I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 541: For the sake of Ming Dynasty, I have to suffer in Tianzhu

Salvage bodies, count the spoils, compile statistics of military achievements, interrogate prisoners, and find out the whole story.

Sanbao Prefecture in Yanzhou was too far away from the capital. Zhu Yijun had instructed Yu Dayou and others to report defeats immediately but not to rush for victories. It would not be too late to report them once the results of the battles were clearly counted and the situation was fully understood.

It took thirteen days for the good news to arrive from Malacca City, through Longkou City and then to Kunlun Island, where it stayed for one night before heading north to Xiangjiang Island.

The victory report was not a secret report. It was copied into two copies by the officials. One copy was transferred to the express ship from Xiangjiang Island to Dagu and sailed north. The other copy was sent to Guangzhou, and then north to Huguang and Henan, and sent directly to the capital by the traditional 600-mile express.

It was on the afternoon of May 5th that Zhu Yijun received the good news forwarded from Dagu.

After reading it, Zhu Yijun immediately invited four advisors: Hu Zongxian, Zhang Juzheng, Zhao Zhenji and Tan Lun.

After the four people arrived, Zhu Yijun handed the victory report to them.

After watching it, the four of them were not very excited, but they still congratulated Zhu Yijun in unison.

The Ming Dynasty has won so many battles in these years that it is tired of winning.

Besides, they only defeated the Western Yi fleet in the southern part of the country, with only more than 50 ships and more than 10,000 land and sea personnel. Compared with the battle on the right wing of Mongolia that had just ended, it was far less powerful, so the four men did not take it seriously.

"The victory report also included a report on the Goa situation, especially the one by Jose Alfonso, which was the most organized and clear.

He said that Goa was the capital of the Portuguese Governorate of India and the largest Portuguese stronghold in the Far East. Trade with East Africa, Arabia, Persia and India all revolved around it, and it was also an important transit point to the South China Sea and our Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yijun continued, "The Portuguese Governor of India, Calderon, who died in the battle, brought out all the Portuguese ships in Goa. Now it is difficult for the Portuguese in Goa to even go out to sea to fish."

Hu Zongxian could not help but say: "The Western Barbarians' chieftain Calderon has sent out all his forces and risked everything. They are isolated thousands of miles away from their homeland, and they are so careless and reckless. This is really wrong."

“Mr. Merlin, you have to know that the Portuguese set out from their homeland, and they fought invincibly in West Africa and East Africa, which is what we have decided is Kunzhou East and West.

Then they arrived in Arabia, which we call the Arab Empire, and defeated the Ottoman-Venetian coalition. Then they moved eastward, opened up the vast market of India, and then monopolized the spices of the Spice Islands and trade with the Ming Dynasty.

He was so full of himself that he was arrogant and thought that the only heroes in the world were the two Yas.

Zhao Zhenji stroked his beard and said, "Portugal and Spain, their names sound like a pair of brothers!"

Zhang Juzheng said: "Your Majesty, now that the Portuguese fleet has been completely destroyed in Malacca, will this affect the trade between the Western Barbarians and our Ming Dynasty?"

Now the Western Barbarians purchase silk, tea and other goods from the Ming Dynasty every year, contributing a considerable amount of tariffs. Zhang Juzheng is keeping an eye on this and dares not be careless.

If tariffs are reduced by a large amount, there will be a big hole in the national treasury.

Zhu Yijun waved his hand and said, "Don't worry about it. The Western barbarians value profit over loyalty. Tell Master Zhang that as long as the Western barbarians don't kill him this time and he comes back to life, he will still do business with us as long as the price is right.

Besides, the Portuguese were not the only Western barbarians. The Portuguese had previously monopolized the Eastern shipping routes, and the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, and the Arabs could only pick up their scraps.

Now that the Portuguese have been beaten up by us, they are temporarily unable to recover. Other Westerners, including the Arabs, will take the opportunity to fill the gap left by the Portuguese. Master Zhang, don't worry about our foreign trade and tariffs with Westerners this year.

However, we also made some strategic adjustments. Qi Yan, bring the South China Sea and Tianzhu maps. "

Hu Zongxian and the other three looked at each other, and the emperor was about to speak based on the picture again.

Qi Yan and the eunuch pulled over a screen, on which hung a map showing the southern part of Zhenzhou, the eastern part of Kunzhou, as well as the East China Sea, the South China Sea, the Western Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean.

"Europeans still call Zhenzhou Asia and Kunzhou Africa. But in 20 or 30 years, I believe they will change their words.

The ocean south of Tianzhu, between the eastern part of Kunzhou and Yanzhou, was called the Western Ocean by the eunuch Sanbao. It was to this ocean that he went during his seven voyages to the Western Ocean.

