Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

Ruan Dacheng, whom Qian Qianyi mentioned, had already arrived in the West.

The Black Monk Theatre, London, England.

This is a famous private indoor theater in London, reserved for performances by the British royal family and nobility. If Ruan Dacheng had not been an envoy of the Ming Dynasty, he would not have been able to enter and watch.

The play being performed on stage at this time was by the King's Court Theatre, a renowned theater company in England.

Shakespeare once worked for this company, and the company's performances of Shakespearean plays were famous in London.

Ruan Dacheng had heard the emperor mention Shakespeare, so upon arriving in London, he naturally wanted to see a play.

Although he was not very familiar with English, as a master of drama, he could discern the essence of the art through the expressions and physical movements of the actors on stage.

At that moment, he was completely absorbed in the performance of Hamlet and greatly admired it.

Especially after hearing the line "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players," and understanding its meaning, I burst into tears.
The world is a stage, and all those who have reached adulthood are actors.

"I'm just an actor, someone who mingles on the stage of officialdom!"

He thought of the bitterness he had endured, ending up here because of the power struggles in officialdom.

Back then, he was Gao Panlong's disciple and, naturally, a member of the Donglin Party.

He even made great contributions to the impeachment of non-Donglin officials such as Shi Jixie, and was included in the "Donglin Generals List" by the eunuch party. He was known as the "Unobstructed Star of Heaven" and was recognized as one of the key figures of Donglin.

However, due to the power struggle among the officials in the Ministry of Personnel, he was indignant that Zhao Nanxing and others were biased towards Wei Dazhong. In a fit of anger, he was recruited by Wei Zhongxian to join the eunuch faction.

He got the position he wanted, but due to the immense pressure from the Donglin Party, he resigned after less than a month and fled back to his hometown. Wei Dazhong took over the position.

Because of this, he became enemies with Wei Dazhong and later advised Wei Zhongxian to demote Wei Dazhong by three ranks.

But he never expected that Wei Zhongxian would later kill Wei Dazhong and others. Even Wei Dazhong's eldest son, Wei Xueyi, died because of this.

This created a deep feud between the two families. Even the emperor, after seeing Wei Xueyi's last letter, dismissed him from his post and arrested him on charges of corruption.

Although he was only classified as a sixth-degree criminal in the treason case, theoretically he still had a chance to be reinstated. However, as a typical example of someone who "did not stop even after Chongzhen's reign," he knew that it would be difficult for him to gain important positions during Chongzhen's reign.

Not to mention that it was Liu Zongzhou who impeached him, and he is now in charge of revising the rites and music. As long as this man is in the court, Ruan Dacheng will have no chance to return to the court.

Therefore, when the emperor sent someone to ask him if he was willing to go to the West to collect musical instruments and dramas, Ruan Dacheng immediately agreed and joined Sun Yuanhua's mission, seeking to make meritorious contributions.

Apart from Sun Yuanhua, the chief envoy, most of the members of this delegation were eunuchs who were being used by the emperor and sent to explore the sea.

Ruan Dacheng knew that this journey was fraught with danger, but he still studied diligently. He not only learned Latin from Sun Yuanhua and Long Huamin, but was also baptized and joined the Nestorian Church, becoming a member of the Nestorian Church.

Because of this, he gained Sun Yuanhua's trust. After going through many hardships and arriving in Lisbon with Portuguese merchant ships, he was ordered to lead two ships north to visit countries north of the Mediterranean, such as the Netherlands, England, and France.

Because of the close relationship between Portugal and England, Nguyen Dai Cheng was also very interested in the Anglican Church's independence from the Roman Catholic Church. He first arrived in England, appearing in London.

At this time, England was under the reign of Charles I, who married a French princess who was a Catholic. His close bishops also promoted Catholic rituals, which drew much criticism in England.

But Ruan Dacheng didn't care about any of that. What he needed was simply the experience of the Anglican Church's independence from the Roman Catholic Church.

Because the Nestorian Church originated from the Jesuits, Queen Mary also had connections to the Jesuits. Ruan Dacheng was treated with great respect in England and quickly integrated into high society.

This trip to see the play was at the invitation of the King of England, and he was there with a group of dignitaries.
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Seeing Ruan Dacheng moved to tears, Charles I and other English nobles were somewhat pleased.

At that time, Europe still held the Ming Dynasty in high esteem. Queen Elizabeth I of England even personally wrote a letter to the Wanli Emperor to express her respect.

However, due to the failure of the sea route exploration, this letter could not be delivered and was not sent to China until more than 300 years later.

However, England did not give up. They established the East India Company to handle trade with the East.

