The wind roared in the sky, lightning and thunder, and it rained heavily for a whole day.

It was not until late at night that the wind and waves weakened slightly, and the wind direction changed from due north to due east, and most of the waves were blocked by the islands and reefs on the outskirts of the harbor. Before the storm arrived, all the sails had fallen, and as the waves lowered, the hull of the ship gradually stabilized. It was only after the rainstorm had subsided that the sailors lowered the ship's gunwales and allowed the water on the deck to pour into the sea. The boats on the side were also filled with water, and the sailors had to loosen the outer cables, and the water in the boats flowed into the sea like a small waterfall.

The fleet had taken shelter from the harbor before the storm had picked up, and there were still two leaks in the bilge, and the sailors stood waist-deep in the stagnant water while scooping up the water and plugging the holes. Some of the sailors checked the cables one by one and tightened the loose ones again. The two dinghies are missing, presumably drifting to the open sea because the cables have come loose, or have been smashed into pieces on the reef.

After experiencing the storm, many people learned about the horror of the sea, and since then they have become devout to the gods.

According to the voyage and the observation of the sky and the earth, this should be the boundary of Huizhou, and the harbor where the sailor sheltered from the wind is surrounded by a barren mountain, and there are no people in the distance. As soon as the anchor was lifted last night, a storm followed, and the sailor had not yet had time to send someone ashore to make contact. After the rainstorm stopped, there was no wind on the sea, and the sailor could only continue to anchor in the harbor and wait for the wind to be suitable before setting sail.

Zhou He sent two officers ashore. The first is to inquire about the situation in the vicinity, and the second is to find the local government and report the itinerary to the imperial court through the post post. One of the two officers was named Tian Xi, a native of Tokyo, who once served beside Zhu Bernard, the envoy of the Wuchang Military Festival; The other is called He Lei, a student of the Sailor School, a native of Guangnan, who is fluent in the Baiyue dialect, and also knows a little about Annan, Dashi, and Dongnayi. In addition, there were still five forbidden soldiers following, one of the five was from Jingdong, two were from Fujian, and one was from Jiangdong and one was from Guangnan. The South China Sea Naval Division was the reorganization of sailors from all over the world and the recruitment of sailors into an army, which can be seen in the mixed origins of sailors.

After the envoy departed, Zhou He sent some sailors to the nearby villages to buy some fresh vegetables and meat.

In the past, when officials and soldiers crossed the border, supplementing supplies was half bought and half robbed, and not harassing female dependents was considered a good military discipline. Bandits are like combs, soldiers are like grates, and the people hate officials and soldiers more than bandits. After Zhao Xingde took charge of the South China Sea Naval Division, the military discipline was strict, not only did not allow the soldiers to plunder the people, but also ordered that the buying and selling must be slightly higher than the market price, and tried to meet the requirements of the people, so as to win the hearts of the people towards the South China Sea Naval Division. This way to the south, the effect is quite significant, everywhere the sailor goes, the people first dodge, and then they are extremely friendly to the sailor. The sailor inquired about the situation of the pirates, the location of the reefs, the rivers, and the shelters along the way, and the people gave a very detailed introduction.

Zhou He demanded that every group of officers and soldiers who landed on the shore must return before dark. The officers and men who remained on the ship were busy cleaning and overhauling the warship, and the barren mountains on the shore were full of firewood and grass, and some sailors lit fires on the beach to bake clothes and bedding soaked in the sea. Feng Mi and other shogunate officers climbed a hill near the harbor to observe the entire terrain, and found that the forest was dense and uninhabited for dozens of miles, except for a large island in the southwest, and a large area of water on the shore was like a mirror, reflecting the sun dazzlingly, which seemed to be a salt pan along the coast. So Zhou He sent another team of officers and soldiers to inquire about the news.

In the afternoon, a salt official with his entourage picked up more than ten loads of gifts to come to the army.

After the two sides contacted, it was learned that this place is called Red Bay, the shore is Huizhou Guishan County, the southwest salt field is freshwater salt field, and there is a tin mine in the north. Zhou He immediately took the salt official to meet the governor and reported the situation to Zhao Xingde. Zhao Xingde asked the DPRK and China about the situation again, but the salt official did not know. The freshwater salt site is remote and sparsely populated, and the imperial court's official newspaper is not delivered here. This salt official didn't care about the progress of the Great Rites Discussion, and the other news was also a few months ago, I didn't know, Zhao Xingde was fine, Zhou He and some other staff officers were a little annoyed.

"I don't know the left, I don't know the right," Zhou He reprimanded, "what do you know?" ”

"My lord, my lord is angry," said the salt official Lin Bo tremblingly, "We are in a remote place, there is nothing else, there is a big star mountain near the salt field, the mountains are beautiful forests, fragrant grass, surrounded by east and west bays, and the beach is as white as a moth eyebrow, like a crescent moon, and like two dragons playing with pearls." Adults live boringly on the boat, climbing the mountain can dispel feelings, full of beautiful scenery dizzying, birds and birds chirping gracefully, quite forgettable. ”

Lin Bo only got this salt official position in his fifties, although he didn't even have a grade, he was full of plans not to seek merit, but to seek no fault. This freshwater salt field is remote, there are only 30 stove households, more than 100 stove ding, and there are not many salt officials. Huizhou's dignitaries and nobles came here for nothing else, that is, to take a look at the scenery where the sky and the sea meet. Zhao Xingde is famous all over the world, and when Lin Bo heard that the tiger had arrived, he thought that he could only send some seafood and mountain goods, and then he would be full of beautiful scenery.

