I'm really not doing business

Chapter 783 The Four Pillars of the National Dynasty

Liu Ji brought news from afar and told the Ming Emperor that the Governor's Office of Mozambique had implemented Ms. Purazzo's system.

The Spanish envoy to Spain, Legazpi, told the Ming Emperor that Liu Ji's information was wrong. Legazpi was very clear about this system. Ms. Prazo was awarded to Portuguese and Spanish women to encourage them to go to sea to complete the reproduction and development of the colonies, rather than to local barbarians.

Legashi told the Ming Emperor in no uncertain terms that the system was definitely designed in this way. For example, Deng Zilong's wife, Luo Li'an, who worked in the Luzon Governor's Office, went overseas based on this background.

Neither Liu Ji nor Li Yashi lied.

Initially, Ms. Prazo was indeed only awarded to Portuguese and Spanish women, but the control of the Governor-General's Office in Portugal and Spain was very limited, and this system was immediately used in the colonies by the colonial Governor-General's Office.

Design is design, execution is execution.

Regarding the question of how to deal with King Larambo of Merina, the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Punishments have actually discussed and given some answers. The Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Punishments do not intend to oppose the emperor's decision, and are trying to find ancestral laws to explain your majesty's behavior.

"Your Majesty, I believe that Lalangbo, the ruler of the Melina country, is not a king, but a pirate." Shen Li stood up and began to defend His Majesty. In the view of the Ministry of Rites, as long as Lalangbo was defined as a pirate, the ancestral law of "appeasing distant people" would be perfectly circumvented.

Shen Li looked at His Majesty's puzzled expression, took out a memorial and said, "The various situations in the country of Merina show that it has not yet completed the construction of a dynasty, so Lalangbo is not the ruler, but a pirate."

This memorial from the Ministry of Rites discussed the basic elements of building the national dynasty, and the Ministry of Rites divided it into four beams and eight pillars.

The four beams represent military, economy, politics, and culture.

In terms of military affairs, we need to have a basic military framework, rather than gathering together when robbing, and then returning to our own homes after the robbery, without even the most basic command, and even unable to distinguish between the enemy and ourselves on the battlefield. That is not a military framework, that is banditry;

Economically, the most basic economic construction was completed only after the country got rid of the natural economy and entered the small peasant economy. However, the economic model was still based on extremely primitive gathering and hunting, which was an extremely unstable natural economy and could not support the construction of the country.
In politics, no matter what kind of system is generally recognized by the majority of people in the jurisdiction, there are not many opponents to oppose the power holder to issue orders, the king's flag on the city wall is constantly changing, and the king is the king in the morning and the prisoner in the evening. This unstable political body cannot perform the duties of the country.

Culturally, we have the ability to use writing, rather than relying on word of mouth. Only with writing can we record historical events, laws and regulations, economic trade, government orders, etc. Only with writing can we pass on civilization.

Completing the construction of the four beams is considered to have opened the door to the construction of the national dynasty. Only after the subsequent eight pillars are thoroughly completed can it be officially confirmed as a country. All kinds of rotten fish and shrimps run to the Ming Dynasty and say a few auspicious words to get treatment as friendly countries. Then the allies of the Ming Dynasty are really worthless.

The eight columns are extended from the four beams.

Guards and guest soldiers, guards who are both farmers and soldiers, and elite soldiers responsible for attacking;
Planting and cultivation. Only through planting can we have a stable source of food. Only through cultivation and continuous improvement of crops can we increase yields and obtain more food. In fact, the hidden meaning of cultivation is to develop productivity.

The capital and the localities. The capital means the basic political center, forming the ruling class; while the localities mean the obedience of the ruled, which represents a stable political framework.
Poetry and morality. Poetry is the application of words. If there is no poetry, artificially created words will not be widely used, such as Xixia script and the Mongolian script that keeps changing. Certain moral standards are the embodiment of basic culture.

However, the Kingdom of Merina had not completed the construction of these four beams, let alone the eight pillars behind them. According to the Ministry of Rites, only when the eight pillars were completed could it be considered a dynasty.

In this way, King Larambo of Merina became a pirate, which was easy to deal with. Just kill him directly.

