At the end of the meeting, the admirals who had not slept all night immediately returned to the various departments, and Zhu Daolin followed the acting commander of the Tamsui Fleet, Vargas, the 33-year-old chief of staff, Li Changlong, and the young pacification officer Tan Yue, to the river where the battleship was anchored, and boarded the battleship to visit the more than 2,360 naval officers and men who were resting.

On the 500-ton three-masted battleship "Qiushuang," which was converted from an armed merchant ship, Zhu Daolin had a detailed discussion with Li Yiquan, the 37-year-old 100-household officer and acting captain of the entire fleet.

Zhu Daolin was quite surprised to hear Li Yiquan's request to move a family of more than a dozen to Tamsui to settle down, and secretly praised the delicate mind and the intention of submission to this veteran of Jiujiangwei who did not smile and paid attention to hard work, and immediately appointed Li Yiquan as the official captain of the "Qiushuang", promising that after the completion of the family residential area of the Tamsui Naval Base, he would take the lead in selecting a small courtyard to settle the family.

The news quickly spread to all warships, creating a positive impact among the officers and men and playing a great role in stabilizing the morale of the military.

Before parting, Zhu Daolin took Li Yiquan's hand and asked in a low voice: "What do the brothers from Jiujiang Weilai think?" ”

Li Yiquan showed a rare smile: "Those who want to leave have left early, and the 126 officers and men who have been left behind have already followed the general with iron heart, although the training is very tiring and the risk of going to sea is very great, the military salary can be three times higher than before, and the monthly salary is paid on time, there are allowances for going to sea, the warships are sturdy and well-armed, and everything is available for food, and there are military laws and military orders as standards in all aspects, and the newly promulgated "Navy Pension Regulations" are unbelievably high. ”

"To put it mildly, even if you die, you don't have to worry that your family can't survive, it's a hundred times stronger than when you were in Jiujiangwei, who doesn't throw off your arms and do it?"

Zhu Daolin was very satisfied, thought for a moment and earnestly advised: "Go back and tell the brothers from Jiujiang not to hold a group. Don't feel like outsiders, our officers and men come from all over the world, and they should all be sincerely united and like brothers and sisters. ”

"Our army is the first real navy in all dynasties to go to the sea, and the opportunity is in front of everyone. From now on, if we change our lives, we are likely to be eliminated if we can't catch it, because what we are doing is the grand cause of opening up the territory and expanding the territory, which is the biggest goal pursued by countless soldiers throughout the ages, and it will be remembered in the history books in the future and revered by future generations! ”

"Let the brothers understand what they are doing, so that they can know how to do it, so that they can establish ideals and strengthen their faith."

Li Yiquan was suddenly in awe: "My subordinates understand!" ”

The surrounding generals were very excited to listen to Zhu Daolin's words.

Although everyone has a small abacus for promotion and fortune. However, in the general interests of the country and the nation, in the face of the grand cause of opening up the territory and expanding the territory, no one can suppress the excitement and longing in their hearts.

After completing his inspection, Zhu Daolin went to the riverbank, looked at the mouth of the Yunzaobang River on the west bank of the Huangpu River, and repeatedly considered the opinions of some officers and men on setting up an anchorage here.

The acting fleet commander Vargas saw Zhu Daolin's hesitation, and after a little hesitation, he still said his opinion:

"General, I don't think this place is suitable as a military port. The tide level of the Yangtze River estuary is slow, and the tide level is not high at high tide. Just add a 50-meter breakwater according to the general's previous design, and a more open port can be built on the basis of the small port of Baoshan. ”

"It's a great place to build a civil port, but the upper reaches of the estuary on the other side are more advantageous because the east bank of the Huangpu River, where we are located, is not yet inhabited."

"We agree that there is no need to build a port anchorage in this section of water. Look over there......"

Zhu Daolin pointed to the Wusong Qianhusuo upstream of the Huangpu estuary close to the Yangtze River, where the port area of the Baoshan Iron and Steel Works would be located hundreds of years later:

"The big port will be built on the bank of the river, and it will start after the completion of the Baoshan Military Port, which will be built in three phases, and it is initially estimated that it will take more than five years to complete. In the future, 50% of the foreign trade of the Ming Empire will be carried out in that large port. ”

"We don't have that much strength now, so we can only build Baoshan Port on the south bank of the Huangpu River estuary first, temporarily as a seaport shared by the military and civilians, and build a large fort and several fortresses on the earth hill above the port, and the land under our feet will also belong to the military zone, which is a huge investment, and it will take at least 18 months to complete."

Vargas thought for a long time: "May I ask the general, where will your naval base camp be built?" ”

Zhu Daolin looked at the acting fleet commander who had just shaved his beard and asked a digression: "Bagas, are you married?" ”

Vargas shrugged: "I originally planned to return to Spain with the generous salary given by the general when the three-year contract expired, return to my hometown Valencia to buy a manor, and then find a good girl to marry and have a large group of children, but when I left Tamsui Port 7 days ago, this bastard Simeno told me that he had decided to apply to the general, officially join the general's army, stay in the east to serve the general, and become the supreme chief of staff of the Ming Empire's navy." ”

"I've been thinking about it these days, and I feel that I should also stay in the East and join the Admiral's Navy, because I'm better than him except for the bastard whose mouth is not as good as Simeno's."

