It was obviously a day, but the sky suddenly became as dark as ink, and a violent storm hit crazily from the east.

The huge black ship is a recognized sea fortress, but in this boundless ocean, it is like a paper boat on the river that can capsize at any time.

The sea surface was like boiling water, constantly churning, rising and falling with the fleet that suddenly appeared here, and seemed to be swallowing this fleet at any time.

Boom!

Lightning flashed across the night sky, and a wave of more than ten meters hit the deck heavily. Some seawater took the opportunity to pour into the cabin, and those crew members who had no time to dodge were directly drowned.

Bang!

The main mast of a three-masted gunboat was torn off by the strong wind. The thick mast fell directly into the sea and disappeared like a fallen chopstick.

Whether it was a big black ship or a three-masted gunboat, there were always some inexplicable creaking noises in the hull, as if it would disintegrate at any time. Many sailors hiding in the cabin were trembling with fear.

Even if future generations are unable to do anything in the face of big storms, this era is even more powerless, and we deeply feel our own insignificance and the ruthlessness of the sea.

"Seize it! Don't panic, move forward!"

In each wheelhouse, there are still commanders busy here, their eyes appear determined and firm, and they are constantly giving orders to correct the route.

Most of the commanders of these fleets are young, wearing uniform navy uniforms. Although their faces are still immature, they show a fearless spirit, as if this is not the first time they have experienced such a scene.

Since its establishment, the United Merchant Group has developed an inseparable relationship with the ocean. From its initial role as a service provider for maritime traders, it has become a dominant player in maritime trade.

Due to the demand for maritime talents, Leizhou United Navigation College was born in response and continues to cultivate maritime talents for the United Business Group.

Leizhou United Navigation College initially provided technical support for travel to and from Southeast Asia, mainly in translation and ship maintenance, both of which were relatively single-type talents.

But as the joint business group grew stronger, a world map sent from nowhere seemed to open up a new world.

Some outstanding students were trained as sailing explorers, and they were arranged to follow Simon's fleet to and from Europe, thus broadening their horizons and cultivating their sailing abilities.

Lin Wenjie was born in the Changlin family and has always been listed as a key training target by the United Business Group. He was also among the first batch of students sent to Europe to broaden their horizons.

Because of his excellent performance, as the commander of the fleet this time, he constantly directed the helmsman to maintain the direction and led the fleet through this storm area.

This sudden super storm kept lifting the ship up and down, making it like a roller coaster. Some students from the navigation academy who experienced such a big scene for the first time directly vomited.

There is not only severe physical discomfort, but also a fear of life. People who have never experienced sailing always think that sailing is a very simple thing, but sailing is much more difficult than imagined.

You don't need to go on a long voyage around the world. Even if you drive an off-road vehicle alone through a vast wilderness, if something goes wrong with the vehicle midway, you will stay there forever.

Even if there is only a small problem of water leakage on the ship, I am afraid that all the people on the ship will be buried in the sea, not to mention the reefs that are invisible to the naked eye.

It is this kind of long and unknown danger, and a small mistake can ruin the life of the entire ship. Therefore, sailing talents require both talent and careful training.

"Captain, what's wrong, Leizhou No. 9 has just been overturned by wind and waves!" A signal soldier hurried in and reported to Lin Wenjie.

When Lin Wenjie heard the bad news, he closed his eyes in pain.

Leizhou No. 9 is one of the earliest three-masted gunboats. Since its craftsmanship is not very mature, the hull has always had great hidden dangers.

This entourage was not used as the main combat force. It had the feeling of being a recharge, and could even be discarded at any time. But I didn't expect that it would not be used at all, and now it was ruined in this super storm.

The warship's ability to resist big storms is indeed not very strong, and now that it encounters such a super big storm, it is inevitable that something will happen. However, he has never been a perfectionist, but he knows that this matter is irreversible.

When Lin Wenjie opened his eyes, he immediately gave the order in a calm voice: "We are now in the center of the storm. Let the fleet continue to move forward and get out of here as soon as possible!"

