Seeing the fake appearance of the scholar in front of him, Zheng Zhilong frowned slightly, and pulled out his sleeve robe with great disgust.

He turned around and said, "I think the imperial court already knows about my Zheng family's interests at sea, but the crown prince's appetite is inevitably too great!" Let me be a thug for nothing? ”

Mao Xiang said solemnly: "Zheng Zongbing, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has already named you Dongfanbo, and also allowed your Zheng family's business house to continue to conduct sea trade, and let your Zheng family guard Dongfan, what a glory is this?" Why aren't you satisfied? ”

Without waiting for Zheng Zhilong to speak, Zheng Zhibao, the deputy chief soldier of the Fujian Navy Division on the side, immediately sneered and said: "Just one title wants to replace the control of our Zheng family on the sea, did your crown prince send you here when he was talking in his dreams?" ”

"Bold!" Mao Xiang's face sank, stared at Zheng Zhibao and said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is the Prince of the Ming Dynasty, do you dare to be disrespectful?" Are your Zheng family still the courtiers of the Ming Dynasty? ”

Zheng Zhibao's face shook, and he pointed at Mao Xiang and shouted: "Do you still know that he is the prince of the Ming Dynasty?" The decrees have caught up with the decrees! Just with a title, you want my Zheng family to lose 10 million taels of silver every year, why don't you grab it? ”

The Zheng family also showed gloom, the Ming monarchs and ministers have always been guarding the cornucopia of money, crying that there is no money, but they don't know that the benefits of maritime trade are no less than the income of the grain grown on the ground, and now the prince heard the news from nowhere, and he actually wanted to take the interests of the Zheng family!

The Zheng family collected protection fees through sea trade, and although they could earn tens of millions of taels of silver a year, most of Zheng Zhilong was distributed to his generals and clansmen for benefit distribution.

The atmosphere in the hall became a little tense, Zheng Cai and several other Zheng family disciples in power scolded angrily, and Zheng Zhibao even pulled out his sword and wanted to cut it in the hall.

"Presumptuous!"

Zheng Zhilong scolded Zheng Zhibao sharply, and said, "How can you speak to the crown prince's envoy? What do you want to do with your sword drawn? Look at what you can! Get out of here and get your own thirty sticks! ”

Zheng Zhibao didn't dare to say anything, glared at Mao Xiang at the moment, and slipped out of the hall with his head down.

Zheng Zhilong said apologetically to Mao Xiang with a smile on his face: "They are all rough people, they don't cover their mouths when they speak, and please don't be surprised by the special envoy!" ”

Mao Xiang's brows jumped suddenly, but in the end he endured it, after all, he was on a mission, and he must not spoil the crown prince's affairs because of the anger in his heart.

Mao Xiang had a fake smile on his face, and said with a smile: "Dong Fanbo is serious, they are all straightforward men in the army, if this is also to blame, isn't it saying that the official has a small belly and chicken intestines?" ”

"Good bearing!" Zheng Zhilong praised it, immediately changed the topic, and said: "This time the crown prince mentioned something, this handsome is not unable to agree, you also know that Dongfan is a mountainous place, with dense mountains and forests everywhere, miasma, there are not many Han people, and there is not much food, and it has always been received by Zhejiang and Fujian provinces. ”

Mao Xiang listened quietly, from Zheng Zhilong's tone, he felt that there was a drama in this matter, and his anger calmed down slightly, but Zheng Zhilong's next words made him very dignified.

Zheng Zhilong invited Mao Xiang to sit down by the tea table, and continued: "In recent years, natural disasters have continued, the grain production in Fujian and Dongfan is very low, and many people are hungry and need relief......

Mao Xiang thought in his heart, estimating that the person surnamed Zheng was ready to ask for money and food, and he was not in a hurry, according to the prince's instructions, as long as the Zheng family cooperated, as long as the request was not too excessive, he could also respond to the opportunity.

After Mao Xiang stabilized his mind, he asked: "Please also ask Dongfan Bo to say the number, and this official can also plan for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince." ”

"What a happy person, Ben Shuai likes it!" Zheng Zhilong laughed, then stretched out his right hand and spread his five fingers slightly.

Mao Xiang took a sip of tea, and said with a smile: "500,000 stone grain? Well said, well said! ”

The Zheng family is not bad for money, obviously they will not say 500,000 taels of silver, the most lacking thing in Fujian at the moment is food, although the amount of 500,000 stone grain is not small, but Mao Xiang is still acceptable.

