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A lame man came to the island. The gang leader asked a doctor to treat him, arranged a house for him, and even built a strange chair with wheels. He ordered everyone to salute when they saw someone in a wheelchair.
In this case, who didn't know that the gang leader had taken a fancy to this person? However, even so, when the figure in the wheelchair was seen in the meeting room, it still attracted many surprised glances.
Wasn't it said that this man was seriously ill? How come in just a few days, he was invited to the hall by the gang leader and even sat on the same high position as the big boss?
Sun Erlang remained calm when he saw these extra people.
As the first one to join the gang leader and the "chief steward" in charge of the affairs of Luoling Island, he naturally knows more than others.
Mr. Tian Yutian was rescued from Panyu by the gang leader. In order to save him, he was also involved in the prison break case of the Suoyi Gang. It can be said that he was willing to take risks.
Boss Yan seemed familiar to him, and it might be related to the gang leader's family affairs.
It was for this reason that he understood early on that this was someone who would be of great use. In addition, the gang leader had informed him in advance. After knowing the abilities of Mr. Tian, Sun Erlang was truly relieved.
Now that the Red Flag Gang is expanding, there are more and more people and things to take care of, and he is a little overwhelmed.
It's a good thing for him to have multiple people the gang leader trusts to help him.
Facing the people in the room, Cheng Xi said, "This is Tian Yu, Tian Danhui. He is my staff member and is responsible for finances. From now on, he will be responsible for the Red Flag Gang's treasury expenses."
After these words were spoken, some people looked at Tian Yu, while others looked at Sun Erlang.
The public treasury is the foundation of the gang and is controlled by the gang leader himself, with Sun Erlang assisting him.
Now a newcomer has come and taken away his job in an instant. How could Chief Sun be willing to accept this? Unexpectedly, when they looked over, they found that Sun Erlang looked calm and composed, which made many people think about it.
Cheng Xi continued to introduce the gang leaders and captains to Tian Yu, and explained everyone's duties.
Now that the warships and merchant ships have been separated, several big bosses are in charge of both the island and the camp, which is quite complicated.
Being stared at by a group of people, Tian Yu was not afraid at all. After listening with a cold face, he said, "Your gang is quite chaotic."
The crowd below was in an uproar. Isn't this the master? Why is he so rude when he comes up?
Cheng Xi was not annoyed: "We just conquered Luoling Island, and the personnel expansion was too rapid, so it is inevitable that we are a little confused. I am only good at military affairs, and I hope Danhui will take care of the civil affairs."
She is still implementing militarized control. As for the construction of the camp and the villages on the island, she can only rely on limited experience, and the organizational structure is full of problems.
After all, a boat gang is different from an ordinary army. She was alone before and could only rely on the manpower of three villages. There were flaws in both the profit-sharing method and personnel arrangements. Someone like Tian Yu who had been an official could naturally see it at a glance.
Unexpectedly, she admitted it so straightforwardly. Tian Yu was stunned, and then asked bluntly: "How many soldiers and civilians are there on the island now?"
Cheng Xi said, "There are 624 regular soldiers, 377 auxiliary soldiers, and over 100 surrendered soldiers. There should be over 100 families who have migrated to the island, right?"
Sun Erlang immediately said, "There are now 135 households that have moved here, including 65 fishermen, 50 farmers, and 20 women."
Hearing this, Tian Yu immediately sneered: "How do you feed so many people? There's no harvest now, is fishing enough?"
Although he knew that this man was a Jinshi and had once served as an official, Sun Erlang still felt a little uncomfortable hearing his sarcastic remarks. He couldn't help but say, "There was a lot of wealth on the island before, and the gang leader also allowed the fleet to continue transporting food and goods. The camp on the shore is still trading in grain and seafood. Combined with the proceeds from the pirate raids, the gang is not short of food now."
Unexpectedly, before Cheng Xi could answer, the civil affairs officer spoke first. Tian Yu's expression became even more sarcastic: "Hundreds of people don't do any production, and this alone is enough? Even if we fight to support the war, sooner or later we will encounter a strong enemy. When the time comes for life and death, can we really let people fight on an empty stomach? We have no land, and the food supply is controlled by others. Even if we reclaim the wasteland, we may not be able to harvest it. Where does your confidence come from?"
Sun Erlang was choked by these words. The gang leader had mentioned that he wanted to change the grain route, control some profitable export goods, reclaim land and fish for support, and even control the sea routes.
But these are all long-term plans without exception, and they are still not making enough money to cover their expenses, not to mention the money needed to build the two villages on the island and the shore.
Seeing Tian Yu chasing closely, Yan Yuan quickly said, "The gang leader has an appointment with Mr. Lu. We plan to intercept the Lu family's ship returning from Southeast Asia. The ship may be back next month..."
He had mentioned Lu Jian before. It was estimated that Tian Yu was only concerned about the fact that the grain route was in the hands of the other party, and he didn't know that there was a fat sheep waiting for them to slaughter on a long voyage.
Tian Yu sneered, "A thing floating on the sea, and you dare treat it as military reserve? What if the fleet encounters a storm, or changes course and flees to Ryukyu? Even if they can stop at Luoling Island, they might escape if they can't be stopped. Chief Yan, have you forgotten the principle of 'food and fodder must be sent before troops move'?"