"Yes!" When the signal soldier heard the order, he immediately turned around and left in a hurry.

Although Lin Wenjie's decision not to rescue was unkind, the entire fleet was now in a storm zone. If he stayed here to carry out rescue operations, except for the large black ship with the weight advantage, other warships would be at risk of sinking.

That's why he chose to continue moving forward with the fleet and break through this hellish gate. As for the more than 200 crew members of the three-masted warship, they can wish themselves well and hope to save themselves through the rescue equipment on the ship.

The sky was like ink, the wind was strong, and the huge waves kept rolling. The other warships kept swaying from side to side, as if they would make the same mistake as Leizhou No. 9 at any time.

The sailors on the ship were also shivering, and some kept praying for Mazu's blessing, hoping that they could successfully pass through this super storm and leave this place of death.

It was just that the wind and waves seemed to have no end. Until some crew members couldn't help but fall asleep, the wind and waves outside continued to rock the ship they were on.

At this moment, the ocean was like a terrifying monster that seemed capable of swallowing up their entire fleet at any time, thus making their fleet a very common "vanished fleet" in history.

Life and death seem to be out of their control now, but the sea controls their destiny.

I don’t know how long it took, but Mazu seemed to take care of them. The ship finally stopped shaking, and the ship moved away from the dark sky and sailed into a clear sea.

Some crew members woke up from their dreams and suddenly found that the ship was no longer rocking. When they heard the cry of seagulls, they seemed to suddenly wake up.

They walked out of the cabin one after another and came to the sunny deck. Their faces couldn't help but smile after the disaster.

"Look!"

"Haha...we are finally here!"

One sailor excitedly pointed to the south, and everyone turned their heads to look over. What came into view was an endless continental line. Everyone couldn't help but cheer when they saw this scene.

After a month of sailing, especially after surviving several storm areas, they finally arrived in Australia, their destination, safely and safely.

Australia has many iron ore resources and its vast plains are very suitable for the development of agricultural cultivation. It is undoubtedly a new continent full of hope.

Compared with North America, Australia is undoubtedly closer to the Ming Dynasty. Starting from Luzon and passing through many islands, as long as there is no serious deviation, we will definitely be able to get there.

In the early years, the United Trade Group successively sent sailing expedition teams to Australia for exploration, and gradually learned about some conditions in Australia. Now a large force is about to settle here.

The United Merchant Group has no desire to monopolize all business. Although they have the ability to build a fleet to go to Europe, they always insist on maintaining friendly trading partnerships with Simon and other Western maritime merchants.

They were responsible for the production or acquisition of goods, and then resold these goods to sea merchants such as Simon, earning huge profits from trade in spices, silks, and porcelain.

In order to maintain a good trading partnership, they did not plan to take too many risks. Even if they knew that there was a large silver mine on the other side of the Pacific, they had no intention of getting involved.

Because of this, the United Trade Group has not had any conflict of interest with Portugal over the years, but has always maintained a good trade relationship.

After Lin Haoran's personal decision, the strategic direction of the joint business group was neither Europe in the west nor North America in the east, but Australia in the south.

“Finally we’re here!”

The tall Liang Lianying stood on the bow of the ship, looking at the endless green lifeline in front of him, and he let out a heavy breath.

He always followed his father during the mining of the Luzon gold mine and the mining of the Lightning Island gold mine, and he gradually fell in love with the excitement of developing a base and searching for gold mines.

Especially looking for gold mines and watching those gold mines being dug made him feel intoxicated for a time.

Although he never dared to take credit, after all, it was the tall man who led everything, but he felt a great sense of accomplishment when he saw boatloads of gold being dug up in Luzon and transported back to the country.

Because of this, both he and his father are willing to play the role of pioneers in the gold mining division in the United Business Group and become important members of the United Business Group.

