I

   Chapter 629 626 [Ryukyu]

   There is no grand ceremony for the emperor to accept his concubine.

  Princess Aisha of Brunei lit two red candles, put on a wedding dress, and had **** with Emperor Zhao. Not even a concubine, just a concubine.

  Lu Tianxiang is a little better, after all, he chose a good day and an auspicious day.

  She didn't object to being a concubine, on the contrary, she was quite proud and excited. After all, the emperor is a great hero, and he can't be a female general, so it's not bad to marry a hero.

   Just when Lu Tianxiang officially entered the palace, those Cossacks from Tsarist Russia traveled across Siberia and saw the Pacific Ocean.

  They named the river flowing into the Pacific Ocean the Okhot River. And at the mouth of the river, it is planned to build a fortress, the Okhotsk Fortress. In another time and space, the sea area of ​​the Pacific Ocean is also known as the "Sea of ​​Okhotsk".

   At the southern end of the sea area, there is a large island, which is Sakhalin Island.

   Regarding Sakhalin Island, it used to belong to the Nuer Gandusi of the Ming Dynasty, and later all surrendered to the rule of the Qing Dynasty. Now that the Manchu and Qing dynasties are declining, the natives on the island no longer pay tribute, but they have not risen against the Manchu and Qing rule.

   And just three years ago, Japan drew a national map and included Sakhalin Island and Hokkaido into Japanese territory for the first time.

   Now, Sakhalin Island will be targeted by Tsarist Russia again.

  The entire Datong Chinese court, except for Zhao Han, no one knew the existence of Sakhalin Island. Even Pang Chunlai and Li Banghua didn't know anything about it. They only knew that the most northeastern place was once the slave Gandusi of the Ming Dynasty. The official files of the Ming Dynasty had to be checked for the specific situation.

  Of course, the same is true for the monarchs and ministers of Tsarist Russia. They don’t care about Siberia, as long as the Cossacks can get fur.

  The problem is icy and snowy, those Cossacks are not supermen, why can they reach the Pacific coast?

   Just say one thing and you will understand.

  Four years ago, 132 Cossacks went all the way to the north bank of Heilongjiang. Not to mention burning, killing and looting along the way, due to lack of food, they even ate 50 Daur residents.

   This story was spread by the escaped captives, and quickly spread throughout Heilongjiang, and everyone knew that the Cossacks were cannibals. The residents of the middle and lower reaches of Heilongjiang gave up their infighting and united to fight against the Cossacks. Of the 132 Cossacks, only 53 returned successfully.

  After that, the people of Northeast China fought against the Cossacks, and there were many records of Cossacks eating people.

   This is the secret of the Cossacks conquering Siberia. If there is not enough food, they will eat human flesh. As long as we can win the battle, there is no problem of supply at all, and the enemies killed or captured can be used as food.

   Early morning.

  Lu Tianxiang, who was a married woman for the first time, lay in bed in the emperor's arms, and unexpectedly asked: "Your Majesty, I have become a concubine, can I go to the racecourse to play at any time?"

  Zhao Han said with a smile: "Let's go again in a few days. It's just autumn, and the prey is fat. First go to the horse farm to ride horses, and then go to the hunting ground to hunt. Call everyone together."

   "Hunting is good. I haven't hunted since I came to Nanjing!" Lu Tianxiang suddenly became happy.

   Zhao Han got bored with the new concubine for a while, and then dressed and ate under the service of the maid, and then went for a walk to work in the Qinzheng Hall.

  After randomly reviewing more than ten memorials, Zhao Han discovered a strange thing.

  Ryukyu King Shangxian died of illness. Since Shangxian had no son, his younger brother Shangzhi proclaimed himself the eldest son. He dispatched his uncles Mao Taijiu and Chang Shi Jin Siyi to Nanjing to request the formal canonization of the king.

  The Cabinet's reply is: The Lord of the Ryukyu Kingdom has two ends of the head, please His Majesty decide.

