Daming Greedy Wolf Star

Chapter 496

"It seems that Commander Zheng is deeply moved."

On the seventh day after Zheng He arrived in Rome, Zhu Zhanhe also returned to Rome.

"Zheng He has met His Royal Highness, and His Royal Highness is blessed and safe."

Hearing Zhu Zhanhe's voice, Zheng He hastily bowed to salute.

"Why, this isn't your hometown, you haven't been here before, have you? Why does it seem like you're in love with the scene?"

Zhu Zhanhe sat on the railing of the pier, looking in the direction of Rome.

……

Zheng He was at a loss for words.

Zheng He is considered an old man of Ming Dynasty, but he has not experienced the process of Ming Dynasty from rebellion to establishment to rise.

But for some reason, Zheng He suddenly thought of the Central Plains that was ravaged by the Yuan people when he saw the ruined and messy Rome.

Although he had never seen it before, he suddenly had a feeling that it was the same in the Central Plains back then.

Perhaps because of suffering too much in his childhood, Zheng He always felt that Zhu Zhanhe's actions were far more cruel than those of the Yuan people back then.

It's just that he can only think, not speak.

However, if you don't say it, it doesn't mean that others won't know.

Zhu Zhanhe looked at the dazed Zheng He, followed his gaze to the messy Rome, and chuckled softly.

Although Zhu Zhanhe laughed lightly, Zheng He was awakened by that shallow laughter.

He lowered his head in panic, and didn't even know how to say the confession, which Zheng He had never faced before.

In fact, although Zheng He is not considered the proud son of heaven, he is also one of the very few successful ones.

You know, in the past, no matter whether it was Emperor Taizong, Emperor Hongxi or Emperor Xuande, they were all good to him. Firstly, because he made great contributions to Daming by sailing to the West several times, and secondly, because Daming still has too few sailing talents. .

But Zhu Zhanhe will not be used to him.

Zheng He was right, and Zhu Zhanhe was also right. If they insisted on making a mistake, they could only say that their thinking was wrong and their camp was wrong.

"It seems that Commander Zheng is very sympathetic to this Rome, but I don't know that when Commander Zheng learned about the scenes I found in the Holy See and even the dark corners of the church when I captured Rome that day, what would he still think?" I will not continue to sympathize with them."

Thinking of this, Zhu Zhanhe seemed to have returned to the day when Rome was captured.

In fact, Zhu Zhanhe knew early on that with Catholicism that has lasted for so long, and after 60 years of division, the interior of the Holy See must be dirty and unsightly.

However, Zhu Zhanhe remained conservative. On the day he invaded Rome, he saw scenes that even he felt were cruel.

Inhuman men who were tortured, women who were treated in various ways, even the elderly and children.

Just like their mythology, with the earth as the dividing line, the ground is an extremely solemn and lofty church in the eyes of believers, just like the heaven in their mythology.

And under the earth is hell, where filth, wailing and other scenes abound.

Even the monastery has been changed by power.

Men were brainwashed by the cardinals one by one and became dead soldiers loyal to the Holy See. The nuns were also brainwashed, but they were different from men. Their ending was to become a tool to win over the powerful, in exchange for or even to seek various benefits for the Holy See. .

It's not that Zhu Zhanhe discriminates and deliberately exaggerates, and there is nothing to exaggerate, because some Buddhist and Taoist schools in the Central Plains are also like this.

To put it bluntly, everything is because of desire, which leads to power and religion becoming a tool for people to play with people's hearts in order to satisfy their desires.

"Okay, let's not talk about this." Zhu Zhanhe put back his wandering thoughts and looked at Zheng He.

"What does Commander Zheng plan to do next?"

Zheng He was silent when he heard the words.

He knew that Zhu Zhanhe was asking about his plan, but he was not asking about his plan either.

It's a mouthful to say, but it's true.

What Zhu Zhanhe wanted to ask was Zheng He's plan for his future, whether to continue sailing to the west to serve the Ming Dynasty, or whether he was going to retire.

If it was in the past, Zhu Zhanhe would not ask this question, but it is different now, because the current Zheng He is no longer the original Zheng He, and the current Zheng He has already visited Mecca, the holy city in his mind. A man, a man who has fulfilled his lifelong wish.

This was the deal between him and Zhu Zhanhe back then.

Zhu Zhanhe allowed him to visit the holy city of Mecca, but he had to lead the fleet again and play the vanguard for Zhu Zhanhe to go to America.

In addition, there is another reason, that is, Zheng He is not young anymore, this year Zheng He has reached the end of knowing his destiny, and will soon enter his sixtieth year.

Years of turbulence at sea made Zheng He look older than ordinary people, and his physical condition was even more grim.

……

It is night, the former Holy See.

The Holy See has almost been destroyed, but the monastery and other buildings behind it are still relatively intact, and it later became Zhu Zhanhe's permanent residence in Rome.

The pitch-black night covered the earth, but even though the former Holy See had experienced the baptism of blood and fire, it still did not conceal its magnificence and splendor.

