Global colonization began with Ming Dynasty pirates.

Mao Wenlong, one of the most controversial figures in the history of the late Ming Dynasty.

He possessed all the worst traits of officers from the old era: greedy, lustful, arrogant, domineering, fond of adopting sons, forming cliques, and accumulating wealth while occasionally engaging in smuggling.

However, Mao Wenlong was the most resolute when it came to fighting the Later Jin.

They received the lowest pay, did the most dangerous work, and also captured the most heads.

Before his death, Huang Taiji was restless in Liaodong. After his death, Huang Taiji launched a thousand-mile expedition against the Ming Dynasty without stopping for a moment, advancing straight to the gates of Beijing.

The accusations against Mao Wenlong and the Later Jin dynasty for negotiating peace are even more laughable.

In Huang Taiji's eyes, Mao Wenlong's credibility was basically no different from that of a fraudster in northern Myanmar. The only purpose of the peace talks was to lure his envoy to Dongjiang and then kill him to claim credit.

The matter of Yuan Chonghuan killing Mao Wenlong can be summarized as follows:

An official who received the military pay for over 100,000 men but actually supported tens of thousands more, and who could only cower within the city walls during battles, used the pretext of embezzling military pay to kill a general who received the military pay for 10,000 men, supported 40,000 to 50,000 men, and provided relief and resettlement for hundreds of thousands of refugees.

An official who had secretly negotiated peace with the Later Jin dynasty, under the pretext of colluding with the Later Jin, had a general who had kidnapped and sent the Later Jin peace envoy to Beijing killed.

An official who built a shrine to Wei Zhongxian to curry favor with him was accused of currying favor with the eunuch faction and had a general who had never built a shrine for Wei Zhongxian killed.

An official who sold large quantities of grain and cloth to an enemy country had his general executed on charges of illegal trade, for sending men to enemy territory to dig for ginseng and hunt for sable furs.

An official who cowered in the city and never dared to confront the enemy head-on was accused of cowardice and years of inaction, and had a general who fought against the Jin army every day and had taken more than 2800 enemy heads verified by the civil official group alone.

An official who dared to negotiate peace with an enemy country behind the emperor's back, send grain to the enemy without the emperor's knowledge, and defy imperial orders during wartime by refusing to aid friendly forces, had a general who held the emperor's imperial sword killed on the grounds of disobeying the court's control.

An official who, for the sake of internal struggle, voluntarily imposed an eight-month embargo on supplies to his country's isolated military and civilians overseas, even at the cost of starving them to death on the front lines, killed a general who persisted in resisting the Jin dynasty despite the lack of food, wild vegetables, starving soldiers, and cannibalism on the islands.

That is to say, Yuan Chonghuan was later killed; otherwise, even if Qin Hui had come, he would have made Yuan Chonghuan sit in the main seat.

It's actually difficult to say whether Huang Taiji or Yuan Chonghuan made a greater contribution to the Later Jin dynasty.

On the 23rd day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar in the first year of the Tianqi reign.

Everything is just beginning.

Mao Wenlong, just 45 years old, stood on a sand barge with high spirits.

The entire fleet consisted of only four boats, filled with his brothers who were willing to follow him and fishermen familiar with the sea routes.

His mission was to probe the strengths and weaknesses of the Later Jin along the coast, seek opportunities to contact the remnants of the Liaodong army, and, if the chance came, harass the Later Jin's rear.

Hua Zhen gave him a warrant and a large number of blank documents, which allowed him to appoint officials.

Mao Wenlong wasn't sure whether these things would actually be useful to the Liaonan faction.

Mao Wenlong had no idea what he was about to face, but with a heart full of passion, he embarked on this path without hesitation.

After sailing for two days and encountering a storm, Mao Wenlong finally reached the sea off Gaizhou.

However, when the fog was blown away by the sea breeze and he saw the distant sea, Mao Wenlong stood there dumbfounded.

Not far away, on the sea near Gaizhou, a large number of ships were anchored.

More than 20 ships were moored densely at sea.

