led the horse over, and Zhang Yanling took the reins and was about to mount the horse when he suddenly saw two large ships parked on the east side of the pier. Suddenly he remembered something.
"Brother Chen, are those two ships merchant ships from the Ming Dynasty?" Zhang Yanling asked, squinting at the two ships.
Chen Shiyi turned around to look, nodded and said, "It's them. That's right, the father-in-law told Beizhi yesterday that he asked me to call their shopkeeper to see the father-in-law. Beizhi sent someone to check it out yesterday. As a result, there was something wrong on the ship.
The people said that their shopkeeper was very seasick and could not get off the ship. I was busy with business yesterday, so I forgot about it and did not have time to report it to the Duke."
Zhang Yanling nodded, stepped on the stirrups, got on the horse, and turned the horse's head to leave. The rest of the people also got on their horses and prepared to leave. Zhang Yanling suddenly turned the horse's head again.
"This merchant ship is weird. They come here all the time. Why don't you see them unloading and loading goods? Aren't they here for business? This ship is a new type of merchant ship built by Longjiang Shipyard. The shipbuilding business received by Longjiang Shipyard is still there.
Not many, maybe I know this shopkeeper, so let’s go and have a look.”
Zhang Yanling dismounted, handed the whip and reins to Tan Changshun, and strode toward the east side of the pier.
Chen Shiyi and others hurriedly followed Zhang Yanling. When they took a closer look, sure enough, the two merchant ships didn't even have a gangplank to get off the ship, let alone unloading and loading.
On the deck of a ship near the west side, there were seven or eight sailors cleaning the deck. When they saw Zhang Yanling and others walking quickly, they all stood there in a daze.
"Hey, where's your shopkeeper? Ask him to come out and speak. This is Mr. Zhang, the Protector of the Ming Dynasty. Go and report it." Chen Shiyi shouted loudly.
The sailors on the deck panicked. They lost their tools and ran into the cabin. Soon after, an old man in a robe walked out of the cabin. The old man was wearing a green cloth robe and a small hat.
He was very thin and his robe seemed very wide around him. He stood on the deck and bowed with his hands raised.
"Little old man, I have met Mr. Zhang and all the military lords." The old man's voice was very clear and loud.
"Are you the shipowner and shopkeeper? Which Ming Dynasty trading company do you belong to?" Zhang Yanling asked in a deep voice.
"This... I can't disclose it. The little old man is not the shopkeeper, he is just in charge. My shopkeeper is taking a nap. Is there anything wrong, Master Jun?" said the old man.
"Tell your shopkeeper to come out and answer the question. The Protector is here, but he actually took a nap? Didn't come to see anyone? How brave." Chen Shiyi said angrily.
"Ouch, what a powerful official. It scares the little old man to death. It scares the little old man to death." The old man in green robe covered his face with his sleeves, looking scared. But at first glance, it looked very artificial and completely fake.
Pretend, but also with a teasing attitude.
Zhang Yanling frowned and reached out to stop Chen Shiyi who was about to jump.
"Old man, isn't it convenient for us to disclose which trading company is that? That's really strange. Since your shopkeeper refuses to come out to see me, I will get on the boat to see him. Get on the gangplank and let us get on the boat." Zhang Yanling said solemnly.
road.
The old man waved his hands and said: "No, no, no. My shopkeeper loves purity. It's not good for you people to come on board and make a mess. It will give the shopkeeper a headache. Since Mr. Zhang insists on seeing you, you can only come up to see him."
From my shopkeeper."
Chen Shiyi was furious and shouted angrily: "Are you out of your mind? How dare you be so rude and disrespectful? Believe it or not, we will arrest you all and seize your ship?"
The old man pretended to be frightened again and said: "I'm so scared, so scared. Master, please don't do this. We are merchants of the Ming Dynasty. You can't do this to your own people."
Before Chen Shiyi could shout, Zhang Yanling said in a deep voice: "You guys wait here, I'll get on the boat and take a look."
Chen Shiyi and others quickly objected. Zhang Yanling said with a smile: "What? Can they still eat me? Can't you see it? The shopkeeper on this ship did this on purpose. He looks like an acquaintance of mine."
"Then you can't board the ship alone? What if there is danger?" Chen Shi asked.
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "How can there be any danger? Could it be that they still came all the way from the Ming Dynasty to kill my assassin? And they were also rude, calling me by name to get on the ship alone? You are thinking too much."
When Chen Shi thought about it, he thought it was unlikely. It just felt strange.
Zhang Yanling shouted: "Well, I'm going to see your shopkeeper alone."
The old man on the deck raised his hands and said: "Master Zhang is so brave, he actually dares to get on the ship alone. Aren't you afraid that this is a dragon's pool and a tiger's den? I'm afraid the loud-voiced military commander next to you is reminding you."
Zhang Yanling said solemnly: "Why don't you take a springboard? What are you talking about?"
The old man smiled slyly, waved his hand and said: "Come here, use the gangplank to let Mr. Zhang get on the boat. I'll report it to the shopkeeper. Remember, he only needs to come up. If anyone else comes up, they will pull out the gangplank."
All the soldiers were in an uproar and were extremely angry. I had never seen such an arrogant guy before. Fortunately, it was a merchant ship from the Ming Dynasty. If it had been from other countries, I am afraid they would have rushed up and chopped them all down.
While he was talking, a long springboard was set up on the pier. Zhang Yanling swung his cloak and stepped onto the deck on the trembling springboard.