After all, during the Yongle period, the pirate king Chen Zuyi was actually also the king of the Bolin Kingdom. There were even more than 50 cities in Southeast Asia that paid tribute to Chen Zuyi, yet Chen Zuyi died as a pirate rather than a king.

"Lalangbo has three nobles under him, and he divided the country of Melina among them." Zhu Yijun frowned and said, "He can barely be considered a king."

Zhu Yijun wanted to see the limit of the Ministry of Rites' ability to sprinkle water to clean the floor.

Shen Li said very calmly: "Even if the Merina Kingdom is forcibly elevated to the imperial court, there are laws established by our ancestors. In the fifth year of Yongle, the Annan tyrant Hu Jinyi, his eldest son Hu Yuancheng, and his second son Hu Hancang were captured by the Duke of Yingguo Zhang Fu and taken back to Nanjing. Hu Jinyi and Hu Hancang were beheaded in public."

Yongle conquered Annan. There are many different opinions about what happened to the tyrant Hu Jinyao after he returned to Nanjing. It was not clearly stated, but it was probably that he was executed. The ancestral laws could be used flexibly.

"Then let's follow the old story of Chen Zuyi and convict him of being a pirate." Zhu Yijun agreed with the first way of whitewashing himself. After all, the first way was reasonable and well-founded. The theory constructed by the imperial court was very complete, and there were old precedents to follow.

The four words "Guo Chao" were first proposed by the Grand Master of the Imperial Clan Wan Shihe. He compiled many books on the history of overseas foreign countries and eventually determined the basic standards of a Guo Chao with four beams and eight pillars. According to the standards of a Guo Chao, the Governor's Office of Mozambique is more like a Guo Chao than the Kingdom of Melina.

At least six of the eight pillars of the Mozambique Governorate are sound, except for morality and nurturing.

Without completing the construction of a dynasty, they can be completely regarded as savages, tribesmen, and local chieftains.

"Your Majesty, I brought back some seeds. I think the most valuable one is the seed of the cocoa tree. I traded a total of 300 kilograms of cocoa tree seeds in Ivory Coast. Cocoa beans are widely planted in the Viceroy's Palace of Peru. I have seen millions of cocoa trees alone." Liu Ji presented the second plant he collected, the cocoa tree seeds.

Ivory Coast is near the West African Highway. Ivory Coast has a large number of cocoa trees planted, but the scale of the plantations is slightly smaller than that of Lima.

Liu Ji left 300 kilograms of cocoa seeds in the Governor-General's Office of Luzon. The plantation in Hanxiang Town was more reliable and safer than the plantation in Java.

"Your Majesty, the most noble person in the Ming Governor's Office is not the governor, but the doctor of agronomy. I have handed the cocoa seeds to the doctor of agronomy." Liu Ji explained the whereabouts of the cocoa seeds.

"My dear minister, you are right. Send it to the Northern Yamen. It's too cold in the north to grow crops." Zhu Yijun agreed with Liu Ji's decision.

In the seventh year of Jiajing, Hernán Cortes discovered the drink of the Inca king in Mexico, which was cocoa beans mixed with water and spices. Cortes brought it back to Thailand. At first, this brown bean did not attract anyone's attention and was eaten as a dried fruit, which did not taste delicious.

In the 12th year of the Jiajing reign, Spanish court chefs ground cocoa beans into powder, added water and sugar, and boiled them into a greasy drink, which became popular throughout the West and became a high-end drink and dessert for the upper class, called chocolate.

After decades of cultivation, there are millions of cocoa trees in the Lima plantation. Each cocoa tree can produce about five kilograms of cocoa beans each year, which is an extremely important source of tax revenue for the Spanish Governor's Office.

Liu Ji bowed his head and said, "The people of Lima grow the most cocoa beans in the world, but they have never tasted chocolate. The people of Lima call cocoa beans bitter water. In Chile, cocoa beans are also a kind of currency, second only to tobacco."

Liu Ji had noticed this kind of tree a long time ago. It is very filling. Eating a few pieces of chocolate on it will keep you from feeling hungry for half a day.

