After dinner, Mr. Zhao met Otomo Sorin, who came all the way from Western Kyushu, on the balcony of the Marine Police Station.

Under the parasol made of white reeds, Mr. Zhao sat comfortably on a bamboo lounge chair, and Qiaoqiao brought the ice cream after the meal. The milky white cream ice cream, served in a wide-mouthed glass, was steaming with white steam and sprinkled with a layer of crushed peanuts, which made people feel happy just by looking at it.

Ever since Qiaoqiao learned the traditional southern method of making ice with saltpeter, Master Zhao can enjoy his favorite cold drink anytime and anywhere.

The method is very simple. Prepare two basins, one large and one small. The large basin is not particular, but the small basin is best made of iron because it conducts heat quickly. If you are more particular, you can use a copper basin.

As for Qiaoqiao, the one she used was a silver basin, which not only conducts heat faster but also has the function of disinfection. However, the only drawback is that it is expensive.

Then he filled both basins with water and added a large amount of saltpeter into the large basin… As one of the three basic materials for black powder, this was the thing that Master Zhao had the most of, apart from money.

When saltpeter is dissolved in water, it absorbs a lot of heat, causing the water in the large basin to freeze, and then the water in the small basin to freeze as well, and then it can be used. And after the work is done, the saltpeter can be evaporated and crystallized for reuse. Of course, Qiaoqiao doesn't have to worry about this job...

As long as you don’t think about where the saltpeter comes from, it still tastes delicious.

In fact, Mr. Zhao was worrying too much. Sister Qiaoqiao loved him so much, how could she use urine to make saltpeter to make ice for him? They used the saltpeter produced in the caves by the sea, which was then purified and crystallized to get pure fire saltpeter.

~~

"Please sit down, Lao Wang." Young Master Zhao looked at the blue sea, scooped a spoonful of ice cream comfortably, and said to Otomo Sorin who was standing awkwardly beside him.

"Oh, thank you, young master." Otomo Sorin didn't know why the young master called him Lao Wang, but he thought it was a nickname for him, so he just responded with honor.

He sat on the chair with half of his buttocks resting, and his overall condition was much worse than two years ago.

Although he was very respectful back then, he also had the forbearance of a tyrant. But now, he is more lonely after being hit hard.

"Eat now, Lao Wang." Young Master Zhao urged him again.

"Hey, thank you, young master." Otomo Sorin quickly picked up the precious glass cup and imitated Zhao Hao, scooping a spoonful of ice cream into his mouth with a silver spoon. It felt cold, soft, smooth and refreshing. The sweet milky aroma mixed with the taste of peanuts could even dispel the haze in my heart! It made Lao Wang so happy that he wanted to put on a yukata and spin around!

Zhao Hao smiled and asked, "Two years have passed. Has Kitakyushu been unified?"

"Oh, I'm ashamed." Lao Wang lowered his head, and the ice cream in his mouth suddenly lost its sweetness. "The past two years have been disappointing."

"How could that be? Could it be that Lord Maori is attacking again?" Zhao Hao asked with a surprised look on his face.

"No, with the Marine Police Department, the Kanmon Strait is an insurmountable barrier." Otomo Sorin sighed and said, "As for Lord Mori, he is already terminally ill and his death is not far away. Besides, the Mori family has been busy attacking the Ouchi and Amago families over the years, so how could they have the energy to take care of other things?"

"Then you are..." Zhao Hao asked in confusion.

"Alas, last year I wanted to take advantage of the momentum of the great victory over the Mori family and take down that damn Hizen bear, but I didn't expect that my incompetent Odoudou would turn a sure-win game with ten times the number of troops into a miserable defeat..." Otomo Sorin replied with a sigh.

As mentioned before, in the third year of Longqing, Otomo Sorin had conquered the Hizen bear. Unfortunately, just when the victory was about to be accomplished, the Mori clan intervened, and the old king had to let Ryuzoji Takanobu go for the time being, and the entire army urgently turned around to fight against the Mori clan.

In the end, Otomo Sorin defeated the Mori clan with the help of Prince Zhao. Although he let Yoshikawa Motoharu and Kobayakawa Kagetaka go, he wiped out the Mori clan's navy and forced them to completely abandon their plan to capture northern Kyushu. For a time, the Otomo clan's reputation reached its peak, and its territory and military strength also reached their peak.

In the eyes of the people of Kyushu at that time, it was a foregone conclusion that the Mori family would destroy the Ryuzoji family and unify Kyushu with the Shimazu family. The old king himself thought so too, so he took a short break and last spring, he ordered his younger brother Otomo Chikamasa to lead an army of 60,000 to continue attacking the Ryuzoji family.

At that time, the Ryuzo army had only 5,000 men, and faced with the absolute superiority of the Otomo army, they could only retreat into the city and hold their ground. Seeing that the bear in Hizen had become a turtle in a jar, the mayors of the surrounding villages and counties rushed to send troops to support the Otomo family. For example, the Arima family sent cavalry, and those without horses sent infantry, hoping to get a piece of the pie.

But the characteristic of bears is that they are tough and bloody. As a result, the Otomo army besieged the city for 5 months but failed to capture it. Instead, Ryuzoji took advantage of their fatigue and slackness to sneak out of the city and sneak into the camp. The Otomo army was caught off guard and was slaughtered in their sleep. When they fled, they were chased and trampled, and most of them were killed or injured.

The Otomo army suffered a great defeat, and the morale of the army was crushed. The old king had no choice but to negotiate peace with Ryuzoji Takanobu and withdraw all the troops. This battle was hailed as the Kyushu version of the Battle of Okehazama. Ryuzoji Takanobu became famous from then on. With the momentum of the great victory, he swept away all the surrounding powerful forces and greatly increased his strength. From then on, the Ryuzoji family, the Otomo family, and the Shimazu family were the three families on Kyushu Island.

