Qi Jiguang, who was in the capital, was preparing to head south. Xu De, who was in Fujian, was also busy. He had two main tasks. One was to monitor the Zhen family, and the other was to gather intelligence and find people who were in contact with the Zhen family.
No matter what the Imperial Majesty wanted to do, he had to be prepared. This was Xu De's motto.
Perhaps it would be a waste of effort, but it must be done when the Imperial Majesty wanted it.
The inner factory was very important. Xu De knew how to be a good manager of the inner factory. As he flipped through the information in his hands, Xu De reached out and put it aside. Then, he said to the person in front of him, "Tell me about this Li Dan!"
The person standing respectfully in front of Xu De was called Min Da. Of course, this was his code name.
After entering the inner factory, you would no longer have a name. Only when you appeared under the sun again would your name be revealed.
Min Da was a man in his thirties. He had entered the inner factory at the age of 17 and had excellent results. Xu De thought highly of him and sent him to Fujian. He was one of the first batch of people to enter the inner factory.
Min Da's identity was that of a down-and-out scholar who had suffered a flood. He had come to Fujian to seek refuge with his relatives.
The relatives he sought refuge with had died ten years ago. Min Da, on the other hand, had settled down in Fujian.
After many years of hard work, Min Da not only had a considerable amount of wealth, but he had also obtained the title of Juren. He had no hope of becoming a Jinshi.
Originally, Min Da had thought that this would be the end of his life. He had not expected Eunuch Xu to suddenly come to Fujian. He felt that this was his chance.
In reality, news of Qi Da had already spread throughout the inner factory. After the White Lotus Group was defeated in Shandong, not only did Qi Da regain his name, but he also officially became an official.
Everyone in the inner factory was envious of him, including Min Da.
In order to seize this opportunity, Min Da could be said to have done his best.
Unlike Dong Chengwu's uncertainty and hearsay, Min Da had concrete information.
"Sir, Li Dan is indeed a person and is indeed close to the Zhen family. However, it is not the rumor that Li Dan was from the Zhen family or that Li Dan's mother was from the Zhen family.
In fact, the Zhen family has always been a large local family in Fujian. They have been in the sea trade for many years.
In fact, the Zhen family has always been a large family in Fujian and has been in the sea trade for many years. "
Xu De nodded. This was the information he wanted. He regretted it even more. Before going to see Dong Chengwu, he should have gone to see his people first.
However, this regret disappeared in a flash. He listened even more attentively. He felt that there was definitely a chance here.
"In fact, the Zhen family has done many things over the years, including political marriages and supporting scholars."
"In the local area, the Zhen family has a very good reputation. They donate money to education, build academies and private schools, help poor scholars, give porridge in years of disaster, and reduce rent in years of prosperity." Min Da said awkwardly. "There are many people in the local area who are grateful to the Zhen family."
Xu De sighed. In fact, he was not afraid of encountering evil people, but he was afraid of encountering people like this.
"The Zhen family's business is very big. It basically covers the entire six provinces in the southeast. From silk to porcelain, from salt to iron, to ore, the Zhen family dabbles in everything."
Seeing that Xu De did not speak, Min Da continued, "In the official circles, the Zhen family has also put in a lot of effort."
"Although no one in the Zhen family is an official, one of the son-in-law of the Zhen family is quite a high official."
Xu De was stunned. He immediately asked, "Who?" If Min Da said that the person was a high official, then it must be quite a high official!
"It's Jiangsu Inspector Liao Daoyan."
At this point, Min Da stole a glance at his family's factory manager and said carefully, "In recent years, the Zhen family has bribed and groomed many officials. They have also sponsored many students. It's just that we have not been able to get a hold of all of them."
In short, the Zhen family's network was spread all over the southeast. Not only were they powerful and wealthy, but they also had a deep foundation.
"With this, the Zhen family basically controls the entire maritime trade in Fujian. Since Li Dan was born in Fujian, both parties are naturally connected.
The reason why Li Dan is so successful is because of the Zhen family's support. "
"Both parties benefit from each other. In recent years, the Zhen family has basically become the controller of the southeast maritime trade."
Xu De immediately fell silent. Although this was a rebellious thought, Xu De could not help but think that in the six provinces in the southeast, a word from the Zhen family was probably more effective than an imperial edict from the Imperial Majesty.
Turning to look at Min Da, Xu De asked in a low voice, "Why didn't you report this to your superiors?"
Upon hearing Xu De's words, Min Da quivered. He knew that his factory manager was angry.
If he did not explain well, then what was in front of him was not an opportunity, but a huge pit that could bury him.
Min Da hurriedly said, "Eunuch, I have limited manpower. These things have not been investigated for long and have not been thoroughly investigated yet."
"When I arrived in Fujian, it could be said that I was completely in the dark. I had to find out the background of Fujian's aristocrats and cooperate with the tax officials to pay taxes. I really could not split myself!
However, I have already sent people to investigate this matter. I have even sent people to join Li Dan's fleet. "
Upon hearing Min Da's explanation, Xu De's expression instantly eased. Upon hearing that Min Da had sent people to join Li Dan's fleet, Xu De immediately became interested and said eagerly, "Tell me about it!"
