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âYour Highness, the Chu Kingâs merchant ship has arrived. Itâs said that theyâve brought cotton seeds, butâŠâ
âLet me guess. They want the cannons in exchange for the cotton seeds, right?â
âIt seems youâve already figured it out, Your Highness.â Pang Yukun smiled.
Xiao Ming was currently writing a training manual for the musket troops.
The previous day, he had visited the lathe workshop, armaments workshop, machinery department, and gunpowder workshop, delivering all his instructions.
Whether it was the bayonet, cleaning rod, or oil-paper-wrapped ammunition, all of these were simple to produce.
A bayonet was merely a cylindrical base, a cleaning rod was just an iron rod, and oil-paper-wrapped ammunition was even simpler: wrapping the bullet and powder in oil paper.
It wasnât a question of technical difficultyâit was more about the right idea, or rather, experience.
With the flintlock musket soon to be issued, Xiao Ming had to consider the establishment of a modern military academy. With the advent of firearms, war was entering a more structured phase, no longer relying on the traditional three moves of old.
Because of this, he was writing the manual, preparing to teach Qingzhouâs commanders about modern warfare.
Putting down his brush, Xiao Ming walked out of the main hall. He had already shed his heavy winter coat and was now dressed lightly.
As he walked toward the palace gates, Xiao Ming said, âLi Kaiyuan managed to bring in the cotton so smoothly. Do you think itâs because the Chu King has suddenly developed a kind heart? No, this is all just an exchange of interests. He wants cannons, and I want cotton.â
âThatâs true, but Iâm afraid the Wei King wonât be happy. Iâve heard heâs been complaining about Your Highness in Jinling,â Pang Yukun replied.
âDonât worry about him. The Wei King has never gotten along with the Chu King. We sell cannons to the Chu King, so of course, the Wei King isnât pleased. But right now, we donât need to get involved in the infighting between the princes. The real strategy is to profit from their rivalry by selling them weapons.â
After analyzing the situation in the Great Yu Kingdom, Xiao Ming decided to adopt a policy similar to Americaâs isolationist diplomacy during World War II.
He would not get involved in any of the factionsâ disputes. Instead, he would focus on making money quietly.
After all, the internal divisions within the Great Yu Kingdom couldnât be reconciled, and the various princes were all suspicious of each other. In such a situation, it was safest to profit by taking advantage of their conflicts.
âYour Highness is right. Since the Wei King is displeased, we should just sell him more cannons. If the quantity increases, wonât he be satisfied?â Pang Yukun said.
âExactly. Selling cannons to the Chu King also serves to stimulate the Wei King to buy more,â Xiao Ming replied.
The two discussed the matter as they arrived at the docks, where Xiao Ming had already sent men to the armaments workshop to deliver the thirty cannons to the Chu Kingâs fleet and simultaneously unload the cotton seeds.
When Li Kaiyuan had initially gone to the Chu region, the Chu King had refused to hand over the cotton seeds.
But after the Wei Kingâs cannons arrived, the Wei King, eager to show his strength, fired cannons into the Yangtze River, almost like fireworks. This greatly provoked the Chu King.
In Qingzhou, Xiao Ming had been pressing for the cannons to be delivered to the Chu region, but the cotton seeds could wait. After all, the Chu King couldnât block the sale of cotton. The textile workshops could still operate, but without cannons, the Chu King had no leverage and ultimately had to reluctantly send the cotton seeds.
Upon inspecting the cotton on the merchant ship, the Chu Kingâs envoy said, âYour Highness, the Chu King has ordered that the cotton seeds cannot be handed over unless we receive the cannons first. If Your Highness insists, I will have to burn the cotton seeds.â
Xiao Ming and Pang Yukun exchanged glances. The envoy had some courage, and Xiao Ming smiled, âIâve always kept my promises. Iâm not interested in the three ships of cotton seeds. But the Chu Kingâs choice to send them at this time seems⊠suspect.â
The Chu Kingâs envoy looked embarrassed. He understood Xiao Mingâs point. March was the planting season for cotton, and sending the seeds now was clearly meant as a form of pressure. If Xiao Ming didnât fulfill his promise, it would be another year before the cotton could be planted.
After waiting at the docks for an hour, the armaments workshop finally delivered the cannons.
The Chu Kingâs envoy inspected the cannons and ammunition before agreeing to have the workers unload the cotton seeds.
Xiao Ming personally supervised the delivery of the cotton seeds. He valued cotton as a key crop for Qingzhou, since it could be used to produce a wide range of industrial products, with clothing being just one example. There was also a significant demand for cotton in the medical industry.
If the cotton planting was successful in Qingzhou, they would no longer have to rely on the Chu King for cotton, ensuring the steady development of Qingzhouâs textile industry.
This batch of cotton seeds was delivered directly to the official farm. With the spring sowing season upon them, Qingzhouâs soldiers once again played the role of farmers.
âYour Highness, are we really going to plant cotton?â
On the embankment of the official farm, Niu Ben followed Xiao Ming and asked.
Once the cotton seeds were delivered to the official farm, Niu Ben had brought soldiers along.
Though Xiao Ming had already briefed him, Niu Ben was still hesitant. To him, food crops were far more important.
Although the food production in the six provinces had improved, last year there had been a surplus, but with the ongoing barbarian turmoil, the situation could easily change.
If there wasnât enough military rations, it could be deadly.
âOld General, donât worry. Although Qingzhouâs grain supply is limited, the Wei King, Chu King, and Yan King have more than enough food. During the cannon deal, I bought a large reserve of food from them,â Xiao Ming reassured him.
Niu Ben sighed with relief upon hearing this. He had always prioritized agriculture over trade, understanding well the sorrow of a front line cut off from food supplies.
Though Xiao Mingâs dual focus on both agriculture and commerce didnât align with Niu Benâs personal beliefs, as a general, his only job was to fight and train the army. He knew better than to interfere with such matters.
Now that Xiao Ming had assured him that food reserves were taken care of, Niu Ben was at easeâXiao Ming hadnât lost his mind yet.
Bags of cotton seeds were handed out, and the soldiers scattered the seeds across the official farmâs fields.
This year, in addition to the official farm under Qingzhouâs jurisdiction, Xiao Ming and Pang Yukun had established several slave-run plantations. These plantations wouldnât grow staple crops this year; instead, they would plant cotton, sugarcane, and rapeseed.