The strongest devouring system in the Three Kingdoms

After speaking, he first bowed slightly towards the master chefs with his wine cup, and then drank it all in one gulp.

"The second toast is to the officers and soldiers of the Navy. You are the backbone of our good life today. Without your fighting, there would be no group today. Cheers."

"The third toast is to the teachers and students. You have worked hard this year. You not only studied, but also did internships in various places. I believe that your efforts will be rewarded and your future is bright. Please drink this cup to the brim."

This kind of practice is commonplace in modern times, but this is the Ming Dynasty. After drinking three cups of wine, everyone here was filled with excitement, because most of them were just sailors, servants, or slaves a year ago...

But now, they are all considered the backbone of Huaxia Group, which is the vibrant Huaxia Group.

Mao Wenlong was pacing in his study at that moment. The merchant named Dong Xian said that his young master was requesting an audience, and Mao Wenlong was making plans in his mind.

Mao Wenlong is 47 years old this year, and his experiences over the past year have inevitably made him a bit arrogant. He was just a commander-in-chief before, but in just two years he has become the deputy commander-in-chief of Dongjiang Town, and the key point is that there is no commander-in-chief above him.

The victory at Zhenjiang made him famous throughout the land, and now he commands 40,000 to 50,000 soldiers and hundreds of thousands of refugees from Liaodong.

Last year, they suffered a major defeat in the forest. Fortunately, they managed to deceive the court by reporting that both sides had their own offensive and defensive positions. However, Tieshan dared not stay any longer and thus came to Pi Island.

Everyone originally thought that Pi Island was a deserted island, but after arriving, they found that someone had actually occupied it. If it weren't for the fact that the merchant surnamed Dong said he was a subordinate of the Li family, Mao Wenlong would have driven him away long ago.

As the saying goes, "How can one allow others to snore beside one's bed?" What was thought to be a deserted island that one had all to oneself has now been taken by someone else.

How could Mao Wenlong not know about the powerful Li family? He might not have known before, but he couldn't have been unaware of it since he came to Dongjiang. This place is right by the sea, and his subordinates make a living by occupying islands.

But in February, Dong Xian suddenly said he was willing to sell him 10,000 shi of grain, and Mao Wenlong was worried about the grain and salary issue.

After the imperial court officially recognized his status, he was entitled to a stipend, but Mao Wenlong, who had been stationed in Liaodong for a long time, knew that he would be lucky to receive even half of it.

These soldiers and civilians depend on them for their livelihood; without food and pay, chaos would ensue. But Korea is barren and its people are poor, and it's not like I haven't considered taking their food. The result of forcibly requisitioning grain was that the corrupt officials in Korea didn't even inform me that the Tartars were attacking.

No matter how these refugees from Liaodong made their own arrangements, more than half of them still had no land to cultivate.

The imperial court provides Dongjiang with over 200,000 taels of silver and 300,000 shi of grain annually. After paying military salaries, this is only enough to sustain tens of thousands of people. What about the rest?

Mao Wenlong almost sent men to seize the 10,000 shi of grain, but his men reported that the merchant ship had many cannons and they couldn't get close to it.

Just as they were thinking about gathering more subordinates to plunder the grain, they were told that the young master of the Li family would be coming to pay a visit tomorrow.

Although I've heard of the Li family's formidable reputation at sea, I've never actually seen them. Since that's the case, I'll take a look.

"My name is Chen Er, and I pay my respects to Marshal Mao."

Looking at Mao Wenlong, who was a little over 1.6 meters tall, Chen Er curiously examined him. He was a bit chubby, with a rather sturdy body and a round head, making him look like a sphere.

"So you're Mr. Li? What brings you here?"

Mao Wenlong could not actually be called a "commander-in-chief" yet. In fact, even a garrison commander-in-chief could not be called a commander-in-chief. According to the rules of the Ming Dynasty, only generals with official seals were qualified to be called "commanders-in-chief," but at this time no one cared about those things.

"I want to do a business deal with Marshal Mao."

Chen Er looked at this historical figure, and his heart was still somewhat stirred.

This man painstakingly established Dongjiang Town, leading a group of Liao people who were filled with bitter hatred and refused to surrender. After years of hard work and struggle, he was ultimately framed by Yuan.

"Selling grain? This general doesn't have that much money to buy your grain."

This was the highest-ranking official Chen Er had ever met in the Ming Dynasty. He wondered if all military officers in the Ming Dynasty were like this, or if Mao Wenlong was just starting out in a high position, but he still spoke very frankly.

“Marshal Mao can trade with me something. For example, people… I’ve heard that most of the people in Liaodong under Marshal Mao’s rule are destitute and lack even weapons.”

With a hiss, the two men behind Mao Wenlong angrily drew their knives halfway out and glared fiercely at Chen Er.

"Oh, how do you want to change it?" Mao Wenlong asked, gesturing behind him.

"Two taels of silver per person. Whether you want silver or grain depends on Marshal Mao's decision."

Chen Er was certain that Mao Wenlong was doomed, and that Dongjiang Town would not be able to support these Liao people, whether before or after his death.

In the end, some of these Liao people starved to death, some surrendered, and some fled to Dengzhou (Penglai).

"How dare you! In our Great Ming Dynasty, human trafficking is a capital offense."

The Ming Dynasty permitted human trafficking. However, only officially licensed brokers were allowed to operate this business; all others were considered private traffickers, and those caught could be beheaded.

"Haha, has General Mao forgotten what I do? My business is so serious that it can lead to the extermination of nine generations of a family. Trafficking in one person is nothing to me."

The Ming Dynasty was truly bizarre. Going overseas to do business was a capital offense punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family, but trafficking in people was only punishable by beheading.

“You…” Mao Wenlong made a move to stand up.

It seems that Mao Wenlong still cannot fully grasp the situation. He knows his own strength, but he is unaware of the strength Chen Er possesses.

Such negotiations are meaningless because the parties are not on equal footing.

"Commander Mao, don't rush. We can discuss the business another day. I have some gifts for you today. Why don't we go and take a look together?"

Since Mao Wenlong couldn't see the situation clearly, Chen Er had to help him. This time, he brought a batch of swords and spears made in the workshop as gifts for Mao Wenlong.

Although Chen Er himself had no intention of fighting the Later Jin to the death, he still admired Mao Wenlong, who dared to attack the Later Jin.

"Oh, there's a gift for me? Let's go take a look."

How could Mao Wenlong not be tempted by the offer of grain? He just wanted to get a better deal, but seeing that Chen Er wasn't taking the bait, he figured he could do it another day.

It took the group of people more than half an hour to reach Dong Xian's camp on horseback.

Whether Mao Wenlong was unaware of his new position as general or was genuinely confident in his troops, he did not hesitate to bring over 200 cavalrymen with him.

Chen Er arrived at Pi Island by boat yesterday evening. Because he was afraid that the arrival of the large fleet of boats would cause misunderstandings in Dongjiang Town, the rest of the boats were scheduled to enter the port this morning.

This was just a hastily built private harbor, and the large ferry couldn't dock there, so it had to lower its sails and anchor a few hundred meters away on the sea.

Because the ships of the Mobile Fleet, the Upper Wind Fleet, and the Hirado Fleet needed to be replaced and modified, plus the fleet led by Chen Er himself, this time there was a huge fleet consisting of 17 large ships and a number of small ships.