Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 123 Minhai (Continued)

"We need to rush forward!" Looking at the more than 20 armed ships gradually approaching, Zhou Yong turned his head to look at the fleet commander Wei Yingbin.

"We, the Breaker, might be able to make it, but can the other two ships escape?" Wei Yingbin looked at the surrounding armed ships ahead with a serious expression. "Also, judging by their posture, they don't seem to be planning a major fight. I suspect they'll charge us a toll."

"Oh my god, is Zheng Zhilong treating this sea as a highway and forcibly collecting tolls?" Zhou Yong was speechless. "Our money didn't come from the wind, so why should we pay them? ... Forget about him, let's just charge forward!"

"Although their ships are numerous, they are all small ones. If we force our way through, they may not be able to stop us! A few months ago, the Spanish couldn't get away with it at our hands. Now that they are in Ming waters, are they going to be threatened by Zheng Zhilong again?"

"This is a different time," Wei Yingbin said gravely. "Right now, our three ships are all loaded with immigrants and supplies. If we try to escape, we might not be able to escape. If a conflict breaks out, we'll undoubtedly suffer heavy losses. It's unlikely that we, the Wavebreaker, will be able to escape alone thanks to our speed advantage."

"But no one can guarantee that we won't be attacked by them after our ship stops!" Zhou Yong said anxiously.

“…” Wei Yingbin stared at the many armed ships that were getting closer and closer in front of him, struggling in his heart.

At this time, it is the southeast monsoon. If you force yourself to turn east, although the wind direction is unfavorable, you may not lose speed if you operate properly.

On the other hand, the enemy's more than 20 armed ships were approaching slowly and with difficulty against the headwind.

If we can take advantage of the wind direction and deal with these armed ships for a while, we may be able to delay until nightfall, and then we can use the cover of darkness to escape from the enemy's encirclement.

Zhou Yong was right. Who knew if Zheng's fleet would rob their people and ships after stopping them?

"Signal the Journey and Eastern Hope to turn east and avoid being blocked by the armed ships ahead!"

"Recruit the young and strong men from the cabins, distribute weapons, and be ready to respond to incoming enemy ships at any time!"

"Carry ammunition and prepare artillery counterattack!"

"..."

"Captain, the Portuguese 'Oriental Hope'... is dropping its sails!" At this moment, an observation post suddenly shouted.

"Hmm?..." Upon hearing this, Wei Yingbin immediately raised the telescope and looked towards the "Eastern Hope" in the middle position.

The Portuguese ship was seen slowly lowering its mainsail and jib, apparently in response to the request of Zheng's armed fleet, preparing to stop and accept Zheng's close inspection.

"Damn Portuguese!" Zhou Yong next to him cursed angrily.

"..." Wei Yingbin was also speechless. These Portuguese were obviously unwilling to take any risks. They were afraid of being attacked by Zheng's fleet and suffering losses, so they adopted an attitude of active cooperation.

So, faced with this situation, how should the time travelers respond?
-
Hong Jing commanded the Haicang ship to slowly approach the "Polang", and then ordered the sailors to climb up quickly using the rope ladder thrown by the other party.

After more than ten sailors boarded the ship, he stood up, put a knife behind his back, walked to the side of the ship, took a deep breath, grabbed the rope ladder, and climbed up very agilely.

"I heard from the Portuguese on that ship that you are in charge of these ships?" After standing firmly on the deck, Hong Jing glanced at the dozen or so crew members present, and then asked a tall and burly man in front of him in a mysterious and arrogant manner.

"Yes, I am responsible for these three ships." Wei Yingbin was very displeased with the tone of the Zheng family leader in front of him.

"Well, that's good!" Hong Jing said with a smile, "In that case, just pay us the money according to the rules. Once we're done, you can get on with your business!"

"What rules?"

"What rules?" Hong Jing rolled his eyes, revealing a hint of anger, which made his face even more aggressive. "Is this your first time sailing in the Min Sea? My leader issued a coastal defense decree at the end of last year. All merchant ships on the sea must pay taxes to the court. If you dare to resist, both the ship and the crew will be detained."

"Heh, heh, if we take you ashore, you'll all be imprisoned and sentenced to severe punishment for smuggling, and all your property will be confiscated!"

"We are not citizens of the Ming Dynasty."

"Hmm?" Hong Jing looked at the other person seriously. This person's face was clearly that of a citizen of the Ming Dynasty.

