prosperous age

Chapter 970 1059 The old port is gone

The Yi ships coming and going in Yuegang brought their national flags, which made the people of Ming Dynasty know that ships sailing on the sea relied on flags to identify them, so the Fujian government made this flag as a symbol of Ming ships.

After all, in the past, the ships traveling in the waters of East Asia were all manufactured by their respective countries and had distinctive national characteristics.

For example, the ships from Middle Eastern countries traveling to and from the Ming Dynasty used Arabs and Persians, and they used Arab dhows.

However, the shipbuilding technology of Japan was relatively backward. The ships they built had flat bottoms, cloth sails hung in the middle of the rafters, and the rafters had to be rotated frequently. They were only suitable for seagoing ships sailing in the wind.

The reason why Japan's sea-going ship technology was so poor was mainly due to its isolation from the country. The Tokugawa shogunate even issued a "large ship building ban", prohibiting Japan from building ships with a weight of more than 500 koku.

The situation in North Korea is similar. The technology is not advanced and most of them are ships operating in offshore waters.

However, because several East Asian countries are relatively close to each other, it is safer to sail along the coastline.

The Ming Dynasty's sea-going ship technology is actually lagging behind that of Europe. It can only be said that it is the best in East Asia. The best sea-going ship is naturally the large Fu ship, but whether it is a merchant ship or a war ship, it is obviously not as good as Europe's. Various ship types developed at this time.

Since there are only a handful of ships operating in Asian waters, the country can be roughly determined based on the ship type.

Most of these sea-going ships fly their own flags when they go to sea. There is no need to use the national name at all, and naturally there is no need for a national flag.

It should be said that Fujian's purpose of equipping merchant ships with the sun and moon flag for trading at sea was mainly to facilitate identification. After all, ships flying the sun and moon flag generally have ship pilots, and the Ming navy can also make preliminary judgments about encounters.

The three big fortune ships quickly approached the port. Although their course was slightly off, they quickly adjusted their course and sailed towards the port after looking at the mainland and based on some reference objects.

On the dock on the shore, countless workers wearing shorts and shorts saw the ship approaching and gathered near the dock, hoping to find a job and earn money to support their families through labor.

Not long after, the ship approached the pier, the sailor threw the rope to the pier, and the people on the shore quickly fixed the rope to the boat squatting at the berth.

"bump"

The Dafu boat had already lowered its sails, and the final distance was relying on inertia to approach the pier. There was a sound of collision, and the ship leaned steadily against the pier.

Several more ropes were thrown down from the boat, and help from the shore secured the boat firmly. Several springboards were quickly set up. The captain of the big boat got off the boat first, followed by several followers.

"Go back quickly and report to the master, asking them to come over and inventory the goods."

He turned around and ordered the person next to him. After that person quickly ran towards Yuegang, he glanced at the other two lucky boats next to him from a distance.

The Dafu boat over there had also set up on the gangplank. Someone got off the boat and came to him quickly.

At this moment, three men on the ship who were dressed obviously differently from other sailors hurriedly came down from the gangplank without saying a word. The leader just looked at each other and left with the other two men.

The workers in the distance now took a few steps towards this side, but they did not dare to rush over. Instead, they could only stand and wait at a distance, waiting for the supervisor here to call them over to help unload the ship.

The three strong men quickly passed through the surrounding workers and headed towards the town, disappearing into the crowd after a while.

Their departure did not attract the attention of the people around them. After all, for those who sell their labor to make money, the people who come off the ship to take care of things are their food, clothing and parents. Whether they can make money today depends on their faces.

But in less than half an hour, two fast horses galloped away from Yuegang and headed towards Fuzhou, regardless of the fact that it would soon get dark.

"Open the door quickly, the master is back."

In the capital, Nanxunfang, at the side entrance of Wei Mansion, a large sedan stopped at the door, and the entourage started knocking on the door.

After a while, the door opened and the bearers carried the sedan in.

Not long after, Wei Guangde, who was already drunk, was helped out of the sedan by two attendants and walked to the backyard. Butler Zhang Ji had already hurried over to greet him.

"Master, are you okay? I'll let someone boil the water."

Zhang Ji saw Wei Guangde was drunk and said hurriedly.

"Well, burn more, I want to take a shower and then rest."

Wei Guangde said casually.

Soon, the group of people arrived at the backyard. At the entrance of the courtyard, the two attendants stepped down and were replaced by the maids in the backyard.

Now the maids in the Wei Mansion, the first batch to come here with Xu Jianglan, are mostly older. Wei Guangde didn't like them, so he was betrothed.

The ones in the house now were all newly bought by Xu Jianglan in the capital. After training for half a year, they were arranged to serve in the backyard.

"Let Xia He take care of the master's bath."

After entering the backyard, Wei Guangde gave instructions and walked to the bathroom.

Xia He was also Xu Jianglan's original dowry maid. Together with her personal maid, she became Wei Guangde's mistress. Not long ago, she was given a separate courtyard. She was considered a concubine and half master of the Wei Mansion.

