Chapter 1082: The Perils of the Sea

Recruiting refugees from Liaodong went very smoothly. The colder the weather and the closer it got to the New Year, the harsher life became for those deserters and common folk who had fled Liaodong. Some banded together to become mounted bandits, while others endured hardship within and outside the cities. No matter which group they were in, when they heard former acquaintances and fellow villagers speak of their own experiences, they were all moved. Even a life of plunder was no match for settling down in peace, and the villagers made it clear: Xuzhou treated people fairly, and there was never any business of looking down on others.

Transporting the Liaodong people out was also very simple. First, the refugees, many of whom were former deserters, already had some degree of organization. Moreover, Zhao's Camp controlled their provisions and supplies. They were the only ones providing them with food and clothing, so there was no other choice but to follow them south. Once they reached Dongchang Prefecture, even if they wanted to run, they couldn't, and besides, no one dared to run. In this weather, fleeing meant only one outcome: freezing or starving to death.

Groups of five hundred or a thousand departed Dengzhou Prefecture one after another. The provisions and supplies needed for the journey, even the carts and horses to transport them, were all in massive quantities. Furthermore, the coastal area of Dengzhou's prefectural city was at the extreme northeastern tip of Shandong. Bringing supplies from Xuzhou or Jining was wasteful and extremely inconvenient. In truth, the easiest and most convenient method was by ship. The Yu family's sand ships were broad and had a large carrying capacity, making them ideal for transporting refugees. But at this time, the coast was frozen solid, making it impossible to enter the ports. This difficulty was what troubled the Trade Office and the Agricultural Reclamation Office the most.

No one expected this problem to be resolved so easily. As long as they brought gold and silver, they could buy sufficient supplies right there in Dengzhou Prefecture, and the prices were not high. What was even more convenient was that everything was available there, and the quantity of every kind of supply was enormous, so there was no need to worry about shortages at all.

In the past, a large portion of the military supplies the court provided to Liaodong was shipped north by sea from Dengzhou Prefecture in Shandong. Now, in order to wage war in Liaodong, the court had stockpiled a massive amount of supplies in Dengzhou. Everyone knew the government troops wouldn't be able to fight their way over anytime soon, and the local troops' consumption was limited. These supplies naturally became the treasure trove for civil and military officials of all ranks in Dengzhou and Laizhou.

But with so many supplies, and since they weren't commercial goods that could be sold for huge profits, converting them into cash was very difficult. Everyone took a share here and there, and while it looked like they had made a fortune, it was all just numbers on the books with no way to turn it into real gold and silver. When Xuzhou's Zhao's Camp arrived and started scattering gleaming silver, everyone was overjoyed. Along with this, their hatred and contempt for the Lou family grew even deeper. They thought, these Xuzhou people are fiends, but they're also gods of wealth. You offended the fiends and delayed everyone's chance to get rich—isn't that a crime worthy of a thousand deaths?

The provisions, supplies, and even carts and horses meant for the counterattack on Liaodong were thus left to depreciate and rot in the winter, becoming the resources consumed by Zhao's Camp's recruitment of refugees. It was both tragic and laughable. So much grain and supplies intended for Liaodong, yet not a single bit was used on the refugees and common people of Liaodong. These poor souls only got to eat and use these things because of Zhao's Camp, far away in Xuzhou.

If they had previously been cowed into submission by Zhao's Camp's might and ferocity, forced to bow their heads, then now, from the Shandong Grand Coordinator, to the two prefectures of Dengzhou and Laizhou, down through all levels of civil and military officials to the clerks, runners, and soldiers, everyone's bowing and yielding was for silver and profit. If they could prosper, then bowing their heads was acceptable. There were no people in the world more amiable and lovable than those from Xuzhou.

Silver was spent in transaction after transaction, and batch after batch of supplies followed the refugees west, then turned south at Dongchang Prefecture. At first, everyone acted out of necessity; later, they did so willingly. The local populace watched coldly from the sidelines, but eventually, everyone was shaken. Even though they had already been shaken many times by Zhao's Camp by the end of this second year of Tianqi, they still wondered: just how much power did Zhao's Camp possess? How much silver, money, and goods did they have? It was as if they were a mountain of gold—no, even a mountain of gold couldn't withstand such spending. Yet Zhao's Camp kept scattering silver like this without end. What kind of strength did they truly have?

Amidst these shocked gazes and complicated feelings, Zhao's Camp's manors in Yanzhou Prefecture gradually filled up. Everyone in the Agricultural Reclamation Office was incredibly busy. They had to break apart the newly stabilized manor structures, integrate the Liaodong people into them, and then establish even more manors, because they had already purchased more farmland during the autumn and winter.

Li Ziyou, the major shareholder of the Chengbei Firm in Qingjiangpu, did not stay in Qingjiangpu to watch any martial arts tournament. Instead, he brought his family and servants to Yanzhou Prefecture in Shandong. He brought a large amount of silver with him. Because the Grand Canal was frozen, supplies simply couldn't be transported over. Li Ziyou's stance was simple: he was willing to jointly invest with Zhao's Camp to open manors. He didn't seek a majority share. He was also willing to jointly invest with Yunshan Trading to open a commercial firm and warehouse specifically for the Liaodong people, and he only asked for a ten percent profit.

