prosperous age

On the side of Haojing facing Xiangshan County, the Yi people have spent more than ten years hiring locals to build a city wall nearly three meters high.

The Portuguese began construction of the city walls in 1969 as part of their defensive fortifications.

Initially, they simply built two forts in the port of Fujian.

As the number of merchant ships coming and going to Haojing increased and the population grew, Haojing became increasingly prosperous.

Therefore, the earliest wealthy merchants who moved here began to discuss how to allocate a portion of their annual tax revenue to improve the fortifications.

What they need to defend is not only the sea, but also the continent behind them.

Therefore, building a strong wall around the settlement and constructing artillery emplacements at key locations became essential.

The construction work was conducted openly and could not be kept secret, since building a city wall was extremely time-consuming and labor-intensive, and it was also inevitable that it would be obstructed by the Ming Dynasty government.

In fact, the magistrate of Xiangshan County would return to inspect Haojing every year, so when they discovered that the Yi people had actually built a city wall there, they immediately demanded its demolition.

During the Ming Dynasty, defensive fortifications like city walls could only be built upon government application. When have you ever seen a tenant build such a well-constructed defensive structure as a city wall?

It can be said that, relying on several artillery emplacements, the defenses of Haojing have surpassed those of Xiangshan County.

Thus, the matter began to drag on and on.

The Portuguese were naturally unwilling to give up building the city walls, as this was crucial for protecting their property within the city.

In fact, the walls of Haojing mainly surrounded the port, warehouse area, commercial area and residential area, with a large area of ​​land outside the walls.

The real problem is that Haojing doesn't have the financial resources and population to support building a larger city wall.

Their goal is to protect the most important assets.

Therefore, whenever Xiangshan County ordered the demolition of the city wall, they would demolish a small section of the wall under the supervision of county officials, but continue to build it elsewhere.

Once Xiangshan County stopped paying attention to the affairs here, they immediately resumed the restoration of the demolished section of the city wall and began a guerrilla war with the government.

Doesn't the Xiangshan County government know these things?

Of course not. Unfortunately, the barbarians gave too much, and it wasn't just the county magistrate; everyone in the county government with a little power received benefits.

Thus, the "custom" of taking some benefits from the barbarians every year by using the moat and city walls was formed.

The walls of Haojing were finally completed amidst this tug-of-war.

At this time, the Portuguese soldiers standing guard on the city wall should be called mercenaries. They were not employed by the Kingdom of Portugal, but by the city hall of the city. In European terms, they were actually militia.

Several people stood on the city wall, looking into the city.

There had been no sign of anyone outside the city walls for half a day.

Meanwhile, the streets in the city, which used to be bustling with people, were now nearly deserted. Although there were still many carriages, they could clearly sense that in just a few days, the city seemed to have lost a great deal of people.

"It's so quiet."

"Yes, a lot of people from the Ming Dynasty have gone out these past few days. I wonder if they have any activities planned."

"Who knew that they didn't believe in God, but in their ancestors."

"Aren't we the same? Once we've earned enough money to go back to China, I also have to visit my ancestors' graves."

“They not only worship their ancestors, but also their clan, which is more important than the family we value.”

A few men, propped up with muskets, were chatting casually.

Because a large number of Ming people left the city a few days ago for various reasons, the city's population was reduced by more than half.

Of course, there were also Ming people left in the city. It wasn't that they didn't know, but their companions had informed them, but they didn't know where to go.

They are refugees, their clans are not here, and they don't even know where their hometown is.
Therefore, even if they know this, many people don't know where to go after leaving here.

Although some people left to stay with familiar friends nearby, there were still Ming people who couldn't find a place to stay and remained in the city. However, the population was no longer half of the Portuguese population, or even just a very small part.

Despite being a tiny place in the eyes of the imperial court, the annual transient population actually exceeds tens of thousands, with a permanent population of over five thousand. Among them, more than one thousand are Portuguese, and the rest are locals who make a living in this city through various trades.

To be fair, after Haojing built the city walls, the people of the Ming Dynasty living in the city did feel a sense of security. If it weren't for the messages from their clans that something big had happened in their families and they needed to go back to discuss it, many of them would not have been willing to leave.

In places once ravaged by Japanese pirates, no one wanted to leave the city protected by its high walls.

This is why the Portuguese insisted on building the city walls, even at great expense.

With city walls, the people here will consider this place a home they can rely on, and they will be protected within the city.

