The flotilla rested behind the island, and they were greeted by a pack of rampaging beasts.

The ship's crew was caught off guard and engaged in a fierce battle with the beasts, eventually driving the beasts away, but also at a certain cost.

Several crew members were killed in the beast attack.

The rest of the crew searched the island and found a seemingly abandoned temple that actually kept ancient charts and voyage records, recording the experiences and records of countless explorers in the past.

In the record, an experienced veteran sailor discovered that this ancient nautical chart depicts a new shipping route to the western continent.

Finally, their efforts paid off.

The fleet meticulously marked the route and important maritime signs, bringing back the temple's precious collection of books and artifacts.

brought back a surprise and hope for Zhu Yuanzhang.

After learning about the hard work and achievements of the fleet, Zhu Yuanzhang personally met with the members of the fleet and gave them a commendation.

More importantly, Zhu Yuanzhang regarded the opening of this new waterway as a major national strategy and decided to invest a lot of resources and forces to support and promote it.

At this time, Yuwa, who went to explore the new route of Treasure Island, also returned.

Zhu Yuanzhang was overjoyed.

This day is early.

Zhu Yuanzhang told the courtiers the news of the opening of a new route, and the courtiers were boiling.

They had already anticipated that the new route would bring great benefits to Daming, and countless businessmen had poured into the new route to seize this opportunity. Whoever can master this new route will have an absolute commercial advantage.

However, the courtiers also realized that mastering the new route was not an easy task.

It is necessary to have a strong enough fleet and experienced sailors to ensure the smooth opening of the route.

Amid the discussion, the ministers agreed that Tang He was the best person to explore the new route.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang also had confidence in Tang He's seafaring ability, he needed more escort fleets to protect the safety of the new route.

thereupon

At the suggestion of his courtiers, Zhu Yuanzhang decided to send a large fleet of ships, led by Tang He, on an expedition to open up new routes.

Tang He gladly accepted this new task.

All the ministers expressed their blessings and support to Tang He.

Preparations for the voyage began, and the imperial court issued a large amount of money and supplies so that Tang He could assemble a large and powerful fleet.

After months of preparation, the fleet finally consisted of dozens of large seagoing vessels and hundreds of small auxiliary vessels.

Each ship was equipped with cannons and sergeants to deal with the dangers that might be encountered.

On the day the fleet departed, the streets of Yingtianfu were filled with people.

The common people came to see Tang He off, and they had reverence and longing in their hearts, hoping that Tang He could open up a route to prosperity for the Ming Dynasty.

The seafaring fleet sailed out of the harbor and sailed out into the sea.

Zhu Yuanzhang personally climbed the high platform and watched the fleet disappear into the distance.

this day.

After Zhu Yuanzhang finished the affairs in the court, he hurried to the secret room of the Confucius Temple Mansion.

Lin Che made a model today and was going to give Zhu Fan a lecture on the principle of the globe.

Zhu Yuanzhang was very interested in this because he had always been interested in geography.

He wanted to learn more about geography through the globe.

Lin Che first showed Zhu Fan a model of a small globe.

This model consists of a wooden sphere and a bracket that can be rotated.

Lin Che explained, "A globe is a small model used to show the surface of the earth. ”

"Its shape is a sphere, which represents the shape of the earth, and the lines on the globe are used to represent the latitude and longitude on the earth."

"Longitude is the line that connects from the Earth's north pole to the south pole, while latitude is the line that connects up or down from the equator."

"Congratulations on latitude and longitude can help people determine the specific location of a place."

Zhu Fan's eyes widened and he asked curiously, "How do you determine the position of the longitude and latitude lines on the globe?" ”

Lin Che smiled and said: "The ancients are really smart, the longitude is determined based on the sun, but when the sun appears on the horizon, we can determine the longitude of the place." ”

"Latitude, on the other hand, is determined by measuring the height of the sun in different parts of the Earth."

"For example, the highest altitude of the Sun is at the equator, and the lowest near the North Pole or the South Pole."

Zhu Fan nodded, he felt that the principle of the globe was not complicated, but it was very useful, and he definitely wanted to get a globe in the palace himself.

In order to keep abreast of the location and geographical information of various places.

Lin Che saw Zhu Zhang's interest and continued to show him the changes in the earth's surface.

He turned the globe and let Zhu Fan see the changes in the earth's surface.

Lin Che also introduced the methods of obtaining and displaying geographic information, such as using different colored lines to represent different countries and justifications, and using icons to mark important cities and landmarks.

Zhu Zhang's eyes widened, observing, as if drunk, observing every corner of the earth.

Lin Che then told Zhu Fan that there are five continents on the earth, namely Asia, Europe, Africa, America and Oceania.

Zhu Fan asked curiously: "What are the special geographical features between these continents?" ”

Lin Che pointed to the globe and explained in detail.

Then, Lin Che told Zhu Fan that there are four oceans on the earth, namely the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean and the Arctic Ocean.

The Pacific Ocean is the largest ocean, and it spans the entire globe in general, with the Americas to the east and Asia to the west.

Oceania is bordered by Europe to the east and the Americas and Africa to the west, connecting all the countries of the world.

The Indian Ocean is located between Asia and Africa, while the Arctic Ocean is covered with a thick layer of Arctic ice.

Zhu Fan listened with relish, and he asked Lin Che what else was wonderful on the earth.

Then.

Lin Che took out a self-made simple world map, pointed to different locations with his fingers, and wanted Zhu Fan to tell about the characteristics and culture of each country.

Lin Che saw Zhu Zhang's interest and curiosity, and he decided to show this kid more knowledge about geography.

He took out a small board, painted the symbols and flags of various countries, and then put it on the globe and pointed it to Zhu Zhang.

While explaining the location and characteristics of the country, Lin Che asked Zhu Fan to guess the names of each country.

It was a very moving lecture.

So much so that Zhu Yuanzhang returned to the palace and paid more attention to the geography and culture of the country, and actively promoted the geographical research and overseas exploration of officials.

And appointed the crown prince Zhu Biao as the leader to grasp this work.

Many days passed in a flash.

Early that morning, the military headquarters presented an urgent letter of 800 miles.

Zhu Yuanzhang ordered someone to open the letter, and the content on it was that there was turmoil on the northern border, and the Northern Yuan Dynasty burned, killed and looted the people of the Ming Dynasty.

The courtiers admonished Zhu Yuanzhang one after another, demanding that troops be sent to the northern border immediately to quell the unrest.

At this time, Minister Liu Sanwu said: "Your Majesty, this is the time to dare to take over to safeguard national security. ”

"If we don't take action, the Northern Yuan will wantonly encroach on the lives and property of our Ming people."

"We cannot sit idly by and must immediately organize an army to suppress them."

(End of chapter)