"Lord Xu, at this point in the matter, I think it's time for us to let down our guard and talk openly and honestly. After dealing with the assassination case, Ning Qi, who had just returned to Xu Xinsu's mansion, made a request to the other party.

Originally, Xu Xinsu arranged a mansion for the Haihan Mission nearby as a place to live during this visit, but after the assassination, Xu Xinsu was not sure how many assassins there were in the city, so in order to ensure that nothing went wrong, he asked Ning Qi and others to move back to Xu's mansion. Ning Qi also wanted to take this opportunity to beat the side drum for Xu Xinsu again, so he pushed the boat down the river and agreed.

Xu Xinsu nodded and said, "In any case, if something like this happens in Zhangzhou, the old man is responsible." Please rest assured, Mr. Ning, regarding this assassination case, the old man will definitely give you a satisfactory explanation. ”

Ning Qi shook his head and said, "Lord Xu, what I want to talk to you about now is not the investigation of the assassination case, but the attitude of the Fujian government towards Eighteen Zhi. ”

The expression on Xu Xinsu's face froze for a moment before he spoke: "Okay, it's as Mr. Ning wishes." If Mr. Ning has anything to ask the old man, he might as well say it bluntly. ”

Ning Qi said solemnly: "Then I'll be blunt, we Haihan have always regarded Eighteen Zhi as a great enemy, and even did not hesitate to spend a lot of resources every year to provide military assistance to the Fujian government. I think we have common interests in the goal of exterminating pirates, but why has the Fujian side always been in disobedience to the bandits, while at the same time tolerating the continued deployment of their commercial establishments in various parts of the coastal areas of Fujian?

Xu Xinsu smiled bitterly and said: "The old man doesn't know the truth of raising tigers? When I had an interview with Mr. Ning for the first time, the old man wanted to mention it, but I was afraid that Mr. Ning didn't like to hear this kind of topic, and he was lucky...... Alas, if I had been more decisive at the beginning, I wouldn't have made this today!"

Ning Qi said: "Lord Xu might as well talk about it first, if there is really any difficulty, we can also negotiate to solve it together." ”

Xu Xinsu sighed: "In fact, in the final analysis, it is nothing more than a good word. Mr. Ning, do you know how many years it took me to go from being a small sailor to being promoted to the current provincial commander?"

Without waiting for Ning Qi to answer, Xu Xinsu asked and replied to himself: "At the beginning, Zheng Zhilong forcibly robbed the old man's friend Li Dan's family property, and wanted to rob the old man with his share. At that time, he didn't have any long-term plans, he just thought that he could continue the prestige of the government and let Zheng Zhilong retreat. This year is the fourth year of Chongzhen, but I didn't expect that in only five years, the old man was promoted from a down-and-out maritime merchant to a provincial commander-in-chief. People outside probably thought that the old man had been rewarded by the imperial court for his meritorious service in killing pirates and defending the place in the past few years, but how could things be so simple!"

Xu Xinsu picked up the teacup and took a sip, and then continued: "The former general soldier used a lot of troops against Eighteen Zhi, but he repeatedly suppressed them, but instead made the officers and soldiers suffer defeats one after another. In addition to the weak combat strength of the Ming army, many people in the government took the benefits of Eighteen Zhi and reported to them, which is also one of the reasons. If the old man wants to fight Eighteen Zhi, it will inevitably affect the interests of many people, although these people have no way to deal with the old man on the surface, but they can't prevent it by stumbling in secret. If the old man wants to secure his official position and protect his interests, he must make compromises in some other minor places. ”

Ning Qi already understood a little when he heard this, and interjected and asked: "What Lord Xu means is that these eighteen zhi agencies installed in the coastal cities of Fujian are actually very complicated in terms of the entanglement of interests behind them, so you have to choose to compromise and acquiesce to their existence?"

