The sea breeze is blowing gently and the sky is filled with colorful clouds.
On the green hillside, Master Zhao crossed his legs and asked the Right Envoy Park who was leaning over beside him, "Is this easy to handle?"
"It's not difficult, it's never difficult." Park Yu-shih smiled flatteringly, "It's a blessing for Jeju Island to have chosen this poor place. If anyone dares to be ignorant, we Jeju people will dig up his ancestors' graves!"
"Will the Jeju governor agree?" Zhao Hao asked again.
"Li Mu and I are friends of life and death. Leave it to me." Pu Chengxing patted his chest loudly, thinking that if he doesn't agree, he will kill him.
"Where are the governor of Jeolla Province and the nobles of Seoul?"
"I'll take care of it. I'll take care of everything!" Park Chengxing said, "Just go ahead and do it. I'll take care of everything. You don't have to worry about it. If I can't do it, I'll jump off the Sunrise Peak!"
Zhao Hao gave him three million taels of cake a year, which was enough for him to bribe everyone in the Li Dynasty. Lord Park rose to power by scheming, and he was familiar with the way and full of confidence!
"Then the soldiers and civilians in my concession..." Zhao Hao asked.
"Everyone move out!" Park Sung-sung shouted at the top of his voice, "Xuezhi, your barracks have been blown down by the wind. Quickly order them to pack up and move to the Pyoseonpo Water Battle Site early tomorrow morning!"
"Ah..." Gao Xuezhi was struck by lightning when he heard this. He had finally gotten a lucrative job, but he didn't expect to be kicked out in the blink of an eye.
"What? Don't you understand what I'm saying?" Park Chengxing was furious.
"I understand, I understand. We'll move out immediately!" Gao Xuezhi's fat face shuddered and he hurried back to the camp to give instructions.
"There are also beacon towers on Chengshan and Ushio Island." Park Chengxing reminded.
"There's no rush. Wait until our people take over before you withdraw." Zhao Hao waved his hand.
"I will listen to you, Master." Park Chengxing responded quickly, then hesitated and said, "It's just that there is a Chengshan Town here with thousands of people. It will take some time to relocate."
In fact, there was more than just Chengshan Town. The Chuanwei River was just one mile east of Jingyi County. Zhao Hao chopped down along the Jingyi County, almost cutting off half of Jingyi County.
The circumference of Jingyi County is only 400 meters, the size of a needle tip, so most of the people live outside the city.
As a result, nearly 3,000 people were included in the concession by Zhao Hao without the county magistrate's knowledge.
"Hey, such a big place always needs people to do odd jobs." Young Master Zhao waved his hand and said, "I don't think we need to move. I've hired people."
"Oh, you are so kind, young master!" Park Chengxing quickly gave a thumbs up and flattered him, "Those servants who can't even get enough food can finally enjoy a good life by following you, young master!"
Compared with the concession of such a large territory to Zhao Hao, the mere 3,000 official slaves were nothing. They were all servants of the government anyway, so it didn't matter who they were assigned to. Assigning them to Master Zhao could also generate income for the government!
"Now that you mention it, I can't be partial to one." Zhao Hao picked up the straw hat and put it on his head and said, "There are so many poor people like this on the island. I will hire them all."
"Ah, there are nearly 40,000 slaves and exiles, sir." Park Chengxing's jaw almost dropped to the ground. Master Zhao was going to drain all the people in the pasture and two counties. "If they all follow you to enjoy the good life, then there will be less than 10,000 people left in the pasture, two counties and nine towns."
"Why not? Fewer people means less trouble. Don't you officials want to live in peace and quiet?" Young Master Zhao said with a smile as he walked towards the dock, "Do as I say. You will have money and free time, and you will be as happy as a god."
"All the public and private work on the island depends on them. If they all leave, the island will be paralyzed." Park Chengxing smiled bitterly, "Besides, there are still many newly exiled people who have not been properly trained. I am afraid that they will cause trouble for you. How about this, I will discuss with Li Mushi and transfer 4,000 strong men to you for your service?"
"All right." Zhao Hao wasn't here to run a charity, and he didn't intend to take all the old, weak, sick, and disabled people. "I want strong men, don't fool me with some bean sprouts, or I'll take your two brothers to make up the number."
"What you said, sir. Even if I had the courage, I would not dare to fool you." Park Chengxing breathed a sigh of relief. Although the four thousand strong men were somewhat injured, at worst they could recruit some more from the mainland, and they would always be able to cope with it.
~~
Two days later, Master Zhao completed his island tour and returned to Gap Island.
In five days, the construction work on the island progressed rapidly. The dock was basically completed, and neat camps were set up on the shore, making it look very real.
Mr. Zhao felt very satisfied. It seemed that Japanese laborers were still very good. He should capture more prisoners in the future and get some Koreans to be foremen. It was a perfect match.
From now on, all the hard, tiring and dangerous work such as mining, logging and seawall construction will be handed over to them.
The kind-hearted Mr. Zhao finally no longer had to feel guilty about the poor working conditions of the Ming Dynasty workers.
In a good mood, Master Zhao ordered people to bring Park Sung-in, Jiang Bula and other Lee Dynasty captives to him, and announced on the spot that they would be set free.
The captives of the Li Dynasty immediately cheered and expressed their gratitude, and kowtowed to thank the magnanimity of the Celestial Emperor.