This company once grew rapidly, even establishing a presence in Japan. However, due to pressure from the Netherlands, it was forced to withdraw from Japan.

However, what angered the English the most was the Ambon massacre. The Dutch slaughtered ten Englishmen, signifying the breakdown of cooperation between the two countries in the East.

As a result of this incident, the East India Company's stock price plummeted, causing great dissatisfaction in Britain.

However, England was not as powerful as the Netherlands at this time, and the East India Company had no choice but to withdraw from the Southeast Asian trade and turn its attention to India.

Now that they have suddenly learned that the Ming envoy has arrived, how could they not be overjoyed?

All those who held shares in the East India Company eagerly hoped to open up the Ming market and engage in trade with the Ming Dynasty.

Some nobles even considered forming their own fleets to trade with the Ming Dynasty.

Charles I thought the same thing, as his finances were in dire straits due to his conflict with Parliament.

After Ruan Dacheng arrived on behalf of the Ming Dynasty, he hoped to use the power of the royal family to control trade in the East.

As the play ended, Charles I asked Ruan Dacheng in Latin:

"Ruan, what do you think of this play?"

"Would the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty like this?"

Ruan Dacheng wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes and praised him in fluent Latin:
"When His Majesty sent me on this mission, he specifically mentioned Shakespeare's plays."

"Now that I see it, it is indeed extraordinary."

"This theater, in particular, is very suitable for the nobility to watch."

He greatly admired drama and theater, and thought it was very much in line with the theatrical performances promoted by the emperor.

Plays that rely more on dialogue than singing are better suited for viewing in small theaters.

A completely enclosed indoor theater, unaffected by wind and rain, would certainly be favored by the nobility.

At this moment, Ruan Dacheng fully understood why the emperor had mentioned Shakespearean plays. He knew that once these plays were introduced to the Ming Dynasty, they would definitely bring about changes to the Ming Dynasty's drama scene.

Spoken drama will mature more quickly and become the mainstream form of theater.

Just thinking about it makes Ruan Dacheng excited; he feels that he will definitely have a place in the history of drama.

Therefore, he immediately proposed to conduct an in-depth investigation of the theater and hoped that Charles I would send a troupe to perform in the Ming Dynasty.

At this time, sea voyages were extremely risky, and countless lives would be lost along the way. However, Charles I did not care and immediately offered to send several theatrical troupes to the Ming Dynasty for exchange performances.

What delighted him most was that Ruan Dacheng said the performance could be done in English, without needing to be translated into Latin.

This is a tremendous affirmation for the English language, which had only completed its Bible translation less than twenty years ago and was establishing modern English standards.

The surrounding nobles felt very proud when they heard this.

Ruan Dacheng chuckled inwardly, for this was the emperor's order.

The current emperor does not wish for all of Europe to use Latin, and encourages them to communicate with other countries in their own languages. In the future, local language dictionaries will be created based on Latin and Chinese dictionaries.

Although Ruan Dacheng felt that this way of communicating would be more troublesome, he could understand the emperor's intention:

Clearly, the emperor did not want a unified nation in Europe, and therefore encouraged different countries to use different scripts and languages.

After completing the task, Ruan Dacheng said:
"His Majesty the Emperor has heard that your country once defeated the Spanish fleet and highly praised your navy." "We hope that your country can send warships to the Ming Dynasty for exchanges and visits."

Charles I was overjoyed upon hearing this, and said with obvious delight:
"Sending warships is certainly an option."

"I just don't know if it's possible to do trade at the same time?"

"I've heard that Your Excellency can allocate trade quotas. How many have been allocated to England?"

Such blunt words made Ruan Dacheng secretly shake his head.

However, he had also grown accustomed to the directness of the Westerners and felt that although they had unique talents in drama and architecture, they were still barbarians after all.

These people should be lured with benefits, not treated as gentlemen.

Therefore, he is skilled in Tai Chi.
"Trade quotas need to be allocated by the envoy."

"Now, Ambassador Sun is at the Vatican in Rome, discussing matters concerning the Church of Christ."

"The amount of trade quotas for each country depends on the outcome of negotiations with the Papacy."

“Personally, I am inclined to allocate more resources to England, but you need to show your support for the Ming Dynasty’s independent establishment of the Nestorian Church, and also find a way to break through the Dutch blockade.”

This result displeased Charles I, and he was even somewhat angry upon hearing about the Netherlands, saying:

“Ruan, you know that the Anglican Church will definitely support the Jingjiao Church.”

"But breaking the Dutch blockade of trade with the East requires more than just us."

"Can you provide assistance in the East Indies?"

