The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 482 The Lion Must Always Be Vigilant
The Ming Dynasty actually had enough ships.

If we only talk about the number of ships, the Netherlands and Spain combined probably don't have as many as the Ming Dynasty.

The problem is that most of the Ming Dynasty's ships were small boats or human-rowed boats that could not sail out to sea.

If we only talk about the number of ocean-going ships, the current Ming Dynasty cannot be compared with the Netherlands at all.

Such a small country, with such a tiny area and such a small population, but the number of ocean-going ships can reach tens of thousands!

Why didn’t the Ming Dynasty have it?
Wanli frowned and thought for a while, then he figured it out.

He was still a little slack.

These days we have to build ocean-going giant ships like crazy. We should build as many ocean-going giant ships as we have resources and we cannot slack off for a moment.

It is true that the Ming Dynasty is a lion, but a lion must always be vigilant in the jungle where the strong prey on the weak. It cannot become lazy, sleep all day, or even indulge in luxury just because it feels strong.

The Ming Dynasty had become powerful at this time, but it was only invincible in the near seas and was still far from it in the open ocean.

He thought that there were enough centipede ships to temporarily ensure the safety of the Ming Dynasty's coastal waters, but this was wrong.

This is like a lion that has grown strong and has its own territory, so it eats and sleeps every day. It is the same principle as eating and sleeping.

Those colonial bandits on the European continent were like wolves or even hyenas, robbing and eating everywhere. The once lion Spain was torn to death by them.

If these guys attack together, the Ming Dynasty may be able to save its homeland, but there is no need to think about its overseas territories.

If they lose their overseas territories, it is not impossible for the wolves or even hyenas to destroy the lion's den as the lion grows stronger.

Therefore, the lion must be vigilant at all times. Taking a nap in the jungle where the strong prey on the weak could be dangerous. Eating and sleeping, sleeping and eating, without striving for progress, is simply courting death.

It seems that we still have to build ships, frantically build ocean-going giant ships, eat meat everywhere, and make ourselves stronger and stronger.

Wanli thought about it carefully, then said decisively, "My dear uncle, draft an imperial decree. Order Duke Wei and Danyang to quickly gather craftsmen to build a shipyard in Xinzhou. The scale of the new shipyard must be as large as the Longjiangzhou Treasure Shipyard."

Uh, is it too late to build a shipyard now?

Besides, you need wood to build a ship.

Upon hearing this, Li Guozhu cautiously reminded: "Your Majesty, I dare to say that the wood at the Longjiangzhou Treasure Shipyard is not enough.

"I heard from my uncle that the timber available for felling in the Yunnan-Guizhou-Sichuan region has been almost completely harvested, and the Longjiangzhou Treasure Shipyard is now relying on timber purchased from Southeast Asia to build ships."

Isn’t this question simple?

Wanli said without hesitation: "We actually have plenty of wood. There are many mountains and forests in Dongying, Nurgan Prefecture, and even Liaodong Prefecture. It's just that we haven't organized the manpower to cut down the wood.

Also, isn't the west coast of North America entirely mountainous? There must be plenty of timber there, right? We could bring the Haixi Jurchens over there to cut down the timber, and we'd just pay them wages and provide them with food."

Uh, aren't we back to the beginning again?

Upon hearing this, Li Guozhu said cautiously, "Your Majesty, the few ships I brought back can't carry many people."

This is also simple.

Wanli pondered, "Now we don't actually need so many ships to guard our homeland and Japan.

The Japanese pirates in Japan don't have many warships, so our ships left there are just for deterrence. We can simply take most of the young and strong Japanese pirates to America to farm, so that the threat of rebellion will be smaller, and we don't need to leave so many ships there for deterrence.

As for the southeastern waters, we can mobilize tens of thousands of centipede ships. Even if the European colonial pirates send hundreds or thousands of gunboats, they will not be able to defeat us in the near sea. Therefore, there is no need to leave too many warships there for deterrence.

I have ordered people to convey oral instructions to Yunqing, Kemai and Wuyang. Just leave one hundred thousand-ton Fuchuan warships in each of the East Japan and Southeast Waters, and the rest will be assigned to you to recruit people and things.

Calculate this: besides the sheep and horses needed by the Indian territories and the rations needed by the soldiers there, how many more people can you bring over?"

This seems a little insufficient.