Pickles are not easy to spoil because they contain a lot of salt, and chocolate is very high in sugar, so it is not easy to spoil either. For example, raisins, candied fruits, honey and other foods are not easy to spoil.

In Liu Ji's opinion, this chocolate is a bit like grown honey.

Unfortunately, the cocoa tree is a heat-loving plant that can only survive in extremely hot areas within 20° north and south latitude. The Ming Dynasty does not quite meet these conditions, but overseas colonies are very suitable.

Liu Ji's ocean-going fleet never obtained cocoa seeds, only dried cocoa beans or ground cocoa powder. Just like the Arabs would not share the secret of coffee, the Xianbei people would not share rye, and the red-haired foreigners would not share cocoa tree seeds.

This time, Liu Ji finally exchanged for cocoa tree seeds in Ivory Coast. Although the price was very expensive and there were only 300 kilograms, after trial planting in Java, it was confirmed to be cocoa tree.

The cocoa tree is a perennial tree species that starts to bear fruit after three years. There are 20 to 40 cocoa beans in a cocoa pod. After the cocoa beans are picked, they will be stored in a cool place if they are for planting. If they are to be sold or produced, they will be fried dry after three days of exposure to the sun to prevent mold and other phenomena during transportation.

Liu Ji explained what he had seen. The Lima plantation would hire children over the age of seven because these children were more flexible. The children who climbed up to the treetops skillfully would knock down the bean pods, which fell to the ground. After the children on the ground collected them, they also picked the pods by hand.

Manual picking, peeling, washing, drying and frying are all done by children aged seven to thirteen. Older children will go to the rich silver mountain or Lima port to transport goods to earn money. The process of picking cocoa beans is an extremely time-consuming, arduous and labor-intensive industry.

Liu Ji saw with his own eyes those children carrying baskets full of cocoa beans and pouring the baskets of cocoa beans into the tax collector's huge sack.

Liu Ji said with emotion: "About 20% to 25% of these children on the plantation die every year for various reasons and become fertilizer for the cocoa trees. However, if they grow up to the age of thirteen, they will become trackers or miners. The rich silver mountains where the mercury amalgam method is used to refine silver are full of dead bodies."

"So, among the original Incas, a woman had to give birth to at least five children so that her family could afford the high taxes imposed by the tax collectors."

The reason why the Lady Plazo system became popular in all colonies was because the colonized people lived a hard life.

Today's Koreans are slaves of a conquered nation, but they had a country to conquer, and they could hope for salvation from the Ming Dynasty soldiers. The key point is that the Koreans really hoped for the Ming Dynasty soldiers, who physically eliminated the Korean royal family, the civil and military yangban, the Zhongren, and the Hwarang who oppressed them, and distributed the land to the people.

These colonies were not even complete countries, and they were not even qualified to be slaves of a conquered nation.

Zhu Yijun frowned and said, "You won't let a seven-year-old child go?"

Liu Ji replied: "There is a village called Xicarapa near Lima. When I first arrived in Lima in the 250th year of Wanli, there were 25 people in this village. In the th year of Wanli, five years later, there were only people left in this village. The others died in wars, plantations, mines, etc."

"The highest death toll was when the village was infected with smallpox. In the end, only about 50 people survived in the village."

"The local governor repeatedly told me that the blankets with smallpox were sold to the barbarians without their knowledge, but I feel that it was intentional. If the Ming Dynasty had not had the smallpox method, I am afraid the red-haired barbarians would have done the same."

"There are only 25 people left in the village, and they need to bear taxes worth 40 silver coins every year. Among the 25 people left, seven are children between the ages of seven and ten, and there are two pregnant women. The elderly, the sick, pregnant women and children are not exempt from the so-called taxes."

Liu Ji answered the emperor's question, the colonists did not even let the children go, and the tax was levied on 250 people. Even if there were only 25 people in a village, they had to pay taxes and there could be no rest for a moment.

The Ming Dynasty did a very good job in this regard. Even if any foreigners lived in the City of Internationalities, they had to go to the big bathhouse, soak in sulfur, and have a comprehensive physical examination to prevent the occurrence of plague.