Even though most of these four thousand Ming people were still heretics and did not believe in their religion.

The bar on Rua de São Paulo was deserted at the moment, as the sudden departure of the city's residents left the bar's foreign owner feeling quite depressed.

The dozen or so tables, as well as the wine cabinets and other spaces that are usually packed with people, have become visibly empty these past few days.

Today, only two tables were set up, and seven or eight foreign merchants sat around drinking and chatting listlessly.

"Is it some kind of festival recently, and they're going back to pay respects to their ancestors?"

"Who knows? My workshop is temporarily closed, and there's no one to work here."

"It's the same where I live, every year, but I don't remember them having any holidays during this time."

"A bunch of heretics, why bother with them? When they get back, we'll work overtime to catch up on the work we missed these past few days."

Due to the massive loss of labor, most of the streets and factories in Haojing have suddenly become quiet in the past few days and are unable to continue operating.

However, most Portuguese people were unaware of anything.

It can only be said that the people of the Ming Dynasty were influenced by clan ideology. During festivals such as Qingming Festival, Dragon Boat Festival and New Year's Day, they would leave Haojing in large numbers and return to their respective families, just like today.

This is also why the Ming people were able to leave so easily this time. It happens several times a year, and the Yi people are used to it.

On the city wall, the mercenary, having had his fill of the city's scenery, glanced back casually and saw a dark shadow appear on the avenue formed by countless carriages in the distance, gradually growing larger.

"A caravan is coming."

Upon seeing this scenery, the mercenary casually remarked.

"Really? Let me see, it really is."

There were many people ahead, including horse-drawn carriages, so they casually stood on the outside of the city wall and peered out from the battlements.

During the day, there is no rule to close the city gates of Haojing; they are always open for people to enter and exit. It is not wartime, and this is ultimately a commercial city, not a military fortress.

"Hiss, no, they're people from the Ming Dynasty government."

Soon, as the people drew closer, the mercenaries realized that the people coming from afar were not a caravan. A caravan wouldn't have so many people, and they would be wearing official robes.

They were already quite familiar with the clothing of Ming Dynasty citizens and officials; many of the people on the other side were dressed like those in government offices. "Go and inform Frank that the Ming Dynasty officials have arrived, and he needs to receive them."

Frank was the consul elected by the Portuguese in the Gulf, and he managed all affairs of the Gulf.

He was also responsible for negotiating with the Ming Dynasty government, and he was officially appointed as the governor of Goa by the governor-general.

The Portuguese only administered their overseas colonies, except for a few key locations such as Temasek, which was a city of significant value that was captured by both Portuguese troops and mercenaries.

In contrast, in other colonies established by merchants, the local merchants usually elected their own administrators, who would then give them formal appointments.

For these people, managing themselves is enough, but they must also obey the orders of the Governor-General of Goa.

The government procession outside the city stopped when they were about a mile from the city gate. The curtain of the carriage was lifted, and Liu Yaohui came out and stood on the carriage to look out.

He had just seen the city wall through the carriage curtain, which amazed him.

The Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi was the highest military and political official in charge of Guangdong and Guangxi. The position was first established in the third year of the Jingtai reign of the Ming Dynasty as a temporary military governor-general to deal with the Yao rebellion. In the first year of the Chenghua reign, it became a fixed position, and officials were dispatched by the imperial court to serve in it.

The position of Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi has been in existence for over a hundred years.

There was a high turnover rate among court officials, so there was a handover procedure for each position, or rather, for all official positions in the Ming Dynasty.

Officials would keep a separate record of the major events they accomplished during their tenure, creating something like a memo. New officials could then read this book to understand the general content of the decisions made by their predecessors.

The location of the moat is very special in Guangdong and has always been recorded separately. However, Liu Yaohui is convinced that he has never seen any evidence that the construction of fortifications was permitted here.

Standing on the carriage, Liu Yaohui and the other officials, including the prefect of Guangzhou and the magistrate of Xiangshan County, arrived before pointing to the city wall and asking, "Who authorized them to build that?"

The Guangzhou prefect came from behind and naturally saw the city wall. He cursed the officials on the Xiangshan side in his heart. He had no idea that a city wall had been built here.

At this moment, he simply bowed under the carriage without saying a word, because he had no idea what was going on.

The magistrate of Xiangshan County was trembling like a leaf. They had previously regarded this city wall as "Tang Monk's flesh," something to be taken advantage of whenever they were short of money, so they had done a very good job of keeping it a secret.