Each of the ships was several times larger than the one beneath his feet.

Between the fleet were several warships clearly used for escort, with gun ports on their sides revealing the dark muzzles of their cannons.

Mao Wenlong's personal guards hesitated, then whispered, "General, where did this fleet come from? Could it be the Tartar navy?"

The other man also turned pale. "Could it be that Korea has surrendered to the Later Jin? Besides the Dengzhou Navy, only Korea has a navy here."

Mao Wenlong didn't speak, but squinted and stared at the black flag with a gold dragon on the opposite ship for a long time.

Meanwhile, the escort fleet in the distance also spotted Mao Wenlong and his men.

A chariot-carrying dragon-class warship quickly approached.

"General, what should we do now? Should we retreat?" the subordinate asked in a panic.

"No, go to meet them. The Tartars couldn't possibly have such a navy; they must be friends, not enemies."

It must be said that Mao Wenlong is indeed exceptional. Even at such a critical moment, he was still able to make a calm judgment.

"General... what if..."

"Move closer!"

Mao Wenlong interrupted him.

"Now that we're here, we should at least get to the bottom of this."

Several small fishing boats slowly approached the fleet. A moment later, the dragon-class warship stopped in front of everyone, then turned sideways and pointed its empty cannons at them.

A junior officer shouted, "Halt! What kind of vessel is this? State your name!"

Mao Wenlong stepped forward and shouted, "Mao Wenlong, the guerrilla commander under the Liaodong Governor, is on official business in the Southern Guard. I have Governor Wang's order here. Who are you, and what business do you have here! Inform him immediately!"

Having said that, he took out the document wrapped in oilcloth from his bosom and held it high.

Upon hearing the name Governor Wang, the junior officer on the dragon-class warship immediately realized that he was not an enemy, and his tone softened slightly.

"So it's General Mao. But this is a very important matter. Please wait a moment, General. I will send someone to inspect the documents."

Immediately, a small boat was launched, and a young junior officer rowed the small boat onto Mao Wenlong's boat.

After boarding the ship, the junior officer took the documents and carefully examined the seal. After a moment, the wariness on his face finally eased.

"So it's General Mao. My apologies."

"I am Wang Hu, Chief Bosun of the Qiulong-class warship from Dongning Kingdom, greetings, General."

Mao Wenlong returned the greeting with clasped hands, but his expression showed even greater confusion. "Dongning Kingdom? Why have I never heard of it?"

Wang Hu smiled and said, "General, you may not know this, but our Dongning Kingdom was established at the beginning of the year by His Majesty the Great Ming, and it has only been half a year since then."

Mao Wenlong narrowed his eyes slightly. At that moment, he suddenly remembered a message he had seen in the official gazette, which seemed to be about this Dongning Kingdom. He hadn't paid much attention to it at the time, but he never expected to encounter it now.

But he immediately became respectful; he was no novice in officialdom.

On the contrary, he had spent half his life navigating the complexities of officialdom and knew the ins and outs of it all.

Ordinary people, even those who establish their own kingdoms overseas, will be wiped out by the imperial army. Let alone being personally granted titles by His Majesty.

Clearly, the other party has connections to the highest levels of government and the means to silence the upright officials in the court.

"My apologies, so you are soldiers from Dongning Kingdom." Mao Wenlong immediately cupped his hands, his words becoming much more polite.

"Why are your ships here?" Mao Wenlong pointed to the long fleet of ships in the distance.

"And what are all these ships gathered here for?"

Wang Hu nodded, making no attempt to hide anything. "To be honest, my Dongning Kingdom is currently working diligently to relocate the people of Liaonan."

Mao Wenlong raised an eyebrow.

"Transferring the people of southern Liaoning? I heard that Yang Yuwei, the guerrilla commander of Gaizhou, was doing everything he could to prevent the people from crossing the sea. How did you manage to do that? Has Yang Yuwei defected?"

Wang Hu was taken aback at first, then couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"General Mao, your information is too outdated. Yang Yuwei did not defect; on the contrary, he defended Gaizhou for the Later Jin. But now his head is hanging on the city wall of Gaizhou."