That's pretty much it. Xu Xinsu nodded and affirmed Ning Qi's guess: "These businesses and ships often have more than one background. For example, one of the shareholders of the 'Zhengfeng' that the old man ordered Yang Lu to seize was a certain adult in Nanjing City. It's easy to seal, but it's very troublesome to deal with the finishing touches afterwards, and it's still a trivial matter to get some silver to fill the holes that have been poked out, but these human relationships are troubles that are difficult to make up. Such situations are not uncommon in the coastal areas of Fujian, although the old man has military power in hand, but after all, he has to obey the orders of the imperial court, and there are many inconveniences, Mr. Wangning can understand the difficulties of the old man. ”

"I see. Ning Qi's explanation is reasonable, and it can just explain why Xu Xinsu would tolerate Eighteen Zhi's deployment of those institutions that are clearly commercial houses but are actually hidden piles under his nose. Xu Xinsu's bottom line is to show his heart to Haihan - it's not that the old man is ineffective in suppressing the bandits, but the bandit army is too cunning, and he has found the old man's untouchable connections to support him.

Xu Xinsu continued: "The old man has also planned several big actions in the past few years, hoping to annihilate the main force of Eighteen Zhi in one fell swoop, but every time he didn't wait for the move, the news had already leaked. Although the old man has the heart to fight with him, there have always been people who have been dragging his feet......"

Ning Qi couldn't help but interject when he heard this: "If Lord Xu has any taboo people, you might as well make a list first, maybe we have a way to give Lord Xu some advice." ”

Xu Xinsu's eyes lit up slightly when he heard this, there are many rumors among the people that the prophecy technique of the Haihan people can seek good fortune and avoid evil, and Xu Xinsu has naturally heard a lot. It is said that the alternation of the two governors of Liangguang in the past two years, and the rise of many new wealthy merchants in Guangdong, have a lot to do with the prophecies provided by the Haihan people. If the Haihan people are willing to use this magical ability to guide themselves through the maze, it is really a means of reference.

And Ning Qi's purpose in saying this is indeed this, if there is a famous person in the officialdom, then Haihan's large number jù library can probably find its relevant information, and may be able to provide some help to Xu Xinsu.

However, Xu Xinsuxuan shook his head resolutely and said: "Actually, there is no need to use these means, as long as the eighteen zhi are destroyed in a dignified manner, the forces behind these will immediately change their positions and stand on our side." ”

Ning Qi Xindao Although Xu Xinsu was born from the grassroots, he was able to mix with his current status, and it was indeed not purely by luck. Obviously, he believed more in the reliability of solving problems by force than in relying on some occult means. And his point of view, Ning Qi also agrees very much, the forces behind the eighteen zhi to support them are nothing more than fancy the huge interests in the sea trade, but if there is no eighteen zhi along the coast of Fujian, then Xu Xinsu will become a figure like the Sea Dragon King, and as long as he wants to get a piece of the southeast sea trade, he must stand on the same front as Xu Xinsu, unless he has the ability of Haihan, he can build a powerful sea fleet to crusade against dissidents.

"If Lord Xu can have such determination, then I will try my best to persuade the Executive Committee to provide more and more powerful military assistance to the Fujian military in the near future. Since Xu Xinsu has made a statement, Ning Qi also has to give some sweetness to encourage the other party to make such a choice.

"Thank you Mr. Ning!" Xu Xinsu clenched his fists and said, "But the old man also has some questions in his heart, can you ask Mr. Ning to explain the doubts for the old man in person?"

"Lord Xu, please speak!" Ning Qi nodded.

"As far as the old man knows, your personnel arrived from overseas in the seventh year of the Apocalypse to the location where the current Shengli Port is located on Qiongzhou Island, is this true?" Xu Xinsu's question at the beginning had nothing to do with the Eighteen Zhi matter.

However, Ning Qi still answered him as he was: "That's right, the time we landed on Qiongzhou Island was at the beginning of the seventh year of the Apocalypse. ”

Xu Xinsu continued: "If the old man remembers correctly, the men and horses under Eighteen Zhi have only gone to the vicinity of the Qiongzhou Strait at the farthest, and have never been to the southern tip of Qiongzhou Island, and you began to contact the old man in the second half of the seventh year of the Apocalypse. The old man has always been curious, how did Eighteen Zhi offend you at that time, so much so that he did not hesitate to provide military assistance to the old man thousands of miles away to counter the expansion of Eighteen Zhi?"

Ning Qi couldn't help but be a little stunned when he heard this question, what reason did the envoy sent at that time use to explain the relationship with the Fujian side, and after a few years, he couldn't remember it anymore. But he didn't expect Xu Xinsu to remember this detail a few years later, and it can be seen that this problem has been buried in his heart for too long.

