Zhu Daolin knew Wu Jingxian's thoughts.

The most important thing now is to send the guns and cannons that Chongzhen needs to the north, complete the tasks assigned by the emperor as soon as possible, and sit firmly in the position of the eunuch in Nanjing under the buttocks. Therefore, Zhu Daolin took this opportunity to tell Wu Jingxian the news of the imminent arrival of Portuguese merchant ships and Spanish merchant ships:

"In less than five days, the Franc machine man will send the bronze cannons and iron cannons ordered last time, the specific number and size are not clear, but there will be no less than 100, and they are all medium-caliber guns of more than 12 pounds, that is, what is usually said in the army to fire iron balls of more than 10 catties."

"It is estimated that you will bring hundreds of muskets, and when the time comes, you will send someone to the capital, so that the emperor can also rest assured."

Wu Jingxian was overjoyed, then thought about it and was a little inappropriate, and asked, "Don't you keep some?" ”

"I have ordered 200 steel cannons from the Arsenal of the Heavenly Pavilion, most of which are mounted on warships, and the Arsenal of the Heavenly Pavilion has promised to sell me the casting techniques and some key equipment of the wrought iron artillery before the end of the year. Starting next year, our ironsmith workshops will be able to forge better artillery, so why rush? Relatively speaking, uncle, you need this batch of muskets and artillery even more! Zhu Daolin explained with a smile.

Ye Liangchen suddenly asked, "Dao Lin, how many warships do you plan to have?" ”

Zhu Daolin did not conceal it: "Within a year, there will be at least 10 new 300-ton two-masted warships that are being trial-produced by the shipbuilding workshop, that is, warships equivalent to 2,000 materials, and at least 15 new 500-ton three-masted warships of the Franc machine." ”

"THESE 25 LARGE AND SMALL WARSHIPS MUST BE EQUIPPED WITH MORE THAN TWO KINDS OF ARTILLERY, TAKING THE 300-TON INLAND RIVER WARSHIP AS AN EXAMPLE, THE OFFICERS AND CREW ARE ABOUT 90 PEOPLE, AND THERE ARE NO LESS THAN 8 125MM GUNS, 12 80MM GUNS AND 30 FLINTLOCK MUSKETS ON BOARD, AND THERE ARE MORE THAN 10 800-TON CARGO SHIPS!"

"I've thought about it. In July, a batch of grain, artillery, carriages, cotton cloth, waist knives and other goods were transported to Tianjin by sea, and then some leather, pig iron and Mongolian horses were transported back from Tianjin Port. ”

Wu Jingxian immediately knew what Zhu Daolin wanted to do: "Good idea." Run a few more times, and the Manchu civil and military will slowly get used to it, haha! ”

Ye Liangchen asked again: "Dao Lin, are you ready for an all-out war with the powerful people in the southeast?" ”

Zhu Daolin sighed: "There is no turning back when you open the bow, and you have to fight if you are not prepared, I believe that the heroes in the southeast are not ready." ”

"Now, the Donglin Party supported by the southeast is declining, and several Donglin Party leaders in the court have not only gradually lost the trust of the emperor, but also been constantly besieged by other factions. It can be said that the status and power of the Donglin Party have been shaky! ”

"In contrast, we relied on the emperor's trust and our own efforts to gradually get rid of the predicament of being attacked by various factions, and even Wei Guogong, Marquis Longping and others, who had endured their anger for more than ten years, began to lift their spirits."

"All this means that the local tyrants in the southeast can no longer beat us to the ground by instructing a few Donglin Party ministers to jump out behind our backs as before...... Gone are the good old days, and they are going to work against us. They had to think of something else. ”

"That's true, times have changed. Whether it is the Donglin Party members, or the local heroes behind them, they can no longer run rampant with the government and the opposition! Wu Jingxian echoed loudly.

Ye Liangchen nodded slightly: "Then what do you think the powerful people in the southeast will use to attack?" ”

Zhu Daolin knew that Ye Liangchen had his own intention to take the school examination, so he smiled and replied easily: "The only thing that the powerful people in the southeast can rely on now is the connections established over decades and the huge financial resources accumulated over generations. ”

"But the richer you are, the more afraid you are of death. They look down on the Ming warriors, and their control over the army is very weak, so it is difficult for them to get the support of the army, and they dare not take out a huge amount of wealth to organize their own army like me. ”

"Just think. If you don't have an army in your hands in troubled times, what will happen in the end? ”

Without waiting for Ye Liangchen and Wu Jingxian to have any questions, Zhu Daolin simply said in one breath: "The rebel peasant armies such as Gao Yingxiang, Zijin Liang, and the Eight Kings in the northwest are getting stronger and stronger, and the Manchu Tartars in the north break through the barriers from time to time to kill and plunder, the hundreds of thousands of troops of the Ming Dynasty are like paper paste, and the tens of thousands of rebels of Kong Youde in Jiaodong are still doing evil, and the rebellion in the southwest is constantly ......."

