We are all the same kind of people, so naturally we can empathize and resonate with each other.

After hearing what Zhao Liben said, Yin Zhengmao was so moved that he almost cried. "My uncle is really sensible... Alas, it's hard to find a soulmate, and who knows when a string is broken?"

"I understand, I understand you." Zhao Liben said with the air of a man who has experienced it: "The more you work, the more you make, the more mistakes you make. If you do nothing, you will be invincible."

"That's right!" Yin Zhengmao slapped his thigh and said, "I really don't want to do this job anymore after being scolded, but the court won't let me resign. I have to continue to wipe out the bandits and pirates in Guangdong first."

"Are you going to kill me again?" Zhao Liben said with a smile as he took a puff of his cigar.

"That's not the case, is it possible that Mr. Yuan won't let me die peacefully?" Yin Zhengmao also took a puff of his cigarette and said calmly, "Mr. Gao is not the kind of person who doesn't take responsibility. I still have confidence in this."

"That's right. You can sit back and relax as long as Lord Gao is still here..." Zhao Liben said with a faint smile, "But uncle, let me remind you that you have accomplished such an amazing feat and are destined to go down in history. You must not get involved in some bad reputation, otherwise..."

He stopped talking and didn't say anything else, but everyone could imagine the words "leaving a lasting infamy".

"Uncle, you mean..." Yin Zhengmao had already been promoted to governor, so how could he not understand the hidden meaning behind his words?

"I heard that there is a guy named Lin Hongzhong who is parading around Guangdong under your name. The prefects and governors treat him as a guest of honor, and the prefects and county magistrates are vying to curry favor with him. It has a very bad influence." Zhao Liben said in a deep voice: "Normally, it is not my place to interfere with who my nephew associates with. But when I was in Guangzhou before, I dealt with this Lin..."

"Oh, really?" Yin Zhengmao said calmly, "Is he worthy enough to deal with my uncle?"

"There's nothing we can do. Grandfathers owe their grandchildren. I was ordered by my grandson to negotiate with the Portuguese about maritime matters on behalf of the Jiangnan Group." Zhao Liben said helplessly, "Zhao Hao and a group of big families in Jiangnan have contracted the transportation of grain by sea. How can we live in peace if we don't deal with those red-haired devils?"

"Well, I heard that their Western ships are very powerful." Yin Zhengmao said calmly: "One ship can beat dozens of ours..."

"Isn't that the case?" Zhao Liben said as he knocked off a long piece of white ash.

"In the end, the person who came forward to talk to me on behalf of the Red-haired Ghosts was this Lin Hongzhong. After chatting with him, I learned that his grandfather's generation went to Southeast Asia. He grew up in a place called Malacca and believed in Western religion. Because he spoke well to the Red-haired Ghosts, he was brought to Xiangshan'ao to serve as an interpreter for them. Then, by helping the Red-haired Ghosts to deceive the Ming people, he gradually became a member of the group."

These words were truly heartbreaking... The most terrifying thing was that although they were basically true, they turned Lin Hongzhong from being an active comprador into a passive traitor... and instantly demoted him to the eighteenth level.

Yin Zhengmao didn't mind dealing with anyone, no matter if they were chieftains or foreigners. But there was one thing: they had to be equal. A governor could talk to the master, but not to a dog!

However, there was no sign of anything unusual on his face. He simply changed the subject and said, "Speaking of which, my uncle not only has a good son, but also a good grandson. Mr. Zhao's name is well-known, but it's a pity that I have never had the chance to meet him."

"That kid has wanted to come and meet you for a long time. His father is your subordinate." Zhao Liben said with a smile, "But he doesn't know our relationship, and I have been in the mountains and can't contact him. The kid was afraid that getting too close would be bad for you, so he has been holding back and not coming. He is kind-hearted."

Yin Zhengmao felt a little uncomfortable after hearing this. What does "getting too close may be bad for you" mean? "The translation is that Gao Gong may be unhappy about our interaction, but it will only be bad for you, not my grandson."

The dignified Nanjing Minister of War and Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi was secretly treated as a weakling.

But the problem was that he had to admit that he really couldn't compare to Zhao Hao. That guy was the eldest princess's godson, the second assistant's son-in-law, the behind-the-scenes leader of the Jiangnan Gang, and a large number of his students had passed the imperial examinations and entered official careers... In addition, he was extremely rich, the kind of rich enough to rival a country.

When these weighty chips are stacked together, which way will the scale tip? It goes without saying.

This is why the Zhao family can be on good terms with the governor and the provincial governor at the same time, because they are both strong and thicker, so there is no question of standing in line. It is hard to say who is holding whose thigh.

It was only because Lin Hongzhong's status was not high enough to break through the barrier of knowledge that he thought everyone had to take sides in the dispute between the governor and the governor-general...

~~

"Uncle Shi said so much," Yin Zhengmao knew that it was pointless to beat around the bush with an old fox like Zhao Liben, so he simply went straight to the point and asked, "Do you just want me to keep a distance from Lin Hongzhong?"

"It's not Lin Hongzhong, it's the Portuguese!" Zhao Liben said in a deep voice, "We can't be branded as traitors, nephew. Do you think anyone who colluded with foreigners since ancient times would have a good ending, right?"

"They are not colluding with foreign countries, are they?" Yin Zhengmao pointed at the red-haired devils and said disapprovingly, "The Portuguese are just a small country like Java and Arabia. They can't threaten the Ming Dynasty."