The Ming Dynasty had the qualifications and ability to be so domineering. Its commodity advantages in silk, porcelain, ironware, and cotton gave it enough say in this era of great maritime trade.

Liu Ji took a deep breath and bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, I sent a few coastal defense inspectors to interact with these Incas. I only saw numbness. They were well disciplined and dared not resist. There was not even a word called resistance."

"In the competition of great voyages, the Ming Dynasty must not lose. Once the Ming Dynasty loses, the people will be reduced to the same fate as the Incas."

"The Incas were genuinely afraid of the Tessi, and very few dared to take up arms to resist. Some even believed that such resistance would bring about divine punishment, and that only by carrying out orders more devoutly and faithfully could they be forgiven."

"They have always believed that kaka beans are mainly used to make wine, and that it is a luxury item that only the red-haired barbarians use. The writing and language have gradually disappeared, and most of them no longer know that the Inca Kingdom once existed."

"The Inca civilization has perished." The speed at which civilization disappeared was much faster than Liu Ji had imagined. The ancient Inca Empire had existed for nearly a thousand years, but after just a few decades, its descendants had gradually forgotten it. The written language and history, everything in the past had become ancient and unknown.

The longer Liu Ji led the fleet as the commander of Fandu, the more determined he became to open the sea.

"My dear minister, what you said is absolutely right." Zhu Yijun showed a very bright smile, signaling Liu Ji to be patient and not to be so anxious. The Ming Dynasty will perish, but China will not.

The reason why Zhu Yijun smiled so much was because he was finally completely sure that the Wanli Reform had passed its most dangerous moment.

Any new policy will have an impact on the vested interests of the old era and will definitely produce new predators. This is very consistent with the process of intensified contradictions in the contradiction theory.

The most dangerous time for the Wanli Reform was the five years from the tenth year to the fifteenth year of the Wanli Period.

If the transformation cannot be completed and the old vested interests win, they will completely counterattack the new policy and ultimately miss the right time, place and people who can save the situation.

In the early days of the Wanli Restoration, everyone had had enough of this chaotic, weak, and incapable dynasty. The disordered world always made people suffocate, and even corrupt officials felt the difficulty.

At that time, reform could gain broad consensus. Even Yang Bo, the former leader of the Jin Party, partially agreed with Zhang Juzheng's new policies and even promoted the implementation of the Kaocheng System.

However, as the new policy is implemented, the vested interests will find that their interests are damaged and will begin to obstruct the new policy. From a macro perspective, this obstructive sentiment will gradually increase over time.

At this time, a state of wrestling will arise, and conflicts between new and old interests will become intense and frequent.

It becomes dangerous when the obstructionist sentiment of the old vested interests reaches its peak.

Because the new carnivores have gained enough economic benefits, but are still unstable and unable to gain sufficient political standing. Power is in the hands of the old rich, and the emerging bourgeoisie cannot protect their own economic interests.

It is difficult to even protect oneself, let alone provide support for the new policies.

From the tenth year of Wanli to the fifteenth year of Wanli was the most dangerous time for the New Deal. The emperor, prime ministers, and ministers who presided over the New Deal had to face the strongest counterattack from the old vested interests, while the emerging bourgeoisie was not enough to form a strong support for the New Deal.

At this time, a lot of resentment will arise. This is also the reason why Lin Fucheng, the disloyal and unfilial person, said that during the Wanli Wanli period, all families were in rebellion. Lin Fucheng did not die because he was right.

At this most dangerous moment, Zhu Yijun did not hide in Tonghe Palace, but went on a southern tour, bravely standing at the forefront of the conflict, attracting all the firepower, and even causing a farce of assassinating the emperor.

Now, the most dangerous moment has passed. Liu Ji is the representative. As the commander of Fandu, he has the courage to express his opinions and has his own understanding of opening the sea.

What people are grabbing when they open the sea is not just silver and territory, but essentially, what they are grabbing is the right to survive.

If you have what I don't, I will be in extreme danger. It's not just the immunity to smallpox, but also firearms, powerful ships and guns, higher-yield crops, more sophisticated machinery, more advanced theoretical research, etc., which are all huge dangers that you have and I don't have.