However, there was no time to waste. The magistrate immediately said, "This city wall was already there when I took office. I ordered them to demolish it, but the barbarians paid lip service to it. This time, I will personally supervise their demolition."

Tai Chi—this was perhaps the martial art that Ming Dynasty officials were most skilled at; they could simply shift the blame onto their predecessors.

Building city walls is definitely not something that can be accomplished overnight.

"Alright, let's put the city wall aside for now."

Liu Yaohui looked at the magistrate of Xiangshan County and said, "When we arrive at the city gate, go and negotiate with the Yi people and tell them the imperial court's order."

Liu Yaohui had no desire to meet with the foreign merchants from the Haojing region, nor was it necessary. He was a second-rank official of the imperial court; they didn't have the face to meet with a few foreign merchants.

Therefore, Liu Yaohui had no intention of meeting the barbarians when he came here, because they were not worthy.

"Yes, yes, I understand."

The magistrate of Xiangshan County only learned of the news a few days ago. It was the prefect of Guangzhou who directly took charge of Xiangshan County, contacted local clan elders, and summoned the people in Haojing back under various pretexts.

After that, the dignified magistrate of Xiangshan County became the prefect's attendant, specializing in running errands.

By now, although we know there are still Ming people in the city who haven't left, their numbers have dwindled to only a few hundred, and most of them are wanderers from a little further away who have come here to make a living. We simply can't contact them.

The magistrate of Xiangshan County, of course, had no idea what the imperial court was planning, and the prefect had not given him any information.

However, when the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi also arrived in Xiangshan County, he knew that the matter was definitely not trivial.

Then came the news that the imperial court was going to send troops to Haojing to take over the government affairs of Haojing, and also the news that the cannons of the Bugalao Cannon Foundry had been secretly sold to the Japanese.

The imperial court's dispatch of troops to conquer Japan has caused a great stir among the people, especially along the southeastern coast, over the past two months, with most people supporting the move.

After all, they were among the people who suffered the most severe losses from the Japanese invasion.

Now that the imperial court is avenging them, they naturally wholeheartedly support it and are eager for the government troops to wipe out the Japanese pirates completely.

Don't say they didn't know that the Japanese pirates were actually pirates. The government and gentry knew their true identities, but that didn't mean they would tell the people.

Are these people described as bandits and refugees oppressed and forced by them, a group with no way to survive?

Of course not.

So the group continued forward and finally reached the city gate of Haojing.

At this moment, Frank and a group of officials from the Haojing City Hall were already waiting here outside the city. Giving the Ming government enough face and secretly slipping them some silver would solve everything. This was a rule that the barbarians had long since figured out.

So when the magistrate of Xiangshan County arrived at the city gates in a menacing manner to argue with Frank, the Yi people all acted with utmost respect.

The magistrate of Xiangshan County, who had been obsequious to Liu Yaohui, now arrogantly berated them.

"I ordered you to tear down this city wall last year when I came here, so why was it demolished and rebuilt?"

That's a small section of the city wall near the city gate. A part of it was demolished and then rebuilt, so naturally it's a mix of old and new, and you can see it at a glance.

"Since the adults have just arrived, let's go into town to rest."

Frank, as was his usual practice, intended to invite the man to town and then secretly offer him a bribe, but was interrupted with a righteous and stern rebuke.

"No need. I've come here to inform you that the court has decided to send troops to garrison the forts and the soldiers on the city walls. Go back and make arrangements as soon as possible. The government troops will take over the defense in three days."

The magistrate of Xiangshan County immediately spoke.

"Sir, we built these city walls and fortifications."

"The county government never permitted it, so it doesn't count."

"I've come here simply to inform you not to have any improper thoughts. Obey the government's orders obediently. I will bring troops to take over in three days."

The magistrate of Xiangshan County had no intention of talking much with the barbarians. After he finished speaking aggressively about the arrival of the government troops, he turned around and walked back.

Frank was stunned. This had never happened before. Officials from the Ming Dynasty were leaving without even entering the city to collect bribes.

"Frank, why did he leave?"

A foreigner came up behind him and asked.

"He said that the country was going to send troops to garrison Haojing and that we should withdraw our troops."

Frank said bitterly.

"This will not do; this is my Kingdom of Portugal."

"Stop talking. What's the point of saying this to me? Something's not right. Let's go back and gather everyone to discuss this."

Frank watched as the group turned around in the distance; he realized the situation was dire. (End of Chapter)