When he said this, Zhou He and the others looked at each other dumbfounded, and Feng Mi asked in a deep voice: "That's all?" What else? ”

Lin Pao's heart suddenly burst out, and he said secretly, what else do the big officials want? Is it because filial piety is not enough? It's not worth a few taels if I sell it myself. He racked his brains, and the beads of sweat the size of soybeans came out on his forehead, and finally remembered, and replied, "Yes, yes." Adults come at the right time, there is a large beach in the southwest of the salt field, this season, every year there are horseshoe crabs come ashore to lay eggs, more than hundreds, the big horseshoe crab turtle back shell is as big as the table of eight immortals, it can be called the wonder of the South China Sea, if the adults want to see this wonder, the little official can lead the way. ”

"What a spectacle!" Feng Mi was most disgusted with this kind of old official, and was about to reprimand him.

"If you say anything else, let it go for a while," Zhao Xingde asked with a smile: "The Great Eater Haikou scourge Guangnan, hasn't your salt farm been looted?" ”

This question opened the conversation, and Lin Bo nodded vigorously and said: "My lord, the little official saw the big food fleet pass by the sea with his own eyes, but he didn't dock, bypassed the big star mountain, and went south. He shook his head and smiled bitterly, "People say that Haikou has eyeliner, and there are only a few dozen stove households in our freshwater salt farm, all of which are so poor that they can't even look down on Haikou, which can be regarded as saving a life." On the side of Guangzhou Mansion, Dongguan, Huangtian, Guide, Jingkang Salt Farm, Dashi Haikou passed all the way, robbed money and women, and men also killed a lot. Many people who are not happy with the stove have become extinct at this time. ”

"Has the Jingkang Salt Farm also been looted by the Great Eater Haikou?" Feng Mi frowned and said, "What about the Guangnan Water Master?" Is coastal defense a non-existent thing? ”

From Dongguan to Jingkang, these salt farms are distributed from south to north. The Great Eater Haikou washed the Jingkang Salt Works, and it has gone deep inland. Jingkang Salt Farm is not far from Guangzhou Fucheng. It can be seen that the Quang Nam official army is just shrinking into defense. Feng Mi's tone was not good, and Lin Bo felt furious when he heard it, he didn't dare to answer, peeked at the officers around him, and said in his heart, all the gods are above, hurry up and send these Shangguan military masters away, I am just a small official in the wilderness, why bother with me.

"Haijiang has been peaceful for hundreds of years, and it is no wonder that it has been slack for a long time." Zhao Xingde shook his head and asked, "How far is the salt field from the sea, and you saw the Great Food Fleet passing by?" "The bigger the ship, the deeper the draft, and the boat usually sails far from the shore to avoid hitting the reef. For the Great Food Haikou, taking advantage of the long coast of the Song Kingdom and avoiding the real and attacking the virtual is its biggest advantage. Therefore, if the pirates do not go ashore to plunder, the fleet will sail far away from the coast. At least from the freshwater salt works, there is absolutely no movement of ships. The salt officer was vague in his words, but he said that he saw the big food sea ship passing by with his own eyes, Zhao Xingde felt a little strange, and when he asked, the other officers also noticed something strange, and their eyes refocused on the salt official Lin Bo.

"It's true," Lin Bo nodded, but the sweat on his forehead was even greater, "That day, it happened that the little official thought that Shangguan was going to come to the salt field again to inspect the salt field, and everything else was okay, the viewing pavilion on Daxing Mountain was a little dilapidated, and I heard that there was still some rain leakage, so the little official took a few stove households to repair it, but who knew that he saw the big food fleet, and hundreds of large sea ships passed by on the sea, bypassing Daxing Mountain, and heading southwest." He still had a bit of a conscience, and although he himself was half frightened, he didn't forget to send someone back to the salt field to report the news.

Lin Bo made the decision to ask the stove household to quickly take dry food into the mountain to hide, and not to return to the salt field for three days after that. Lin Bo himself hid on Daxing Mountain for three days, and after not finding any trace of the Great Eater Haikou, he returned to the salt field with a few stoves, and after more than ten days, he heard the news that the coast of Guangzhou was plundered by Haikou. He had no guilt at all, and did not inform the Guangzhou side, but secretly rejoiced.

"Big Star Mountain?" Zhao Xingde looked at the generals and said with a smile, "It's okay left and right, come with me to enjoy the superb scenery of the South China Sea." ”

He immediately ordered Lin Bo to lead the way and take the generals to Daxing Mountain. The South China Sea Navy Division has only one main fleet, the coastline of the Great Song Dynasty is long, and the Haikou are pervasive, as long as a boatload of bandits lands on the shore, the people on the shore will suffer a catastrophe. Therefore, Zhao Xingde led the fleet to the south along the way, in addition to training warships, he also surveyed the terrain along the way, selected sites to build artillery forts and corner plugs, and built a coastal defense system together with the state and county military villages and the home port of the sailors. This is a prudent way to seek the invincibility of oneself first, and then the victory of the enemy.

Daxing Mountain is a peninsula deep into the ocean, surrounded by two bays on the left and right, only connected to the mainland by a narrow isthmus, this place has a wide field of vision, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and the terrain of Suzhou in Liaodong is somewhat similar, Zhao Xingde decided to build a fort here to control the north and south bays. The generals followed him all the way south, and naturally understood the meaning. When returning from Daxing Mountain, it was already late, and Chen Kegang, the governor of Huizhou, and Zheng Yan, the governor of Haifeng, had been waiting on the shore of the water division for most of the hour.