Crown Prince of the Empire, I quit!

After half a month, the first two fleets that took the new shipping route returned to the east coast of Yan Dynasty.

Here is a temporary port built by Qin Ming.

When the fleet landed, there were still hundreds of soldiers and laborers arranged by the Wu family at the port, sweating profusely as they carried thick wooden stakes.

Due to geographical reasons, the land near the sea is soft.

They could only drive wooden stakes deep into the ground to facilitate the construction of outposts on them and to mark out areas for ships to drop anchor and dock.

"Thank you all for your hard work. I've prepared some wine for you to welcome you."

Qin Ming spoke with a smile and led everyone to a village nearby.

The army cooks have prepared many delicious dishes to reward the troops on the ship.

Everyone clinked glasses and drank for three rounds.

Qin Ming also asked them about what happened along the way.

"What do you think of these new routes?"

When these were mentioned, several captains shook their heads and said:

"Your Majesty, the journey is not peaceful."

"There are a lot of pirates. Although they don't pose a threat to us, our speed is affected by them."

"These pirates are very shrewd. If our large force were to sail on the sea on a normal day, they would never dare to come over."

"But if a huge amount of cargo is loaded and transported with a small escort, the pirates will have evil intentions."

"How about arranging some escorts for us? They don't need to be too many, three or four ships and a thousand people will be enough."

While complaining, they took the opportunity to make demands to Qin Ming.

The speed of the fleet is still very important.

If they continue to be harassed like this, it will easily affect their transportation rhythm.

Especially when the cargo includes some fresh fruits or something like that.

"No! You all know His Majesty's current situation. We have a thousand guards for each team. When we expand to more than a dozen teams for trade, we will have to deploy 10,000 to 20,000 troops at once."

Chang Baishan waved his hand quickly when he heard their request.

He is Qin Ming's personal bodyguard.

Having been exposed to the situation on a daily basis, he knew that the situation Qin Ming was facing was extremely complicated.

It is not just about garrisoning troops on both sides of the Yan Dynasty.

They also had to gather troops and head to the northern border to prevent the Yan royal family from launching a surprise attack on them.

The troops in these two directions alone were enough to keep Qin Ming busy.

They don't have a huge population like the Yan Dynasty.

There are no more troops to help protect the caravan.

"That... might delay things a bit."

Several captains were a little hesitant, but they did not dare to put pressure on Qin Ming.

The situation was a bit awkward for a moment.

In the end, it was Qin Ming who took the initiative to break the silence.

"It's possible, but we're not the ones who are doing it."

"You mean... these local families in Yan Dynasty?"

Several captains quickly guessed what Qin Ming meant.

Qin Ming did not hide it and said seriously:

"Everyone, the imperial court cannot arrange too many people to protect you. We can only provide some weapons and equipment. If you need more people, please draw them from the Wu family and their subordinate families."

The port that Qin Ming is building now is not just his own.

The Wu family also contributed to this.

It is obvious that the other party also hopes to get a share of the profits after helping Qin Ming build it.

In that case, Qin Ming handed over the escort mission to them.

Both parties can be said to have participated.

Just give a little more in profit distribution.

"That's fine, as long as someone can lend a hand."

"By then, we will have more troops. Each fleet will have an escort team. I estimate the number of escorts could reach tens of thousands. We will chase after those pirates!"

Everyone was ready to go and was already a little excited.

"Go find Wu Tianxing to borrow some people, and then ask them if they are willing to let Daqian build a train track within the Wu family's territory. If they are willing, teach them the track technology."

Seeing that the matter had been discussed, Qin Ming looked at Chang Baishan.

Chang Baishan nodded, took the letter written by Qin Ming and went to the Wu family.

The reason why they were asked to arrange a train was mainly because Qin Ming’s means of transportation were too poor now.

In Daqian, they have well-connected railways, so they can go anywhere.

But the Yan Dynasty was completely different.

Not only is there no railway here, but the key point is that the rainfall range here is much wider than Qin Ming's Daqian.

This resulted in Qin Ming being delayed for a long time when doing things just because of traffic problems.

If the railway can be built, it will be possible to transport goods from the port to the Wu family's territory in the future, which will make it easier for Qin Ming to dispatch soldiers.

Of course, although the railway was completed, he did not use the steam locomotive technology.

All train operations are still decided by Daqian.

It would be nice if the Wu family could just have some soup.

The negotiations between the two sides lasted three days.

Wu Tianxing was friendly with Chang Baishan at the beginning.

But when interests are involved later, both sides often argue until they are red in the face.

In desperation, Wu Wenzhou, the head of the family, once again came to Qin Ming.

He coveted the railroad tracks.

Seeing that Qin Ming was willing to make this move, he had to get it.

The dispute between the two sides is only about the ownership of the locomotive and whether the technology should be open.

Wu Wenzhou, this shameless old man, is so greedy that even Qin Ming can't stand it.

As soon as they arrived, they made a huge demand, wanting Qin Ming to build a factory locally, provide them with technology, and help them train a group of craftsmen.

Qin Ming was amused when he saw the other party scratching him several times.

No matter how shameless you are, this is not the way to ask for it.

So the two sides began to argue, and seeing this, Wu Wenzhou directly lived in the military camp.

It is hard to imagine that Wu Wenzhou, who is in charge of a huge family and commands countless nobles, is a person who will fight for every inch.

He pestered Qin Ming every day and discussed it for three consecutive days.

Only then did they finally get the previous generation of steam locomotive technology.

The internal combustion engine was definitely not his thing, but Wu Wenzhou was still very excited after getting the promise of a steam locomotive.

As the head of the Wu family, he had been licking the face and trying hard for three days, and it was considered to be effective.

As a price, the Wu family needs to bear all the track construction required for the port.

From this perspective, Qin Ming did not contribute any manpower or material resources, and just provided an obsolete technology, so it was not a loss.

Just as Qin Ming breathed a sigh of relief and was about to send him away.

Wu Tianxing suddenly came over with a grim expression on his face.

"Father, Your Majesty, please stop our construction work for now. Something has happened!"

"what's up?"

It was the first time that Wu Wenzhou saw his son so panicked.

So he quickly asked.

Wu Tianxing took a deep breath, suppressed the fear on his face, and said in a trembling voice:

"Yun Yuanhai, the head of the Yun family... is dead!"