Ten days later, on the wharf of Ningbo port, there was a lot of traffic, and there were hundreds of large and small merchant ships parked in the harbor in the distance, all of which were four or five stories as high as the sea ships, strong and durable, many ships were raising their sails, ready to sail, and there were merchant ships entering the port from time to time outside the port, the porters and traders on the wharf shuttled in the meantime, and the soldiers and generals who came and went back and forth strictly checked everyone who got on and off the ship, especially the people who wore hats or cloth towels on their heads took off their hats to check whether they had shaved the heads of the moon.

But at this moment, Xu Hai, a genuine Japanese servant, was dressed as a Confucian merchant, wearing a champion hat, wearing a good green coat and satin, holding a literati folding fan in his hand, sitting on the elegant seat on the second floor of a Xianyou restaurant not far from the wharf, looking at the surging crowd in the distance, smiling, and said: "Brother Lang, believe it or not, if this sea ban is opened, I am afraid that the wharf of Ningbo Port will be five times larger than today, and the passenger flow can be ten times more." ”

Sky Wolf today changed a layer of black-faced middle-aged Han skin mask in his thirties, and he was also dressed as a businessman, but it looked very different from his tall and mighty, heroic temperament, he sat opposite Xu Hai, the table was full of good wine and food, today the entire second floor of this restaurant was wrapped up by Xu Hai, dozens of his subordinates were on guard at the staircase, only these two people were still sitting on a table by the window on the entire second floor, drinking wine, looking at the sea view, with a salty taste, The sea breeze mixed with the smell of various spices of the South Seas poured in from the window, brushing the hair on the foreheads of the two. But the wolf didn't have the slightest interest in playing, just drank the stuffy wine cup by cup until Xu Hai opened his mouth. Only then did he casually respond: "Maybe." It also depends on whether Brother Xu and Ship Owner Wang cooperate. ”

Xu Hai's face changed slightly, and he laughed instead: "Brother Lang, can't you and I let go of our respective identities and be friends sincerely?" ”

The wolf replied coldly: "I am an official, you are a widow, although you can conspire with each other in different ways, you must be friends." That's impossible, think about what you're doing along the coast and in the interior, if you're me. Would I like to be friends with you? ”

Xu Hai's eyebrows moved: "Brother Lang doesn't like what he said, since it is cooperation, then even if it is a superficial article, you have to give the other party a little face." You look like you ignore us maritime merchants. If you go to Shuangyu Island, I'm afraid that the owner of Wang will not be happy, and maybe he will directly make a yellow deal. ”

Heavenly Wolf laughed: "Brother Xu, if I think about how to exterminate you all the time, but I put a smile on my face, you will be angry with me?" This time, you are talking to our Governor Hu about cooperation first, and then recruiting peace, and it is not easy for our Governor Hu to leave you a way to return to the imperial court. Do you still expect me to beg you to serve the court? ”

Xu Hai's face sank: "Brother Lang, you are not afraid that we will be angry with you for this attitude." Will the peace talks be broken directly and the war resumed? ”

A cold glint flashed in the wolf's eyes: "Restart the war? Yes, then how about your brother Xu go back to the Satsuma Shimazu clan again, be the leader of the Japanese again, bow down to them, and then ask these Orientals to send troops to help you? ”

Xu Hai's eyes flashed with a fierce light, and he roared in a low voice: "Sky Wolf, what do you mean, do you want to turn your face?" ”

Heavenly Wolf sneered: "Xu Hai, everyone's cooperation is a mutually beneficial behavior based on strength, there is no need to pretend to be fierce and ruthless with me here, Governor Hu is not begging you to submit, but he is unwilling to continue to fight like this along the coast, the lives are devastated, and there is a good life in heaven, and give you a way to atone for your sins and renew yourself, the imperial court transferred Governor Hu to fight with you here, why should he spread the stigma of making peace with the enemy and raising his own respect?" ”

Xu Hai gritted his teeth and said: "Heavenly wolf, do you want to say that Hu Zongxian made peace with us, which is a reward for us, and we in turn ask him to recruit peace, don't you?!" ”

Sky Wolf smiled slightly: "Isn't it? Even if you keep robbing along the coast and looting the towns that have long been empty, you will be able to open the sea and do business? If it weren't for the fact that you can't grab the money and population now, how can you take the initiative to negotiate peace with the imperial court? ”

Xu Hai was suddenly hit by the heavenly wolf, his face was blue and white, and he was speechless.

