Chapter 492 - Secret Visit to Bopu (Part 1)

Ignoring the problem appeared to work. After some time, the pleas for assistance from Lingao—which had once arrived every seven or eight days—ceased entirely. Tang Yunwen grew deeply anxious that the Lingao county seat might have fallen. If so, some rival could impeach him for "failing to rescue the dying," and matters would grow complicated. He dispatched agents to the prefectural yamen to make inquiries, and they reported that the courier road to Lingao remained open and the county seat stood intact. This brought him considerable relief. Since peace prevailed and no incidents had occurred, there was no need to rack his brains further.

Tang Yunwen simply put the matter of the great iron ship out of his mind. Compared to that mysterious vessel in Lingao, he faced more pressing troubles. Liu Xiang, a rising star on the Guangdong seas, was harassing and plundering around the Pearl River Estuary with ambitions of monopolizing Guangdong's overseas trade. Occasionally, his forces ventured to the waters of Qiongzhou, Leizhou, and Lianzhou to seize salt and sugar ships. The old pirate lord Zhu Cailao showed no weakness, clashing with Liu Xiang happily across the Guangdong seas. The chaos in Fujian waters also spilled over to disturb the Guangdong coast. People came and went, smoke rose everywhere, and calls for Tang Yunwen to mobilize his troops for "joint suppression" arrived one after another. He led his forces into battle repeatedly, moving between the Fujian and Guangdong seas, his seat never warm, battered and exhausted.

With Zhu Cailao's defeat and death at Nanri Island, Tang Yunwen finally had opportunity to breathe. He withdrew his forces to base camp for rest. Yet shortly after returning to White Sand Water Fortress, unsettling news reached him. Patrol boats had captured scattered pirate stragglers who confessed that remnants of Zhu Cailao's organization had fled to Lingao. Seventy or eighty vessels and over a thousand men.

These pirate remnants who had sought refuge in Lingao were now dispatching agents across the Guangdong seas to recruit surrendered pirates and renegades, constantly luring Zhu Cailao's former subordinates to Lingao to "defect to the Australians." This was the first time Tang Yunwen had encountered the name "Australians." He hurriedly sent spies to Lingao again to gather intelligence.

The news they brought back shocked him profoundly. It transpired that the Australians who had arrived in the great iron ship had not only failed to depart but were actively constructing houses and docks at Bopu, apparently intending to remain in Lingao permanently. This reminded him of the Franks' past attempt to build a city and establish residence at Tunmen—the same Franks who later gained their foothold in Macao. Could these Australians intend to replicate that old stratagem?

This was a grave matter that could not be ignored. Tang Yunwen grew tense. He understood perfectly the Imperial Court's stance toward such overseas peoples—with the sole exception of Macao, they were absolutely forbidden to remain on Great Ming's soil, let alone construct cities and docks. Whether it was Shuangyu and Tunmen in earlier times or Penghu during the Tianqi reign, the court's position remained consistent: for Westerners seeking to stay and build cities on Ming territory, there was only one word—"Fight."

Reflecting on this, he dared not play deaf and mute any longer. Counting from the iron ship's arrival, this group of overseas "Australians" had been in Lingao for almost a year. In that year, they had probably established a firm foothold, which explained their aggressive efforts to recruit Zhu Cailao's remnants and expand their strength.

Viewed in this light, the situation in Lingao was alarming. Tang Yunwen hurriedly sent agents everywhere to collect news from Lingao. The results surprised him. Over the past year, Lingao had not only sent no pleas for help against pirate invasions—it had repeatedly presented severed pirate heads, captured seals, flags, and documents to the prefecture. Among these trophies were notorious pirate leaders wanted by the government. Even several heads of Western pirates had been submitted.

"Magistrate Wu Mingjin of Lingao has become a first-rate popular official," Jiang Youling informed him. With pirate activity virtually extinct in Lingao waters, the Prefect regarded him highly.

"What of these so-called Australians?"

"That is where matters grow strange." Jiang Youling paused meaningfully. "Magistrate Wu has never once mentioned the Australians in his correspondence with the prefectural yamen."

"You mean..." Tang Yunwen lowered his voice, "Magistrate Wu is colluding with the Australians?"

"Whether outright collusion exists is difficult to say, but at minimum, there appears to be a tacit agreement of mutual non-aggression."

"Wu Mingjin is extraordinarily bold," Tang Yunwen remarked. "Yet it seems Lingao is quite peaceful."

"More than merely peaceful." Jiang Youling's expression grew more pointed. Lingao had become a major destination within Qiongzhou Prefecture. Merchants traveling there for business arrived in an endless stream, and every day considerable numbers of mainland merchants transferred ships at Shenying Port bound for Lingao.

"An external counter of the Gaoguang Shipping Company now operates in Shenying Port. Anyone wishing to travel to Lingao simply purchases a ticket at the counter and boards a ship. Remarkably convenient."

A degree of local prosperity and commercial vitality rarely witnessed on the island had emerged in Lingao—and it was obviously connected to the Australians. Wu Mingjin had served as Lingao's magistrate for several years without achieving such results. The great iron ship had arrived for twelve months and the situation had advanced by leaps and bounds. No one would believe the Australians were uninvolved.

Tang Yunwen resolved to visit Bopu personally to assess the situation. Information obtained through hearsay inevitably contained unreliable elements. He would decide his course afterward.

