The merchant ship on which Chao Chong was traveling was a medium-sized ship, about 24 meters long, 9 meters wide, and 3 meters deep, with 2 mainsails and 2 small sails. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 The info ship has 12 bulkheads inside the ship, which divides the ship into 13 cabins. At the stern there is a winch for the lifting of the cāo longitudinal rudder. The weight of the ship was about four thousand stones.

The owner is only responsible for sailing the vessel and guarding the safety of the sea. The owner of this Exocet is the second-class owner Chao Wei, who has followed Chao Gai for many years.

The Caravan Steward is only responsible for the sales channel and cannot meddle in the ship's affairs. In charge of commerce and trade is Chao Gai's confidant Uncle Quan.

Sailing out to sea is hugely profitable, and you can't wait to fill every gap on the ship. 4,000 stone seems to have a large capacity, but in fact, after removing the ballast stone of 500 stones, the self-weight of the hull of 500 stones, and the staffing of 200 stones, it is only 2,800 stones that can really accommodate the goods.

How many are two thousand eight hundred stones? If all of it is packed into grain, one stone of grain is 800 wen, but it is only 2,300 yuan, which is more than 1,000 taels of silver.

Therefore, sea ships generally do not carry grain and other goods, but porcelain, silk and other valuables, and the limited capacity on board, merchant ships generally only carry their own goods. The caravan steward purchases goods on the shore, buys low and sells high, and then transports special products back from Goryeo and Wa to sell them at a high price back to China.

This time, the shipment was different.

Because this time, the cargo was specially customized and delivered to the Chao fleet, and the destination was Busan Port in Goryeo.

In other words, the Chao caravan was actually only responsible for transportation, and there was not much profit to speak of.

But this is a relationship between the nobles of the DPRK and China, and it cannot be refused. In order to show his attention, Chao Gai also sent his cronies Uncle Quan to escort him.

The owners of the cargo were very mysterious, and since they got on the ship, they hid in the cabin and rarely showed up.

Since these people didn't want to show up, Chao Chong didn't bother to deal with them, and lay on the bow of the boat to listen to Uncle Quan tell the story of the boat.

Uncle Quan is about forty years old, with a chubby figure, looking very rich, thin lips, and can speak well.

Uncle Quan said that this is a sand ship that is more popular in northern navigation. The sand boat has a square head and a square tail, commonly known as "square ship"; The deck surface is spacious, and the girder arch is used to make the deck quickly drain waves; The ship is equipped with multiple masts and sails, the speed is relatively fast, the rudder area is large and can be lifted and lowered, the bottom is flat and can sit on the beach, not afraid of running aground, the draft is shallow, and it is less affected by the cháo water.

Because the winds and waves in the north are generally relatively small, and most of the ports are relatively shallow, they are not needed, and large ships cannot be docked. Therefore, the average merchant ship is less than 5,000 stones.

The ships that went north from the south to carry tribute grain were as high as 10,000 stones.

Most of the ships that sailed to the South Seas were above 10,000 stones.

The owner of the ship, Chao Wei, a man in his thirties, has rich sailing experience and the courage of the people of the rivers and lakes. In addition to the shipwrights and sailors, he also had fifty armed bankers. It's not the first time they've been on the sea, and they know the risks better than anyone else.

The main business of the Chao family ships was to transport silk, porcelain, tea, lacquerware, jade and other luxury goods from the Great Song Dynasty to Goryeo and the Wa Kingdom, and then purchase ginseng, deer antler velvet, tiger bones, and mink skins from Goryeo, and purchase treasure knives, tortoiseshell, coral and other specialties from the Wa Kingdom.

Three years ago, a pirate raid caused the Chao family to lose five sand boats, and the family's influence in Goryeo has plummeted, and the share of the business has also been squeezed by other maritime families.

For Chao Chong and them to get on the boat, Chao Wei was quite polite. After all, it is a young owner, and even the future master, so he naturally does not dare to slack off. But he was responsible for the helm, and he didn't care about it, in addition to the usual food supply, Chao Wei instructed the shipwrights and sailors and the bankers to cooperate with Chao Chong as much as possible.

The ship continued to go north, and arrived in the waters of Liao in one day. Uncle Quan also began to tell Chao Chong about the Liao Kingdom.

Liao since 907 A.D. Yelu Abaoji called the emperor, to now 1115, has a history of 222 years, the emperor Yelu Yanxi has long lost the ambition of his ancestors, credit Xiao Fengxian, Xiao Delidi and other ministers, blindly hunting, life is wild and luxurious, ignoring national politics, resulting in the struggle between the clan nobles intensifying, the people revolt one after another, the leaders of the tribes have also raised troops against Liao, the Liao State has been on the verge of collapse.