But now we know that there is a vast ocean between Duizhou, which is what they call Europe, and the New World, which we call Genzhou and Xunzhou. That is the real Atlantic Ocean.

The ocean south of India was called the Erythraean Sea, or the Red Sea, by the ancient Greeks, and was labeled the Eastern Indian Ocean by Western geographers.

But for the Ming Dynasty, this ocean is in the south. Well, I call it the Great South Ocean. Whether it sounds good or not, I will call it that. "

Zhu Yijun started with some small talk, "There are less than a thousand soldiers left in Goa now, protecting the port, the castle, and five or six thousand civilians.

In that case, we won’t be polite.”

He walked to the map, pointed at it and continued talking. Qi Yan and several other eunuchs were constantly recording.

"The South China Sea Navy's right camp used Wanzhou, Hue and Kunlun Island as ports to guard the seas of Guangdong, Hainan, Annan, Champa, Zhenla, Siam and Brunei.

The Central Battalion was stationed in Luzon, Sulu and Yandong Island, taking over the defense of the Suzaku Navy. It continued to crack down on pirates here while fighting against the Spanish fleet.

One part of the left camp stayed in Malacca and Longkou Port to guard the Malacca Strait and support Zhang Yuanxun's strategy for Yannan Island. Another part went straight to Goa with the Suzaku Navy.

Zhang Juzheng frowned and asked, "Your Majesty, are you going to launch an expedition to India and make it your kingdom?"

Zhu Yijun shook his head: "No, it is to take advantage of the opportunity to pick the fruits of the Portuguese, open the door to India, and seize the market there."

"Open the gates of India? Your Majesty, what do we want?"

“Free trade!”

Free trade?

The four of them looked at each other.

Isn't it to incorporate India into the royal territory and make the Indian people become citizens of the Ming Dynasty?

Zhu Yijun saw through their thoughts and explained, "No, I don't need the Indians as my subjects, nor do I want to make them my kingdom. I just need a place to produce raw materials and a place to sell goods."

What do you mean?
Zhu Yijun explained: "Tianzhu has excellent iron ore. Damascus steel knives are made of Wool iron ore and are made using secret methods. There are also abundant coal and other minerals.

It also has cotton, which is of better quality than Songjiang cotton. We can transport iron ore, coal, and cotton back to Daming, forge them into ironware, spin them into cotton yarn, weave them into cotton cloth, and then transport them back to Tianzhu to sell them to them.”

Zhang Juzheng could not help but ask: "Your Majesty, why not set up a steel mill and a cotton yarn and cloth mill in Tianzhu? This would be more convenient."

"Master Zhang, steel and cotton are the tools to strengthen a country and enrich its people. If we set them up in Tianzhu, we can help Tianzhu become a strong country and enrich its people. If we stay in Ming, we can help Ming become a strong country and enrich its people.

Where do you want them to be?"

Zhang Juzheng answered without hesitation: "Your Majesty, of course I hope to stay in the Ming Dynasty." "Okay!" Zhu Yijun said happily: "Ming merchants collect three ships of cotton in Tianzhu, transport them to Songjiang for spinning and weaving, and then print and dye them to make a ship of cotton cloth. When transported back to Tianzhu, one ship of cotton cloth can be exchanged for thirty ships of cotton, which is a tenfold profit.

Why don't I keep such a lucrative industry in Ming Dynasty, but put it in Tianzhu?"

Moreover, such a highly profitable industry will madly stimulate capitalists to continuously improve science and technology, improve machinery and equipment, improve production efficiency, and obtain more profits.

Hu Zongxian's four advisors all stared with their eyes wide open, unable to believe it.

So profitable?

It's too profitable.

Hey, that's how profitable it is!

Historically, this is what the British did in the 18th and 19th centuries. They shipped cotton back to their homeland from the southern United States and India, and then used steam engines, water-powered spinning machines, mule looms, water-powered looms, cotton cleaning machines, carding machines, bleaching machines, finishing and dyeing machines, a complete set of textile machinery for large-scale industrial production.

The woven cotton cloth was good quality and cheap, and it directly drove the Indian native cloth manufacturers bankrupt.

Especially after the end of the American Civil War, the South became the raw material base for the North, and India's raw materials became more important to Britain, becoming the jewel in the Queen's crown.

Even though the British were so far away, they were able to process imported materials so well that they became the world's most powerful country and their wealth has continued into the 21st century.

My Ming Dynasty is so close, why can’t we play?

I can play it even better!
However, I do not need Tianzhu to become a tassel on the Pingtian crown. I just need it to contribute silently to the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty.

"Why should I take India as my territory and turn it into a citizen of Ming?
As citizens of the Ming Dynasty, I have to worry about their food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, and their safety. I don't have that much heart for them. I can only let them continue to live under the kings of their respective states.