But this time, he was finally able to break away from his father's arms and become one of the leaders of the United Business Group's Australian business division, responsible for finding high-quality iron ore and gold mines in Australia.

It is worth mentioning that this time it is to "mainly focus on iron ore, supplemented by gold mine". This strategic policy once made him very confused. After all, compared with gold, iron ore is really not worth mentioning, and it is not consistent at all.

Joint interests demands of business groups.

It was only during this long voyage, especially when he heard the crew talk about their difficult experiences, that he gradually realized Lin Haoran's good intentions and foresight.

From the interests of the joint business group, the more gold, the better. But from the perspective of the entire nation, if high-quality iron ore can be brought back to the country this time, it will be a great thing that benefits China.

In particular, Xu Jie has issued an iron ban, which will inevitably intensify the domestic iron shortage, which will also indirectly promote the decline of domestic iron quality, thereby affecting the Ming Dynasty's agricultural production and combat capabilities.

If high-quality iron ore is brought back to the Ming Dynasty from Australia, it will not only solve the raw material crisis of the United Iron Products Workshop, but also bring China's iron products to a higher level.

Although "mainly iron ore, supplemented by gold ore" will make the United Business Group make a lot less money, but he respects Lin Haoran's decision from the bottom of his heart. If there is no nation and country, a person only sees money and greed, which is not

This is not the nature of the Chinese nation.

Perhaps it is precisely for this reason that Lin Haoran always has the Chinese nation in mind, so everyone in the United Merchant Group obeys Lin Haoran unconditionally.

This has nothing to do with Lin Haoran's power, but more to do with Lin Haoran's personality charm derived from China's quality. Following Lin Haoran, he leads China on the road to becoming a great nation.

That's why, although this trip was full of difficulties, and he even experienced a life-and-death disaster just now, he still doesn't feel a trace of regret.

The fleet did not go straight to land, but followed a map and circled eastward for most of the day, finally choosing to land at a simple dock.

"Haha... As soon as you come, our United Fourth City can finally be officially established!" Yang Fuhe came up from the dock and greeted Liang Lianying and Lin Wenjie excitedly.

With the finalization of the Fourth City plan, Yang Chunlai's son Yang Fuhe, Liang Yi's son Liang Lianying and Changlin representative Lin Wenjie were selected as the founders of United Fourth City and will also be the top managers of United Fourth City.

"We all work according to the predetermined division of labor. No one should hold anyone back. Let those old guys see what we can do!" Liang Lianying, the oldest of the three, seemed to be holding the hand with great enthusiasm.

Fist said.

Lin Wenjie also wanted to prove himself well, so he nodded heavily immediately, not wanting to embarrass the Chang Lin family.

Yang Fuhe led everyone to the temporary camp. He had also brought a famous Feng Shui master from Guangdong earlier and chose a bay that could build a deep-water dock, be close to water sources, and suitable for agricultural planting.

Although there is still a large open space here, they brought a lot of people with them this time. This trip can be said to be a laborious effort.

There are craftsmen responsible for building the city and docks, workers responsible for mining iron ore, and an engineering team building roads, numbering in the thousands.

After so many years of development, the joint business group has already made a clear division of labor. Especially with the successful experience in Luzon and Jeju Island, they can completely copy the successful experience here in Australia.

In addition, they have already established base stations along the way and are opening a food road along the way to Luzon. Even if they can't find a bite to eat in Australia, they will not starve to death here.

Yang Fuhe is responsible for management affairs and has overall authority.

Lin Wenjie was in charge of the military aspect, not only guarding against attacks by wild beasts, but also expelling some disobedient natives.

Liang Lianying inherited his father Liang Yi's spirit of hard work and quickly devoted himself to the preliminary work of mining iron ore. The next day, he led a mining team to the designated iron ore area.

The three of them all understand the mission they shoulder, which is not only to take root here, but also to continuously transport iron ore back to Foshan, Guangdong, thereby lifting the iron ban.

September of the first year of Longqing is a day that can be remembered in history.
Chapter completed!