Cursed Mountains and Seas

Chapter 356 Guishan's Secret Scheme, Prince Yu's Invitation

Upon hearing that Emperor Shaozhi had issued an edict to establish a new "treasure ship fleet" to embark on the eighth voyage to the Western Ocean and had appointed him as imperial envoy, Wang Cheng was overjoyed.

That's the power of targeted communication.

"Three sentences made the emperor spend 500,000 taels of silver on my behalf!"

Neither he nor the emperor mentioned the 25,000 overseas Chinese who died tragically, because in the emperor's eyes, it was just a number.

One of the two men went straight to the heart of the matter, which concerned the emperor's vital interests, while the other made no attempt to conceal his true purpose.

In any case, as long as Wang Cheng can lead the imperial fleet to the South Seas to seize the elixir, whether it's a bloodbath or a complete scramble for heads, the emperor won't care.

This can be considered a matter of fate.

If Wang Cheng hadn't used his flagship, the Trinidad, to summon away the Five Temples of the God of the State, it probably wouldn't have been so easy to get Shao Zhi to agree and grant him such great power all at once.

Wang Cheng was about to receive the imperial decree.

"No!"

Beside him, Xu Ge Lao, who had been caught off guard, suddenly stepped forward and raised his hand to stop him with a speed completely out of proportion to his sixty years.

"Hmm? Grand Secretary Xu, do you perhaps have objections to my arrangements?"

On the throne, a chilling gaze, as cold as the depths of winter, instantly pierced through the gauze curtains and fell upon him.

Xu Shaohu's back was instantly soaked with cold sweat from his official robes.

Although he did not know that Emperor Shaozhi had actually taken the elixir of immortality and would not have to worry about dying of old age for decades.

But whether he ate or not, his attitude remained the same.

When not eating, one needs to consume elixirs to prolong the life of an aging body; after eating, one needs to consume even more elixirs to continue cultivating the immortal arts and eliminate the addiction to immortality.

At this time, if anyone dares to stop him from sending people to launch his eighth voyage to the Western Ocean, taking advantage of the golden period when this rift has just formed and is still relatively controllable to plunder the elixir of immortality, they will extinguish his last hope of survival.

Before the emperor dies, he will definitely take that person with him, and also that person's entire family!
At this moment, Xu Shaohu, who was responsible for the two capitals and twenty-four administrations, was enveloped in the tangible might of the dragon. He felt his bones creaking and he was about to be crushed to the ground.

At this point, he could only bite the bullet and say:
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. This old minister is not against sending a fleet to the Western Ocean to spread virtue and pacify distant peoples for the sake of our Great Zhao."

However, this old minister knows all too well how dangerous it is to sail the oceans. Pirates, storms, reefs, plagues, evil spirits—which of these could easily take a person's life?

But how could Wang Fugui, the commander of Zhenhaiwei, who was barely twenty years old, possibly shoulder such a great responsibility as to represent our great Celestial Empire in commanding the navy on a mission to the South Seas?

This old minister believes that a mature and prudent minister should be selected to be responsible for the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers and to find the elixir of immortality for Your Majesty.

Otherwise, the failure of the eighth voyage to the Western Ocean would be a minor matter; what would be a major issue is that it would delay His Majesty's spiritual cultivation and attainment of enlightenment!

Having served Shaozhi for many years, this second-in-command was well aware of his weaknesses.

Just like Wang Cheng's rhetoric, they chose to strike at the heart of the matter, ruining Wang Cheng's plans from the source, determined to firmly grasp this immense power in the hands of their own people.

If handled well, a bad thing can even turn into a good thing.

The old man lowered his eyes, concealing his emotions, and glanced out of the corner of his eye at "Wang Fugui," whose spirit had left his body.

"Back when this boy caused my disciple Jiang Wenyuan to flee in disarray in the Donghai Kingdom, he was just a sixth-rank official."

Today, upon seeing him, I find that he has already reached the fourth rank of the [Five Temples Divine Treasury] realm.

If I allow you to continue organizing your treasure ships and fleets and soaring to new heights, what will become of us? If I let this go unchecked, the next Governor-General of the South Seas will probably be surnamed Wang.

This is ten times more harmful than the actions of Hu Ruzhen, the governor of those seven prefectures.

As Xu Shaohu recalled the information about Wang Fugui, he realized that this nobody had unknowingly grown into a powerful and formidable figure.

