I’m The King Chapter 1097: : East to West (Ninety)

The wharf in Cangzhou is already extremely large. As the largest capital of the Li family, the effort put into it is enormous. Compared with the original, it has expanded several times. At this time, thousands of ships gathered in the port, and the scene was spectacular.

The Zhou family in Fenzhou and the Li family in Cangzhou, the two families have gathered all the skillful craftsmen in shipbuilding. Over the years, they have made rapid progress in the attainment of seagoing ships. The largest seagoing ship can now be built to a height of five floors. Hundreds of fighters can be carried on board, and they are giants at sea.

Soft sails replaced hard sails, making the skill of sailing a higher level, and the mastery of sailing knowledge has become a way for people in Fenzhou and Cangzhou to make a living. Now, as long as you know some water skills, You can easily become a sailor of the fleet. If you know how to sail, then congratulations, you will get a very good position, and the salary is beyond your imagination.

Because of the uncertainty and danger of long-distance voyages, the salaries of these sailors and captains are several times that of the public officials of the Han Kingdom.

Kou Shuguang's return with a full load last time caused a sensation in the Han Kingdom, and the people who were most shocked were naturally the people in Cangzhou and Fenzhou, because most of the sailors and boats came from these two places, and these sailors sailed far and safely. The guys who came back all made a lot of money. Compared with the property they brought home, their salaries were nothing to mention. And Xianyu turned around, and the whole family became rich in the local area, which made more people jealous, and everyone was looking forward to the next voyage.

The number of sailors who signed up this time far exceeded the needs of the long-distance fleet. Such a strong desire to make a fortune at sea made Kou Shuguang dumbfounded, so that he had to temporarily increase the conditions for recruiting sailors.

Of course, not only the national fleet led by Kou Shuguang, but also a large number of private ships joined in this time. The prospect of trade, which is almost a huge profit, is almost unimaginable on the mainland. After some big bosses affiliated to the Four Seas Trading learned about the inside story of Yuanhang through various channels, they showed their talents. In front of Gao Yuan, that is, they also want to organize a fleet to go out to sea for business.

For this request, Gao Yuan naturally couldn't wait for it, and even allowed them to set off with the Kingdom's fleet. Of course, Gao Yuan would not let go of such a tax collection opportunity. Forming together with the Kingdom's fleet would require paying protection fees Yes, that is to say, they have to bear part of the military expenses. Secondly, they have to pay taxes on overseas transactions. The specific tax amount is based on the profits they earn after returning from the long voyage. The tax rate is as high as 30%. Even so, it cannot stop the enthusiasm of businessmen to make money.

Businessmen have money. But sometimes money is not everything. You can’t buy a lot of things, such as large ships suitable for sailing. The ships built over the years, in addition to satisfying the navy, were almost sold out in a very short period of time, and the large ships that cost one day also made these shipyards feel the feeling of huge profits. , once it was fully compensated, the income from the shipyard made Wang Wudi of the household department laugh from ear to ear all day long, but even so, it could not satisfy the sudden sailing craze within the Han Dynasty, and some people could not buy it. Ships, you can’t expect to go to sea this year to make money, but next year, what about the year after? The order of the shipyard has been scheduled for five years.

After buying a boat, it is natural to recruit captains and sailors. This is more costly. Sailors are easy to recruit, but experienced captains are limited. For a while, the salary was even higher than that of the sheriff of a county.

With a ship, a captain, and sailors, each ship must also have guards. After Kou Shuguang's sailing experience was compiled and published, everyone understood that there is not only huge wealth on the sea, but also There are also pirates, and more enemies, voyages are not only about making money, but also conquering.

Of course, this is not a problem for them. Every year in the Han Kingdom, many soldiers retire for various reasons. These retired soldiers who have experienced the influence of the army have firm will and strong combat effectiveness, so they naturally become their recruits. For the object, the salary is naturally favorable, which also finds another way out for the retired soldiers of the Han army.

Shortly after returning from Kou Shuguang's last voyage, the big man began preparations for his second voyage. , this long-distance voyage force has reached an astonishing scale of thousands of ships and tens of thousands of people.

This time, Gao Yuan, the king of the Han Dynasty, will personally attend the ceremony.

On the pier, there are crowds of people. Everyone is not only here to witness the magnificent scene of thousands of sails sailing to sea, but also to see the glory of Hanwang Gaoyuan. Speaking of which, this is the first time that Hanwang Gaoyuan appeared in Cangzhou. Today's Han Dynasty The territory is vast and the territory is unprecedentedly vast. It is impossible for Gao Yuan to set foot in most of the places, but Cangzhou, because of the navy and sailing, became the first stop of Gao Yuan's first official tour after he became king. Cangzhou people are proud of it.

