Wang Chaozuo was a merchant in Linqing, who made a living by weaving baskets and mats with bamboo strips, and did not buy much, and there were no sea ships, so he did not catch up with the grand occasion of 500 sea ships going down to the East when the Oriental military government set sail.

However, last year, the business of launching sea boats and renovating river boats in the coastal provinces was booming, and his shop took over a lot of mat weaving work, and he made real efforts to earn more than 200 taels of silver a year with his brothers and nephews of the same clan.

Generally, good sails are used, but there are also many civilian ships with mats as sails, which in the early years even military ships also had a lot of mats, after all, although the mats are bulky, but the cost is cheaper, much cheaper than the finely woven canvas.

made this deal, so that Wang Chaozuo also rose up to go to sea to see, his logic is very simple, these days, but all the trading by the sea can make money, so why not just go to sea directly?

The Oriental Flag Army is so strong, it should be dangerous to go anywhere.

With such an idea, he and his brothers of the same clan hired the descendants to build a sea ship with their sons and nephews, and did not send a seal letter through the customs defense, and together with more than 30 descendants of the clan and fellow villagers, he hired an old shipwreck in Fujian, and planned to go to sea.

In the midst of the disaster, many farmers lost their livelihoods, and their families boarded his boats with their families who thought the same way as him—to be honest, it was like playing with their lives.

"I was lucky enough to go to North Korea, and he didn't dare to call me ashore, nor did he dare to beat me away, so he rushed back to the Korean soldiers of the Japanese country, and helped transport a boatload of wounded soldiers from Jeju. When their generals heard that I was carrying mats, they said that they could make a profit by selling them to the Japanese country, and that there was no distinction between north and south, east and west, and people died every day. ”

Wang Chaozuo was just over the age of standing, wearing the winter coat and thick jacket when he went to sea, and he made his already tall figure more burly, but his words and expression looked honest, and he smiled at Chen Mu in the official hall: "I don't dare to go, so I sold him two boats of mats and asked him to sell them." ”

"The old man can believe me, those Japanese soldiers and armor are really picked up, I don't know how far I have gone from North Korea to the east to the shore, I saw a small boat stranded on the shore, we had the courage to dock to rescue only to know that it was a Japanese ship, the mast of the ship was broken, and the Japanese soldiers on board were afraid that they would die for several months."

"But there was a hut on the shore, and the two widows who lived like savages, and when they saw us draw their swords, they cut them up, and I went ashore for more than ten strong men, and I couldn't let him kill them, so I killed them with sticks, and I found these armor in the house, so I took them with me on the boat, lest I be in distress at sea."

"Although I didn't have anything to do with defense, the guards I met along the way checked were all obedient and confessed, and I never cheated and cheated, so I arrived here safely."

Saying that, Wang Chaozuo was a little scared, but he still stiffened his neck and said: "Whether it is killing the widow or going to sea without a seal, I am the leader, the master wants to kill, and it is better to kill me than to implicate others." ”

Chen Mu bowed his head slowly, it's not that he is gullible Wang Chaozuo, there is really nothing to doubt, this is the truth that the Wa Kingdom is fighting everywhere, he knows better than anyone else, not to mention that it is difficult to fake the hairstyle, dress, and words.

As for the Japanese soldier, Chen Mu's subordinates inspected the armor and ordnance on the ship, all of which were broken knives and rotten armor used by ordinary ashigami, and the iron cannon had no gunpowder and projectiles, and the guns and pipes lacked maintenance and were rusty inside.

More than a dozen strong men met a samurai who had practiced martial arts since childhood, and the two of them were killed in vain, but it was not surprising that they were cleaned up when they met Ashigaru, who was also from the common people, and was still relatively satisfied with the strong men of Qilu, a businessman who was relatively satisfied with food and clothing.

Hearing Wang Chaozuo's last words, Chen Mu smiled and said: "You are lucky to meet Chen, there are not many people who dare to speak in front of me, there will be officials from the Commerce Bureau to register you when you go back, and if you want to go back, you can also find the Commerce Bureau to issue a certificate." ”

"When you first arrived, I think you are responsible, you four boats, you will be in charge of it, the eastern canyon and the sea are still fighting, don't go far if you have nothing to do, just settle here first, what do you think?"

"Chen, Chen......"

Wang Chaozuo was suddenly stunned when he heard Chen Mu's self-proclaim, he didn't think about who the person in front of him was, he only knew that he was an official who was bigger than the bear Baihu, and he was only regarded as a military general like a chief military officer when others called him a commander before.

But at this time, when he heard Chen Mu calling himself Chen, and he was obviously in control of everything in words, his eyes straightened, and he fell to the ground with a bang, and said: "I don't know that Chen Daojun is on top, last year's Shandong year was not good, thanks to the fleet expedition, my livelihood has improved, and the grass people thank Daojun!" ”

The sudden change made the corners of Chen Mu's mouth twitch, what is this...... Thank you for my expedition to create tens of thousands of jobs for the Ming Dynasty?

"Okay, get up, if you don't have any opinions, let your more than 100 people settle in the county, you pick a piece of idle land not far from the port, each household according to the Dingkou, less than 20 acres, more than 50 acres, recognize the cultivation and planting, and now the war can't take care of farming, your people will make some straw mats for me."

Wang Dynasty Zuo came just in time, Chen Mu needed straw mats to cover the fallen flag army, and the local people also needed straw mats to sleep, Spain's predatory colonization did not bring a better life to the local people, on the contrary, pushed the aborigines to the brink of death.

In the past, the war-loving Aztecs were almost all soldiers, and every adult male had to undergo military training, but smallpox and war had cut off their ethnic and educational generations, and they now have nothing but prayer to God.

"Straw mats?"

As a practitioner, it was not difficult for Wang Chaozuo to imagine the usefulness of these straw mats, he raised his head to look at Chen Mu, and asked in disbelief: "What is the war between the officers and the army...... The grass people are talkative, how many straw mats does Daojun want? ”

Chen Mu didn't know that with the annual Beijing transportation of Fujian and Guangzhou merchants and the navy to the north, his reputation had spread in the coastal areas, and people knew about him no longer limited to opening up the sea frontier, but also had more corner news, such as the name of Dragon and Tiger Daojun.

Because the people in the market really don't know what to call him, his official title is not the chief soldier, the governor, and the Asian strategy has not yet spread all over the coast, and people's official perception of his official position is still stuck in the strange official titles of Nanyang minister, Oriental minister, and Beiyang minister.

Minister Chen?

It feels like the exclusive title of the emperor.

Therefore, people are more willing to call him by the name of Daojun, which sounds strange and confusing.

"Our war is going very well, the war on land can end in half a month, put your heart in your stomach, this is already the land of the Ming Dynasty."

"But there will always be dead people in war, I don't have enough longevity, and I don't have time to prepare, so I can only prepare a straw mat and a pot of clay pots, you can do it according to a thousand first, and if there is anything, go to Zou County, he can help you."

Chen Mu had already gotten up as he spoke, because his own soldiers told him in his ear that except for Fu Yuan at the front line, the rest of the generals had rushed to the command room upstairs.

He patted Wang Chaozuo on the shoulder when he finally passed by him, his face was unspeakably joyful, and he said softly: "Protect your clan folks, a new battle is about to begin." ”