When there was no other way, someone suggested taking the sea transportation - this was the only life-saving grass left. However, in the past, emperors of China's grain transportation in the south and north were not afraid to make the sea transportation. In that mysterious sea area, every vortex and every wave were a trap that devoured people. The reefs were full of violent climate, and the lack of sufficiently seaworthy ships and sailors, what made people even more afraid of was the rampant pirates. Kublai decided to take the risk and ordered Luo Bi, Zhu Qing and Zhang Xuan to open up a sea route at all costs. The latter two were exactly pirates that no one dared to mess with in the world!

Zhu Qing was from Yaosha, Chongming. He was originally a slave of the Yang family. Because he could not bear the abuse, he killed his master and avoided the sea. He formed a gang with Zhang Xuan to sell private salt. Later, he became pirates. They dominated the sea borders and were familiar with the sea waterways. Therefore, they were familiar with the gateways of the North and South Seas. Later, they were recruited by the Song Dynasty. After the fall of the Song Dynasty, Zhu surrendered to the Yuan Dynasty. In the 13th year of Zhiyuan, he was ordered by Bo Yan of the Yuan Dynasty to transport the Southern Song Dynasty's treasure treasury to Dadu. In the 16th year of Zhiyuan, Zhu Suidu Marshal Zhang Hong was promoted to General Wuliu. In the 19th year of Zhiyuan, when the court sought a transportation route for the south-to-north grain transfer, Zhu Qing and Zhang Xuan suggested shipping, which was adopted.

After being ordered, the three of them immediately made flat-bottomed sea ships in Shanghai. This was a feature of the many sands and shallow beaches along the Yellow Sea. Then they recruited a group of cannons. Kublai Khan, in order to encourage the fleet, each person distributed rations based on a household of five. The "pirates" started an unprecedented adventure in China's maritime canal transport. Such a huge fleet must span the three major seas of the East China Sea, the Yellow Sea and the Bohai Sea, and the long and unfamiliar sea routes. Even Zhu and Zhang felt that it was a little unlucky.

The shipping fleet carried nearly 50,000 stones of grain from Liujiagang, Pingjiang, entered the sea, passed through Shatou, Huanglian, Haimen County, arrived in Xihaizhou, Jiaozhou, and arrived in Chengshan for more than a month, with a total water distance of more than 13,000 miles. Then, he advanced from Chengshan along the inland sea and finally berthed in Haijin Town. Only a year later did the grain arrive in Dadu. After all the bumpy maritime transportation, it opened a new but dangerous door for the transportation of grain in the south and north.

After that, they successively found two new routes, and the efficiency of sea transportation increased greatly. If it was smooth, they could arrive from Zhejiang to Dadu in as early as ten days. However, Zhao Bing knew that this route was still in use in modern times. The amount of sea grain transport also increased step by step, and now it has reached a scale of one million stones, and the food loss on the way also dropped greatly. Maritime grain transport has become the lifeline of the economy related to the survival of Yuan Dadu, and Luo Bi was appointed as the General of Huaiyuan, who was in charge of thousands of troops and the transport of sea food on the sea.

The opening of the maritime transportation line has prevented the terrible consequences of food shortage in the north. Kublai Khan also cleverly played the people-friendly cards with grains entering Beijing. He used a large amount of grain to help the poor to bridge the gaps between the Mongolian and Han peoples. Moreover, sea transportation not only revitalized Kublai Khan's ruling dilemma, but also made the long coastline that had been quiet and backward in our country suddenly become active. The canal transportation also rapidly improved its shipbuilding capabilities and technical level.

The dense inland water system of Liujiagang connects the Jiangnan grain production area and the sea outlet. With its superior geographical location, it has become the starting port for grain transportation. Grain transport ships from all over the south of the Yangtze River sailed here from all directions, loaded into sea ships here, and started the journey of transporting the capital in the north. For a time, Liujiagang, which has been unknown since ancient times, has gathered the time, place, and people, and has transformed into the largest grain and rice distribution center in Jiangnan, and has already shown the prototype of "the world's first warehouse" in history.

So Zhao Bing felt that the old man's eyes were really poisonous, and he immediately found the key point. Cutting off the route of maritime transportation of the Yuan Dynasty was equivalent to jamming their necks. If a large amount of grain transport from the south and the north were gone, it would seriously weaken its military capabilities and shake the foundation of their rule. Therefore, Liujiagang would be a must-rescue place for the Yuan army.

On the other hand, Zhao Bing also realized his misjudgment. At first, he only regarded the enemy Longwan Navy as a great enemy, but forgot that those canal soldiers were also a maritime force that cannot be ignored. They were proficient in boat driving and tides. Zhu Qing, Zhang Xuan and others were pirates, and their subordinates were all organized by the navy. They could fight with swords and guns, and their combat power could not be ignored.

