Jingming

Chapter 195
"Your Majesty the Emperor, I am here for peaceful trade. I don't understand why you treat guests from afar like this. Trade is beneficial to both countries. I brought my wife and family with me because I believe in the Eastern Master is a rational emperor. Now it seems that I overestimated you!"

"Bold!"

Seeing Alfonso holding his head high, Yang Tinghe yelled this sentence, the general staff of the Siyi Pavilion trembled: Your Majesty ordered that you must translate the original words, and the one-fifth translation is very scary, another way of saying it is not enough Is it bullying?
Fortunately, the emperor did not seem to be angry.

Zhu Houcong said disapprovingly: "In order to facilitate your understanding, I will tell you a little bit. Manga and the surrounding countries have regarded Daming as the suzerain country for many years. Since you attacked and occupied there, you have already launched a war against Daming. Since The war has already begun, so when it will end, it will be up to Da Ming to decide. Do you think that there is no man's land?"

After listening to the translation, Alfonso's expression changed.

That is an archipelago that was discovered not long ago, with rich products and backward technology.

"But we have not discovered your rule there! At such a distance from your empire, if you must use this as an excuse, then I can only think that you are not prepared to live in peace with the Portuguese Empire."

Zhu Houcong smiled lightly and said, "It's just a kingdom, don't put gold on your face just because you have snatched some overseas territories. Your homeland is no bigger than the territory of my Ming Dynasty. Laoshi's expedition occupied the vassal state protected by Ming Dynasty, and returned How dare you tell me about peaceful coexistence? This battle will not end until you retreat from Nanyang. Now, you are a prisoner."

Alfonso looked at Zhu Houcong angrily: "This is impossible!"

According to the intention of the Eastern Emperor, Manlaga will be snatched back in the future, and the power of Portugal is not allowed to get involved there.In this way, wouldn't the wealth of the East be cut off?
"Is it possible? What you say doesn't matter." Zhu Houcong continued, "Now, your king has been replaced by Joao III. I can allow you to send a letter back to your king to see if he accepts me. If you refuse, then build warships as soon as possible, recruit soldiers and send them to the east. If you want peace and trade, your king should send envoys to ask me for peace!"

Yang Tinghe hesitated to speak after hearing this, but Alfonso replied simply: "Okay. If you must go to war, Portugal will not be afraid!"

"Go ahead and let him write the letter."

Only then did Yang Tinghe say: "Your Majesty, after a few years, the new law will be completed. I will be able to guarantee that the Ming Dynasty's food and pay will be sufficient to support the soldiers' expeditions, help Manchuria to restore the country, and spread power to Nanyang. Now that the country is ordered to prepare early, does Guangdong have to always be on guard against it?" Enemy coming from Nanyang?"

Zhu Houcong just said with a cold face: "There is no foreign invasion, what is the state of the guards in the provinces along the river? Just a hundred Japanese pirates can be invincible! The coastal provinces wait for work, so why fear it? Now Japan neglects tribute, The heart of disobedience is clearly revealed. Manchujia enshrines Ming Dynasty as the master. If we can’t drive away foreign enemies for him in the future, wouldn’t the Nanyang countries turn to other countries? If all the vassal states turn against each other, then how can I face my ancestors? Zong?"

It sounds like the emperor is at odds with Yang Tinghe again.

The court counselor was thinking about it.

"Elder Yang Ge is even preparing to conquer Japan, so what are you afraid of the thousands of people sent by Portugal in Manga? I will not be too happy to rush to conquer, so don't worry, Lao Ge. I have entrusted Yang with a heavy responsibility. Mr. Ge, whether the new law can make the country rich or not depends entirely on Mr. Yang Ge."

At the end of this prisoner presenting ceremony, many people in the court councilors were thinking about it.

Since His Majesty is not planning to send troops to subjugate the Portuguese in Manga, then this is to continue to use Yang Tinghe's previous statement that he will subjugate Japan, and mainly use this matter to make a fuss about the new law.

In fact, in everyone's mind, Portugal is of course nothing.

There was a reason for Wang Hung's first defeat. Didn't he win the next two battles?
Although the Portuguese occupied Managa, but Lao Shi made an expedition to fight against Ming, naturally there was no chance of winning.