"What!" Mao Wenlong's whole body trembled.

"Gaizhou City has fallen? You've recaptured Gaizhou?"

Wang Hu pointed to the coastline not far away, "Not only Gaizhou, but Jinzhou and Fuzhou have also been recovered. Of the four garrisons in southern Liaoning, only Haizhou remains in the hands of the Later Jin."

Mao Wenlong was speechless for a moment. Before he came, he was thinking about how to contact his old subordinates in Liaonan and how to create some trouble in the heart of the Later Jin.

But before he could actually make a move, the Dongning army had already recaptured Jin, Gai, and Fu.

This is no trouble at all; it has nothing to do with him.

Suppressing his inner turmoil, Mao Wenlong said in a deep voice, "I want to see the person in charge of your affairs."

Tiger did not agree immediately. He looked at Mao Wenlong, then at the chain in his hand, and finally said, "General, please wait a moment. I will go and report."

A black flag with a golden dragon flutters high atop the city walls of Gaizhou.

On the roads outside the city, Liao people were everywhere, pushing carts, carrying loads, leading cattle, and holding children.

Soldiers from Dongning maintained order along the way, while military officers sat under makeshift wooden sheds to register households.

Groups of people were led to the seaside pier and then boarded the ships in batches.

Some people cried, some knelt down to express their gratitude, and some looked back at Gaizhou City with eyes full of reluctance and confusion.

Mao Wenlong watched this scene with mixed feelings.

Along the way, he witnessed the powerful organizational capabilities of the Dongning Kingdom. Tens of thousands of people migrated in an orderly and efficient manner, without any chaos.

This is something that ordinary forces cannot accomplish.

After entering the city, he finally met Lin Er. The meeting place was not in the main hall of the yamen, but on the south gate tower.

At this moment, Lin Er was standing on the city wall, watching a group of laborers dismantle the timber from the warehouse inside the city.

Lin Er was very young, so young that Mao Wenlong almost doubted that he had mistaken him for someone else.

His father was a student of the Imperial Academy, his uncle was the director of the Military Affairs Department of the Ministry of War, and he also ranked sixth in the Liaodong Military Examination.

In addition, he fought desperately on the front lines.

That's how he became a commander in his forties.

But the other party was already in charge of a region at such a young age. It was impossible not to be envious. The only thing that could comfort him was that the other party was, after all, from a small country, and compared to the official positions in the Ming Dynasty, they were not worth much.

"Junior Lin Er greets General Mao of the Great Kingdom." But to Mao Wenlong's surprise, the other party was the first to speak and bow.

This made Mao Wenlong feel embarrassed, and he quickly returned the greeting: "Mao Wenlong from Liaodong greets General Lin. This is Governor Wang's warrant; please verify it, General."

Mao Wenlong immediately handed over the warrant in his hand.

Lin Er did not accept the reply. "No need, General Mao. Someone who would risk coming to Liaodong at this time must be genuine."

General Mao volunteered to harass the Later Jin at a critical juncture for the nation, a commendable act of courage.

Mao Wenlong shrugged. "It's just that I seem to have arrived a little late."

Lin Er smiled slightly, "It's not too late. I happen to have something to trouble General Mao with."

The most important step in Lin Hao's plan for Liaodong was Mao Wenlong. Although Lin Er didn't know why Lin Hao was so sure that Mao Wenlong would come, when everything happened, Lin Er could only sigh that the young master was indeed a prophet.

Lin Er was waiting there, but in reality, he was also waiting for Mao Wenlong.

Now that Mao Wenlong has arrived, the rest of the plan can proceed as scheduled.

Dongning Kingdom's campaign in Liaonan was essentially a publicity stunt, but the one who can truly lead the fight against the Jin in Liaonan is Mao Wenlong. Dongning Kingdom still needs to develop and cannot afford to tie all its forces to the north.

In order to help Mao Wenlong better carry out his mission behind enemy lines, Lin Hao prepared a big gift for him.