In the heyday of Liao, the territory of the northeast is now the mouth of the Heilongjiang River in Benhai, north to the Lenga River and Shilka River in the central part of Mongolia, west to the Altai Mountains, and in the south to the Haihe River in Tianjin, Baxian County in Hebei Province, and Yanmen Pass in Shanxi Province at the junction of the Northern Song Dynasty, and the Song Dynasty that ruled the south of the Central Plains at that time.

The system of the Liao State is generally three levels: province, prefecture (prefecture), and county. There are 5 capitals, 6 prefectures, 156 prefectures, military and cities, and 309 counties.

Liao is divided into 5 provinces, each of which has a political center called Jing, and the province is named after Jing.

Shangjing Daozhi Shangjing Linhuang Mansion (now Boluo City, southeast of Bahrain, Inner Mongolia) governed the Khitan mainland centered on the Xilamulun River Basin.

Zhongjing Daozhi Zhongjing Dading Mansion (now Inner Mongolia Ningcheng West Daming City), governed the original Xi nationality locality.

Tokyo Province governs Tokyo Liaoyang Prefecture (now Liaoyang City, Liaoning Province), and governs the former Dongdanguo region.

Nanjing Daozhi Nanjing Xijin Mansion (southwest of present-day Běijing City), governed the north of the present-day Haihe River and the Beiqing River, and the south of the Great Wall, Hebei, Běijing, and part of Tianjin.

Xijing Daozhi Xijing Datong Mansion (now Datong, Shanxi Province), governed the junction of Shanxi and Inner Mongolia.

There are four types of political districts under the province: prefecture, prefecture, military and city, which are of the same level.

Mansion (1) Beijing: Linhuang Mansion, Dading Mansion, Liaoyang Mansion, Xijin Mansion, Datong Mansion. (2) The status of these 7 prefectures is slightly lower than that of Jingfu, including the Prefecture of Shubin, the Mansion of Theorems, the Mansion of Tieli, the Mansion of Anding, the Mansion of Changling, the Prefecture of Zhenhai, and the Mansion of Xingzhong (in 1041, which was promoted to the state of Chaoyang, Liaoning).

The military power of the Liao State was held by the emperor himself. There are North and South Privy Councils. The Northern Privy Council is the highest military administrative body, generally headed by the Khitans; The Southern Privy Council, also known as the Han Privy Council, was in charge of the government of the Han people, so there was a situation in which two military systems coexisted in the imperial court.

The military system of the Liao State, all people who are over 15 years old and below 50 years old, are subordinate to the military.

The Liao army is roughly divided into four parts: the palace tent army, the tribal army, the Jingzhou army and the subordinate **.

Palace Tent Army: Collected directly under the emperor's account of the strong soldiers, is the Khitan pro-army, for the garrison and conquest, the palace tent army is the Liao Dynasty forbidden army. There are 12 palaces and 1 mansion, with a total number of more than 100,000 troops, which is the backbone of the Liao ** team.

Tribal Army: The Khitan and Xi people of the Liao Dynasty were organized as tribes, the purpose of which was to enable the Khitan and Xi people to continue to maintain the old nomadic way of life, and at the same time organize into a strong military force to deal with the neighboring enemies. Wugu Division, Eight Enemy Lie Divisions, Kuigu Division, Huibai Division, Xuanmu Division, Wubalwan Division, Dierag Division, Uighur Division, Changbai Mountain Division, and Pulu Maoduo Division.

Jingzhou Army: Upper Beijing Province, Central Beijing Province, Tokyo Province, Nanjing Province, and West Capital Province, the five capital local troops, responsible for local garrisons, about 1.1 million.

Genus**: It is composed of strong men from vassal countries, such as Tuyuhun, Tieli, and other small countries, and the Liao State has a service, so it will send envoys to recruit troops, or issue an edict to conscript. If there is a vassal state that does not obey, it will be attacked militarily by the Liao State. However, there is no quota for the conscription of the subject country, and it is mainly the border garrison, which plays a pre-warning role.

For these military and political systems, Uncle Quan is like a treasure, the merchant ship rides the wind and waves on the sea, the riddler is a little bored, and there is nothing to do on the deck, Chao Chong listens to Uncle Quan's story, which is also a special taste.

