Chapter 208: Send Liu Chen to Quanzhou to train the Japanese pirates before lifting the ban on sea trade
Li Wenzhong was secretly delighted in his heart, as he knew Zhu Gang's personality traits very well.

If Liu Chen could gain the respect and appreciation of King Jin, he would surely have a bright future and rapid success.

Thinking of this, Li Wenzhong quickly grabbed Liu Chen and enthusiastically introduced him to Zhu Gang: "This is my staff member, named Liu Chen.

He is not only talented, but also possesses extraordinary wisdom and strategy.

If His Royal Highness Prince Jin has anything to entrust him with, he will definitely do his best to complete it. "

Liu Chen looked at Li Wenzhong with gratitude, and then immediately saluted to Zhu Gang to show his respect.

Then he replied with a firm face: "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness Prince Jin. I will definitely do my best and live up to your expectations!"

Hearing this, Zhu Gang couldn't help but burst into laughter.

He patted Liu Chen's shoulder gently, with a hint of appreciation in his eyes.

Then Zhu Gang said in a serious tone: "Very good! I plan to send you to Quanzhou to investigate a very important matter.

This matter concerns the safety of the country, so we must be extremely cautious.

Once you successfully complete the task, I will naturally give you a generous reward!"

After hearing this, Liu Chen was shocked and realized the complexity and danger of this mission.

However, he nodded and agreed without hesitation, and replied in a firm tone: "Please rest assured, Your Highness Prince Jin, I will definitely fulfill my mission!"

Seeing this scene, Li Wenzhong also expressed his support in a timely manner.

“Your Highness Prince Jin, please rest assured.

Liu Chen will definitely complete the task successfully and will not let you down!"

Compared with Chang'an, Yingtian and Luoyang, cities that have long served as political cores, Quanzhou seems to be even more obscure.

However, it was this seemingly inconspicuous city that rose rapidly during the Song and Yuan dynasties.

It gradually grew into a port city of a certain scale in China and even in the world at that time.

But with the development of time, it gradually declined after the end of Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of Ming Dynasty.

It lost all its previous status and glory, and returned to its previous simple and unpretentious appearance.

There are two main reasons why Quanzhou fell into decline after its prosperity.

1. The war at the end of the Yuan Dynasty caused great damage to Quanzhou.

During the Yuan Dynasty, Quanzhou still received many supportive policies.

It was able to recover quickly from the previous war damage and continue to exist as the "largest port in the East."

However, after the end of the Yuan Dynasty, the situation in Quanzhou changed again.

Compared with the war at the end of the Southern Song Dynasty, the war at the end of the Yuan Dynasty was far more intense and lasting.

Coupled with the previous prosperity, the local situation in Quanzhou became extremely complicated.

Muslims, Christians, Yuan Dynasty troops, and peasant rebels.

The various forces fought against each other, causing great damage to Quanzhou.

This caused its business to almost stagnate in a short period of time.

2. The Ming Dynasty’s maritime ban policy completely shattered Quanzhou’s hopes for rise.

If it was just a war, then with the courage and tenacity of the people of Quanzhou.

With its own geographical and locational advantages, it is not difficult to achieve re-emergence.

However, the implementation of the Ming Dynasty's "maritime ban" made all this impossible.

Because the level of social productivity in Japan at that time was far lower than that in China.

In addition, the domestic supply was very scarce, so Japan could not even be self-sufficient in daily necessities. Therefore, shipping Chinese goods to Japan for sale became a way to make a fortune with a huge market.

A large number of Japanese businessmen secretly came to China to engage in smuggling, despite the ban.

After that, Japan fell into the division period of the Northern and Southern Dynasties and the Warring States Period.

The already underdeveloped and unstable society became even more chaotic.

Unable to make a living, a large number of samurai, merchants and civilians in Japan chose to join the previous smuggling teams.

They eventually gathered together and gradually became the Japanese pirates who invaded the southeastern coastal areas of my country.

In fact, the problem of Japanese pirates had already appeared as early as the Yuan Dynasty.

It can even be said that it was a major social problem that plagued the Yuan Dynasty government.

These pirates were not only familiar with the local terrain, but also had rich experience in naval warfare.

In addition, the ocean is vast, making it almost impossible to achieve a complete encirclement and pursuit.

This made it quite difficult to eliminate these Japanese pirates.

It was not until the establishment of the Ming Dynasty that the problem of Japanese pirates became increasingly serious.

Their frequent attacks on the southeastern coast posed a great threat to the social stability of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yuanzhang had no choice but to implement a "sea ban" and use this passive policy to deal with the Japanese pirates.

Residents of the southeast coastal areas are strictly prohibited from going out to sea, and any maritime activities, including commercial and livelihood activities, are not allowed.

Under the influence of this policy, cities like Quanzhou, which prospered by relying on maritime trade, completely declined.

Since the "sea ban" completely deprived the southeastern coastal residents of their livelihood, it further exacerbated the Japanese pirate problem.

In order to survive, many Ming Dynasty people in coastal areas chose to become pirates.

Not only did Zhu Gang, who was well-versed in history, know all about these things, but Crown Prince Zhu Biao, who held the power of regent, also heard some of them through memorials submitted by local people.

"You sent Liu Chen to Quanzhou. Could it be that you are thinking of lifting the maritime ban?"

Zhu Gang has always had the idea of ​​establishing the Ming Dynasty's armored navy. Although the timing is not ripe at the moment, superior ports like Quanzhou still need to be controlled in advance.

"Mao Xiang sent me a tip a few days ago, saying that Ren Junxian of Quanzhou was planning to start an uprising next year and capture Anxi County.

Since Dad has made the decision, we will select 3000 elite soldiers from the Shenji Camp to form the Shenshu Camp.

Why don't we let those soldiers who have never touched a repeating musket train themselves by attacking the Japanese pirates and the Quanzhou uprising army before the campaign against the Northern Yuan Dynasty begins?"

Zhu Biao frowned slightly, "In the third year of Hongwu, Chen Tong, a resident of Hui'an County, Quanzhou, led the people in an uprising.

He attacked Yong'an, Dehua and Anxi counties, and even defeated the Quanzhou guards.

In the fifth year of Hongwu, Wu Maodi of Tongan County gathered a group of people to revolt, and after the uprising they occupied the county seat.

If the information that Third Brother has obtained is true, we should report this to Father and send our best troops to Quanzhou."

Zhu Gang shook his head and said, "As my elder brother said before, if we openly send troops to Quanzhou, many people will think that the court is going to lift the maritime ban.

The interests involved are so huge that even if no officials openly oppose it, it will still alert the enemy.

There might even be someone so bold as to tip off the Japanese pirates, and by then the purpose of training the troops would be impossible to achieve.”

What Zhu Gang said was not an exaggeration. This was the reason why the Japanese pirates were so rampant in the Ming Dynasty in history.

The main reason is that they used the Ming Dynasty people who were dependent on them when conducting reconnaissance, so they were difficult to identify.

He also used small favors to win over the residents living nearby, so that he could accurately know the strength of the Ming army.

(End of this chapter)