"The previously agreed response strategy is for your country to find out the reasons for the rampant pirates and to deal with the enemies hidden behind them, while we will send manpower to eliminate those pirates one by one according to your designated goals.
."
Zhou Keshan seemed to be smiling but not smiling: "However, you have never found out who the enemy behind the scenes is, so what can we do? Those people are all big food pirates, what do they have to do with me, Da Zhou, and the two
What does state-to-state diplomatic relations have to do with it? If Shi Boruo feels that the big pirate pirates are making too much noise, why not urge the truth to be unearthed as soon as possible and cut off the source of the pirate attacks?"
"Do you think I'm stupid? What about Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves? That's Shi Tianni, your defense envoy on the north side of Beijing Road in Dazhou, and his men! If I report this matter to Prime Minister Shi, what will you do?
end!"
"Haha..." Zhou Keshan laughed.
Zhang Liangpeng is also a capable person, and he is in charge of all areas in eastern Zhejiang. He has many eyes and ears, and there is no way he can hide the fact that Shi Tianni secretly went south. Therefore, Zhou Keshan simply did not insist on denying it.
"It has been five months since the pirates were raging until now, and the merchant ships in Shanghai have also been on tenterhooks for five months. Shibo thinks that we move too fast? We use too many people? We make too much noise? Don't you know?
It only took two months for the Great Zhou Dynasty to mobilize tens of thousands of troops to defeat half of the enemy; in fact, only forty-one people went south in this operation at the beginning!"
Zhang Liangpeng was silent for a while.
This is true, but it is the truth of the Great Zhou Dynasty. These northern Han people went on a rampage to conquer the Central Plains, so they felt that this set of drastic measures was applicable to everyone.
The Song Dynasty was different. When the Song Dynasty wanted to solve the problems it faced, it had far more resources to use than the northerners who were far away across the ocean, and they were much slower.
The Song Dynasty had a huge bureaucracy and a complete management organization for maritime trade. In recent years, those involved in maritime trade include Guangnan, Zhejiang and Fujian, Hangzhou, Qingyuan, Wenzhou, Jiangyin, Huating, and Hainan.
With more than a dozen municipal affairs, plus many related yamen and manpower led by commanders and ministers from various places, the tightness of the system of power and authority has reached a level far beyond that of previous dynasties.
The current emperor of the Song Dynasty can be considered a benevolent king. The ministers in the court and the feathers beside the Prime Minister are also talented people. They can be regarded as virtuous ministers. Whatever the Prime Minister wants to explore, there are many suitable candidates who are enough to uncover any deep truth.
Buried truth.
In the Song Dynasty, there were 16 naval armies under the Dianqian Division, the Coastal and Coastal Construction Divisions, and the Regional Economic Strategy and Appeasement Division. The number of ships under their control was at most more than 4,000, and only one was expanded from the Dinghai Navy.
The completed Xupu Navy consisted of four armies, eight generals, sixty-three teams, and 14,000 men. With this power, they controlled the sea and no pirates could resist.
The Song Dynasty had such a strong power, but when it came time to use it, the thunder was loud and the raindrops were light.
As the scale of maritime trade expanded, the size of the Shipping Department in the Song Dynasty became larger and larger. In name, a Shipping Department had four officials and eleven officials. In fact, the number of officials filled in it was more than ten times greater.
There are more than a hundred times more people who depend on Shibo Company for their meals, and the number of officials, idlers, and helpers who work hard for Shibo Company is even more incalculable.
However, such a huge system did not bring huge power. Instead, it made the whole system like a dying giant. If it moved even slightly, all the bones in the body would be crushed by its own weight. The Prime Minister asked the shipping companies of various places to pay attention to the order of abnormal movements at sea.
It has been three months since I sent it, but the Shipping Department has not responded and cannot respond.
The literature and education of the Song Dynasty were unparalleled in the world, and scholars entered the officialdom in droves. In the past two years, the Prime Minister relied on his huge financial resources to win over allies, divide political opponents, and expand his own political base.
, as if there is a hand that covers the sky.
But a senior official like Zhang Liangpeng understood that there were many people working under Prime Minister Shi, and their slogans of loyalty were shouted loudly, but those who Prime Minister Shi was really willing to entrust with important matters were actually a few people in his small circle.
people.
When the old man looked down, so many officials were dancing with his gaze, or it was pleasing to the eye. But Shi Xiang knew that these people were always just a puddle of mud. So Shi Xiang was very angry to find that he was one after another.
