Fu Chuan refers to a kind of sharp-bottomed sea-going boat produced in Fujian. This kind of sea-going boat has a pointed bow, wide stern, upturned heads, and high head and stern. Its sides are arched outward and there are fenders on both sides. The Fu Chuan
The hull is tall, with a wide and flat deck, continuous hatches, and a pair of eyes on both sides of the bow. The bow is high and equipped with a shock device. It can often sink small enemy ships by riding the wind and pressing down.
Thanks to Chen Youliang, the hero of the generation, Zhu Yuanzhang attached great importance to shipbuilding technology. It is no wonder that Lao Zhu suffered a lot in the water battle with Lao Chen and almost lost his life. With Zhu Yuanzhang's encouragement, in the early Ming Dynasty,
There was the first peak period of shipbuilding.
After actively replenishing armaments and building warships in the early years, there were about 5,000 warships along the coast alone, most of which were lucky ships. If you add the warships along the river, the total number of warships in the Ming Dynasty would be even greater. That year
When the Ming army sent troops to Liaodong, it relied on sea ships to transport military rations. Now that the Yellow River is overflowing, the military rations for the garrison in Shanhaiguan can only be supplemented by sea transportation.
However, the Japanese rebellion along the coast of the Ming Dynasty never stopped. Due to the strict maritime ban in the Ming Dynasty, no one was allowed to enter the sea. Some fishermen and merchants along the coast colluded with the Japanese pirates and carried out smuggling activities because they had no sea routes. During the Jianwen period, the imperial court was surrounded by
rebellion
They were so exhausted that they were naturally unable to take care of coastal defense. When these Japanese pirates saw the opportunity, they formed a raiding team and looted homes along the coast, killing people and setting fires. They even dared to rob official ships. In order to avoid being robbed, the only ones responsible for transporting food were tall warriors.
Boat——Fuchuan.
Of course, these lucky ships were supposed to transport grain north to the Shanhaiguan area, but suddenly they appeared near Dagu. There must be something fishy. Wan Lei asked the army to retreat from the seaside, avoid the artillery range of the warships, and take a closer look. If
If the opponent came ashore to attack, no wonder the Peking Army fought back in self-defense. Although the Peiping Army did not have warships, it was still possible to fight on land.
Since there are many shoals in the Bohai Bay and there are no ports in the Dagukou area, these lucky boats stopped a few dozen meters offshore. Only a few small boats were lowered and sailed towards the shore with a white flag.
, it seems that they are really not here to fight. Seeing this, Wan Lei also asked someone to set up a military flag in an open place and set it as a neutral area for meetings and negotiations.
Soon, the boat landed on the shore. Wan Lei looked through the binoculars and saw clearly the true identity of the person who came. It was Mrs. Liu who was leading the team in person. He couldn't help but sigh: This old woman is really bold, she is not afraid of being tied up.
?
Sighing, Wan Lei really wouldn't attack Mrs. Liu. After all, what Shuntian Mansion lacks most is a partner, and he doesn't want to ruin his reputation. In addition, these dozen lucky ships must have tens of thousands of shi of food, and he also wants to
They were taken down to fill the food gap, so they took Zhao Xueer and twenty members of the Jingzhong Guard to wait at the negotiation location first.
There were about a dozen people in Mrs. Liu's group, and they slowly came to the negotiation point. Since it was a temporary establishment, the negotiation point only had a table and a few chairs, and it didn't look like a formal venue. However, Mrs. Liu also
Not caring about these nonsense, he said hello to Wan Lei and sat across from him.
"It's only been a month since we last met. Mrs. Liu's possessions are getting more and more, and her courage is getting bigger and bigger." Wan Lei said with a pun.
"Don't take it seriously, Mr. Wan is becoming more and more capable, and his troops and horses are strong." Mrs. Liu said with a smile on her face.
As the saying goes, don't hit the smiling person, but the other person kept smiling. Wan Lei didn't bother to mention those dirty things not long ago. He just said angrily: "Mrs. Liu, you brought so many warships here, didn't you do it just to show off?"
"What the hell, these warships are scraps that were picked up and not worth mentioning." Mrs. Liu pursed her lips, her smile filled with pride.
"Picked it up? Mrs. Liu is such a noble person. You can pick up good things just by picking them up." Wan Lei also smiled. Of course, he would not be so stupid as to think that these boats were really picked up.
These days, it is not only the Shuntianfu area that is short of food in the north. It is also necessary to mobilize military supplies from the south to Liaodong and Yongping areas. However, the river transportation is not accessible, so the only way to transport it is by sea, via the Bohai Sea. Not only does it take a long way, but also because of the strong wind and waves.
There are also Japanese pirates attacking, which is very unsafe. If eight out of ten warships are sent out, they can arrive safely, which is considered good.
Therefore, shipping by sea seems to be a good thing, but the risk is too great. Once the ship is wrecked, if the court punishes the grain transport officer, it will be too harsh, and no one is willing to take this responsibility; if not punished, it is condoning the grain transport officer.
The official must have lied about the shipwreck, but secretly resold the grain and ship to enrich his own pockets.