After walking a few steps, Wei Guangde felt footsteps behind him. He looked back and saw that it was Zhang Ji following behind.

Wei Guangde immediately stopped and asked, "Is something wrong?"

At this time in the past, Zhang Ji would leave and go to the front at the entrance of the backyard.

After all, it's so late, and it's not the rule to come later.

Of course, following Wei Guangde is another matter.

"Master, there is a letter from Governor Yu of Zhejiang Province. Seeing how the master is doing, I..."

Zhang Ji said hesitantly.

Wei Guangde understood that although he was a little drunk after drinking, his brain was still sober. He knew that Zhang Ji was worried that he would lose the letter after giving it to him.

"You go to the study and wait for me."

Wei Guangde ordered.

Not far from the edge of the inner courtyard, in the corner is Wei Guangde's study. Zhang Ji agreed and turned towards the study.

After half an hour, Wei Guangde took a comfortable shower and wanted to rest. Suddenly he remembered that Zhang Ji was still in the study, so he put on a coat and went to the study first.

When Wei Guangde pushed the door open and came in, he asked the maid waiting at the door to make a pot of strong tea and bring it in.

Yu Dayou's letter, Wei Guangde's head is a little short-circuited at the moment, and he doesn't know what it is.

"Sir, this is a letter from Governor Yu." Zhang Ji handed a thick envelope to Wei Guangde with both hands. Wei Guangde reached out to take it, casually glanced at the seal of the letter, then tore it open and took out the letter paper from inside.

Zhang Ji went over to flick the candle, and put the candlestick next to it on the desk to make the light brighter.

By the light of the candle, Wei Guangde began to read the words on the letter carefully.

Soon, Wei Guangde realized that what the letter was actually saying was that he asked the Nanyang Navy to trace the situation of the Xuanwei Division in Jiugang.

Jiugang is located in the eastern part of Sumatra Island in Indonesia, the largest country in Southeast Asia, about 2400 kilometers away from Hainan Island, China.

Although the distance is far away, at least during the Yuan Dynasty, a large number of Chinese had begun to immigrate to the surrounding areas of Sumatra.

By the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties, a considerable Chinese settlement had formed around Old Port.

Although there were already a large number of Chinese living here at that time, the Chinese were still newcomers here and were under the rule of the local Hindu Srivijaya Kingdom.

After the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, because it focused on unifying the Central Plains and preventing counterattacks from the Mongolian ministries, it was unwilling to use troops against neighboring maritime countries. Therefore, in the 28th year of Hongwu, Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang specifically published the "Huang Ming Ancestral Instructions", in which Fifteen countries were clearly listed that would not be conquered, including Srivijaya.

However, although the Ming Dynasty promised not to conquer Srivijaya, Srivijaya could not escape the fate of rapid subjugation.

In the 30th year of Hongwu, only two years after the release of "The Ancestral Instructions of the Emperor Ming", Srivijaya was destroyed by Majapahit, another Hindu kingdom from Java, Indonesia today.

After Majapahit destroyed Srivijaya, he failed to establish effective rule in the hometown of Srivijaya, and the surrounding area of ​​​​Old Port soon fell into chaos.

Under this circumstance, more than a thousand local Chinese people elected Liang Daoming, a Chinese from Nanhai, Guangdong, as the new King of Srivijaya.

For almost ten years after that, Liang Daoming led the local Chinese forces to resist the invasion of Majapahit, and gained such high prestige that during this period, a large number of Chinese came to seek refuge in the surrounding areas, and even Guangdong and Fujian areas had Tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians crossed the sea and came here.

At this time, after Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty came to the throne, there are different opinions on the whereabouts of Emperor Jianwen. Some said he was buried in a sea of ​​fire, while others said Emperor Jianwen fled overseas. Zhu Di, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, ordered Zheng He to go to sea to pursue his mission, and he could also take this opportunity to show off his force to show China So powerful.

On June 15, the third year of Yongle, Zheng He and Wang Jinghong were ordered to make their first mission to the West. Their fleet totaled more than 27,800 people, divided into 208 ships.

Among them, the largest sea-going ship is 44 feet long and 18 feet wide, followed by 37 feet long and 15 feet wide, which is the so-called treasure ship.

The fleet crossed the sea from Liujiahe, Suzhou to Fujian, and then set sail from Wuhumen, Fuzhou, starting a voyage that lasted more than two years.

The fleet first arrived at Champa City and sailed south to Java. In the fifth year of Yongle, Zheng He returned from the West. When passing by the old port, the pirate Chen Zuyi pretended to surrender and attempted to rob the fleet.

Chen Zuyi's ancestral home is Chaozhou, Guangdong. He probably committed some crime in his hometown in the early Ming Dynasty. After that, he fled to Nanyang with his family and became a pirate.

Chen Zuyi may indeed have some leadership skills, so his pirate gang soon expanded rapidly. At its peak, it had more than 10,000 members and nearly a hundred warships.

