prosperous age

"Minister of War, order Deng Zilong to return immediately to mobilize troops and send them to Luzon as soon as possible."

I just hope the Westerners haven't done anything foolish yet, and there's still time.

After speaking to Zhang Ke, Wei Guangde turned to the Wanli Emperor on the throne and said, "Your Majesty, although this matter has nothing to do with our Great Ming, we are still descendants of Yan and Huang, of Han blood. The court still needs to make a gesture."

"Upon returning, I will immediately summon officials from the Ministry of Rites and other relevant departments to draft an imperial edict to exert pressure on the Western barbarians as soon as possible."

Wei Guangde felt that the capital city needed to act quickly; they really couldn't let the Westerners slaughter the Chinese in Luzon.

Regardless of the circumstances, they are all of Han blood.

If the imperial court truly sits idly by, I fear the censors and officials will cause trouble again.

"Yes, Master Wei will convene the cabinet and ministers as soon as possible to discuss this matter."

"The Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs, once the Cabinet's decision arrives, must proceed immediately without delay."

Emperor Wanli also thought of this: although they were not Ming people, they were still of Han blood.

The Ming Dynasty inherited the land from the Han people. Even if they were not subjects, as long as they had Han blood flowing in their veins, they would be saved.

At the very least, the imperial court must make a show of force.

Therefore, Wei Guangde, along with Shen Shixing and Zhang Ke, immediately bowed and took their leave.

Inside the main hall, the eunuch and Liu Shouyou remained.

Wei Guangde neither paid attention to what they were discussing nor tried to guess, as it would be taboo.

“Good Loan, what if the atrocities have already occurred by the time the Heavenly Army arrives?”

Zhang Ke quickly followed behind Wei Guangde and whispered.

He had already figured it out; the Imperial Guards had finally managed to escape from Manila and relay the news to the capital, and by then quite some time had probably passed.

At this point, the imperial court's response might be too late.

"Do your best and leave the rest to fate; all we need to do is maintain a certain attitude."

You should immediately send Deng Zilong back to mobilize ships and men, and we should also speed things up here to send out the imperial decree as soon as possible.

"The imperial decree should be able to be delivered before the main army is mobilized."

Mobilizing troops is not something that can be done immediately upon arrival, just by issuing an order.

It also takes time to mobilize ships and prepare supplies for them.

What the imperial court can do is to convince outsiders that it genuinely wants to provide assistance.

"As for if a massacre really did occur in Manila..."

Wei Guangde kept walking, but his voice was much weaker at this moment.

"We still have to fight, to use fighting to force peace and compel the Westerners of Manila to submit."

Wei Guangde still did not abandon his original plan and did not intend to kill the Westerners.

Although he had just defeated the Japanese a thousand miles away, Wei Guangde was still somewhat unsure of himself about expanding the battlefield to the eastern continent, which was thousands of miles away.

Don't be fooled by his disdain for the Spanish in the Philippines; he's just taking advantage of their small number of soldiers and generals.

If we can't even wipe them out at our doorstep, the Ming Dynasty should just retreat to its own territory and stop thinking about going out.

"In addition, Deng Zilong should be informed of Old Port so that they can closely monitor the Portuguese reaction."

It is said that although the Portuguese were dissatisfied with being ruled by the Western king, the two sides did not engage in a major war.

If the Portuguese were to intervene and support the Westerners at this time, we would not be afraid, but without adequate preparation, we might suffer a great loss.

This matter must be reminded to Deng Zilong.

Wei Guangde told Zhang Ke everything he could think of, and they soon parted ways.

Zhang Ke returned to the Ministry of War, while they went back to the cabinet and immediately sent people to invite the heads of the Ministry of Rites and the Censorate to the cabinet for a meeting.

"You must tell Minister Chen and Censor Zhao that it is extremely urgent and they must come to the Cabinet for a meeting immediately."