The navy currently has over 500 thousand-ton Fuchuan warships and over 700 two-thousand-ton Fuchuan warships. Excluding the two hundred thousand-ton Fuchuan warships, there are over 300 thousand-ton Fuchuan warships and over 700 two-thousand-ton Fuchuan warships. Of these thousands of giant ships, we have to deduct the two hundred two-thousand-ton Fuchuan warships used to transport sheep and horses. Furthermore, the annual rations for the 80,000 Shenjiying soldiers and over 100,000 navy soldiers are nearly 3 million dan. Even these thousands of giant ships alone cannot transport that much food!
Li Guozhu calculated carefully and said cautiously, "Your Majesty, the soldiers of the Shenji Camp and the navy in America need about three million dan of food a year. Even if I load all the thousands of Fuchuan warships with food this time, I can only carry about 1.8 million dan. There still isn't enough ships."

Alas, it is true that one only regrets having too little equipment when the time comes.

How to do it?

It is indeed too late to build them now. Should we dispatch thousands of centipede ships over there?

That's definitely not possible. The centipede ships left in Japan are not idle. They have been fishing to supplement the food supply of the Japanese slaves.

The centipede ships in the southeast are not idle either. They still have a lot of cargo, including oil, coal, iron and other materials that need to be transported by centipede ships.

If a few thousand more centipede ships were dispatched, the centipede ships from Japan and the Ming Dynasty would not be enough.

What's more, the Nurgan Regional Administration has also needed a lot of centipede ships to transport food and supplies in the past two years.

Wanli frowned and thought for a while, then asked, "How long does it take you to go back and forth from America?"

It’s hard to say.

Li Guozhu pondered, "Your Majesty, this depends on the speed of the ocean current and the direction of the wind. If the wind is favorable and the current is fast, then it will take us about three months to make a round trip.

If the wind is not favorable and the ocean current is not fast, it will take four to five months to go back and forth."

This means you can make about three trips a year.

Then it won't be a big problem.

Wanli thought about it carefully, then said decisively, "Then you will lead the fleet to keep going. This time, you will first bring the sheep and horses needed by the Indian vassal states, and then take another one million dan of grain. The rest will be taken from the young and strong Japanese slaves. Calculate how much you can bring."

This is something to be reckoned with.

Li Guozhu calculated silently and then said carefully, "Your Majesty, the young and strong Japanese slaves are quite thin and don't consume much food. Plus, there's no shortage of fish they like to eat. I estimate that we can easily transport 200,000 people this time."

well.

Wanli nodded slowly and said, "This time, you should take 200,000 young and strong Japanese slaves with you. Once you get them, have them open up wasteland and cultivate at least two million mu of land.

As for houses, don't build them yet. Let them live in tents in the summer. Anyway, the weather is getting warmer, so it's not too late to let them plant the crops first and then build houses.

In this way, by autumn they will be able to harvest at least four to five million shi of grain, and you won't have to transport so much grain over there.

I estimate that it will be enough for you to carry another one million shi of grain next time, and the remaining ships will be just right for transporting the people of the Haixi Jurchen tribe.

You can take them to the mountains over there to cut down trees. We will pay them wages, and they can also hunt some game.

However, you have to tell Zhaolong that the places where the Japanese were clearing wasteland for farming and where the Haixi Jurchens were cutting down trees were watched over by the nearby Indian vassal states, which dispatched tens of thousands of troops.

The weapons and equipment you brought back this time should be given to the nearby Indian territories first.

Also, when we ask the vassal states for help, we pay them for it. Ask them what they need. If they don't want money, we can convert it into various goods based on the Ming army's rations."

This is also a solution.

Upon hearing this, Li Guozhu bowed repeatedly and said, "I understand."

Wanli gave further instructions: “Go and tell General Wang, General Lou, and Zhaolong that once the Indian vassal states’ troops are equipped, the officers of the Shenji Battalion will be dispatched for training.

You ask them to reorganize all the troops of the Indian vassal states into a legion of 50,000 men. You can reorganize as many as you can. We will provide the equipment, and the legion will first be trained by the officers of the Shenji Camp.

Also, remind them that it's not just about drills; we also need to focus on cultivating the loyalty of our vassal soldiers. Our goal is to make the soldiers of our Indian vassal state obey us completely, just like the soldiers of our Korean vassal state."

Upon hearing this, Li Guozhu nodded repeatedly and said, "I understand."

(End of this chapter)