His fleet has robbed everywhere in Southeast Asia, the southeastern coast of China, Japan, and around the Indian Ocean. In total, it has robbed tens of thousands of ships and captured more than 50 coastal towns in various countries.

Moreover, Chen Zuyi robbed ships indiscriminately, and did not let Chinese ships go because he was Chinese. Therefore, his looting also caused heavy losses to the Ming Dynasty, so much so that when Ming Taizu was in power, he once offered a reward of 50 Ten thousand taels of silver to capture him himself.

There is even a view that the maritime ban policy introduced during Zhu Yuanzhang's reign was somewhat related to the huge losses caused by pirates such as Chen Zuyi.

The existence of Chen Zuyi has always been a serious threat to the Chinese regime in old Hong Kong, and he seems to be eager to compete for the leadership of local and surrounding Chinese groups.

Zheng He cooperated with Liang Daoming and sent troops to capture him, which brought prosperity to the whole country.

The fleet continued westward, passing through Sumatra, Nanweili, and Ceylon, and arrived at Zuoli. Zheng He erected a monument here. The monument wrote: His country is more than 100,000 miles away from China. The people are salty, and the prosperity is like the wind. Engraved in stone here, it will be displayed forever.

This huge fleet returned from here and returned to China in September of the same year.

Later, Liang Daoming returned to pay tribute, and the control of Old Port was transferred to his deputy Shi Jinqing.

Zheng He took Chen Zuyi back to Nanjing and beheaded him in front of envoys from various countries.

Six days after Chen Zuyi was executed, he represented the Srivijaya Chinese regime and met with Zhu Di, the founder of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Di announced the establishment of the Old Port Propaganda Department on the spot. Liang Daoming was unwilling to leave the Ming Dynasty, so he appointed Shi Jinqing as the Old Port Propaganda Department. In this way, the Chinese regime in Srivijaya officially became the Old Port Propaganda Department established by the Ming Dynasty government. .

In the following decades, the Xuanwei Division in Old Port also became an important transit station for Zheng He's voyages to the West. Basically, all of Zheng He's subsequent voyages to the West passed through the Xuanwei Division in Old Port.

After that, the Ming Dynasty officials no longer listed the Old Port Xuanwei Department alongside other Southeast Asian regimes that came to pay tribute. Instead, they listed it separately and always called it the "Old Port Xuanwei Department."

Later, there were disputes caused by Shi Jinqing's son Shi Jisun and daughter Shi Erjie both intending to inherit his official position. With Zheng He's intervention, it was decided that his daughter Shi Erjie would succeed him as the propaganda envoy of Old Port.

After the death of Zhu Di, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Gaochi, Emperor Renzong of the Ming Dynasty, changed his national policy of actively going to sea and exerting important influence around the Western Ocean. Zheng He's fleet to the Western Ocean was permanently suspended, and his influence on Southeast Asia gradually weakened.

Beginning in the reign of Emperor Xuanzong and Zhu Zhanji of the Ming Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty adopted a comprehensive strategic contraction, stopped its overseas activities, withdrew its troops from Jiaozhi, and even the Nurgan Dusi and others were abolished.

As the Ming Dynasty's power at sea disappeared, the isolated Jiugang Xuanwei Division also lost its biggest backer and became increasingly weak.

During this period, the Xuanwei Department of Jiugang was under increasing pressure from the Majapahit regime and was forced to surrender to Majapahit at the same time.

After this continued for more than ten years, Jiugang Xuanwei Division was completely annexed by Majapahit around the fifth year of Zhengtong. This overseas territory of the Ming Dynasty finally became history.

Orthodox five years

"Ugh."

Wei Guangde looked at the time mentioned in the letter and couldn't help but think of the documents he saw in the Ministry of War documents, and he couldn't help but sigh deeply.

Later generations may only know the history of Zhu Qizhen, Emperor Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty, who was captured in embarrassment after his failure in Tumubao, but they don't know that during the Ming Dynasty, Yingzong once wanted to change the national policy, end the contraction policy started by Renzong of the Ming Dynasty, and once again actively expand his power outwards. .

It was in the eighth year of the Zhengtong reign that Emperor Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty ordered Guo Yan to supervise the construction of the ships needed to sail to the Western Sea. He planned to send him and Pandu to command Ma Yun to lead the fleet to the Western Sea again.

But at this time, widespread riots occurred in the coastal areas and the pace of the voyage to the West had to be slowed down.

As a result of this release, Ming Yingzong was captured during the Tumubao Incident. Even after re-assuming the throne through the Seizing the Gate Incident, Ming Yingzong still wanted to form a fleet to sail to the Western Seas again, but in the end he was strongly opposed by officials such as Zhang Zhao And had to give up.

At this time, Ming Yingzong had lost some vigor after years of house arrest, and his opinions on ministers were not the same as when he first became emperor.

As a result, the voyage plan was forced to stop, and the Xuanwei Department of Old Port was never restored and disappeared forever from the Ming Dynasty's documents.

"Majupa Yi. Tammu Sultanate."

Wei Guangde murmured in his mouth.

(End of this chapter)