After listening to Uncle Quan's narration, Chao Chong couldn't help asking, "What kind of secret institutions does Liao have in the country?" For example, to spy on intelligence or something? ”

Uncle Quan smiled: "You want to ask if there is a spy agency, right?" ”

Chao Chong originally thought that the spy agency should be a product of modern times, the Jinyiwei of the Ming Dynasty was already a product of the advanced world, the British MI5, the United States' Zhongyāng Intelligence Bureau was only a hundred years old, and the Song Dynasty a thousand years ago, there should be no similar things, so try to express it in plain words, who would have thought that it would be clumsy.

Uncle Quan said: "The Imperial City Division of the Great Song Dynasty, the Liao State Shè Carving Camp, the Xixia Yipintang, the Dali Tianlong Temple, the Tubo Sakya Palace." These are well-known spy agencies, specializing in training some spy agents to collect intelligence all over the world. ”

Chao Chong said happily: "I didn't expect Uncle Quan to be so familiar with this!" ”

"Familiar?" Uncle Quan shook his head with a smile and said: "These are all secrets of a country, and the world only knows about their existence, but as for how they operate, they can't know, let alone be familiar with them." ”

In this way, Chao Chong leaned on the boat, looking at the vast sea, and his heart was rippling.

The vast sea is full of mystery, but also full of opportunities, and opportunities belong to those who are prepared, there are merchants and thieves in the world, there are always those who are lazy and lazy, but they are strong and self-contained, dreaming of getting rich overnight. The prosperity of maritime commerce in the Song Dynasty led to the vigorous development of the entire pirate industry. In recent years, the harsh government of the Liao State has become more and more strict, and after the common people can't live anymore, groups of people go to the sea as thieves, which is very common.

The Liao State did not have a regular navy, only the ships of the anti-theft yamen of the coastal state capital patrolled the seashore, and the pirates of a slightly higher scale were not afraid of the government. It's a big deal, the wind is tight, and I went to the sea to find an island and hide for two days.

Lee is such a person, his name doesn't sound like a good person, but in reality, he is really not a good thing. Since he united with several brothers to attack and kill Zhang Yuan, a wealthy man in the village, ten years ago, he used the ill-gotten wealth he had robbed to get a big ship of 500 stones, gathered ten outlaws, and went to sea to become a pirate.

After ten years of development, Li Guangtou plundered the coastal frontier, sneaked up on passing ships, and slowly accumulated more than a dozen boats and four or five hundred minions. In the entire Liaoguo Bay, he can be regarded as a well-known figure.

The sea breeze was blowing through the thick black hair of Li Guangtou, and he reached out to tuck the hair behind his ears, and his squinted triangular eyes looked at the sea level to the west, which could show the richness of the fat on his face. His naturally curly thick beard shows off his masculinity. Li Guangtou was glad to-day, for the second helmsman he had sent to the shore to sell the stolen goods had returned, and the approaching three-hundred-stone boat should have been filled with wine, vegetables, and game bought from the shore, and of course a delicate little lady with fine skin and tender meat.

When those village idiots ridiculed me for being lazy and couldn't find a daughter-in-law in my life, who would have thought that I would have a group of wives and concubines and a day when I would be rich and rich? Those untouchables are still digging in the fields to eat, enduring the exploitation of seventy percent of the rent, and bowing their heads when they see people. There's nothing like me here!

Ay! Li Guangtou let out a long sigh. A bald man beside him hurriedly accosted, "What is the matter with the lord?" "As a subordinate, when to talk to the leader is a very deep knowledge, because the more successful the person, the stronger the desire to talk.

Li shook his long hair, raised his head and sighed: "Am I handsome?" ”

The bald man was dressed as a literati, wearing Confucian clothes, holding a paper fan, but he left a shiny bald head, I am afraid that he has made a lot of wax and wasted a lot of money. The bald man said: "The jade tree is like Pan An in the wind, and the beard is Zhang Fei." Who can resist across the sea, only my lord Li is invincible! ”

Li Guangtou slapped him casually and said, "Fart! It doesn't rhyme at all. Even a rough man like me can hear it! No wonder you can't even pass the exam for nine years! ”

But the smug smile on his face betrayed his heart deeply.

