The whistling north wind whistling and dancing with the snowflakes.

On the surface of the Sea of Japan.

Three brigs escorted six large bird ships to the north.

In fact, this kind of brig schooner has begun to withdraw from the sequence of capital ships of the Ming Navy, and is now used more as patrol and reconnaissance ships.

The big bird boats produced at the Guangdong shipyard have also undergone a series of optimizations.

The hull was reinforced, the sails were improved, and the shape of the ship became more slender to adapt to the waves of the ocean.

It is now the main trading ship used by the Ming Dynasty for ocean trade.

From Guangzhou to Japan, the Free City of the Strait, and even the Chinese merchant ships that are now re-active in the Indian Ocean, they are now basically these large bird ships made in Guangdong.

It is easy to handle the sail, the speed is good, and the load capacity is huge.

Definitely one of the finest cargo ship types of the era.

Now these six big bird boats were loaded with a Ming dragoon battalion of mounted infantry companies reinforced with artillery companies, as well as their weapons, ammunition, rations, and war horses, as well as 2,500 poor people from Liangjiang who had been recruited to go north together.

They are now also armed with flintlock pistols and have undergone a ten-day assault emergency training before their departure.

In terms of treatment, it is not an ordinary coolie treatment, but about seventy percent of the salary of the Ming army's soldiers, plus the land voucher promised by the Manchurian Reclamation Division at least 50 acres of land per person after five years.

Therefore, when recruiting people in Tianfu and Songjiang Mansion.

Quite a few bachelors from Liangjiang enthusiastically signed up.

Without waiting for the spring to warm up, and even before the harshest winter in Manchuria arrived, he sailed north, bypassed the Korean Peninsula, and headed for Vladivostok, which was marked on the map.

Zeng Ada, commander of the Vladivostok Expeditionary Force of the Manchurian Reclamation Division and now a lieutenant colonel, stood on the deck of one of the warships, frowning at the coastline along the way.

Next to him, there was also an officer with the rank of lieutenant colonel on his shoulder, but he was wearing a white navy uniform, and his face was also a little dignified.

He is the warship commander of the Vladivostok task force this time, Ye Tenghui, a son of the Lan Fangye family.

At this time, most of the coastline of Manchuria is frozen.

So Zeng Adaa and Ye Tenghui looked all the way and felt the colder and colder temperatures, as well as the coastline with thicker and thicker ice.

The two lieutenant colonels stood on the deck, frowning in the snow.

If Vladivostok is still frozen on this coast, then the preparation of more than a month will be in vain.

The fleet will have to make the way home, and then it will be able to go north again next spring when the snow melts.

It's just that in this way, it will inevitably delay spring ploughing.

If the seedlings had not been inserted earlier, the thousands of people would have to rely on more than two years of shipping supplies for food, and Vladivostok's plan to expand its reclamation would have been delayed for at least a year.

"I don't know where the emperor got the news, the coasts here are all sealed, and the place in Vladivostok has reached Ningguta, isn't it colder?"

Zeng Ada's woolen felt coat was wrapped tightly, but he still couldn't feel a trace of warmth.

It was freezing on this day, and thousands of people were sent to such a bitter cold place, and they didn't know if they could stand firm

"It makes sense that the emperor wants to occupy Vladivostok." Ye Tenghui said with a frown.

"Use 1,200 soldiers to pierce a nail in the rear of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, if Vladivostok can really be reclaimed, with the method of Borneo, a large-scale immigration will be able to come over next spring, and then it will be even if the Manchu people's back road will be cut off!"

"Maybe," Zeng said, frowning.

"The General Staff told us to pay attention to the movements of the Russians, but from the map, the Russians are still in the area further north, how can they get to Vladivostok."

"The Cossacks in Russia had a large range of activities, they were nomadic tribes like the Mongols, and it was not surprising to meet Cossacks in Vladivostok."

As the two of them spoke.

The lookout, who was watching from the mast, shouted: "The ice on the shore is shallow!" Coastline! The coastline is not frozen! ”

The two of them were immediately overjoyed.

Ye Tenghui climbed to the top of the spinnaker in front of him in three steps and two steps, pulling the rope with one hand and holding the telescope with the other hand to investigate.

After a while, he also yelled: "See the coastline!" The coastline is not frozen over! Oh my God! There really is an ice-free port in this place! ”

Zeng Ah Da was also shocked.

He is a native of Chaozhou, Guangdong, and when he came to the cold and freezing northeast, he simply suffered an old sin.

Now I hear that such a cold place actually has a coastline that does not freeze in winter.

The chill on his body suddenly dissipated.

"Vladivostok! It's Vladivostok! Old leaves!! Hahahaha!! Long live the Ming King!! Hooray 1! ”

Zeng also saw the coastline that was not frozen in the telescope.

Immediately shouted excitedly.

Although it is said that Zhu Daohua is now the emperor.

But "old qualifications" like Zeng Ada, who have been shouting King Ming for so long, began to shout long live King Ming again when he was excited.

"Hurry up, follow the coastline, from the map, Vladivostok is a bay!"

Both commanders shouted.

