"Mom, I'm going out for a while and I'll be back later."
"Uncle Guo, Aunt Guo, please excuse me for a moment!"
Li Jie greeted the three of them respectively, then stood up and walked out the door. There were some things that were not suitable for them to know for the time being, otherwise they would not be able to explain them at all. Instead of lying to them, it was better to hide them first.
Opening the courtyard door, Liu Xiaoyu was about to announce the good news but was stopped by Li Jie's look. The distance from the courtyard door to the dining room was only a few dozen meters. How could such a short distance be hidden from Guo Jing's perception.
Liu Xiaoyu was a smart man, otherwise Liu Xiaohu would not have taken him with him. Then he nodded to indicate that he understood, and then he whispered in a low voice until he followed Li Jie to the entrance of the village.
"Da Lang, brother Sanli returned from the sea the day before yesterday and brought back good news. He finally found an island that meets the requirements! And there is also a small iron mine and a small open-pit copper mine on this island."
Hearing this, Li Jie felt a burst of ecstasy in his heart. After searching for so long, he finally found it, and even the initial ore resources were solved. It's great!
To be precise, this island is a base, a comprehensive base that integrates production, living, military training, and testing. It is expected that shipyards, steel mills, gunpowder factories, firearms factories, sugar factories, and colored glazes will be built on it.
Factory etc.
In addition, this island is also a huge military camp. The island is under military management. There are about 50,000 people living on this island.
Naturally, islands that bear many important responsibilities cannot be chosen at will. The first point is that they must be hidden enough and cannot be located on commonly used waterways. Secondly, the area of the island must be large enough, otherwise it will not be able to accommodate so many people.
Third, the island needs to have complex terrain, because it also has a role in training troops. The fourth point is that it cannot be too close to the mainland, nor too far away. If it is close, it is easy to be discovered, and if it is far away, supply transportation becomes a problem.
Big problem.
The fifth point, and the most important point, is that there must be a good natural port, otherwise it will be impossible to berth a large number of ships.
Maritime trade is an important part of Li Jie's fortune-making. Simply relying on mainland trade will inevitably attract the attention of others as his power grows, which is inconsistent with his original intention of quietly making a fortune.
The sixth point is that it is best to have a small and easy-to-mine iron mine on the island, because whether it is weapons, armor, or climbing technology trees, they are all inseparable from steel. Of course, this is not a must. If there is, it is best.
Don't force it either.
Islands that meet so many requirements at the same time are very rare. In addition, Li Jie only has a few ships capable of ocean exploration, so the progress has naturally slowed down. He originally thought it would take another year or two to find them.
Li Jie had actually selected the island when he entered the dungeon, and even went to the site to inspect it. Who knew that in this dungeon, that island did not exist at all.
Although the land areas of the Southern Song Dynasty world are somewhat different from those of the main world, they are still basically the same. Who would have expected that the differences at sea would be so big.
Just in case, he even sent someone to Ryukyu Island, fearing that the largest island would be gone.
Fortunately, Ryukyu Island still exists, and there are not many people living on it. Except for some indigenous people, they are some remnants of the previous dynasty. It is not very difficult to conquer this island.
However, in recent years, Li Jie has not been able to consider developing Ryukyu for the time being. Firstly, the investment cost is too high. Secondly, there is not enough manpower. In the final analysis, it is because of insufficient funds, that is, no money.
"Xiao Yu'er, how are you doing with your Yi language?"
Liu Xiaoyu touched his head, smiled, and replied confidently.
"I am now able to communicate with people in Dashi (Arabic) proficiently, and writing simple documents is not a problem. I am currently learning Champa dialect."
Li Jie nodded slightly. Liu Xiaoyu's talent in language was as good as his talent in martial arts. The main reason for letting him learn Yi language was to rob Fan merchants and use it for himself.
There is no psychological burden on Li Jie to rob these people. On the one hand, it can increase an extra income, and on the other hand, it can also play a role in training troops.
After robbing the property, he also had other uses for the people left behind. First, he used various means to restrain the group of people, which was nothing more than a combination of kindness and power plus poison.
Then let them come to the front and export goods to the Song Dynasty in the name of Fanshang, while he would hide behind them and command remotely, secretly developing them, and wait until the force is strong enough to go to the front.
Nowadays, Mongolia frequently goes south and launches wars, causing many people to become homeless. Secretly recruiting tens of thousands of refugees is like a wave of waves in the sea, inconspicuous at all.
When the power is fully developed and there are hundreds of thousands of people under his command, even if he is discovered, it will not be a big deal. When the troops are strong, there will be no need to fear others.
Li Jie estimated that it would take at least ten years to reach that level. By then the Southern Song Dynasty would have perished, and he would have too much time to take care of himself, so he would not have time to provoke this huge force that suddenly emerged.
The day when the Third Five-Year Plan is realized is the moment Li Jie officially takes to the poker table!
When the time comes, everything from Mongolia to Song Dynasty will have to step aside!
"You go back and tell your eldest brother and let him act as planned. I have something going on at home these two days and I can't leave for the time being. After the guests leave, I will go to the city and tell him the follow-up plan in person."
Li Jie did not tell Liu Xiaohu the full plan. At present, he only knew that Li Jie was planning to build a base on the sea. He only thought that his employer was preparing a retreat and planned to establish a base overseas as king.
After all, the current situation of the Song Dynasty is not optimistic. The worst result is that the country will be destroyed and the family will be destroyed. Fleeing overseas is a way out.
Liu Xiaoyu has been following Liu Xiaohu for more than two years. He has long known that his boss likes to be the hands-off shopkeeper. He can let go of hundreds of thousands of dollars of business at will. He is not surprised at all by Li Jie's answer.
"Well, Dalang, I'm going back first. Do you have any other instructions?"
Li Jie shook his head, smiled and waved his hand: "Go back and take me to say hello to your elder brother!"
"Well, I'll take my leave first!"
Back home, Mu Nianci has become accustomed to her son's occasional mysterious behavior in the past few years. This is not the first time she has seen a scene like today. She did not ask Li Jie what he was doing, but just asked him to eat more.
Huang Rong glanced at Li Jie who was as if nothing had happened. She was so curious that she didn't know what this kid was doing.
Could it be some shameful thing?
However, as a mother, Mu Nianci didn't even ask, so why was she embarrassed to ask, let alone Guo Jing next to her. After so many years as a couple, she still didn't understand Guo Jing?
Originally, according to the master's sensing range, he would definitely be able to hear clearly what was going on, but Brother Jing was too upright. In order to prevent him from hearing something he shouldn't hear, he would usually only shrink his spiritual sense to within five feet of his body.