Chapter 988 1079 Maritime Merchants

Chapter 988 1079 Maritime Merchants

On the sea, twelve ships lowered their sails, and two Ming merchant ships were surrounded in the middle.

"Ask the person in charge on your ship to come out and speak."

On the large ship, a soldier with the loudest voice shouted to the two merchant ships in the middle.

When they shouted like this, the people on the opposite side became more nervous.

Not to mention that their military uniforms can't show their identities. In this day and age, there are many soldiers who become robbers. Seeing soldiers makes merchants even more nervous.

You know, during the Longqing years, the Ming navy was really both a soldier and a pirate.

After all, at that time, many of the navy formed by the government were recruited from the sea merchants, and these people did a lot of pirate activities.

Now that the South China Sea Navy has been formed, most of these people have been dismissed by Yu Dayou, and soldiers are directly selected from the coastal garrisons, so there are fewer news about soldiers and bandits.

Especially at the beginning, many people followed Zeng Yiben to become pirates, and he also took many of them away.

Of course, these people were finally suppressed by the Ming navy.

"Boss, it's not good. This place is far from the Ming Dynasty. There shouldn't be a navy here."

In the cabin of a big Fujian ship, two people were looking at the fleet outside through the porthole.

The ship that stopped them looked like a warship of the navy. Most of the people on the ship were wearing military uniforms, but there were also many who were not wearing any.

After all, where they are now, there are no clear four seasons.

Not to mention the high temperature, the air is also very humid. After a while, they were sweating all over. Many people had taken off their clothes and were bare-chested.

"We have never met anyone here before. Alas, we should have thought of Lin Feng going to Luzon earlier, and we shouldn't have come here."

The boss sighed, feeling extremely regretful.

Li Jin, a Fujian businessman, also spent money to get a ship's license when the Ming Dynasty opened the sea, and started a maritime business with others.

Originally, he didn't want to go through the Luzon route, but two years ago, he heard about Manila from the Yi merchants who came to Yuegang, and they were very enthusiastic about inviting them to trade there, so he tried to make a trip.

This happened the year before last.

But after this trip, Li Jin couldn't stop.

The profit of this route was really too high.

The Yi people in Manila bought all kinds of Ming Dynasty goods he brought at high prices, making him rich.

Once he could see the benefits, who could stop?

He had made more trips in recent years, so he was not as worried as before, because there were really not many people who went through Manila.

It was he who brought back the news that Lin Feng led people to attack Manila City.

Although he hesitated before setting off, he was worried about encountering Lin Feng's pirate ship.

Although he gave some tribute to the Japanese pirates at sea every year, he knew that Lin Feng had suffered a lot of losses in Manila, and they might not admit it.

Moreover, this should be the time when Lin Feng needed money the most.

Killing and robbing at sea is too easy.

As long as it is done cleanly and without leaving any trouble, who knows whether it was robbed by pirates or a shipwreck.

The more Li Jin thought about it, the more scared he became. His face became paler and his lips had lost their color.

He was still very rich. He had made a lot of money in the past few years, so he cherished his life even more.

"What should I do? Give me an idea."

When Li Jin was about to tell his subordinate, the manager, to think of a solution, the cabin door was pushed open by the sailor and he shouted inside: "Boss, boss, the people outside asked the boss to go out and talk."

"What are they going to do?"

Li Jin was so scared at this moment that he shouted hurriedly.

"Who are they? Where are they from? Can you tell?"

The manager barely kept calm. In fact, he was also very nervous when he encountered such a thing on the sea.

However, he was only the manager after all, not the boss.

Of course, it didn't mean that if he handed over the supplies on the ship, they would survive, but at most they could save their lives by joining the gang.

The boss's life may not be in danger.

But at this time, he could only take care of himself first.

"It doesn't look like they are trying to make a living on the sea, but they look like real government troops. I have seen their gunboat in Yuegang before. It is the latest warship of the South China Sea Navy."

The sailor replied.

"Government troops? You said it is government troops outside?"

Li Jin asked immediately after hearing the sailor say this.

"Yes, boss, it should be government troops."

The sailor replied immediately.

"Then I will go out and take a look."

When saying this, Li Jin glanced at the manager, and when he saw him nod, he walked out with trembling steps.

He was in front, and the manager followed closely behind.