As the commander of Zhenhaiwei, a third-rank official, he controlled the “semi-official maritime group” in Yuegang and Zhenhaiwei, which was a corrupt alliance between officials and merchants. His military and financial strength far surpassed that of most of the capital’s guards.
He was also one of the three major ship captains in Yuegang, and his voice was heard by many among the Tanka people, maritime merchants, and water collectors.
He was also the water official in charge of the capital of Minzhou. In addition to communicating with water spirits, dragons, earth gods and ghosts, and bringing rain to relieve drought, he was also responsible for contacting the General of the Sea and the General of the Sea.

Just look at how Amakusa Shiro invaded last time. All the merchants and pirates who had been recruited gave him face and came without hesitation. It's clear that he had mastered the ways of the world in the underworld.

Today, among the various maritime forces composed of water officials and water collectors, apart from Wang Cheng, the Prince of Jinghai who founded a kingdom and proclaimed himself king, Wang Fugui is undoubtedly number one!

The only drawback at present is that his cultivation level is only at the fourth rank, which is not high enough for the third rank to be in power and command authority over a region.

However, judging from his nickname "Ghostly God's Shock" and his advancement speed, which is almost on par with Lu Yunchen's "Ghostly God's Jealousy," even a fool wouldn't doubt his ability to advance to the upper three ranks.

It's just a matter of time.

"This person has become too powerful to control, and is a staunch member of the 'Imperial Party' who is aligned with Lu Yunchen. He must be eliminated as soon as possible."

I suspect the root cause of Guishan Publishing House's repeated exposure lies with him and Lu Yunchen!

This kind of thing is a matter of personal judgment and doesn't require evidence at all.

Xu Shaohu subjectively believed that this was one of the biggest enemies of the upright gentry, and that it had reached the point where a heavy blow had to be dealt to them.

Wang Cheng naturally noticed the malice emanating from the old man.

Knowing that he had been hiding behind Lu Yunchen and the Lu family for a long time, he had long since reached the point where he was "outstanding in the forest" and needed to face the storms head-on.

But before he could prove his strength to the emperor, Lu Yunchen had already stepped forward.

Of course, he couldn't watch his brother miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and he retorted to Xu Shaohu without hesitation:
"Grand Secretary Xu, you said that Commander Wang is only in his early twenties and cannot shoulder great responsibilities. Then, may I ask who you consider to be a pillar of the state?"

Does he understand foreign languages? Is he familiar with Western customs? Can he command a fleet? Can he decipher the "Star Chart for Crossing Oceans"?
He had dealings with the "Shanhaihui" (山海会), the descendants of the treasure ship's naval commanders, and had solid connections in Southeast Asia.

At the very least, they should have extensive seafaring experience? Or perhaps they should know how to tie the fifty most basic sailor knots?

Xu Shaohu owned 24 mu of prime farmland and was a typical land gentry. How could he possibly understand such professional knowledge?

Besides, the Great Zhao has been under a maritime ban for almost two hundred years, and the generation of seafarers has long since died out. Where is he going to find such professionals? He's simply after power. Today, he'll muddy the waters and postpone the selection of the imperial envoy. Later, he'll find ways to put in a candidate who best serves the interests of all parties.

Lu Yunchen, however, did not give him any chance at all.

He pointed at Wang Cheng, sparing no praise for his good brother:

"Commander Wang is proficient in at least eight languages, including Eastern and Western Francophones, Japanese, Mongolian, Dutch, Britannian, and even Austronesian languages ​​from Southeast Asia."

That Prince Jinghai was known as the first person to open his eyes to the world, and Commander Wang was the second!
He specializes in the "Crossing the Ocean Star-Tracking Technique" of the Mountain and Sea Society, and is the most powerful ship captain and fire commander. He will never let his ship captains get lost in the vast ocean.

As for navigation skills, even before he was officially ordained, he was able to capture the sailing warship with the Five Peaks Flag and sail it back to Yuegang with a group of Tanka people. Even my navigation skills were taught to me by Commander Wang.

In terms of naval combat experience, he was able to lead the people of Yuegang to repel the Japanese pirates' attack when he had just entered the seventh rank of Dao. His subsequent achievements are self-evident and need no further explanation.

Furthermore, he was originally from the Mountain and Sea Society, which was composed of survivors of the previous seven treasure ships, and he was a direct descendant.

Ambitiousness knows no age. Huo Qubing was only 21 years old when he sealed the wolf's lair. Can the ministers of Emperor Wu of Han do it, but Emperor Daojun of our dynasty, whose virtue is comparable to Emperors Wen and Jing, cannot?
If Commander Wang is not up to the task in your opinion, then your trusted minister must be three to five times better.

I am willing to risk my life to vouch for Commander Wang. Why don't you also vouch for that loyal minister of the state? Please come up here so His Majesty can take a look.
If you ask me, it's all the fault of that scoundrel Guishan who stole the "Zheng He Treasure Map." Otherwise, I could have just found some mediocre person to follow the map and succeeded. Cough cough cough."