If there really exists an ice-free port in the Outer Northeast, then by the beginning of spring next year, Daming will definitely be able to transport tens of thousands of immigrants to settle here by virtue of the advantage of shipping!

Now, as an advance team, what they have to do is to build ports and fortresses to ensure the safety of the subsequent landing reclamation teams.

"It's here! It's here! ”

Ye Tenghui took a deep breath.

The front of the telescope.

A fine harbor appeared in front of you.

Judging from the shape and hydrological characteristics of the harbor, this is a natural deep-water port, and it is idle to dock large ships of ten thousand stones.

"Warships on alert! Hot Air Balloon Lift-off!! ”

With Ye Tenghui's order.

A hot air balloon rises from the warship.

"Report! No people were found! ”

Zeng Ada and Ye Tenghui looked at each other.

Zeng Eda took a deep breath, "Send someone up to take a look first, this place is close to Ningguta, and it is the seat of the Qing Tartar Jilin general!" ”

Ye Tenghui also nodded: "Be careful!" ”

Dozens of ships docked far away on the sea, and a team of Ming troops carefully docked in small boats.

Zhang Baozai was the commander of this advance team.

As soon as he docked the boat, he jumped out of the boat with a military power, and immediately fell into knee-deep snow.

"Sleigh change! Hurry up, hurry up! ”

Zhang Baozai said loudly.

"Investigate a radius of ten miles, and if there is any abnormality, immediately sound the signal flare!"

"Yes!"

More than 30 members of the advance team changed into sleds one after another, and then stood up on the snow.

In order to use the winter operations in the Outer Northeast, this mounted infantry battalion can only give up its horses now - after all, fighting on horseback in the winter of the Northeast is playing with its life.

Therefore, the non-commissioned officers of this advance team have undergone special training in the use of snow operations.

The steel helmet on his head is wrapped in a white woolen snow hat.

He was also wrapped in a white cotton suit, and a white blanket was draped over it.

One by one, they are wrapped like polar bears.

To avoid snow blindness, the advance team was also equipped with goggles.

Able to prepare these equipment for an army of thousands of people in a short time.

It is enough to show the strong industrial strength of Daming.

Soon.

After a short period of adaptation, more than 30 members of the advance team carried muskets and grenades on their backs and rowed in all directions.

An hour later.

Members of the advance teams returned.

Zeng Ada, who was on the boat, breathed a sigh of relief.

"It seems that this Manchurian region is indeed vast and sparsely populated, and the number of people is so small!"

Ye Tenghui smiled when he heard this: "This is also due to the Qing Tatar's policy of prohibiting Han people from going to Manchuria, in addition, the Qing Tartars have often sent troops to Manchuria for more than a hundred years to catch local natives to serve as Sauron soldiers, and in the long run, the population of this Manchurian region will naturally be less, and it will become a no-man's land." ”

Historically, the Russians have coveted the Northeast region.

They also succeeded in snatching the Outer Northeast from the Qing Dynasty.

But fortunately, there are still many Chinese.

After the Qing Dynasty's control over society weakened at the end of the Qing Dynasty, a large number of immigrants from Shandong and Hebei poured into the Northeast.

Under the demographic advantage.

The inner northeast has finally become the territory of the Han family like the Han provinces.

The proportion of Han population in the three eastern provinces is almost higher than that of some provinces in the Central Plains.

In this era, occupation, multiplication of populations, exclusion of alien races.

It is to open up a living space for future generations.

The merit is in the contemporary, and the benefit is in the future.

"In this case, then the army will land first, and after the proposed military fort is established, let the soldiers and civilians land, and the port and fort should be built as soon as possible, as long as there is a port protected by the fort, even if the Jilin general of the Qing Dynasty pulls all the three or four thousand eight banners under his command, it is useless!"

Zeng Adaa said.

Soon, under the command of two commanders of the Navy and Army.

Twelve hundred Ming troops landed, vigilantly watching around.

Under their protection.

More than 2,000 soldiers and civilians began to climb Vladivostok.

Cutting down trees.

After lighting a fire and burning the surrounding snow and frozen hard ground, the work began in full swing.

There are sufficient abundant forest resources.

There is no shortage of building materials in the port or the fortress.

The progress of construction will be fast.

Zeng Adaa and Ye Tenghui also went ashore, and the forts built with rammed earth logs were covered with black soil.

Zeng Ah Da picked up a handful of black soil.

There was surprise and joy in his eyes.

"What a fat soil!!"

"If the temperature is right in spring and summer, what a bitter cold place for exiled prisoners is here! It's clearly Kanwai Jiangnan! ”

Ye Tenghui also rubbed the black soil and said.

"What a place, what a place!"

Zeng Ah Da dug down with a hoe and dug straight for a meter or two.

The black soil has not bottomed out either.

The soil was still swarthy, as if covered with a layer of black oil.

Black shiny.

Zeng Ada's waist straightened.

"The Manchu Tartar who pounced on your mother, such a good place is deserted, and the heavens are ruined! Tyrannical creatures! ”

Zeng Ada's nose was sour as he spoke.

When my mother went to the South Seas.

The whole clan went to more than 30 people, and few survived in the end.

Go to the South Seas.

That's a desperate fight.

(End of chapter)