The Prosperous Era of Longwan

With a creaking sound, the wooden door was pushed open, and Lin Fengchun led Xu Yingmei into the wooden house.

Yan Youqian and Wu Dacheng, who were sitting and waiting inside, both stood up and placed an arrow without an arrowhead on the table in front of them.

When Lin Fengchun approached, Yan Youqian handed a bamboo tube in his hand to him and said, "A message from outside the city has come in. I picked it up when I patrolled that section of the city wall in the morning."

Lin Fengchun took the bamboo tube and took a look at it. He immediately opened the bamboo tube and poured out the rolled letter.

At this time, the three people in the room looked at him eagerly, wanting to know whether the contents of the letter could give them a chance to fight for their lives.

The letter was not long, so Lin Fengchun read it quickly and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Brother, what does the letter say?"

Wu Dacheng was impatient and asked immediately when he saw this.

Although when he asked this question, there was a faint sound of a big stone falling to the ground in his heart.

"The result doesn't look bad now. As long as we open the city gate and let the army into the city, they won't have anything to do with us.

As for the pardon we requested, the other party only promised to report our contribution to the city, but what the final explanation will be depends on the court's decision. "

Lin Fengchun handed the letter in his hand to Yan Youqian. Among the four, he and Yan Youqian were the only ones who could read.

As for Xu Yingmei and Wu Dacheng, writing letters to them is no different from playing the harp to a cow. Dou Da cannot read a lot of words.

Although he was illiterate and couldn't read the letter, Xu Yingmei's brain was quick. He immediately grasped the key to Lin Fengchun's words and asked: "Brother, from the letter, it seems that the commander of the army outside the city is a real person. No. What pie do you want to draw for us?”

"Yeah, if he agreed to all our requests in the letter, I really wouldn't dare to continue."

Lin Fengchun's expression had softened a lot at this time. Deng Zilong's reply should be said to be the best result he could expect.

At this time, Yan Youqian had also read Deng Zilong's reply, and a long-lost smile appeared on his face.

It can be said that they have had serious faces since the raid on Tortoiseshell City.

Because at the first moment, they already knew that their retreat was cut off. The Spaniards directly destroyed almost all their ships, making it impossible for them to escape.

Although Ming army gunboats also participated, the pirate sailors on the shore could not identify them carefully.

Just based on the number of artillery carried by those ships, I thought that the armed merchant ships that rushed into the bay for shelling were all barbarian armed merchant ships. It was not clear that the Ming army also participated in the attack.

Even if the Ming army was later discovered during the siege, they only thought they were officers and soldiers searching and tracking them. They never thought that Yu Dayou would send the few gunboats in the Ming Navy away from the Ming Dynasty.

In fact, the two latest Ming Dynasty gunboats brought by Deng Zilong were something the Lin Feng Pirate Group had never seen before.

In previous wars, the so-called gunboats of the Ming Dynasty could not carry more than ten guns. Compared with the Yiren warships, they were very shabby.

Even if the Ming army's best gunboats were to start a fight, there would still be a gap between them and the armed merchant ships of the barbarians, but it would not be as huge as before.

That is to say, the double-decker gunboats still being built in the Zhejiang and Fujian shipyards can barely reach the firepower of the Yiren's medium-sized armed merchant ships. Compared with those large armed merchant ships, there is still a problem of insufficient firepower.

However, these problems cannot be solved overnight and can only be improved slowly. Especially when building the hull, it is necessary to imitate the structure of Western-style sea ships.

As for these, the craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty do not yet have such abilities, that is, they are building a small boat to try the effect.

It can be said that the ship technology of the Ming Navy was still incomparable with that of Europeans during this period.

Now that they have received Deng Zilong's reply, the four of them can finally relax.

"We still have a lot to do next."

Lin Fengchun spoke at this time.

"Brother, just give us your orders. We brothers all know that you are doing it for our own good."

Wu Dacheng answered.

“First, brothers under your command, those who are reliable and those who are unreliable, must be carefully screened, and those who need to be adjusted must be adjusted.

When that day comes, all the people on the city walls will have to be their own.

This matter is related to the lives and fortunes of the brothers, and nothing should be done carelessly. "

Lin Fengchun said.

"I would rather kill the wrong person than let him go."

Yan Youqian spoke at this time, with a hint of coldness on his face.

"That's not the case. The main thing is to form the reliable brothers individually, and break up the others into several teams."

