Then there are the high-sea merchant ships, which are similar in shape to lock ships, but much larger and slender. They have a round blade in the front, a stern at the back, and a round and slender hull. I heard that only a few designated shipyards have the ability to manufacture them.
Its displacement, yes, the Song Dynasty ships did not talk about the load, but calculated the tonnage based on the displacement - the ton is another very complicated unit of measurement.
Fortunately, John had read Archimedes's Codex and could barely understand it.
The tonnage of ocean-going merchant ships is generally more than 500 tons, and the larger ones are more than 1,000 tons. John has never seen such a tall ship before.
I remember that when I and Yinsak saw the four ocean-going merchant ships of the Song Dynasty for the first time in the Port of Aden (Port of Aden), we were stunned. We looked like country bumpkins from Thrace and were laughed at by the Saracen merchants.
for a while.
Ocean-going merchant ships generally have three masts, with horizontal sails and longitudinal sails, and sail to areas outside the strait, such as Tianzhu, Saracen, Egypt, and Semien (Ethiopia).
People in the Song Dynasty called it a three-masted sailing ship, and it was said to be the main force of the Song Dynasty's long-sea ships. The ship types were similar, but the tonnage varied in size.
The three-masted sailing ship that my group took in Port Adan was one of the Song merchant fleet that set off from Kilwa Port (Tanzania) and returned to China via Port Adan. It was the same as the five ships I saw now.
, very similar.
"I don't know," Da Geer shrugged. "We'll find out when we get to the City Shipping Supervision Bureau and ask."
Da Geer's full name is Duda, he is a Class B sailor on the ship and the backbone of Ship No. 46.
For the sake of the gold coin with a Thai head that John took out, the ship's leader sent him to "serve" John and Yinsak, and also served as their language teacher.
He is young, only nineteen years old. He looks thin and frail, but he is an old seaman with four years of sailing experience. He also has a talent for languages. No matter which country he is, he only needs to get along with him for three months, even talking and gesticulating.
You can learn the other person’s simple everyday expressions.
So he himself didn't know how many languages he knew, but the one he was most proficient in was the Dashi language, which is the Saracen language spoken by John.
John didn't ask any more questions and watched five sea ships passing by quickly.
"The ships of the Song Dynasty were not only big and fast, but they also heard that they had a weapon that could spit fire and thunder. The Saracens were very afraid of them and coveted their strength for protection, so they led these ships
, running around. Wherever there are Saracens, they will lead Song ships there."
Yinsak sighed and spoke to John in Greek.
Duda blinked at the side, looking very curious.
John disagreed. He also had a talent for languages. In addition to Greek, he was proficient in Latin, Saracen and Turkic languages. He usually communicated with everyone in Saracen, which is a common language in the Southern Ocean.
On the way to the Song Dynasty, he carefully learned simple Chinese from a few Saracen sailors on the ship who were proficient in the Song language. Then he humbly learned from the Song sailors. Three or four months later, when he arrived in Guangzhou, he was actually able to speak Chinese
Song people had simple conversations.
But what made him collapse was that the words spoken by the locals in Guangzhou seemed to be different from what he learned. After a lot of effort, he realized that the dialect he learned was Northern Fujian, which was very different from the local dialect in Guangzhou.
It wasn't until I met Duda that I learned that in addition to local dialects, the Song Dynasty also had "mandarin". It was only introduced a few years ago that all schools must speak Mandarin. Duda spoke a vague Mandarin, and John quickly stuffed a Persian silver coin into it.
Worship him as your teacher.
Duda taught him Mandarin and explained to him the customs, customs and rules of the Song Dynasty.
John told him about the Southern Ocean. Although Duda had been a sailor for four years, he had only been to Lion Harbor in the Johor Strait Territory. Crossing the strait and going to the Southern Ocean had always been Dago's dream.
But John and Yinsak walked all the way from the Southern Ocean to the Strait, and they were very impressed.
From Port Adan to Port Lion on the border of the South China Sea, the ports of Saracens, Persians, and Tianzhu were full of Song ships. They cooperated closely with some Saracen merchants. Wherever there were Saracens, there were
their figures.
