The beach is soft and the fine sand is soft. When you step on it, it's like stepping on a quilt. It's so soft that you sink into it unconsciously.

Seagulls fly in the blue sky and chirp from time to time, showing their mood.

The waves carried a wave of heat, but also seemed to have a bit of coolness. Zhu Cixiang licked his lips, and the sea breeze here seemed to be more relaxed.

"Brother!"

Picking up the musket, Zhu Ding walked over tremblingly: "There are a hundred of us, excluding the young and old, only thirty of us can hold a gun."

"I know." Zhu Cixi nodded with a calm expression.

The third child, Zhu Yong, also came over. He seemed to have been frightened when he was young and had a timid temper: "There are savages everywhere here, how can we survive?"

"If you have a musket, you can live."

Zhu Cixiang said in a deep voice: "Shaowu hasn't done anything yet, we still have a glimmer of hope."

Zhu Ding, the second eldest brother, looked at his eldest brother, who was full of energy and exuded a different kind of aura even though his temples were white.

He was startled: "Brother, should we restore our old name?"

"No need for now."

Zhu Cixi said in a deep voice: "It's not suitable at the moment."

After saying that, he made an arrangement, asking some girls and young children to work together with three or five strong men, and the second one was responsible for protecting them and taking care of the supplies.

Fortunately, the supplies included cinchona to treat malaria.

Obviously the so-called Europe is just to let them live peacefully on the road.

Although the dock is somewhat deserted, there are still a few wooden houses that can withstand the sun's heat.

"We are short of food and clothing here, so we have to go to the castle first."

He led about thirty people, holding muskets, and headed towards the wooden castle on the cliff ahead.

The wooden castle is on the top of the mountain, and a winding path leads up from the simple pier to connect it.

Although the Jaffna stronghold looks small, with a radius of hundreds of miles, it was snatched by the Portuguese from the Kingdom of Kandy.

The Dutch took their place, and Tao really didn't care about this operation. After all, there were too many strongholds, and he wouldn't cherish those he stole.

There was dense jungle along the way, and it was obvious that no one had been there for several months, and the gravel road was covered with weeds.

After a few hundred steps, a simple wooden castle appeared in front of you.

A moat and a suspension bridge are all available.

This made Zhu Cixi feel relieved.

At least it can initially ensure safety.

After entering, there are several wooden houses, a warehouse, a stable, and a stone mill, that's all.

The most important thing is the two coastal guns.

Although the barrels are rusty and there are no shells, its importance is self-evident.

Although it has accumulated a lot of dust, it is already a safe place.

However, looking from a high position, there is a lake not far from the wooden castle. It is green and endless, with waterbirds inhabiting it, the waves are rippling, and it is very lively.

"This is a good place."

Zhu Cixiang looked to the left and right, and a large amount of grassland came into view. These were future farmlands, enough for thousands of people to cultivate them.

Watering the ground with good quality water is enough to ensure that there is no need to worry about food and drink.

The family moved in happily, but the problem of food was the most pressing issue.

"Brother, there is only enough food for three days, and there is still a lack of salt!" Zhu Ding said solemnly.

"There is a lake nearby. You can catch some fish to eat. There are muskets for hunting. There are also many fruits on the mountain to fill your stomach."

Zhu Cixiang said softly, his words were very soothing: "Don't worry, no one will starve to death here."

"No matter how difficult it is, how difficult it was when we were in the mountains?"

These words calmed people's hearts.

At night, in a small house, the lights are brightly lit.

The three Zhu brothers were kneeling on the ground, their bodies upright.

In front of them, a tablet was erected:

The spiritual position of Emperor Liezu of the Ming Dynasty.

One afternoon, under the auspices of Zhu Cixiang, the three brothers expressed dissatisfaction with the temple name of their father, Emperor Chongzhen, Sizong, and decided to change it to Liezu.

This also means that they have officially spread their branches and established a foundation overseas.

The name of Liezu can also confuse others.

After all, among the dozen or so emperors of the Ming Dynasty, there were only two ancestors, Taizu and Chengzu. Who could have thought of Liezu?

When things are accomplished, more than a dozen ancestors will naturally take their place.

"From today on, this is our Ancestral Temple."

The three brothers knelt three times and kowtowed nine times.

After the matter was over, Zhu Cihong sighed: "Although I have wronged my father, there is nothing we can do about it."

"Brother, can you also invite the empress mother and concubine's tombs?"

Zhu Yong, the third child, said softly: "We have not worshiped for many years, so we are already unfilial. Now let him enjoy the incense."

"There's no rush at this moment."

Zhu Cixiang shook his head: "You are still too eager. The most important thing now is to solve the problem of food first!

"

"If everyone is starving to death, where will the incense come from?"

The next day, in order to completely shock these slaves, Zhu Cihong took out his imperial edict and announced it, and compiled:

"This king belongs to the clan of the Ming Dynasty. Now I am entrusted by your majesty to run the vassal state here, just like the Qin state and the old affairs of the Qi state."

"As long as you help the left well, it's no problem that you will be awarded officials and titles when the time comes."

"I'll wait to see His Royal Highness—"

The slaves knelt down one after another, unable to believe it.

Subsequently, Zhu Cihong, as the king of Ceylon County, appointed the second oldest Zhu Ding as the commander-in-chief of the army, and the third oldest Zhu Yong as the prime minister, responsible for civil affairs.

Several sons and nephews have heavy responsibilities and serve as six ministers. Although it is a bit absurd, the sparrow is small but has all the internal organs.

All in all, there must be an individual to figure it out.

Regarding the army, Zhu Cixi organized thirty men into three commanders in accordance with the regulations of the county patrol camp, and appointed and dismissed corps commanders and commanders.

Since there were not enough people, they were all reduced to musketeers.

Fortunately, the popularity of muskets is very high. Even hunters have a shotgun, so they can barely use a matchlock.

After practicing for a long time, the men were already able to put it on, although it was not accurate.

At this time, Zhu Cixi knew that he had to attack.

Looking around from the mountains, there are only a few small villages within dozens of miles.

Obviously, the native people had been scared away by the Portuguese.

Leaving ten men to garrison the wooden fort, he led twenty musketeers down the mountain to the nearest village.

It was a small island in the mountains, and the rugged area was difficult to navigate. It took two full hours, with the sun rising high in the sky, for Zhu Cihong and his party to arrive at the village.

A fence as tall as a group of people is the protection of the village.

Several naked children were playing at the entrance of the village, while women were washing animal skins in the nearby stream, or washing rice and vegetables.

In appearance, the woman is short in stature, with dark skin, a small and flat nose, and curly hair.

Their clothes are made of traditional homespun cloth, with scarves covering their heads and exposing their arms and feet. To the Han people, there is no shame at all.

As soon as they saw the stranger women and children holding muskets, they immediately panicked and quickly returned to the village.

The entire village was also buzzing with noise, with a large number of adult men holding bows, arrows, and spears, showing signs of fear.

After a while, a lot of food was thrown out. Roughly speaking, there were about thirty bags, and each bag weighed about twenty or thirty kilograms.

Zhu Cixiang took a look and said, good guy, he has been trained by those Western barbarians.

Immediately afterwards, a burst of jabbering words came out, which he could not understand.

"Walk--"

I picked up the grain and opened it and saw that it was rice.

Although it’s so slender that it’s difficult to understand, it’s still rice after all, isn’t it?
To be continued...