I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 89 Diplomatic and Commercial Rights

Sure enough, the Emperor couldn't let him know that someone was coveting his money, and he would get anxious when it was mentioned.

Zhu Yijun pondered for a moment and said, "Grandpa Emperor, when the Second Ancestor established the tribute system, he was thinking about 'appeasing distant people and harmonizing all nations', and never considered trade with overseas vassals.

In their eyes, our Ming Dynasty is the Celestial Empire, the richest country in the world, and does not need any goods from overseas vassal states. They also do not know what it means to exchange what they have and what they don’t, and to make money through barter.

In order to show the power of the Ming Dynasty, they even practiced "giving less and giving more". As the emperor said, the overseas vassal states offered a pile of scrap copper and iron, and they could get a lot of rewards in return. Over the years, the Ming Dynasty was overwhelmed and gained face but lost substance. "

Emperor Jiajing agreed, "Yes, Jun'er is right. This is a loss of face but a loss of substance! How much money has been lost!"

He could only criticize the ancestral system of the Ming Dynasty in front of the Emperor. If it were any other emperor, he would have been scolded and accused of treason.

His royal grandfather, Emperor Jiajing, was the first reformer of the Ming Dynasty's ancestral system.

The ancestral system passed down by his ancestors is a good tool for him to improve his reputation.

Emperor Jiajing got straight to the point: "Jun'er, you were the one who planned the Coordination Bureau. Do you think the tribute ship system should be abolished?"

The current maritime trade in the Ming Dynasty is based on the tribute system, which is an ancestral law. If this is not abolished, the maritime ban cannot be abolished and will always be a handle for criticizing the Coordination Bureau.

"Grandpa Emperor, from my grandson's perspective, the tribute ship system must be abolished.

Lift the maritime ban, allow overseas vassal states and Western countries to freely travel and trade with licensed maritime merchants. The volume of maritime trade of our Ming Dynasty can rise further, and the tariffs paid can also increase accordingly.

But Grandfather Emperor, in addition to maritime trade, we must also consider the tribute system established by our Second Ancestor, and pay more attention to the control of overseas vassal states."

"Jun'er, you hit the nail on the head. When the Second Ancestor established the tribute system, trade and tariffs were not their main considerations. How to use both kindness and force and control the vassal states was what they valued most.

However, these overseas vassal states are far away and difficult to control, such as the Japanese East Wo, who have wolfish ambitions. Therefore, the Second Ancestor often uses the method of appeasement and kindness. "

Zhu Yijun immediately responded, "Grandpa Emperor, I think the art of appeasement and kindness is useless. If you only give benefits without spreading authority, these overseas vassal states will only turn the Ming Dynasty into a big fat sheep and try to fleece it. If you don't let them fleece it, they will resent you."

Emperor Jiajing asked with a smile: "Then Jun'er, what do you think we should do?"

"Look, my grandson, these overseas vassal states are the kind of cheap bones that only remember fear but not kindness. If we only show kindness but not power, these guys will think we are fools.

The Ming Dynasty's overseas reputation was at its peak during the Yongle reign, when the eunuch Sanbao led the navy to sail to the West seven times. The ruler of Ceylon refused to obey the king's rule and attempted to attack the fleet and rob the property. The eunuch Sanbao directly sent troops to capture him and brought him back to the capital.

Emperor Chengzu issued an edict to detain the king in the capital and sent eunuch Sanbao to appoint a new king. Later, when there was civil unrest in Siam, eunuch Sanbao led the navy to seek justice and appointed a new king in accordance with Emperor Chengzu's order.

"Yes, since then, the Ming Dynasty has been famous all over the world. I never thought that after just a few years, the Ming Dynasty, which was famous all over the world, would be bullied by the East Japanese monkeys at its doorstep in my hands!"

Emperor Jiajing stood in the pavilion by the Zhonghai Lake, with his sleeves rolled up, looking at the lake surface sparkling in the setting sun, and said hatefully with his eyes narrowed.

"The navy is weak, which brings shame to me!

However, it is very costly to maintain a navy. During the Xuande period, the navy formed by the eunuch Sanbao was disbanded due to the problem of money and food. Since then, the prestige of the Ming Dynasty in the South China Sea and the West has been declining year by year.

Ever since Jun'er set up the Coordinating Bureau, the three navies have complemented each other with Zhejiang, Fujian, and now Guangdong. Part of the income from maritime trade is used to maintain the navy, fight pirates, and guard trade routes, which in turn promotes frequent maritime trade, prosperous trade, and an increase in tariffs.

Jun'er, you have found a new path for the Ming Dynasty."

Emperor Jiajing was filled with emotion.

Zhu Yijun knew that although his grandfather worshipped Taoism and harmed the country and loved money like his life, he was not confused and knew the affairs of the Ming Dynasty very well.

It is one thing to see it clearly, and it is another to be willing to put in the effort to do it.

However, he also understood what Emperor Jiajing meant, that he wanted to completely lift the maritime ban.

I remember that in history, the Ming Dynasty lifted the maritime ban during the Longqing period, which was six years after my father ascended the throne.

Taking advantage of the Sanniangzi incident, the horse market was officially opened in the north, and the trade between Shanxi merchants and Altan Khan changed from being secretive to being open and aboveboard.

The person who presided over this matter was Wang Chonggu, the governor of Guangdong and Jiangxi, who was one of the leaders of the Jin Party in history. Now he is one of the few fruits of the Jin Party and has turned into the Prince Party.