Yan Yuan was speechless. He really couldn't guarantee these things, and the loss of such a huge fortune would have a huge impact on the Red Flag Gang.
Just as Tian Yu was about to draw public wrath after winning two games in a row, Cheng Xi spoke up, "Does Dan Hui have a plan in mind?"
Even if you don't trust others, there is no reason to offend everyone right away. I'm afraid Tian Yu's personality is too awkward and he doesn't want to say what he wants to say directly.
As expected, Tian Yu snorted upon hearing this: "Boss, you forgot that Dongning is right next to the salt field. The Red Flag Gang has so many ships, why not find a way to sell salt?"
Hearing this, Yan Yuan's eyes lit up.
Yes, salt is indeed one of the military supplies. The army always has salt permits on hand in order to exchange them for military rations from merchants.
Isn't the idea of operating a salt field a sure win?
Li Lai's face changed drastically, and he hurriedly said, "Mr. Tian, you may not know that there are garrisons stationed at the salt fields. If we seize the salt fields, we might attract soldiers..."
Tian Yu glanced at him and said, "Who said we want to seize the salt fields? The salt law is so bad now. There are so many privately-owned salt fields in Guangdong alone. Why not just seize one?"
Did this statement really seem to make sense? Li Lai himself was tempted. As long as he didn't confront the imperial court head-on, what was the big deal about beating and killing two salt merchants? Even if the salt merchants were all fierce bandits, he might not be able to defeat them!
Cheng Xi was a little surprised. She knew that the salt merchants were rich, but it was unexpected that the government-owned salt fields were leaking like a sieve.
It's not that she hadn't thought about selling salt, but she was wary of the official ships of the garrison and didn't want to attract the attention of the court too early. Now that she no longer had this concern, it became easy to do.
After thinking for a while, Cheng Xi said, "First, check if there are any privately-owned salt works nearby, and how many salt merchants are going to pass through Luoling Island."
Back then, she had seen endless salt fields at the seaside. Even though Guangzhou had a lot of rain, building a small one shouldn't be too difficult. However, she would need to find some skilled salt workers.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he finished speaking, Sun Erlang frowned and said, "Anyone who can privately establish salt fields is likely to have connections with the imperial court. It would be inappropriate to act rashly. Besides, even if we seize the salt fields, we may not be able to retain the salt workers. How will we cook the salt then?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Cheng Xi asked curiously, "Boil salt? Isn't that drying it in the sun?"
Everyone looked over. Yan Yuan was surprised but also a little amused. The gang leader was usually omniscient and omnipotent, to the point that people forgot that she was only seventeen years old and a girl who had been raised in the boudoir.
He coughed and explained, "Salt works naturally need to boil salt. Without pots and stoves and firewood, it wouldn't work. It requires a lot of manpower. The salt works are also corrupted in part because the salt workers are treated too harshly, which allows smugglers to take advantage."
"Is there no way to make salt by drying it?" Cheng Xi was even more curious. She had heard of boiling salt, but in the Age of Exploration, why was boiling still the main method? Wouldn't they switch to drying salt?
Tian Yu, who knew more than the others, thought for a moment and said, "I'm afraid you're talking about the wooden plank salt drying method in the north. There's less rain there, so some people dry the salt first and then boil it, which saves a lot of trouble."
"Can't we open up salt fields on the mudflats, lead seawater into the fields, and use the sun to dry the salt directly?" Cheng Xi finally understood. In those days, there was really no method of drying salt. Wouldn't it be profitable to create a salt field?
Sun Erlang now understood that his leader was unfamiliar with salt management and had some unrealistic ideas. He quickly said, "The weather is unpredictable, and it rains frequently. How can we dry salt on the mudflats? Besides, how can we store seawater? It will seep into the sand in no time."
This was something she had not expected. Modern salt fields seemed to use waterproof and corrosion-resistant geomembranes. In ancient times, there was no such convenient thing. Most of the time, pools had to be built, and the preliminary preparations alone would take a lot of effort.
Wouldn't it be easier if we could get some cement?
However, she has no experience in these areas, so she still has to take it step by step.
After thinking it over, Cheng Xi nodded slightly: "Salt trading is indeed a solution, but it is a serious matter, so we should be cautious. First, we should check the situation near Dongning and the salt merchants along the way. If it doesn't work, we can collect some tolls. Those salt merchants have the most money, so they should be willing to spend money to avoid disaster. This way, we can gradually expand our influence."
This is the precursor to "collecting taxes". It is still early to rule this sea area, but Luoling Island is now occupied. The area around one or two hundred nautical miles can be considered the sphere of influence of the Red Flag Gang. They do not plunder, but only collect money. There are more than just salt merchants who are willing to spend money to avoid disaster, so it is still feasible.
Being able to make decisions so quickly and draw inferences from one instance to another is really a bit like General Qiu.
Tian Yu glanced at Cheng Xi and said nothing more.
How could he not know that the salt merchants were closely connected with the court officials? However, if the Red Flag Gang wanted to grow stronger, it had to intimidate everyone. What was the big deal about buying and selling some seafood? It would be easier to get ahead by directly getting involved in illegal salt trafficking.
When the Red Flag Gang becomes powerful, will it be able to confront the imperial court?
The evil thought in his heart floated up again, Tian Yu lowered his eyes slightly, he was not wrong, this was indeed the best way, why not give it a try?
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