After the new owner moved in, nearly half of the Holy See was still lit.

In this room that once belonged to Pope Martin V, but now belongs to Zhu Zhanhe, the candlelight reflected the shadows of the three people on the wall.

Zhu Zhanhe sat behind the table, leaning on the back of the chair, looking at the person in front of him.

These two people are not Zheng He, but they have a close relationship with Zheng He.

These two people, one is Ma Huan and the other is Guo Chongli.

Zheng He's success is a brilliance in the history of Ming Dynasty and the history of flower growers, but at the same time, Zheng He's success also obscures the light of many people, just because he is Zheng He, the commander of the treasure fleet.

Like Wang Jinghong who was overshadowed by Zheng He's light, Ma Huan is also a person who was overshadowed by Zheng He's light.

In history, Ma Huan was also an outstanding navigator. In addition, he was also the translator of Zheng He's seven voyages to the West. His book "Yingya Shenglan" written in the second year of Jingtai is still an important basis for later generations to study the culture of the Ming Dynasty. .

Like Ma Huan, so is Guo Chongli.

Guo Chongli was also one of the navigators who accompanied Zheng He on his voyages to the West. Ma Huan's "Ying Ya Sheng Lan" also had his share of credit, but Zheng He's light was too dazzling, making them overshadowed.

"Commander Zheng chose to return to Yunnan for retirement, what about the two of you?" Zhu Zhanhe asked about their plans.

Zheng He was already old, although he would not be unable to go to sea, but Daming's power changes and open and secret struggles made him feel tired. In the end, he chose an ending that both he and Zhu Zhanhe could accept.

Yunnan is a special place for Zheng He. He was captured in the battle of Daming and Yunnan, and then started his brilliant life.

Similarly, Yunnan is also a special place for Zhu Zhanhe.

Although both King Wu's lineage and Mu's family have moved out of Yunnan, Yunnan is still the place where King Wu's lineage takes over, and it is still nominally owned by King Wu's lineage.

Moreover, because King Wu's lineage actually controls Xiangzhou and Nanzhou Prefectures, and Uzangdusi also strongly supports King Wu's lineage, this makes Yunnan still have a large number of The area is under the jurisdiction of the Wu Wang lineage.

Zheng He's going to Yunnan for the elderly, for Zheng He, is going to his hometown, and also to a place of great significance to him.

For Zhu Zhanhe, Zheng He will spend the rest of his life under the supervision of King Wu's lineage, which also reassures him.

However, in the same way, with Zheng He's "retirement", Zhu Zhanhe had to select new navigators.

Wang Jinghong is the most obedient so far, and he is already cultivating new navigators for Ming Dynasty, but regarding the war between Britain and France, Zhu Zhanhe still wants Wang Jinghong to stay in the English Channel, and he is not at ease if others say it.

As for the new navigators trained by Wang Jinghong... it can only be said that they are still too young.

Therefore, Zhu Zhanhe set his sights on the two generals under Zheng He's command, Ma Huan and Guo Chongli.

"Everything is at the disposal of His Royal Highness!" Ma Huan and Guo Chongli looked at each other and gave a positive answer in unison.

The answers of these two people made Zhu Zhanhe very satisfied, but even so, Zhu Zhanhe still had some regrets.

It's not because of those messy things, but because these two people are Mu Silin, just like Zheng He. It's unlikely that this kind of person will spare no effort to understand, or even occupy America, as Zhu Zhanhe expected.

The only reason supporting Zhu Zhanhe's choice of them is actually "Ying Ya Sheng Lan".

As far as he knows, Ma Huan and the others are still pursuing academically. They have recorded the routes, tides, geography, kings, politics, customs, humanities, language, characters, climate, etc. "Yingya Shenglan" about products, crafts, transactions, currencies, wild animals and plants, etc. is the painstaking effort of Ma Huan and his wife.

If the two of them are placed in later generations, they will be typical scientists who are dedicated to research, and their minds are all on their own research topics.

It was because of this kind of persistence, this kind of attitude that made Zhu Zhanhe choose them.

"Now that you have made your decision, let me tell you what you are going to do next."

Zhu Zhanhe beckoned and asked Zhu Ling to bring over the chart that Ma Huan and his wife had seen many times.

"You should have seen this chart, so I won't go into details."

"Next, I will give you half a year to rest and let you go home to visit your relatives and prepare for the next trip to sea."

"As for the treasure ships, you don't have to worry. In addition to Liujiagang, Xiangzhou Prefecture has also opened up a new city ship department. The treasure ships can't say how much you want, but it's enough for you."

"And your next goal..."

As he spoke, Zhu Zhanhe tapped heavily on the chart.

"it's here!"

The two of Ma Huan looked at each other, then bowed to accept the order.

"Minister, take orders!"

With the departure of Ma Huan and Zhu Zhanhe, only Zhu Zhanhe was left in the room. The sea chart on the table had already formed a mark because of Zhu Zhanhe's pressing hard just now.

In the maps of later generations, the place where the trace is located has a name.

Mississippi plains.

(End of this chapter)