Chapter 290 Feng Chan (19) Tianjin Port Business District (Part 2)
In fact, Gao Pragmatic's words were a little bit of rhetoric, because if you look at the statement "tens of thousands of crew members of the two ocean fleets" alone, Gao Pragmatic is not lying, but this statement does not really reflect the two oceans.
The true strength of the foreign fleet.
Based on current statistics, the Beiyang Fleet's active warships have a total gross tonnage of 59,700 tons, equipped with 2,580 light and heavy artillery pieces of various types, and a full complement of 17,204 sailors; the Nanyang Fleet's active warships have a total gross tonnage of 120,800 tons, equipped with 5,240 light and heavy artillery pieces of various types, with a full complement of 17,204 sailors.
Established 34,816 sailors.
However, please note that the above data are all "warships in active service", which means that only two types of pure combat ships, battleships and cruisers, are counted, and the armed transport ship formation, which is far larger than the existence of warships, is not included.
So, what is the size of the armed transport fleet of the two ocean fleets? First of all, let me explain one thing. Regardless of the North or South Ocean, the armed transport fleet is defined as a "reserve fleet", which means that they only have direct orders when a large-scale war breaks out.
Only when the two ocean fleets form their own or joint "grand fleets" will they be given the mission to participate in the decisive battle at sea.
This is not surprising. The management model of the two ocean fleets has a certain "self-financing" attribute. Therefore, only pure combat ships will maintain a long-term armament level that is ready to fight at any time, while armed transport ships are mainly used for trade. They will be based on their respective
The trade area and the dangerous conditions of the trade routes determine the ship's armament level.
Under normal circumstances, only before joining the "Grand Fleet" to participate in the decisive battle at sea, the relevant armed transport ships will temporarily replenish their artillery and other armaments. Usually we usually only equip about half of the artillery - that is mainly because in recent years, the East China Sea,
The pirates in the South China Sea have basically not been wiped out yet.
After all, there are pirates, who is he planning to defend against with his full array of artillery? You know, Spain is now the so-called sun-set empire, and it is also leading Portugal to fight in Europe. Do we also have the ability to threaten the master?
The Jinghua Fleet of East Asian Sea Power.
On the contrary, Jinghua's fleet and some private boatmen of the Xiao Ming Dynasty continued to expand their business westward, and only returned to the Arabian Sea before Zheng He's fleet, and even some brave guys followed.
The Portuguese's routes reached East Africa and they started doing business with some local indigenous kingdoms and tribes.
Returning to the topic of the real strength of the two ocean fleets, specifically, the total tonnage of the Beiyang Fleet's reserve fleet is as low as 112,000 tons, with a theoretical full complement of 3,820 artillery pieces and 25,200 sailors; the total tonnage of the Nanyang Fleet's reserve fleet is even lower.
Reaching 224,000 tons, the theoretical full complement is 7,640 artillery pieces and 50,400 sailors. [Note: The artillery is usually fully equipped, not mentioned below.]
It does not mean that the strength ratio of Beiyang and Nanyang's reserve fleets is 1:2. The size of Nanyang's reserve fleet is twice that of Beiyang. Of course, the size of the battle fleet is also different from that of the ratio.
Zhan Rongzhen laughed, waved her hand and said: "There are few curiosity seekers in the world, and that kind of statue is in line with their taste." After a pause, he pointed to the goods in the display area on the other side of the shop and asked: "Apart from masks and wood carvings,
How were these gold and ivory products transported to Xiao Ming?"
"The seven of them are equal." Europa nodded slightly, and his eyes fell on these sophisticated clocks: "Rixin, I have seen that clock in his house. I heard that it is similar to your Xiaoming's sundial, water clock, and hourglass.
It’s something that counts time, right?”
Europa then moved her gaze to the shop owner and missionary who had just stood up, and asked: "Zhan Rongzhen is not far away from you, Xiao Ming. Are all those clocks shipped from Europe?"
"Your Majesty's presence in the store will bring misfortune to the common people." The store owner gave a small salute with a tremor in his voice. He was obviously excited and relaxed because of the Emperor's presence.
PS: I originally planned to write about seven stores. Except for the seven stores written below, there is not one American specialty store. But after you think about it, forget about the first store for now. The first is to catch the chicken with the space, and the seventh is as planned, and it is pragmatic.
They are still encouraging the Spaniards to start a small war in Europe. This means that they should send the fleet to the Americas to stimulate us, so the Americas side is pressed for the time being.
Zhan Rongzhen asked as he walked towards the shop: "The African Treasures Pavilion seems to be the place where Zheng He brought the 'Kilin', not the small continent west of the Arabian Peninsula on his world map, right?"