The lifting of the maritime ban in the south eventually only created a crack in Yuegang, Zhangzhou. It was the product of a fierce struggle among various forces including the Jiangsu and Zhejiang Party headed by Xu Jie, the Fujian Party, and the Stubborn Conservative Party.

The borders between the north and the south were opened almost simultaneously, and the whole country celebrated. The soldiers and civilians sang and danced, praising the earless father as a wise ruler. However, the treasury was still in a tight spot until Zhang Juzheng was appointed to take charge of the situation.
Zhu Yijun strongly agreed with his grandfather's move to lift the maritime ban.

Trade must be free to flow and the government should be less involved in order for it to flourish. And this was during the Age of Exploration. As the world's largest country at the time, the goods produced by Ming were sought after by the whole world, so why not get a share of the pie?

Grab resources, grab wealth, grab land, grab markets.

Of course, the key to lifting the maritime ban and promoting free trade is that the imperial court must be able to collect tariffs.

We cannot allow local families to become rich, the imperial court to become poor, and the people to suffer.

Another point is how the Ming Dynasty could stand firm and maintain its reputation as the Celestial Empire in the surging "tide of commerce" after the lifting of the maritime ban.

"Grandpa Emperor, in my grandson's opinion, if the Ming Dynasty wants to stand firm, the navy comes first.

Korea, Japan, Luzon, Sulu, Borneo, Siam, Annan, Champa, Cambodia, Malacca, Sumatra, and Ceylon, these vassal states that paid tribute to the Ming Dynasty were all connected to the sea.

If a vassal state refuses to submit to the king's rule, then send the navy to block its door, pin it down and beat it up. If it refuses to submit after one beating, beat it up again. If it still refuses to submit after two beatings, then spread the message and invite its neighboring states to destroy it together.

Emperor Jiajing laughed loudly, "Jun'er is really ambitious. But the navy must be like the one of Eunuch Sanbao."

"Grandpa Emperor, I have always felt that the navy led by Eunuch Sanbao is not positioned clearly."

"Unclear location?"

"Yes. What exactly does the Sanbao Navy want to do? I guess Emperor Chengzu himself hasn't figured it out yet."

Some people say that the Sanbao Navy was used to search for Emperor Jianwen who had fled overseas.

Some people say that it was to spread the prestige of the Ming Dynasty and attract all nations to pay tribute, and to help Emperor Chengzu, who came to power by relying on his nephew to pacify the rebellion, to enhance his reputation, establish his name, and follow the will of heaven.

"Jun'er, tell me, why is it that the location is unclear?"

"Grandpa Emperor, in my grandson's opinion, the navy has only a few functions. The first is to control the sea power, maintain peace in the Ming Dynasty's sea borders, and protect the coastal areas from foreign enemies and pirates. The second is to protect the sea routes and ensure that the merchants traveling by sea are not harassed and robbed by pirates. The third is to conquer the vassal states that do not submit to the king.

Last time Admiral Lu led the Dinghai Battalion to bombard Hirado Harbor, my grandson thought it was a great move. On the one hand, it punished the criminals and comforted the people, spreading the name of the emperor's saintly benevolence and comforting the hearts of the soldiers and civilians in the southeast; on the other hand, it promoted the prestige of the Ming Dynasty and deterred the villains.

Hirado Port was bombarded, the Matsuura Party was severely damaged, and the Japanese threat in the southeast was immediately felt. It was almost impossible to see the real Japanese helping the abuse. "

Emperor Jiajing watched Zhu Yijun speak quietly as he was full of energy, with a rare kindness on his face.

"Once the navy is positioned, the direction is clear. We will promote trade and encourage people to go out to sea. The Ming Dynasty has thousands of civilian ships, and the navy will select the best ones and train them into an elite force. In case of changes, civilian ships can also be requisitioned.

Such a navy is more about quality than quantity, so the cost is not that great."

"Quality is more important than quantity. It's the same reason as Jun'er asking Qi Jiguang to train a new army."

"Yes, Grandfather Emperor. Once the navy is built, the rest of the problems will be solved. We can safely and boldly lift the maritime ban, and we can also solve the state affairs and trade exchanges between the overseas vassal states and the Ming Dynasty.

Grandfather, I call the state affairs between the overseas vassal states and the Ming Dynasty "diplomatic affairs"; their commercial exchanges with the Ming Dynasty are called trade and commerce.

Emperor Jiajing nodded.

He was already accustomed to Zhu Yijun's creation of new terms.

The ancestors and grandchildren were of the same lineage. Emperor Jiajing liked to innovate the ancestral system, and Zhu Yijun liked to create new terms.

"Grandpa Emperor intends to lift the maritime ban. It would be better to set up an agency to manage the state affairs with the overseas vassal states, that is, diplomatic affairs, and shut up the ministers. The Honglu Temple has long been abandoned, and the Ministry of Rites does not like to be involved in these matters."

The drooping eyebrows of Emperor Jiajing twitched slightly: "Jun'er means that this government office is in charge of state affairs on the surface, but in fact it also manages the trade affairs with overseas vassal states and the Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Yijun blinked, "Grandpa Emperor, that's what I meant."

In the eyes of the ministers, managing exchanges with overseas vassal states, such as tribute and enthronement, was a dull and troublesome job, and ambitious civil servants looked down on it.

It's just convenient for me to intervene.

The two foxes, one old and one young, laughed at the same time, and then began to act in sync.

With their hands hidden in their sleeves and their heads slightly tilted, they stood side by side, looking at the sunset over the lake in the distance.

(End of this chapter)