Min Da's gaze swept across the area. There were four boats in total. Although he was observing and scheming, he didn't show it on his face. Instead, he called out to his men to move the goods.
Not far from the shore, a group of black-clothed people quietly entered the water.
They held reeds in their mouths as their bodies quickly sank into the water and disappeared.
These were the water ghosts Dong Chengwu had mobilized. Although there weren't many of them, they were silent. Their purpose was to keep watch in the water.
While the goods were being moved, the sounds of fighting suddenly came from all directions. Countless people rushed in their direction.
Everyone jumped in fright, especially the red barbarians. They picked up their guns and were about to open fire, but before they could, Min Da and his men acted.
They pulled out short knives from their backs and charged at the red barbarians.
Min Da kicked the translator to the ground and grabbed the leading red barbarian. Before he could react, Min Da's palm struck the man's chin. The red barbarian's head jerked back, and he fell to the ground in an instant.
Seeing that the other red barbarian was about to open fire, Min Da kicked him three inches below his navel. After a series of screams, the red barbarian curled up on the ground like a prawn.
"Get on the boats! Don't let them take away the planks!"
After Min Da shouted, he rushed towards a ship. At this time, behind Min Da, the sound of guns firing could be heard. It sounded like beans exploding.
A group of Ming Army soldiers moved forward with their guns. Three rows of them fired continuously. When the first row finished firing, the second row took a step forward and took turns advancing.
Although they were firing, their speed wasn't slow at all. They didn't move in a disorderly manner in the dark of night.
The red barbarian standing at the bow of the boat was struck dumb. He screamed and fell into the water.
They couldn't care less about taking away the planks. Even if they weren't hit, they didn't dare stay outside.
"Master Hou's firearm team is truly amazing," Xu De said with a sigh.
Qi Jiguang smiled and stroked his beard. The people he had brought with him were all cannon cavalry. Those who could become cannon cavalry in the capital were the cream of the crop.
Every one of them was skilled in archery and horsemanship. The key was that they had to be good at using firearms.
Their loading speed was fast, they were bold, and they had good discipline. If one were to say that the Capital Army was the elite, then the Cannon Cavalry of the Capital Army was the elite of the elite.
Very soon, the Ming Army rushed to the vicinity of the ship and then directly rushed onto the ship. Once on the ship, the guns were useless. The Ming Army with knives were merciless, especially those who had tasted the sweetness in the northwest.
Forty taels of silver per head. That was money. If not for the Marquis's order to not kill them all, they would have killed every single one of the Red Barbarians and sold their heads for silver.
The battle didn't last too long. They were completely prepared to fight against the completely unprepared Hong Yi. Moreover, they were the elites under Qi Jiguang's command. If they continued to fight in a stalemate, Daming wouldn't even need to fight anymore.
The Red Barbarians on the ship were all pressed down, while the corpses of the dead were dragged down.
"Leave a team behind to guard the ship. The rest, retreat!" Qi Jiguang walked around the battlefield and nodded his head in satisfaction.
Cleaning up the battlefield and arranging for guards naturally didn't need the three leaders to worry about these matters. After arranging for their subordinates to do it, they all returned together.
The operation went so smoothly that the three of them were in a very good mood.
As for the interrogation of the Red Barbarians, they weren't in a hurry. It was fine as long as the person was captured.
At dawn the next day, the few of them brought the Red Barbarians up. However, because of the language barrier, the interpreter was also brought up.
Of course, the first person to be interrogated was the interpreter.
This time, Zhao Lian, Xu De, and Dong Chengwu were all present. Qi Jiguang was also listening by the side. The main judge was Zhao Lian.
Looking at the skinny man who was pressing down on him, Zhao Lian slammed the gavel and said loudly, "What's your name? Where are you from? What do you do for a living? Tell me the truth. If you tell me any lies, I'll definitely torture you."
The skinny man was shocked and knelt on the ground with a thud.
"My lord, I'm Pu Zhengjin, a North Korean."
The skinny man quickly said, "I'm just an interpreter for the Red Barbarians. What they did has nothing to do with me. My lord, please investigate it clearly!"
Zhao Lian's expression eased a little. He then asked calmly, "You're a North Korean, right?"
"Yes, yes, I'm a North Korean," Pu Zhengjin quickly said.