"Wrong, absolutely wrong!" Zhao Liben shook his head and sighed, and asked the maid Han Tao to take out a world map from her bookcase, and tremblingly unfolded it for Yin Zhengmao to see.

The map was drawn by Zhao Hao according to his memory, so of course the accuracy was mediocre and only had reference value. However, it was a four-color map, which used different colors to highlight the territories of the major countries in the world today.

As a top scholar, Yin Zhengmao naturally paid great attention to collecting various maps. He also got similar maps through Lin Hongzhong, but the world map brought by the red-haired devil either exaggerated the territory of the Ming Dynasty or deliberately did not count the colonies and the sovereign as the same country. The purpose was to paralyze the emperor and ministers of the Ming Dynasty and let them continue to dream of being the Celestial Empire and the only one in power.

Therefore, this four-color flat map had a great impact on him. Looking at the two empires whose territories spread all over the world, one had already stretched its tentacles to the balls of the Ming Dynasty, and the other had also touched the doorstep, Yin Zhengmao was so shocked that he was speechless for a long time.

No matter how optimistic a person is, after seeing this map, he would think that the next step for these two empires would be to plot against the Ming Dynasty.

In fact, the plan had been made long ago. When the Battle of Tuen Mun and the Battle of Sai Cao Wan took place, Yin Zhengmao had already stopped wearing open-crotch pants.

He couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat. If there were to be another Battle of Tuen Mun, he would be like a pile of mud falling into his pants, and it would be shit anyway.

"The Portuguese... have always been submissive, have helped defend Guangzhou many times, and obeyed the government's orders to suppress bandits. It shouldn't... be this necessary, right?" Yin Zhengmao even stuttered.

"That's because they were beaten to a pulp and realized that forceful tactics wouldn't work, so they lowered themselves to please us." Zhao Liben said coldly, "But now, the stronger Spaniards have arrived from the other side of the earth. The Spaniards have never suffered a loss, so will they also want to test the strength of the Ming Dynasty? Moreover, is there any possibility of them joining forces?"

"..." Yin Zhengmao wiped his sweat with a cotton towel and said, "Thank you for reminding me, uncle. This is something I didn't expect. I must be more vigilant."

"Of course, it's also possible that they don't have the guts to touch the tiger's butt." Zhao Liben smiled and changed the subject: "But there is a saying that a son of a wealthy family should not sit in the hall. Why should we take such a big risk? What the red-haired devils can give, can't our own people give it?"

After hearing this, Yin Zhengmao felt relieved. It turned out that Mr. Zhao was exaggerating in order to replace him...

He nodded and said calmly, "What the uncle said is right, but our people are too sparse. Our Ming Dynasty has banned maritime operations for 200 years. It is no longer the era of Zheng He. Even a famous general like Yu Dayou is just as weak in naval battles. In the second year of Longqing, Zeng Yiben's fleet suddenly appeared under the city of Guangzhou and defeated Yu Dayou's newly built navy. It was only with the help of the Portuguese in Macau that Zeng Yiben was driven away."

"Yes, but that's all old news." Zhao Liben stopped pretending and said proudly, "With the help of my grandson, Lin Daoqian has already swept across the seas of Fujian. As long as my nephew nods, the next step will be to clean up the seas of Guangdong and Guangxi, so that my Great Ming will have complete peace on the seas!"

"So this is how Lin Daoquan achieved his battle record..." Yin Zhengmao suddenly realized.

However, the result of the Ming Dynasty's maritime ban was that everyone would subconsciously despise the power of the sea. Wang Zhi in the past and Zheng Zhilong in the future both unified the seas of the Ming Dynasty and became the kings of the sea, but the court remained indifferent and no one ever thought it was wrong. Perhaps in their view, no matter how ferocious a shark is, it cannot threaten people on land.

If the same force were transferred to land, they would immediately rise up to suppress the rebellion...

Therefore, Yin Zhengmao also had a cognitive barrier and did not think that it was so great to be able to sweep across the Fujian-Guangdong sea area. Of course, officials like him who led troops to fight would have a slightly deeper understanding. But he only thought it was a little powerful and would never regard it as a real threat.

"So, why should we cooperate with them? Isn't it better to rely on our own people?" Zhao Liben asked with a smile.

"It is fragrant." Yin Zhengmao said slowly, "But I have already promised Lin Hongzhong to include the Portuguese in the ranks of foreign soldiers..."

"No matter what conditions he offers, I will double them," Zhao Liben said proudly.

"Uncle, this is not a matter of money..." Yin Zhengmao said with a wry smile.

"I'll double it!" Zhao Liben said decisively, "Or you can propose it yourself. You can make any conditions you want. If you can't agree, I'll turn around and leave!"

"Uncle, what you said makes me seem too greedy..." Yin Zhengmao said with a distressed look, "Two million taels."

"Two million taels?" Zhao Liben narrowed his eyes, as if frightened by his huge request.

'Leave half' really lives up to its reputation!

"I'm not doing this for myself. Uncle doesn't know that we are about to mobilize the army to go into the mountains to wipe out the 800-li alliance of Lan Yiqing and Lai Yuanjue. 800 li, how much military expenses will it cost!" Yin Zhengmao sighed and said, "I haven't even raised half of it yet."

As he said this, he slapped his thigh and said, "We are family, so let's not be polite. As long as Jiangnan Group sponsors two million taels of military expenses and guarantees that there will be no more pirates causing trouble, the seas of Guangdong and Guangxi will be theirs!"

"Deal!" Mr. Zhao slapped his thigh, as if he had made a great decision.