Moma Liangshan

Chapter 196 Southeast Maritime Merchants, Blue Ocean Escort Agency

The Lin family's fleet rested for three days in Jiaozhou Bay before sailing with Wang Hao to Liaodong. Wang Hao felt the immense time cost of each voyage around the Jiaodong Peninsula, further proving the correctness of building the "Yanping Road." The Bohai Sea, in later generations of China, was merely an inland sea, but at this moment, it was the core area of ​​the power struggle between the Jin, Liao, and Song dynasties. Whoever controlled the Bohai Sea could leverage maritime transport to send tens of thousands of troops from dawn till dusk, thus firmly controlling the initiative on the battlefield. Standing on the deck, Wang Hao asked, "Mr. Lin, how long do you think it would take to transport the Liao's 10,000 palace troops from Jinzhou to Dagukou?" Based on his memories from the future, Wang Hao drew a rough map of the Bohai Sea for Di Jinxing and instructed him to lead his men to draw a detailed map according to scale. Di Jinxing had been commissioned to map the Bohai Sea when Wang Hao first took control of Jiaozhou, and today his mapping team consisted of more than thirty people and over ten mules and horses. The Bohai Sea map is only one-third complete so far, having only measured the distances between key coastal defense towns such as Jinzhou, Dagukou, and Penglai. The coastal mudflats remain to be completed. Lin Yi, who had studied the unfinished Bohai Sea map in detail, replied, "From Jinzhou to Dagukou, it's just a short-distance voyage, a day's journey. Each ship can carry three hundred soldiers or sixty warhorses!" Wang Hao was somewhat surprised, saying, "These ships are large, but below deck are cargo holds. Carrying too many people might lead to accidents!" Lin Xiao remained calm, saying, "Even camels from the desert wouldn't die in a day on a ship, let alone people!"

Lin Xiao's statement was unacceptable to Wang Hao, who said, "Precisely because they are human, we cannot treat them like livestock!" Lin Xiao smiled helplessly and said, "Young Master's kindness is commendable, but speed is of the essence in war. Once the opportunity is missed, we can only make up for it with human lives!" Wang Hao had already realized this and said, "It was my oversight that almost led to a terrible mistake!" Lin Xiao quickly said, "Young Master's benevolence is beyond our comprehension!" Wang Hao suddenly asked, "But I have a question for you, Mr. Lin!" Xiao replied, "Please speak, sir!" Wang Hao said, "Mr. Lin, you come from a maritime merchant background, how come you are so proficient in military strategy?" Lin Xiao sighed and said, "A long-distance voyage requires at least dozens of ships and thousands of people traveling together, because along the way there are not only raging storms and huge waves, but also hundreds or thousands of pirates. However, the imperial court only knows how to extract tens of millions of strings of cash in taxes from maritime trade every year, but never cares about the dangers of the sea routes, nor has it ever deployed its navy to eliminate pirates and ensure the smooth flow of the sea routes. We maritime merchants have no choice but to learn self-defense!"

The Song Dynasty's maritime trade flourished, but it failed to build a naval force to protect its maritime lifeline. Wang Hao, being a court official, remarked, "First, Emperor Shi Jingtang of the Later Jin Dynasty ceded the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, and then Li Yuanhao of Western Xia seized control of the Hexi Corridor. Our dynasty's greatest threat has always been in the north!" Lin Xiao sneered, saying, "If it's merely a lack of funds to build a navy, then the merchants of the southeast are willing to raise the money themselves. But the court would rather hand over naval weapons to the Semu people than trust us, the citizens of the Great Song!" History records that the Song Dynasty not only relied on Semu people to protect its maritime trade in the open seas, but also had many Semu people holding important positions in the maritime trade offices throughout the country.

Wang Hao understood that Lin Xiao's words were all true, and no matter how he tried to explain, he wouldn't be able to convince everyone. He said, "I can promise you that as soon as Lin Yi's marine corps is completed, I will immediately establish the Nanyang Navy to escort your fleet!" Lin Xiao could hardly believe his ears and said, "Is this true, young master? Will the imperial court really dispatch warships to escort us merchants?" Wang Hao solemnly replied, "Don't be too happy yet. I can only allocate local taxes from Jiaozhou, so neither the size of the fleet nor the number of sailors can be too large!" Lin Xiao, however, didn't think so. He thought to himself, "Wang Hao is ambitious and always shrewd. He probably just wanted to bargain with the Southeast merchants!" He said, "The ships in the southeast half of the Song Dynasty number at least eight or ten thousand, if not ten thousand. As long as you can establish a navy and guarantee that this fleet will not be used for other purposes, we are willing to do our best to help!"

Wang Hao sensed a strong urgency in Lin Xiao's words and said, "I might have a better suggestion. I wonder if Mr. Lin would be interested?" Wang Hao had an excellent business reputation, so Lin Xiao dared not be negligent and quickly replied, "I'm all ears!" Wang Hao said, "We'll open a trading company in Jiaozhou. This company will do nothing but provide warship escort services. The Southeast Maritime Merchants will provide the capital, and I'll be responsible for obtaining the imperial approval. After it's done, I'll take a 30% stake!"

Lin Xiao was greatly shocked and said, "Young Master, have you considered what the establishment of this trading company will mean?" Wang Hao did not answer, but asked in return, "Mr. Lin, what do you think the establishment of this trading company will mean?" Lin Xiao said, word by word, "It will mean the establishment of a private armed force!" Wang Hao shook his head and said, "The Southeast Sea Merchants are not just your company, but a huge group. I am not only an official, but also the son-in-law of the Song Dynasty. Therefore, after this trading company is established, it will not be a private armed force, but collectively owned!" Lin Xiao suddenly thought, "Wang Hao never does unprofitable business." He asked, "What does Young Master want?" Wang Hao smiled slightly and said... "It seems Mr. Lin hasn't quite grasped how this business will operate!" Lin Xiao frowned slightly and said, "Please enlighten me, young master!" Wang Hao said, "Mr. Lin can think of this business as a maritime escort agency!" Lin Xiao suddenly understood and said, "I've learned my lesson!" Then he asked, "Please name this business, young master!" Wang Hao pondered for a long time and said, "Let's call it 'Blue Sea Escort Agency'!" Seeing Lin Xiao's slight confusion, Wang Hao explained, "Mr. Lin is very knowledgeable, yet he doesn't even have a clear understanding of what I just said, let alone others. Naming it an escort agency will facilitate the court's approval and also make it easier to attract business!"

Lin Wei was quite surprised to see Wang Hao casually utter the words "attracting business," and advised, "Young Master, you are an official of the court and a relative of the emperor; how can you speak so lightly of matters of commerce?" Wang Hao shook his head and said, "A country cannot be stable without agriculture, strong without industry, and wealthy without commerce. What is there that cannot be said?" Lin Wei bowed and said, "Young Master's insight is truly remarkable; I admire you!" Wang Hao said, "I hope that in the near future, the merchants of the Southeast Sea will be able to cooperate with me for mutual benefit and joint progress!" Lin Wei pledged, "I will follow your lead, Young Master!"