The Ming Dynasty took an unconventional approach

Chapter 1072 Peace Talks
Upon hearing that North Korea had prepared a birthday gift for her, Pan Yun immediately rummaged through her private coffers, stingily took out a sum of money, and handed it over to a merchant who frequently traveled to North Korea, instructing them to buy five boatloads of grain and send them to North Korea.

Then, during a casual chat, he lamented, "It's a pity that Korea is at war, otherwise their ginseng would be very good. Although I am not a pill refiner, my two nephews are. Whether they are refining pills or researching prescriptions, Korean medicinal materials are very useful."

Upon hearing this, the shop owner's heart stirred.

If you were to ask who the people of the Ming Dynasty most want to curry favor with right now, besides the Emperor, it would be the Imperial Advisor.

The emperor lived deep within the palace, and ordinary people rarely saw him. However, the imperial advisor would occasionally leave the palace, which was something they might be able to see.

Unfortunately, she had low desires and often sought help from the Ministry of Works, so while everyone was willing, they couldn't find a way to get things done.

Now that the Grand Preceptor has personally presented a path, even though there is a war going on in Korea, he must go.
And now, there is another door on this road that may forever lead to the Grand Preceptor—Korean medicinal herbs.

Without hesitation, the business owner decided to personally travel to North Korea, not only to deliver the food safely but also to buy the best ginseng from North Korea.

If we can please the two grand-nephews of the Grand Preceptor, wouldn't that be indirectly pleasing the Grand Preceptor?

The merchant owner immediately concealed the news and secretly ordered the preparation of a fleet.

He wanted to keep this road to himself and not reveal the news, but as soon as Pan Yun stepped out, the news started flying everywhere.

What a joke! She personally went out of the palace to do such trivial things as buying and delivering grain. What was her purpose?
Is it all for these five ships of grain?

Since she was going to do good, she should do it to the best of her ability. The donated grain was just a convenient gesture, at most a stepping stone to guide the way. Her true goodwill towards North Korea was the continuous flow of business opportunities.

These trading companies would bring large quantities of basic supplies such as grain and cloth, and then purchase local specialties such as medicinal herbs and minerals from Korea.

Sure enough, many merchants in the capital learned that Pan Yun really liked Korean medicinal herbs, especially ginseng, and that she was troubled because Korea was at war and she couldn't buy good Korean ginseng. The merchants immediately decided to help her solve this problem.

The Japanese pirates are nothing but a nuisance. The Ming Dynasty has already sent troops to support Korea, and victory is only a matter of time.

Moreover, I've heard that the Japanese pirates have all been driven into a city called Busan, and they won't be able to hold out for much longer.

The danger is greatly reduced if they go there now.

Besides, fortune is found in danger; how can one seek wealth without taking any risks?

So everyone prepared for the fleet to set sail.

In the past two years, the shipyard has built a large number of ocean-going vessels. Not only have old businesses bought ships, but many people have also established many new businesses for maritime trade, and they all have their own ships.

North Korea is in dire need of reconstruction; what does it lack most at this time?
They were familiar with the various merchants, and they purchased large quantities of grain, cloth, porcelain, and other items from Shuntian Prefecture, Baoding, Zhengding, and Hejian Prefecture, loaded them onto ships, and set sail from Tianjin Port.

Of course, before setting off, they also jointly requested the imperial navy to escort them for a part of the journey, mainly because they were afraid that Japanese soldiers who had fled to sea would become pirates.

However, there were not many defeated soldiers at sea at this time, and even fewer who could pose a threat. If they were encountered, their crews could kill them without the navy even having to intervene.

It's not far from Tianjin Port to North Korea. As long as you don't wander around aimlessly and follow a specific shipping route, you can arrive in as little as three days.

It's very fast.

When North Korea suddenly discovered that so many supplies had been transported by sea, all from the Ming Dynasty, tears streamed down their faces. They were especially moved when they learned that one of the merchants had donated grain specifically for the Grand Preceptor.