Moreover, although he spoke with a northern accent, he didn't sound like a foreigner. Oh, yes, these people should be foreign merchants who have drifted overseas.

However, you can't just turn around and disown the Ming Dynasty?

"Even if they are not citizens of the Ming Dynasty, they must pay taxes to the court when they pass through the Ming Dynasty waters!" Hong Jing said loudly: "Even if the Portuguese, Red Haired Barbarians and other Western foreign ships enter the Min Sea, they must pay a toll!"

So domineering!
Wei Yingbin and several other time travelers looked at each other, and everyone felt a strange feeling in their hearts.

"Then how much silver do we need to pay?"

"Look at your three ships. They're so big, they must be able to carry a lot of cargo." Hong Jing said boldly, "Each ship should pay 3,500 taels of silver! Well, for three ships, that's... that's... a little over 10,000 taels of silver."

Ten thousand taels of silver!

My god, that's a lot of money, enough to hire the Portuguese to help transport a hundred immigrants.

"We've already paid the customs tax since we left Guangzhou. Why should we pay another one here? Besides, our three ships are full of immigrants, with only a small amount of cargo. It shouldn't be possible to collect such a high tax, right?"

"I've just told you that no matter where you're from, you must pay taxes to the Fujian Coast Guard Office," Hong Jing said impatiently. "Even if you've already paid the customs tax in Guangzhou, you still need to pay us another one. As for whether your ship is carrying people or cargo, we don't need to care."

"..." Wei Yingbin's face darkened. "Ten thousand taels of silver is too much. We can't afford it!"

"If you can't pay, don't blame us for seizing the ship and arresting the people!"

As soon as he finished speaking, more than ten Zheng sailors behind him drew out other short knives from their waists and made a subtle threat.

The many sailors standing on the deck were not to be outdone and raised their... matchlock guns.

"You dare to resist paying taxes?" Hong Jing glanced at the black muzzles of the matchlock guns around him, and his scalp suddenly tightened.

Oh, these foreign merchants are so bold!
Do you dare to go against my Zheng family?
When the Portuguese see us, they have to surrender and surrender. How can you, a small foreign merchant, be so brave?
If you want to sail in the Ming Dynasty waters, no one dares to offend us, the Zheng family. Otherwise, you will not be able to go out to sea!

"Sir, we're not resisting paying that... tax." Lin Afu, upon hearing the signal, immediately came over, hunched over, holding a small cloth bag in his hand. He calmly pressed it into Hong Jing's hand, "It's just that the tax you just mentioned is too high. We simply can't afford it. Look at our three ships. They're only carrying hungry civilians in the Ming Dynasty. We don't have any valuable cargo at all."

"So, sir, please... discuss reducing the taxes we pay so that we can have something to eat. Just think about it, how much would it cost to bring so many starving people overseas, feeding them and keeping them fed? If we used all the money to pay taxes, wouldn't they be left starving? Sir, please be kind and save their lives."

"Where are you planning to take these starving people?" Hong Jing asked in a deep voice, his expression relaxing slightly.

"In reply to your question, we plan to take these starving people to the New Continent in the east, where we will open up wasteland and beg for food."

"The New Continent in the east?" Hong Jing looked at him in surprise. "Where is that? ... Why not just go to the nearby Dongfan Island (Taiwan Island)?"

"Dongfan Island has been occupied by Western barbarians..."

"Tsk!" Hong Jing curled his lips and said disapprovingly, "Would the red-haired barbarians really bother you hungry people begging for food? If our leader hadn't gone to the mainland to develop and taken all the troops and ships with him, we wouldn't have allowed these barbarians to become so powerful on the island!"

"Yes, yes, yes..." Lin Afu nodded hurriedly, "Sir, look at us... so many immigrants need to be resettled and make a living, the expenses must be very high, so..."

"Hmm..." Hong Jing felt the cloth bag that the other party stuffed into his hand. It looked like there were more than twenty foreign cakes. After thinking for a while, he said, "Since you don't have much cargo on your ship, and you're not going to Japan for trade, then let's reduce the tax a little bit."

"Well, according to the model of our Ming Dynasty Fuchuan, each ship will pay two thousand taels of silver, and the total payment for the three ships will be six thousand taels of silver!"

"... Stop haggling with me! This amount was set by our leader himself. We can't change it easily!"

"If you don't pay, don't blame us for being rude!"

(End of this chapter)