Zhou Zhong did not take too many people with him when he came back this time. Shenying's Jingying and Qu Lie, and Chang Xiao's navy were still stationed at the port of Malacca. After all, the place had just stabilized and a large number of troops must be stationed. Portugal

Although people do not change in a short period of time

I will come back again, but I have to beware of the Malacca people. After all, Zhou Zhong forcefully took the Malacca Port away from the Kingdom of Malacca, which made many Malacca people very unwilling. In addition, there are local tyrants like the Huang family, so not

It's impossible to be careful.

It is precisely for this reason that when Zhou Chong left, he only took ten warships with him. These warships were not to protect his safety, but to transport the spoils of the battle, such as some collections found on the Portuguese warships.

goods and weapons, as well as the belongings in the warehouses in Malacca, etc. The total value of these things has exceeded four to five million taels, and even to this day

Even Zhou Chong did not fully understand the value of these things, because many of them were the private collection of the King of Malacca, including calligraphy, paintings, and antiques. Most of his soldiers were illiterate soldiers who did not know anything except gold and silver.

Tang Bohu and others were extremely busy with other things, so in the end they could only take a rough inventory, planning to transport them back to Shuangyu Port for further inventory.

The ten warships were filled with supplies and property, and the draft was very deep, so the journey was not fast. Moreover, it was already autumn and it was the windy season at sea. Therefore, for safety reasons, Zhou Chong and the others followed the coastline.

They walked and anchored immediately when something went wrong. By the time they returned to Shuangyu Port, it was already October.

When Zhou Chong and others sent out troops, they wanted to keep it secret, so the entire Shuangyu Port did not know when the entire army left. However, when they defeated the Portuguese and actually occupied Malacca Port, they immediately spread the news widely in Shuangyu Port.

, firstly, it is to promote the prestige of the Admiral's Palace. Secondly, it is to let all maritime merchants know that the Malacca Port belongs to the Ming Dynasty, and they can go and dock with confidence.

Not to mention, when the news that the Ming Dynasty occupied Malacca spread in Shuangyu Port, it immediately caused a huge sensation, especially those who had taken the Nanyang route in the past. They usually transported goods as far as Malacca, but every day

I have to pay a heavy tax every time, now it’s better

After the Ming Dynasty occupied it, the tax revenue was reduced by more than half compared to Malacca City. There might even be Ming Dynasty warships patrolling along the way. This made them all very excited. They all accelerated their preparation of goods and went to Malacca to see it with their own eyes.

A look at Malacca Port under the Ming Dynasty.

However, although the news of occupying Malacca Port spread in Shuangyu Port, few people in the Ming Dynasty knew about it. Although Zhou Zhong sent a letter to Emperor Zhengde from the beginning, this matter was only among the top brass of the Ming Dynasty.

It is circulated among the people. Ordinary people rarely know that, after all, the Ming Dynasty is the suzerain state, and it is really not a glorious thing to occupy the capital of a vassal state.

Regarding Zhou Zhong's unauthorized occupation of the capital of the vassal state, a dispute broke out between the Ming Dynasty's cabinet and Zhengde, because the reason why the cabinet agreed to send Zhou Zhong to send troops was mainly to assist the Kingdom of Malacca and help them repel the Portuguese.

Zhou Zhong was not allowed to occupy Malacca Port, but now Zhou Zhong occupied it without authorization. This caused Li Dongyang and other cabinet ministers to impeach Zhou Zhong. However,

When Zhengde showed the list of loot sent by Zhou Zhong and the annual tax revenue of Malacca Port, he immediately shut up Li Dongyang and others. After all, the Ming Dynasty was short of money now, and every year they had a headache due to the empty treasury.

, now seeing that a small Malacca can actually provide so much tax revenue, they all wisely closed their eyes and chose to acquiesce to this matter that violated the teachings of the saints.

The imperial court's acquiescence and the cheers of the Shuangyu Port maritime merchants for this matter made Zhou Zhong's reputation even more powerful. So when he returned with ten warships, the entire Shuangyu Port was excited. Countless people

He put down his business and drove the boat outside the port, just to take a look at the legendary Admiral of the Four Seas.

Before approaching the port, everyone on Zhou Zhong's ship also got busy. Under Zhou Zhong's instructions, everyone on the ship moved the gold and silver belongings hidden in the cabin to the deck. In addition, there were also treasures seized from the Portuguese.

Artillery, muskets, and even hundreds of Portuguese prisoners of war. These prisoners of war had no special skills and were sent to the capital by Zhou Zhong to claim credit from Zhengde.

People in the Central Plains pay attention to being reserved, and at the same time they also pay attention to not revealing their wealth. No matter how wealthy they are, most of them hide their money tightly. But Zhou Chong did the opposite this time and kept all his money.

The trophies are all moved to the deck, because this is the most direct manifestation of the military's military exploits. At the same time, these properties can also tell everyone how rich Nanyang is, stimulating more people to invest in Nanyang's maritime trade without hesitation.