Right at the entrance of the Cabinet, Wei Guangde gave instructions to two Cabinet officials, without even having time to return to his office to issue further orders.

Acting in such a public manner is also a way of conveying the message through the public eye and word of mouth.

The cabinet was extremely anxious upon learning the news and has taken swift action to address the matter.

Shen Shixing, who was standing next to him, also looked anxious at the right moment.

The two complemented each other well.

Soon, other cabinet ministers who received the news, such as Yu Youding and Xu Guodu, rushed to Wei Guangde's office.

As for Wang Xijue, who is destined to enter the cabinet but has not yet joined, he is currently on leave granted by the emperor and is naturally not performing his duties in the cabinet.

"What happened?"

While hurriedly calling for help, Yu Youding entered the duty room of Wei Guangde without even bowing and went straight to ask.

He had already heard about what happened at the Cabinet entrance.

Upon entering and seeing Wei Guangde's solemn expression and Shen Shixing's anxious look, one knew that something serious had happened.

"Wait, let's talk when the others arrive."

Wei Guangde waved his hand, gesturing for Yu Youding to sit down first.

A moment later, Xu Guo and Wang Jiaping arrived, and Wei Guangde passed the document down, saying, "You'll understand once you've seen it."

“How dare this illegitimate son be so presumptuous?”

Soon, Yu Youding roared in anger.

After Xu Guo and Wang Jiaping read it, they both looked furious.

"I have already instructed the Ministry of War to issue Deng Zilong the troop mobilization order, and he is to immediately return to the south to mobilize naval vessels and personnel to Luzon."

With a large army pressing in, I hope the Western barbarians won't do anything foolish.

Wei Guangde said, "Summoning the heads of the Ministry of Rites and the Censorate is also to expedite the matters previously discussed at the Ministry of War."

His Majesty has ordered the Directorate of Ceremonial to fully cooperate with the Cabinet in handling this matter. Ru Mo, you should draft the decree first.

Soon after, officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Censorate arrived, and they immediately decided on the personnel to deliver the imperial edict and supervise the operation, instructing them to immediately travel south with the naval fleet to sea.

Regarding subsequent matters in the imperial court, those awaiting appointment should first attend to the immediate affairs.

The court also needed to complete some official documents, including mobilizing troops and putting pressure on the Western barbarians.

However, the priority now is to deal with the troop deployment, and the rest can be handled later.

Back at the Ministry of War, Zhang Ke learned that Li Chengliang, Qi Jiguang, Deng Zilong, and other naval and land commanders were still discussing in the main hall of the Ministry of War, calculating the troops and ships that needed to be mobilized to attack the eastern continent.

The fleet that Wei Guangde had promised was a naval force that would remain on the Eastern Continent for a long time and would be placed under the command of Li Chengliang.

However, transporting thousands of government troops there would not be enough ships; a large number of ships would need to be mobilized for the transport.

At this point, they were already calculating, based on the losses of the previous exploration fleet, how many men and ships they would need to mobilize to compensate for the potential casualties caused by a shipwreck.

If the court says it will give Li Chengliang three thousand men, it will definitely not give only three thousand, without considering the possibility of casualties during the journey.

Therefore, the mobilized land forces may have reached as many as four thousand men, dispersed across various ships.

They also need to prepare at least six months' worth of provisions before setting off.

Some of the ships of the East China Sea Fleet have been allocated to the North China Sea Fleet, and another group will be left to patrol near the Japanese islands. The headquarters will also need to leave a group to be responsible for patrolling the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea.

After considering all the factors, the forces were insufficient, so they had no choice but to ask the South China Sea Navy for help.

Just then, as they were calculating the number of ships the South China Sea Fleet could provide, Zhang Ke strode into the lobby.

"Yunlong, you're here! Someone, quickly go and invite Vice Minister Zhang over." Zhang Ke was about to ask where Zhang Jiayin was, but he quickly realized that the two had different duties, and Zhang Jiayin should be back in his duty room processing official documents.

