Chapter 1232: Business Is Business

Hearing the words "forty guns," Shi Manqiang was badly startled and couldn't help blurting out, "If a ship like that sailed in, our harbor here simply couldn't hold it off."

Zhao Jin smiled and said, "True, we couldn't hold it off, but a ship like that would also take a beating in our harbor. Those foreign ships only got the better of us because they exploited a gap — they never imagined our cannons weren't just dead weight fixed on the battery. Still, our own house troops lacked experience. If enemy ships come again, we won't make that kind of mistake. The foreign men-of-war may carry a lot of guns, but shore batteries have an overwhelming advantage over shipboard guns. You don't need to worry."

In truth, once the battery guns opened fire they had the upper hand; the initial disarray had a lot to do with being caught off guard and lacking experience. All of the Zhao Battalion's gunnery techniques came from Zhao Jin's own instruction and theory, and until real combat experience had been built up, those techniques were bound to seem rigid.

After saying this, Zhao Jin carefully examined the guns on the second deck. He found their external finish far cruder than the Zhao Battalion's own cannons — the casting itself lacked refinement, and then sea use, wind, and rain had taken their toll. As Zhao Jin ran his hand over the rough barrel, his mind wandered a little: if this hadn't been his own harbor, without that battery and those well-drilled house troops, how would things have ended?

Most likely a few foreign ships would have shelled and destroyed the defenses, then landed to plunder. But it would also depend on the local defenses. As long as an official port or a sea lord's private harbor reacted in time, they'd probably have sent out dozens or even a hundred fire ships long ago, then swarmed the vessels and boarded them — they wouldn't have taken much of a loss either. Quite possibly those few foreign ships would have been wiped out entirely. At that thought, Zhao Jin gave a self-mocking laugh: so Haizhou Harbor's defenses were actually worse than other places'.

"Have you seen the biggest gun-ship? What does it look like?" Zhao Jin asked again.

"Answering Master Jin, it's twice the size of this ship we're on now, or even larger, carrying over a hundred guns, and the lower deck is all heavy cannon — there'd even be twenty-four-pounder great guns," Louis described.

Stoic and wooden as Shi Manqiang was, hearing those numbers still made his mouth fall open. He had already witnessed the power of an eighteen-pounder great gun — strength enough to shatter mountains and split stone. With cannons like that, Shi Manqiang couldn't imagine any city wall that could withstand a Zhao Battalion assault. And now he was actually hearing that twenty-four-pounders existed, and that a single ship could carry over a hundred guns. Shi Manqiang didn't even dare picture what that would look like.

"But gun-ships like that all operate in coastal waters; they rarely make long-distance expeditions," Louis added.

"We've still got a long way to go!" Zhao Jin sighed, though it was unclear exactly what he was lamenting.

After that remark, Zhao Jin, surrounded by his escort, continued downward. The compartment below was taking on water. Shi Manqiang said, "This one wasn't our doing. Interrogating the prisoners, we learned the ship's had this problem for a long time. When the water gets too high, they pump it out with a water pump. We've already had the shipwrights from the yard look at it; they say this leak can be repaired."

Shi Manqiang regarded this leaking problem with great contempt — a ship that actually leaked, how could anyone feel safe with a contraption like that? But at that moment, Louis spoke up to explain: "A ship leaking isn't really a big problem. Some ships leak the whole way from the Americas to Asia, pumping out water the entire voyage, and they still make it through."

Everyone had just seen that water pump — it was a lever mechanism, worked by two men rising and falling at either end to suck water in and pump it out. After hearing Louis's explanation, Shi Manqiang just shook his head, thinking it was far too much trouble. But Zhao Jin remained very silent at that moment.

After inspecting the entire ship inside and out, they all returned to the deck. The compartments below had a foul smell, and with quicklime scattered around for disinfection, it was even more unpleasant. Coming out now, everyone felt their chests open with relief. Zhao Jin looked at the other battered, half-wrecked galleon and asked, "Louis, could we build a ship like this by copying it?"

Louis caught on immediately and answered, "We can. This subordinate has watched the shipyard masters build boats. They always make a scaled-down model first, then design the full-sized ship from that. With this galleon as a model, and with enough materials and craftsmen, we can absolutely build identical ships — maybe even better ones, and larger."

A smile appeared on Zhao Jin's face, but his gaze never left the foreign ship to the side, as though he were lost in reverie over the "better and larger" that Louis had spoken of. Only after a long moment did Zhao Jin speak: "Louis, starting today you'll stay here. From now on, your job is to build ships like this and to train sailors and crew like these. Whatever you lack, put in a request. As long as it's within what Xuzhou can provide, we'll satisfy it."

Louis hastily assented. Zhao Jin's personal guards were secretly astonished — Master Jin, with his steady and cool temperament, rarely made declarations like this, and the few times he had seemed always connected to this Louis. Zhao Jin continued, "Whatever you don't understand, get it from interrogating the prisoners, or spend heavily to hire outside experts. The same goes for shipbuilding. I want to see Xuzhou's own seamen, its own sailors, its own gun-ships. If you can build them and train them for me, then this force will be placed under your command. Your power and wealth will all be tied to this."