His Majesty stopped Yang Tinghe from wanting to conquer Japan, but offered to go to Manga to drive away the Portuguese in the future. This is to let Yang Tinghe focus on Guangdong first, and don't make people panic in the southeast first?
After all, there is still a five-year agreement with Jiajing.

Unbeknownst to Alfonso, Portugal was being used as a tool by the rulers and ministers of the Ming Dynasty to stimulate internal change.

He wrote a letter to Joao III seriously.

At the same time, he also recalled the process of the previous defeat.

Although the warships and artillery shells of the Eastern Empire are still slightly inferior, the gap is not as big as described by those who escaped before.

This time, many warships and artillery shells were captured, and he was escorted all the way to Beijing. He has already personally felt how huge this country is and how many people it has.

He didn't understand how many internal problems there were in Ming Dynasty, and he didn't understand that it was difficult for Ming to formally form a large navy to fight in Managa, and he didn't understand that if he had to keep fighting with the Portuguese in Managa in the future for many years How many conflicts arose within Daming.

He only knew that in terms of national strength alone, it was absolutely impossible for Portugal to formally defeat this country.

From Canton to Managa, the fleet only needs to sail for one month.From India to Manjika, the time gap is not that big.The key problem is that it's too far from Portugal.

But the position of Manga is really important, and Alfonso can't imagine how much benefit Portugal will lose after giving up Manga.All goods from the East cannot be obtained at such a low cost now, and they can make huge profits after being shipped back to Europe.

It is very difficult to defend, and this matter really needs the king to think carefully about how to deal with it.

In front of the Eastern Emperor, he suddenly heard him express his determination to take back Managa, and Alfonso said that Portugal would not be afraid.

Now that he's calmed down, he realizes it's a dead end.

After writing the letter, he was taken away again, this time into the palace of the Eastern Emperor.

Arriving at a small palace group that was not so tall, the emperor changed into a suit of clothes and sat there. Alfonso saw two maps hanging on the wall.

These two maps made Alfonso's eyes obviously fearful, because that world map seemed to be more detailed and complete than all the maps he had seen.

What was the shape of the New World discovered by the Spaniards?Is there such a huge island south of the Spice Islands?
Zhu Houcong paid attention to his performance, feeling a little happy in his heart.

The map of Ming Dynasty has existed for a long time. As for the map of the world, there have been various versions before.Although Zhu Houcong's drawing skills are not very good, it is enough to draw out the rough outline of the world map, pretend to be obtained from the foreign inspection factory, and let the people in the Wanfa Museum draw it in detail.

After the Hall of Mental Cultivation was completed, the counselors were quite shocked when they first saw the world map.

The world is so big, the consultants were the first to open their eyes.

After reading the letter translated by Tong Shi, Zhu Houcong smiled meaningfully: "Alfonso, the tone of your letter is not as tough as before."

Yang Ting and them were also circulating the letter. Although Alfonso was forced to kneel, he said truthfully: "The Portuguese did not come to the east to start a war with your empire. After I led the fleet to the seashore in the south of your empire, , but also sent envoys to negotiate a peace treaty first. Your Majesty the Emperor, war is also a great consumption of your country, but trade will benefit everyone."

"You can occupy some places in India, and you already have outposts in the East. If you don't hand over Managa, there will be no peaceful trade." Zhu Houcong shook his head, "If you want to plunder the wealth of the Spice Islands at the lowest cost, you must It is built on the basis of strength. At the gate of Daming, you are not qualified to occupy our vassal state and talk about peace."

Zhu Houcong knew that it was impossible to take back the manga by lip service, and Alfonso would not and was not qualified to make any decisions.

"I don't know how you plan to arrange our fate." Alfonso simply asked something relevant.

Now they are captives, but he doesn't realize that the Eastern Emperor intends to execute them.

"There are two options." Zhu Houcong said to him, "The first one is to taste the torture of the Celestial Dynasty in the prison like Pi Laizi and the others, and tell everything you know. The second one is to continue to have Live a decent life, and from now on, submit your allegiance to me and contribute your abilities."

Alfonso's face changed after listening to the translation.

The first one is hard to imagine the pain, and the second one is asking him to betray?

"I thought you wanted me to continue to act as an envoy to communicate with His Majesty the King. After all, I asked His Majesty the King to appoint me as an ambassador to negotiate a peaceful trade treaty acceptable to both parties with your empire."

