1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3913

Jingdezhen in Jiangxi Province has been producing ceramic products since the Han Dynasty, and it became the location of the imperial kiln during the Ming Dynasty.

Hongwu underglaze red, Yongle white porcelain, Xuande blue and white porcelain, Chenghua doucai porcelain, and blue and white polychrome porcelain that appeared during the Jiajing and Wanli periods—in just over two hundred years, Jingdezhen's porcelain industry has made tremendous progress in terms of craftsmanship, becoming the most famous porcelain capital in Jiangxi and even the entire Ming Dynasty.

These exquisitely crafted porcelains were not only circulated within the Ming Dynasty, but were also gradually transported overseas through various trade channels, becoming luxury items that high-ranking officials and nobles in distant Europe eagerly collected.

Since the arrival of Portuguese merchant ships in the Ming Dynasty at the beginning of the last century, porcelain had become an indispensable part of the exported goods. The profits that the Portuguese made from trading porcelain during this period were astronomical.

However, in regions like Jingdezhen in Jiangxi, located in the heart of the Ming Dynasty, Portuguese merchants often found it difficult to obtain direct permission to travel there. They could only purchase porcelain supplied by the Ming Dynasty at a few trading ports agreed upon by the two countries, and the variety was extremely limited, leaving them with little room for selection.

Knowing that Jingdezhen produced a wide variety of high-quality porcelain at prices much lower than in other treaty ports, the Portuguese found this a torment. For a century, they had been trying to establish trade routes and set up trading posts or similar institutions in the place of origin.

Even after the Haihan conquest of the Ming Dynasty's coastal regions, this commercial environment did not change significantly. To this day, Jingdezhen remains an unattainable destination for Portuguese merchants, and is one of the main reasons for Portugal's dissatisfaction with the Ming Dynasty.

However, with Haihan occupying Jiangxi by military means, Jingdezhen will naturally be incorporated into Haihan's territory. The long-cherished wish of Portuguese merchants to go directly to Jingdezhen to purchase goods can finally be realized, so it is no wonder that Thomas was a little too excited.

However, for him to say these words in front of Meng Jinfeng was quite audacious, and Meng Jinfeng, as an envoy of the Ming Dynasty, could not tolerate such ridicule.

As for the claim that "Jiangxi is still nominally under the Ming Dynasty," Meng Jinfeng himself understood that it was merely a feeble struggle to save face. Whether the Portuguese would be granted permission to conduct trade in Jiangxi in the future was no longer a matter for the Ming Dynasty to control.

However, Meng Jinfeng's counterattack did not deter Thomas much. The other party simply smiled and replied, "Lord Meng, I think your country should recognize reality sooner rather than later. Pointless toughness will not bring you any benefits. If you want this war to end sooner, you must first admit that your country has lost control of Jiangxi."

Despite his anger, Meng Jinfeng had to admit that Thomas's words weren't entirely without merit. However, the other party's gloating expression was truly despicable, and he couldn't help but retort, "You don't think that if Haihan were to govern Jiangxi, you could take whatever you want, do you? Both the Ming Dynasty and Haihan are ruled by Han people, of the same root and ancestry. We sit down and talk about everything. You are nothing but barbarians and foreigners. How can your attempts to sow discord succeed!"

Officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs arrived at the reception room just in time, thus stopping the escalating verbal conflict between the two.

Thomas, who arrived earlier, was the first to be received. He bowed to Meng Jinfeng with a smug look on his face before leaving the reception room with the official.

Aside from giving a cold snort and cursing under his breath, Meng Jinfeng seemed to have no better way to retaliate.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Haihan is a department with a relatively complex power structure. Due to certain historical reasons, there are as many as three high-ranking officials in charge of this department.

Two ministers were formally appointed by the Executive Committee: Ning Qi, who concurrently oversaw education, culture, health, and medical affairs, and Schneider, who concurrently oversaw finance and trade affairs. This means that both ministers held concurrent positions within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Their responsibilities within the Ministry were also clearly divided: Ning Qi was responsible for dealing with Eastern countries, primarily in the East China Sea and South China Sea regions, while Schneider was responsible for countries west of the Strait of Malacca.

For example, the Portuguese ambassador Thomas, who previously met with Meng Jinfeng, was usually contacted by Schneider, while Da Ming was Ning Qi's target.

When the two officials were too busy with other government affairs to attend to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tao Donglai would occasionally become the third person in charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

These three high-ranking officials are all members of the Executive Committee, so their decisions on diplomatic matters generally do not require further consultation with anyone.

Meng Jinfeng's intended audience was with Ning Qi, but he was later informed that Ning Qi had to attend a high-level meeting that morning and would only come to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to handle official business afterward.

Meng Jinfeng's visit to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was impromptu and without prior appointment, so he had nothing to say about it and could only wait patiently.

Meng Jinfeng waited until noon, drinking a lot of tea and going to the toilet several times, but Ning Qi still did not come to receive him.

With the lunch break at the yamen approaching, Meng Jinfeng was debating whether to starve himself and wait, or go out and eat lunch first, and then come back to wait.

Anyway, this wasn't the first time he'd experienced this kind of situation where he had to wait a whole day. He'd had similar experiences many times in the past three months, which had honed his patience to a high degree.

During the endless wait, Meng Jinfeng also realized a truth: meeting with Haihan officials a few hours earlier or later would not affect the final outcome of the talks, let alone the war situation thousands of miles away.

Since rushing wouldn't help, he might as well make the best of it. Meng Jinfeng stood up, preparing to leave the reception room and head to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' staff canteen for lunch. The food there was good, and they catered to foreigners visiting the Ministry; perhaps he could overhear some gossip from the conversations around him.

Just then, the official who had been receiving him reappeared, this time bringing good news: "Lord Meng, Lord Ning has just arrived and can see you now."

Meng Jinfeng said happily, "Then I'll trouble you to lead the way."

Ning Qi's office is on the third floor of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Meng Jinfeng was certainly not visiting for the first time, so he knew where to go. However, this level of reception required someone to announce his arrival. He couldn't just wander around the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on his own, so he still needed someone to guide him.

When Ning Qi saw Meng Jinfeng, he didn't get up to greet him, but simply invited him to sit down and talk.

Considering that Ning Qi was not only the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but also one of the highest-ranking officials in Haihan, the two were not equal in rank. Moreover, Haihan had just won a war against the Ming Dynasty. Meng Jinfeng had no reason to complain and could only sit down obediently in the chair opposite Ning Qi.