In recent years, Dakang has become increasingly weak. Not only is it threatened by Khitan, Dangxiang and Tibet in the north and west, but pirates in coastal areas are also becoming more and more rampant, seriously affecting the normal work of coastal fishermen and salt plants.
It's not a big deal if it affects fishermen, but it's serious if it affects salt plants.
Salt merchants are the spokespersons of the powerful. If the salt factory is touched, it will affect the salt merchant's business, which is equivalent to tampering with the rich and powerful's cake.
In order to combat pirates, the dignitaries rarely united and quickly established two naval divisions, one stationed at the mouth of the Yellow River and the other stationed at the mouth of the Yangtze River.
No matter what the powerful people's motives were, at least no one made trouble for the navy, and no officials withheld food and salary.
Therefore, the navy's combat effectiveness is not bad, and it has frequently fought against pirates in recent years.
Jin Feng led his personal guards and rode along the coastline, and saw a military camp in the distance.
Above the military camp, the flag of the Donghai Navy fluttered in the wind, and the warships on the water were also neatly arranged.
Next to the military port is a civilian wharf.
Jin Feng's fleet docked here.
It's just that the ships he brought were all merchant ships. It was not enough to run around on inland rivers like the Yangtze River. It was not enough to engage in water battles with water bandits at sea.
So on the way, Jin Feng thought about it. If something couldn't be done, he would think of a way and ask Donghai Navy for help.
Arriving at the gate of the naval camp, Jin Feng asked Da Liu to hand over his greeting card.
When the guard saw that Jin Feng was leading so many personal guards, he knew that he was not an ordinary person, so he did not dare to embarrass himself and honestly sent the invitation in.
After a while, a burly man with a full beard strode over.
From afar, he cupped his fists and saluted Jin Feng: "Haha, General Jin, I have admired your name for a long time, and today I finally get to see your face! As expected, he is as young and promising as the rumors say, and his talents are impressive!"
"General Zheng is so complimentary."
Jin Feng returned the gift with a smile.
Before coming, he had inquired that the general of the Donghai Navy was called Zheng Chiyuan. He was not a war sect or a peace sect. He was a rare and pure soldier in Dakang.
After Jin Feng read the information, he had a pretty good impression of him.
At least Zheng Chiyuan has been actively resisting pirates.
Now that we have met, my impression is even better.
It can be seen from the opponent's skin color, figure and walking posture that Zheng Chiyuan should often exercise outdoors, which at least shows that he is not a dandy general.
His words are also reliable.
He has the generosity that a soldier should have, and the tact and sophistication that a general should have.
"No, it's not a ridiculous compliment! Zheng admires General Jin's achievements in Qingshui Valley and Xichuan City. If the generals in Dakang can be as good as the generals, there is no need to worry about being bullied by foreign enemies again!"
Although it was the first time they met, Zheng Chiyuan felt like meeting an old friend. He put his arm around Jin Feng's shoulders and said to the guard: "This is General Jin from Xichuan. You cannot stop him when he comes to the camp in the future!"
"Yes!" The guard nodded quickly and looked at Jin Feng carefully, fearing that he would admit his mistake later.
"General Jin, let's go in and talk!"
Zheng Chiyuan held Jin Feng in his arms and walked into the navy camp.
He led Jin Feng into the living room, and when the guards brought tea and left, Zheng Chiyuan said: "General Jin, Zheng is a rough man. He doesn't like the false politeness of those civil servants. If you want to say what you want, just say it directly. You are here from afar."
Come on, you’re not here to fish in the East China Sea, right?”
When Jin Feng heard this, he couldn't help but take a deep look at Zheng Chiyuan.
Although he has a good impression of Zheng Chiyuan, he will not underestimate him because of it.
The East China Sea is his territory, and the escort was attacked by water bandits at the fishing village pier. It is impossible for him to not know about such a big movement.
At this time, it is obvious that he is asking questions knowingly.
But Jin Feng did not expose it, but said with a smile: "General Zheng is bold and generous, which is exactly what I want! Then I can just say it?"
Zheng Chiyuan did not answer, but just made a gesture of invitation.
"When I came to the navy camp this time, I really asked General Zheng for help." Jin Feng said.
"Oh, General Jin, please speak." Zheng Chiyuan made a listening gesture.
"It's like this. I have a bodyguard agency and a chamber of commerce under me. They were attacked by a group of water bandits in Jiangnan some time ago and suffered heavy casualties..."
Jin Feng quickly recounted what happened recently.
"What, the water bandits are so bold that they even dare to attack General Jin's fleet?"
Zheng Chiyuan got up and slapped the case, his face full of anger.
But he didn't bring up the matter of Hai helping to suppress the bandits at all.
Jin Feng understood that the other party was waiting for him to speak first, so that he could take more initiative in the negotiation.
Normally, Jin Feng would never let the other party succeed, but now he was in a hurry to return to Xichuan and had no intention of bargaining with Zheng Chiyuan.
He took the initiative and said: "This group of water bandits is now hiding on Crab Claw Island. My escort is not good at water warfare and does not have a warship. I would like to ask General Zheng to come out and help me wipe out this group of thieves!"
Zheng Chiyuan looked as embarrassed as Jin Feng had guessed.
"General Jin, it stands to reason that it is the Navy's unshirkable responsibility to help exterminate the water bandits. However, when the Navy was first established, the court formulated detailed terms of reference. The first one is the responsibility of the Navy, which is to guard the people along the coast.
You cannot go to sea to fight."
"Is there any such rule?"
Jin Feng was stunned.
He guessed that Zheng Chiyuan would bargain, but he didn't expect that the other party would use this reason.
If the Navy cannot go to sea to fight, what else is it called the Navy?
"Why did I lie to the general?"
Zheng Chiyuan took out an official document from the side and handed it to Jin Feng: "This is the scope of authority and military discipline of the Donghai Navy. General, you will know after reading it."
Jin Feng took the official document and took a quick look to confirm that it was genuine.
Opening the document, the first article is indeed the same as what Zheng Chiyuan said, stipulating that the Donghai Navy can only operate near the coast and cannot fight deep into the sea.
This rule made Jin Feng dumbfounded, but then he suddenly understood.
The main reason why the powerful established a navy was to protect the coastal salt fields, not to suppress bandits.
If all the navy went to the sea to hunt down pirates, who would protect the salt factory?
Moreover, long-distance operations will speed up the wear and tear of warships, and the powerful will have to pay the bills. It’s strange that they can agree.
However, Jin Feng was not one to give up easily. After reading the first article, he did not return the document, but continued reading, hoping to find loopholes that could be exploited.
When he saw Article 15, Jin Feng's eyes couldn't help but light up slightly.
This article stipulates that the Navy must go to sea for drills once every three months.
This entry was made to prevent the navy from being lazy, but Jin Feng saw an opportunity.
"General Zheng, when the navy goes out for sea exercises, if it encounters a pirate attack, can it fight back?" Jin Feng asked.
"Of course you can..."
Zheng Chiyuan nodded, then suddenly froze.
He understood what Jin Feng meant.
In fact, he had already thought about it. If Jin Feng was willing to pay a sufficient price, he could make an exception and violate the military order once and help Jin Feng kill these water bandits.
At worst, he would be held accountable by the powerful officials in the DPRK and China, but they would not really withdraw because of this matter.
Unexpectedly, Jin Feng actually helped him find a loophole that he could exploit.
However, Zheng Chiyuan reacted very quickly. He was stunned for less than two seconds and then regained his troubled expression.
Jin Feng didn't wait for him to speak, reached out and took a wooden box from Da Liu's hand and put it on the table.