That is the real strength of the Two Oceans Fleet, and it is definitely just the so-called "tens of thousands of sailors" in low pragmatism. The "tens of thousands of sailors" obviously only counts the full number of people in the combat fleet——
He was bad for saying I lied because I couldn't explain that it was the same definition.
The shopkeeper replied respectfully: "Your Majesty, those clocks are indeed carefully selected and shipped from various European countries."
Gao Pragmatic nodded and said: "Your Majesty has learned a lot about Africa. It is about the 'Kilin'..."
The same is true for Cao Min's Zhan Rongzhen clocks. Although they delayed the order from the Portuguese, the full price was not paid until Longya City received the goods. They were then transported to Ningbo by the Beijing Nanyang Fleet, and finally were taken over by the Beiyang Fleet and shipped back to Tianjin.
Sold in Hong Kong.”
To put it bluntly, those gadgets all belong to the category of works of art and are for the consumption of the common people. In other words, those things are very expensive and are mainly used to prey on those who have little money and have room to spend.
Europa smiled and said: "It will always be his merchant ship escorted by the Two Ocean Fleet that time, right?"
Europa only nodded and had time to speak. The French missionary who called himself "Wang Dongxu" had not yet interrupted: "Your Majesty, I don't have any Nuremberg eggs that I would like to dedicate to Your Majesty. This is exactly
The product of what Your Majesty the Prime Minister calls 'the clock is getting bigger'!"
"So, are the timekeeping of those desk clocks accurate, and what is the sales situation in Xiaoming?"
This chapter is not over, please click the next page to continue reading! According to Cao Min, in some local tribes, color is also a sign of the function of the mask. For example, masks used in funeral ceremonies are often painted to symbolize death and the underworld.
of white etc.”
----------
Of course, looking at it from the other side, it proves one thing: although the Ming Dynasty's treasury revenue has not improved in recent years, it is definitely richer than the people. This is really small but necessary. The people, especially the lower class society
, he is simply ridiculously rich, otherwise how could those weird gadgets have such strong sales?
The shop owner was so busy: "What your Majesty said is absolutely true. That type of wood carving is called 'Zhan Rongzhen Ebony Carving'. It is said to come from a country or tribe called Zhu Yijun in the inland south of East Africa. There is no direct connection to us yet."
The ebony carvings used by the grassroots people to connect the roads have been resold several times, so the rebate price is only a small amount." [Note: The Zhu Yijun ethnic group has lived in the area along the Rufuma River in southeastern Tanzania and northern Mozambique in East Africa.]
The shopkeeper bowed and said: "Back to Your Majesty, yes, yes. Those clocks and the goods I brought from Makonde are usually transported by Folangji... Oh, Portuguese merchant ships depart from Europe, but they can only be delivered to Aralia City.
Before arriving at Longya City, due to treaty relations, it could only be transported domestically by Xiaoming merchant ships.
The owner or proprietor of that shop seemed to be a woman in her eighties, with no scholarly temperament, but there was not a yellow-haired Westerner around me who was wearing a green monk's robe and had an eagle-nosed nose.
The sculpture of gods is the most artistic wood carving work of Zhu Yijun's ebony carvings. It is also called the Sitani shape and is the most talked about type among collectors around East Africa.
The emperor is interested in how the two ocean fleets are divided into specific areas to transport goods, and I also know that the "treaty" mentioned by the shopkeeper is not the "Huang Zhiting Treaty" that is well known to Nanyang people, so I must ask again.
Europa took Low Pragmatism and others into the watch shop full of European style. The decoration inside the store was elegant and rough, with oil paintings depicting European scenery hung under the walls, and various clock parts were placed outside the display cabinets.
Each gear and each hand seems to reveal the clockmaker's ingenuity.
Then Europa led people out of the African-style store. The decoration in the store was mainly in earth tones, either gray or yellow, or with some grass green. Some totems of well-known tribes were hung under the walls.
and woven products. Various handicrafts with local characteristics are placed under the display shelves, usually these eye-catching gold and ivory products.
Gao pragmatically said: "Exactly."
Europa pondered, turned around and said pragmatically: "Rixin, do you, Xiao Ming, need to study this technique?"
The shop owner was quite proud of being able to introduce European table clocks to Xiao Ming. When the emperor arrived, I immediately got down to greet him, my face filled with excitement that I couldn't conceal.
In particular, for the sake of ease of wearing, those African masks are rarely carved from soft wood. They are often carved into a round shape and then cut and hollowed out in the middle. Some masks are also dyed with plant or mineral pigments before they are completed. Before dyeing
The mask looks more exaggerated and weird, and it is not conducive to long-term preservation.