The wolf was ready early this morning, when he saw Xu Hai for the first time, he must suppress the other party in momentum, if he can't suppress this gang of Japanese in the territory of the Ming Dynasty, and then go to Shuangyu, these Japanese will be all over the sky, and Xu Hai's hole cards He also knows it clearly, he is not willing to call the Japanese like a dog for the rest of his life, if there is a road that can recruit An, he should still be willing to go, but now he has an advantage in the war, and he wants to fight for a better Zhao'an condition, Doing business is nothing more than asking for a sky-high price and paying back the money on the spot, and only by suppressing Xu Hai's arrogance can it be possible to win conditions acceptable to Hu Zongxian.

So the wolf eased his breath again, and smiled slightly: "In fact, everyone knows the current situation, if you go ashore to fight, go deep into the interior, or even delusionally want to attack the state and seize the capital, then the soldiers and horses of the imperial court are not vegetarians, and now the north and Mongolia are temporarily reconciled, and there are more elite soldiers who can be transferred to the south in the afternoon, even if it is a villager in a place like Yiwu, with a little training, it is enough to fight against you, if you can't grab something with the Japanese ronin, then you have to pay them according to your agreement with them, What will you feed your own men when the time comes? I just want to be a lackey of the Japanese, but I'm afraid it's not so easy. ”

Xu Hai gritted his teeth and said hatefully, "Do you think I won't dare to attack your state capital? Hmph, I'm in a hurry, even this Ningbo Port, I can still burn it down. ”

Tian Wolf smiled: "Burn, you burned this place, then there is not even a transit station for the Francome to do business, the imperial court doesn't care about the loss of overseas trade anyway, as long as the silk in the south of the Yangtze River continues to pay tribute, and the production area of silk is in Hangzhou and Nanjing, you Xu Hai dare to say that you have the ability to attack Hangzhou?" I'm afraid that if you move the devil soldiers of the entire Kyushu Island, you may not be able to do it. ”

Xu Hai was suppressed by the awe-inspiring momentum of the Heavenly Wolf. Beads of sweat began to appear on his head, and his eyes rolled, but he couldn't say a word.

Sky Wolf drank a glass of wine calmly. sighed: "Xu Hai, I really want to cooperate with you, this is also what Governor Hu Zongxian Hu meant, you also know that I am representing Jinyiwei, representing the will of the emperor himself, originally according to his meaning, there is no mercy on you." But I came back to the southeast this time, and I played a secret tune upward, saying that you Xu Hai and Wang Shipmaster are still interested in Daming. It's just a moment of confusion that he went astray, if he can turn the merit into a crime, turn the war into a jade silk, and help the imperial court stabilize the shipping and trade in the southeast of Dìng. You can atone for your sins. Even to show the sincerity of our court, I am willing to go to you single-handedly, isn't that enough? ”

Xu Hai shook his head: "I have also come to your Governor Hu's camp, and it is enough to show my sincerity." ”

Sky Wolf sneered, "Really? Your sincerity is to continue to cooperate with Yan Shifan and instigate rebellion in Yiwu? Xu Hai, if you really keep to it and have the sincerity to cooperate, I will have this attitude towards you today? ”

Xu Hai laughed: "Sky wolf." You must know that Yan Shifan can remove Hu Zongxian from his post as governor with one sentence. I can offend Hu Zongxian, but I can't offend Yan Shifan, the thing in Yiwu was made by him, if you are me, can you refuse? ”

The wolf also laughed: "Xu Hai, you are more than a little smart, but not enough wise, what did you say Yan Shifan wanted you to make trouble in Yiwu?" ”

Xu Hai's face changed, and he turned to a deep voice: "Naturally, it is to give Hu Zongxian, who does not listen to him, a warning and a lesson, so that he can listen to the words of the elder Xiaoge and negotiate with us well, instead of using negotiation as a means to delay the army, secretly training the troops, in order to start a war." ”

