Liu Ziqiu shook his head and said: "Secrecy is important, but it cannot rely on closeness. Even the closest people may leak secrets. To keep the secrets of the court, the most important thing is to rely on the supervision of the system. Let these candidates go to different positions for internships
, and also to select suitable talents for the imperial court. As the cabinet is the center of the imperial court, only the best talents can enter."
Wei Zheng was silent for a while and said: "According to the records of Taiyuan University in the past two years, the best candidate is none other than Changsun Wuji."
Liu Ziqiu waved his hand casually and said: "Then let Changsun Wuji serve as a cabinet attaché!"
Wei Zheng added: "The candidate ranked second is called Pan Zhi, who was born in a poor family."
Liu Ziqiu nodded and said: "Where does a hero come from? Then let Pan Zhi also serve as a cabinet attaché."
…
In the summer of April in the sixth year of Zhongxing, the fleet sent by Chen Leng to the southwest returned to the naval base in Lingnan. This fleet passed through India, known as Tianzhu, and reached the distant African continent. It took two years to return to the naval base.
Returning to the Central Plains. Of course, their harvest was extremely rich. They used silk, tea, porcelain and other specialties to exchange for a large amount of gold and silver jewelry from Tianzhu. In Africa, they also went deep into the interior, but they encountered only some indigenous tribes.
.Some indigenous tribes were quite friendly to them and entertained them, while other indigenous tribes broke out into conflicts with them.
Those indigenous tribes held spears, wrapped leaves around their waists, used simple poisonous arrows, and painted colorful camouflage on their faces. They looked very scary, but they were vulnerable to a fight. As a result of the conflict, these indigenous tribes naturally
They encountered a disaster. However, apart from getting some food from these indigenous tribes, they only got some slaves and almost nothing else. Because of this, Chen Leng's fleet returned home after not gaining anything in Africa.
.
Of course, the biggest gain is the charts and logbooks they drew. The navy originally did not have logbooks when sailing at sea. This was the idea brought by Liu Ziqiu. But given the conditions at the time, the logbooks mainly recorded various places.
Weather conditions. Both charts and logbooks are extremely important. With these things, it will be much more convenient to take this route next time. You can clearly avoid various reefs, thus saving a lot of time, and you can
Let the fleet go further.
In the past two years, Liu Ziqiu has not been idle. He drew a world map by hand. Of course, this map is very simple. It only roughly marks the locations of the five continents and the four oceans. It can barely open the eyes of people of this era.
That's all. In the past, Liu Ziqiu never took out this simple world map, because the civil and military officials would not believe that the world was like this. They always believed that the land they were in was the center of the world, so they called it the Central Plains. And in
In their eyes, the sea has no boundaries, and there is no way there is a vast continent on the other side of the sea. The most important thing is that everyone still firmly believes that the world is a round sky, and no one will believe that they live on a blue planet.
1. Chen Leng returned from Africa and gave Liu Ziqiu a strong evidence to explain his "theory".
In Daxing Hall, Liu Ziqiu met Chen Leng and his entourage who had returned from afar.
Chen Leng bowed and saluted, with tears in his eyes, and said loudly: "Your Majesty, I have been ordered to go south. Following the route indicated by your Majesty, I have indeed arrived in Tianzhu. This is the property I purchased from Tianzhu."
The entourage had already presented several plates of jewelry, including various gemstones the size of pigeon eggs, as well as various gold and silver utensils. The Han Dynasty was a country with a shortage of gold and silver, and ordinary people used a large number of pottery, porcelain, gold and silver utensils in their homes.
It was only used among nobles. Liu Ziqiu advocated frugality, and a large number of pottery and porcelain were used in the palace. Many gold and silver utensils left by Yang Guang were publicly auctioned by Liu Ziqiu in exchange for a large amount of wealth, which was invested in the most needed items.
They went to the money-making business. The documents issued by Chen Leng showed that during the two-year trip, the gold and silver utensils they obtained could meet the needs of the whole country for one year. This was because the fleet was not large enough, with only twenty ships.
Under such circumstances, if several more fleets are sent to trade, the gains should be even greater.
Looking at those priceless jewelry and gold and silver utensils, all the civil and military officials in the palace could not help but feel excited. Zhang Liang couldn't help but swallowed his saliva, cupped his hands and said: "I didn't expect that Tianzhu is so rich, why doesn't your majesty raise voluntary soldiers and send them to the country?"
Be included in my big man’s territory!”
Liu Ziqiu frowned slightly and scolded: "I am a big man who is a country of etiquette. I have always followed the strategy of not offending others if they don't offend me. How can I do this banditry!"
Chen Leng bowed and said: "What your Majesty said is true. In fact, Tianzhu is not a country, but is divided into many large and small kingdoms. The customs of these kingdoms are very different, and I have seen many strange things among them. For example, there is a kingdom,
The status of a monk is even higher than that of a king. Before a girl gets married, she must be sent to the temple to let the monk sleep for three days, and even the queen is no exception."