The bald man covered his face and smiled: "The lord is really a good blue heart, with exquisite seven tricks, and even this flaw of the villain can be quickly pointed out." And it's so sincere and powerful! The villain is so touched! ”

Li Guangtou sighed a little sentimentally and said, "Am I rich?" ”

The bald man pretended to be surprised and said, "Who doesn't know that this sea is owned by the lord!" All passing ships were taken by the Lord! Rich and rich is no longer enough to describe the achievements of the lord, hasn't the lord heard the nursery rhymes on the shore? There is a king Li on the sea, and he eats in a golden bowl. The dragon king is missing the white jade bed, and he kneels and begs the invincible King Li! ”

Li Guangtou casually slapped him in the face and said: "Idiot, there can't be repeated words in a poem!" But this king character appeared four times! ”

Both cheeks of the bald man were red and swollen, and he said disapprerovantly: "Who said it wasn't, those nursery rhymes of the wilderness villagers are so levelless!" But this word king appears four times, isn't it secretly in line with the meaning of the lord and the four seas to be king! Let's forgive them this time. ”

Li Guangtou was less than seven feet tall, but he had a six-foot waistline, and he looked as thick as a wine barrel, and he sighed again: "Am I tall!" ”

The bald man secretly touched a handful of sweat on his forehead, and said: "Tall and mighty is no longer enough to describe the lord, standing up to the sky and the earth, and the domineering exposure can show the lord in case!" ”

Li Guangtou casually slapped him again, but he didn't want to shake it off, and looked down to see that the bald man was kneeling on the ground.

The bald man knelt on the board, looked up at Li Guangtou and said: "From this point of view, I can feel the height and majesty of the lord more, and a feeling of inferiority arises spontaneously, and I can't stand on my knees unconsciously." ”

Li Guangtou said happily: "This is a good word! ”

The bald man hurriedly said: "The sincerity is beyond measure, I hate to take out a heart and show it to the lord!" ”

Li bald smiled, took out a short knife from the waist of one of the people next to him, threw it in front of the bald man and said, "This is a good idea!" ”

The bald man cried: "In front of the great soul of the lord, how can the small and humble conscience of the villain be revealed, just like not being able to see the stars under the sun!" The lord is talented, knowledgeable, discerning, and knows the subtleties, and must understand this truth! ”

Li Guangtou shook his head and sighed, and helped the bald man up and said, "I naturally understand this truth." I just can't understand that a handsome, golden, and majestic man like me can't return to his hometown in fine clothes, and he can't show his greatness in front of those villagers' old friends! This makes me feel aggrieved that I have 10,000 taels of gold hidden at home, but I can only eat bran vegetables! ”

The bald man was really a little afraid of this capricious lord, so he was speechless for a while. With a "snap", Li Guangtou gave him another slap in the face and said: "Useless things, I won't say comforting words." ”

The sea is vast and boring, and Li Guangtou enjoys the time of beating and scolding the bald man. Since he plundered merchant ships two years ago and captured the man, who called himself Zhang Xiucai, Li Guangtou has used it as a tool for his own amusement. Those pirates are okay to kill people, pick up their whiskers and shoot horses, cater to their hearts, of course, Zhang Xiu, who has a bit of culture!

Literati all have a kind of self-esteem, and in the same way, once the self-esteem of the literati is shattered and ravaged, the fierce will choose to commit suicide, and the fearful will become very loyal slaves. Since ancient times, there have been many traitors in China, and traitors have mostly appeared among the literati. Because literati think too much, and those who think too much are often afraid of death.

The self-esteem of the literati is very easy to break, and the first step to break the self-esteem is the shaving method. At that time, when Zhang Xiucai's hair was shaved, he cried to death, like a mourner, and shouted "The parents of the body and skin should not be taken lightly". Lost several pounds in a few days. But I didn't see him really looking for death.

Self-esteem breaks the second step: the Hunger Act. Giving him the worst food every day, if he can eat it, it means that he has put his self-esteem behind his life.

The third step of self-esteem breaking: the slap method. If you don't dare to resist, your self-esteem will continue to shatter.

Self-esteem breaks the fourth step: the method of temptation. When Zhang Xiucai suffered all the white eyes and suffering, he suddenly gave him some wealth and benefits, which made him feel a glimmer of life. As long as he is willing to accept it, his self-esteem will be lost under the temptation of financial benefits.

Confucianism emphasizes that "the rich and the rich cannot be lewd, the poor and the lowly cannot be moved, and the mighty cannot be bent", but once the power is used to make him submit, then the hunger and poverty are used to shake him, and finally the wealth is used to make him move. Then the person is basically completely depraved.

After these trainings, Zhang Xiucai has unconsciously become a slave who can't fight back and scold. Even the weakest pirate minions on board were full of contempt for him.

And he insisted on wearing Confucian clothes every day, which was just a fig leaf to maintain the last bit of dignity in his heart.

