Chapter 220: The Fleet

Chapter 220: The Fleet

A few days after Du Yunse submitted his memorial, Emperor Zhaoxin officially issued an edict entrusting Tianjin Prefecture with the task of organizing a fleet to sail to the South Seas to proclaim the might of the nation.

This is the first time in nearly a century that the Yu Dynasty has proactively dispatched its fleet on a long voyage. Although rumors had been circulating in the court for the past two years, seeing the imperial edict officially confirmed still felt different.

Regardless of the conservative and reformist factions' differing ideologies and the verbal battles they waged, preparations for the southern expedition began immediately after the imperial edict was issued.

This fleet will depart from Tianjin Port, leave the Bohai Bay, pass through the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea, replenish at Taiwan Island, then circle the South China Sea, and go to Luzon, Mayit, Java, Malacca, Champa and dozens of other countries that pay tribute to the Yu Dynasty.

The fleet comprised four colossal tower ships, eight supply vessels for provisions, twelve warships, and dozens of medium and small boats responsible for transportation.

Qiu Hua Nian personally visited the port to inspect Yu Dynasty’s fleet. After comparing it with the ships of foreign merchants docked nearby, he reached a very objective conclusion—despite Yu Dynasty not having embarked on long voyages for a century, its prosperous national strength still supported a shipbuilding technology far superior to that of contemporary nations.

Especially the massive tower ships constructed by the shipyard, which combined the wisdom of countless predecessors and contemporaries, and improved upon data obtained from foreign merchant vessels, seemed like daunting behemoths floating in the sea.

Qiu Huannian, who came from the modern era and had seen much of the world, merely felt a sense of awe and pride, while the others were exclaiming in wonder at the miracle. After the tower ship sailed into Tianjin Port, countless people came every day to behold the marvel, many even bringing incense and yellow paper money for offerings, bowing their heads as they prayed for the divine ship’s protection.

As the port official was reporting to Du Yunse, Qiuhuannian happened to be nearby. The sight of the common people worshipping the tower ship as a deity took him by surprise, finding it absurd and ridiculous, yet also revealing a simple and touching sorrow. After some thought, Qiuhuannian decided that blocking was not as effective as guiding. Instead of issuing strict prohibitions, he believed it would be better to use this opportunity to promote scientific thinking.

Qiu Hua Nian specially wrote a letter to the capital, requesting that Yuan Jia be borrowed for a month. Due to her exceptional talent in mathematics, Yuan Jia had been the primary author of the geometry section in "Fundamentals of Mathematics." A few months ago, she was specially appointed as a proofreader at the Imperial Library. Although this was an unofficial and unranked minor position, it was already a significant achievement for a woman to hold an official role.

Yuan Jia soon brought Yuan Ruo to Tianjin, where Qiu Huannian arranged accommodation for the siblings. He then selected a group of students from the Tianjin Prefecture Academy who were skilled in mathematics and a group of articulate craftsmen from the shipyard, placing them all under Yuan Jia's command. Each day, they were divided into teams to explain to the locals at the port how large ships were built.

Chunsheng had no interest in mathematics or large ships; he spent his days dragging Yuan Ruo, whom he hadn't seen for months, around to play. He even made a special trip to Jixian County to treat Yuan Ruo to authentic Jianbing Guozi and sweet fried dough twists.

Jiujiu’s talent for mathematics is average, but she is very concerned about promoting science to the common people. These days, whenever she is not busy, she accompanies Yuan Jia to the port.

With the young lady of the Prefect’s family presiding, no one who had objections or ulterior motives dared to cause trouble. As days went by with these lectures, the number of people burning incense and worshipping ships at the port noticeably decreased. Yuan Jia also found over a dozen young people, boys and girls alike, who had developed an interest in mathematics.

Yuan Jia originally intended to give each of these children a set of Basic Arithmetic, but before doing so, she suddenly realized that most of these children came from poor families, were illiterate, and had to daily work hard to sustain their lives. Even if they had books, it would be useless.

Jiu Jiu understood her difficulties, found a booklet, recorded the names and home addresses of these children, encouraged them, and then let them leave.

"Miss Quehan, are you recording these to arrange for them to attend school later?"

Yuan Jia still felt somewhat saddened. Indeed, Jiu Jiu could easily afford the expenses for a dozen children's education, with the support of her family, she could even afford to educate hundreds. But looking across the entire Yu Dynasty, in places they couldn't see, how many children with talent and dreams but no opportunity to learn were there? Certainly more than a dozen or a hundred.

