The entire Jiaodong Peninsula is like an arm extending into the sea, of which Laizhou Mansion faces the sea on both sides, and Dengzhou Mansion is surrounded by the sea on three sides.

After arriving on Lingshan Island, the sailors led by Zheng Jing came to the boundary of Laizhou Mansion.

There were no accidents along the way, which was really a blessing.

However, after arriving at the coast of Laizhou, he encountered a storm at sea, and Zheng Jing chose to take refuge in Mawan (i.e., Jiaozhou Bay) for the sake of safety.

Gan Hui naturally agreed. A storm of this magnitude is likely to cause big problems if you rush to the road, and even a shipwreck is not impossible.

Anyway, Laizhou is now in the hands of the Seven Henchmen, and it is not indispensable for them to take shelter from the storm here.

Zheng Jing ordered the Ming flag to be hung on the mast to identify himself, and when he approached the front of Fushan, a rebel army came to verify his identity.

Zheng Jing ordered people to declare that they were reinforcements sent by King Daming Zhong to aid them, and they were warmly received at the first time.

After the sailor docked into Mawan, Zheng Jing learned that the current leader of Laizhou Mansion was Yu Qi's sworn brother Wang Er Mazi.

Wang Er Mazi was also well-known in the green forests of the rivers and lakes before, and he became even more famous after Yu Qi raised the banner of rebellion against the Qing Dynasty.

They first took Ye County, and then radiated outward with Ye County as the core, and finally controlled the entire territory of Laizhou.

Ye County and Lingshan Wei are one north and one south, and they are also the two most important sea outlets in Laizhou.

Among them, Mawan is more important because it is a sheltered harbor.

Therefore, Wang Er Mazi still stays in Lingshanwei and Fushan Qiansu more often.

Zheng Jing and the others were warmly received immediately after getting off the ship.

Although Wang Er Mazi has not read any books, he has still heard of Zheng Chenggong's name.

At the banquet, he took the initiative to raise his glass and saluted: "I have heard the country's surname for a long time, but I have never had the opportunity to see it." Now that I have met His Royal Highness the Prince, it is a regret that it is a certain one. ”

Zheng Jing hurriedly raised his glass and said, "I have been entertained by General Wang, and Xiao Wang is very grateful. ”

Wang Er Mazi waved his hand and said, "Obviously, the prince is here to reinforce us, even if he is grateful, he should be said by us." ”

The two exchanged pleasantries, and Zheng Jing took the initiative to ask: "Dare to ask General Wang, what is the situation in Shandong now?" ”

Before he came, he only heard Zheng Chenggong and Zhang Huangyan mention one or two, and knew that Dengzhou Laizhou was in the hands of the righteous army, and the rest of the provinces respected the Manchu court as Zhengshuo.

Now he wants to hear something detailed.

Wang Er Mazi took a sip of the wine glass, and then continued: "To be honest, after taking Laizhou, I discussed it with Brother Yu, and then sent troops to attack Qingzhou Mansion, but it was strongly resisted by the Tartars. In order to avoid too many losses, we withdrew. ”

"How many rebels are there now?"

"There are more than 20,000 garrisons in Laizhou Prefecture, and there should be 30,000 people in Dengzhou Prefecture."

Wang Er Mazi said directly.

"That is to say, the rebel army currently has 50,000 people."

Zheng Jing silently recited; "Now that I have brought 6,000 men, Your Majesty should send reinforcements, and together we should have 60,000 men."

This number is not small for the land of the two provinces. However, Dengzhou and Laizhou are a little special.

Other prefectures and counties only need to defend some key places and some important cities.

However, along the coast of Denglai, the long coastline determined that the Qing army could attack by land and water.

In other words, the defensive area of the Ming army has increased a lot.

With only 60,000 people, if they are scattered to various prefectures, counties, and bays, it will be a bit stretched.

"General Wang, how is your army stationed along the coast now?"

"This..."

Wang Er Mazi scratched his head when he heard this: "According to the model of the avant-garde office, there are about 2,000 people in one guard and about 500 people in the first guard. ”

Zheng Jing shook his head when he heard this.

Sure enough, I'm afraid of something.

This mode of garrison determined that the main forces of Laizhou Prefecture were concentrated in large cities such as Fucheng, while some key port guards had very few troops.

It's dangerous.

Imagine if it was Shi Lang's sailor who had just come, would he be able to defend Mawan with only two or three thousand people?

If Mawan is lost, the Tartars will not only control a port, but also land and quickly control the important town of Laizhou.

With Shi Lang's strength, it is still easy to do this.

Although Zheng Jing also hates Shi Lang, he can still make an objective evaluation of a person.

As far as the ability to command the troops, Gan Hui is under Shi Lang.

"Maybe we can send in some more people..."

Zheng Jing told Wang Er Mazi about his worries, but Wang Er Mazi sighed after hearing it: "I don't know what His Royal Highness the Prince said." It's just that the current situation is that we don't have so many ships, and even if we mobilize troops, we can't block the coastline. ”

Zheng Jing was taken aback.

Why is that? Hasn't Denglai always been the place where the most ships are built? ”

I think that when Dongjiang Town was still under the jurisdiction of Denglai, the grain and grass supplies needed by Dongjiang Town were all transported by boat from Dengzhou.

At that time, Denglai's shipbuilding strength was ranked first in the Ming Dynasty.

How many years have passed, has it changed a lot?

"Your Royal Highness, this time and that time. During the Ming Dynasty, the imperial court attached great importance to shipbuilding. But when the Tartars arrived, no one cared about shipbuilding, and the dockyard was deserted. Dengzhou may be better, but Laizhou really can't find any decent shipbuilders. I'm also a good woman, and it's hard to cook without rice. ”

Zheng Jing couldn't cry or laugh when he heard this.

The Tartars are really closed off from the country, and they can't even build ships if they are locked up.

If it weren't for Shi Lang who presided over the restoration of the Longjiang Shipyard when he was in Nanjing, I'm afraid that the Tartars wouldn't even be able to make up a decent sailor.

"In this case, I will leave ten ships under the command of General Gan Hui, and I will lead the rest of the ships around Dengzhou."

Zheng Jing felt that such an excellent natural bay port as Mawan must not be taken by the Tartars.

Shi Lang may not have this idea yet, but once the Tartar chieftain orders him to lead his troops north, Shi Lang is fully capable of posing a threat to the coast of Denglai.

"I heard that when General Qi Jiguang was ordered to clean up the Japanese invaders, he built a lot of barracks along the coast, which should be repaired and can still be used. My advice is to recruit as many recruits as possible. It is still a little difficult to hold Denglai with only 50,000 or 60,000 people. ”

Although Zheng Jing said something vague, Wang Er Mazi still heard the meaning beyond his words.

That is, the help that the imperial court can give them is limited to this.

After all, the main battlefield of the imperial court was still in Jiangnan, and it was impossible to send too many troops to reinforce it. More than 10,000 people is already the limit.

"I know, I was just worried about food and grass before."

"You don't have to worry about this, you rely on the mountains to eat the mountains and the water to eat the water, are you still afraid of starvation in this coastal place? If you really can't do it, just grill the fish and eat it. ”

"Haha, that's true."

Wang Er Mazi smiled happily, he had a better impression of Zheng Jing. I didn't expect that the dignified and loyal prince was not at all there, so approachable.

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