Guangzhou is the largest city in Lingnan.
During the Qin and Han dynasties, Zhao Tuo was ordered to go to Lingnan to subdue the Baiyue people. However, upon hearing of the war in the Central Plains, he did not return.
He then established his capital in Guangzhou, proclaimed himself emperor, and founded a kingdom.
Central Plains culture was officially introduced to the Lingnan and Guangzhou areas.
During the Tang Dynasty, the Maritime Silk Road had gradually taken shape, and Guangzhou became the largest cargo port in southern China, becoming increasingly prosperous.
Inheriting the legacy of the former Tang Dynasty, Guangzhou continues to shoulder the important responsibility of foreign maritime trade.
The Song dynasty also attached great importance to commerce, so Guangzhou's foreign trade flourished.
In Guangzhou alone, there were Han Chinese, Ryukyu Islanders, Arabs, Chinian people, as well as people from India and many from the islands of Southeast Asia.
Furthermore, due to the favorable climate, abundant tropical rainforests, and rich natural resources, people don't have to worry too much about food.
With a certain foundation already in place, after Zhao Huan ascended the throne, he designated Guangzhou as the southern capital, and the court invested heavily in resources.
These past ten years have also been a decade of rapid development for Guangzhou.
Furthermore, the scale of Guangzhou city has been expanded several times.
Guangzhou is becoming increasingly prosperous, with a constant stream of merchant ships coming and going.
But all of this was disrupted two months ago.
Large-scale unrest broke out in Guangzhou, resulting in the deaths and injuries of up to 20,000 ordinary citizens.
The three thousand soldiers defending the city were almost completely wiped out.
Li Bao was originally studying at the Imperial Military Academy. After receiving the mission, he immediately set off from Tokyo and rushed to Quanzhou.
Five thousand naval personnel are stationed in Guangzhou Port, but the current situation is unclear, indicating that the situation is worse than expected, and even worse than the men in Tokyo anticipated.
Li Bao was puzzled. Guangzhou was heavily guarded, so how did it suddenly fall into the hands of the rebels?
Xiao Yi, the commander of the Guangzhou Navy, was no ordinary general. He was an officer who graduated from the Imperial Military Academy and rose to the position of commander within three years, which can be described as a very rare talent.
Why has the situation in Guangzhou developed to this point?
Filled with doubt, Li Bao first went to Quanzhou.
As another port city for foreign trade, Quanzhou was also quite prosperous, and had three warships at its estuary.
Li Bao met Xu Yunsheng, the commander of the Quanzhou Navy, and Zhou Wenji, the assistant director of the Maritime Trade Office.
Xu Yunsheng was a young man in his early twenties, about the same age as Li Bao. He was dressed in military uniform and looked very dashing.
Zhou Wenji of the Maritime Trade Office was different. He was in his early fifties and had been working at the Maritime Trade Office in Quanzhou for more than thirty years. He was clearly the kind of cunning and shrewd old man.
"This humble official pays respects to Commander Li."
Zhou Wenji smiled and said, "Commander Li, I have prepared a small feast to welcome you and wash away the dust of your journey."
Li Bao said, "No need for formalities. The military situation in Guangzhou is urgent. Gather your men immediately and come with me to Guangzhou."
Li Bao slightly furrowed his silkworm-like eyebrows. He was only in his early twenties, but he looked quite intimidating, a result of his years of military service.
He used to be Yue Fei's soldier and a loyal fan of Yue Fei. It can be said that his conduct and style are quite similar to those of Yue Fei.
Clean and crisp, it gives people a strong sense of power, making people trust it naturally.
Zhou Wenji said, "Commander Li, you must be exhausted from the journey. The soldiers at the front are waiting for your strategic planning. If you overwork yourself, how can we fight this battle?"
Zhou Wenji was one of Zhao Gou's men and was in charge of the Maritime Trade Office. He was a seasoned veteran in the officialdom.
Who is Li Bao on behalf of?
His identity is rather complicated.
Personally speaking, he was a follower of Yue Fei.
According to official rank, he was under the jurisdiction of the Military Governor's Office, and the newly appointed Marshal Zong Ze was his superior.
At the same time, Prime Minister and Minister of the Navy Yu Yunwen had the power to appoint and dismiss him.
But regardless of whose side it was, the rift between the navy and the maritime trade office had been going on for a long time.
At this time of week, Wenji is still preoccupied with eating, drinking, and having fun, which is typical of the style and habits of the Maritime Trade Office.
The navy's efficient and decisive approach naturally clashed with the rules and regulations of the Maritime Trade Office, leading to frequent verbal altercations between the two sides.
Logically speaking, the Maritime Trade Office and the Navy should not have any direct conflict of interest.
At most, it would be a case of merchant ships at sea being robbed by pirates, and the Maritime Trade Office suffering losses, then suing the navy for inaction.
However, in recent years, the Song Dynasty navy has become quite powerful, and pirates are terrified of it.
Zhou Wenji was simply trying to curry favor with Li Bao and take the opportunity to build relationships within the navy.
But Li Bao was young and impetuous, and he wasn't interested in this kind of hedonistic lifestyle at all.
Seeing that Li Bao had rejected Zhou Wenji outright without giving him any face, Xu Yunsheng pulled Li Bao aside and whispered a reminder: "Commander Li, you can't afford to offend Zhou Wenji."
Li Bao said, “I have not offended him. Guangzhou is in a state of emergency. I have been entrusted by His Majesty to come here to quell the rebellion, so I cannot linger here. If this is considered offending him, then let it be.”
Seeing that Li Bao didn't take it seriously at all, Xu Yunsheng was both amused and exasperated. This Commander Li was a famous naval general, the commander-in-chief of the entire South Seas, a confidant of the current emperor, a disciple of Yue Fei, and the current prime minister Yu Yunwen had praised him more than once.
This is a future figure whose piety is immeasurable.
But even the most important person still needs the cooperation of ordinary people to get things done, right?
Xu Yunsheng said, “Commander Li, Zhou Wenji has been in the Maritime Trade Office for over thirty years. He has helped almost all the wealthy merchants in Quanzhou to rise to prominence. During His Majesty’s new policies, Quanzhou remained stable, and its foreign trade was second only to Hangzhou. It was the apple of the eye of Prince Kang and Prime Minister Tang. Now, the military situation in Guangzhou is urgent. The navy is at sea, separated from the land, and the military supplies still need to be provided by Quanzhou. The prefect of Quanzhou, Cai Yongling, is a confidant of Prince Kang and is in cahoots with Zhou Wenji.”
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