"Yes, Eunuch!" Min Da immediately breathed a sigh of relief. He was very grateful for his arrangements.
"After I found out about Li Dan's existence, I arranged for people to follow him. I was also worried that Li Dan would come to Daming to plunder. Once that happened, the people we arranged would be of great help."
Of course, that was what Min Da said. In fact, he was prepared to use this matter to make a contribution.
Once Li Dan came to attack, his spy would have made a great contribution. Min Da had been waiting for this opportunity.
"This subordinate's spy has not been with us for long, but he knows some things," Min Da said in a deep voice.
Minda said in a deep voice, "The matter about Li Dan and Nihon isn't like what the rumors say."
"Li Dan has a good relationship with a warlord of the Japanese Empire called Tokugawa Ieyasu. He does support Tokugawa Ieyasu, and Tokugawa Ieyasu also supports Li Dan."
"However, Tokugawa Ieyasu's current situation is not good. This matter has to be traced back many years.
The Japanese Empire has been at war for many years. Warlords everywhere have their own armies. Among them, there is a warlord called Oda Nobunaga who is the strongest. "
"Basically, he ended the war in the Japanese Empire. The defeated Japanese pirates came to Daming. This is also one of the reasons why Japanese pirates ran amok during the Jiajing period."
"Oda Nobunaga originally had a chance to unify the Japanese Empire. But something happened. One of Oda Nobunaga's men called Akechi Mitsuhide was dissatisfied with Oda Nobunaga, so he killed Oda Nobunaga in Honnoji while the army was at war."
"Akechi Mitsuhide was defeated by Oda Nobunaga's men and son. Rumor has it that he was killed, but there are also rumors that he escaped."
"After Oda Nobunaga's death, the Oda family was mainly divided into two factions, led by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Shibata Katsuie."
A war broke out between Oda Nobunaga's eldest son, Oda Nobuo, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. "
"Tokugawa Ieyasu maintained an alliance with Oda Nobuo to maintain the justice of his confrontation with Toyotomi Hideyoshi, because he fought against Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the name of protecting Oda Nobunaga's son.
Once again, a war broke out between the two sides. Toyotomi Hideyoshi won, and Oda Nobuo surrendered to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. "
"As a last resort, Tokugawa Ieyasu also surrendered to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Now, Tokugawa Ieyasu is struggling at death's door in his own territory."
Xu De listened to everything Min Da said very seriously. He decided to write a memorial to the Imperial Majesty when he got back, introducing the current situation of the Japanese Empire in detail.
Of course, he had to mention the internal factory's contribution.
This was a big deal!
"Although Li Dan has a good relationship with Tokugawa Ieyasu, it's difficult for him to get support from Tokugawa Ieyasu."
In the end, Min Da made a conclusion.
Xu De nodded. So that was the case. If that was the case, it was a good opportunity to clean up Daming and the other aristocrats who were colluding with the Japanese pirates.
Even if Li Dan came to attack in the future, it would be much easier to fight without these people as spies.
"Very good, well done!" Looking at Min Da, Xu De smiled and said, "I will report this to you when I get back."
Min Da quickly smiled and said, "Thank you, eunuch. I have one more thing, but I don't know if I should say it."
"Speak!"
Xu De was in a good mood. This time, he had done a great service. When he got back, he would definitely be praised by the Imperial Majesty.
"Yes, eunuch!"
Min Da replied. "The Japanese pirates seem to be making some moves. Recently, the merchants have been buying iron ingots, sulfur, and other things on a large scale."
Buying iron ingots with sulfur?
When Xu De heard this, he perked up. Sulfur and other things were used to make gunpowder, and iron ingots were used to forge weapons and armor. Why were the Japanese pirates buying these things?
No matter what they were doing, it was definitely not something good.
"Investigate!"
Xu De looked at Min Da seriously. "Investigate this. Do your best and do whatever it takes. You must find out why they are buying these things. I will immediately go back and write a report to the Imperial Majesty!
A memorial! "
"Yes, eunuch!" Min Da agreed. "I promise to investigate thoroughly."
"If this task is done well, I will personally recommend you to the emperor."
Xu De patted Min Da's shoulder and said in a deep voice, "I can't promise anything else, but I will definitely guarantee you a good future."
Min Da was really excited this time. With the words of his factory manager, his meteoric rise was just around the corner.
One had to know that his factory manager was very favored by the emperor. With the factory manager's recommendation, the emperor would definitely put him in an important position.
When he returned to his room, Xu De immediately began to write a memorial. He wrote in detail about the Japanese Empire. He even wrote about the Japanese pirates' ill-intentioned purchase of military supplies. He also promised that he would investigate thoroughly.
After he finished writing, he checked it several times. After making sure that there were no mistakes, Xu De made a copy of it and sent it to the capital.
Although the imperial envoy's arrival in Fuzhou was kept a secret as much as possible, the news still spread. However, outsiders did not know where the imperial envoy came from.
Although there were many people who inquired about the news, they said that they were there to inspect the river works.
Although the city was under martial law, no one knew that a large net had been cast.