My Pen Pal Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 348 Liang Daoren's Conspiracy
"The handsome and wise man!"

Songpa stood up and flattered Chen Zuyi in his half-familiar Ming Dynasty official language.

"I heard from my brothers on Ie Island in Ryukyu that there are several merchant ships traveling between the three Ryukyu Kingdoms and the Ming Dynasty almost every month, and they are all loaded with all kinds of good things.

What the Ming Dynasty transported to Ryukyu were silk, tea, and porcelain, all of which were in great demand. Just one piece of silk could be exchanged for a lot of gold in Foju, and not only that, there was also..."

As he spoke, Songpa's eyes showed greed.

"And the most scarce thing is frosting sugar. I heard that the frosting sugar from the Ming Dynasty is as white as snow, crystal clear, and as sweet as crystal. It is even sweeter than honey. This frosting sugar is more valuable than gold in Malacca!

What the Ming Dynasty brought back from Ryukyu were gold, silver and jewelry. Not only that, there were more merchant ships between the Ming Dynasty and Japan, and many Japanese went to Ryukyu to buy goods from the Ming Dynasty.

The brothers in Ryukyu are so greedy that they can't wait to take action. Marshal, just tell us when to set off. I, Songpa, can't wait any longer!"

"Songphache, don't rush into anything!"

Liang Daoren said, "The Ming Dynasty has already stationed troops in Zhongshan Kingdom of Ryukyu, and has signed defense agreements with Shannan Kingdom and Shanbei Kingdom. This matter still needs to be planned in detail."

"You Ming people are so cowardly. If you want to rob, then rob. We are not going to fight with the Ming, so what are we afraid of? Besides, we brothers are all very strong. Do we still fear the Ming army?"

As soon as Songpa finished speaking, he immediately noticed that several people present were looking at him with strange eyes, with a hint of mockery in their eyes.

Suddenly, he felt Chen Zuyi's sharp gaze, his neck shrank immediately, and he realized in an instant that he had said the wrong thing.

Liang Daoren is from the Ming Dynasty, and their commander-in-chief Chen Zuyi is also from the Ming Dynasty!
Liang Daoren was even more contemptuous in his heart. The foreign barbarians were barbarians who spoke without thinking. This kind of people were most suitable to be sent to die!
"Master, I spoke too quickly. I accept the punishment. I accept the punishment!"

As he spoke, Songpa slapped himself hard until his cheeks became red and swollen, and his nose was bleeding. Seeing Chen Zuyi gently waved his hand, he dared to stop.

"Military Advisor, what do you think we should do?" Chen Zuyi ignored Songpa and asked Liang Daoren.

"General, in my opinion, we should attack them when they are least prepared!"

Liang Daoren stood up and paced back and forth in the cabin, thinking: "Our goal is to force the Ming Dynasty to surrender. If we want to pass through the Strait of Malacca, we must pay tribute to you, Marshal.

Once the Ming Dynasty surrenders to you, Marshal, your reputation will intimidate the entire Malacca and even all the vassal states of the Ming Dynasty!

The Ming Dynasty has already paid tribute, so they must also pay tribute to you, Marshal!"

A smug smile appeared on Chen Zuyi's gloomy face. Liang Daoren's words really made him feel very comfortable.

The great Celestial Empire actually surrendered and paid tribute to a refugee like him who once escaped from the Ming Dynasty. When Chen Zuyi thought of this, he felt an immense pleasure in his heart!

"The Ming Dynasty is a hen that lays golden eggs. We must let the Ming Dynasty know that we are not easy to mess with. Therefore, what we have to do is not to plunder Ryukyu once, but twice, three times, several times, or even Japan, until the Ming Dynasty completely surrenders!"

Liang Daoren continued, "Among the three Ryukyu kingdoms, Zhongshan Kingdom has the most merchant ships with Ming Dynasty, and Ming Dynasty's garrison is in Beigu City, northwest of Zhongshan Kingdom. These news were already found out by our brothers in Ryukyu Kingdom.