"Whether he accepts your suggestion or not will not change the result. No matter how long it takes, the Portuguese must withdraw from the Nanyang Islands. Since you have mentioned your fate, think about it for yourself."

Alfonso looked at the young emperor.

Very tough, very determined.

He knew that the warship he brought to this country this time was almost all the mobile combat power that could be mobilized in the direction of India and Malaca in a short period of time.

Today, Portugal has only three permanent fleets: the Coastal Fleet, which patrols the Portuguese coast; the Archipelago Fleet, which protects shipping in the Atlantic Ocean; and the Channel Fleet, which protects the routes in the Mediterranean and Africa.

As for the fleet on the Indian side, they are all ad hoc fleets, which are sent from Portugal together with merchant ships every year.

There are already many overseas territories and routes. It is impossible for Portugal to give up the protection of so many places and send a huge fleet to the east.

Besides, how huge can it be?In the previous battle alone, he saw nearly a hundred large and small warships sent by that southern province.

Although there were less than ten large warships in total, it took less than half a month for them to reach the border. The warships from other parts of the empire should not be mobilized so quickly.

Now he looked at the map of this country, their coastline is so long, one can imagine how many warships are scattered everywhere.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, do you want us to betray Joao III because you want us to help your fleet fight against your own people?"

Zhu Houcong shook his head: "I don't need you. However, your warships and weapons are different from those of Ming Dynasty, so there are some merits. I have set up a hall of ten thousand arts, and you can interact with scholars and craftsmen of Ming Dynasty in it." comminicate."

Alfonso sighed: "It seems that we have no choice."

"As a prisoner, I really have no choice." Zhu Houcong laughed, "Since it is impossible for me to let you go back, why don't you try to learn the language of Ming Dynasty and try to live here."

"Then my wife and daughter..." Alfonso asked bitterly.

Zhu Houcong grinned and said, "Your daughter will be locked up in my palace first as a hostage. If you don't want to be tortured and tell what you know, it depends on whether you can take the initiative to tell what I want to know for them. Huang Jin, Ask Zhang Zuo to send him and the other captives there and keep them in the Tai Su Hall."

Alfonso stood up: "No, you can't..."

Zhu Houcong only waved his hand, and Alfonso was taken out like this.

Yang Ting and they looked at the emperor strangely.

Zhu Houcong said calmly: "Now you know why they have to occupy Manlaja for thousands of miles, right? The benefits of maritime trade are enough to make them take the risk to come here. The information sent back by the Foreign Inspection Factory, where they found the enemy in Europa In the future, after conquering them, we will guard Managa and let them bring Western goods to trade and pay taxes."

Yang Tinghe sighed: "Since I know that His Majesty intends to help Manchuria restore the country, this navy is still going to be built. Apart from Guangdong, I should also make preparations in Zhejiang."

"The Portuguese know that I want to add more money. They can only get this Ming goods from smuggled sea merchants. The official channel of the Shibo Division is broken. Let's see who still take the risk. There will definitely be more pirates. Coastal areas There will be more and more people being robbed. As for whether they are real pirates or fake robbers, I don’t care, and I will strengthen the coastal defenses and suppress Kou Anmin as Qing and others have played.”

Zhu Houcong continued: "Although the Portuguese cannot trade with Daming in Guangdong, they will definitely use Cochin and Champa as a transfer. How can Guangdong cultivate a large number of people who rely on Ming's goods to make profits in Cochin and Champa?" The rich and powerful, it depends on how the Qing and others arrange it. The goods of the wealthy merchants in the southeast are transported to Guangdong, and the tax collection by the Shibo Department will take effect within a year or two. If you don’t want to make less money and still want to smuggle and break the law, you can do it all!"

Everyone looked at him, and once again felt that the calculations in his heart were looping around.

As soon as the Zhejiang Shipping Department was withdrawn, there were only two openings left in Fujian and Guangdong.And the opening in Fujian, on the surface, is only responsible for the tribute trade with Ryukyu.

Can such a small place in Ryukyu still produce such a large scale of trade on the surface?Is it worth combining one card to force wealthy businessmen in the southeast to smuggle, or sell goods to Guangdong to pay taxes to Huang Mingji?
Zhu Houcong discussed with them for a while, and finally looked at Fei Maozhong: "Are you used to it?"