At the same time, there are thousands of canal ships stationed in Liujiagang, which can also be used as warships. The enemy can also use the canal ships to perform rapid maneuvers and increase reinforcements. Therefore, this force cannot be ignored. They must be defeated at the beginning of the battle, and when they get the first move, they can also obtain supplies to reduce logistics pressure, and support the army to fight for a long time. However, the force used for combat on both sides must be increased, especially the pressure faced by the navy will increase significantly.

"Are your Majesty worried about insufficient troops?" Seeing the little emperor in pain, Ying Jieyan realized that he had encountered a problem and asked with a stroke of his beard.

"What the sir said is that the use of troops on both sides of the battle has exceeded my idea. If the military power of Qiongzhou is exerted, it will be risked to be cut off by the enemy's sneak attack!" Zhao Bing said, "If you want to resolve the dilemma of Qiongzhou, you can only mobilize the troops from Fujian, Jiangxi, Fujian, Guangxi, Zhangxia, Liangzhe and other places to launch an operation at the same time, attracting enemy troops from all over the country, making the enemy unable to use troops in Qiongzhou. But isn't this a big deal?"

"Your Majesty is such a bad word. They have been dormant in various places for several years and have controlled large areas. They can take the opportunity to recover prefectures and counties and make them connected together!" Ying Jie Yan Yan said. He knew that the young emperor had always been worried that the premature exposure of his strength would trigger a large-scale clearance by the Yuan army, so he did not launch it for a long time, and it was still difficult to make up his mind at the moment.

"What the master should say is very good. If the enemy chief Kublai Khan dies, the kings of the sects will go to the funerals and select a new Khan. At that time, the troops will be empty, which is the opportunity to use troops everywhere." Lu Xiufu nodded and said.

"Well, Lu Xiang's words are reasonable!" Zhao Bing nodded...

According to Mongolian customs, the establishment of the new Khan must be approved by the Hulitai Congress, which was discussed by the clans, before it can be legal Khan. Although Kublai Khan used the legitimate teachings of Genghis Khan as the basis for canonization of the crown prince in the enthronement edict, this way of establishing the crown prince does not conform to Mongolian customs. The kings of the foreign clans were often dissatisfied with Kublai Khan's succession of the Khan throne. Before, the four Khan Kingdoms fell apart, and later the struggle for the throne by his brother Alibuge and the rebellion of the sect kings of Ogedei. After the highest Khan throne was transferred to the Tolei clan, Mongge, the eldest son who inherited the Khan throne, died suddenly, and Kublai Khan and Alibuge competed for the Khan throne.

As the youngest son, Alibuge has become the actual ruler of the Mongolian Khanate. He is preparing to convene Curryertai to ensure that he is elected as a Khan. Kubzelai takes the lead and leads his army to the north, calling himself a Khan in Kaiping. Alibuge calls him a Khan in Helin. One country cannot tolerate two masters, so Kublai and Alibuge brothers start killing. After years of fierce battles, Alibuge defeated and surrendered to Kublai. In order to win the hearts of the people, Kublai did not kill him, but imprisoned him until his death.

In addition, as the actual founder of the Ogedei Khanate, Genghis Khan once said that as long as Ogedei had a fertile descendant, he would inherit it first over others. Therefore, he continued to oppose Kublai Khan and actively sought to become the Great Khan. He was smart, capable and cunning, and gradually gathered his tribes and used Hai'a's as the base. His power grew increasingly, becoming the leader of the Ogedei kings.

In the sixth year of Zhiyuan, Haidu and Bala and others Chaga the Queen of Tai and the Queen of Shuchi convened Hulitai on the banks of the river Dalasu. Everyone Tuohaidu was the leader of the alliance and unanimously fought against Kublai and Ilikhan Abaha, and vowed to maintain nomadic life and Mongolian customs. From then on, the Chagatai Khanate and Ogedei Khanate escaped from the direct control of the emperor of the Great Mongol Kingdom. Haidu coveted the position of the Great Khan, helped Alibuge to cause trouble in front, and joined forces with the Khanate to fight against Kublai in the future. The two sides continued to fight. Although the Yuan army always had the upper hand, it could not completely defeat Haidu.

Traditionally, the Mongolian Khan had four Oerdo, and Kublai Khan was no exception. His first wife, Tegulun, died before he became the Great Khan. Chabihe Nanbi belonged to the second Oerdo. Chabi's son Zhenjin was chosen as the heir to Kublai Khan, and the other son Duoer died early. Neither the other two sons, Mengora and Namuhan, were selected as heirs.

But Kublai Khan had enough trust in them. Bengola was appointed King of Anxi and guarded the land of Tangwu; Namuhan was the King of Bei'an and guarded the land of the former Jurchens. In addition, his fifth son Hugechi was appointed King of Yunnan and guarded the southwest; Aoduchi was appointed King of Xiping and took the land of Xixia as the territory; and Tuohuan, the King of Zhennan who failed to attack Annan, was demoted to Ezhou to guard the land of Jiangnan. They all held heavy troops and potential contenders of the Khan throne.