Hearing these words from Zhao Jin, Louis took several deep breaths, yet still couldn't suppress his agitation. Shipbuilding, a navy, and even maritime trade — all of it to be placed under his control. How much power was that, how much wealth? Louis felt as if the sea before him was no longer blue, but gold and silver, filled entirely with gold, silver, and treasure, his for the taking if he simply reached out.

Having spent several years in Xuzhou, Louis of course knew how everyone there regarded the sea. Those Xuzhou officers and non-commissioned officers always looked down on fighting capability at sea, thinking it was nothing more than exploiting the advantage of maritime terrain. And though everyone knew the sea merchants were very wealthy, they still considered it something not quite proper. But Louis was different. From Europe to the Americas, and from the Americas to Asia, a part of Louis's life had always been spent at sea. He knew exactly what the ocean truly meant, whether militarily or economically.

Louis understood more and more clearly just what kind of organization Xuzhou was. This organization had done practically nothing at sea. And yet this organization controlled a port, controlled a commercial city, and moreover possessed ample manufacturing capacity and capable personnel. If all of this were placed under his management, if he built it up from nothing — what would that represent?

It represented immense glory, immense wealth — the fulfillment of everything and anything he had pursued his entire life. Louis's thoughts even raced far ahead. Sailors and seamen could be recruited from the Cai family and the remnants of that newly joined pirate band. Perhaps the impoverished fishermen along this coast would also be a good source. As for the instructors to train them and the craftsmen needed to build the galleons, if the prisoners' knowledge wasn't enough, then they'd go to Macao, to the Southern Seas, to recruit and kidnap. Xuzhou had done exactly that before anyway.

Stunned by this appointment, Louis was completely beside himself. As he stepped down from the gangplank, if a house soldier beside him hadn't yanked him back, he probably would have tumbled straight off.

"Big Brother, do we really have to use foreign ships? I think those Guangdong ships and Fujian ships in the harbor are perfectly fine," Shi Manqiang said, paying no mind to Louis's dazed state as he followed behind Zhao Jin and asked.

"Foreign ships cross the ocean and sail ten thousand li. Guangdong ships and Fujian ships have never sailed that far."

"Big Brother, I've heard those crewmen and sailors say that back when the eunuch Zheng He went to sea, he used ships like these to sail thousands and tens of thousands of li."

"But that hasn't happened in all these years since. And the most fundamental thing is that it's not convenient to mount cannons on our ships — the guns can only be placed on the deck, and that limitation is simply too great." Zhao Jin's reply silenced Shi Manqiang's argument. The Zhao Battalion was, in the final analysis, still a military garrison system; martial matters came first.

Zhao Jin and the group reached the dock. Zhao Jin looked over the vessels in the harbor — all the ships damaged in the artillery battle were under repair. Shipwrights and ship carpenters had gone aboard with their tools and materials; every ship bustled with activity. After watching for a while, Zhao Jin spoke: "Shitou, from now on, all expenses the Zheng family fleet incurs in our harbor will be increased by ten percent — whether it's docking, lodging, or purchasing goods. If they come asking, that's your answer. If there's another inexplicable pirate raid like this, then add another ten percent. We don't lack the profit from trading with their Zheng family."

The words seemed to come out of nowhere, but Shi Manqiang understood at once. Although every sign in this pirate attack pointed to Zhong Bin, when you traced it to the root, the truly suspicious party was still the Zheng family. No one else had the motive. If it were merely a conflict of interest, that Zhong Bin fleet would have had better opportunities. And the timing of these foreign ships was simply too coincidental, their tactics far too precisely tailored to the harbor's defenses. Only, there was no proof for any of it. The Zheng family's people were still stationed near the harbor; business was still running as usual. No one could find fault with them.

Business had to go on, but the Zhao Battalion couldn't let people think they were completely in the dark either. This response was a warning. Yet the Zhao Battalion was also helpless — against the Zheng family, this was all they could do. Without naval strength, the threat could only point toward mutual destruction.

That said, Haizhou Harbor could supply the salt that Fujian desperately lacked. In fact, the Huai salt produced here in Haizhou was a high-quality salt product, a best-selling commodity for many regions — to say nothing of the ironware, cotton cloth, and liquor that Xuzhou produced, as well as the various southern goods channeled through Qingjiangpu. These were either urgently needed by the sea merchants or goods of exorbitant profit, and all of them were firmly held in Xuzhou's grip.

With the Zhao Battalion's strength in place, the leading maritime fleets might be able to destroy this Haizhou Harbor, but they had no way to seize it. Under heaven, no power could take this patch of territory from the hands of the Xuzhou troops. And since they couldn't take it, the sea lords and fleet leaders, whose purpose was doing business and making money, naturally wouldn't make enemies of their own source of wealth. No one would tear face and go to extremes. Business was still business.

Thanks to "Yuan Heng Li Zhen, zzb, Duan Yichen, Huang Qi—Wang Meng, Jiangshan Qinglong, Feng Zhong Long Wang, Admiral Shen Nan," both new and old friends, for your tips. Thank you all for your subscriptions and monthly tickets. Thank you for your support.