The boat of the second rudder, which had gone to the shore to sell the stolen goods, gradually approached Li Guangtou's boat. The boats were close together, and on the crossbar, a thin and capable mustache came to Li Guangtou with a young man in brocade clothes and said, "Dragonhead, the little brother is back." ”

Li Guangtou shook his fat body, patted the thin shoulder of the mustache and said, "Second child, I have worked hard for you." ”

Bazihu said with tears in his moved eyes: "Big brother, you have lost weight!" ”

Li Guangtou sighed and said, "Who says it's not, big brother is worried that you won't be able to eat all the time!" ”

Bazihu hurriedly wiped a handful of tears, turned his body to the side, and let the young man in brocade behind him say, "Dragon head, introduce you to a friend." This is Mr. Xiao, a person who has a lot of access in the government. We dumped the goods this time and were seized by the government, all thanks to Mr. Xiao's help! ”

Li Guangtou let out an "oh", and carefully examined this Mr. Xiao, twenty-four or five years old, fair and resolute, it seems that he is not a person who begs for a living in the sea, so he will not be a person from other pirate forces, even if he is a powerful person on the shore, he is not too dangerous to himself. Therefore, Li Guangtou didn't pay too much attention to it, and arched his hand and said: "Mr. Xiao, thank you for your help, Li will have a good reward!" ”

The brocade-clothed young man chuckled and said: "Li Guangtou, born in the sixth year of Dakang, is now Chinese New Year's Eve five years old, his ancestral home is Nanjing Daoxijin Mansion, ten years ago he went to sea as a thief, his parents died, there is a sister married to the Chen family in the neighboring village, and a concubine Song has a son, who moved into the city five years ago, the son's name is Song Zhan, and he studied in the private school of the Song family ancestral hall. Am I right? ”

Li Guangtou was startled, and hurriedly looked at the second helm, and the goatee hurriedly waved his hand and said, "Big brother, I didn't say it, how do I know about your situation?" ”

Li Guangtou thinks about it, the old brothers who came out with him back then are basically dead, and this second helmsman only joined the gang seven years ago.

The young man in brocade still said lightly: "Li Guangtou is not worthy of his name, I originally thought that your appearance should be like him." As he spoke, he kept pointing to the bald Zhang Xiucai.

Li Guangtou saw that the other party had no fear, so he didn't dare to move lightly, adjusted his emotions, and said with a smile: "It's just a self-preservation technique, and you can't get into the eyes of Mr. What advice does the gentleman have? ”

The young man in brocade said with a smile: "Li Dalongtou didn't dare to hold back everyone, and talked to me privately, are you afraid that I will be unfavorable to you?" ”

Li Guangtou smiled and did not answer. The longer I spent messing around, the more I didn't dare to be alone. To be honest, Li Guangtou is really a little scared.

In a trance, I saw that the young man in brocade clothes flashed behind Li Guangtou, and a short knife rested between Li Guangtou's neck, and said: "If I want to kill you, even if there are thousands of people, it is easy to take your life, why hide it?" ”

Li Guangtou was nervous and didn't dare to move, and said uneasily: "You dare to kill me?" This is the sea, see where you can escape? If I die, my brothers will avenge me and chop you to pulp! ”

The young man in brocade said with a smile: "You still don't know the current situation!" Life and death are held in the hands of others, and they dare to speak and threaten. I really don't know whether to call you a hero or stupid! The young man in brocade lowered his voice, leaned close to Li Guangtou's ear and said, "If you die, I don't know how many people will compete for your position, do you know that they don't need my support?" ”

After all, Li Guangtou has been in the sea for many years, and after the initial panic, the ruthlessness also came up and said, "You dare! ”

The young man in brocade said: "Why don't you dare? It's not just you, even if it's your sister, your concubine, and the son who studied in a private school, we can make you disappear overnight! ”

"You guys?"

"Yes, we, a force you can't afford to offend. In the same way, it is also a force that allows you to obtain an official position, walk on land normally, and reunite as a family! ”

"Who the hell are you?"

The young man in brocade said with a smile: "Some people know about the bitter smile in the middle of the night, and go straight to the Condor Shooting Camp!" ”

Li Guangtou exclaimed: "You are ......"

The brocade-clothed young man interrupted him and said, "You just need to understand that we can make you lose your children and grandchildren overnight, and we can also make you whitewash as an official overnight." ”

"Is it whitewashed?" Li Guangtou is very motivated, and when he reaches middle age and has a successful career, he begins to seek a stable life, which is a good choice. So he asked, "What do you need me to do?" ”

The brocade-clothed young man withdrew his short knife, inserted it back into his waist and said, "Intercept and kill a merchant ship!" ”