A merchant would never scatter silver for nothing. However, Li Ziyou's gesture essentially meant he was willing to help without making a profit. His capital, if kept in Qingjiangpu, would yield huge profits; there was no need to seek such meager gains here. But Zhao's Camp was also not short of silver. The manors could not tolerate outside interference, though the commercial firm was negotiable. At the same time, Zhao Jin refused the lavish New Year's gifts Li Ziyou sent.

Among the Liaodong refugees recruited in Dengzhou Prefecture, what pleasantly surprised Zhao's Camp was not the former deserters, but the craftsmen who knew skilled trades. Although their numbers were not large, the proportion of artisans and craftsmen was far, far higher than among ordinary refugees.

The reason was simple. When the Jianzhou Jurchens swept through Liaodong and the chaos of war erupted, everyone wanted to flee. But truly ordinary commoners and average families had nowhere to escape to. Only those with some family assets and savings could flee. Artisans and craftsmen always lived slightly better than ordinary farming households. Moreover, Liaodong was primarily a military garrison region, and these craftsmen mainly served the garrisons, so they had good relations with the government troops and could escape when disaster struck.

Anyone with a skill, no matter what kind of skill or experience, was immediately selected and sent to Xuzhou. The ironworks and various workshops there urgently needed such manpower. They would not be treated the same as ordinary Liaodong refugees. In addition, there was something they hadn't anticipated: some sailors from the government troops' warships actually wanted to leave with the main group.

The Liaodong garrison had a long coastline, and at several ports in Liaoxi and Liaodong, there were court fleets and naval forces stationed. When the Jianzhou Jurchens attacked, the land forces suffered a complete rout, but the sea forces were not affected. They could all escape in time and even return repeatedly to provide rescue and relief. However, as the Jianzhou Jurchens tightened their control over Liaodong, the Ming fleets and naval forces in Liaodong and Shandong were in increasing danger.

Sometimes, when they approached the shores of Liaodong, they would be raided by Jurchen cavalry from the shore, resulting in death and destroyed ships. Even if they escaped by luck, they still suffered casualties. Moreover, although these sea vessels and fleets were key to the resistance and rescue efforts in Liaodong, the Ming civil and military officials at all levels showed not a shred of preferential treatment to the sailors. They continued to exploit and make harsh demands, even blindly ordering them to their deaths. For example, they would be told that a certain place had a righteous uprising and needed grain and people transported for relief, but when they actually got there, they either found nothing or walked into a Jurchen trap. Yet if they refused to go, military law would be immediately enforced.

There were also those who colluded internally and externally to resell military supplies or engage in foreign trade, but those were only a few. Most of the sea vessels were in disrepair from years of neglect and couldn't withstand the wind and waves at sea—that was yet another layer of risk, making people truly unwilling to continue. However, most sailors had no choice. If they quit, the only path was to become refugees. They had all seen and heard how miserable the refugees were. They wanted to desert but had nowhere to go. If they tried to escape on these broken ships, they might capsize at sea. But if they abandoned the ships and came ashore, what could they do?

When Xuzhou recruited refugees here, saying they could provide a place to settle down and a life with food and warmth, and with their own fellow villagers speaking from personal experience, many boatmen and sailors were tempted. They took off their uniforms and came ashore, begging to be taken in. At first, they didn't dare reveal their status as deserters. Later, when they discovered that Xuzhou's recruitment teams didn't discriminate and didn't care whether you were a law-abiding citizen or a deserter, they finally revealed their identities.

What these refugee sailors didn't expect was that the moment they revealed their identities, they immediately received attention and preferential treatment, and were even asked to recruit more people. This situation truly baffled them. They thought, sailing and seafaring is a life-risking trade that only people with no other options would do. How did it suddenly become such a hot commodity?

"Big Brother, we aren't short on ships now; we're short on people. Making a fortune at sea is too easy. One shipload of goods out means a shipload of silver back. Every family treats skilled, experienced sea dogs like precious treasures. New hands are worthless and useless even if you take them. These men from Liaodong are exactly what we urgently need!" After learning this news, Yu Zhiyuan, who had rushed to Xuzhou, was beside himself with joy.

Zhao Jin needed fleets to go to Liaodong to gather refugees. Liaodong was now enemy territory, and the coastline was surely fraught with lethal danger. The ships and sailors sent there had to be good ships and strong hands. But this would affect the Yu family's shipping business. It must be known that the Yu family had already allocated quite a few ships for Zhao's Camp's gunpowder and other trade operations. This mission to gather refugees along the Liaodong coast would occupy even more ships and carried greater risk. Yu Zhiyuan wasn't unwilling to part with them, but finding a solution that satisfied both sides would be even better.

"Please assign these sailors to me, Big Brother. I will provide them with ships and arrange managers for them. When the time is right for sailing next year, we can send ships to Liaodong to gather refugees," Yu Zhiyuan said to Zhao Jin without any formality, directly putting forward his idea.

"I also need to select brave men willing to return to Liaodong to recruit their fellow villagers. They can board the ships and go over when the time comes." Zhao Jin nodded, agreeing to Yu Zhiyuan's request, and also stated his own plan.

As for how to recruit brave men who dared to return to Liaodong, venture deep into enemy territory, contact their fellow villagers, and lead refugees to board ships on the coast, there wasn't much difficulty. Everyone knew how dangerous Liaodong was now. They simply spread this news among the recruited Liaodong refugees. Those who dared to volunteer on their own were the right ones. Having such a generous heart for the people and such courage to face death—that was what made a brave man.

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