Obviously, the dozens of warships and rations that Mrs. Liu had in her hands were falsely claimed to have sunk. Anyway, shipwrecks are common on the vast ocean, and the imperial court would not send people to salvage them. Mrs. Liu took care of them again.
There is no way to verify it from above.
"The imperial court dispatched more than 120 warships this time to transport 500,000 shi of troops and food northward to feed the 200,000 troops stationed on the front line of Yongping Prefecture. However, the wind and waves on the road were too strong, and fifteen ships were sunk. Alas.
, What a pity, these fifty thousand shi of food." Mrs. Liu looked regretful.
"Haha, the imperial ship has plenty of food, so this loss is nothing." Wan Lei also smiled slightly. He naturally knew that the so-called shipwreck was just an excuse for the food transport officials. Of course, Wan Lei also had to admire the old woman in front of him.
She actually managed to get the grain transport officer to give her the grain boat together. I have to say that she was very capable.
"Young Master Wan is right." Mrs. Liu pursed her lips and smiled, and added: "Young Master Wan is not bad either. He has many soldiers and artillery. It's okay to sell dozens of them to me."
"Two thousand stones of grain each, no counter-offering. As much grain as you have, I will give it to you in exchange for a few artillery pieces." Wan Lei stopped teasing and said bluntly.
"Two thousand stones of grain for one artillery is a bit expensive." Mrs. Liu frowned, looked at Wan Lei for a while, and then smiled: "Master Wan, I don't have much grain on hand. How about arriving by boat?"
The ship was exchanged for ten cannons.”
"Use a boat to arrive?" Wan Lei closed his eyes and pondered. In fact, from the moment he saw these dozens of lucky ships, he had a strong sense of possession. However, the Peking Army did not have a dedicated navy.
It is also temporarily useless, and more importantly, Shuntian Prefecture has no seaport. If a seaport is established for several warships, and troops have to be divided to garrison it, this is obviously a waste of manpower, material and financial resources.
Now Shuntian Prefecture mainly focuses on self-protection, and its military strength is barely enough to protect Beiping City. Once there are soldiers approaching the border, the harbor and sea ships will be abandoned. This is obviously a blind man lighting a lamp in vain. However, if Shuntian Prefecture wants to achieve rapid development,
Sea routes must be opened and maritime trade can be used to fill the gap, so sooner or later there must be sea ships and seaports.
"Don't you think it's expensive, Master? This ship is a good ship. It's five to six feet high and twenty feet long. It can be used as a warship or a grain ship. It's really worth the money. If you like it, I'll give it to you."
Four ships for thirty artillery pieces." Mrs. Liu thought Wan Lei was too expensive, so she gave her a 25% discount.
Wan Lei touched the inch-long beard on his chin and said, "I don't need the warship just yet, but I have a better proposal."
"A better proposal?" Mrs. Liu asked urgently.
"I can lease a piece of land along the coast to you. You can build a port there to train troops or use it as a trading point. However, the lease period is five years. After five years, you must leave and return a complete port.
Give me."
"Leasing a seaport is a new idea, but it's so far away from Jiangnan. What's the point of coming here?" Mrs. Liu blinked a few times and asked with a smile.
"I'll lease the military port to you. You can use it to station troops or use it as a trading base, but you have to give me 50,000 shi of grain every year as a usage fee. Of course, our Shuntian Mansion also produces goods, and we can use it reasonably
If I sell it to you at a reasonable price, you can still make money by transporting it to another place and reselling it."
"Oh, the young master's idea is not bad, but the annual usage fee of 50,000 dan is too high. I'm afraid the gain outweighs the loss." Mrs. Liu was so shrewd that she immediately started to negotiate a price.
"Fifty thousand shi of grain a year is not much. I will give you a commodity, and you will be able to earn back the 50,000 shi of grain in no time." Wan Lei said sternly.
"What kind of product is so profitable?"
"We, Shuntian Prefecture, are preparing to mint copper coins privately. According to the grain prices in the Ming Dynasty, I will pay four times the price to buy grain from you. If I pay with copper coins, you can make three times the profit in one go. Apart from the risks, you still have
It's hugely profitable. As for the trade of other commodities, we can discuss it in detail, but don't worry, we won't let you suffer."
"Privately minting copper coins? Haha, I already know that Mr. Wan is a shrewd and capable man. If you cooperate with him, you will definitely make money without losing money." Mrs. Liu smiled, and she smiled very happily, because she knew that once Shuntian Mansion went into private life,
The path of casting copper coins was a complete break with the Ming Dynasty.
"If you are willing to do it, then we will make a covenant. If not, I will find someone else to cooperate." Wan Lei said again.
"Yes, of course I am willing to do such a good thing. But now I don't have much food on hand, and I can't exchange for many cannons. These twenty cannons have to be installed on so many ships, and they are not enough to protect myself. Can I get more first?"
Give it to forty families, and I will use food to make up for it later."
"Sixty artillery pieces? Not to mention self-protection, you can rob official ships without any problem." Wan Lei glanced at Mrs. Liu coldly and said, "I can give you the artillery pieces and supply food within one month.