The sea merchants who came out to sail had more or less backgrounds, and they must have someone in the official position.

Otherwise, the ship's guide would have been taken away by someone long ago.

In fact, most sea merchants just followed the ship at the beginning, and then handed it over to managers like him, or they could ask the shopkeeper to be in charge, and they counted money at home and enjoyed themselves.

Li Jin just thought it was nice to stay on the sea, and because Manila was a new city, he followed it every time to see what the city built by the barbarians looked like.

Perhaps, because there were not many ships running here, he felt it was safer.

However, after this incident, Li Dongjia would not go out to sea easily again.

When Li Jin came out and stood at the bow, he saw a small boat lowered on the opposite side coming quickly towards this side, and the people on the boat were all wearing navy uniforms.

"May I ask the officer on the opposite side, why are you blocking our way?"

Li Jin's trembling voice gave out a slightly hoarse shout, which was in sharp contrast to his usual loud voice.

But at this moment, all his subordinates were actually scared, but no one noticed.

"Are you the owner of these two ships? What are their names?"

There was a voice on the boat opposite, and it was a man in official uniform from the front of the boat who was asking questions.

"Fuzhou Li Jin, the officer opposite is from the Nanhai Navy?"

Li Jin introduced himself to his family and bravely asked.

"Yes, can't you see the big flag on our bow?"

The person on the other side said something angrily, and then asked the person behind him: "Yes, see if you are right."

Soon, the person opposite started muttering, but it was too far away to hear what was said.

However, it is true that when encountering ships at sea, the Ming Dynasty Navy will stop them and ask them, which is to detect smuggling.

The Ming Dynasty did not have a serious customs, so the work of anti-smuggling was handled by the Yamen officials on the shore, but it was the navy's business at sea.

"Li Jin, right? Bring your shopkeeper to our ship. My general has something to ask you."

When the voice on the other side fell, not only Li Jin, but also the stewards around him turned pale.

"My boss, we've all gone over here, but we can't leave anyone behind."

The steward looked at the boat getting closer and said fearfully.

"Uncle Chen, it's not that I don't want to keep you here, but you can name us from the other side.

Don't be afraid, I know a lot of people in the Fujian Yamen. As long as they are officers and soldiers, they shouldn't dare to mess around. "

Li Jin had no choice but to say.

He didn't even dare to let him go there alone.

Having someone familiar with you can help you feel more courageous.

Soon, the boat came up, and Li Jin and Uncle Chen followed reluctantly to the boat.

Not long after, the two people boarded the Ming Dynasty's Dafu ship. The hundred households on the bow took them to the top of the ship's building, where they finally saw an armor-clad general.

Li Jin had a lot of contact with official people and was familiar with judging the rank of the officials on the other side by their clothing, but he really didn't know how to judge the officials wearing armor.

Therefore, although Li Jin was polite to these generals when he was in the Ming Dynasty, when he arrived here, he still took the initiative to salute to the opposite side with a respectful look.

"Fuzhou Li Jin, I already know. You only have one boat's pilot. Whose is the other one?"

The general opposite ignored him and asked directly.

In fact, it is also a problem of all maritime merchants. One ship guide may be used by two or even more ships.

As for the officials, they all said hello, so as long as they don't get caught in the act, everything will be fine.

Even if you get caught and give him some money, nothing will happen.

As for encountering them at sea, it is natural to give them money.

The Nanhai Navy will impose the same tax as Yuegang, that is, a supplementary tax and a fine of twice the tax.

As for how the money is divided, the merchants don't care. Anyway, just send the money.

This money actually ended up in the Nanhai Navy's private account. After all, the Navy was huge, and even with Wei Guangde's connections, the money was not enough.

Therefore, it is not bad to make a fortune from maritime merchants to supplement the navy's finances.

Wei Guangde turned a blind eye to this matter and pretended not to know.

Anyway, maritime merchants will not say anything. Even maritime merchants with background will never make this matter public.

However, Li Jin was still afraid that if these real officers and soldiers had part-time jobs, it would be bad.

After all, this is on the vast ocean.

"Sir, we have prepared a lot of goods this time, so for the sake of safety, we have prepared an extra boat."

Li Jin did not answer, but the steward behind him stepped forward and said.

"and who are you?"

