The sky is clear, and there is not a cloud as far as the eye can see. The sun is shining all over the sea, and the waves are sparkling, like a mother coaxing her child to sleep, gently touching the beach of Lieyu Island.

This is a rare good weather in recent times, and the haze has been swept away. On the lookout of Lieyu Island, the soldiers looked far away, and a small grain of rice was breaking through the sea and sky. It is common sense that the near is large and the far is small, and the soldiers are very small.

He knew that this could only be a sea ship approaching slowly. Nan'ao Island was on the sea trade route, so it was normal for sea ships to come and go, but he didn't pay too much attention to it. But as time went by,

, the reflection of the ship in his eyes became larger and larger, and he soon realized that this ship was extraordinary.

The incoming ship was a watercraft, one to five six feet wide and more than seven feet high. It had all the gun positions, especially the cannon on the bow, which pointed straight ahead.

The boat came over the waves, and the soldiers immediately notified the officer in charge of the lookout. The forts and beacon towers were all well prepared. If anything happened, they would fire cannons and light beacons to warn Nan'ao Island. However, soon they

It was discovered that this was just a false alarm, because the ship was clearly carrying the banner of Zhou Rui, the Marquis of Min'an, and presumably it was the Marquis of Zhou and Chen Canjun who had returned.

At the pier of Nan'ao Island, the water raft was moored at the pier, lowered its sails and dropped its anchor. The ship stopped, Chen Kai, Zhou Rui and others transferred to a small boat and hurried ashore. They hurriedly came to Zheng Chenggong and bowed down.

"Marquis Zhou, Chen Shenjun saved my life and saved the people. I should salute you to express my gratitude."

After hearing the news, Zheng Chenggong came out to greet him. After speaking, he saluted solemnly. Chen Kai and Zhou Rui also quickly returned the salute, which finally cleared up the mess of etiquette.

"This is Kuang Lu and Kuang She."

"Kuang She is a man of great literary talents, and his calligraphy has the style of wishing Beijing auspiciousness. I have heard of his famous name for a long time in southern Fujian, and it is like thunder in my ears."

"Don't dare. No matter how colorful your articles are, you will be nothing more than a useless scholar at this time of national crisis. The country has both civil and military talents. In this eastern Guangdong and southern Fujian, it is the right way to regain the lost territory and protect the people of that area."

Chen Kai rescued Kuang Lu as they were being carried in the sedan chair. Kuang Lu was not a hypocritical person. She was chatting and laughing with Zheng Chenggong. At first glance, they looked the same, but on the boat, there seemed to be a layer of separation between her and Chen Kai.

, it is not as close and tacit understanding as when they were planning to connect grassroots civil servants and guards officers in Guangzhou City.

"It seems that this Kuang Sheren doesn't like to owe others favors."

"Well, his temperament is very free and easy."

The journey had just ended, and physical and mental exhaustion was unavoidable. The reception banquet was scheduled for tomorrow night. After a short greeting, everyone retired to rest. The servant led Kuang Lu to the arranged room. Zheng Chenggong said casually,

Chen Kai replied quietly, and the two of them arrived at Zheng Chenggong's study in tacit understanding without saying a word.

After serving a cup of fragrant tea, the servant left the room on his own. Chen Kai and Zheng Chenggong sat across from each other. After tasting it, it was still a little hot, so they casually placed it on Zheng Chenggong's desk. But before he could speak, Zheng Chenggong seemed to

He was also not satisfied with the temperature of the tea. When he put it down, he said to Chen Kai: "I will be satisfied if you can come back safely."

"Thank you very much for your concern. I'll be the official..."

"Jingcheng, I don't want to say any more polite words. There are 110,000 people, more than 700 large and small ships, plus 110,000 taels of silver. I will not forget your efforts, and the people of Guangzhou will not forget them.

The Ming Dynasty will not forget it either." At this point, Zheng Chenggong paused and then changed the subject: "However, from Guangzhou to Chaozhou, these are resources and assistance, but if not done properly, they will become a liability, and even...

Disaster, you have to bear a heavier burden."

"I understand."

"I'm not worried about your ability, I'm just worried that you always focus on the affairs of the Arms Bureau and can't let go."

When he first arrived, Chen Kai flexed his muscles in the Ordnance Bureau and got the opportunity to integrate into this military and political group. Since then, he has focused more on the development of the Ordnance Bureau, as if it was inertia.