  Zhao Han recruited the cabinet ministers and asked, "Master of the Ryukyu Kingdom, why are you at both ends?"

Li Banghua replied: "According to reports from Fujian and Zhejiang officials, merchants from Fujian and Zhejiang provinces often go to Ryukyu to do business. But in many cases, their goods cannot be bought and sold freely, and they are dictated by Japan's Satsuma clan. At the same time as proclaiming a vassal, he is also proclaiming a vassal to Japan. How can a country allow two lords if one daughter does not marry two husbands?"

   "Surrendering to Japan, what good is it for Ryukyu?" Zhao Han asked.

  Li Banghua said: "It is not good for the Ryukyu country, but it is good for some ministers of the Ryukyu country."

   "Let's talk about it in detail." Zhao Han said.

Li Banghua said: "During the Wanli period, most of the Ryukyu monarchs and ministers were close to China and were invaded by the Satsuma domain of Japan. After the defeat, the Ryukyu ministers who were close to China were either killed or dismissed. The Ryukyu officials who were close to Japan not only took the opportunity to rise to power, but also Controlled the king. The leader is the Mao family, the Ryukyu king who just died, and the current Ryukyu prince, all born of the Mao family's daughter married to the previous king."

  Zhao Han asked: "Is the Ryukyu envoy who came to Nanjing this time also named Mao?"

  Li Banghua said: "It is the uncle of the Ryukyu prince."

   Well, the government of the Ryukyu Kingdom is controlled by a group of leading parties. They sold the interests of Ryukyu in exchange for Japan's support, thereby consolidating their political and economic status.

  Zhao Han praised: "Li Qing has bothered, but he is familiar with Ryukyu affairs."

Li Banghua said: "Many merchants from Fujian and Guangdong are dissatisfied with Japan's control of Ryukyu. Please ask the officials of the two provinces to report to the imperial court for punishment. Our dynasty was established at the beginning, and the parties are still undecided. The small country of Ryukyu can only be put on hold temporarily. Report the real situation in Ryukyu so that it can be dealt with accurately in the future.”

  Zhao Han asked: "Are there any forces close to China in Ryukyu?"

Li Banghua said: "There are not many people who are close to China, but there are many who hate Japan. It is only because of the trade between Ryukyu and China that Japan has to collect taxes, and the trading of some goods is also controlled by Japan. Even Japan has not had enough food in recent years. , and forced the Ryukyu country to donate food. In addition, there are many descendants of the Han people in the Ryukyu country.”

   "There are many descendants of Han people?" Zhao Han finally smiled.

Li Banghua said: "During the Wanli period, before Japan invaded North Korea, the emperor and ministers of Wanli received reports that Japan was about to send troops. The person who reported the report was Zheng Pei, the third officer of the Ryukyu Kingdom. This man was loyal, and because he did not want to surrender to Japan, Fried alive to death."

  Zhao Han sighed: "It is indeed loyal."

  Zheng Bai was originally from Fujian, and his father was an official (diplomatic translator) in Ryukyu. He was born in Ryukyu, and at the age of sixteen, he went to study in the Imperial College of the Ming Dynasty, and he became the third officer of the Ryukyu Kingdom (the second grade) all the way. He opposed Ryukyu's surrender to Japan, beat Japanese envoys who came to ask for food, and secretly conveyed the news that Japan was about to send troops to China.

  Japan sent troops to invade Ryukyu. Zheng Pei led his troops to resist and was captured. He was thrown into the frying pan for refusing to surrender.

Li Banghua said: "Both Zheng Pei and his son were killed by Japan, but his younger brother Zheng Zhou fled back to Fujian with his son. Zheng Zhou's great-grandson Zheng Shen, who seemed to be an official in Fujian, went to the imperial court many times to ask him to be his ancestor Revenge."

  Zhao Han asked: "I want to send troops to Ryukyu, what do you think?"