All the ministers were in an uproar and commented in unison: "I never imagined that there is such a shameless place in the world."
Liu Ziqiu, who came from later generations, had heard of this kind of thing. He smiled and waved his hand and said: "The world is so big, there are all kinds of surprises. Things that seem incredible to you are normal in the eyes of others, and there is nothing surprising about them."
Yes. I just want to know, are these kingdoms still friendly to my Han fleet?"
Chen Leng cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, most kingdoms can get along with my Han fleet on an equal footing, and some kings will entertain their ministers warmly. But there are also some greedy people who intend to rob the property carried by my Han fleet.
However, the armies of these kingdoms are really not worth mentioning. A team of ten people in the fleet can kill more than a thousand of them and flee. I am following your majesty's words. I will not attack others unless they attack me.
As long as the other party does not take anything by force, I will deal with them fairly. If someone dares to have bad intentions towards me, I will definitely retaliate. Some of these jewelry and gold and silver utensils were stolen from their palace!"
"Anyone who dares to offend my big man will be killed no matter how far away he is! It's no big deal to rob him of some jewels and teach him a lesson." Liu Ziqiu waved his hand and said, "It's just that your fleet lasted two years and lacked supplies. You won't be able to fight with these countries again."
When fighting tribes, there will inevitably be casualties. The losses along the way are not small."
Chen Leng's face became sad and he lowered his head and said, "I dare not hide anything from Your Majesty. When I went to sea, there were twenty ships with more than 20,000 sailors and soldiers. Now that I have returned to the Central Plains, there are only ten ships with more than ten thousand people left!"
When they first learned that Chen Leng had returned, everyone was immersed in joy and excitement. Even Liu Ziqiu didn't ask about the fleet's losses. Now that he heard that more than half of the fleet had been damaged, he couldn't help but take a breath.
Chen Leng continued: "The actual number of casualties in the battle was only about a thousand soldiers. Many soldiers died of disease and wind and waves. Of the ten ships lost, seven were destroyed by wind and waves, and another three hit the rocks."
Such a situation was originally expected by Liu Ziqiu. After all, the current navigation technology is still quite backward. It can only sail along the coastline, which is naturally easy to hit the rocks. In fact, even in later generations, with various advanced technologies, shipwrecks will still be
They emerge in endlessly. The sea contains endless wealth, but it also lurks endless dangers.
Liu Ziqiu couldn't help but nodded and asked: "Chen Leng, if I let you go to the West again, will you dare to travel?"
Chen Leng cupped his hands and said, "I have memorized the appropriate route for this voyage. If I am fully prepared, I can guarantee that the losses will be reduced by more than half!"
Liu Ziqiu laughed heartily and said: "Chen Aiqing is the person who has traveled the farthest among my great men. He has been to many places that no one has been to before. For this reason, I will praise you greatly. According to my decree, Chen Leng will be named
A third-class Duke enjoys a second-class salary!"
The titles in the Han Dynasty did not have a salary, but were spiritual rewards, so Liu Ziqiu also adjusted Chen Leng's salary from the fourth grade to the second grade, so that his material treatment could also be improved. Of course, the title is not completely useless. At least.
Titles can be inherited, but official titles cannot. On the other hand, noble children with titles can receive corresponding care in their studies and imperial examinations, which will also bring considerable benefits to their descendants.
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, only a few people have been awarded the title of Duke. However, Chen Leng only led a fleet on a single voyage and received such a generous reward. Not only were all the civil and military ministers jealous, but even Chen Leng himself shed tears of gratitude and couldn't help but puff up his chest.
, said loudly: "As long as your Majesty gives me a month to rest and prepare, I am willing to follow the order and travel far again!"
"No rush, no rush. Let me show you something first." Liu Ziqiu waved to the chamberlain beside him and said, "Bring that thing up."
The two chamberlains took the order and retreated to the back of the palace. After a while, they carried a huge screen. However, this screen was not a painting, but a huge color map. The center of the map marked the location of the Han Dynasty.
To the east is the vast sea, with several pieces of land clearly visible. On the sea, there are several lines of money connecting these landmasses.
Chen Ling took a look at the world map and suddenly became excited: "Your Majesty, it turns out that you are the one who has traveled the farthest! I seem to have been here, here, and here. I didn't expect that Your Majesty knew these places.
Moreover, this map is much wider than the sea chart I drew!"
However, Wei Zheng knew that Liu Ziqiu came to Changshan Village from the sea, and he became excited: "It turns out that His Majesty has been to those places a long time ago. No wonder he insisted on sending a fleet to sea."
But Liu Ziqiu laughed and said: "Where have I been to those many places? This is just what I realized in my dream some time ago. I drew it specially and wanted to ask Chen Aiqing to confirm it."