prosperous age

Inside the oppressive atmosphere of the city hall, people kept rushing in from all corners of the city and entering the meeting room.

Once all the councilors from the city hall had arrived, Frank said loudly, "Gentlemen, you may have already heard what happened at the city gate, so I won't say any more."

I'm just telling you from my own experience that we're probably in trouble this time.

After Frank saw that everyone had arrived, he began to speak. The people who had been whispering just moments before fell silent and all looked at him.

Those seated here are all wealthy Portuguese businessmen, people who can influence the city.

"Alright, Frank, let's not talk about the trouble yet. Let's talk about why this is happening. Why are those Ming officials not entering the city? This is very different from before."

A businessman asked.

"Yes, has the Ming government changed its officials?"
They've always treated us this way; newcomers often act this way too. They just want to extort more silver coins from me. What else can I do?

"Hmm, I think maybe he's short of silver coins. Send someone to contact him and give him some."

Several businessmen spoke up.

They were just called here; they overheard some things on the way.

However, this is not the first time. It happens every few years. It is actually because the magistrate of Xiangshan County has changed. The new official takes office and makes a big show of it by threatening to cancel the lease and extorting a bribe.

Frank simply listened to their remarks without saying a word.

However, he knew that the magistrate of Xiangshan County had not been replaced; the person who came to negotiate with him today was still the same official who had come here two years ago.

“Let’s scrape together some money. Frank, later you take him to Xiangshan County to meet their governor and see what he has to say.”

At this moment, the wealthy merchant Bu Jialao spoke up, "I know that the city hall is running low on silver coins recently. Let's save them to keep the city running. Let's all contribute some money to settle this matter and avoid continuing to be suspicious."

"This time is different."

Frank shook his head when he heard what Bu Jialao said.

"What's the difference?"

Bu Jialao frowned slightly and said.

"Their governor hasn't changed; it's still the same person."

Frank smiled wryly.

"He's really greedy."

Bu Jialao shrugged and said, "If we can't communicate well with him, then we'll go to Guangzhou and have the son of that Guangzhou governor act as a go-between to contact their next-level governor and put pressure on him."

Everyone else nodded in agreement when they heard what Bu Jialao said.

They've mastered this routine; otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to stay in the luxury hotel for so long.

"Haven't you noticed? This time it's really different."

Frank looked directly at Bu Jialao and said, "A few days ago, some people from each of your factories must have left, right?"

"Ok?"

Upon hearing this, Bu Jialao shifted his body, changing from a lazy reclining posture to a sitting upright position.

His own cannon factory had to shut down for the past two days due to a shortage of workers caused by the large-scale departure of Ming people. Now he can only gather the remaining people at the copper cannon workshop to maintain production.

Over the years, his cannon foundry has sold quite a few cannons.

Well, the merchants needed to replace their outdated cannons, so he reluctantly agreed to make a little more money.

Therefore, he initially dismissed the news.

"You mean, this time the Ming people are serious?"

Considering the recent activities of prominent figures in the city, Bu Jialao also became serious.

Just then, Frank's secretary hurried in through the door, whispered a few words in Frank's ear, and then Frank opened his mouth slightly in surprise, but quickly closed it.

Then, he picked up the coffee on the table and took a big gulp.

Now no one is talking; everyone is looking at Frank.

"Just now, my men checked how many Ming people are left in the city."

Frank then spoke slowly, looked around at everyone, and said, "There are still more than seven hundred people, which is less than the number of our Portuguese citizens."

The city now has a population of only about two thousand, including the elderly, women, and children. More than six thousand people have left in the past few days.

"Frank, this is a serious dereliction of duty on your part. How could you not have discovered such a big thing?"

A businessman suddenly stood up and roared angrily.

At that moment, they all realized the seriousness of the problem.

The Ming people fled; although some remained, most had left.

They knew very well what this meant.

"Frank, you should go to Fragrant Hills as soon as possible and find out what's going on."

At this moment, Bu Jialao spoke up, "We'll stay in the city, mobilize everyone, shut down the factories, and strengthen the city's defenses."

We still have several cannons in our factory, which have all been moved to the gun emplacement.

And the sailors on the dock, first arm them.