Moved to tears, he stumbled and ran to report to the King of Joseon.

Li Dao was also in tears. He sent officials to take over the five ships of donated grain and organized local grain merchants and gentry to buy the grain. He was even generous enough to allow these Ming Dynasty grain merchants to form caravans to enter the heart of Korea to sell grain without charging a single coin of customs duty or tax.

However, he set a price range for grain; their grain prices could only be within that range, and exceeding it would be illegal.

Upon hearing the price range, the grain merchants quickly calculated and realized they could still make a considerable profit, so they happily agreed. This was because when they arrived, the Ming Dynasty's new wheat harvest was already complete, just as grain prices were declining.

In addition, this year the Ming Dynasty accomplished the great feat of defeating the Northern Hu and annexing the Oirat and Tatar. All officials and people who care about national affairs know that the northern part of the Ming Dynasty will be stable for at least the next five years.

When the economy is stable, grain prices will decline steadily.

These unscrupulous merchants bought grain from the Ming Dynasty, half of which was new wheat and half of last year's wheat. The price was cheap, and since Korea didn't levy tariffs, they could make a profit.

Everyone happily accepted the King of Joseon's terms.

Isn't it just range pricing?

Let's discuss it and decide on a price that's in the upper-middle range.

This price range was decided after much discussion between Yi Do and his ministers, with the highest price set at the current market price.

Therefore, as long as these merchants from the Ming Dynasty do not set a fixed maximum price, their grain prices will definitely be lower than the current market price, which is considered beneficial to the people.

With such a large volume of grain entering the country, shouldn't domestic grain prices drop a bit?
Yi Do was deeply grateful to the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty and the Grand Preceptor of the Ming Dynasty. He could sense that this was a way they had come up with to help Joseon, and that it was a favor from the suzerain state.

Pan Yu looked up and saw that Li Tao was crying again, and couldn't help but twitch her lips.

North Korean men cry so much; he's practically numb from hearing it for twenty days straight.

Pan Yu came to ask Li Tao to sign a peace treaty.

After their previous bribery attempt failed, the Japanese made a last-ditch effort under the cover of darkness, hoping to launch a surprise counterattack while the Ming army was off guard.

But this was just a temporary resurgence. Li Song remained on guard, while Pan Yu had been waiting for this opportunity for a long time.

As the suzerain state, the Ming Dynasty could not launch an attack on the premise that the Japanese shogunate had proposed peace talks. However, if Japan made the first move, it would be natural for the Ming Dynasty to retaliate.

So they had just slipped out and hadn't even reached the Ming camp when a firework exploded in the sky, and shouts of battle immediately erupted throughout Busan.

The Ming soldiers, who had sneaked into Busan beforehand, joined forces with the Korean civilians in the city to launch a counterattack, directly attacking the west gate and a military camp.

While shouts of battle echoed throughout the city, a deputy general outside the city led his troops to surround the Japanese soldiers who were attempting a sneak attack...

Pan Yu urgently sent a telegram to summon three warships that were neither too close nor too far from Busan. After approaching Busan from the sea, they began to bombard the city. For a time, the sounds of cannons and shouts of battle filled the air.

At sea, the Japanese warships were bombarded and engulfed in flames.
On the shore, Busan was also ablaze with fire, making it look as if the Ming army had stormed the city.

In fact, it’s almost the same.

After gathering his men, Pan Yu immediately took orders to lead his troops to attack the west gate.

Li Song then led his army to attack the north gate.

With the enemy forces dispersed and coordinated from within and without, Pan Yu stormed the west gate. Although he did not advance further in, he firmly held the west gate.

After daybreak, Hosokawa Mochiyoshi earnestly proposed peace talks.

This time, the peace talks proceeded smoothly.

It was such a coincidence that the Ming Dynasty's merchant ships landed just as they had reached an agreement on all the terms and were ready to sign the peace treaty.

(End of this chapter)