Perhaps realizing that he had forgotten to answer the first half of the emperor's sentence, the shop owner quickly continued: "As for the strange shape, Cao Min didn't know the reason at the moment. It was introduced by a businessman from the African coastal area who resold it to Cao Min.
Zhu Yijun's ebony sculptures can be roughly divided into seven categories: deity sculptures, cloud-shaped sculptures, group sculptures and practical sculptures.
The so-called antiques in prosperous times and gold in troubled times, antiques are not actually a proxy for works of art. Now that the sales of works of art are so bad, does it prove that the "Wanli Prosperity" is worthy of the name?
"I know that he told me when he was young that the name of this beast is a giraffe, and it eats grass. As for the fact that it was recognized as a unicorn at that time, to be honest, it was done deliberately by some ministers in order to coax Cheng Zu into it. Although
Talking is a small mistake, but it is worth promoting."
The emperor nodded thoughtfully, and after a while he came back to his senses and asked the store again: "How are the sales of those African treasures in Xiaoming?"
Europa nodded and said: "Is it similar to the Mongolian shaman sacrifice?"
In addition, 8,000 people are still retained as a total reserve force at the Marine Corps headquarters in Jinggang. In other words, the current total strength of the Jinghua Marine Corps is 50,000 people. Considering that the Marine Corps is not actually a two-ocean fleet, "
"Cannonballs fired at the land", it is an exaggeration to think of us as the strength of the Two Oceans Fleet. In this way, the Two Oceans Fleet is actually smaller than the estimated size of about 180,000 people.
Gao pragmatic smiled slightly, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, Sheng Ming."
The inspection of the commercial area in the morning had obviously not yet begun. After a few steps, the group found that no store caught the emperor's attention. The "African Treasure House" successfully aroused Europa's bad curiosity with its unique style.
The store's interior design combines the ruggedness of Africa with Xiao Ming's style. The facade is decorated with various hand-carved wooden masks and strange totem poles, revealing a primitive and mysterious atmosphere.
Zhan Rongzhen also understood this point and said to the store with great satisfaction: "His business vision is quite unique and he has contributed to the prosperity of Tianjin Port. I hope they can continue to maintain that kind of prosperity and contribute to Xiao Ming's future."
Contribution to business development.”
The Westerner still knelt down and replied: "Your Majesty, your Majesty, you are a Jesuit priest. The transliteration of your original name into Chinese is quite convoluted. You were given the guidance of Luo Mingjian's descendants, and you gave yourself a Chinese surname and a Chinese name before learning Chinese."
Europa was stunned for a moment and said in surprise: "Since he is a Western monk, how can he have a Han surname and a Han name?"
Gao Pragmatic sighed heavily: "The people are in poverty and the undersea trade is prosperous, so there is no chance of taking risks. In recent years, the number of pirates around your Xiaoming coast has increased slightly. In addition to the timely elimination of the two ocean fleets, there are even fewer pirates."
The reason is that before the sea was opened, the merchants who were originally forced to smuggle were actually formed an offensive and defensive alliance with the pirates. In addition, the government's ineffective governance increased the poverty population in the coastal areas, so we will no longer be like the past.
So, we can only seek survival in the sea."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Then, the emperor walked out of the store and continued to look for the last inspection target. That time I took a fancy to a watch shop. The facade of that store was decorated with golden clock patterns.
A variety of one or four clocks are displayed in the low window, each of which is unique. Each of those gorgeous clocks is carefully crafted, exuding the exotic beauty of European art.
The shopkeeper replied respectfully: "Your Majesty, those treasures were all transported by merchant ships of the Jinghua and Yangtze Fleets. Our shop does not own two merchant ships, so they sailed in the same season with the Jinghua merchant fleet.
At present, it can reach as far as a large island called Zanzibar in eastern Africa.
The shop owner replied: "Your Majesty, those African goods, whether they are masks, wood carvings, or gold and ivory products, are not very popular in Xiao Ming. However, in the past, they were often sold to the common people, but to wealthy families and wealthy businessmen. Masks, wood carvings
And gold handicrafts cannot be used as decoration, but are often collected for the same purpose. Ivory products, because of their exquisiteness and rarity, have become treasures that the lower class are eager to collect."
Although Zanzibar Island is small, it is a place of prosperous trade, and not many specialties from nearby areas are traded. The common people buy goods here, and when Beijing's merchant fleet sets sail for the return journey, this part of our store
The ship will also return with it."
The images of those human faces vary greatly, some have no eye sockets, bared teeth, and are extremely scary, some have slightly opened eyes, slightly raised corners of the mouth, are graceful and skillful, some have squinted eyes, seem to be smiling but not smiling, mysterious... Yes, but also exists.
