unclear

Chapter 1195 All for profit
The Ming Dynasty had always been active in eastern and central Asia. Apart from driving the Spanish out of Luzon and severely beating the Anglo-Spanish fleet at the Cape of Good Hope, it had far more interactions than disputes with European countries. The Ming Dynasty could not even be called enemies, let alone mortal enemies.

The purpose of Ming Dynasty's sending troops to the Arab region this time was very clear and the reasons were very sufficient. The actual actions further proved that it was only to punish Murad IV for tearing up the contract and detaining Ming Dynasty envoys, and it had nothing to do with the Europeans.

According to common sense, even if the Europeans wanted to take advantage of the situation, they should stand on the side of the Ming Dynasty and beat the Ottoman Empire hard, taking advantage of the Ottoman Empire's preoccupation with its own affairs, such as restoring the Kingdom of Jerusalem or retaking the holy city.

But the reality was completely the opposite. Under the guise of restoring the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Europeans actually joined forces with the Ottoman army to launch a surprise attack on the Ming army. It was unbelievable.

"This is a long story...Okay, let's stop here. If you really want to know, remind me after the war."

The war was about to break out, so it was not a good time to give a lecture. But Wang Chengen's question was not childish, and it probably represented the thinking mode of a large part of the court officials in the Ming Dynasty. It was necessary to talk about it. Hong Tao raised his telescope and looked. The cavalry in the distance seemed to be still in formation, with no signs of launching an attack immediately.

"Do you know where Prime Minister Oyani's hometown is?"

"…It seems to be called the Duchy of Tuscany. On His Majesty's map, that place is called Italy. He is from the same hometown as Minister Xiong of the Ministry of Construction."

“Yes, the reason why Prime Minister Oyani is so familiar with banks is because she comes from Florence in the Duchy of Tuscany and belongs to a large family named Medici.

The ancestors of this family were not aristocrats but commoners. However, in just a few decades, they became the richest people in the local area thanks to the banking industry.

Since the Medici family was so wealthy, why did Ogani marry a nobleman in Spain? The reason also lies in the banking industry.

This is the Italian Peninsula, this is the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, this is the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, do you see anything from the map?"

Hong Tao's way of telling complicated stories is somewhat unusual. He often rambles on, laying out a lot of seemingly useless information, and then suddenly turns back to the topic. This time is no exception. He strayed a lot from the topic at the beginning and talked about Oyani's background.

"Uh... I am stupid and didn't see any clues at all." Wang Chengen naturally didn't understand. He was a bachelor and didn't want to use his brain at all, so he gave up thinking directly.

"The banking industry can only develop in economically prosperous areas. About 200 years ago, during the Song Dynasty, goods from the East could not go around the Cape of Good Hope due to limitations in navigation technology. They could only be transported to the eastern coast of the Mediterranean by Arab merchants along the route of our march, and then shipped to Europe.

Among the merchants doing this business, there was a group of people who were very smart and good at sailing. So they built many large ships, specifically transporting European goods to the eastern coast of the Mediterranean for sale, and then transporting Asian goods back, thus making a lot of money.

This group of people later established a city-state alliance, the Republic of Venice, which was roughly located where the peninsula bordered the mainland, not far from Florence and the Duchy of Tuscany.

With a large amount of goods flowing between the East and the West, not only the Republic of Venice, but also several small countries in the north of the Italian peninsula became wealthy, among which Florence was the richest. Because the Medici family emerged in this city, specializing in banking business and providing loans to all walks of life. But the good times did not last long. Since the Arab Empire was replaced by the Ottoman Empire, which fought with Europe for many years, this trade route has been in a state of abandonment. Coupled with the development of navigation technology, it is more cost-effective to ship bulk goods back to Europe by ship.

As a result, the Italian peninsula and Florence also declined, and Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands, where large ocean ships could more easily dock, became new economic hotspots, and money also flowed to Seville and Amsterdam.

With fewer goods and a recession, money was all gone, and the Medici family's banking industry was naturally affected. Prime Minister Ojanie's family was only related to the Medici family, and the bank they ran was very small. Even the main family couldn't bear it, so her bank was bound to go bankrupt, so she had to marry far away to Spain."

Hong Tao did not make up this private information about Oyani at all. He heard it from her. But Oyani did not tell him, but chatted with the queen. Was it considered eavesdropping? Definitely not. If the queen knew, it meant that the emperor knew, which was very logical.

"I didn't expect that Prime Minister Ojanie was also a miserable child..." But Wang Chengen really didn't know this. He was very touched when he heard it, and his eyes became red.

"Do I want you to be moved by the rise and fall of her and her family?" As a result, he was sternly asked by the emperor. Hong Tao talked for a long time, but he was not chatting about family matters, but giving heuristic guidance.

"...Your Majesty, calm down. I thought it should be...the trade route. If the Ming Dynasty opens up the trade route, it can sell goods to Europe...Uh, it doesn't seem right. If this is the case, the Venetians will be the happiest. Why did they send troops to help the Ottomans?"

Now even if Hong Tao slammed the table, Wang Chengen would not be afraid, as there were too many similar scenes. Every time the emperor gave him a lecture, it would start out sunny and windy, but as he was talking, there would be thunder and lightning.

How long it takes depends on the complexity of the topic. The more complex it is, the faster the storm will come. But it's just a few scoldings of idiots, and I've never been punished for it. If you can find the correct answer according to the emperor's intention, you may even get praise.

But this time the question seemed a bit too complicated. According to the emperor's meaning, it turned out to be contradictory. It must be that the emperor was wrong, or I guessed wrong again.

“It is indeed a trade route, but it is not as simple as you think. The Venetians must want to restore the trade route so that they can make money on both ends.

But they did not want the Ming Dynasty to have complete control over the entire trade route, as that would mean they would lose their bargaining power and would have no choice but to obey the orders of Ming Dynasty merchants, becoming mere errand runners who earned hard-earned money.

The most favorable situation is that we open up most of the trade routes and drive the Ottoman forces away from the Mesopotamian region. But the last section leading to the sea must be controlled by them, forcing the Ming Dynasty to negotiate with them and thus gain more profits.

I have been encouraging the development of commerce in the country over the years, and have been supporting the growth of the merchant group. But if the merchants really become big and strong, they will regard profit as the only thing, just like the Venetians, and will not hesitate to start a war for this.

You should take this as a warning. Don't treat businessmen as good people, nor as bad people. Nothing and no one in the world is absolutely good or bad, only different degrees. If used well, it will be beneficial, but if used poorly, it will be harmful. You should know when to control and when to release. Too much is as bad as too little. "

(End of this chapter)