"Minister, what has happened?"

The officers in the hall all stood up, preparing to bow to Zhang Ke, but Liang Yunlong preemptively asked a question.

"Something big has happened. According to intelligence from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Westerners in Manila have imprisoned Chinese people inside and outside the city, and have also detained our Ming Dynasty merchants and sailors in hotels and docks, which seems to indicate that they have ulterior motives."

His Majesty is furious. You and Jia Yin must immediately prepare the necessary documents to mobilize troops.

Zilong, you must immediately return to Hangzhou with the troop mobilization order and dispatch the main force of the South China Sea Navy to Luzon to deter them.

Furthermore, the imperial decree will arrive soon.

Remember, there is no time to lose.

Zhang Ke succinctly explained the situation in Luzon, much to the surprise of everyone in the room.

Especially considering the strength that the Ming navy has demonstrated at sea, it's hard to believe that the Western barbarians would go crazy and attack the Ming people.

They did not notice that Zhang Ke used the word "Chinese" in his wording and separated it from Ming Dynasty merchants and sailors.

With Zhang Ke in charge, Zhang Jiayin and Liang Yunlong immediately got busy, and soon a troop mobilization document was placed in front of Zhang Ke.

After a brief glance, Zhang Ke immediately stamped the Ministry of War's seal on the documents and fire warrants.

"Deng Zilong received the order and immediately returned to Hangzhou to mobilize the navy to head south to Luzon without delay."

A troop mobilization document is used to mobilize troops.

The Ministry of War's fire-trafficking tickets were designed to ensure the fastest possible delivery via the postal stations.

Once it's in Deng Zilong's hands, it means that all the post stations will provide him with whatever he needs on his journey south as quickly as possible, allowing him to travel without any obstacles.

"Let's focus on the Luzon matter first and set off quickly."

After handing over the documents, Zhang Ke immediately dismissed everyone.

If it were someone else, they would probably feel uncomfortable.

But Deng Zilong was also Zhang Ke's fellow townsman, so he didn't treat him like an outsider at all and directly asked him to leave.

"This subordinate obeys the order."

Deng Zilong took the document, bowed to everyone in the hall, and then turned and strode out of the hall.

"You may continue to discuss the matter concerning the Eastern Continent."

"Provide a list of ships that require naval assistance, and the court will do everything possible to fulfill it."

Zhang Ke then spoke to Li Chengliang and Xu Qiaoan.

"My lord, what the navy needs most right now are Fujian ships to transport supplies and men."

Previously, in order to improve the navy's combat power, a large number of sailors were transferred from Fujian ships to gunboats, and the Fujian ships were sold to maritime merchants at a discount.

Previously, in order to transport the expeditionary army to the east, the entire East China Sea Fleet and most of the main force of the South China Sea Fleet were gathered, and civilian ships were also requisitioned to barely meet the demand.

But now, a portion of the East China Sea Fleet has been stationed on Sado Island to form the North China Sea Fleet, greatly reducing its strength.

Before Xu Qiaoan could continue, Zhang Ke waved his hand to interrupt, saying, "If the imperial court needs to transport troops by Fujian ships, it will naturally find a way to solve the problem."

However, your words do remind me that while gunboats are formidable, we cannot do without Fujian-style ships.

At this point, Zhang Ke looked at Liang Yunlong and said, "Remember this: at the shipyard, gunboats and Fujian-style ships need to be built according to a certain quota."

Turning back to Xu Qiaoan, he said, "This time, despite the Luzon incident, the cabinet did not postpone the Eastern Continent operation, so it is imperative for the navy to dispatch ships to transport a large army to the Eastern Continent."

If there aren't enough ships, they can be transferred from the North Sea Fleet and the South Sea Fleet, or even merchant ships can be requisitioned directly.

"A few thousand people? The imperial court could transport tens of thousands of troops to Japan, surely they can muster enough ships?"