Although Zhongshan is the richest, we also have influence in Gudaga Island, which is the closest to Shannan in the east. Therefore, we should first unite with the brothers on Gudaga Island and move north from Chinen in Shannan all the way to Shuri at lightning speed to threaten Zhongshan!

This move is to lure the snake out of the hole, forcing the Ming army to leave Chatan City and go south to support Shannan State. At the same time, the brothers on Ie Island to the west of Zhongshan State can take advantage of the emptiness of Chatan City to break through the Ming army's base camp in one fell swoop, and then go south to attack the Ming army from the north and south. Although the Ming army has sharp firearms, there are only 500 people in Ryukyu, and Ryukyu is too far away from Ming. By the time the news reaches Ming, I am afraid that the Ming army has been annihilated by us.

As long as we wipe out the Ming army in one fell swoop, we will be able to run rampant throughout Ryukyu!"

Except for Chen Zuyi, everyone in the cabin looked confused like Songpa, with dull eyes, and it was obvious that they didn't understand.

Liang Daoren once again despised them in his heart. These foreign barbarians were uncivilized and had dull brains. How could these barbarians understand such a brilliant plan of mine?

Chen Zuyi knocked on the table and said, "Military Advisor, the Ryukyu issue is now in your hands. Songpa, you must fully cooperate with the military advisor and do whatever the military advisor tells you to do. If you dare to disobey my orders, I will peel off your skin!"

Songpa was unconvinced and said, "Marshal, why do I have to listen to the military advisor? I don't accept it!"

Chen Zuyi asked, "Did you understand what the military advisor said?"

Songpa thought about it carefully, but shook his head. Seeing Chen Zuyi staring at him coldly, he quickly said, "Marshal, I will obey the military advisor in everything!"

At this time, there was a knock on the door, and then a burly man with bare upper body opened the door and walked in, half kneeling in front of Chen Zuyi and said:

"Marshal, we have intercepted a merchant ship from Foju to Daming. We have taken control of all the people on board. What should we do with them?"

Chen Zuyi stood up and said, "Tie up the strong men and sell them, and throw the rest into the sea to feed the fish!"

"Yes, handsome!"

……

Just as Chen Zuyi sent his troops to march towards Ryukyu, the Ming Dynasty's first Dingyuan-class ironclad battleship was finally built.

On the day of launching, the dock was already crowded with people. Everyone was looking at the tall ship and the mighty cannons standing on the hull. They were all stunned. Where in their lives had they ever seen such a huge cannon?
The first batch of navy trained by Xu Da and Tang He also boarded the ship and began to learn how to operate warships for naval battles.

When the first batch of Ming Dynasty naval officers and soldiers boarded the ship, they were all shocked by the ship's leading-edge spirit. The thick armor and mighty cannons made it look like an unsinkable steel fortress galloping on the sea!
The second battleship has also entered the construction stage, with the keel being laid and the hull being built.

The rest of the factories are also busy producing cannons and other parts for warships.

At this time, in the imperial palace, Zhu Yuanzhang took out the detailed distribution map of Chen Zuyi's pirate gang sent by Li Han, and discussed it with Xu Da and others.

Now that the warships have been built, the next step is to formulate a battle plan to wipe out Chen Zuyi and his gang. Just like land battles, naval battles also require planning of attack routes.

According to Zhu Yuanzhang's plan, after the second ironclad battleship was completed, he could sail south to the West Ocean to attack Chen Zuyi.

As soon as Xu Da, Li Wenzhong and Tang He got off the boat, they were invited to the palace by the eunuchs. When they saw the nautical chart with Chen Zuyi's lair marked in detail, they couldn't help but exclaimed.

"Your Majesty, if you have such a good thing, why didn't you take it out earlier?"

(End of this chapter)