"Ministry of Rites, explain the Ministry of Rites' Mingguan system to Minister Liu Aiqing and see if it is feasible." Zhu Yijun smiled and talked about the next topic, Mingguan, which is a new policy for opening up the sea for several years or even decades, and needs to be treated with caution.

The Ministry of Rites had actually already had brief communications with Liu Ji a long time ago, but now it was time to hold a meeting and explain the risks clearly in front of His Majesty.

"The biggest risk is the safety of Mingguan staff." Liu Ji highly agrees with the Mingguan system.

The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty beheaded King Lalangbo of Merina and planned to establish the Governor's Office of Jifu in order to show his power overseas. It was a move to establish authority. It was also a way to use Lalangbo's head to tell all the Ming Dynasty personnel sent abroad that if they were sacrificed, the Ming Dynasty would never sit idly by, but would do its best to retaliate.

Class identity is often greater than ethnic identity, but Zhu Yijun only wanted to be the emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

"I will take care of their affairs before and after their death." Zhu Yijun said with certainty. The four sentences on the horse brand of the owner of Mingguan were Zhu Yijun's promise. As for what happened to future generations, he had no control over it. But as long as he was alive, he would keep his word.

Anyone who dares to openly offend the mighty Han will be punished, even though they are far away.

Zhu Yijun, who never broke his promise, had a very wide and good reputation in the Ming Dynasty. His reputation was so strong that it could even increase the credibility of the Ming court to issue treasure notes. People believed that the Ming emperor would punish those evildoers and ensure the most basic fairness and principles of issuing banknotes.

"I think it may be possible to equip Mingguan with igniters." Liu Ji said tactfully that firearms are carbon-based biological calming devices, and anyone who dares to offend should ask the musket in his hand whether it agrees or not!

Sufficient firearms can provide more security for Mingguan.

Indeed, the court only provided a quota of ten guest soldiers, but the owner of the inn could recruit on his own and obtain weapons from the Ming Dynasty for sailing, especially the provision of gunpowder, which could provide physical security.

"Firearms such as flintlock rifles, tiger squat cannons, nine-jin cannons, five-masted ocean-going ships, three-masted plywood ships, hydrofoil sailboats, and battleships are allowed to be purchased in a certain quantity in the name of Mingguan. What do you think, Minister Liu?" Zhu Yijun thought for a while and gave a list of firearms.

"Is it too much..." Liu Ji said in shock, "Your Majesty, it is better to ban the sale of nine-jin cannons and five-masted ocean-going ships. Hydrofoil sailboats and tiger squat cannons are more important."

Too radical!

When Liu Ji asked for treatment from the Mingguan, he was originally thinking of flintlock rifles and tiger squat cannons, and at most hydrofoil sailboats and chariot ships, which were military equipment prohibited from being sold to the private sector. As a result, His Majesty opened the door of the arsenal and let people take whatever they wanted. Except for fast sailboats and 16-jin and 36-jin naval guns, all others were for sale.

Zhu Yijun thought for a moment and said, "Then the Portuguese king Antonio can buy a five-masted ocean-going ship, but the Ming Dynasty is not allowed to buy one. Doesn't that mean that they would rather be friendly with foreign countries than give it to their own slaves? What do you think, sir?"

Zhu Yijun asked Zhang Juzheng, is it really enough? Just giving a letter of appointment and asking the people of the Ming Dynasty to go through life and death is a bit unrealistic.

"Your Majesty is wise. I think we can provide low-interest loans to support the Mingguan." As the chief minister of the cabinet, Zhang Juzheng's main responsibility now is to sing praises. The business of the Mingguan system is to replace the old regime. If they don't give weapons, what can they use to replace it?

Not only should the permission to purchase firearms be opened up, but more low-interest loans should also be provided. Mingguan is affiliated with the Ming court, but it is highly independent and autonomous. Spending real money is more direct than making promises.

"What you said makes sense, sir. The Ministry of Rites will know about this and draw up some regulations." Zhu Yijun thought carefully and agreed with Zhang Juzheng's suggestion.