Seeing that the sure-win situation had turned into a stalemate, Lao Wang was so angry that he wanted to vomit blood, but his momentum had already declined, and he could not beat the bear no matter what, and could only watch the other side continue to erode his territory. Fortunately, the Thunder God Dosetsu defended Tachibana Castle, so he did not lose all of Eastern Kyushu. However, after the beginning of spring this year, Ryuzoji attacked Tachibana Castle again, and Tachibana Dosetsu frequently asked for help. Otomo Sorin's troops were stretched to the limit, so he wanted to ask Zhao Hao to let his troops stranded in Shikoku return to Kyushu.

When he was ambitious, Lao Wang had always been in alliance with his son-in-law, Ichijo, to stir up trouble on the island of Shikoku, which was full of weaklings. Now that his old nest was in danger, he certainly couldn't care about his son-in-law and had to withdraw his troops to save himself.

However, Shikoku and Kyushu are separated by the Bungo Channel, and they must travel by ship. However, according to the provisions of the Oita Treaty, the Otomo family had to withdraw all its naval forces at the end of the previous year, and then pay a protection fee of 1 million taels of silver every year, and the garrison was responsible for his maritime safety.

But the old king has always been dishonest, so if he is honest, he can't be the old king. In fact, Otomo Sorin did not burn the warships, but secretly moved them to Shikoku Island. He originally planned to quietly recall the navy after the Ming Dynasty people withdrew. At that time, he was the only one with navy in Kyushu Island, wouldn't it be great?

Unexpectedly, the Ming Dynasty people did not leave, but built a police station at his doorstep and stationed a powerful fleet. The reason was also very valid - Lao Wang spent one million taels of silver a year, and he had to feel that it was worth it! So he used this money to maintain a fleet to protect him.

And it’s the kind that he can see every day when he opens his eyes!

What's going on? Lao Wang was so depressed that he almost vomited blood. He knew that his navy would never see the light of day again. He dared not sail back directly. Seizing the ship and arresting people was one thing, but the worst thing was that he would be blacklisted by the Tamra Chamber of Commerce!

Maritime trade was the lifeline of the old king. He sold the gold, silver, timber, sulfur, and medicinal materials produced in his territory to the Tamra Chamber of Commerce, and continuously exchanged them for necessary war materials such as medicine, leather armor, raw silk, swords, gunpowder, etc. If trade was prohibited, let alone fighting, he would not be able to repay the debt he owed to Mr. Zhao.

So he could only beg the young master to send a ship to help him transport the people like he did before.

"I don't think it's a big deal. No problem, no problem. Serving customers wholeheartedly is the consistent purpose of our group." Mr. Zhao agreed readily, put down the glass, picked up a handkerchief to wipe his mouth and said, "How much was the freight last time?"

"Two hundred thousand taels." Old Wang said breathlessly.

"How many people do we need to transport?" Zhao Hao asked again.

"Fifteen thousand foot soldiers, and their family members who evacuated with them, about twenty thousand people in total," Lao Wang replied.

"Last time we transported 2,000 people, this time the number is ten times." Zhao Hao counted on his fingers and said, "That means the freight is 2 million taels? How about this, considering our relationship, I'll give you a 50% discount, and you only need to pay 1 million taels."

"You can't calculate it like that, young master." Otomo Sorin said with a sad face, "Last time, the two armies were at war, and the risk was huge. This time there is no war, and it shouldn't cost that much just to transport one person, right?"

"Are you trying to bargain with me?" Mr. Zhao's face suddenly turned cold.

"No, I dare not." Lao Wang shuddered with fear, then he remembered that the other party was a devil who killed people without blinking an eye, so he quickly got up from the chair and knelt on his knees.

"I think you're very daring!" Zhao Hao sneered, "You greedy fool, for the sake of the half-country enclave of Iyo, you left your 20,000 troops isolated and helpless. I don't believe that the Saionji family and the Doi family will let this piece of fat go! One million taels to save your 20,000 troops and let you lift the siege of Tachibanayama Castle, do you think this money is not worth spending?"

"Yes, I am stupid." Otomo Sorin was shocked when he heard this. It turned out that Master Zhao knew everything!

What Zhao Hao said was absolutely right. The main reason why he wanted to withdraw his troops back to Jiuzhou was that if he didn't, they would definitely be wiped out by the enemy!

Of course, the reason why it was so embarrassing was because Zhao Hao blocked the Bungo Waterway. Otherwise, Iyo had Kyushu at its back and could move forward and backward freely!

But Lao Wang didn't dare to say anything at this time and could only nod repeatedly.

"Remember, I hate people who try to be clever with me." Zhao Hao looked at him coldly and said, "Where did your navy go? You know it in your heart. Do I need to settle this account with you again?"

"No need, no need." Otomo Sorin kowtowed like crazy and said without hesitation: "I'll pay one million taels."

After a pause, he said carefully, "I just paid this year's installment. I'm really strapped for cash, so I can only owe it for now."

"How much money do you owe?" Zhao Hao rolled his eyes.

Secretary Ma took a bill from the folder and handed it to him. As a qualified secretary, she had to prepare the relevant information for the meeting in advance.

Zhao Hao took it and looked at it. According to the Oita Treaty, Lao Wang had to pay 1.5 million taels to Jiangnan Group, but he only paid 200,000 taels at that time. The remaining 1.3 million taels had to be repaid within five years at an annual interest rate of 2%. Until now, not even half of it has been repaid.

And at the end of last year, he owed another sum of protection money for this year. In the end, it was almost two million taels...

If you add the shipping fee, it would be over three million taels.

ps. This one is from yesterday, there are two more updates.