Orders had already been sent from Goa that Haojing must be protected at all costs, as it is our foothold in the Ming Dynasty. If Haojing is lost, the kingdom will have no foundation in the Far East.

According to the books about the Ming Dynasty collected by the missionaries, they experience internal strife and dynastic changes every one or two hundred years. We must hold out until that time to bet on the victors in order to protect our interests.

"The Ming Dynasty has been around for two hundred years, but it shows no signs of collapse and remains very strong."

"I said hesitantly."

"Perhaps it's just a few decades apart."

The businessman next to him chimed in.

"How can these heretics be so powerful?"

Some businessmen began to mutter under their breath, but everyone in the conference room could still hear them.

"I will assign all the gunners in the factory to the gun emplacements. As for the sailors, Xenius and Niseia, you two go to the docks and gather the sailors, and tell them not to spend their time in the bars."

Now is the most dangerous moment for the morgue; we must hold this position.

Bu Jialao said to the several large businessmen beside him.

“Okay, Frank, you must go to Xiangshan County yourself, find out the situation, and whatever their governor wants, come back and tell us.”

Xenius nodded slightly. Of the six merchant ships currently docked at the pier, three belonged to him. If anything were to happen here, his wealth would suffer a major blow.

Well, actually, like Bu Jialao, they have long been rooted in Haojing and have acquired a lot of assets, including land outside the city.

Originally, he wanted to become a manor lord on the land of the Ming Dynasty and live like the lords in the country who had fiefdoms.

If they can hold out until the Ming Dynasty falls into internal strife, they will support the victor and, in the end, be rewarded with a Ming Dynasty title.

Upon returning to their homeland, they will also enjoy unparalleled prestige.

This is a noble title from the Ming Dynasty.

These were all the results of their private discussions, and they didn't tell anyone else.

This era was completely different from later generations.

China has not yet experienced a humiliating history, only a powerful nation that stands proudly above the rest of the world. Therefore, receiving a title from the Chinese emperor is almost equivalent to receiving a title from an emperor or king in Europe, perhaps only slightly less prestigious than that of the pope. "Alright, I'll go to Xiangshan County immediately to contact the Ming officials and ask them what's going on."

Because of the onset of winter, there are few merchant ships heading south, so information about the current situation is limited.

After Frank finished speaking, Xenius added, "The Ming Dynasty is currently at war with Japan. They shouldn't be provoking a war with us at this time, right?"

"Well, that makes sense."

"I think so too. Their army is fighting against Japan. I've seen the fighting power of the Japanese army. They have a lot of firearms. The Ming army's pitiful fighting power should make it difficult for them to defeat them easily."

Unless, of course, they mobilized the elite troops from the north.

But if that were the case, the Mongols would definitely cross that wall and attack them; their rulers wouldn't be that stupid.

Nyssaia echoed Xenius's words.

He was also a major merchant; he owned one ship at the dock, another in Songjiang Prefecture, and one that should now be in Temasek.

In this era, not just anyone can own a sea vessel; it represents an armed force.

For Niseya, although the Haojing business accounted for half of his wealth, it was only the beginning. His main assets were still those three ships.

In the luxury town, there is nothing but that mansion in the city.

Therefore, if he finds that something is wrong, he can pack his money and leave at any time.

He didn't have the same ambition as Xenius, who actually bought land in the Ming Dynasty, even though that land was actually worthless and just mudflats where crops couldn't be grown.

Aside from being a lord in name only, he actually gained nothing.

"That's right, the Ming Dynasty is at war with Japan, so why are they suddenly coming here to vent their anger on us?"

Frank had just gotten up to leave for Xiangshan County when he froze, and subconsciously said something.

The others then began to ponder why this was happening.

Indeed, even if the Ming Dynasty is powerful, should it be like this?

Upon hearing Frank's words, Xenia, Nissaya, and Bujala were all taken aback.

Although Bu Jialao was not involved in their smuggling of artillery to Japan, he knew that several Portuguese merchants had ordered artillery from him over the past ten years.

Okay, how big are modern ocean-going ships? Using modern units of measurement, they would be around four or five hundred tons. How much cargo can such a ship carry?

Since they were merchant ships, their main purpose was to carry cargo, and the cannons were only for armed protection, so having about ten cannons on a ship was actually sufficient.