Liu Ji was a little confused. He looked around and found that none of the court officials in Wenhua Palace opposed it. Liu Ji thought he was a radical, but when he arrived at Wenhua Palace he realized that he was a conservative!
Even the trick of borrowing at low interest rates was used, which was equivalent to half buying and half giving away, giving Lord Kaituo more financial support.

If these Mingguan borrowed money and ran away without repaying it, it would be difficult for the Ming Emperor to collect the debt. Moreover, the Mingguan was very dangerous. Once it was destroyed, it would be impossible to recover the money.

But if you think about it carefully, the foundation of Mingguan's survival is actually the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty. If you don't pay back the money, the loss will outweigh the gain. With the support of Your Majesty, it would be difficult for Mingguan to completely perish.

"Then let's just finalize the Mingguan system for now, implement it while making adjustments based on the results." Zhu Yijun made the final decision.

Liu Ji was sitting in the Wenhua Hall. He wanted to participate in this court discussion, but the content of the discussion had little to do with him. He did not speak, but sat aside, thinking seriously about the decision of the Ming Emperor.
All the behaviors of the Ming Emperor were very strange.

Every empire constantly repeats and emphasizes that it is different from other empires in the world. Its mission is not to plunder or control, but to benevolence and tolerance. This is the case throughout history, both in China and abroad.

This was also the case before the Ming Dynasty, for example, the basic foreign policy of not conquering other countries and being lenient towards foreign peoples.

But the current emperor is a freak. Your Majesty has spared no effort to repeatedly emphasize a basic concept: the Ming Dynasty comes first.

This has brought Your Majesty a reputation for cruelty, and what is even more strange is that this bad reputation has not affected Your Majesty's widespread support in the slightest.

This phenomenon was very contradictory. Liu Ji thought about it for a long time and finally got a seemingly plausible answer.

The people of the empire do not approve of concepts such as benevolence, tolerance, kindness and generosity. Even if scholars package them to be seamless and flawless, the people of the empire will not approve of them.

During the ups and downs of the fifteen years since the Wanli Emperor opened the sea, Liu Ji encountered some foreigners asking: The Ming Dynasty criticized the atrocities of Western colonists, but it seemed that the Ming Dynasty also appeared on the ocean as a colonizer. How was this different from the Western colonists?
The answer is very clear. If the Ming Dynasty still insists on benevolence, tolerance, generosity and kindness to distant people, and free gifts, it will be an exploitation and plunder of the people of the Ming Dynasty and a tyranny against the people of the Ming Dynasty.

If the foreign people want to gain the support of the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, they need to offer real money and benefits, such as His Majesty's favorite seeds. Of course, it would be even better if it was minerals.

Antonio presented them all and won the support of His Majesty.

The people of the empire may not think so deeply, but they must be clear that the wealth of the empire belongs to the entire empire, not to foreign barbarians.

"The second volume of On Public and Private Affairs has been proofread. Your Majesty, do you really want to publish it?" Zhang Juzheng's slightly anxious voice interrupted Liu Ji's thoughts. Court discussions have never been smooth sailing, and it is obvious that there is controversy again.

Zhang Juzheng wrote the second volume of On Public and Private, which updated On Public and Private, which had been published for fourteen years.

Zhu Yijun smiled and said, "Sir, you were very radical in your reforms in the early years, which caused the court officials to impeach you. Now you have become more cautious."

"It's a bit treasonous." Zhang Juzheng sighed. He didn't know why, even if he didn't write about class theory, writing about public and private could be linked to treason.

The first volume of On Public and Private discusses the concepts of public and private, while the second volume discusses the relationship between the imperial ambitions and the rise of the common people.

Generally speaking, the general route of making the Ming Dynasty great again is related to whether the common people can eat eggs today.

"How can this be considered treason? I have annotated the second volume of On Public and Private Affairs." Zhu Yijun said with certainty: "To protect the country, the ruler and his ministers are responsible for it; to protect the world, even the humblest man has a share of responsibility. That is, the rise and fall of the world is the responsibility of every man."

"Although Shinichi Kanda has entered the dismemberment hospital, he said it very well: the world ultimately belongs to everyone in the world."

(End of this chapter)