The Heavenly Wolf snorted heavily: "If Yan Shifan really has the ability you said, and he can remove Hu Zongxian from his position with one sentence, then does he still need to do so much, wouldn't it be better to directly change someone to implement his strategy of trade and negotiation with you!" ”

Xu Hai was stunned for a moment, and then defended: "That's different, the people in exchange may not be as good as Hu Zongxian who can fight and can control the southeast coast, and if we lose the war too badly, our asking price will continue to increase, Yan Shifan is greedy by nature, and he won't do things that lose too much money!" ”

The wolf pretended to have a helpless expression on his face: "It's really Yan Shifan, you can believe what Yan Shifan says, I'll sue you, Yan Shifan doesn't have the energy you said at all, Hu Zongxian was recommended by them, this is true, but Hu Zongxian's ability is also clear to the emperor, and other officials recommended by Yan Shifan, like Zheng Bichang and He Maocai, will only embezzle and make money, if such a person becomes the governor of Zhejiang, I am afraid that even Hangzhou City will be captured by you, and that will cut off the lifeblood of the imperial court." ”

"So our emperor will not be stupid enough to listen to Yan Shifan change the commander in the southeast as soon as he flickered, even Yan Shifan himself knows that if he wants Zheng Bichang and He Maocai to be greedy for money, it is also inseparable from Hu Zongxian to give him stability here, so if you want peace talks and trade, in the final analysis, you can't bypass Governor Hu, but Yan Shifan, except for blowing the atmosphere with you and allowing empty checks, it can't give you any substantial benefits."

Xu Hai said unconvinced: "But everyone in the world knows that the Yan family's father and son are in favor of the government and the opposition, and everyone in the world looks at his father and son's face to act, Hu Zongxian is just the governor of the southeast, and the major matter of really opening the sea ban and determining the national policy has to be decided by Yan Song, the first assistant of the cabinet in the court, and it is not Hu Zongxian's turn to decide." ”

Sky Wolf laughed: "Xu Hai, you really don't know the situation, don't you know what our Jinyi Guard does?" If the emperor didn't know about the situation in this Zhejiang area, and wanted to send a reliable person to investigate it with his own eyes, how could I be here now? If it weren't for the secret sea ban, or at least the Tiyì who contacted and negotiated with you, who had the emperor's permission, how could I, as the deputy commander-in-chief of Jinyiwei, be the representative of this negotiation? Let me tell you the truth, this matter of trade and security is Hu Zongxian's twist and turn, and it has nothing to do with Yan Shifan! ”

Xu Hai was completely dumbfounded at this moment, and said instinctively: "Is this true? ”

Sky Wolf replied coldly, "Is it necessary for me to lie to you? Xu Hai, Yan Song's father and son have always only figured out the holy will, and will never go to this kind of twist and turn when the emperor refuses to openly open the sea ban, only Hu Zongxian will take state affairs first, and would rather take risks and go on this kind of twist and turn on his back, Yan Shifan only thinks about the southeast stability, and the tribute of the imperial court is endless, so that he can not only explain to the emperor, but also can embezzle taxes and silver on his own. Is it worth taking the risk? ”

Xu Hai's face sank: "Hmph, Heavenly Wolf, I know you have a grudge against Yan Shifan." I can't listen to all your words and believe them all, Yan Shifan is there with us now, since he is willing to only go to the island as a powerful person in power, why should I listen to your little pawn's words? ”

Heavenly Wolf sneered: "Xu Hai, do you think I will be surprised that this Yan Shifan has landed on your Shuangyu Island? It doesn't surprise me at all, he could go to the Alta camp alone to talk about the conditions of betrayal when the Mongols invaded, and today he goes to your Shuangyu Island to do the same thing. Naturally, it is logical. ”

Xu Hai lost his voice and said: "What do you say, Yan Shifan has collusion with Mongolia?" ”

Sky Wolf nodded and said in a deep voice, "Isn't this strange? Yan Shifan is a person with no bottom line. As long as you keep your glory and wealth, it doesn't matter who is the master, he is not looking for you for money, but because he is afraid that the emperor will kill their Yan family. Just leave yourself a way out. He is with you all day long, that is, he gives you empty checks, and then saves money and goods with you in exchange for a friendship that can one day be in trouble and vote, are you really for you wretches? It's not that I've taken a fancy to the Japanese behind you! ”