  Song Yingxing said: "Your Majesty, now that all parties have made a preliminary decision, it is best to use troops cautiously. You can first reprimand the Ryukyu monarchs and ministers, so that they can wholeheartedly obey China, and they cannot serve two masters at the same time."

Pang Chun said: "Either fight the war or ignore it. It is useless to reprimand. As Mr. Li Ge said just now, the Ryukyu honored relative Mao family reported to the state affairs with the support of Japan. Once they betrayed Japan, their power would be unstable. How could you give up so lightly?"

Zhao Han said: "We need to find something for the navy. Ryukyu is just used to practice. Which division was ordered to transfer to the south, has not boarded the ship yet? Don't go to Qiongzhou to be stationed, but go to Fujian for a rest. During this period , to collect more information about Ryukyu, and ask Fujian and Zhejiang businessmen to help link up the Japanese-hating forces in Ryukyu."

  Li Banghua said: "The small country of Ryukyu Cuer, if you make such a big move, I'm afraid the gains outweigh the losses."

Zhao Han said with a smile: "Everyone, don't just focus on the land, you must also focus on the sea in the future. The Ryukyu Kingdom is located at the center of the sea, and its location is very important. Since the Ryukyu monarchs and ministers have turned their backs on China, and there are many Han people in Ryukyu, then the country should be destroyed altogether. And Zhixian!"

   "Destroy the country and set up the county?"

  The three cabinet ministers were shocked, thinking that the emperor's desire for territorial expansion was at work.

   Some broken islands, why send troops to occupy them.

   Li Banghua and others support the occupation of Luzon Island, because it can grow food widely, and there are minerals such as gold, silver and copper. But Ryukyu has nothing, and the food it grows cannot be self-sufficient, and it has to rely on fishing to fill its stomach.

  If it is only to send troops to severely punish, it will be fine to change the king. Destroying the country and setting up counties is purely a loss-making business. In order to prevent rebellion, troops must be stationed on the island, and the profits obtained are not enough for military expenses.

   Zhao Han didn't care about so many, he just wanted to fight and expand, and key islands like Ryukyu must be occupied!

  Back to the cabinet, the three cabinet ministers looked at each other silently.

   It was Pang Chunlai who spoke first: "Your Majesty, the real hero is also... Sigh!"

  Xiongzhu naturally wants to expand, and expansion will inevitably affect finances and people's livelihood.

  Li Banghua said: "This has always been the case with the founding kings. The Taizu and Taizong of the Ming Dynasty also used troops abroad all the time, and only began to recuperate during the reign of Renzong."

  As soon as this remark came out, the three of them smiled wryly.

  Not to mention that Pang Chunlai and Li Banghua are already old, even Song Yingxing is already sixty years old this year.

   But Zhao Han is still in the prime of life, not to mention killing the three of them, it is estimated that he will be able to kill other succeeding cabinet ministers in the future. They can't wait for the successful master, and they will have to expand with the founding emperor in the days to come.

Song Yingxing said: "Immigrants in the northern provinces need a lot of money and food. To lay down Ryukyu and set up counties, you have to increase expenses, set up officials, run schools, and build systems. Everything will cost money, and it will take at least ten years to make ends meet. Your Majesty seems to be To beat Annan... Our big butler will have a lot of headaches in the future."

  The butler is Fei Chun, who is often so tired that he wants to hit the wall.

Li Banghua said: "According to your majesty, it seems that you still want to make North Korea a province, and that is what really costs money and food. Fortunately, your majesty also knows the priorities and helped North Korea establish a currency system. It should not happen within ten years." Send troops to North Korea."

  Pang Chunlai returned to his office, leaned on the chair and closed his eyes to rest.

  He suffered too much when he was young, and his health was very bad. When he was old, he suffered from all kinds of problems. Last year was better, but this year he is getting worse and worse. At this moment, he only thinks of resigning from office and returning to Liaodong for retirement. Unfortunately, the emperor has been reluctant to let him go.

  Since the emperor wants to toss, let's toss with the emperor.

   It is better to toss externally than internally.

  (end of this chapter)