Zhao Lian didn't believe that he was a North Korean, but he was too lazy to expose him. If he really said that he was a Daming person, it would be a little embarrassing.
A North Korean was a North Korean. Zhao Lian didn't care where he was from. He only cared about the Red Barbarians.
"Let me ask you, where did these Red Barbarians come from?" Zhao Lian asked, then yelled, "If you dare to lie, you'll be tortured."
"I don't dare, I don't dare!" Pu Zhengjin quickly said. "They came from Penghu."
The others didn't feel anything, but Qi Jiguang asked loudly, "Did the Red Barbarians take over Penghu?"
Not only did Qi Jiguang know about Penghu, but he was also very familiar with it. There used to be an Inspection Department in Penghu, but it was abolished later.
During the reign of Jiajing, the Japanese pirates were defeated. In order to capture the pirates and Japanese pirates, Yu Dayou set up an Inspection Department in Penghu. However, after Yu Dayou left his post, the Inspection Department was abolished.
Although the Inspection Department in Penghu was abolished, Penghu was still a Daming place. If the Red Barbarians took over Penghu, Qi Jiguang felt that he had to take it back.
Pu Zhengjin quickly shook his head and said, "No, no. The Red Barbarians only stopped there. I heard that they were going to fight with the Japanese pirates.
It seems that the Japanese pirates were heading south and had a conflict with the Red Barbarians. "
Japanese pirates?
Qi Jiguang frowned. Why were the Japanese pirates involved?
"Eunuch Xu, is there any news from the inner factory?"
Qi Jiguang turned to look at Xu De and asked with a serious expression. Whether it was the Japanese pirates heading south or the Red Barbarians taking over Penghu, these were all major events that couldn't be underestimated.
Xu De's expression also became serious. He said in a deep voice, "I don't know either. Wait for me to call someone over!" As he said this, he turned his head and said to the little eunuch beside him, "Go find someone from Min University for me."
Seeing that Qi Jiguang didn't intend to continue asking, Zhao Lian continued asking, "Why did these Red Barbarians come to Daming?"
Pu Zhengjin was about to cry. Was there a need to ask?
This was the louse on the head of a bald man. It was obvious that they were here to do business!
However, Pu Zhengjin didn't dare to say that. He quickly said, "The Red Barbarians are here to do business. However, Luna Harbor is occupied by the French, so they don't dare to come here."
"Business?" Zhao Lian snorted coldly. "I've never seen anyone do business like this!"
Pu Zhengjin didn't dare to refute Zhao Lian's words. He knelt on the ground and said nothing.
In reality, there wasn't much point in interrogating them here. However, Zhao Lian still brought the leader of the Red Barbarians here and interrogated him. The information he obtained was similar to what Pu Zhengjin had said.
However, he knew more than Pu Zhengjin. The ones who wanted to fight the Japanese Empire weren't the Red Barbarians, but the French.
Although they were the Red Barbarians, they were only merchants, not colonists.
While Zhao Lian was trying to figure out what was going on, Qi Jiguang was also being questioned by someone from Min University.
"What's your name?" Qi Jiguang looked at the person and asked directly.
"My name is Chen San!"
The person replied respectfully. He was a man in his thirties. From his appearance, he seemed to be a merchant.
However, compared to the local merchants in Fujian, he looked more experienced. There were traces of being a merchant on his body.
In reality, this person was found by Min University from Moon Harbor. He knew the foreigners the best.
Qi Jiguang nodded and said, "Then tell this Marquis about the barbarians."
Chen San didn't dare to delay. He quickly bowed and asked, "What would you like to know, my lord?"
"Tell me where these foreigners came from," Qi Jiguang said after some thought.
"If you want to talk about these foreigners, you have to start with the French. They were the first to arrive here, but we call them the French. In reality, they are from a country called Portugal.
They are the ones in Haojiang now. Our Daming knows them the best.
"The Franciscans are from a country called Spain. Spain and Portugal are not far from each other, and they look similar. Let's call the Spaniards Franciscans, and the Portuguese Franciscans Minor."
"What about the Red Barbarians?" Qi Jiguang nodded and asked.
Chen San didn't expect Qi Jiguang to ask about the Red Barbarians, but he still said, "The Red Barbarians were originally a people under the rule of the Spanish. Later, they had a war with the Spanish and became independent.