However, these maritime merchants who traveled the Japanese route would order several cannons from his cannon factory almost every year during those years.

Is so much really necessary?

Bujala had actually already keenly grasped this information, but since they were all his clients, he chose to remain silent and did not report these matters to the city hall or Goa.

As for the whereabouts of those cannons, he actually had many guesses.

After all, there were many kingdoms, large and small, in East Asia, and even merchants from the Ming Dynasty would purchase Western cannons.

But now, he looked at the several maritime merchants with some surprise; they were the ones who occasionally purchased cannons from him.

Perhaps they realized something too, for their expressions were now astonished, and they avoided his gaze somewhat.

"Xenius, tell me, where did all the new cannons you purchased go?"

Bu Jialao turned to question Ksenias.

“Bu Jialao, why do you ask that? All those cannons are on my ship, I swear to God.”

Although Xenius looked grim, he still answered, because he really wasn't lying.

"Where are the old cannons?"

Bu Jialao pressed for an answer.

"Of course it was disposed of."

This time, Xenius's tone wasn't as firm as before.

"You disobeyed the Governor-General's orders and sold it to the Japanese, didn't you?"

Bu Jialao asked directly, even though he knew that Xenius would not admit it so easily, but he still asked anyway.

Frank stared in shock at Xenius and the other merchants, who all avoided his gaze.

"You've all sold them?"

Frank didn't need their answers; he asked the question that was on his mind.

It took Frank a long time to sit down, repeatedly saying, "No wonder, no wonder."

"Xenius, you are the ones who caused this mess, and you must take full responsibility."

Immediately, the other merchants spoke up angrily.

“Yes, you and Frank should work together to resolve this matter, otherwise we will report it to the Governor-General’s Office in Goa.”

“You must bear the consequences. I will explain why our people suddenly attacked our foreign friends. It turns out you angered them.”

The Portuguese merchants were instantly enraged.

Their behavior wasn't an act; it came from the heart.

They didn't benefit from it, yet they have to bear the consequences—how is that possible?

They almost had to chip in to pay for these pirates' money. How could they not be furious?
Well, do you think they don't know what kind of people the merchants who own ships are?
Merchants and pirates are sometimes no different.

Just like the Ming Dynasty, they knew that the Great Merchant was a pirate, but he had a status and position in the country, so he could whitewash his identity.

Do you really think that the Japanese pirates and other pirates were wiped out by Qi Jiguang? They just went into hiding.

Now, these businessmen are unwilling to spend money to resolve this matter, which may be the biggest crisis facing Haojing – internal division.

Seeing that things were going badly, Frank quickly tried to smooth things over and appease the others.

"Let's get through this first, and then we'll settle the score later. We did nothing wrong and we won't pay for it. Xenius and his men have to take responsibility."

Bu Jialao was also a beneficiary, so of course he pinned the blame on the pirate leaders, but he still spoke loudly.

"Alright, let's deal with the Ming Kingdom first."

Only then did the others stop their clamor.

“I’m going to Xiangshan County right away to talk to their officials about this. Niseya, you come with me, or you can switch to Xenia.”

Frank said.

Several maritime merchants gathered together to discuss the matter for a while. In the end, Nyssia went with Frank to Xiangshan County to make contact with the Ming Dynasty government, while the others began to recruit people at the dock.

Not only them, but other businessmen also returned to their homes and began arming their subordinates, including all Portuguese employees.

As for the remaining Ming people, they were temporarily housed together and placed under guard.

Frank and Nyssa hurriedly prepared the carriage to head to Xiangshan County, while Liu Yaohui, the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, was already furious in the main hall of Xiangshan County.

It's one thing for the foreigners to rent Haojing, but they even built high walls there. What are they trying to do?
"My lord, this matter arose during the time of my predecessor. When I arrived, the city wall had already been built, and I had ordered them to demolish it."

"enough."

The explanation from the magistrate of Xiangshan County was interrupted. Although Liu Yaohui was furious, he did not lose his temper.

It seems like Xiangshan County has a problem, but does that mean the South China Sea Fleet doesn't? Doesn't Nanjing know about this either?
Impossible. In fact, the capital already knew about the city walls. (End of Chapter)