Deng Zilong looked at him and asked.

"I am the steward on the ship and the steward of the Li family. My name is Chen Zhenlong."

The steward replied hurriedly.

"Looking at you wearing a kerchief, do you have a reputation?"

Deng Zilong looked at his clothes and asked curiously.

"The student was underachieving and only obtained the title of scholar. In order to make a living, he worked as a steward in the Li family."

Chen Zhenlong said.

"The road to the imperial examination is to cross a single-plank bridge with thousands of troops and horses. I have heard about the difficulty of the provincial examination. My admiral also stopped here."

Deng Zilong waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "However, the tax money that should be paid must not be less."

"Yes, yes, it should be made up. I will go back and bring the tax money."

At this time, Li Jin hurriedly replied that he was eager to settle the matter here as soon as possible and hand over the money so that he could continue on his way.

At this time, Li Jin had already made up his mind that after this trip, he would lie down at home and never go to sea again.

"Not urgent."

Deng Zilong waved his hand and said, "Dong Li and Manager Chen, do you often go to Manila to do business?"

"Go twice a year."

Chen Zhenlong replied.

"Then you should be familiar with the place. Please tell me about the situation in Manila City."

So during the question and answer session, Deng Zilong soon learned about the arrangement of the Yi people in Luzon Island, and that they had established small strongholds throughout Luzon, using this as a basis to force the local indigenous people to surrender and work for them.

The Yi people not only collected products on Luzon Island, including food, wood, spices, etc., but also asked them to help build cities.

Although Manila did not take long to build the city, the city was built very quickly because of the recruitment of a large number of local people.

The inner city wall has been built, and the outer city wall is still being planned, and many forts have been built.

However, because the artillery was not in place, these forts could only be used as garrison points and peripheral support points of Manila City to assist in defense.

As for the barbarian navy, there were only a few ships in Manila City, and a dock was built on a nearby island, where the barbarian water village was located.

When the barbarian warships arrived in Luzon, most of them docked at nearby islands instead of docking directly in Manila. Only their treasure ships would dock there for the convenience of transporting goods.

Deng Zilong learned about the current situation in Manila City, and naturally asked about the approximate number of barbarians there and the situation of treasure ships.

As for the Spanish treasure ship, Li Jin and Chen Zhenlong had only seen it from a distance. They only said that it was very big and other details were unknown.

After all, they couldn't get close. They just saw carts of goods being moved in and out.

"Do you know the whereabouts of Lin Feng?"

After asking the concerned questions, Deng Zilong suddenly asked.

"Lin Feng? Sir, we are businessmen, but we have no contact with the Japanese pirates. We don't know them."

Li Jin said hurriedly.

"I didn't say you were in the same group. I just wanted to ask. Since you travel between Ming Dynasty and Luzon, you should know the news about Lin Feng's attack on Manila City."

Deng Zilong asked.

"We know this, but we really don't know where Lin Feng went after leaving Manila."

Chen Zhenlong emphasized hurriedly, trying his best to put aside their relationship with the Lin Feng Pirate Group.

In fact, this is also the case. Although giving people money to buy a way, it does not mean that they are connected. Giving money is just to protect the safety of the sea.

As he spoke, the worried look on Chen Zhenlong's face had also lightened. Perhaps he gradually calmed down during the conversation just now, and he had some guesses about the purpose of the Ming Ting Navy fleet they encountered.

"I think you should have thought of our purpose."

Sure enough, in the next sentence, Deng Zilong made it clear.

"Yes, sir, we are tracing the traces of the Japanese pirates, but we really don't know where Lin Feng went."

Chen Zhenlong said hurriedly.

"Well, I have remembered your names, and I have something to tell you. This is to pay attention to Lin Feng's pirate group along the way. If you find it, send someone to notify me.

Our fleet will be anchored in the north of Luzon Island. When the news is known, someone will be sent to inform me immediately.

Secondly, pay attention to the situation in Manila City, especially the strength and arrangement of the barbarian troops in Luzon, and inquire as much as you can. "

At this point, Deng Zilong paused.

"Yes, yes, we will definitely do as we are told. If we find Japanese pirates, we will report them to the authorities immediately."

Chen Zhenlong answered hurriedly.

"There's one more thing."

Just when the two thought the matter was over, Deng Zilong spoke again.