"Most of the reserve granaries around the country are greedy for ink, the treasury is empty, and the rats are about to starve to death, and the emperor's inner treasury is probably only left with hundreds of thousands of catties of copper sent by his uncle, and the entire Ming Dynasty is in danger, but the ministers of the court are still fighting endlessly, how much prestige does such a court have? What else is the ability to control the family gate valves and rich gentry in various parts of the Ming Dynasty? ”

"In my opinion, the Ming Empire today is worse than the end of the Northern Song Dynasty!"

Wu Jingxian's face turned pale with fright, but Ye Liangchen's eyes were blazing.

Zhu Daolin smiled self-deprecatingly, stood up and comforted Wu Jingxian repeatedly: "Uncle, don't worry!" I will never say these words in front of outsiders, and I will never mention them again in the future, although there are some complaints, but I will remain loyal to the emperor, as long as the emperor needs, I can do it, and I am willing to share the emperor's worries. ”

"At the same time, I must always be ready, ready to clean up the southeast local heroes who have pounced on the Ming Dynasty for a hundred years, constantly sucking the people's fat and people's ointment and the blood of the Ming Dynasty, as long as I catch the opportunity, I will beat him hard, no matter what damage he makes, I will continue until they are completely eliminated!"

"Didn't you think that you might be able to turn enemies into friends?" Ye Liangchen stared at Zhu Daolin's eyes very seriously.

Zhu Daolin smiled: "Master Ye, in fact, you know better than me in your heart, in the more than two hundred years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, when have you ever seen the gentry class forgive their opponents?" ”

"I won't talk about it for too long, just talk about Grandpa Wei, how many people did Grandpa Wei kill when he was alive? How many people did the Donglin Party kill after coming to power? ”

"When Gonggong Wei was in charge of the government, the Emperor of the Apocalypse did carpenter work every day, but the Manchu Tartars were never able to cross the Daling River, and the millions of soldiers in Liaodong and Xuanda never lacked food and military salaries. Why did the Donglin Party come to power for less than three years, and the whole country quickly degenerated to the point where it is now? ”

"Take 10,000 steps back and say, even if I am willing to make peace with Southeast Haoqiang, are they willing? God has long destined me and them to be mortal enemies, and it will be life and death to end this fight, and there is no other way to go! ”

"Alright, that's all for gossip, sit down slowly, and I'll go to the dock to see off the Arab merchant Sa'id...... This guy is going to transport goods to the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, thousands of miles away, and if possible, even to Alexandria in the Mediterranean, it is estimated that he will go farther than the original eunuch of the Three Treasures. ”

"This trip will take at least half a year to come back, don't send him off, I'm worried that he will forget a few things I asked him to do, haha!"

Ye Liangchen stared blankly at Zhu Daolin's Gao Jun's back and disappeared into the courtyard, and suddenly turned his head and asked Wu Jingxian: "Daolin has always been like this?" ”

Wu Jingxian shook his head with a wry smile, and replied a little helplessly: "He is like this, at least when he is with me, he never hides his thoughts, and he has no scruples about saying anything." ”

"Sometimes when I see him hanging up, I really want to beat him, but he never smiles in front of outsiders, he doesn't say much, he is very cautious, he turns around and leaves people who don't like him, and anyone who sees him at first sight will feel that he has an indifferent temperament and is difficult to approach......"

"However, he is very good to craftsmen and ordinary farmers from humble backgrounds, I guess you don't believe it, this kid often goes to the major workshops to work with the craftsmen, chatting together, squatting on the ground to eat together, so many people respect and fear him, even I sometimes can't figure out what kind of person he is, alas!"

Ye Liangchen nodded thoughtfully, looked at the courtyard without Zhu Dao's presence again, and said as if talking to himself: "I'm going to go back and clean up, and I'll move over tomorrow." (To be continued......)