In the next few days, Zhao Xin either took Liu Sheng or Wang Yuanfang back and forth between the eighteenth-century Bear Island and the modern ice-free port, preparing for the transfer and base construction after the beginning of spring.
The ten heavy draft horses bought from Uncle Andrew's ranch have been sent to the farm in the north of Freezing Port. Zhao Xin recruited a local farmer to take care of the horses; as for the repair of the old houses on the farm, he doesn't care about it at the moment.
If not, just leave it alone for now.
Zhao Xin spent a day in the local public library and found local maps and surrounding mineral resource distribution maps from the late 19th century from many materials. He made a copy of these materials and brought them back to Chen
Qingsong asked him to plan and design in advance.
A few days later, Deng Fei sent news that the bulk cargo ship had left the port carrying 5,000 tons of grain! It was expected to arrive in twenty-five days.
Zhao Xin carefully calculated the time. After the cargo ship arrives at the port, the ice period on the sea surface on Bear Island will be over, and the transfer can begin immediately. At that time, he, Liu Sheng, Wang Yuanfang and others will come to pick up the ship.
.At the same time, Zhao Xin asked Liu Sheng to start training Wang Yuanfang and other modern people on ship knowledge. Zhao Liang and Zhang Bo will be temporarily responsible for the ship management work.
Now that there are five people, Liu Sheng, Deng Fei, Zhao Liang, Zhang Bo and Ding Guofeng, the freighter can be started. As for the short-handed sailors and crew, first select a dozen people from the refugees and slowly train them.
The Mandarin training class on Bear Island is progressing quite smoothly. Ten people including Elu, Serdan, Hengji and Sheng Haizhou can already pronounce their names and some simple daily greetings in Chinese. It is estimated that it will take another one or two months.
, general communication is not a problem.
As for Yarha's condition, he has improved greatly after the arrival of Hong Tao and Liu Siting. The infection in large areas of the body has been cured. The only shortcoming is that three fingers and two toes were necrotic. Hong Tao removed them after the diagnosis.
I'm afraid it's impossible to hunt anymore. Let's follow Liu Zheng to take care of the captured war horses.
Zhao Xin had handed over all the medical supplies he had purchased previously to Hong Tao and Liu Siting, and asked them to make a list of other medical supplies that needed to be purchased. Hong Tao proposed to buy a small X-ray machine and color ultrasound equipment, and Zhao Xin
Also agreed.
Chen Qingsong has some design and planning skills. He immediately got to work after getting the map information provided by Zhao Xin. Zhao Xin's suggestion was to build a future city near the port, relying on it to build a city along the Xila River.
It has been developing to the northwest and established many agricultural towns; the development of local farmland is mainly on the west bank of the Xila River, and the east will later be military camps and future industrial facilities.
Zhao Xin considered that in the next year, unless he needed to leave temporarily to purchase weapons, he would stay in the eighteenth century for most of the rest of the time.
In mid-February of the forty-ninth year of Qianlong's reign, as a ten-man team of sentry riders rushed back from the fishing village delivered news, everyone's eyes and attention finally focused on Bear Island, the largest of the fourteen islands in the South China Sea.
Ute Shan, the leader of Hunchun who was sitting in the city of Pengchou, couldn't care so much anymore. There were more than a hundred people who had lived and died, and no corpses were seen. The noisy family members of Xianghuangqi who came to his door every day almost made his head explode. So he went to find them privately.
I met the local shaman and wanted to ask for good or bad luck through practices.
In front of the shrine, as the sound of waist bells and scratching drums sounded, two masked shamans held drum whips in one hand and scratching drums in the other, and began to beat rhythmically, with their bodies rising and falling; the other two
A masked shaman held a rattle in his hand, shaking it while his feet suddenly moved forward and sometimes retreated.
The old shaman in charge of divination wore a sacred hat with colorful fringes covering his face. After kneeling in front of the shrine and offering incense, he began to sing a mellow divine song and perform divination.
(This is the ancestor of the great Northeastern dance master in later generations.)