Lin Fengchun followed Yan Youqian's words and began to talk. At this time, they could not make large-scale changes at the north gate, otherwise it would easily attract the attention of other leaders.

If they just adjust the team, the impact will be small, and no one will pay attention to their actions.

"The second thing is that on the day of the incident, we have to find a way to get our family members and our brothers' family members to Beicheng. Otherwise, there will be a lot of fighting when the Ming army enters the city, and our brothers' family members may be implicated." , died in the chaos of war.

This matter is not a small matter. Although we surrendered to the Ming army, our brothers still have to be firmly in our hands.

Otherwise, we will really have no capital to turn around. "

Although it has not yet reached the era of King Caotou in the late Ming Dynasty, people who have been at sea all year round have long understood that someone must have a cannon in order to raise the flag and have a place on the chaotic sea.

No one has ever said "Political power comes from the barrel of a gun", but the meaning has long been known.

"Yes, yes, the boss is right.

When the government troops enter the city and fight with others, it is inevitable that they will bump into the brothers' families, and the brothers below will inevitably feel resentful.

But how can we avoid such a thing from happening?

Everyone's relatives are scattered all over the city. If we transfer everyone to the north city, it is inevitable that they will be noticed."

Yan Youqian first agreed excitedly, but he couldn't help frowning at the end.

"When the time comes, just ask them to come earlier. Even if someone finds something wrong at night, there will be no time.

Besides, as long as they are not discovered until night, our city will also be under curfew, and those who manage the city will have to wait until the next morning to report, and then we will be done."

Xu Yingmei said.

Although they were pirates, they all lived in the Ming Dynasty. Some of them lived in the countryside, and some lived in the city, but they all knew that there was a night curfew in the city.

Therefore, such rules were also learned by the Lin Feng Pirate Group.

In other words, the system established by Lin Feng in Daimao City was actually imitating the system of the prefectures and counties of the Ming Dynasty, and some government offices were established to manage things.

"No, the night curfew is for the people. Those streets and markets are all his trusted guards who serve as the chiefs of the security. They can walk around the city freely, saying that they are joint guarantees.

Only when problems are found can people be brought to search and arrest people immediately.

So, the things you said will not work."

Yan Youqian said.

"What should we do?"

Xu Yingmei had no idea when his idea was rejected, so he had to ask others.

"Let's not talk about this for now. We can always think of a way.

When will we start to adjust our men?

The government army asked, when can we be ready to open the city and surrender?"

Yan Youqian did not answer Xu Yingmei's question, but looked at Lin Fengchun and asked.

"Brothers, first figure out which of your men are trustworthy and how to make adjustments so as not to alert the enemy and let others find out."

Lin Fengchun nodded slightly.

Indeed, it is important to find a way to get the families of your men to a safe place and protect them properly, but it is not a problem that must be solved immediately.

"Let me start."

After reading the letter, Yan Youqian was thinking about what to do next. Like Lin Fengchun, the general of the Ming army outside the city was obviously an honest man and did not intend to deceive them.

Doing business with such a person does have an extra layer of security guarantee.

It is much better than those politicians who talk nonsense, just like Hu Zongxian, a typical politician who changes his mind according to the wind. He has no principles at all and cannot be trusted.

Although the general outside the city didn't know who it was, he told the truth and admitted that he had no right to deal with them and had to report to the court for a decision.

Well, as long as the court only had its eyes on Lin Feng, their safety would be even greater.

Because the court only wanted Lin Feng's life, other people would naturally not be taken seriously.

Moreover, if they killed these surrendered generals, it would be even less likely that other pirate teams would defect to the court in the future, because the court would not let them go.

In this case, it is unknown how much it would cost for the court to suppress the bandits in the future.

Yan Youqian believed that the powerful masters in the capital could calculate these accounts clearly.

Their lives were worthless, so there was no need to take them to heart.

Therefore, the next move had been planned long ago, and Yan Youqian said casually: "I still have three teams under my command. I have calculated that the most trustworthy team is that team. The others will still be organized into two teams, and the general situation will not change.

However, I am wondering, should we adjust our team only within my personal team, or should we make some exchanges among each other?

In this way, even if the news reaches the ears of other leaders, I don't think they will think too much."

"Will it be a bit superfluous?"

Lin Fengchun did not directly agree with him, but said with some concern.