Xu Hai was silent, the heavenly wolf said what was on his mind, these days Yan Shifan is indeed moving around on Shuangyu Island, and he figured out that they had a relationship with the Shimazu clan, and the cunning Wang Zhi always felt that something was wrong. I still feel strange when I don't do it. When I heard what the wolf said today, I suddenly realized, and said hatefully: "This guy is really a ghost, we almost fell for him!" ”

Tian Wolf smiled slightly: "Actually, it's not fooled, Yan Shifan still has a strong force after all, I don't deny this, but you have to remember that those conditions that can really meet your cooperation, such as recruiting An, such as sending troops to eliminate Chen Sipan and Xiao Xian, such as the ban on trade, these can only be done by Hu Zongxian, Yan Shifan does not have the power, nor does he have the desire to do these things." ”

Xu Hai nodded, and suddenly said: "Heavenly wolf, but Hu Zongxian is negotiating with us while reorganizing the army, he transferred capable generals from all over the country to expand the armament and warfare, while letting Yu Dayou train the new recruits of the water division, and on the other hand, let Qi Jiguang recruit the people of Yiwu to train the army, and also transfer wolf soldiers from Guangxi to fight with us, do you dare to say that he really negotiated peace with us?" ”

Tianluo nodded: "Brother Xu is right, but I believe that if Brother Xu is in Hu Zongxian's position, he will do the same thing, the reason why Governor Hu is different from other dumb and corrupt officials is that he has both hands hard, he can not only fight, but also appease, if there is no strong military force as a backup, will you talk about the conditions so honestly, if you can enter the interior as no one's land, or like the Mongols to fight under the city of Beijing, then naturally you can put forward any conditions, just like the Mongols, Haven't we also won the conditions for opening up the border market? ”

Xu Hai laughed: "Heavenly wolf, you are very smart, but you have been avoiding the real and the false, if Hu Zongxian has no ill will towards us, then it is enough to maintain the existing troops, he is now training like a wolf and a tiger, and the cutting-edge army that can fight is just to deal with us, no matter how much you quibble, you can't deny it!" Don't say anything else, let's just say that those Yiwu people, we have all seen their power, these people can be so fierce without knives and guns in their hands, and they have to train into an army? ”

Sky Wolf smiled slightly: "Oh, Brother Xu is afraid of the Yiwu soldiers?" ”

Xu Hai's face changed, his Adam's apple moved obviously, and he smiled instead: "I, Xu Hai, have been crisscrossing the world for more than ten years, who have I been afraid of?" It's just that these Yiwu barbarians are obviously different from those guards, and if they are trained, they will fight a big battle, besides, even if these barbarians are fierce on land, how many years can you wait if you want to train them to be able to fight on the water? ”

Tianluo shook his head: "It seems that Brother Xu is really afraid of these Yiwu soldiers, otherwise he wouldn't mind so much, anyway, you said it yourself, these soldiers can't form an army in the short term, let alone go to the sea to fight you, you must know that fighting at sea requires shipbuilding and shipbuilding, and it doesn't cost too much money to recruit a few thousand soldiers, but how much does it cost to build hundreds of big ships?" Does Hu Zongxian have this capital? If you don't have a huge fleet, how can you go to sea to clean you up? Therefore, Governor Hu's move, to put it bluntly, is still to protect the territory and the people, at most, it is just to let you take advantage of it after you go on land, isn't this kind of Cheng dù's defense legitimate? ”

Xu Hai snorted coldly: "Heavenly wolf, no matter how much you talk about the lotus, it is impossible to hide it from my eyes, let alone from the owner of the ship, Hu Zongxian's armament war is not a sincere expression at all, if he really only wants to trade, Yan Shifan will not need to warn him by stirring up trouble in Yiwu." ”

Tian Wolf smiled: "Since you have decided that Hu Zongxian is just a fake peace talk and a real war, then what else to talk about with him, it seems that I don't have to go to Shuangyu Island, just wait for the war on both sides." Xu Hai, in this life, we are also destined to drink together, and the next time we meet, it will be on the battlefield, you are dead and alive, and I will meet you and me, and I will do it first as a respect. As he spoke, he took a sip of the wine in front of him, then stood up and made a gesture to leave. (To be continued......)