Jiu Jiu shook her head with a smile, "Of course not, it's better to teach someone to fish than to give them a fish. I have a better way."

"What way?"

Jiu Jiu teased, "This is Brother Hua's big plan, Sister Yuan will know next year."

As they were talking, Qiu Huanian arrived at the port with some people, and Jiu Jiu and Yuan Jia went to greet him.

The port was windy, and the temperature was lower than elsewhere. By the end of September, it was already very cold. Qiu Huanian was draped in a lilac-colored brocade cloak, with patterns outlined in gold thread that sparkled in the sunlight. The pure white fur had no impurities, blown in one direction by the wind, setting off his jade-like complexion.

Qiu Huanian's health had improved over the past two years, but he was still weaker than the average person, and he was already holding a hand warmer.

Jiu Jiu noticed that behind Brother Hua were two foreigners who looked very different from the people of the Yu Dynasty, one with deep red hair and green eyes, the other with black hair, black eyes, and very dark skin, with a sharp, monkey-like face.

These two were foreign traders brought by Zhu Jingcheng from Fuzhou. Jiu Jiu had heard from Qiu Huanian that these foreign traders, dreaming of overnight riches, were essentially reckless adventurers. At sea, they often had dual identities, both as merchants and as pirates.

If the country they arrived at was strong, they would present their goods and seek trade obsequiously. If the place was a small, weak country, they would reveal their brutal nature, taking up arms to enslave or even massacre the indigenous people, plundering wealth that was not theirs.

These words left a deep impression on Jiu Jiu, making her very wary of foreign traders. She had realized that beyond the vast sea, there were not only countless treasures and interesting customs but also bloody battles and cruel survival of the fittest.

What shocked Jiu Jiu even more was that Qiu Huanian also said that if the Yu Dynasty did not strive for progress and remained stagnant, one day, their land and people would also become prey for plunder and slaughter.

For Jiu Jiu, who had been immersed in the concept of the Great Yu since childhood, this was even more unbelievable than a tall tale. Yet, she also knew that Brother Hua wouldn’t just make things up about something like this.

Compared to the deeply conflicted Jiu Jiu, Du Yunse quickly accepted Qiu Huanian's words and began laying out plans, taking preventive measures to stop problems before they started.

Qiu Huanian brought the two foreign merchants to the port for two reasons: firstly, they would be needed for the upcoming voyage to the South Seas, and secondly, it was a flex of muscle and a clear warning.

Jiu Jiu secretly observed that the Malacca merchant named Yu Xuan, upon seeing the miraculous towered ship, first showed a flash of terror, which quickly turned into a more fanatical and eager expression, like he wanted to drop to his knees right then and there and pledge loyalty to Brother Hua.

The Frankish merchant named Matteo remained obedient and well-behaved throughout, but Jiu Jiu did not miss the resentment and ambition deep in his eyes.

Although these two men had different personalities, they both shared the same savagery and ruthlessness. Brother Hua was right; such merchants, driven by opportunity and sufficient profit, would inevitably turn around and bite the Great Yu if given the chance.

Qiu Huanian looked at the massive towered ship anchored in the sea, with its three decks at each end, a displacement of nearly four hundred tons, and requiring three hundred men to shout in unison to turn the rudder. In this era, such a ship appearing at sea was almost invincible.

"Old Matteo, how does the best ship from your country compare to the Great Yu’s towered ship?"

Matteo bent over, replying with utmost respect, "Your Highness the County Princess, I dare not lie. The ships of Portugal are not even a fraction as good as those of the Celestial Empire."

Qiu Huanian smiled faintly, not believing Matteo's words.

Even if Frankish ships were not as good as the towered ships, the gap was certainly not as large as Matteo claimed. Otherwise, this nascent colonial power would never have amassed so much overseas wealth and colonies.

Territory and wealth require military strength to protect. Even if you only want to engage in peaceful trade, you can’t stop the vultures and jackals circling for a chance. That is why the fleet heading to the South Seas this time includes a full twelve warships, led by the Taiping Marquis, with three thousand elite sailors skilled in seamanship, thirty cannons, two hundred firearms, and one thousand rockets.

When encountering some smaller South Seas nations, this force could even achieve the destruction of a country. The Great Yu's fleet is going for friendly exchanges and trade, but if they encounter those who are truly blind and looking for trouble, the Taiping Marquis would not hesitate to roll up his sleeves and teach them a harsh lesson, lest the Great Yu, having been absent from interactions with its neighbors for so long, be seen as an easy target.