A Fujian wooden ship that looks a little dilapidated arrived at the dock of Hekou City. It is the best time of the year. The clouds and water are blue and the sea breeze is cool. Although it is located in the tropical region, the temperature is still tolerant for visitors from the north during the first month of each year.

Hakou City is located in later Thailand, close to Bangkok, at the mouth of the Chao Phraya River, so it is named Hakou City.

The sovereignty of this place belongs to the Angkor Dynasty. It was introduced by the Hailu Maritime Mansion Department of the Song Dynasty and rented land from the Angkor Dynasty and built this market with timber trading as its main business.

The reason why it was a loan honestly rather than sending troops to rob is mainly because the Angkor dynasty is also in its heyday.

The one who ruled Angkor now was Sujavarmo II, who was born in the Malay royal family. His territory "goes to the sea in the east, to Bagan in the west, and to Garossi in the south (north of the Malay Peninsula), with 200,000 war elephants.

Such a strong country was naturally a "non-suffering country" for the Song Dynasty, which focused its main energy on the Central Plains. However, the Great Zhou Republic had always had conflicts with Angkor.

The reason for the conflict was that the Zhou-affiliated Annan Province has been expanding to Chameng over the years, and has established large strongholds in Lu Rong (Hui) and Da Nang in the northern part of Chameng. Moreover, the troops of the Annan Province have moved south from Da Nang several times and invaded the land of Chameng.

The king of Cham City, Jay Indra Vavarman II, was defeated repeatedly and had no choice but to ask Angkor for help. King Suy Severman II of Angkor coveted the land of Cham City, so he sent troops to aid Cham City. Therefore, he started a war with the Annan province of Zhou.

Needless to say, how could Angkor's war elephant beat the Annan Provincial Army equipped with "camel cannons" and light field cannons?

So most of Chameng was eroded by Annan Province after repeated battles.

However, although Angkor was defeated repeatedly, he was a great country with a strong foundation and could not collapse in an instant.

Moreover, most of the Angkor territories are miasma and dysentery, with a hot climate and many infectious diseases, which is not very suitable for the lives of the Han people in the north.

Therefore, the Great Zhou Republic, which was dominated by the northern people, was not very interested in the destruction of Angkor, but only forced Angkor to sign several treaties to lose money, knocking down two or three million pieces of Angkor dynasty.

The failure of the Angkor dynasty on the battlefield in Champa also allowed another great power of Chinese that coveted Angkor to see opportunities for expansion.

This country is the country of the Eastern Song Dynasty that was born in the smoke of the Central Plains War.

This year, that is, the 12th year of the Republic of Great Zhou, and the second year of Jingkang in the Western Song Dynasty, for the Eastern Song Dynasty, it was the first year of Hezhong.

As the Eastern Song Dynasty ruled in Lianghuai, Jiangnan, Liangzhe, Fujian, Guangnan and other places that were originally part of the Song Dynasty, the Eastern Song Dynasty, the Hezhong Government finally had the strength to turn its attention to the overseas assets of the Song Dynasty.

Because the Western Song Dynasty had no coastline, it naturally did not take into account the huge overseas interests that originally belonged to the Song Dynasty. The one who could inherit them was naturally the Eastern Song Dynasty, which was founded in Jiangning.

Among the huge overseas assets of the Song Dynasty, the first one to attract the attention of Wu Meiniang, one of the two saints of the Eastern Song Dynasty, was not Jiaozhi and Xingzhou, but the inconspicuous Hekou City.

At least this was what Empress Wu meant when she summoned the new Zhihekou Prefecture Affairs, Zhao Tang, the general manager of the army and field commander.

Zhao Tang, who had been fainted on a Fujian wooden transport boat for almost twenty days, still remembered what Wu Meiniang said when he was shaking off the boat with his personal support.

"...Zhao Tang, now the Central Plains is three-point, Zhou State is the strongest, Guanlong (referring to the Western Song Dynasty), and the weakest is our Jiangnan. There are only two Huaihe Rivers, Liangjiang, Fujian, and Guangdong. The three-point of the Eastern Wu is one more Jingchu than ours.

But since ancient times, the small court that was more peaceful in Jiangnan had no good ending! If we don’t want to become traitors in history books, the only way is to break out!

Compared with Eastern Wu and Nanchen, we have at least a more way out to go south. Our maritime power is powerful and can build gunships of tens of thousands of materials!

But it is necessary to make good wood to make gunships. There is no good wood in Jiangnan, so I can only buy it from Zhenla Kingdom in Southeast Asia. However, I am always passive to buy other people's wood. I don't know when Zhenla Kingdom will not sell it to us!

So His Majesty and I wanted to get the territory of the Chao Phraya River Basin that produces good wood and hold it in our own hands. Isn’t it safe?

Besides, the Chao Phraya River Basin is flat and very vast, no less than that of Jiangnan! If the trees are cut down, isn’t it just a piece of fertile soil for producing rice? The size is probably enough to compare with Jiangnan all the way?

Zhao Tang, do you understand how important this assignment is? The gains and losses of the Chao Phraya River Basin are related to the rise and fall of the country. You are your Majesty’s teacher in Qingcheng Palace, and you are both civil and military, or a Ming minister. I think only you can shoulder the burden of Hekou City. So please don’t think that Hekou is far away..."

Wu Meiniang's sincerity also made Zhao Tang understand how heavy her responsibilities were.

The king of Jiangnan is relatively peaceful, and there is no way out to go west and north, so the only way out is to go south!

The key to moving south is ships, and the key to building ships is wood.

