The door opened, and outside was the butler Zou Dahe with a calm expression.
"You're here," Ren Ning signaled, "Sit down and talk!"
"Is there something new going on in the north?"
"Thank you, General!" Zou Dahe did not sit down immediately, but first sent the windmill message he had just received, "There is indeed a new situation in Huayang County."
"Yesterday at noon, three Japanese pirate fleets set off from Sishan Islands and headed straight for Dinghai Pier. Mr. Mo once again sent out an urgent request for help. Huayang County is now in chaos. Many landlords and gentry are moving their families. There are so many people that even
The post roads are all blocked."
Ren Ning read the message silently.
He raised his head and glanced at the hourglass, "It's almost winter now, and the west wind should be blowing near the East China Sea."
"The general is right." Zou Dahe nodded.
He was also a Xingluo soldier before. During his more than 20 years of military career, he moved around with the army every three years, so he had a general understanding of the climate in each defense area.
"The climate east of Hwayang County is not much different from the Baekje Peninsula. In summer, the wind is mostly from the east, blowing from the sea to the land. In winter, the wind is the opposite, mostly blowing from the land to the sea."
"Then the Japanese pirates are sailing against the wind." Ren Ning walked to the map and estimated the distance from Sishan Islands to Dinghai Pier. He looked at the hourglass again and said, "I think the front fleet of the Japanese pirates should have arrived at Dinghai Pier by now."
Zou Dahe naturally knew what he was doing and nodded in agreement, "Even if he didn't arrive, he would probably have already appeared in the sight of the defenders on the shore."
"The war is about to break out." Ren Ning's eyes fell on the map south of Star City, "Has the central army set off?"
Earlier when Li Hebai led the fleet north from Zhennan Pass, he also received news from Xingji City.
Emperor Changxing of the Qin Dynasty approved Feng Haohan's support plan, and the Central Army Corps was ready to go.
"Back to the general, Feng Haohan said nicely, but the central army is moving slowly. As of today, only the vanguard of more than 10,000 people has left the Ruinanshan camp. The baggage has not yet been loaded into trucks and ships."
well.
Speaking of this, Zou Dahe sighed.
"As the saying goes, before the troops and horses move, food and fodder go first. Now the baggage and food and fodder have not been loaded into trucks and ships, and I don't know how the Central Army Corps has been training in these years."
"Furthermore, the distance between Ruinan County and Huayang County is far away. The post road is still blocked by refugees. I don't know when more than 10,000 people will be able to arrive at Dinghai Wharf."
Ren Ning was silent for a while, and then spoke up after a while, "If they want to leave, that's no problem."
If the Central Corps does not want to leave or deliberately delays, Ren Ning and others are here in Guangxin County, and it is useless to worry.
"I hope Master Mo can hold on until the reinforcements arrive." Zou Dahe said.
Ren Ning nodded and changed the topic, "What other important matters do you have at hand now?"
"Back to General," Zou Dahe said in a much more relaxed tone, "There are a lot of small things, but only two or three big things. I am following your instructions to continue purchasing the fields in Laigu County, and the progress is going smoothly."
cough.
Ren Ning coughed.
This mission was not assigned by him, but in fact it was still Princess Yiguang’s intention.
It's just that the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion has been closely watched by Jin Linwei and other parties, so Ren Ning is asked to think of a solution.
But the strange thing is that the money spent to buy the fields and forests was paid by the Zhenguo government, but Ren Ning's name was written on all the land deeds.
"In addition, the shipment of wood to Pinghai County finally took place last month. However, the number of caravans has not yet reached the general's requirements, and we have to continue to look for it. My subordinates are working hard."
Ren Ning nodded.
This is what Wei Junqian meant.
Yun Chui's navy is also known as the East China Sea Barrier, and its base camp is in Pinghai County, the hometown of the Gu family's caravan.
Nowadays, there are frequent battles at the East China Sea Barrier, and many warships are in urgent need of repairs.
And Ishikawa Taki made it clear that he wanted to forcefully land on the mainland of Yunzui, so in the coming years, Yunzui was in urgent need of building a large number of new warships and transport ships.
For a time, the wood and iron stored in Pinghai County were no longer enough.
As the saying goes, a clever woman cannot make a meal without rice.
When the war came, the East China Sea barrier was short of iron and wood. This news reached the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Industry, and the two ministers, Guanyi and Luoken, were also anxious.
Iron ore is the lifeblood of the empire. Under normal circumstances, no one dares to touch it, so I will not discuss it here.
As for the wood for shipbuilding, it is easier to find and cut the wood. How to transport it is the problem.
After all, most of the places where Yunchui is rich in timber are located on the frontiers.
For example, Yumu and Yanhui counties in the northeast; Guangxin County in the south; Xingluo, Yingchuan and Yunzhong counties in the southwest; and Laigu, Tianshui and Luoxia Mountains in the west.
These places all have one thing in common, which is that they are far away from Pinghai County in the east.
Although the imperial court has its own fleet of vehicles that can be put to use, it is well known that the efficiency of the iron rice bowls is hard to describe and is appallingly low.
Perhaps before they could transport enough wood, the East China Sea Barrier or the Japanese pirate fleet were destroyed several times.
Therefore, when they were at Jinlongtan, the foresighted Wei Junqian took the initiative to chat with Lu Fuhai, and the two giants quickly reached a consensus.
Lu Fuhai then sent people to deliver the letter back to Xingji City at high speed, suggesting that the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Industry not only send the imperial court's own fleet to transport wood, but also recruit caravans to help.
Among the two legions, the only one with close ties to the caravan was Ren Ning, so the task fell to Guangxin again.
As long as there is work to do, there will be money to collect.
Moreover, the lumber was transported by caravans, and they were just connectors or intermediaries, so it took no effort at all.
So Zou Dahe asked his master for his opinion and then happily accepted it.
"There aren't enough caravans. Are they unwilling to transport wood?" Ren Ning asked.
"Of course not." Zou Dahe shook his head, "It seems they can't wait any longer."
Think about it too.
Traditionally, there were two caravans in Yunchui, one from east to west and one from north to south. Almost all other trade routes were separated from these two lines, but their destinations or distances were different.
The East-West Line had been disconnected for three or four years, and a large number of caravans who used to take the East-West Line had either been resting at home or shortened their journeys or changed directions, and their lives were very unsatisfactory.
Now that Xiliang has finally returned to the grassland, some caravans can no longer sit still and are starting to inquire about the time when the East-West trade route will be restored. But in the final analysis, there are still not many caravans who will actually dare to set foot on the road to the west in the next two years.
After all, businessmen love money, but at the same time they also cherish their lives.
As for the North-South Line, this line cannot be walked for a long time every year due to heavy snowfall and mountain closures.
Now that the Japanese pirates are trying to start a war in the east, it is estimated that the caravans dare not even go as far as Huayang County, so the caravans taking the north-south route will soon have to suspend or shorten their itinerary.
Under such circumstances, it was difficult to find a stable job. Although the delivery was heavy wood, the caravans still flocked to it.
After all, no matter how heavy the wood is, it is not as heavy as the stones from Dingxi County. In previous years, there were many caravans specially delivering stones.
"General, there are many caravans that have signed up, but after all our Guangxin is located in southern Xinjiang. Many business leaders have doubts in their hearts but they can't get there at the moment, so the number signed is not enough yet."
"But I believe it won't take long before we can find enough caravans to transport the wood."
"Very good." Ren Ning was very satisfied, "Continue to work hard."