Wu Teshan stood nervously behind the shaman, waiting for the results of the divination. After hearing the news, the Zhenghuangqi and Zhengbaiqi commanders who came over were stopped by Wuteshan's Goshiha, and the two looked at each other.
Master Xie Ling, what kind of trouble are you going to make? You can just call a shaman to perform ancestral worship, cure illnesses and build a house. Shamans are also asked to predict good and bad luck in military and political affairs. If this is spread, people must not laugh. Besides,
If shamans are asked to divine fortune-telling for major military and state affairs, why do we, the garrison soldiers, need to be used?
Looking at the closed door, the two subordinates shook their heads helplessly and each sighed. They knew that if it were the other person, it would probably be the same as Wu Teshan.
An hour later, the old shaman finally finished communicating with the gods and whispered the divination results to Ute Mountain.
"The gods said that several demons came to the island, leading a group of subordinates...the soldiers all died in the battle..."
"The Water God said that these demons also have boats as big as mountains... that can travel thousands of miles a day on the sea..."
It is said that shamanism believes in the animism of all things. Among the various gods, the ghosts and gods formed by the dead ancestors and the gods that bring various diseases and death in the world are the core. Fire, mountains, rivers, water, trees, sun, moon and stars,
Thunder and lightning, clouds, ice and snow, wind and rain, rainbows and some animals are also endowed with godhead.
"The ancestors said, we...we..." The old shaman hesitated for a long time, but finally did not say it. Those words he swallowed just now will make him lose his head if they are spread out!
Wu Teshan's cold sweat kept flowing down his forehead. His legs were shaking at this moment, and he knelt on the ground with a plop, and kept kowtowing towards the shrine.
Are they all dead? Something big is going to happen now!
Half an hour later, the lost Wu Teshan walked out of the house, and the two subordinates who had been waiting for a long time hurriedly came forward to ask.
"Sir, are you okay?" Zhenghuang Qizuo took the lead and asked.
"Yes, sir. What's the result of the divination?" The leader of Zhengbai Banner looked at Wu Te Mountain with a look of disdain on his face.
Wu Teshan stared blankly at the ground at the back of his house and remained silent for a long time.
A few days later, Anlin, the deputy commander of Ningguta, led three hundred cavalry soldiers, one man and two horses, and hurriedly arrived at Hunchun City. A few days later, an assistant sent by Jilin General Qinggui to participate in the investigation.
The leader also arrived with two hundred cavalry soldiers; this man was named Tuoketong'a. After seeing An Lin, he handed over Qinggui's autographed letter to him.
In the letter, Qinggui ordered Anlin to investigate the matter without delay. Those missing soldiers must be seen alive and dead.
An Lin, who was sitting in the lobby of the government office, first asked his master to read Qinggui's letter to the generals below. Then he glanced coldly at everyone present. After feeling that the official atmosphere was tense and serious enough, he slowly said:
"Lord Qing has reported this matter to the Ministry of War immediately and is preparing to report it to the Emperor."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone in the room heard a "clang!" and looked up. It turned out that Wu Teshan had overturned to the ground with the chair underneath him. A leader with a yellow flag hurriedly stepped forward.
He helped Wu Teshan up and set up a chair for him to sit down.
An Lin cursed in his heart, what kind of thing did this bastard Wu Teshan do? He stabbed a big mess, but more than a hundred living people would disappear without a trace. Such a big thing happened, a person
I'm afraid dismissal, investigation and punishment are all frivolous, and even An Lin himself would have to suffer a lot.
After Wu Teshan sat down again, Anlin coughed and said, "Wote Shan, please tell us about the progress in the past few days."
Wu Teshan mustered up the courage to stand up, bowed to An Lin and said: "Sir, according to the news sent back by the sentries in the past few days, I can be sure that Yarha, Serdan and all the thieves are hiding in Xiong.
island."
He paused and glanced at Anlin before continuing: "However, according to the report from the sentry team that returned to the city the day before yesterday, another ten-man team has also lost contact since they went to the island to search. I'm afraid...
I'm afraid they, like Tomohogo, have suffered the same fate."
