Wanli 1592

Chapter 415 Matteo Ricci breathed a sigh of relief
Now that the matter has come to an end, Bishop Alexander and the Governor-General have no other choice. Hearing that Matteo Ricci has connections with the Chinese, he immediately allows Matteo Ricci to take the fastest boat to Macau. From Macau to Guangdong, he looks for his friends and asks the truth of the matter.

So, three hours after arriving in Manila, Philippines, Matteo Ricci boarded the ship again. Before washing away his fatigue, he once again served as a diplomatic envoy for the church and for the peace of the South China Sea. From this point of view He said that Matteo Ricci did not feel that his actions were contrary to religious traditions.

So even though he was very tired, he went to Macau tirelessly, hoping to get specific news, so as to avoid this war that he thought was unnecessary and best not to happen. Otherwise, could their Catholic Mission continue to exist in the eastern metropolis? It's a difficult topic to explain.

Xiao Ruxun did sympathize with Dali, had a broad vision, and liked western scientific knowledge very much, but Matteo Ricci also knew that this general also had a tough and ruthless side.

Once someone disobeys his order, he will not hesitate to punish him very severely, even kill him. To be honest, Matteo Ricci is a little afraid of this general, but there is no way, for his own mission, Matteo Ricci unwilling to leave him.

During the few years he lived in inland China, he met many scholars, but most of them were lay scholars, that is, scholars who did not hold official positions. He had an understanding of the Chinese system and knew that Chinese intellectuals Reading exams are used to obtain official positions.

When he first learned about this, he was very excited, because compared with the European system of official positions inherited by blood, the Chinese system is no different from an ideal system.

He has great respect for these officials who obtained official positions through their own knowledge, and believes that these officials are all Chinese elites and representatives of Chinese elite politics, and he is proud to know them.

But they are all equally arrogant, and they are busy with affairs, so they don't have time to meet him. Out of such considerations, Matteo Ricci made the next best thing to associate with those famous and well-connected scholars in order to increase his reputation. fame and connections.

Qu Rukui was one of his important allies and believers at the church level. Qu Rukui was the first scholar who was baptized by Matteo Ricci and believed in Catholicism. He provided a lot of help to Matteo Ricci, including reminding him to change his Dressing up, putting on the clothes of a Confucian scholar, and reintegrating into Chinese society as a "Western Confucian" gave him great help.

After leaving Guangdong to live in Myanmar, Matteo Ricci often thought of his believer and friend. This time when he went to Macau, his goal was to contact this old friend and find out the Chinese government’s views on the Philippines and this time through his channels. The reason why the Chinese government sent a ship to the Philippines.

It is very easy to go to Macau. Macau is governed by the Portuguese, and foreigners like them are allowed to enter. However, it is a bit difficult to enter Guangdong from Macau. It requires the permission of the government's documents. Generally, foreigners do not want to leave Macau and enter Guangdong. The behavior is a serious violation of the law, and it will be caught by Guangdong officials and beaten in the Yamen.

Matteo Ricci found that Chinese officials seem to like to hit people with the board, especially foreigners like them. The same is true for Xiao Ruxun in Burma. Chinese people break the law and hit the board ten times, and foreigners who break the law need to hit the board twenty times. Paying money to atone for crimes is not acceptable. Officials don’t allow it. They must be beaten. You can escape if you want. From then on, you will never want to enter China to do business.

Matteo Ricci also protested Xiao Ruxun's severe punishment to them, Xiao Ruxun said of course - this is necessary, if you don't beat your profiteers, you don't know how to abide by our laws.

Xiao Ruxun was quite polite, but those literati officials in Guangdong were particularly rude. If these Portuguese broke the law in Macau, the local government officials would even lead troops to drive to Macau, catch those Portuguese who broke the law, and take them back to the Yamen for a meal. After smoking it, he split the flesh and then threw it back. After a long time, and the annexation of the motherland by Spain, the Portuguese here are very shy.

Macau people have a tradition. Even when the Qing government lost its power and humiliated the country, even in the era when China was generally despised by the Western world, Macau people despise those Portuguese. Portugal’s rule in Macau is symbolic. The contempt of the Portuguese and their adherence to tradition have never stopped from the beginning to the end, so some people say that the character of the Macao people is closest to that of the Chinese in the Ming Dynasty.

Anyway, Matteo Ricci has seen with his own eyes how those literati elite officials brutally treated those Portuguese who committed crimes, so he has always been very honest and cautious, for fear of being deported, even if he has the right of residence in Guangdong, he is also cautious Arrive in Macau first, deliver documents to the Xiangshan county government to request entry, and then entrust someone to deliver a personal letter to Qu Rukui, asking about the Chinese emperor sending a ship to the Philippines.

After waiting for more than ten days, Matteo Ricci finally received the customs clearance documents from the Xiangshan County Government. When he arrived at the gate, Matteo Ricci saw Qu Rukui who was preparing to meet him. After that, he left for the Xiangshan County Government Office, and after talking with the county magistrate in person, he exchanged the customs clearance document for Matteo Ricci, otherwise, Matteo Ricci would have to wait at least a month.

"Tai Su, why did the emperor of your country send people to the Philippines...to Luzon Island? Now the entire Luzon Island is in a panic. They entrusted me to ask what is going on."

After seeing Qu Rukui, Ricci asked straight to the point. Qu Rukui welcomed Ricci into the carriage, and then explained to Ricci as he walked.

"I asked a few friends to ask Futai about this matter, but Futai told me that this matter is not in Guangdong, but in Fujian. Futai said that someone notified the emperor that Luzon Island and Like the Japanese islands, there are a lot of gold, silver and copper mountains. If Ming takes possession, he can get a lot of money.

Before the Ming Dynasty fought a war with Japan, they defeated Japan, occupied some gold and silver mountains, and got a bonus of nearly ten million taels of silver, so the imperial court is now particularly interested in countries with gold and silver mountains, so they sent Fujian officials to visit After looking around, I couldn’t find it, so I came back. Later, someone said that this is a non-existent thing. There is no mountain of gold and silver on Luzon Island, so now the imperial court is discussing this matter with Fujian. "

Matteo Ricci heaved a sigh of relief, thinking it would be the same as Xiao Ruxun's excuse, at least the Chinese government does not intend to use force against the Philippines, so it would be much easier to handle.

"Tai Su, I came from Luzon Island, and I also lived on Luzon Island. There is really no mountain of gold and silver here. I can guarantee this. I don't know where the news came from, but this It's definitely a rumor!"

Matteo Ricci said firmly.

(End of this chapter)