Ruan Dacheng was overjoyed, relieved that he had recaptured Malacca before setting out, and patted his chest, saying:

"Malacca has returned to the rule of the Ming Emperor and has been designated as a free trade zone by the Emperor."

"Once your ships arrive, you will be able to trade with the Ming Dynasty in Malacca."

"They can also travel through the South Seas to trade with Ming ports with the help of the Ming fleet."

It provides a detailed account of the situation in Southeast Asia at that time, especially the establishment of the free trade zone.

This news was not widely known in Europe, let alone among the English who had withdrawn from Southeast Asia.

When Charles I and others heard that the Ming Dynasty had established a free trade zone in the Malacca area, they exclaimed in surprise, realizing that the door to trade with the East had been fully opened.

The shareholders of the East India Company were overjoyed, as their journey from India to Malacca was effortless.

Their stock will definitely surge after this news comes out.

Now no one can stop England and the Ming Dynasty from starting trade.

Ruan Dacheng received a warm welcome in London, and his tasks of collecting sheep and horse breeds and coal mining machinery went very smoothly.

At that time, England had no concept of secrecy; as long as you paid, you could buy seeds and tools.

Because the emperor was still very poor when the mission set off, he did not give them much gold and silver, but they were able to take a lot of silk and porcelain accumulated in the imperial treasury with them.

Although the styles of these items did not conform to Western aesthetics, they quickly became popular among the nobility after it was learned that they were used by the Ming emperor.

In particular, the cloisonné porcelain presented by Ruan Dacheng on behalf of the Ming emperor to the King of England made this complex and colorful porcelain a new favorite among the nobility.

Countless English merchants wanted to import this porcelain from the Ming Dynasty, and even urged Ruan Dacheng to return.

However, Ruan Dacheng was on a mission and it was clearly impossible for him to return at this time.

He could only issue certificates to some merchants, allowing them to trade with the Ming Dynasty.

Then, through Queen Marie Antoinette's introduction, he went to France, a country that was also highly regarded by the emperor.
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"This country's farming conditions far surpass those of England; it truly is the foundation of its hegemony!"

"Collect some seeds and bring them back to the Ming Dynasty to plant."

On the way to Paris by carriage, Ruan Dacheng looked at the vast fields and gave instructions.

Thinking about the map he saw, even he felt that France might be a powerful Qin dynasty.

No wonder the emperor instructed him to cultivate good relations with other countries and to treat France with caution:
"His Majesty does not want a unified Europe and will certainly not support France."

"But there's no need to antagonize them. Let's go to Paris first."

Having arrived in Paris without incident, Ruan Dacheng did not receive the same preferential treatment as he had in London.

At that time, France had not even established its East India Company, and few people had interests in the East.

In particular, Ruan Dacheng was introduced by Queen Marie Antoinette and had direct contact with King Louis XIII of France.

This aroused Richelieu's suspicion. His relationship with Louis XIII was much like that of the Wanli Emperor and Zhang Juzheng, both interdependent and mutually wary.

Richelieu certainly did not want Louis XIII to become too powerful and threaten him.

Therefore, he treated Ruan Dacheng coldly, citing the reason that Nestorianism had become independent from the Roman Catholic Church.

This affected many people and made Ruan Dacheng less popular in Paris than in London.

Although Ruan Dacheng was exiled overseas, he still retained the pride of a scholar. Naturally, he wouldn't stoop to flattering the barbarians he saw.

Furthermore, since the emperor did not require that France be on friendly terms, he found a pretext to leave France and go to the Netherlands.

On the way, Ge Jiusi, who was traveling with him on a diplomatic mission to the northern countries, said angrily:

"These Frenchmen are so despicable, they won't even give us a state gift."

"They wouldn't even take out a portrait of a woman."

Ruan Dacheng was equally displeased, because although he was making excuses, he also intended to take the Mona Lisa painting back and present it to the emperor.

But the French refused without hesitation, which greatly displeased him.

"They won't even agree to a single painting. The French are so stingy."

"Fortunately, we managed to copy Leonardo da Vinci's manuscripts, and there are also copies of the Mona Lisa."

"The Emperor will not blame us after he sees this."

Before they set off, their task was to collect Leonardo da Vinci's works, without specifying whether they were originals or copies.

Ruan Dacheng's request for the Mona Lisa portrait was a spur-of-the-moment decision; he didn't necessarily intend to take it back.

However, the Frenchman's unwavering refusal still angered him.

Ruan Dacheng was determined to go to the Netherlands, find Rembrandt, and bring back the man the emperor had mentioned. (End of Chapter)