After leaving Sado Island, the fleet sailed north along the coastline of the Japanese archipelago for more than ten days to arrive at the last supply point of their trip, Ishikari Prefecture, the seat of the Hokkaido Governor's Office.

The soldiers and civilians of Ishikari Prefecture were overjoyed that the supply fleet that had been waiting for a year was slowly entering the port, and they were now in urgent need of food, livestock, and iron supplies from the locality, and there was a shortage of pots and pans. It would have been better if the supply fleet had brought a few skilled craftsmen to Hokkaido, as the region's abundant natural resources would have improved their living standards by several levels.

In addition to the material supply that they lacked, the information to the outside world was also urgent for the military and civilians of Ishikari Prefecture. They stayed on the wild island of Hokkaido for more than two years, and were isolated all year round, except for the supply fleet, which came once a year.

Looking from the earthen wall of Ishikari Prefecture, in addition to the 120,000 acres of cultivated land cultivated around the city wall, there is the Ishikari Plain, which is densely covered with primeval forests, and the Ishikari River, which rushes into the sea with reckless mountains hundreds of miles away.

On this 80,000-square-kilometer island, there are only three castles more than 100 miles apart, and more than 4,000 people living in the wilderness show a little trace of civilization.

As the governor of Hokkaido, Yuan Zuode's subordinates reported that when the sails appeared on the sea, he led the entire city to guard the port early.

When the entire fleet docked at the port one after another, the soldiers and civilians who came to welcome them were dumbfounded, they never thought that King Yan would send a huge supply fleet of more than eighty ships to Hokkaido. I wonder how many people and supplies I have to supply to the sparsely populated Hokkaido this time?

"Brother Hu, Brother Lu, the soldiers and civilians of Ishikari County are looking forward to the stars and the moon, and they have finally brought you back......"

After the fleet docked at the port, the corresponding personnel disembarked one after another, and saw Hu An, who was the chief and deputy head of the fleet, descending steadily, Lu Yuanqing getting off the ship, and Yuan Zuo led a group of officials from the Governor's Mansion to greet them warmly.

"I'm a step too late, so that Yuan Dudu and the soldiers and civilians of Hokkaido have been waiting for a long time, and I invite you to see the cold."

Hu Anjun and Lu Yuanqing smiled and arched their hands.

"The two chiefs are really good at laughing, leading a fleet across thousands of miles of sea to transport supplies for us, it's too late for me to be grateful, how can I complain?"

"I have prepared food and wine for the two governors and the crew in the Governor's Mansion, and I invite you to enter the city to taste the special food of our Ishikari Prefecture......"

Although Yuan Zuo didn't like Lu Yuanqing in his heart, he didn't show anything on his face, and enthusiastically invited Hu Anjun, Lu Yuanqing and other fleet management into the governor's mansion in the city, and ordered his subordinates to entertain the crew and accompanying soldiers.

……

At the banquet, Hu Anjun, Lu Yuanqing and others tasted the Hokkaido salmon feast, caviar soup, and steamed bear's paw, which can be called a world delicacy, and praised them after tasting them.

Hu Anjun said with a smile: "Although you are in a reckless wilderness, the things you eat are difficult for even the powerful people in the two capitals to enjoy, and they are really envious." ”

"Chief Hu envy our life, why don't you ask His Highness to be transferred to the Hokkaido Governor's Office, follow us to fight against the Mao, expand the territory for the country, and strive to build this deserted island into a rich place in the world that does not lose Guanzhong?"

At the banquet, a lieutenant of the Governor's Mansion asked with a smile.

"I would like to, but His Highness won't allow it, otherwise it would have originated from running around the sea all year round and suffering from the bumps on the sea?"

Hu Anjun smiled wryly.

"Chief Hu and Chief Lu, the supply fleet that came this time is more than eighty ships, how many manpower and material supplies has Your Highness brought to our Hokkaido Governor's Office?"

Sima of the Governor's Mansion urgently asked the questions that everyone in the Governor's Mansion was concerned about, and he couldn't hide the excited look on his face.

As the governor, although Yuan Zuo remained silent, the wine bowl he was holding never put to his mouth to drink, which showed that he was also quite concerned in his heart.

After all, a governor's mansion is only in charge of more than 4,000 people, and it is only a population of a lower county in Datang, so it is really not decent for Yuan Zuo, the governor, to sit.

"I'm afraid I'm going to disappoint you."

Lu Yuanqing put down the dishes and chopsticks, looked at the expectant eyes of the officials of the Governor's Mansion, and said slowly.

"What does Mr. Lu mean by this?"

Someone asked unwillingly.

"Let's talk about it." Hu Anjun said in a deep voice: "This time, the fleet is carrying more than 6,500 captured bandits, and His Highness's plan is to divide them into ten batches and place them in turn in places along the coast of Shaohai where the environment is not bad, build cities and live in peace, and build new colonies. They are located at two points on the northern coast of Hokkaido Island, one on each of the two largest islands in the south of the Kuril Islands, three points on Sakhalin Island from south to north, one point at the mouth of a river hundreds of miles northwest of the town and county at the mouth of the Black Water, and one point on the north and south coasts of the Kamchatka Peninsula. With the exception of two points in the northern part of the Hokkaido Islands and two points in the Kuril Islands, which were under the jurisdiction of the Hokkaido Prefecture, the colonies established in the rest of the prefectures were established as independent prefectures. The food and other supplies that are lacking have brought you what you need for half a year......"

"What does Your Highness think? The fertile Ishikari Plain under the jurisdiction of Ishikari Prefecture is suitable for cultivated land as much as one million acres, and there is still an urgent need for manpower to come and reclaim it. Isn't this a sacrifice of the basics? ”

Immediately, some people were dissatisfied and indignant.

Last year, General Wang also laid down a valley in the mountains with fertile water and soil more than 200 miles northeast of Ishikari Prefecture. To the east of the Ishikari Plain, over the mountains, there is a vast plain that is no smaller than the Ishikari Plain, which requires a lot of manpower to reclaim. ”

"Your Highness should open up Hokkaido into a land of fish and rice, and the output will not only meet the needs of the local people, but also expand to the bitter cold land in the north of the Shaohai Sea. At that time, how could it be necessary to transport the necessary materials from distant Andong to meet the needs of opening up the north of the Shaohai Sea? ”

……

Seeing that what the officials of the Governor's Mansion who were full of complaints were saying was becoming more and more extreme, the management of the supply fleet could sit and listen clearly, and Yuan Zuo, who was the governor, hurriedly stopped with a stinky face.

Only then did everyone realize that this was in front of outsiders to criticize King Yan's decision, and the management of the supply fleet returned to Anton to accuse them of oil and vinegar in front of King Yan, but it couldn't reach King Yan's ears if they had a mouth, not to mention that they were really indignant to criticize King Yan's decision.

"Hey, why don't you see Deputy Pioneer Wang?"

After learning the purpose of the supply fleet's trip, as the mood of the originally enthusiastic Governor's Mansion was sluggish, the atmosphere of the banquet became cold, and Hu Anjun noticed that Wang Hu, who had been demoted by King Yan to Hokkaido as the deputy envoy of the development due to the failure of the conquest of the Black Water Empire, had never appeared.

Yuan Zuo was not in a good mood, and he took a sullen breath and replied: "Deputy Envoy Wang went north three days ago to look for Takigawa Fort and Asahikawa Fort a hundred miles away, and he is expected to come back in half a month." ”