Xu Xinsu saw that Ning Qi was silent, so he continued: "When the old man went to Guangzhou last time, he also talked to Director Ma about this matter. ”

Ning Qi said, "Mariko, what did he say at the time?"

Xu Xinsu said: "His reaction at that time was exactly the same as Mr. Ning's at this time. Is the old man thinking, is there any secret in this that is not enough for outsiders?"

Ning Qi couldn't help but laugh dumbly: "Secret? Actually, it's not a secret, since Lord Xu wants to know so much, then I'll tell you." ”

Mariko's reaction showed that he must have forgotten the words he had given to the Fujian side at that time, but Xu Xinsu's question was not difficult for Ning Qi to answer, and in just a moment now, he had already come up with a reasonable explanation: "Lord Xu probably also knows that we Haihan people will have a strong ability to predict certain things that have not yet happened. ”

Xu Xinsu nodded and said that he knew that just now Ning Qi asked him to support the list of Ming officials who supported Eighteen Zhi, and Xu Xinsu had a premonition that Ning Qi's purpose was related to the magical skills of the Haihan people.

Ning Qi continued: "What I say next, Lord Xu may not believe it, just think that I am a fool and just say it." According to our prediction of the changes in the situation in Fujian at that time, the Eighteen Zhi would capture the main strongholds along the coast of Fujian within a year, dealing a devastating blow to the Fujian naval division. Later, Zheng Zhilong accepted the invitation of the governor of Fujian, Lord Xiong, and became a military general of the imperial court, and from then on began to occupy this golden waterway between Fujian and Dayuan Island, imposing high protection fees on merchant ships passing and passing here, and using this to accumulate wealth, and within a few years became the most powerful maritime tycoon on the coast of Fuguang. Even if it is the imperial court, there will be no more ways to deal with him at that time. ”

After hearing this, Xu Xinsu said curiously: "Why didn't Mr. Ning mention the whereabouts of the old man?"

Ning Qi was silent for a moment before saying, "It's not a secret, in our speculation, if the situation continues according to the original trajectory, Lord Xu will die in the sea near Zhangzhou in the first year of Chongzhen. ”

Xu Xinsu's face was also a little ugly after hearing this, and anyone who heard others predict his fate like this, I'm afraid his mood would not be much better. Xu Xinsu said: "What Mr. Ning means is that if Haihan didn't provide military assistance to the old man back then, then there would be no old man in the world now?"

"Although this will be difficult for Lord Xu to accept, this is the conclusion I have conjectured. Ning Qi nodded and acknowledged Xu Xinsu's opinion: "Half a year after we landed, when we had not yet gained a firm foothold in Yazhou, we hurriedly provided military assistance to Lord Xu, who was thousands of miles away, to assist the Fujian Ming army in the battle against Eighteen Zhi, and before that, we had never had contact with Eighteen Zhi, and we did not have any grievances, the reason why we did this was to prevent Eighteen Zhi from ruling the coastal areas of Fujian. And the person we know who was able to stop Zheng Zhilong was not Yu Zhigao, the chief soldier of Fujian at that time, nor Xiong Wencan, the governor of Fujian, but Lord Xu, who had just bought his official position and had just begun to learn to lead troops! This is the reason why you have always wanted to know, I wonder if my explanation can satisfy you?"

Xu Xinsu was silent for a long time before he spoke: "This seems to be the only reasonable explanation. But the old man also wants to know, if you had chosen to support Zheng Zhilong and the eighteen zhi led by him, wouldn't it be easier to get twice the result with half the effort? Moreover, with your means, it doesn't seem to be a difficult problem for Zheng Zhilong to provide special treatment to Haihan after occupying the important coastal areas of Fujian, right? Why did you choose the old man instead of the young and strong Zheng Zhilong and his powerful eighteen zhi?"

Ning Qi responded to this question very calmly: "According to the information we know, Zheng Zhilong has a ruthless personality, a capricious temper, and lacks trust in the people around him, especially for his partners. Even if he is willing to take the initiative to join us, we will not choose to cooperate with him. No matter how strong his strength is, in fact, in our eyes, he is just like a chicken and a dog, and when the time comes, we will naturally take action to clean him up. But until then, we need time to grow and develop, and we must have reliable people on the front line in Fujian to stand up to Zheng Zhilong, and we think that Xu Daren is the best candidate. Lord Xu doesn't have to be presumptuous, the person we chose is the one who is really powerful!"