I, the Ming Dynasty, can still save me

Chapter 190 The Difference between North and South (Please subscribe)

"Master Xu, Master Tang, please slow down. There has been light snow recently and the road is a bit slippery."

In the Forbidden City, the palace eunuch was leading Xu Guangqi and his party to the Qianqing Palace, followed by Tang Ruowang, Zheng Zhilong and others. Finally, there were four young eunuchs carrying a large box, which contained Tang Ruowang's gift to the emperor. .

Different from what Xu Guangqi was accustomed to, Tang Ruowang was full of curiosity about the Forbidden City.

Long before he came to the Ming Dynasty, he had read "Matteo Ricci's Notes on China" compiled and published by Matteo Ricci's servants. In the article, Matteo Ricci never stopped marveling at this exotic palace.

It describes the huge courtyards, countless rooms, serious guards, and magnificent purple-red walls of the Forbidden City. Everything makes people feel its majesty and power.

Tang Ruowang, who read this note at that time, was full of longing for the Forbidden City. Today, he finally got his wish. He couldn't help but sigh that what Matteo Ricci said was true. As the largest imperial palace in the world, the Forbidden City is far taller, far-reaching, and solemn than at the same time. Comparable to European stone castles.

As Matteo Ricci's translator, Zheng Zhilong never expected that he would have the opportunity to enter the palace and see the emperor later. Even though he prided himself on being knowledgeable, he could not help but feel nervous, especially when As soon as he entered the Forbidden City, he felt its majesty, which made him dare not look around for fear of being rude.

People with different mentalities entered the Huiji Gate under the leadership of the eunuchs, and walked north to the Qianqing Palace. Knowing that Xu Guangqi was now a popular person in front of His Majesty, the palace eunuch did not dare to neglect him along the way. Tang Ruowang was waiting for him on the way. Many people warned me about the rules in the palace, fearing that they would be broken later.

The biggest rule is kneeling. Catholics only kneel to God and not to emperors and kings. Therefore, many missionaries who come to China face a problem: whether to kneel to the emperor.

At first, Matteo Ricci and others were quite open to this. They originally advocated the missionary strategy of going to the countryside and doing as the Romans do, wearing Ming clothes and being popular with the Ming people. Therefore, although they were not used to it, they also implemented it after meeting Emperor Wanli last time. Kneeling down and worshiping, this made Emperor Wanli very satisfied.

However, this policy of doing as the Romans did in the countryside only lasted until Matteo Ricci's death. Shortly after his death, Long Huamin, the missionary who succeeded Matteo Ricci, opposed Matteo Ricci's Confucian missionary strategy and objected to believers kneeling down to worship and worship their ancestors. This led to the rise of the Public outrage led to the Zhejiang Party's use of the evidence, which triggered the Nanjing Mission Incident. Only then did the Ming Dynasty order the expulsion of Catholic missionaries.

Xu Guangqi also knew the urgency of this matter. If he did not follow the local customs, it would be difficult for Catholicism to spread.Fortunately, Tang Ruowang was not a pedantic person. After he promised Xu Guangqi that he would abide by the traditions of the Ming Dynasty, Xu Guangqi felt relieved.

"Master Xu, you have finally arrived. Your Majesty has been waiting for a long time."

When the group arrived at the entrance of Qianqing Palace, He Ning had been waiting at the entrance for a long time. When he saw Xu Guangqi and others arriving, he immediately greeted them and looked at Tang Ruowang with interest.Although I felt that these Westerners were all carved out of the same mold, with their tall noses and deep eyes, they were scary, but I still said with a smile.

"This must be Mr. Tang Ruowang, a Western monk. Please come in quickly."

Therefore, under the leadership of He Ning, everyone entered the Qianqing Palace and reached the Dongnuan Pavilion. They saw that Zhu Youxiao did not read the title on the slip, but instead observed the "Comprehensive Map of Kunyu and Ten Thousand Kingdoms" opposite the slip.

"Your Majesty, Minister Xu is here with Tang Ruowang."

Seeing that the emperor was fascinated, Zhang Chang couldn't help but remind him in a low voice.

Zhu Youxiao, who had come back to his senses, turned to look at Xu Guangqi and others.

"The minister Xu Guangqi, the Catholic priest Tang Ruowang, and the grassroots translator Zheng Zhilong paid homage to Your Majesty."

Zheng Zhilong?Zhu Youxiao looked at the young man behind Tang Ruowang, and he was full of surprise. Shouldn't he be doing business in Macau? How could he follow Tang Ruowang to the capital?

Although he was very surprised, he also knew that now was not the time to ask this, so he waved his hand and let them go without courtesy.

"Xu Guangqi told me before that you, Tang Ruowang, are quick-thinking and a rare talent, but I didn't expect you to be so young."

"Xu Guangqi exaggerated. There are still many things I don't understand, such as my understanding of the Ming Dynasty. The culture here is too old. It even started in the ancient Greek period and is very well preserved. It seems that everyone has an understanding of that period. They understand each other’s culture very well, which is really amazing.”

Tang Ruowang was also a smart man. He knew that the purpose of today was to make the emperor happy, so when the emperor asked, he could exaggerate how good it was.

"Haha, it's older than the ancient Greek period. Confucius in our dynasty should be the same period as Socrates in the Greek period. Before Confucius, there were Xia, Shang and Zhou, not to mention the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. They were older than Solomon and Moses mentioned in your scriptures. It’s much longer.”