I heard that in the past two years, in cooperation with some Saracen merchants, Song ships traveled all over the Southern Ocean (Indian Ocean), and even opened the Zanzi Kingdom of Kir, which was controlled by the Persians and was actually controlled by the Saracens.
Wa Port Route.
But they also heard that not all Saracens welcomed these Song people. Pirates and local forces, instigated by other Saracen merchants, made trouble for these Song people.
I heard from the Saracens and Persian sailors hired by the Song people that the year before last and last year, as long as the Song people's fleet left the Johor Strait territory and entered the Southern Ocean, there was almost no day without fighting.
It's just that the people of the Song Dynasty had strong martial virtues, and they would fight whenever they wanted, without mercy. The ships were tall and sturdy, and they also had magical weapons that could spit fire and thunder. They had never suffered a big loss.
In two years of bloody battles, the Saracens, Persians, and Tianzhu people sank countless ships, and the Song people also suffered heavy losses. But they were too cruel. They sank one ship, and then turned around and came back with five or ten ships. Continue to follow you.
beat.
Even later, when too many ships were launched and the sailors and crews could not keep up, Saracens and Persians were selectively hired.
You say you are like this, who can beat you?
Those who are willing to go to sea, whether they are Saracens, Persians or Tianzhu people, go to seek wealth. No one goes to sea just to fight with others.
After repeated defeats and delays in making a fortune, everyone sat down and negotiated under the mediation of those happy Saracen merchants. I heard that the Song people were also very particular about people and were not aggressive. They just said that trade was their own and there were equal opportunities.
John and Insac asked several knowledgeable Saracen sailors on the ship to finally understand what this meant.
Anyone can do business in all ports, and no discrimination based on nationality, race, or religion is allowed - Persian ships cannot be tax-free when arriving at Persian ports, and other people's ships must be taxed; everyone's ports cannot allow people with lighter skin to
You can enter, but black brothers cannot enter; you cannot enter the Saracen Port, but those who believe in God can enter, but those who believe in others cannot enter.
Everyone competes based on their abilities and has equal opportunities. No one is allowed to engage in underhanded tricks under the table, otherwise the Song Dynasty's ships will reason with you!
At present, some ports are abiding by the rules of the Song people, but there are also many ports that are not complying and are doing their own thing. The Song people are taking time to reason with them one by one. But the business is so good at the moment that it is difficult to spare manpower and ships.
At that time, Yin Sak asked, "Do the Song people's ports also have to abide by these rules?"
The two Saracen sailors laughed very strangely at that time, but now that I think about it, it means a lot.
"The ports of the Song Dynasty had their own trade and equal opportunities... This is also the saying, but in fact there are still many differences-it must be according to the rules of the Song Dynasty."
"But..." Yin Sak couldn't understand why in the Southern Ocean, everyone must abide by the rules set by the Song people. But when they arrived at the port of the Song people, they didn't necessarily abide by them?
John thought for a while and told Yin Sak.
"Because it was the Song people who went to the Southern Ocean to reason and set rules. If other people, such as Saracens or Persians, had the ability to go to the Song people's waters to reason and set rules, the Song people should be able to abide by them. Otherwise, they would be able to abide by them.
If so, you must follow its rules."
Inspired by John's words, Yinsak also wanted to understand why those pro-Song Saracens would betray other Saracens of the same race and religion as him.
"In addition to fear, there is also greed. The products of the Song people are too rich. Silk, porcelain, tea, cotton, spices... wherever they are shipped, they can be exchanged for gold and silver. Many Saracen merchants, in addition to their
Allah, the rest can be traded.”
After John listened, he had an idea and understood why the Song Dynasty people proposed free trade and equal opportunities in the Southern Ocean. With strong strength, monopoly on best-selling goods, own trade, and equal opportunities, who could compete with him?
?
Five large sailing ships passed by not far from Ship No. 46, and the waves they caused shook Ship No. 46, awakening John and Yinsak from their memories.
"Hey, Da Geer, what kind of ships are those?" John suddenly pointed to the ships in front and asked. This chapter has been completed!