"Sigh" An Lin took a breath, the situation became more and more serious. He thought for a moment, and then asked Wu Teshan: "When will the ice in the South China Sea be thawed?"
"The weather this year is the same as in previous years, so we can only go sailing in mid-March. In previous years, we would visit the South China Sea islands in late March and early April."
"What's the ice situation like now? Is there any investigation?"
"The sentry came yesterday to report that the ice was slightly loose."
"Where's that side of Bear Island?"
"Because the northern bay of Bear Island does not freeze all year round, the ice age there will end early every year. If we want to go up now, it will be difficult for the army to pass. If we only send a small team up, I'm afraid..."
An Lin understood. More than a hundred people went to the island and none of them came back. I'm afraid it would be useless to send another hundred people. He tapped his fingers lightly on the table, and after a while he said: "In this way
, I’m afraid I’ll have to wait until March.”
"Humble, humble position is what I think." Wu Teshan lowered his head and replied quietly.
What he fears most now is that An Lin ordered him to lead troops to the island. What the old shaman said after the divination frightened him completely. But if he really dared to say those words, he would definitely end up being a monster.
The crime of bewitching the morale of the military.
"What's the situation with the warships at Shuiying?" An Lin continued to ask.
"There are thirty warships, including twenty three-plank ships, ten four-plank ships, and fifty grain ships. All kinds of warships are equipped with artillery, including one odd cannon on the three-plank ship, and the four-plank ship on the
Two guns. All ships are in good condition and no damage is caused."
"So... let Shuiying start preparing warships now, and when the ice age is over, immediately go to sea and land on the island." An Lin ordered.
"As ordered." Wu Teshan cupped his fists and bowed in salute. When he returned to his seat, he quietly wiped a cold sweat while no one was paying attention.
An Lin sat in the hall and fell into silence. This man who worked all day long just wanted to make money, and he didn't know how to deal with this situation.
"Sir." Tuoketong'a stood up at this time, clasped his fists and said: "The general requested to lead two hundred armored soldiers under his command to go out to search Bear Island."
When everyone heard this, they thought to themselves that there really are some people who are not afraid of death!
Wu Teshan suddenly stood up and dissuaded him: "Absolutely not."
Tokton'a sneered contemptuously: "Oh? Are you, Wu Teshan, scared to death?"
Wu Teshan quickly explained: "The sea water has been getting warmer in the past few days, and the ice on the surface of the South China Sea has begun to loosen. It is very dangerous to go into the sea and walk on the ice from the mouth of Suifen River. Even horse-drawn sledges can't cross it now."
Tuoketong'a said anxiously: "Then we and others can't wait here forever, right? Master Qing is still waiting for news."
Even An Lin was brought in by his words, which made the Vice-President's expression change immediately.
An Lin said in a deep voice: "I think so. Wuote Mountain, let the sentry team that came back lead the way, and you send another hundred armored soldiers to investigate the Suifen River mouth with Tuoketong'a. Tuoketong'a,
You are only here to investigate the situation. You are not allowed to land on the island without my order. Violation will be punished by military law."
"Sir, this... general may not be able to deal well with the general's mansion."
"What's the hurry? I haven't finished speaking yet." An Lin glared at Tuoketong'a and continued: "Hunchun will arrange food, fodder and horses for you. After you arrive, you will camp in the north of the fishing village. Troops must be dispatched every day.
Monitor the situation on Bear Island and not allow anyone to escape. When the ice melts in March, we will land on the island from the west and north together to attack."
"Just follow your strategy, sir." All the generals in the hall bowed and saluted.
After everyone retreated, An Lin came up and asked, "Master, do you think it's a beast on the island? Since it's called Bear Island..."
"Nonsense!" An Lin was greedy and shameless but not stupid. "What kind of beast can make more than a hundred armored soldiers disappear without a trace?!"
An Lin stood up and walked around for a few steps, then stopped and said: "The missing armored soldiers with yellow flags in Hunchun City are all elite, and many of them have been to Jinchuan and Jinchuan. It's such a tough thing that none of them can escape.
It’s not that simple!”
He said in a dilemma: "Master, how should I report back to the General's Mansion?"