The several teams sent to investigate are now all wandering in the mud. Let alone investigating, their own homes have become a black mass.
As for the naval forces in various places...
Yes, according to common sense, the navy crushing pirates is like crushing ants to death. Not to mention pirates, even the maritime power that the Northern Zhou Dynasty tried to expand was nothing more than ants in front of the Song Dynasty.
But the situation in the Song Dynasty was so incredible. As far as the Dinghai Army under Zhang Liangpeng's nose was concerned, with just one order, he could gather hundreds of sterns, thousands of small boats, and sails covering the sky on the sea surrounding the islands.
Block out the sun. But that's all he can do.
There were so many ships to maintain and so many soldiers to eat. Over the past few decades, the navy of the Song Dynasty had long been accustomed to making a living on its own. If the minister wanted to parade the troops to show his prestige, that was no problem. It was an official matter.
Everyone has to help each other.
But what about patrolling, catching theft, tracking, fighting... The gentlemen above, I still owe more than ten years of military pay and rewards. If you don't pay off, don't delay us by talking about these things.
Go sailing to make some extra money. The business at sea is so prosperous, why don’t we, Qiuba, have to go hungry?
Therefore, if Zhang Liangpeng is asked to exterminate the pirates, he can only mobilize twenty-three ships, not even one more. But the manpower that dares to fight against the pirates brutally on land and at sea is real.
You can't calculate. It's all because you don't calculate, and there is still hope of "having". Once you calculate, the result is likely to be nothing.
That being the case, what else can Zhang Liangpeng say?
The Song Dynasty accomplished nothing, how could it still complain about the vigorous and resolute actions of the Great Zhou Dynasty?
Like countless officials in the Song Dynasty, he always regarded the Zhou regime in the north as a group of vulgar warriors. No matter how fierce and powerful they were, they could not compete with the clothes, rituals, music, and the teachings of the saints in the Song Dynasty.
Compare.
But he was also a busy official in the Song Dynasty. In the past two years, he had been trying his best to earn millions of dollars for Prime Minister Shi to use to suppress the court.
The cooperation between the two families at sea is so complicated and involves countless details. It was Zhang Liangpeng, Li Yun, and Zhou Keshan who slowly dug out the regulations bit by bit and then implemented them bit by bit.
The more attentive he was, the more he felt that his cooperation with the Northerners was very fast and convenient, and the more he felt that the Song Dynasty was so glorious on the surface, and so many civil and military officials underneath were all useless.
Facing the rampage of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, he was furious, but a vague feeling came to his mind:
Is it possible that things should be done in such a vigorous and resolute manner?
Is it possible that I, the Great Song Dynasty, am just a fooling around?
Zhang Liangpeng never dared to think too much about these questions. He also knew that there were no answers to these questions. He could only speak harshly to Zhou Keshan, and in the past few discussions, his momentum became more and more powerful, and his words became louder and louder.
More and more severe:
"No matter what, that Alibaba can't make a fuss anymore! Otherwise, the navy of the Production and Construction Department will have to take action, and I have to report the truth to the Prime Minister. Once the Prime Minister is angry, it will not look good on everyone!"
Zhou Keshan was polite.
He bowed to Zhang Liangpeng and said, "Master, don't worry...otherwise, our two families will each take a step back?"
"How to retreat?"
"The chaos caused by the big food pirates can be stopped, and there will definitely be no embarrassment for Shi Xiang. But you must find the person behind the plot of our merchant ship as soon as possible. Unless this force is eliminated, we cannot rest assured!
"
"When you say as soon as possible, how fast do you mean?"
"After spring, the trade wind picks up again, and business must not be delayed. Therefore, it will take a month at most. If there is no results within a month... Shibo, we have actually caught some people bit by bit and asked some questions.
There are some clues in the oral confession. When the time comes, the wildness of the big food pirates will show up, and they will really attack Junzhou, so don’t be surprised!"
What does this mean? Could it be that this matter is also related to the chief officer of the coastal military state? Who is so bold?
Zhang Liangpeng's thoughts were racing, but he didn't want to ask in detail. He could only jump at Zhou Keshan's vague threat.
"How dare you!" He roared, angrily stood up and pushed the door open. After taking two steps, he turned back and shouted loudly: "It's only been one month! Within one month, Xuanzhen will definitely give an explanation.
.Those big pirates are waiting at sea!"