Zheng Zhilong shook his head and said with a smile: "It's not 500,000 stones, it's 5 million stones of grain!" ”

Mao Xiang's right hand trembled, and the teacup he picked up in his hand almost didn't hold it, and he said in horror: "Five million stone grain? ”

Zheng Zhilong smiled and said: "You also know that Dongfan is surrounded by the sea on all sides, and the environment above is not good, plus I don't know how long the natural disasters along the coast of Fujian will last, even if there are five million stone grains, it will be good to last for two years!" ”

Mao Xiang knew that the amount of five million stone grain was too large, even if there was surplus grain in the granary of Nanzhili, the crown prince would definitely not agree, it was the military grain stored in the north, and it would not move even if the sky fell.

Mao Xiang's face was full of chic, and he said: "Dongfanbo, a large number of displaced people have crossed the river to the south, and you also know that the current grain is precious, five million stones is too much, and this official really can't cope with it." ”

Zheng Zhilong was unmoved, and said casually: "If you can't respond, let the crown prince respond." ”

Mao Xiang smiled bitterly and said: "Even if the crown prince responds, he can't take out the five million stone grain, even if he barely scrapes it up, the people in Jiangnan are afraid that they will starve to death." ”

Zheng Zhilong's face softened, and he hesitated as if he was embarrassed, and it took a long time to subtract a finger and say, "Then four million stones, no less!" ”

Seeing that Zheng Zhilong still opened his mouth, he spread his hands and said in a firm tone: "At most, one million stones, and the crown prince can't take out one more stone." ”

Zheng Zhilong raised his eyebrows when he heard this, and said: "The envoy is tired of traveling and boating, please stay in the post house to rest, and the specific number will be studied with the generals." ”

Mao Xiang saw that he had the intention of sending off guests, so he didn't ask, and left without saying a word, and when he left, he didn't forget to look at the environmental layout of the Zheng Mansion and the models of firearms used by the guards.

Zheng Zhilong and a group of henchmen came from the front hall to the middle hall of filial piety hall to discuss the strategy against the imperial court.

Zheng Hongkui was very puzzled by Zheng Zhilong's lion mouth, and said, "Brother, you asked the imperial court for five million stone grain, do you really want to give up the benefits of the sea?" ”

Zheng Zhilong's nephew Zheng Cai couldn't help but ask: "Dashuai, do you really plan to give up the city divisions in Quanzhou and Guangzhou?" ”

Zheng Zhilong, as the commander-in-chief of Fujian, monopolized maritime trade, controlled the city shipping divisions in Guangdong and Fujian, and even prepared to get involved in the Zhejiang shipping division, completely taking over the Daming coastal defense and tariffs.

Zheng Zhilong shook his head and said: "I can give up the two city companies in Guangdong and Zhejiang, but I will never give up our city companies in Quanzhou!" ”

"Yes, the two cities of Guangdong and Zhejiang, the income is less than two-three tenths of our Fujian Quanzhou City, and if you give it up, you will abandon it, Quanzhou is the root of our Zheng family, and you must not give up!"

After a long time, Zheng Zhilong pressed his hands and signaled everyone to silence.

Zheng Zhilong said: "The marshal and the court to negotiate the conditions, it is completely a tentative move, if the prince really has the sincerity to appease, he will inevitably be compared, come up with a reasonable bottom line, if the surname Mao does not think twice, a mouthful of promise, it proves that the prince's appeasement is fake, to our Zheng family soldiers!" ”

He smiled and said: "Now it seems that the prince really wants to appease my Zheng family, how should we deal with it, let's talk about it together!" ”

Zheng Hongkui said solemnly: "Now that the Li thief is expanding rapidly in Henan, Henan, Shandong, Shanxi, and Shaanxi have also begun to be thieves, which has consumed most of the energy of the imperial court, and they can't take care of our Zheng family at all." ”

"The prince has been making trouble in Jiangnan for a while, and now he is recuperating and recuperating, and he will not rashly use force with us, after all, the thieves are closer to them, and he will not go north to kill the thieves but beat our officers and soldiers, even if there is a big reason, it can't be justified."

Zheng Zhilong nodded and said, "What the fourth brother said is reasonable, since this is the case, we will keep dragging it out, first take some benefits, and then put forward some conditions, so that he will know the difficulties and retreat!" ”

Just then a housekeeper ran in and whispered beside him.

Zheng Zhi stood up and exclaimed, "What! The fifth old man beat the envoy? ”

Zheng Zhilong walked back and forth in the hall, getting angrier and angrier the more he walked, and shouted: "Take him to the back hall to see me immediately!" ”