The place Zhang Shun refers to now is only a small castle, which was built by the Normans, that is, Dover in later generations. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 infoIt is located at the western end of the Channel, closest to the continent of Europa, and only seventy miles from Calais in France. Zhang Shun is interested in its location, which can be used as a stronghold to pass through the entire Angloland, and can also be used as a springboard to spy on the continent of Europa.

Zhou Quan himself is not interested in Europa, but the empire is not the only one he wills, Zhang Shun's voyage fleet, in addition to Zhou Quan's spirit of exploration of the world, also represents the pursuit of wealth by those merchants, they need new products, new markets, and a large number of cheaper raw materials...... These wishes, even Zhou Quan can't fight, can only guide. And Zhang Shun asked Dover for these wishes.

Under Nehru's clever words, Stephen finally agreed to Zhang Shun's last two conditions: to provide enough coal and grain for the fleet, and to lease Dover to China for 100 gold yuan a year.

Stephen also has his own calculations, although Dover is in an important position, but he still has competitors in France, and the Chinese stay here can block his competitors for him to some extent. For now, at least, the Chinese had little interest in the Anglo kingship.

After the two sides reached an agreement, Nehru was probably the happiest, because according to the agreement, he would go to China with Robert as an envoy to the British king.

However, at this time, the British were still lackluster in terms of navigation skills, and they were just circling around Europa, so they did not get any information from them on how to return to China. Nehru, on the other hand, had heard during the Great Eclipse that there might be a sea route to the West as he headed south toward Kunlun until the end of the Heavenly Sea.

This is also the same as Zhou Quan's "speculation", so after the British obtained a large amount of supplies and "compensation", after a period of rest, Zhang Shun led the fleet out of Dover at the beginning of the sixteenth year of the Chinese Yuanxian - according to the custom of the Chinese Empire, Zhang Shun named this port Taibai Port in honor of Li Bai.

The fleet was made up of modified steam-sail ships, and when there was a coal mine, they burned it, and when there was no coal mine, they cut down trees from the shore, powered by firewood, and if there was a tailwind, they used the power of the wind.

Nevertheless, they have been floating at sea for half a year, starting in January.

"Still no good wind?"

Zhang Shun, who described it as withered, muttered, his lips were a little cracked, and he opened his mouth to ask, but he just had nothing to say.

At this time, after more than five years of expeditions, the entire fleet was exhausted, and both the naval sergeants and the merchants who accompanied the ships were eager to return to China. For this reason, they even launched a "military admonition" to try to coerce Zhang Shun to change his mind.

Zhang Shun was still stubborn, and after letting the opponents return to Chengzhou west on a warship and a supply ship, he himself took the remaining troops and the envoys of the British king, and continued to struggle on the coastline of Kunlun Continent, looking for a way to bypass this continent - seeing the black people here who were called ghost slaves by the Chinese people, Zhang Shun had already concluded that as long as he could bypass this continent, he could enter the Western Ocean (Indian Ocean) named after China, and to be able to get here, there would be mature routes and familiar navigators to help them return to China in the shortest possible time.

"No, the wind and waves are strong, the ship is leaking, we need to find a port to anchor." The first mate replied weakly.

Even with bean sprouts and various vitamin-rich fruits, the crew is basically not bothered by sepsis, but after such a long time, the personnel are still very badly damaged, and now they have even added some foreign indigenous sailors to the ship to do some chores, otherwise the manpower is not enough.

Therefore, there is no morale.

"Believe me, bypassing this continent, it is the Western Ocean, and when you reach the Western Ocean, it is still far from China! When we go back, Your Majesty will definitely give each of us a medal, and a bounty that we will never spend in a few lifetimes! Zhang Shun encouraged.

In fact, the wealth on their ships is enough for them to live in abundance for the rest of their lives.

His words did not help, because at this time, the sailor, who was in charge of the lookout above the mast, violently rang the bell: "Boat, boat!" ”

They also used to meet indigenous boats on the beach, but the canoe could only struggle on the shore, and it was not a sea boat at all. Therefore, it was certainly not these indigenous that caused the sailors on the mast to scream.

Zhang Shun immediately raised the telescope.

After a short time, he saw white smoke in the distance in the sky, which was the sign of a steamship!

The ship of China, the ship of China!

Even after experiencing countless storms, Zhang Shun couldn't help but get excited at the moment, he couldn't control his emotions at all, and like the sailors, he shouted like crazy!

On the steamboat emitting white smoke, the lookout in the watchtower also exclaimed: "Boat, is it ...... Battleships, how can there be warships of our Huaxia Navy here? ”

This steamship, named "Hiking", belongs to the Kunlun Chamber of Commerce, and its owner is Duan Yixing.

The so-called Burning Expedition is not the main body of the regular army of China, but the large and small chambers of commerce and the escort army hired by the chamber of commerce. In Kunlun Continent, the Kunlun Chamber of Commerce is the strongest, and after the Battle of Xuanzang Port, Duan Yixing was smooth sailing in the Kunlun Chamber of Commerce and was quickly promoted. Even during the Great Plague, he relied on his relationship with the Fourteenth Army to quietly travel back and forth between Kunlun Continent and Lion State.

