In September, the newly allied Great Zhou, Qing, and Jin Kingdom finally made their move.
According to the information from the Mountain Sea Garrison's office in the capital, a caravan from the Zhou Dynasty had arrived in the capital. They appeared to be doing business, but they were secretly transporting weapons and equipment for the Qing Dynasty.
Large amounts of armors and weapons were disguised as ordinary goods and secretly transported back to the Zhou Dynasty.
Ouyang Shuo immediately sensed that something was amiss. "With the military capabilities of the Zhou Dynasty, why would they need to buy weapons and equipment from the Qing Dynasty? This doesn't make sense. "
There must be something fishy about this.
The information from the Mountain Sea Garrison confirmed Ouyang Shuo's deduction.
The weapons and equipment were not transported to Handan City, but were instead transported south to Haijin Port. Under the personal escort of the Handan Fleet, they disappeared into the vast ocean.
At this point, Ouyang Shuo had basically figured out the enemy's intentions.
"Saving the country in a roundabout way?"
If Ouyang Shuo was right, the weapons and equipment from the Qing Dynasty were sent to the Jin Kingdom, and the Zhou Dynasty was just acting as a middleman.
The Jin Kingdom also had a port, so they could travel by sea without anyone noticing.
After conquering Goryeo and incorporating it into the Northern Frontier Province, the Xia Kingdom's coastal fleet was no longer limited to the Bohai Sea. The Yellow Sea and Dongying Sea were also under their jurisdiction.
With the support of Goryeo and Goryeo, the coastal fleet could already compete with the Handan Fleet.
Even so, in order to protect the Pacific Ocean trade route shared by the Great Xia, Great Zhou, and Great Jin, the Xia Kingdom's coastal fleet did not announce its existence too aggressively.
The entire sea was relatively neutral.
Now, it seemed that Di Chen was getting ahead of himself. He was actually using the loose sea route to smuggle for his allies, directly violating the core interests of the Xia Kingdom.
"It's time to teach the Zhou Dynasty a lesson!"
If the Handan Fleet wanted to transport weapons and equipment to the Jin Kingdom, they had to pass through the Goryeo Strait. Currently, the strait was jointly controlled by the Xia Kingdom and the Zhou Dynasty.
Because the Zhou Dynasty occupied Kyushu Island, they had a certain say in the passage of the Goryeo Strait.
Once the Handan Fleet entered the Dongying Sea, they could only be at the mercy of the Xia Kingdom. The Xia Kingdom occupied Goryeo and Yingzhou County, and had absolute control over the Dongying Sea.
Ouyang Shuo immediately ordered the Coastal Fleet and the Pacific Fleet to set up defenses in the Japan Sea under the guise of a joint exercise. They would conduct routine searches on passing ships to ensure the safety of the exercise.
His true intention was to seize the merchant ships that were transporting weapons and equipment from the Great Zhou Dynasty. As long as he could obtain crucial evidence of the Great Zhou Dynasty's involvement in the war with the Great Xia Dynasty, Ouyang Shuo would have his own plans.
…
The Great Xia army had always been swift and decisive.
Following Ouyang Shuo's command, the Great Xia Navy immediately took action.
The Third, Fourth, and Fifth Fleets of the Coastal Fleet, and the Second, Third, and Fourth Fleets of the United Pacific Fleet were all active in the East Ocean. They had weaved an inescapable net and were just waiting for the Handan fleet to take the bait.
A sudden collision occurred in the blink of an eye.
Now, it all depended on whether Di Chen was mentally prepared for such a situation.
…
Handan City, Palace.
After ascending to the throne, Di Chen built a magnificent palace. Unlike Ouyang Shuo, as a member of an aristocratic family, Di Chen's blood flowed with the poison of feudalism. He had once dreamed of being an emperor.
This was evident from the surname 'Di'.
In the imperial study, the peerless Feng Hua, who had been promoted to the Great Zhou Dynasty's Secretariat of Seals, frowned slightly and said worriedly, "I keep feeling that this is a little too rash."
Di Chen was wearing a purple dragon robe and had a serious expression. "What's rash about it? Isn't funding the Jin Kingdom to curb the expansion of the Great Xia Dynasty in the north our strategy long ago? "
"That's right. However, the East Ocean is ultimately the territory of the Great Xia. Aren't you afraid of causing a misunderstanding with the Great Xia Dynasty if the Handan fleet barges in so casually? "
Speaking of this, Di Chen got angry.
After the war in East Ocean, not only did the Great Zhou Dynasty lose the hearts of the people, but they also only obtained two small islands after a lot of hard work. The biggest piece of meat was swallowed by the Great Xia Dynasty.
What made Di Chen even more upset was that after the Great Xia Coastal Fleet left the Bohai Sea, the control of the entire surrounding sea area was divided again. This made the Handan fleet, who previously had exclusive control of this sea area, very uncomfortable.
Di Chen arranged for the Handan fleet to escort the East Ocean because he had the intention of competing with Ouyang Shuo.
"So what if they barge in? That old fox is so prideful. Would he dare to take the risk of starting an internal conflict and start a war with us? "Di Chen's expression was full of mockery.
It has to be said that Di Chen had really grasped Ouyang Shuo's intentions this time.
It was precisely because of this that Di Chen was fearless and dared to provoke the Great Xia. "As long as we don't start an internal conflict, the Great Zhou Dynasty will be safe." Di Chen judged.
Xiong Ba and the rest also agreed with this point.
Although they agreed, they did not feel good in their hearts. "Since when did the safety of the Great Zhou Dynasty start to depend on the charity of the Great Xia? How ironic. "
Although it was ironic, they had to swallow this bitter pill.
The newly established Great Zhou Dynasty not only had limited space for external expansion, but there were also many hidden dangers within. Marquis Xiong Ba of Wu, Marquis Zhan Lang of Qi and Lord Chunshen of Chu were entrenched in one area.
After the end of the war, the Great Zhou Dynasty also had Xiangyang's Song Dynasty and Jianye's Ming Dynasty. Whether it was the Song Dynasty or the Ming Dynasty, they were stronger than the Great Xia's Shu Han and Great Sui, giving Di Chen and the rest a headache.
If the Great Zhou Dynasty had not taken the initiative to express goodwill to the Great Qing Dynasty, their situation would have been even more difficult.
Furthermore, the Great Zhou Dynasty's poor performance in the battle of Dongying had finally borne fruit. Recently, there had been a loss of talent within the Great Zhou Dynasty. Although the number was not large, it was enough to make Di Chen wary.
This meant that the Chinese players' trust in the Great Zhou Dynasty was gradually disintegrating.
"The loss of talent is a sign of the decline of a dynasty." In order to stabilize the situation, Di Chen had to increase the support for the talents within the country and give them a more favorable residence policy.
This was another huge expenditure.
After the battle of Dongying, the Great Xia and Great Jin had forcefully entered the Pacific Ocean. This had already affected the foreign trade of the Great Zhou Dynasty, causing their profits to shrink. Increasing expenditure now was tantamount to adding fuel to the fire.
Under such circumstances, Di Chen withstood the pressure and made the strategic decision of allying with the Jin Dynasty to resist the Great Xia Dynasty. This would allow the Great Zhou Dynasty to obtain a wider strategic space.
Think about it, once the Great Zhou Dynasty brought the Great Xia Dynasty's Northern Borderline Province under their rule, the sea and the sky would be wide. At this moment, someone suddenly came in to report, "Your Majesty, there is an urgent message from the Handan Fleet!"
Di Chen's heart skipped a beat. He immediately had a bad feeling.
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