It is undeniable that the continuous improvement of the weapons and equipment level of Zheng Chenggong's department benefited greatly from Chen Kai's efforts, but this inertia also inevitably limited his development ideas to industries with military production as the main body. Of course,

, In addition to weapons manufacturing, Chen Kai has done other things, and has also made many achievements. However, as a bystander, Zheng Chenggong has obviously seen that this is not the limit of Chen Kai's ability.

There is still more room for development, but it is simply limited by one's own thinking and some other factors.

"Your Majesty..."

Chen Kai was about to apologize, but Zheng Chenggong shook his head: "Jingcheng, you and I have known each other for many years. You know me and I know you. We are both people who are determined to recover, and we are the same kind of people! The situation in Guangzhou is also the same for you.

I saw it, just like what I saw when I was in Nanjing. If the Ming Dynasty wants to revitalize ZTE, it is useless to count on those guys, and we need to make more efforts."

Speaking of which, Chen Kai already knew what Zheng Chenggong was thinking, so he could only nod his head heavily. There were many things that no longer needed to be spoken. This tacit understanding did not require any more words. Everything

It can be said without saying anything.

After a moment of silence, Zheng Chenggong drank the tea in one gulp: "You were right to transfer some people and ships to Chen Qice. The cooperation with Zhang Yue, Li Yuantai, Li Jianjie and Li Yuanyin behind them should also continue, even including

The same is true for Macau. It is unrealistic to rely on allies, but each of these people has their own connections and power. I have the leadership in maritime trade, and I will always gain something."

After lightly affirming Chen Kai's handling, Zheng Chenggong entered the topic: "What do you think about those common people?"

The resources Chen Kai brought back this time were too huge, and the war potential contained in them was so huge that it was unimaginable, both overt and covert. It’s just that Zheng Chenggong is still digesting Zheng Cai and Zheng Lian’s

The strength is already a bit indigestible, and these brought from Guangzhou require Chen Kai to play a greater role.

Chen Kai had already expected this. He just sorted out his words and said to Zheng Chenggong: "Our army currently controls Chaozhou First Prefecture and Zhao'an County of Zhangzhou Prefecture, Zhongzuo Suo and other places. Based on these places, it is

We can't absorb so many people. Our army cannot let them become a burden, so we need people to make the best use of them. The easiest way is to recover more lost territory as soon as possible, but I don't think the effect of this will be very good."

Zuojin Prefecture and County in the area controlled by Zheng Chenggong are not very capable of absorbing the outside population, especially in agriculture. Fujian has eight mountains, one water and one field. Not to mention Tingzhou, the cultivated land area of ​​Zhangzhou and Quanzhou is not very large, let alone

Not to mention that they are all owned lands. Huizhou Prefecture is also mountainous and hilly in the east. Only when you enter the Pearl River Basin in the west will you find large tracts of arable land. This is why Huizhou Prefecture is located in the southwest.

The most practical way is to send the army westward and compete with Shang Kexi and Geng Jimao for the province of Guangdong. But this is contrary to the core interests of the Zheng Group itself, and the best opportunity has been lost. It will only achieve twice the result with half the effort, and it is really meaningless.

Speaking of Chen Kai, Zheng Chenggong could certainly understand that what he needed was Chen Kai's answer, and Chen Kai had no intention of hiding it.

"In the Pearl River water battle, Xu Long and Sheng Dengke were killed in formation. Guo Xing must have read the detailed report. The local people in Guangzhou are not brave warriors. The only thing missing is that there is no one to organize them. The first official position

The strategy is to follow the old practice of the Song Dynasty and recruit soldiers from the victims. The quality and color of a soldier are enough to support a small family. If the country recruits an army of 10,000 from them, tens of thousands of people will be saved from hunger and cold.

"

"Heroes see the same thing!" Hearing this, Zheng Chenggong raised his palms and praised: "I have thought about recruiting soldiers from military households first. The Four Guards of Guangzhou and the Tatars have already forged a bloody feud, and going into battle will have miraculous effects."

Chen Kai didn't think much of counting on hatred to increase combat effectiveness. But what could the feudal army do? He didn't say anything more and continued his advice.

"Xiaguan's second strategy is still to develop, but not Zhangchao and surrounding prefectures and counties."

"oh?"

This statement indeed attracted Zheng Chenggong's attention, but when Chen Kai completely escaped from the second strategy, he shook his head, which was obviously very different from his attitude towards the first strategy.
Chapter completed!