After delivering an impassioned speech, Gao Yuan held huge golden scissors and cut the ribbon for the lead boat. They puffed up their cheeks and roared loudly.

"Heavy anchor, set sail!"

The five-storey flagship slowly sailed away from the pier. On the deck, the officers of the Han army headed by Kou Shuguang lined up neatly, and marched toward Gao Yuan, who was still looking up at the pier, with majesty. The military salute.

Gao Yuan heard the sound of Li Can's nose twitching beside him, turned his head to look at Li Can, whose eyes were a little red, and said with a smile: "This time we have such a large scale, what do you have to worry about? Besides, Li Quan also has With the experience of last time, this time will be more familiar."

"My son travels thousands of miles and my mother is worried. How can I be sure about this long voyage?" Li Can sighed softly, "I'm always a little worried."

"Li Quan is a good guy! After he comes back this time, I think he will be able to command a navy independently!" Someone, congratulations."

"Your Majesty needs to cultivate it a lot!" Li Can thanked him repeatedly, and with Gao Yuan's words, Li Quan, the head of the Li family, is basically unshakable." It is rare to have a panoramic view of the magnificent scenery here, so it is better to go to the Guanhai Pavilion to enjoy it.”

"Okay, let's climb the Guanhai Pavilion, but Li Can, with your body, can you still climb up?" Gao Yuan looked at Li Canqiu's figure jokingly, "It's time to lose weight!"

"I've been losing weight since I heard what the king said, and now I don't even eat dinner, but he just can't lose the damned weight, what can I do!" Li Can said with a sad face.

Gao Yuan suddenly became happy, "It's also possible, maybe you are this kind of born fat person, and you will gain weight if you drink water, I hope Li Quan will not grow up like you in the future, but growing up like this is also good , I reckoned that if I threw you into the water, with your stature, you would definitely not be able to sink."

Both of them laughed out loud. Of course, only Gao Yuan can say such things. Li Can would definitely turn his face against him if he were a different person.

Just as he was enjoying himself, He Weiyuan came over in a hurry, whispered into Gao Yuan's ear, "Your Majesty, Wu Kai, the governor of Wu County, has arrived in Cangzhou, and is rushing towards the pier now, and it is estimated that he will be there in half an hour. will arrive here.”

Gao Yuan nodded slightly, "Old man Wu seems really impatient this time, he came so fast, okay, you wait here, when old man Wu comes, let him go to the Guanhai Pavilion to see me. Li Chan, let’s climb the Guanhai Pavilion.”

The Guanhai Pavilion is newly built. It was also newly built by Li Can in order to please Gao Yuan. It was originally a hill next to the pier. The hill was about a hundred meters high. The trees were cut down, and such a pavilion was built. Standing in the pavilion, the sea breeze is blowing, and you can see the sea as far as the eye can see. It is indeed a good place to view the scenery. From the foot of the mountain to the top of the mountain, there are all the most famous places in Cangzhou. The steps carved from the sea rocks are paved step by step to the pavilion overlooking the sea. On the stone railings on both sides, the heads of various rare and exotic animals are carved on the pillars every few meters. Not cheap.

"In the future, this Guanhai Pavilion can become a good place to watch the wind. Li Can, I suggest that you can sell tickets here in the future. Anyone who wants to come here to see the scenery has to pay. For important events like today, The ticket price can be several times higher, there must be someone who is willing to pay to climb up to see the excitement!" Gao Yuan said while waiting for Li Can who was struggling to climb up.

"This is the place where the king used to be. After the king leaves, this place will naturally be sealed. How can we allow people to come up and desecrate the place where the king has stood!" Li Can said out of breath.

"Bullshit, if all the places I've been to have to be sealed, how many places will the big man have for the common people to walk around?" Gao Yuan laughed and scolded: "This is a good place to make money, how can it be sealed up and waste everything? Well, Li Can, one more day can be added to the promotional words here, Hanwang came here to see the scenery, and he was full of praise, will the price here be raised again?"

Li Can grabbed the railing and gasped a few times, "Since the king said so, I will order them to do what the king said later. The price is naturally high, and there is no one. Two silvers, we can't let him climb up the sea-viewing pavilion."

"Good idea!" Gao Yuan clapped his palms and laughed loudly: "Even if only a hundred people come to climb in a day, it's still a hundred taels of silver. After a year, it's the same amount. That's tens of thousands of taels of silver!" (to be continued)