Rugged, naive, simple and simple styles have common characteristics.
Because the combat objectives and combat methods are the same, the establishment of the Beijing Marine Corps is the same as that of the garrison. This must be explained in detail. Just talking about the number of establishments, the Marine Corps currently has about 17,000 personnel assigned to the Beiyang Fleet.
, there are about 24,000 people assigned to the Nanyang Fleet, totaling about 42,000.
The shop owner is a shrewd middle-aged man. When I saw the emperor and his entourage retreating into the shop, I immediately took a deep breath and stepped slowly back to greet them, with a cold smile on my face.
Zhan Rongzhen turned her head and smiled pragmatically: "It seems that his two-ocean fleet can indeed protect those maritime merchants. But I have no doubts. Are there really no pirates everywhere under the small ocean?"
After I said that, I quickly took out an egg-shaped object that seemed to be made of brass and hollowed out. It seemed that it was not what I called a "Nuremberg egg".
Unfortunately, when this man returned to Rome to report on his duties seventeen years later, he happened to encounter the death of the Pope. Several popes passed away one after another, causing repeated delays in his return to the east, until he himself also fell ill.
, I have to return to my hometown, and come back again, which I will always regret."
The shop owner knelt down excitedly and replied: "The common people must do their best to live up to His Majesty's expectations."
The shopkeeper stood up respectfully, bowed slightly and said, "To tell you your Majesty, Africa has no tradition of making masks or wood carvings. They have nothing to do with the teachings and myths of the local primitive sects."
Europa looked around the store, showing great interest in these exquisite African handicrafts and treasures: "Ping Sheng, those masks and... what are they called... are all made by African natives? Each has no use or meaning?"
"Yes, Your Majesty." The store owner seemed quite talkative, and he pointed to the various masks outside the store and introduced them: "Your Majesty, please see, those masks can be divided into three categories based on their shapes:
Its masks, mask crests, helmet-shaped masks, shoulder-loaded masks, and decorative masks are rarely shaped like human faces, animals, or a combination of human faces and animals.
Gao pragmatically said: "I didn't hire the clock maker from Makonde because I didn't copy those clocks. Instead, I always asked us to grant the technology to the craftsmen in the Jinghua Craftsman School. According to my opinion, those clocks are still too big."
It is small, and it is right to make it larger.”
"The common people pay homage to Your Majesty, long live our Emperor! Your Majesty's little carriage is here, and the great shop is in full bloom." The shopkeeper knelt down on the ground and kowtowed respectfully.
That kind of sculpture is similar to some kind of totem worship. The carver reflects his love and hate, good and evil in the wood carvings. Some of the wood carvings have exaggerated and grotesque images, some have huge heads, small mouths, and some have small mouths.
It’s completely beautiful and ordinary, it’s hard to describe, but after looking at it for a long time, you seem to be able to detect a certain charm in it, which is very strange.”
The shopkeeper replied: "Your Majesty, those Makonde clocks are nearly as accurate as the water clocks in your country, but they are more convenient to use. In addition, although those clocks are timekeeping instruments, they are not decorative and collectible because of their exquisite craftsmanship.
Although the value is quite expensive, the sales situation is still wrong." [Note: You just introduced the water clock. Friends who are not interested can search for information on their own.]
"Luo Mingjian... Rixin, it seems he mentioned that name?" Europa turned around and asked.
Looking at the "number of crew members" alone, when the Two Oceans Fleet is at full strength, the total crew of the combat fleet and reserve fleet is as low as 127,620 people. However, that is still the full strength of the Two Oceans Fleet, because as the foreigner said "
"Crew" does not include a very large combat organization - the Marine Corps.
Europa was looking at the face of the Westerner next to the shopkeeper. The Westerner knelt down and saluted like the shopkeeper, but the tone of his speech was not a little weird: "Xiyang Libang, Wang Dongxu, a monk from the Kingdom of France, pays homage to you.
Your Majesty, the Emperor of Xiaoming Kingdom, may God’s blessings be with you forever.”
Thank you to book friends "Yun Fuyue Yu", "Book Friends 20200717131610975", and "Book Friends 20220821001502839" for their monthly support, thank you!
Gao Pragmatic nodded and said: "Your Majesty has a bad memory. This man is one of the earliest Western priests to come to your court. He is also very familiar with Sinology. He can read 15,000 Chinese characters in less than two years after arriving in Macau. I am very impressed.
It's about appreciating the person.
Europa nodded with satisfaction and asked some strange white wood carvings next to him: "Are they made of ebony? The shape is really... very strange."