The Japanese workers looked at each other in bewilderment, and when they found out what was going on, they cheered too. They seemed happier than the people of the Joseon Dynasty.
"Why are they so happy? I don't intend to let them go, do I?" Zhao Hao asked curiously.
“Haha, this…” Haier Ge quickly explained: “They may be because they finally don’t have to be tortured by the North Koreans anymore.”
"Oh, so that's it..." Young Master Zhao couldn't bear to tell these Japanese that they would soon be sent to the other side to build a new port city together with Koreans, who outnumbered them ten or a hundred times.
Park Sung-in originally thought that his elder brother would have to empty the toilet for him, but he didn't expect that his elder brother was the elder brother and actually escaped. While he was happy for his elder brother, he was also a little worried. If he left, Songpu Zhenxin alone might not be able to empty so many toilets.
Zhao Hao also asked Park Sung-seong to contact Chen Huaixiu, and in the future, the trade rights from Daming to Jeonra Island would be exclusively enjoyed by Jiangnan Shipping - after Chen Huaixiu transported the goods from the north and south to Xingang City, Park Sung-seong's company would exclusively purchase them and then resell them to Japan. The same is true in reverse.
The entire trade chain is so simple and crude that the Jiangnan Group and its vassal chamber of commerce of the Joseon Dynasty completely monopolized the northern line trade between China and Japan.
Zhao Hao had no intention of sharing this route with anyone, including the Ming people.
In the Age of Exploration, all maritime trade had to be backed by powerful military force. The high cost of maintaining trade meant that all countries and forces would not allow others to interfere with their shipping routes.
How can I allow others to snore beside my bed?
Only their own fleets are allowed to sail on that blood-stained route. There is absolutely no possibility of free navigation or free trade.
Anyone, any country, any force that wants to interfere with other people’s shipping routes can only rely on their own fleets to force the original owner to give up the sea area. Otherwise, there is no other way!
In order to protect their own routes and seize other people's routes, players in the Age of Discovery had to engage in an arms race that lasted for hundreds of years.
The increasingly large fleet and the ever-increasing expenditure made it increasingly difficult for all parties to allow others to take even a penny away from their routes.
In a word, during the Age of Discovery, monopoly trade and mercantilism were the truth, and there was no soil for free competition to survive.
~~
Although Northeast Asia seems calm at the moment, it is still no exception.
Zhao Hao knew that next year, the Portuguese would obtain the Port of Nagasaki and rebuild the route from Macau to Ryukyu and Kyushu.
The two sides will soon meet head-on in Kitakyushu, and there is no possibility of sharing the Japanese market.
The result will inevitably be that one party withdraws from Japan, while the other party enjoys Japan alone.
Maybe, I will soon experience the powerful force of the galleon myself.
How could he share the route he defended with blood with anyone? Even Young Master Zhao was no exception.
After meeting with Chen Huaixiu and other senior executives of Jiangnan Shipping and agreeing on contact information, the Park brothers thanked them profusely and said goodbye and went back.
Old Pu boasted a lot in front of Mr. Zhao. He had to follow through on his boasting, and he might even have to go back to Wangjing to take care of the next two shifts.
Being a dog is not that easy, not everyone can be a good one.
The great sea merchant Jin Xishan was kept by Zhao Hao as an interpreter because he was proficient in Chinese, Japanese and Korean languages.
Although Jin Xishan was thinking about going ashore to divide the spoils, he was clear-headed. He had become a translator, and as long as he served Mr. Zhao well, who would dare to give him less than the right-hand man Park?
The one who was most in a hurry was Songpu Zhenxin. After Park Chengyin left, he was the only dung boy left on the island. Not only was there too much work to do, but without anyone to accompany him to pour night incense, the night incense was no longer fragrant.
Although he was sad, he no longer shouted that he wanted to commit seppuku. Instead, he turned his grief and anger into strength and scrubbed the toilet more carefully, cleaning it thoroughly every time and not stopping until he could scoop water from it to drink.
Mr. Zhao was very moved when he saw this. He didn't expect to find a model worker who was no less skilled than Mr. Xu on this island thousands of miles away. The business of pouring night incense is really full of hidden talents!
So Mr. Zhao rewarded Songpu Zhenxin with a manure cart so that he could carry four toilets at a time...
~~
The next day, the Jiangnan Shipping fleet was about to return to Chongming Island.
Zhao Hao saw Chen Huaixiu and the others off at the dock. With Gao Gelao's return imminent, the shipping of grain by sea is no longer a suspense, but the clauses that really matter are hidden in the specific details, so Master Zhao has to go back and check it personally.
And he didn’t dare to delay the new anime in July that he promised to Fatty until August.
So the poor Mr. Zhao had to return to the capital immediately.
"Sister Huaixiu, the typhoon season will soon begin. This time we go back, we can have a good rest." Zhao Hao smiled and said to Chen Huaixiu, "See you in September."
"Yes, sir. See you in September." Chen Huaixiu also bowed to him with a smile.
In fact, they couldn't rest for long after they returned. At most, they could rest for ten days or half a month, and then Chen Huaixiu would have to take people to Taicang and Jinling to pick up new ships.
The eighty thousand-ton ocean-going ships of the Longjiang Baochuan Factory and Suzhou Shipyard had been completed for a long time, and they were just waiting for them to take over and launch them.
ps. This is the first of three consecutive updates. Please give me your monthly votes!