Therefore, the good teak in the Chao Phraya River Basin is the key to the rise and fall of the country.

Moreover, the Chao Phraya River Basin itself is also a large and good plain! It is far away from Angkor, the capital of the Zhenla Kingdom. The local indigenous tyrants in the Chao Phraya River are said to have never obeyed Angkor very much.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the Eastern Song Dynasty!

If we can open up an overseas path in the Chao Phraya River Basin, what if there is any future, it can be regarded as a way out...

...

"Ji Qing, although you are Ji Wenzhong's eldest son, the country is troublesome now and it is the time to use people, so you have to let you take away the love."

In the Imperial City of Jiangning Prefecture, in Zichen Hall, Ji Wenzhong, also known as Ji Yi's son Ji Jun, is meeting the two saints.

Ji Yi has two posthumous titles, one is Miao Chou, which was given to him by Zhao Huan, and the other is Wen Zhong, which was given to him by Zhao Kai.

Jiangning is Zhao Kai's territory, so Ji Yi is Ji Wenzhong Gong, a great loyal and kind person!

Ji Dazhongliang's son Ji Jun went out a long way a while ago, welcomed his deceased father's body back from Kaifeng Prefecture, and buried him in the Jijiayuan Cemetery in Shanghai.

That was a grand burial! The whole city of Shanghai was crying for the "Father of Shanghai".

Zhao Kai and Wu Meiniang generously gave the highest-level posthumous title of "Wen Zhong" and posthumously awarded Shangshu Ling and King Shen (King Shen is the King of Shanghai).

As Ji Yi's eldest son and Zhao Kai's founding hero, Ji Jun was of course an official who had to be promoted. He was promoted directly to Chengxuan Envoy, and his title was added to the founding county Duke, and he also gave 1,500 households a "true seal" - in fact, it was not real, he just received a little more money.

However, the official position has not been given yet, because Ji Jun wants to go home to be a filial son for a few days, and this is called Ding You.

There is no worry in the Great Zhou Republic now. The Great Zhou Republic emphasizes sovereignty over the people, and it governs the world by the people. Being a filial son does not matter if you serve the people!

Therefore, officials cannot die for three years of fathers, and three years of mothers... The bereavement leave is at most three months!

Both the East and the Song dynasties have the sign of "filial son". Since they are filial sons, of course they have to worry.

However, Ji Jun didn't have the opportunity to rest for three years, and he was in love after staying for a few months.

Because the Eastern Song Dynasty's policy of going south requires Ji Da's filial son to do his best.

Wu Meiniang spoke in a deep voice: "Ji Qing, King Zhao Qi of Jiaozhi has never expressed his loyalty to Your Majesty until now, and his intentions are ulterior motives!"

Zhao Qi is Zhao Ji's eighth son and was named King of Jiaozhi. He had already settled in the country a few years ago. He now lives in Shenglong Mansion in Jiaozhi Kingdom.

During the dispute between the two Song dynasties, Zhao Qi, the king of Jiaozhi, adopted a policy of standing by the fence, and neither expressed his allegiance to Chang'an nor to Jiangning. It was vaguely meaning of independence...

Chang'an has no choice but to do anything to him, and it can't reach him anyway.

But Jiangnan has a navy, how can Jiaozhi be independent?

One of the important reasons why Jiaozhi was able to leave China in history was that the Song Dynasty did not have a powerful naval fleet at that time.

But now the Eastern Song Dynasty is a maritime power!

"But your Majesty is kind!" Wu Meiniang glanced at Zhao Kai who was standing side by side with her and said, "I can't bear to attack my brothers. So I wanted to face him with his might and force him to surrender!

Now the navy is ready and will go south with more than 100 gunboats. But there is still a lack of Jiaozhi. So I want Ji Qing to take a trip to Shenglong Mansion. Is Ji Qing confident?"

"I'm sure."

Ji Jun now inherits most of his father Ji Yi's political heritage and has influence in Jiaozhi - many nobles and generals of Jiaozhi Kingdom are Ji Yi's old friends.

Wu Meiniang nodded, "Assigning to Jiaozhi is just the beginning... and then there is also the important task of pursuing Zhenla. Can you take it?"

What? Ji Jun was stunned and said after a while: "Your Majesty, Empress, Zhenla is a great country with hundreds of thousands of troops, a vast territory, a complex terrain, and a hot climate, which is not suitable for the Central Plains soldiers to conquer..."

The elephant soldiers of Zhenla are not a problem, but this weather and miasma are troublesome.

"That's why we have to send troops from Jiaozhi! Use Jiaozhi soldiers and our military officers from the Song Dynasty to attack the Zhenla Kingdom!" Wu Meiniang said, "Just just received the news that the Northern Zhou Dynasty is launching a large-scale increase in troops from Japan Hirado Island, and it seems that there is an attempt to use troops against Japan. For our country, this is an opportunity to use troops south!

Zhenla is a great southern country, so it is naturally the first choice for military use. Even if it cannot be destroyed in one sentence, it should fully occupy the Chao Phraya River Basin to the north of Xingzhou. In the future, a country will be established there to guard it with a prince!"

Wu Meiniang is not Wu Meiniang, she is a 100% good wife and mother. She has never had the idea of ​​usurping the throne and becoming a queen, just wanting to have a little king with Zhao Kai... After all, the Eastern Song Dynasty is relatively peaceful! In the long run, the future is bleak.

What should I do if it is slim? Then I have to have more children and go to the South China Sea and the West is enfeoffed!
Chapter completed!