The Dragon Boat Festival in 1803 had already passed the Grain Full season, which means the rivers are full of water. After Grain Full comes the Grain in Ear season, which is the time when there is plenty of rain, so the river water is relatively turbulent.

At this time, it was not so easy for a dragon boat to row across the Yangtze River. It could only go diagonally downward and then diagonally downward.

However, because the team was selected from the entire army, the distance was limited. They could only go one mile down and could not exceed two miles round trip.

Chen Gu placed 1,000 taels of silver at two locations on his side. Whoever got the silver won, and whoever didn't got the silver lost. If he lost, his military rank would be demoted by one level, and if he won 1,000 taels of silver, it would be a reward.

"Boom, boom, boom!" After a burst of drum sound, two dragon boats shot out like sharp swords.

In the Yangtze River, two warships were firmly fixed in the water by anchors.

Chen Gu raised his glass on the boat and gestured to Qing Gui and others on the opposite boat, and said with a smile: "It seems that the North is really not good at naval warfare. I'm afraid that the old man's plan will fail!"

Qing Gui gave a bitter smile and then said, "You two are just playing around for fun, there is no plan at all. The soldiers under your command are useless, which makes the leader laugh."

"It's not that they are useless, it's just that they don't know why they are fighting. However, the soldiers of my Huaxia tribe understand that if they don't fight hard, they will have nothing to eat or wear, and their wives and children will have no place to live. How can they not try their best?" Chen Gu sighed.

"They can fight for survival today, but what about in the future? The leader should understand that people's hearts are hard to fill!" Qing Gui said with a smile.

"Let's talk about the future later. Let's survive first. Future people will solve the problems. If they can't be solved, we can just create it again!" Chen Gu said nonchalantly.

"The leader is indeed open-minded, but why should we do this? When a country prospers, the people suffer; when a country perishes, the people also suffer!" Qing Gui said with a wry smile.

"The people are already suffering, and it doesn't matter if they suffer a little more. At least this time we can drag the powerful and wealthy to suffer together, right?" Chen Gu said with a smile.

Qinggui shook his head and stopped talking. After ordering people to raise the anchor, the Qing army's warships slowly sailed towards Hanyang.

Chen Gu drank the wine in his glass and watched the final competition among the four dragon boats. It was obvious that the dragon boat of the Huaxia tribe had won. The two dragon boats with red flags left the two dragon boats with dragon flags far behind.

"Let's weigh anchor and go back!" Chen Gu ordered.

"Weigh anchor!"

After Zheng Ming took a look at Qinggui's warship, he frowned and asked Chen Gu, "What does Qinggui mean by this?"

"Who knows?" Chen Gu smiled and said, "Maybe Jiaqing wants to divide the country by the river!"

"Is he willing to give up such a large piece of territory south of the Yangtze River?" Zheng Ming asked in surprise.

"What else?" Chen Gu raised his eyebrows and said with a smile: "Although Jiaqing has done a lot of things this year to stabilize the situation, it is far from enough to counterattack, and as time goes by, the strength of both sides will only grow stronger.

After all, the overall environment of China is no longer a situation where the north is strong and the south is weak. In comparison, the north is much poorer than the south.

The South is not only rich in resources, but also has the benefits of maritime trade. The mistake of the Qing Dynasty was to close the country to the outside world. If they had vigorously developed the maritime trade navy, they would be at least several times stronger than they are now. Send an envoy to inform Cai Qian and ask him if he is interested in the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Chinese Navy. If not, then I will have to form my own navy. If so, then come to Wuchang to report on your work!"

"He dares to come to Wuchang?" Zheng Ming said with a smile.

"Whether they dare to come is one thing, and whether we ask or not is another. No matter what, we have to give them a chance. As for how to choose, that is his business." Chen Gu said with a smile.

Zheng Ming nodded, then frowned and asked, "What are you going to do with Guangdong? The deaths of Zhang Jinxiu and Chen Si are a bit strange. Under such a good situation, the two leaders died in battle, and died together in such a short period of time."

"The Tiandihui matter is indeed a bit difficult to handle. Cai Qian is just a pirate after all, but the Tiandihui has a legacy, and even in terms of anti-Qing qualifications, they are older than us.

Let's put it aside for now, and wait until Cai Qian's matter is dealt with. After all, it's just a province. Although it's important, it won't cause any waves!" Chen Gu frowned and said.

Fujian and Guangdong must be unified. Of course, we must pay attention to the methods and approaches. After all, they are allies and it is impossible for them to fall out without any reason.

Chen Gu did not wait for Cai Qian, but the envoy of Nguyen Phuc Anh of Annam arrived in Wuchang first.

"Zheng Huaide and Li Guangding of Annan pay homage to the leader of Huaxia!"

"No need for formalities. My Huaxia tribe has abolished the ritual of kneeling and bowing. From now on, you will only need to bow when meeting someone!" Chen Gu took the letters brought by the two and looked at them carefully.

With the help of Britain, Nguyen Phuc Anh conquered the entire Annam. Since Annam had always been a vassal state of China, Nguyen Phuc Anh sent an envoy with a letter requesting Chen Gu's bestowal of the title.

Nguyen Phuc Anh took the "Nan" from "Annan" and the "Yue" from "Vietnam" and asked Chen Gu to name the country "Nanyue".

Chen Gu didn't know the difference between Vietnam and South Vietnam, but Annan was finally called Vietnam, not South Vietnam, so Chen Gu handed the letter to Zheng Ming and asked, "Look, I always feel that the name South Vietnam is a bit wrong."

Zheng Minggang received the letter and heard Chen Gu say the word "Nanyue". He immediately said, "Of course it is not right. Nanyue is a larger territory, and Guangdong and Guangxi are both included in it. Nguyen Phuc Anh has all of Annan, which is just the old territory of Jiaozhi. He actually dared to ask for the name of his country to be Nanyue. Does Nguyen Phuc Anh want our Guangdong and Guangxi?"

Chen Gu's eyes turned cold when he looked at Zheng Huaide and Li Guangding, "Your king is so brave!"

"We dare not!" The two men knelt down immediately in fear under Chen Gu's gaze. Zheng Huaide said quickly: "The king only wants Annan to be crowned as the leader, and he dare not covet the land of Guangdong and Guangxi. No, the king absolutely has no intention of coveting Guangdong and Guangxi. I hope the leader will see it clearly!"

Chen Gu narrowed his eyes and thought for a while, then said: "Annan was originally called Jiaozhi. It has been our homeland since ancient times. The Qing Dynasty was unworthy and caused us to be separated from our homeland for many years. Go back and tell Nguyen Phuc Anh that I can only make him a high-ranking official in Annam at most.

If you don't want to, then go and ask the Qing Emperor to confer the title on you!"

"Ah, this~!" Zheng Huaide and the other man were dumbfounded. They naturally knew what a high-ranking official meant. If they brought back a title of a high-ranking official, no, it was just a position.

If the two of them returned with a high-ranking official position, I am afraid Nguyen Phuc Anh would kill them on the spot. As for asking the Qing court to confer the title, the Qing court itself can hardly protect itself now!

(End of this chapter)