Thousands of horses are galloping in the Fei Mao Center: My uncle is actually the inner ghost of the imperial party in the old party!Still a party leader-level insider!
He nodded quickly: "Chen... is trying to adapt."

"When you get used to it, hurry up and write to Fei's family, so that Yan Song can do better in Jiangxi."

"……Yes."

Fei Hong is from Jiangxi. How much land does the old party leader have in his hometown?Yan Song has a mission to pass through Jiangxi. After all, the old party also has to face His Majesty's request to enrich the country.

Is it necessary to solve the problems of investment and hidden fields and hidden households, so as to make Jiangxi's taxation look better?
After they left the Imperial Study Room of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Zhu Houcong came to the backyard and glanced at Wen Suyun: "See?"

Wen Suyun smiled and took his arm and nodded.

"When the Portuguese's daughter arrives, learn the Portuguese language from her, and let her learn our language."

"what?"

"I'll find something for you to do." Zhu Houcong grabbed her face, "Don't be idle and pester me every day!"

After Wen Suyun found out that the emperor was not so serious and was very interesting, now he is enthusiastic and excited, always pestering him to ask anecdotes from all over the place.In her eyes, His Majesty is much more knowledgeable than his father and the other two talented men.Although she is not interested in arithmetic, she is very interested in that big world map.

"Don't break the clock, I still have to arrange someone to study it." Zhu Houcong pointed to the spoils sent to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, "I'm going to see the empress and concubine Xian."

When he returned from a trip to Kunning Palace and Chang'an Palace, there were already two more people in the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Wen Suyun leaned over and looked at the restless girl in front of him with him: "It's so white! The eyes are still green, like a ghost!"

Zhu Houcong asked the court lady Zhang Zuo arranged to learn Portuguese from Pillay for a long time: "What's your name?"

"Return to Your Majesty, servant Qu Mei."

"What about her?"

"Full name..." Qu Mei said after thinking for a while, "Your Majesty, she said her name is Carolina and she just passed her 17th birthday."

Zhu Houcong looked at this Carolina, with a smile on the corner of his mouth.

In Zhu Houcong's eyes, she is not considered a top-notch western beauty. After all, what western star did you not see back then?

But at this time, the novelty wins, and it is indeed quite beautiful.

She should have been bathed and cleansed just now, but now she is wearing a court lady's attire.

Don't be funny.

After Zhang Fujing joked about Huguang Mengyao in that old and shameless way, he is now more and more relaxed.

The report directly stated that Alfonso was of noble origin and Portuguese royal blood, and that his daughter was born fair and beautiful, and she was brought to the east for marriage—he wanted to be the future governor of India.

At the welcome dinner, it was said that if a trade treaty could be signed, the daughter could be married to a nobleman of the Ming Dynasty.

Who in a serious family would marry a Westerner as his regular wife?It's good to play.

Letting others play is worse than letting His Majesty play. Of course, she cannot be allowed to give birth to a prince.

Anyway, although Zhang Fujing said it tactfully, he believed that the emperor was willing to taste the beauty of Western beauties in the name of Zhenghuguang medicine.

Carolina knew that this was the emperor of the Eastern Empire, she didn't expect to be so young.

All the way as a captive, she now has nothing but fear.

Here, there are all strange faces, and the language is not understandable.Kneeling on the ground, like a lamb at the slaughter.

Zhu Houcong looked at her trembling, waved his hands and said, "Qumei, take her to the back first, and teach her and Concubine Shu to learn Portuguese and Mandarin respectively."

"The servant obeys the order..."

Zhu Houcong asked Huang Jin to arrange for someone to hold the clock: "Go to Wanfa Hall."

Arrange the work first, and let the Yanma be tamed.

As soon as Zhu Houcong left, the Empress Dowager Jiang and the unmarried princess came first in the harem, and then a few curious concubines came.

Carolina was surrounded by so many people, weak and helpless.

Qumei introduced her one by one, and most of them were the emperor's wives... She didn't understand what it meant to be a concubine.

Empress Dowager Jiang looked serious: "Don't let your majesty be harmed by this barbarian girl! This child, when your majesty comes back, please go to my palace for a while!"

(End of this chapter)