Zhu Daolin laughed: "I am very happy, and I also need you and Cimeno as experienced and virtuous naval officers, but before that, I hope you will think carefully, this matter involves your life's ideals and happiness, and you need to think calmly before making a decision." ”

Vargas was a little anxious: "Does the general think that we are white-skinned Spaniards, so he does not trust our loyalty?" ”

Zhu Daolin waved his hand: "No! I trust you and I need you, but if you officially join my army, you must renounce your Spanish nationality and become a citizen of the Ming Empire, and be loyal to the Ming Empire and me, can you do it? ”

Vargas touched his shaved chin: "It really needs to be considered...... But General, I prefer Spanish women, and I want to marry the most beautiful Spanish girl in the world. ”

"Then go and marry, as long as your beloved Spanish girl is willing to come to live in the Ming Empire, you can apply to join the Ming Empire Navy."

Zhu Daolin made an important and far-reaching decision almost without thinking.

Vargas smiled happily: "Actually, it's not just me who personally wants to work for the general, but the 35 naval instructors and 70 mercenaries from various European countries in the fleet also have the same good wishes. ”

"Although the general's military law is strict, the general is fair and impartial, of high moral character, and has ambitions that will be respected by all...... Another important reason is that the vast and wealthy Ming Empire is simply a paradise on earth compared with European countries! ”

Zhu Daolin pulled up Bagas and said as he walked: "I have an important decision that I was going to tell you in the future, but now I will reveal some things to you first......

"Before the end of the year, we must set up the Baoshan Fleet, and on January 1 next year, we will formally establish the General Headquarters of the Ming Empire Navy, and under the General Headquarters, we will set up the Military Command Department, the Military Affairs Department, the Quartermaster Department and the Military Training Department, and set up the Freshwater Fleet Command, the Baoshan Fleet Command and the Marine Corps Command, and uniformly implement a military rank system similar to that of the European Navy."

"All officers and men will change their own uniforms and be equipped with more advanced weapons, and we will also speed up the research and manufacture of large warships, and we will also set up a large artillery factory under the jurisdiction of the Navy General Headquarters in Longtan, and work with the Ziyangguan Medical College to develop medicines and food for the prevention of the Black Death at sea, and so on, and strive to build our navy into the most powerful maritime force in the East in five years."

"If you are willing to join the nationality of the Ming Empire, I will appoint you as the first commander of the Tamsui Fleet and grant you the rank of major."

Bagas trembled slightly with excitement: "Your Excellency the General, I am willing to join the nationality of the Ming Empire, be loyal to the Ming Empire, and be loyal to Your Excellency the General!" ”

Zhu Daolin stopped and nodded solemnly: "I accept your allegiance, dear Vargas, I hope you can lead the Tamsui fleet to successfully complete the migration transportation mission in the next half a year!" ”

"As you saw just now, the mood of the migrants who were about to be sent to Tamsui Port was very unstable, and our pacification and persuasion did not seem to have much effect, so I decided that the Tamsui fleet should end its rest ahead of schedule, and immediately make all the preparations before departure, and after lunch, the third group of immigrants began to board the ship, and strive to set sail before three o'clock in the afternoon."

"The subordinates immediately went back to convey the general's order." Vargas saluted and quickly left.

Zhu Daolin motioned to Xu Wentao, who had arrived a few minutes earlier, to come closer, and commanded in a low voice: "Go back and tell the officers and soldiers under your command and the pacification officer, and ask them to announce to the third batch of immigrants that the victims who are unwilling to move to Taiwan will leave the camp immediately, and we will no longer provide them with any relief. ”

Xu Wentao nodded heavily: "It should have been cut through the mess a long time ago, the brothers privately said that the general was too merciful, and it was precisely because the dead face of the disaster victims saw the general's generosity that they violated the promise they made when they recruited immigrants before, not only made such and such non-centrificial demands, but also tricked the surrounding people into making trouble with them." ”

"If they don't want to immigrate to Taiwan, as early as when they were in Longtan and Beigushan, don't join the immigration team that gets preferential treatment, if such people were in Liaodong, they would have died a hundred times!"

Zhu Daolin comforted apologetically: "Don't say it, the brothers can complain, but you can't, if even you complain, how can the team be led?" ”

"Go, we have done our duty, how to choose is left to the victims to think for themselves, we will not force them, even if only half of the victims are willing to go, our fleet will set sail on time at three o'clock in the afternoon."

"There are still 5 hours, that's enough!"

Xu Wentao left in a hurry with a black face.

Zhu Daolin glanced at the noisy victims around the Acropolis, and returned to the Acropolis by bypassing the temporary camp of the black pressure accompanied by several generals. (To be continued......)