March brings warmth, and the soldiers guarding the south gate of Dezhou prefer to lean against the wall, soaking in the sunshine while watching the passers-by.
Even when eating, I like to squat under the wall with a bowl in my arms.
This is what all authentic Shandong people do.
But today, the rare tranquility was broken.
The long motorcade came from the south and soon arrived at the city gate.
The banner at the head made the flag officer's butt feel like it was on fire. While punching and kicking the pedestrians to make way for the convoy, he greeted them flatteringly.
"Oh, Master Cheng, you are finally back. All the young and old men have been looking forward to it."
At the front of the motorcade stood a young man in his twenties, with handsome features and a bookish air about him.
He was also approachable to the flattery of the small flag officer.
"I just brought some vegetables back, how can I make such a fuss?"
The little flag officer doesn't want to obey.
"Oh my god, the whole city has been chewing pickles all winter long, looking forward to eating fresh ones. If Master Cheng hadn't come forward, such a good thing would not have happened to Dezhou."
The young man laughed and meant something.
"From now on, if you want to eat these fresh vegetables, it will be very convenient."
The flag officer didn't know why.
"Where did this come from?"
The young man stepped aside, revealing the black muzzle of the gun.
"From now on, we and Linqing are one family. Do you think we can eat these vegetables casually?"
The little flag officer's two legs were fighting, and he was sweating coldly.
"Cheng...Cheng...Master Cheng, this...this...this joke is not allowed."
Someone came out from behind the young man and asked with a smile: "What's wrong? This military master seems unwilling to submit to our new army?"
The little flag officer had an idea in an instant.
"How could it be? I... I have long been envious of the south and have been waiting for this day."
It was not difficult at all to take over the city defense of Dezhou. With the Cheng family as internal agents, the Second Brigade of the Second Division of the New Army became the master of Dezhou in only half an hour.
Dezhou government office, governor Wei Mingzhen and others were shocked and angry when they saw the new army rushing in.
"Who of you dare to make trouble here?"
Bai Congye came up and told him sternly.
"Everyone, I am the new mayor of Dezhou City. I have been ordered by the Shandong Administrative Committee to take over Dezhou from now on. Your mission is over. You can pack your bags, return to the capital, and inform the court."
Wei Mingzhen finally understood.
"If you want to rebel, aren't you afraid of killing the nine clans and leaving you with a legacy of infamy for thousands of years?"
Bai Congye was too lazy to talk nonsense with these people. He just waved his hand and asked the New Army soldiers to drive them all away.
Wei Mingzhen and others were helpless. Even if they wanted to fight for justice, these inexplicable soldiers abided by the rules and did not harass them in any way. They only supervised them to pack their bags and drive out of Texas.
It was Cheng Shao's grandson Cheng Xinzhen who cooperated with the new army to capture Dezhou.
Cheng Shao was originally a big boss of Donglin, but later he developed ideas with Linqing because of off-season vegetables, and developed a deeper interest relationship outside of official circles.
Cheng Xiazhen was even close to her peers in Linqing, and was deeply influenced by him early on. She also participated in many ideological discussions.
Bai Zongye is no ordinary person either.
He was a graduate of the first class of the Advanced School, and later became Hou Xun's secretary. After accumulating a certain amount of experience, he was sent out this time to serve as the mayor of Dezhou.
The Administrative Committee stipulated how to take over the city that was still in the hands of the imperial court.
Only expel, do not harm.
This is mainly done to comply with the conditions proposed by Zuo Menggeng and to appropriately express goodwill.
No matter what Chongzhen and the court thought, the attempt should still be made.
Anyway, the effect is the same.
Even if Chongzhen doesn't follow this trick, he can at least gain a good impression in the hearts of people all over the world.
After all, no one likes political forces that are cruel and easy to kill.
At the same time, the same thing was happening in many cities across Shandong.
Gu Gu
The territory of the New Army continued to expand in a short period of time.
If we hadn't been well prepared and had enough reserve officials, we would have been in a hurry.
………………………………
Jiaozhou Bay Seaport.
Dozens of blessing boats docked side by side, and countless people were like a colony of ants, constantly shuttling between the shore and the boats.
There are also many gantry cranes standing on the shore, and under the operation of workers, packages of goods are hoisted onto ships.
Looking at the extremely busy scene in front of him, Xu Erjue felt relaxed and happy.
"Zhonghengli focuses on sea transport, and many people have criticized it. Now it seems that sea transport is infinitely better than river transport."
Fu Yusun is also here. It can even be said that all the senior officials in Qingdao are here.
Because this is the first day of navigation between Shandong and Songjiang Prefecture, this is a big event and everyone is concerned about it.
In order to transport the goods this time, Fu Yusun asked the navy for cooperation and mobilized more than 70 ships capable of long voyages.
The dock manager came running from a distance with a look of surprise on his face.
"Mayor, Mr. Xu, all the cotton is almost finished and we can leave immediately."
Xu Erjue perked up and asked hurriedly: "How much is the total shipment?"
The dock manager is very proud.
"Seven hundred thousand catties, seven hundred thousand catties of cotton."
"Oh my God!"
Xu Erjue slapped his forehead fiercely.
Fu Yusun was frightened.
"really?"
The dock manager couldn't laugh or cry.
"There's no way this can be fake."
Looking at the big ships, Xu Erjue's heart surged.
"It is impossible to imagine that without taking the sea route, it would be possible to transport such a huge amount at one time?"
Fu Yusun finally realized the value of the sea.
In the past, cotton was sent from Shandong to Songjiang Prefecture through canals.
Even if the transport capacity is stretched to the extreme, it can transport 200,000 kilograms at a time, which is already the limit.
It is not just a matter of the carrying capacity of the ship, but also includes many problems such as the narrowness of the river, insufficient water depth, and human towing.
Of course, taxes along the way are also quite a headache.
Unexpectedly, after adopting sea transportation, it was only the first trial voyage and it was not at full capacity. The amount of cotton loaded was more than three times the maximum value of river transportation.
Based on this alone, the cost savings is a huge number.
While we were sighing here, someone came from a distance, holding several large boxes, and we didn't know what was in them.
Fu Yusun came up to greet him.
"Minister Liao, do you want to go to sea too?"
The visitor is Liao Zhongjian, Minister of Foreign Affairs.
He was also the first graduate of the Senior Academy and worked as secretary of Qu Shiqi. Because of his outstanding performance, flexibility and responsibility, he was unanimously recognized by the Administrative Committee and became the newly established Minister of Foreign Affairs.
As a leader, it is rare to travel far in person.
Liao Zhongjian patted the box next to him.
"This time I go south to communicate with Zheng Zhilong about maritime matters, and on the way to deliver a piano to Governor Hao Jing."
Fu Yusun hadn't understood yet, but Xu Erjue was overjoyed.
"In this way, the situation in Songjiang Mansion will be revitalized."
Now that Shandong's anti-banner has been established, although it is still unclear how the imperial court will respond. Neither Zuo Menggeng nor the administrative committee will pin their own interests on the imperial court's ideas.
Once there is a change in Songjiang Prefecture, timely support becomes the key.
At that time, a large-scale mobilization of troops would inevitably alarm Zheng Zhilong.
The current power of the New Army at sea cannot be compared with Zheng Zhilong. Therefore, it is necessary to say hello in advance to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings.
