Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

"Chinese?"

"How will you be here?"

Are you a citizen of the Ming Dynasty?

Xu Ercheng, who was sent by Shang Kexi to make contact, saw the familiar face and immediately questioned him.

Upon seeing familiar faces, his official demeanor immediately shone through.

It seems that these people are all subjects who should be disciplined.

Chen Shouzhen was able to make a name for himself as a mercenary, which naturally meant he had a somewhat lawless temperament.

Hearing this, I was immediately displeased and said to him:

"General Sanchez asks you where you come from and what your purpose is?"

"Also, where did you buy your large sailing ship from, and why is it different from the ones I've seen before?"

He completely ignored Xu Ercheng's words and simply relayed Sanchez's question.

The interpreter in the fleet naturally understood Sanchez's words. Hearing that Chen Shouzhen hadn't embellished them, he immediately tugged at Xu Ercheng's sleeve and whispered:

"Captain, business is of utmost importance. Other questions can be asked later."

Xu Ercheng then refrained from his outburst, took out a scroll of documents, and said to Chen Shouzhen:
"I am Xu Ercheng, a captain of the Whale Sea Squadron of the First Fleet of the Ming Dynasty. I have come to discuss trade on the orders of the fleet commander, Deputy Commander Shang."

"There was also a letter from the Ming Dynasty on board, expressing their desire to establish trade relations with Mexico."

"Please inform the Governor-General of New Spain in Mexico to send someone to make contact."

Chen Shouzheng translated these words.

Upon hearing that the person before him was from the Ming Dynasty, and was even an official official of the Ming Dynasty, and had come to discuss trade.

Sanchez's eyes lit up immediately, knowing that if he could make this happen, he would gain merit and huge benefits.

Almost no local power in Mexico wants to avoid trading with China. Only Spain frequently issues bans restricting the transport of silver to China.

Thinking of the risk of being reprimanded by the king, especially since the shipping routes they had previously monopolized might now be subject to Ming Dynasty involvement, Sanchez asked:

Which flight route did you take to get here?

"And your boats, why are they so similar to the large galleons in Manila? Did they sell them to you?"

Xu Ercheng said disdainfully:
"How can Manila's ships compare to those of our Great Ming?"

"To tell you the truth, this is an authentic Chinese sailing ship. Every plank and every inch of canvas was made by the Ming Dynasty itself."

“The craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty could build a ship as soon as they saw its shape.”

This statement naturally contained an element of boasting, as Chinese craftsmen recruited from Manila were involved in the construction of this ship.

However, the ship was not difficult to build. At the emperor's command, the Ming Dynasty gathered skilled craftsmen who were good at building ships and quickly copied and even improved upon them.

During his two voyages last year and this year, Shang Kexi's ships did not encounter any major problems.

Now, there are more and more large sailing ships like these along the coast of the Ming Dynasty, transporting more grain and people.

It has been designated as a standard armed merchant ship by the Admiralty, which encourages merchants to purchase it and permits it to be armed.

Zheng Zhilong gave up collecting protection fees because there were more and more armed merchant ships like this, and he could no longer sustain himself with his existing crew.

Therefore, under the guise of easing relations with various forces, they transformed the forced protection fees into non-forced insurance collection.
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Sanchez was unaware of these things, but when he thought of the Manila Galleon's nickname, "Chinese sailing ship," it suddenly seemed perfectly natural—

Even Chinese craftsmen who had fled abroad were able to help the Spanish build such ships. It would naturally have no difficulty for the craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty to replicate them.

Thinking about the possibility of more and more Ming Dynasty ships coming in the future, he felt both the joy of potential profits and a sense of crisis:

"From now on, the galleon trade will no longer be exclusively enjoyed by the Spanish."

"I wonder what the Ming Dynasty will do? Will they attack like the Dutch did?"

At that time, there were basically no rules on the seas. With more and more Dutch ships, they plundered everywhere and traded extensively.

Many merchants at sea also acted as pirates, and Sanchez feared that the Ming people who came here would also plunder this place.

For a fleeting moment, he even considered killing the group in front of him and seizing the Chinese ship outside the port.

However, considering that these people were carrying official credentials, killing them would be tantamount to declaring war on the Ming Dynasty. This lowly garrison commander immediately abandoned the idea and decided to report the matter to his superiors.

At the same time, he also wanted to gain some profit. If the governor-general allowed Ming merchants to come and do business in the future, he could act as an intermediary in the sale of goods.

They discussed the matter frankly, and Xu Ercheng greatly despised his crude way of talking about profit.

Upon seeing this, Chen Shouzhen, who was in charge of the translation, frowned and reminded him:
"Captain Xu, I don't know where you're from, but I must remind you, this is Spanish land."

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do. They always talk about interests in a straightforward manner."

"The best way to persuade Sanchez is to let him benefit."

This advice, which sounded like a reminder but also like a warning, made Xu Ercheng quite unhappy.

However, remembering the emperor's three principles of peaceful coexistence, mutual respect, and mutual benefit with foreign countries, he could only suppress his temper and say:

“We have brought state gifts from the Ming Dynasty, all of which are imperial items.”

"But it needs to be sent to the Governor of New Spain along with the letter of credence, and a return gift is required."

"If General Sanchez wants gifts, I can give him some privately."

"But we mainly went on this trip to scout the route, so we didn't bring much stuff."

"We hope General Sanchez can send someone to guide us to Manila."

"Once the Ming Dynasty becomes familiar with the shipping routes, at least two ships will come every year."

This was a rather long speech, and Chen Shouzhen translated it for a while before conveying its meaning.

When Sanchez heard that there were state gifts and official documents together, and that they were even royal tributes, his eyes practically popped out of their sockets with envy. He wished he could have all of these things for himself.

The Chinese goods he usually saw were already extremely exquisite. But he wouldn't assume that the Ming emperor used such things—

Just as the King of Spain would certainly use different items than the minor nobles, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty would not use things that belonged to commoners.

He said with a hint of envy:
"Could I have a few of the imperial items used by the Ming emperor?"

"If possible, I'll let him go back with you and tell you where to resupply along the way."

They did not directly agree to send a guide, but allowed Chen Shouzhen to return and told them about the supply points along the route.

Clearly, Sanchez had figured it out: since the ships were sent by the Ming Emperor, it was unstoppable for Ming ships to join the galleon trade.

Even if they manage to stop this ship, the Ming emperor will simply send another one.

Upholding the emperor's will, he knew all too well how absurd this was—

The King of Spain frequently issued orders to restrict Mexico, which the Viceroy of New Spain was required to carry out.

The galleon trade was monopolized by the Spanish royal family, which imposed strict restrictions on goods and trade volume, greatly displeasing local powers in Mexico and Manila.

The governor of New Spain, sent by the king, frequently clashed with local Mexican forces and was even impeached and sent back.

The Ming emperor in the Ming Dynasty should have had the same authority as the King of Spain in New Spain. What he wanted to do was simply unstoppable, and some Mexicans even welcomed it.

Sanchez was a local official who hoped to establish relations with Ming officials so that he could share the profits from merchant ships coming from Ming.

Therefore, he quickly agreed to Xu Ercheng's subsequent request for supplies. He ordered small boats in the port to carry clean water, food, and other supplies to resupply the Ming merchant ships.

Out of caution, and even more so out of concern that news of the gold mine might leak, Shang Kexi did not allow his ships to enter the harbor, nor did he send any more personnel there.

He was quite interested in Chen Shouzhen and other Chinese people in Mexico, and instructed Xu Ercheng to actively recruit them and bring them back with him. (End of Chapter)