"Duke, something big has happened, Duke, Duke."

Just when someone on Luzon Island was plotting to open the city gate and surrender to the government army, in a luxurious mansion in Yongchang Prefecture, a man who looked like a butler was standing respectfully outside a bedroom door in the border of Yunnan Provincial Administration in the southwest of the Ming Dynasty, knocking on the wooden door and shouting into the house.

After a while, a middle-aged man's voice came from the room, asking impatiently: "Tell me clearly, what happened?"

"My Lord, I just received news from Mengyang that the army of the Burmese King Mang Yinglong surrounded Mubang, and Hanlie, the envoy of Mubang, was besieged in the city, and his life or death is unknown at the moment.

The envoy of Mengyang was worried that the next target of the Burmese army might be to attack Mengyang, so he sent someone to deliver the news overnight, requesting the court to send reinforcements to stop the Burmese king from provoking the border."

The housekeeper hurriedly shouted to the bedroom.

"What, a real fight broke out."

Only this sentence came out of the room, and then there was a rustling sound.

Not long after, the bedroom door opened, and a middle-aged man was already standing at the door of the bedroom, but at this time his clothes were disheveled, and it was obvious that he had dressed in a hurry and did not put them in order.

The housekeeper hurriedly stepped forward to tidy him up, and then he looked a little better.

This middle-aged man was none other than the contemporary Duke of Qian, Mu Changzuo.

"Where is the messenger? I want to see him in person."

After the clothes were arranged, Mu Changzuo spoke.

"It's in the front yard. I'll go call him now."

The housekeeper said hurriedly.

This place is not the other courtyard of the Duke of Qian's mansion, but a house temporarily rented from a wealthy businessman in the city. There is no such thing as a backyard with women and relatives, and it is not convenient for outsiders to come in.

These days, many wealthy businessmen have houses everywhere, some for business needs, and more for the convenience of officials who come and go.

Yes, the Ming Dynasty was a system of floating officials. Although there were yards in the backyard of the government office for living, it was not convenient after all.

Therefore, after officials took office, they would buy and rent the houses of wealthy businessmen for future considerations.

Such houses are not only comfortable to live in, but they don't even need to pay anything.

And what these wealthy businessmen ask for is just a little help when needed, a hand, and a little deference.

And if they help a lot, they often directly hand over the house deeds to them afterwards.

It can be said that officials in this era have no shortage of food, clothing, housing and transportation wherever they go, and they are provided by wealthy families.

Mu Changzuo arrived at the main hall and sat on a chair. The servants who were serving him also got up, lit the lamp on the table next to him, brewed a pot of tea for him, and brought him two plates of exquisite snacks.

After all, it was midnight, and it was easy to feel hungry when getting up at this time.

Not long after, the housekeeper brought a young man in a short Han clothing jacket into the house. At this time, Mu Changzuo was reading the letter of Mengyang Xuanwei Envoy Sige in his hand.

It was a special period, otherwise this young man would find it harder than climbing to the sky to find this house in the city at night, let alone want to enter the city.

Normally, even in a small border town like Yongchang Prefecture, the night ban is more strictly enforced, and people from outside the city will never be allowed to enter.

However, because there might be a war, Mu Changzuo brought his trusted servants and controlled the entire Yongchang Prefecture City, so that important war reports could be delivered to him in time.

Of course, people entering and leaving the city gate need to meet the conditions.

For example, the messenger who was allowed into the city this time actually held a token of Si Ge in his hand, which could confirm his identity, and he would be allowed into the city after being searched.

He was not allowed to come in by himself, but was sent to the mansion under the supervision of officers and soldiers.

"How did you receive the news?"

Mu Changzuo had already read the letter and asked.

"Report to the Duke of Qian, a caravan from Mengyang happened to leave Mubang and return, and was attacked by the Burmese army halfway.

They hid in Mubang for several days before avoiding the interception of the Burmese soldiers and bringing back the news.

When the leader knew about it, he immediately ordered me to bring his letter to Daming for help."

When the messenger told the situation, Mu Changzuo nodded without comment.

It makes sense, but he can't just listen to one side and believe it. He has to send people to Mubang to investigate in order to know the real situation.

Don't think it seems like a slow reaction. In fact, this must be done in military and national affairs.

Moreover, the Ming Dynasty has been prepared. No matter what the final situation is, it can be said that it will not affect the Ming Dynasty.