In addition, the Mongolian customary custom of the youngest son to keep his business, and the youngest son occupies a superior position in inheriting his father's property and status. Therefore, the position of Zhenjin's prince was at least among the Mongolian nobles. King Namuhan of Beiping was young. In the sixth year of Zhiyuan, Kublai Khan sent him to attack Haidu, but he was defeated and captured. Ten years later, when he returned to Dadu, he was very dissatisfied with the fact that Kublai Khan was granted the crown prince. He asked Kublai Khan, but after hearing this, he was furious and rejected him. This shows that although Zhenjin was named the crown prince, his status was different from that of the crown prince in the Central Plains dynasty, and he was also subject to many restrictions in Zhenjin's political career.

Therefore, Zhao Bing felt that Lu Xiufu's words were quite reasonable. Even if the real gold was made the prince, there would be another fight at the Hulitai National Congress. Of course, the longer they had a quarrel, the more powerful they fought, the more beneficial it would be for their counterattack. According to Mongolian customs, before the Xin Khan was elected, the affairs of the Mongolian Khanate were under the control of the Queen. Queen Nanbi, who was left behind in most capitals, was lonely, cold and eager to participate in the government affairs. He probably wouldn't miss the opportunity, and he would definitely have to make a kick in time.

Therefore, once Kublai Khan died, the Mongol Yuan regime under the attack between the inside and outside will inevitably fall into civil strife, and the joining of multiple parties will further complicate the situation, which will not be solved in a day or two. Since he is going to fight, he will definitely not go to the Kulitai Conference alone. Each sect king will definitely lead his troops to go, but these sect kings led the most elite army of the Mongol Yuan. Of course, Zhao Bing also hopes that Zhen Jin will "dead" before successfully inheriting the Khan throne, or in a short time, so that more people will be involved, and he will have a good show.

If the Mongol Yuan Khan was in the throne, the troops affiliated with the kings of various sects would go north on a large scale. In addition to the Danma Chi Army in Zhenshuzhou Prefecture, there were only garrisons of Xuanwei Division in various provinces. In this way, Zhao Bing thought that the local armed forces he developed in the southeast should also have the power to fight and cooperate with the main force to occupy the southeast.

At first, the local armed forces developed by Zhao Bing were just a group of salt owls and grassroots heroes in the grassroots society. After the integration of the Bureau of Affairs, these owls formed a loose alliance relationship and spread across the southeast. The salt owls had the largest number of hundreds and dozens of people. Unlike the bandits, they did not have a fixed parcel, but only their own divided territory. They usually farmed at home and gathered together to smuggle or rob, and their combat experience came from private fights for territory and the battle between the Yuan army's anti-smuggling team. They could not deal with large groups of enemies.

Anyone who has read "Water Margin" knows that Liang Shanbo's strength was after the joining of officers such as Guan Sheng and Lin Chong. Under the leadership of these military-friendly people, the Liangshan army began to face the head-on battle with the imperial officers and soldiers and win, and the development process of the Yan Xiao team was also the same. With Zhao Bing's effective control of the private salt channels, the alliance between the Yan Xiao and the Yan Xiao gradually turned the Yan Xiao's alliance into an organized "criminal gang".

Then he used the dispatched officials and military backbones to turn them into combat-capable armed forces, and then annexed scattered bandits and bandits to control some areas through battle. The salt owls gained leadership power in the local grassroots society. If a village joins their organization, the village will not have to worry about being attacked by bandits; on the contrary, if a village does not have their people, nearby armed forces will soon snatch everything here.

The local organizations of the Yuan Dynasty went to the countryside, Li (fang, xiang), or township, Li (ju, capital), and set up township Dong, Lizheng, and Dudong. At the grassroots level, there were village communities and Lijia organizations. Fifty families were organized into a society, with Han landlords and township officials as the presidents, responsible for ruling the grassroots level and urging taxes. Above the president, there were Mongolian officials to supervise; and Mongolian troops or the Red Army of the Disaster Army were sent to the community to form a society together with the people to carry out military control. Under the village community, there were Lijia, and twenty households were organized into one family, with Jia and Jia, who were appointed by the Mongolians and Semu people, had supreme power, and food and clothing were provided by the villagers.

In this way, there were two forces in the local area. The Yuan court used state machines to maintain local public security and collect taxes. In addition, the Mongolians at the grassroots level were greedy and domineering, and the local tyrants and evil gentry also took advantage of the opportunity to rush into the countryside. The people were bullied and they could not afford to wear official uniforms, so they could only seek help from those salt owls, which could often be satisfactory.
Chapter completed!