At this time, Europe was no longer the Middle Ages. With the demise of the Byzantine Empire and the Renaissance, a large number of ancient Greek works were introduced to Europe. Tang Ruowang naturally knew Socrates.

But when the emperor of the Ming Dynasty mentioned the names of Socrates, Solomon, and Moses, it was surprising. Tang Ruowang had to sigh when he saw this:
"The emperor's wisdom is indeed unparalleled. I feel that no one in the Ming Dynasty has heard or understood Socrates. I am really amazed." "Haha, this is all said by the eunuchs who listened to Xiong Sanba's lectures before. of."

With a smile on his face, Zhu Youxiao walked to the desk and sat down. In order not to shock the world, he just stopped clicking. He just wanted to show Tang Ruowang and others that he was not easy to fool.

"You traveled thousands of miles to come to Ming Dynasty. You must have traveled all the way from Macau to Beijing for a long time. I don't know what impression you have of Ming Dynasty. You can't just flatter me. I want to hear your truth."

Seeing the emperor asking such a pointed question, Xu Guangqi secretly complained in his heart, his eyes drifted to Tang Ruowang and stared at him. He couldn't say much at this time. He could only hope that Tang Ruowang would know how to use discretion and not make the emperor angry with his nonsense.

Tang Ruowang thought for a while, bowed and said:

"Your Majesty the Emperor, I have traveled from Macau to Beijing for nearly two months. If I really have any impressions, it would be that the Ming Dynasty was a vast country, and there was a huge difference between the north and the south."

"Oh, where to start with this."

"I walked from Macau to the southern capital of the Ming Dynasty. Along the way, I found that the economy was developed, there were many commerce and trades, and it was very open. No one was shy about making money and doing business. There were many people pursuing wealth in the city, and there were also a lot of employment opportunities. Silver is also used as the main transaction object in daily life, and Spanish silver dollars are even used in Guangdong and Fujian."

"But when I went north along the canal from Nanjing, I found that the north of the Ming Dynasty was relatively conservative, and many people were curious or even afraid of our arrival. The people's life was not very high compared to that in the south, and neither silver nor silver was used for transactions. It’s not coins, it’s real objects. Some people have no job and can only live in a homeless place and become refugees.”

Zhu Youxiao nodded after listening, thinking that what Tang Ruowang said actually made sense. He had known this problem for a long time, but it was not a day's work to solve it.

In the middle and late Ming Dynasty, a large amount of silver from Japan and America flowed into Jiangnan, which greatly stimulated the economic development of Jiangnan. Through a whip method, taxes and corvee were converted into silver.This frees up manpower, allowing them to leave the land and enter urban life. The development of Jiangnan's handicraft industry has given the people ample jobs.Under such a virtuous cycle, it is strange that Jiangnan's economy is underdeveloped and prosperous, and even the sprouts of early capitalism have appeared.

But this was not possible in the north. Silver circulation was originally concentrated in the south, and there was less silver in the north. After the whipping law, silver was still used to pay taxes. As a result, many people had to sell their grains in exchange for silver to pay taxes after a good harvest.

At this time, profiteers took the opportunity to lower prices, causing the people to suffer. They would go bankrupt in a few years. The handicraft industry in the north was underdeveloped and could not provide sufficient employment, so there were so many refugees.

"As Xu Guangqi said, you are really talented. The difference between the north and the south of the Ming Dynasty is indeed huge. These points raised are meticulous and hit the nail on the head, which is enough to show that you are a quick-thinking person."

Thinking of this, he also began to admire Tang Ruowang and felt that he was indeed a talent.

"Thank you, Emperor, for your appreciation."

"I just looked at the "Comprehensive Map of Kunyu and All Nations" and found that there are many countries in the Western Ocean. Which country are you from? What is the situation in Europe?"

After getting the answer, Zhu Youxiao stopped asking questions and immediately asked about the situation in Europe. Tang Ruowang had already prepared for this question.

"Emperor Ming Dynasty, I come from Cologne, a city under the Holy Roman Empire. The main countries in Europe are Spain, France, England, the Netherlands, and the Holy Roman Empire. However, Spain and the Holy Roman Empire are currently equal. Ruled by one family.”

Zhu Youxiao knows that the Habsburg family, for the sake of pure bloodline, has a shoehorned attitude towards incestuous marriages.

"With so many countries, there must be a lot of conquests. How come I heard that the war between the Western countries has not stopped yet."

Tang Ruowang was a little confused when he heard this question. He actually didn't want to answer this question because it involved heretical Protestantism.But when the emperor asked, he could not explain.

"It is indeed as you said. The Holy Roman Empire was in rebellion because of heretics, and the emperor sent troops to annihilate them. When I left, the emperor had already won the victory. I believe that the rebellion of the heretics will be quelled soon."

"I hope so. Rebellion in any country is unforgivable. I hope that the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire can quell the rebellion and restore peace as soon as possible."

When Zhu Youxiao heard this, he also blessed. It was indeed very fast. The war would be over in 27 years. In the end, only [-]% of Germany's population was left. The Holy Roman Empire weakened and Spain also lost its hegemony. status.

　The first update, the matter is over, I will see if there is an update tomorrow

　　
　
(End of this chapter)