Global colonization began with Ming Dynasty pirates.

"Oh? What is so important? Please tell me in detail, Uncle Shen."

Lin Hao spoke gently, but his gaze remained steadily fixed on Shen Wangshu's face. The fact that she was so serious meant the bait hadn't been wasted; the real value lay ahead.

Shen Wangshu remained silent for a moment, as if weighing something, and finally sighed.

"My dear nephew should know that my Shen family did indeed play some tricks when the Lin family suffered this calamity."

Lin Hao's expression remained unchanged, not even a twitch of his eyebrows.

"We bribed the government officials and fabricated evidence that your Lin family was colluding with pirates. Otherwise, the government wouldn't have been so ruthless just because you're a maritime merchant."

Having said that, Shen Wangshu decided to lay it all out: "Now that Steward Shen is in your hands, these things can't be hidden anymore."

Lin Hao's heart stirred slightly.

He knew, of course, that the Shen family had harmed the Lin family, but he had only guessed at the specifics of how they had done it before. Now, he was finally able to pinpoint the details.

On the surface, he simply nodded.

"Go on."

"But my dear nephew, do you know that there is someone else behind this matter?" Shen Wangshu looked up at him. "My Shen family is merely acting under orders."

"On orders?"

Lin Hao frowned slightly, seemingly genuinely puzzled. "My Lin family has always been benevolent and has never made any fatal enemies. Who would do such a thing to my Lin family?"

"Does my nephew still remember the Zhang family I mentioned before?" Shen Wangshu asked in return.

"Are you talking about the Zhang family of Funing that we mentioned before? How come we're involved with them again?" Lin Hao asked, his tone puzzled.

Shen Wangshu smiled lightly: "Of course it's related. The Zhang family not only controls the largest shipyard in Funing, but is also the largest maritime merchant in the entire Funing sea area. Anyone who wants to do maritime trade in Funing has to pay their respects to the Zhang family to some extent."

As he said this, his gaze became meaningful.

"Nephew Kexian, you've never been to the Lin family before, have you?"

Lin Hao's lips twitched, and he couldn't help but curse inwardly.

"I'm just doing my business, it's none of his business."

This unspoken rule was naturally never openly told to him.

Even if I told him, he might not go.

"Even if you didn't go to pay your respects, there's no need to resort to such underhanded tactics," Lin Hao shook his head. "Uncle Shen, don't try to fool me like I'm a three-year-old."

There are countless small merchants in Funing engaged in maritime trade, and the Lin family is not the only one that hasn't paid homage to Zhangjia Wharf.

If they really had to deal with them one by one, the Zhang family wouldn't have anything to do.

"Hehe, the Zhang family naturally doesn't care about the others, but the Lin family is a different story."

Shen Wangshu paused for a moment and continued, "The Zhang family's biggest trading partner is Japan, and the Lin family has occupied a significant share of trade with Japan in recent years. You should know that Japan is a small country with a poor population. Even if they have mountains of gold and silver, the resources they can purchase are limited. The Lin family's actions have seriously affected the Zhang family's interests. Who else would they go after if not you?"

"That sounds reasonable." Lin Hao nodded, but remained unmoved. "But my family only has two ships that can go to Japan. They are insignificant in terms of the total trade volume with Japan. Even if the Zhang family attacks my Lin family, they cannot dominate the trade with Japan. There are countless maritime merchants going to Japan."

"There are many merchants going to Japan, but not many in Fuling," Shen Wangshu added quietly.

He then continued, "Moreover, the Lin family's rise has been too rapid. At first, they had to partner with others and could only occupy one cabin on other companies' ships. Now, in just four years, they have two large ships. And as far as I know, the Lin family has placed a lot of orders with many shipyards in Fujian. The Zhang family is the largest shipyard owner in Fuzhou. Do you think the Zhang family knows about these orders?"

"I see." Lin Hao suddenly realized.

Unlike other families who would store their money in cellars after making money, the Lin family, under my intervention, had no such habit. They would either distribute profits or expand production. This time, Lin Hao ordered a total of four ships from the shipyards along the Fujian coast, three of which were in Fuzhou. It seems that this move was probably what spurred him on.

If the Lin family were to increase the number of ships trading with Japan by four more, and everyone were in Fuzhou, the goods available for trade would be, if not exactly the same, but at least basically the same. If this continued, the Zhang family's interests would definitely suffer, and it would be strange if they didn't target the Lin family.

"However," Lin Hao changed the subject, "what Uncle Shen said is ultimately just speculation. Without evidence, it's not convincing enough."

Shen Wangshu was taken aback, then gave a wry smile.

"I really can't produce any evidence."

But soon he raised his head again: "If you don't believe me, my dear nephew, just wait and see. It won't be long before you believe me."

"Oh?" Lin Hao narrowed his eyes. "Could it be that the Zhang family is going to make another move?"

"They are not aware of your true situation."

Shen Wang said calmly, "But after a while, if they find that the Lin family's vitality has not been damaged, they will naturally continue to cause trouble."

"Try to trip me up?" Lin Hao chuckled. "We can't just come knocking on your door, can we?"

Lin Hao didn't care. He knew these Fujianese merchants too well. Although they had many ships, they didn't have many people on board in order to carry more cargo and less food and water. Despite the Zhang family's power, they didn't have many truly capable fighters.

"They certainly won't come directly to fight, after all, the Zhang family is a scholarly family, with someone in the family serving as an official in the court. No matter what, they wouldn't personally handle such a matter. But the dogs they keep are another story," Shen Wangshu said.

"A dog they keep?" Lin Hao frowned. "Which pirate family does it belong to?"

"My dear nephew, you should be able to guess for yourself. Who else on the Fuzhou Sea is qualified to be the Zhang family's dog?" Shen Wangshu said cryptically.

Lin Hao paused for a moment, then slowly said, "You mean, Li Jiu, the pirate from Gantang Island?"

"That's right, it's Li Jiu. Li Jiu is a vicious dog that the Zhang family keeps at sea. If you get targeted by him, you're basically in big trouble."

Shen Wangshu's words made Lin Hao realize that this was indeed a problem.

Li Jiu of Gantang Island had heard of the other party before and had a slight understanding of his strength. It was no exaggeration to say that the other party was the biggest pirate in the Funing Sea. He had dozens of ships and thousands of pirates under his command. If such a person were to become an enemy of the Lin family, the Lin family would have a very difficult time.

Moreover, the most crucial point is that Gantang Island is located on the only route from Dongluo Island southward to Fuzhou, Yuegang, Guangzhou, and Nanyang. If the other side blocks the shipping route, it is equivalent to cutting off our connection with the south.

I don't have the ability to shake Li Jiu's strength in the short term.

Lin Hao knew that he only had three ships with full crews and a total of just over a hundred soldiers, which was only one-tenth the number of the enemy. Even if Lin Hao was arrogant, he did not believe that he could win against the enemy with such a numerical disadvantage.

The only good news is that even if the other party wants to deal with him, it's still a long way off.

Given the size of the Lin family, he was probably just a minor nuisance in their eyes, easily dismissed. After instructing his subordinates to handle the situation, they wouldn't pay any more attention to him for a while.

Given a few months to develop, Lin Hao naturally wouldn't back down.