After saying all that in one breath, he couldn't help but cough violently and spit out blood, almost splashing it all over Xu Shaohu.

The last sentence made everyone shrink back, afraid of being misunderstood by the emperor who was in a bad mood.

"This is a guarantee?"

Xu Shaohu's heart skipped a beat, and he dared not say another word.

The two outstanding individuals, envied and awed by the gods, are truly the twin pillars of Da Zhao. Who dares to boast that they are stronger than them at this age?
No, even if you searched all the gentlemen in Qingliu who only knew how to compose poems and write about romance, you wouldn't find a single person who could command a large fleet.

Young people won't do, and even those in their seventies or eighties won't do.

What is a clear stream?

Those who do nothing but criticize others are the true upright officials.

Those who "discuss morality in times of peace, and die for their king in times of danger" are exemplary, but most people are actually "crying out in despair when danger strikes, for the water is too cold."

Even if he vouches for his own people and helps them secure the position of imperial envoy, what if an amateur misleads an expert in battle, and they lose and don't get the elixir?

He has to die with him, how can that be allowed?

After all, how could the Guishan Bookstore possibly allow Shaozhi to obtain the elixir of immortality?

Otherwise, wouldn't those three high-ranking deities who died have died in vain?
With his life at stake, Xu Shaohu finally calmed down and bowed to Emperor Shaozhi:
"It is because I am old and have not considered things thoroughly. Since Commander Lu is willing to vouch for Wang Fugui, I have no objection."

But he had a second plan in mind.

"We will select a deputy envoy who has reached the third rank of living ghost god realm, and several key members of the Guishan Book Society to be assigned to the ocean-going fleet."

The second solar term following the leader, "Lichun" (Beginning of Spring), is "Yushui" (Rain Water).

Although he was a scholar of the highest rank, he had converted to the Church of the Holy Cross and was a legitimate believer with a religious name, which allowed him to inform the Franks in advance.

Let him work together from the inside to kill Wang Fugui.

After that, there's no need to deliberately fail the mission. Just stall for time, slowly wear Shao Zhi down, and then bring back the elixir. Everyone will be happy.

Actually, this old minister also desires immortality!

Once Xu Shaohu backed down, the eighth voyage to the Western Ocean, led by Wang Cheng, was finally decided.

The ruler's calm voice rang out:

"You have half a month to prepare. Take my imperial decree to mobilize manpower from all sides and build an ocean-going fleet. You must set sail before winter."

I will issue an edict to the coastal prefectures and counties, emphasizing that everything should prioritize the eighth voyage to the Western Ocean, and that officials of all ranks must not delay.

Wang Cheng bowed to him:
"Your Majesty, I, Wang Fugui, will do my utmost to live up to Your Majesty's trust."

"I'm willing to sign a military pledge: if I fail to retrieve the elixir of immortality, I will offer my head in return!"

Wang Cheng, as the Prince of Donghai and Duke of Medina Seli, was not convenient to go to Southeast Asia, but Wang Fugui, as the Commander of Zhenhaiwei, was just right, so he would not have to be restricted.

How powerful are the imperial envoys and generals, who are similar to the eunuch Zheng He, as they are?

In theory, it would be perfectly acceptable to establish twenty-four more administrative regions outside the Great Zhao under the name of the Great Zhao, or even to expand our territory to the New World.

Back then, the eunuch Sanbao seized the Old Port Pacification Commission from the great pirate Chen Zuyi, and then arranged for the accompanying merchant Shi Jinqing to take over.

No one could outmaneuver him, the "Water Balance Commandant," with his methods of privatizing public assets and restructuring them.

It just so happens that it will merge with Sihai Trading Company and United Fruit Products.

They would conquer government factories, pacification commissions, and even small states, and then hand them over to their own companies to manage and rule.

In any case, apart from water officials, water collectors, and refugees who couldn't survive, not many powerful and wealthy people dared to come to such a poor and remote place, a land of severe pestilence, to try their luck for wealth and status.

In the past, the most severe punishment for the powerful and wealthy was nothing more than being exiled to Lingnan.

The resumption of voyages to the Western Ocean signifies the easing of the maritime ban, and the position of Governor-General of the Southern Seas will undoubtedly belong to him, "Wang Fugui".

"A player in one hand and a referee in the other, who can compete with me in Southeast Asia?"

Afterwards, Wang Cheng followed the other officials out of Renshou Palace. Just as his spirit was about to return to his body, he was suddenly stopped by a eunuch:
"Envoy Wang, His Highness Prince Yu requests your presence."

(End of this chapter)