Thus he found himself disguised as a fisherman, personally sailing out to investigate the truth.

"Raise sail—proceed to Changgong Bay," Tang Yunwen ordered his men.

Changgong Bay lay just west of Lingao Cape, a traditional fishing ground for the area with numerous boats operating. With sails dotting the sea surface, blending in should be straightforward.

Unexpectedly, the boat boss serving as guide shook his head. "Vice Commander! It isn't that I refuse to go. To fish in Lingao waters, you need something called a 'license' and must display a small flag on the mast. I haven't obtained one. If we sail over and cast nets, the Australian fast boats will come to inspect. At best, they confiscate the catch. At worst, they confiscate the boat itself."

"What is this license business?"

"I understand you're only permitted to fish in Lingao waters if you receive a flag, and you must surrender one-fifth of the catch as daily tax."

Tang Yunwen nodded. The Australians certainly knew how to extract revenue. The marine catch in the Lingao area was exceptionally rich. Controlling this territory and levying fees on fishermen would yield considerable income. He himself received three or four thousand taels annually in tribute from fishing masters across the island.

"Since that is the case, do not bother casting nets. Simply bring the boat closer."

The boat boss was helpless. He did not know Tang Yunwen's precise identity, but the passengers were clearly officers from the government garrison at White Sand Water Fortress. Those who made their living on the water could ill afford to provoke such figures. Combined with the greed stirred by the promised "extra silver," he risked bringing the boat toward Lingao Cape.

Propelled by the great yuloh, the vessel approached Lingao Cape quietly. Fishing season was in full swing, and many boats worked the waters. This two-masted fishing boat blended inconspicuously into the fleet.

The boat boss remained visibly anxious, glancing about constantly and urging haste. Tang Yunwen privately laughed at the man's timidity—with so many boats present, how could the Australians possibly monitor them all? He proceeded to raise his telescope and observe Lingao Cape.

Tang Yunwen had passed Lingao Cape dozens of times while leading patrol vessels. It had been a natural rock embankment with nothing upon it.

Now Lingao Cape had transformed utterly. On the promontory extending into the sea stood a circular battery with multiple protruding bastions along its exterior. The structure was not tall, but it had been built with extraordinary solidity and thickness, constructed entirely of massive stones. On the platform, he could vaguely discern an enormous iron cannon—far larger in appearance than the Red Barbarian cannons purchased by the Imperial Court.

Numerous jetties had been constructed at Lingao Cape, all paved with great stones, wide and level as broad roads. Large and small vessels lay moored there. People and carts came and went along the embankment—a scene of bustling activity. Many identical tall wooden frames with large wooden wheels had been erected along the waterfront, extending long crane arms that hoisted cargo back and forth—something resembling well sweeps.

Tang Yunwen felt secret alarm. Setting aside the cannons' power, merely constructing such a solid platform and these stone jetties at Lingao Cape... if government forces undertook such a project, even with adequate funding and no concerns, he estimated it would require at least two or three years.

"My Lord, the beacon tower!" His personal guard Zhang Wen reminded him in a low voice.

The beacon tower too had changed appearance. Originally, the bricks and stones surfacing this structure had mostly crumbled away, portions having collapsed back to earth. Wild grass and small trees had overgrown it, lending it the appearance of a small earthen hill. Now the tower had been entirely re-faced with brick. Trees and weeds had been cleared away completely. A small structure had been built atop it, and he could vaguely make out what appeared to be a very large iron cannon.

Tang Yunwen found this puzzling. The beacon tower certainly offered a commanding field of view and could see extremely far, but mounting a cannon upon it seemed pointless—the Red Barbarian cannons purchased by the Imperial Court had a maximum range of only four or five hundred zhang and possessed virtually no accuracy. This beacon tower stood five or six li from the waters of Bopu. If the cannon fired, would the ball not simply strike the land?

Could it be the shot could actually reach the sea? That would mean this cannon could fire at least five or six li! Tang Yunwen was a general with genuine combat experience who had engaged Europeans. Unlike literati who scribbled nonsense about firearms tactics, he knew the claims of Western cannons "reaching ten li" were pure fabrication. Yet facing this group of Australians and their massive ordnance, contemplating the implications left him deeply unsettled. The largest cannon on his own ships could not match even the Franks' Red Barbarian cannons. If he came to suppress the Australians at Bopu, presumably his fleet would be blown to smithereens before coming within engagement range.

Reflecting on this, he could not help feeling grateful that he had heeded Jiang Youling's counsel. Had he actually come with suppression in mind, defeat would have been getting off lightly—his entire force might have been annihilated.

Yet as his thoughts turned, his mood grew heavy once more. Viewing the situation, the Australians were calculating the same way as the Franks and the Red-haired barbarians during the Tianqi reign—preparing to build a city at Bopu and remain permanently. If so, the court would inevitably issue a decree for suppression sooner or later.

But not this year, Tang Yunwen reasoned. Recently, the Eastern Barbarians had suddenly bypassed Mongolia to breach the passes, capturing several cities in succession, their forces pointing directly at Zunhua and shaking the capital itself. The court probably had no attention to spare for this matter at present. If local authorities conducted an encirclement and suppression campaign, it would likely require a joint effort by Guangdong and Fujian...

(End of Chapter)