In fact, as long as the South China Sea Fleet leaves behind a few ships, Li Chengliang's side will not lack ships.

However, the cabinet wanted the imposing presence of the South China Sea Navy to intimidate the Westerners in Manila, hence the order to mobilize the main force of the South China Sea Navy to move south.

If the deterrence is effective, the Spanish will naturally not dare to harbor any ill intentions towards the Ming Dynasty's navy.

Even after arriving in the Eastern Continent, this pressure remained effective.

"Should we order the four major ports to temporarily detain the Western ships in port?"

Zhang Jiayin suddenly made a suggestion.

Zhang Ke had no idea how many ships of Western merchants were currently docked in Ming ports, and Wei Guangde had also overlooked this matter.

"Immediately issue the warrants and seize the property."

Zhang Ke acted decisively, fearing that the Western merchants from Songjiang Prefecture or Yuegang would hear the news and rush to Luzon to report it.

In that case, the military deterrent power planned by the imperial court would be greatly reduced.

News of what happened in the Ministry of War and the Cabinet spread very quickly.

The sudden tension within the cabinet initially left outsiders wondering what was going on, but the moment the news from the Ministry of War broke, the officialdom in the capital erupted in chaos.

Meanwhile, in the cabinet, Wei Guangde had already confirmed the list of officials to be sent south with Chen Jingbang and Zhao Jin.

The imperial edict, drafted by Shen Shixing, was only slightly modified before being swiftly sent to the Directorate of Ceremonial.

While officials in the capital were shocked by the audacity of the Western barbarians upon hearing the news, the court had already taken action.

The South China Sea navy sailed south to Luzon, and the imperial edict and the Ministry of War's troop mobilization documents were issued.

Such speed left the censors who had originally wanted to criticize the cabinet and the Ministry of War speechless.

Well, even if Wei Guangde wielded immense power, it was impossible for him to truly control everyone in the officialdom.

He has many supporters, but also many enemies.

Even the disciples of Shen Shixing, Wang Xijue, and others were eager to cause trouble for Wei Guangde and bring him down.

In particular, Shen Shixing's protégés, upon hearing the news, immediately thought of making a big fuss about the matter and first solidify the accusation that the Grand Secretary had acted improperly.

Even if we can't bring down Wei Guangde all at once, it would be good to damage his prestige and make the palace question his ability to handle affairs.

Unfortunately, Wei Guangde displayed extraordinary speed in handling the situation, revealing all his countermeasures within half a day, leaving them with no sufficient grounds to criticize him.

Even the censors, who were used to cursing the imperial guards, had no interest in cursing the imperial guards at this moment.

Thousands of miles away, the Embroidered Uniform Guard was able to transmit the news from Luzon back to the court so quickly; they had done their best.

It's a habit to criticize the factory supervisor, but you can't just blindly spew insults.

News of Luzon spread in a single day.

The imperial court's response quickly spread among the common people.

Although the court had already devised a countermeasure, the officials were not idle. Starting in the afternoon, some quick-acting officials submitted memorials to the Office of Transmission, requesting that the Western barbarians be severely punished.

In particular, news that had been previously kept under wraps—that naval vessels had been bombarded by Western warships—was now all coming out at once.

In a very short time, the people of the capital were united in their hatred of the enemy and cursed the Westerners incessantly.

"Lord Li, you should stay in the church for the next few days to avoid being scolded when you come out."

Rumors also reached the Siyiguan (Foreigners' Inn), and in the afternoon, a colleague came over to tell Matteo Ricci about it.

“I am not Spanish, I am Italian. In Europe, Spain is just one of many countries, and we should not confuse them.”

Matteo Ricci had entered the Ming Dynasty court, and although he was only a low-ranking official of the ninth grade, he at least received a salary.

With further donations from believers and students, they have purchased a courtyard outside the capital and built the first church in Beijing.

He now had an income, allowing him to stay and preach. (End of Chapter)