This allowed him to accumulate enough capital, and with the funding of Duan Heyu, he owned the steamship "Hike".

At this time, Duan Yixing is no longer the hot-blooded young man who wanted to plant the world for Huaxia, he has experienced a lot outside, and his pursuit of interests is different. Therefore, after owning the "Hiking", he did not hesitate to start the second big gamble in his life: to become independent from the Kunlun Chamber of Commerce, open up new routes, and find new markets.

At this time, the Great Plague had subsided after several years of spreading - from Persia to Europa, almost half of the people died from the plague, that is, Tianzhu, although the Chinese Empire could only ensure that its colonial cities did not have large-scale infections, and the indigenous cities still suffered great losses.

Therefore, Duan Yixing began to move south along the east coast of Kunlunzhou, first discovering Dali Island (Madagascar), and then continuing south, just at the southernmost point of Kunlunzhou, he met Zhang Shun's fleet.

"Ask in the language of the flag which fleet they are, be on guard and ready for battle!" After going up to the deck and looking at the opposite side for a while, Duan Yixing ordered.

The wind was too strong, and the boat was undulating violently, but the two sides still used flag language to communicate, and soon, Duan Yixing knew the identity of the other party.

Duan Yixing, who was taken aback, immediately ordered to guide the other party to land on the shore, and the two sides found a bay to anchor, and then Duan Yixing took a small sampan to Zhang Shun's boat.

As soon as he got on the boat, he was startled, because all the people around him were crowded, as if they were hungry and wanted to eat him.

"Tell us how Huaxia is now!"

"Do you know the news of my hometown!"

"Have you ever been to Quanzhou?"

"I don't know if you know someone......"

If you count from the time of leaving China, Zhang Shun's fleet has been wandering outside for six years. I didn't know the news of my hometown and relatives for six years, how could they not be in a hurry, even if Zhang Shun shouted loudly, they couldn't maintain order, so they could only vent.

After a while, Duan Yixing finally squeezed in front of Zhang Shun, and after the two met the ceremony, Zhang Shun couldn't help but ask a lot of questions. The sailors around finally quieted down, and listened hungrily to Duan Yixing's answers: What is the current situation of Emperor Zhou Quan, what is the state of the empire, and has he expanded his territory......

Duan Yixing replied while looking at the situation on the ship.

The condition of the ship was very bad, there were traces of damage by wind and waves everywhere, Duan Yixing was very surprised, this ship could still support it!

When Zhang Shun was in Chengzhou, they also built a base, with craftsmen and farmers, plus a large number of local people were lured to work as coolies, which could repair the ship, but after leaving Chengzhou, it was difficult for their ship to find suitable craftsmen to repair, relying on the carpenters and sailors who accompanied the ship, naturally it was a little out of shape.

"Don't say anything else, do you have rice, bring each of us a bowl of rice, we haven't eaten rice for a few years, I'm really hungry!"

After chatting for a few words, Zhang Shun did not leave the true character of the people of the big foodie empire, but all he wanted was rice.

Cheng Zhou naturally has no rice, and when he arrives in the UK, there is also no rice, so Zhang Shun and others have not tasted rice for several years.

This is a trivial matter, Duan Yixing asked people to go back to the "Trekking" to get rice, and when the fire was lit to make food, the two sides agreed to send a pilot to probe this small bay to see if a temporary wharf could be built for mooring.

The two fleets worked together to build a temporary wharf and it didn't take much time, and after landing, there were still natives grazing looking at them curiously, and some natives were tentatively approaching, although Duan Yixing's ship had guides and interpreters, but the languages of the natives in various parts of Kunlun Continent were different, so it was useless. So the two sides made strokes, and in the end, Duan Yixing used a few silk cloths in exchange for the five sheep put by the other party.

It didn't take long for the aroma of mutton soup to spread all over the seaside.

"I have a treasure that can be used as a spice, would you like to taste it?" Duan Yixing took the broth and asked with a smile.

Zhang Shun naturally wanted to taste it, Duan Yixing took out a glass jar that was extremely sealed, and scooped a spoonful of sauce into Zhang Shun's bowl.

"Wait a minute, this ...... It should be Cheng Zhou's property, right? Zhang Shun didn't know what it was at first, but he exclaimed as soon as he tasted it.

"Exactly, Your Majesty named it chili pepper and used it as a sauce, which is very delicious!" Duan Yixing laughed and said, "This seasoning is expensive now, far better than the same weight of spices or snow sugar!" ”

That's natural, now the introduction of chili peppers is still short, only a small amount of production in the experimental field, Duan Yixing can eat it, or Zhou Yu gave him - the friendship between the two on the battlefield is still in contact.

Zhang Shun smiled, then waved his hand, and suddenly someone brought a large string of dried chili peppers: "Since that's the case, I'll give you these as gifts!" ”

Everyone laughed, and after a while, Zhang Shun said with emotion: "No wonder Your Majesty wants me to explore the universe in Huaxia, don't let go of any corner - who knows if there will be delicious crops there!" ”