Although the Red Barbarians came here to do business, they don't have much power. "
Xu De interrupted, "Didn't you say that the Red Barbarians were going to war with the Japanese pirates?"
Chen San was stunned. He then said, "Sir, the Red Barbarians are not strong enough to fight with the Japanese pirates. I heard some rumors about this. It seems that the warships of the Japanese Empire came south and fought with the Portuguese a few times."
In fact, if this was reported to Zhu Yijun, Zhu Yijun would definitely know what was going on.
At this time, the Dutch had only been independent for a few years. They had defeated the Spanish and established strongholds and colonies all over the world. However, they hadn't extended their tentacles to Asia, not even past the Cape of Good Hope.
The Red Barbarians that came were basically armed merchant ships or pirates.
Although these people were strong, they could only bully the Spaniards and the Portuguese.
Coupled with the Japanese Empire and Li Dan, they could only smuggle goods and pay protection fees.
At this time, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who had unified the Japanese Empire, was no longer satisfied with dominating the Japanese Empire. He wanted to build a great empire in Asia.
On land, he planned to stockpile resources to attack North Korea and then attack the Daming. On the sea, he planned to go south and occupy Penghu. He could invade the Daming from the sea and benefit from sea trade. The next step was to occupy India.
It could be said that Toyotomi Hideyoshi's idea was very ambitious. However, the Japanese Empire in this era did not have the strength to do so.
It was not until modern times, after the Meiji Restoration, that the Japanese Empire had the strength to do so. They carried out the strategy that Toyotomi Hideyoshi had formulated.
On land, they would invade North Korea and then China. On the sea, they would occupy Penghu and Taiwan. Then, they would attack the Philippines and India.
In this era, the idea of building a great power in Asia was imprinted in the minds of the people of the Japanese Empire.
The spirit of craftsmanship passed down from generation to generation caused the people of the Japanese Empire to not forget this. Once someone with the ability rose to power, they would think about how to realize the great dream that Toyotomi Hideyoshi had failed to achieve. It was just like how all the emperors of China wanted to be on par with the Emperor of Qin and the Emperor of Han.
The Dutch had risen in power in Europe. The Spanish and the Portuguese could not do anything to them.
However, the Dutch's rise was very short. Their strength was not enough to support a huge global colonization.
However, they had been working hard for this. They had been opening up sea routes to the East. For this reason, they would fight the Portuguese and the Spanish at sea.
Qi Jiguang and Xu De roughly understood what was going on. They let Chen San take them away.
"Eunuch Xu, I am going to write a memorial to His Majesty. When we return to the capital, I will report it to His Majesty." Qi Jiguang looked at Xu De and said.
"No problem!" Xu De nodded and said with a smile, "I support Master Hou."
At this time, a young eunuch came in from outside. He came to Xu De's side and said in a low voice, "Eunuch, Wang An is back!"
Xu De was stunned. Wang An was back?
While in Nanjing, Xu De had sent his godson, Wang An, to Haojiang to investigate the Hong Yi people.
He did not expect that the matter would be solved in Fujian. Wang An had made a wasted trip. However, Xu De also knew his godson's ability. He would never return empty-handed.
Hearing that Wang An was back, Xu De was overjoyed. He quickly said, "Hurry up and let him in."
Seeing that Xu De was so happy, Qi Jiguang said with a smile, "What made you so happy?"
"To tell you the truth, Master Hou, when we were in Nanjing, we sent someone to Haojiang to find out about these foreigners."
Speaking of this, Xu De also smiled. "Now that he is back, I believe there will be results."
"I see!" Qi Jiguang nodded, then said with a smile, "This is good news."
Not long after, Wang An came in from outside. He bowed and said, "Greetings, godfather and North Placer Marquis."
Xu De looked at Wang An, smiled, and waved his hand. "How was the trip?"
"It was very smooth, godfather!"
Wang An said with a smile. "After I arrived in Haojiang, I quickly contacted our people. This time, I brought back a lot of information about the Portuguese and Spanish."
Xu De nodded with satisfaction. He said with a smile, "Good, very good. I knew you would not let me down."
Qi Jiguang looked at Wang An. He came back at the right time. He was lacking information in this area.