Zhou Zhong's method achieved unexpected results. When their warship just approached Shuangyu Port, those who ran out of the port to watch the excitement saw the belongings piled on the deck of the warship, and their eyes widened.

Most people have seen gold, silver, and gems, but who has seen rows of big boxes filled with these things, and ten battleships in a row are filled with such big boxes? How can this be?

The battleship is simply the treasure ship of the legendary Sanbao eunuch!

"Boom~" After a brief shock, the welcoming ships on both sides immediately seemed to explode, so people pointed at the treasures on the ship and talked about it. Many misers even looked at it with jealousy and clenched their fists.

He was gritting his teeth and his eyes were so red that they were almost bleeding. If it weren't for the warships of the Ming Dynasty that were transporting these belongings, they might have dared to rush in and rob them.

What matters most to Zhou is this effect. He is seen standing on the bow of the front battleship, waving to the ships on both sides as he moves forward. Shuangyu Port is his home base, and many people here are his former acquaintances.

A few brave ones even greeted Zhou Zhong loudly, and Zhou Zhong responded equally loudly. This also made many people praise the Admiral for his lack of airs and for not forgetting his origins.

The warship passed through the welcoming fleet and quickly docked at the port. What Zhou Chong did not expect was that many officials came to greet him at the port, and even officials such as Ningbo Governor Yu Wenyuan and Tongzhi Lu Kuo

They were all here, standing on the port with smiles to greet Zhou Chong. As for the Shipping Secretary, Yang Tong and others who had just been driven back from Nanyang, they could only stand at the back.

"Admiral, your hard work has been well accomplished. Yu and his colleagues from Ningbo Mansion have been waiting here for a long time!" As soon as Zhou Zhong stepped off the gangplank and got off the ship, Yu Wenyuan immediately stepped forward to congratulate him. Lu Kuo and others behind him also stepped forward one after another.

He saluted and congratulated Zhou Zhong on his return after his victory, and Zhou Zhong also returned the gifts one by one. For a while, the atmosphere on the dock was peaceful.

After Zhou Zhong exchanged greetings with Yu Wenyuan and others, he immediately ordered people to unload the belongings on the ship. Although Yu Wenyuan and others had received news before and knew that Zhou Zhong had gained a lot of loot this time, when they saw boxes of gold and silver

Treasures taken off the ship

When they arrived, everyone was stunned and couldn't recover for a long time. In their hearts, the Ming Dynasty was the richest land in the world, so they couldn't believe that a small overseas country could actually own it.

So much property.

There was a lot of property on the battleship, and Zhou Zhong naturally couldn't wait for them to finish unloading the things. He just gave the instructions, and the rest would naturally be completed by Yang Tong and others from the Shipping Department. After all, the government affairs of Shuangyu Port are now all

It is managed by the Municipal Shipping Department. Although these properties are the spoils of the army, they will eventually be put into the national treasury, and the inventory also requires professional personnel. It just so happens that Yang Tong and others are masters in this field.

At this time, Yu Wenyuan and others also woke up from the shock. Now they welcomed Zhou Zhong to the newly built Municipal Ship Division Yamen in the port. A group of people asked Zhou Zhong about the details of the war, and by the way, they also asked about the customs and customs of Malacca Port.

Especially regarding the trade situation of Malacca Port, Yu Wenyuan and others are very interested.

In fact, Zhou Chong also knew that Yu Wenyuan and the others did not really care about the war situation between themselves and the Portuguese. What they really cared about was the trade in Malacca Port. After all, the gold and silver treasures they had just moved off the ship had greatly tempted them. Now

They were asking him about the situation at the port in a roundabout way. It was estimated that when they returned, they would immediately order the fleet under their name to rush to Malacca.

After chatting for a while, Yu Wenyuan and the others stood up to leave and told Zhou Zhong that they had booked a banquet at the largest restaurant in the port, which was actually the internal restaurant of Zhou Zhong's Beigang Trading Center, and would welcome Zhou Zhong in the evening.

In fact, the reception banquet was supposed to start soon, but Yu Wenyuan and the others were well-informed and knew that while Zhou Zhong was leading the army, Zhou Zhong's wife gave birth to a daughter for him. Now he must be eager to return home to visit his wife immediately.

and their daughter, so Yu Wenyuan and the others stopped being evil people and let Zhou Chong go home for the time being, and it would not be too late to pick him up again in the evening.

Zhou Zhong was also very grateful to Yu Wenyuan and the others for their attentiveness. After standing up and thanking everyone, he immediately turned around and ran home. From the moment his feet set foot on the port, he wanted to run home and take a look.

Jinxuan and her daughter were unfortunately entangled by Yu Wenyuan and the others and could not escape.

Zhou Zhong rushed home like a gust of wind, his face full of anxiety and excitement. After all, he was a father for the first time in two lives, and he was about to see his first child.

This made Zhou Zhong feel a little uneasy.
Chapter completed!