The Ming Dynasty occupied important ports on both the east and west sides of India and provided them as leased territories, preferably offshore islands at the mouths of rivers. We did business with the kings of various states in India and merchants from all over the country.

Buy cheap and sell dear, and exchange what you have for what you don’t have.”

Zhu Yijun looked at the four people and continued, "Gentlemen, there is gain and loss. Huge profits also mean exploitation. Our Ming Dynasty needs a lot of wealth. If the country is strong and the people are rich, the people of other countries must contribute.

In order to make the Ming Dynasty strong and prosperous, the people of India have to suffer, but they will get rid of ignorance and backwardness and bathe in the light of human civilization. "

After hearing this, Hu Zongxian and the other three were very nervous.

Your Majesty, the more you say this, the more worried we are about the people of India.

But on second thought, what business have we had with the lives of the Indian people?

We haven't taken care of the affairs of the Ming Dynasty yet, so what do matters outside the Ming Dynasty have to do with us?

Tan Lun asked, "Your Majesty, our Suzaku Navy and the South China Sea Navy's Zuoying are on an expedition to Goa. What should we do with the Portuguese?"

“If they are convinced, then we can continue to coexist peacefully and do business together. It will just depend on our ability to see who can make more money.

If they are still not convinced, come and try. In order to maintain free trade and bring the light of civilization to the people of Tianzhu, Dashi and Kunzhou, our Ming Dynasty will not hesitate to fight them to the end! "

Your Majesty, when you say this, we can't help but feel a sense of pride in our hearts, and feel that the Portuguese are simply unforgivable. It seems that Taichang Temple Zhengqing Cai Maochun has really inherited your true teachings. These words really sound exciting and familiar.

Zhu Yijun continued the previous topic: "The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Rites revised the trade regulations. Overseas merchants will first stop at Longkou Port, and then some ships can go north to Hong Kong, Quanzhou, Shanghai and other trading ports.

Some that do not meet the requirements can only go to Longkou Port.

In addition, all foreigners who travel northwards into the territory of our Ming Dynasty, whether they are from the Western Barbarians, Kunzhou people, Persians or Indians, must be quarantined for at least fifteen days on Bintan Island (Riau Island) outside Longkou Port.

You can only enter the country after inspection by the Epidemic Prevention Bureau.

Ming people returning from overseas also followed this example and set up a quarantine area on another island. "

It is said that syphilis was spread throughout the world by Europeans during the Age of Exploration.

Some studies have also shown that cholera is a deadly weapon raised by the Ganges River, which later spread to Asia, Africa and Latin America following the footsteps of the British.

Fifteen days of quarantine is enough to block some severe infectious diseases.

During the Age of Discovery, if the Ming Dynasty wanted to move out, many people would also come in. It was impossible to make the Ming Dynasty a greenhouse with glass walls.

Zhang Juzheng asked: "Your Majesty, if the trading port is transferred to Longkou, what about Malacca?"

"Malaka is a military port, and the land around it is very fertile and can be used as a settlement."

“What about the natives there?”

"Those who believe in Brahmanism will be sent back to India, and those who believe in Islam will be sent back to the Arabs. If it cannot be completed in five years, it will take ten years. If it cannot be completed in ten years, it will take fifty years.

I am a kind person who is always willing to help others. If I send them back to their hometown, they will surely be grateful to me."

This is an era where the strong prey on the weak, and whoever is strong can really do whatever they want.

When the nuclear era arrives and the major powers point guns at each other, everyone will become civilized and many things will become impossible to do.

The four advisors sighed inwardly.

My goodness, the people in Sanbao Prefecture and the four islands of Yanzhou either believe in Brahmanism or Islam, with the two accounting for 70 to 80 percent. If they were all sent back to their "hometown", they would really thank your ancestors for eight generations.

But they changed their minds and realized that if they were sent back to their hometowns, the natives would definitely say, "I can learn to speak Chinese, I can read the Four Books and Five Classics, and I can love the Ming Dynasty" in order to avoid being sent back to their homeland.

Zhu Yijun began to arrange the work: "The Rong government will immediately draw up a new combat plan. The navy must go out of the South Gate and head towards the South Seas. A new grand plan is necessary.
The cabinet should revise the trade regulations as soon as possible, improve the local official system of Yanzhou, and manage the southern gate of Ming Dynasty well. The most important thing is to follow the footsteps of the navy and open up free trade to the world! "

"According to the order!"

After the four councillors left, Qi Yan said, "Your Majesty, Song Gongliang, the commander of the Imperial Guard, wants to see you."

"Please come in quickly."

After Song Gongliang came in and paid his respects, he hurriedly reported: "Your Majesty, it is reported that a group of demoted officials are trying to cause trouble at the Tongzhou Post Station."

(End of this chapter)