"Haha, then just listen to Shibo." Zhou Keshan saluted again.
Zhang Liangpeng strode out with a gloomy face.
After passing through several doorways and crossing the courtyard, his followers followed him one after another. Seeing that his face was not friendly, they all hurriedly acted like strangers should not approach him. In the courtyard, from time to time, they met people such as promotions, supervisors, businessmen, and clients hired by the Shanghai Bank.
, seeing the group of people being aggressive, they all moved out of the way.
Approaching the outskirts of the security courtyard, Zhang Liangpeng suddenly said "Hey",
He asked: "Why don't you go through the main entrance?"
The attendant looked at his face and whispered: "Today is December 15th, and it has been exactly three months since the last dividend."
Zhang Liangpeng stood suddenly, his face stern.
After a while, he walked deeper into the corridor.
The corridor is winding and winding, with high walls on both sides. After walking for half a cup of tea, we reached a side door.
Coincidentally, the back of the side door is opposite the courtyard Zhang Liangpeng built on Lanshan Island. In the small courtyard inside the side door, five carriages are parked one after another according to the convention of once every three months.
Zhang Liangpeng sighed.
After Shi Xiang and Beifang launched sea trade cooperation, Zhang Liangpeng, who was specifically responsible for sea trade matters, received special preferential treatment from Li Yun and Zhou Keshan, and continued to secretly extract benefits and dividends from the Shanghai trade, with the specification being 10,000 yuan every three months.
So far, he has obtained it six times and obtained 60,000 guan of money.
Sixty thousand guan was no longer small money. With the money, Zhang Liangpeng used the money not only to seek land and property in his hometown in Lishui, but also to invest in bribery and gossip in Lin'an, trying his best to restore his brother Zhang Liangneng's official connections when he was still alive.
He is confident that as long as he invests tens of thousands more coins, many difficulties will be solved. When he returns to the court one day, these forces will be activated together to earn a better future, and even lead to the political participation that his brother once achieved.
Bit!
"The pirates were raging and the business suffered huge losses, but the 10,000 guan that I deserved was not lost at all. Zhou Keshan was really thoughtful!" Zhang Liangpeng couldn't help stroking his beard and nodded slightly.
"Ahem..." The person next to him whispered: "Mr. Zhou sent someone before to say that the bonus this time is not only the bonus of 10,000 yuan from the operation of the business bank, but also part of it, the big food pirates and various gangs
The pirates captured 10,000 coins from the battle."
He knew that as long as he accepted the extra 10,000 yuan, the Da Shi pirates must come from Da Shi, and the one active along the coast of the Song Dynasty must be Alibaba and not Shi Tianni. At least in his case, that must be the case.
Mr. Shi Xiangye will not hear any rumors from his friend Zhang Liang.
Officials from other places may have guessed the clues. Either they don't want to get involved, or Zhou Keshan has other ways to deal with them. But the northerner's hand holding the knife just stretched out, and he was still disobedient to the Song Dynasty.
Greeting, the hand that goes its own way.
Zhang Liangpeng naturally knew that this was completely different from what the two families had originally agreed upon. But in Lin'an, in the eyes of the prime minister, nothing happened.
Is this okay? If I conceal it, wouldn’t I be deliberately deceiving the prime minister? Wouldn’t it be that I am cheating...
Zhang Liangpeng hesitated for a moment.
The person next to him said distressedly: "Mr. Zhou's people said that from now on, there will be seizures of big pirates every three months, and each time they will not be less than 10,000 guan! Master, this boss really can't take away a lot of money."
What?"
Every three months? No less than 10,000 guan each time? It turns out that it is not a one-shot deal, but a steady flow of money?
Zhang Liangpeng gasped. He knew that the few followers around him might have benefited from the loss in advance, so he couldn't bear to see the meat fly away from his mouth. This group of people, I have been teaching them human ethics in vain, and they are still so ignorant.
Generally speaking, greedy!
But……
This piece of meat that belongs to me is right next to my mouth. Will I eat it or not?
He walked around the five carriages, finally made up his mind, and said slowly: "Recently, the pirates have caused a lot of troubles, especially the big pirates who are the most ferocious. All the naval forces in eastern Zhejiang have to organize their warships.
Cultivate military equipment to make sure everything is complete!"
What about the pirates, what about the navy, and what does it have to do with the followers?
The followers didn't understand at all, they only knew that their master had decided to accept the benefit, so everyone was happy and thought that his master was wise.