My Pen Pal Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 435 Ancient and Modern Joint Investigation
The Ottoman Empire again!
Zhu Yuanzhang thought to himself that if he wanted to open up a route to Europe, the Ottoman Empire would be an obstacle that he could not avoid.

"In the 16th year of Hongwu, the Ottoman Empire's sphere of influence included the Balkan Peninsula, Asia Minor, Syria, and Palestine, among which Syria and Palestine bordered Egypt.

At the same time, it also controlled parts of the Mediterranean. That is to say, whether from the sea or land, the Ottoman Empire had formed a situation of encirclement of Egypt by land and sea.

Today's Egypt is under the rule of the Mamluk Dynasty. Although the Mamluk Dynasty has not yet shown signs of decline, it is still surrounded by the Ottoman Empire and is having a hard time. Therefore, if a third-party force can intervene, I believe they will gladly accept it.

So what the Ming Dynasty needs to do is to establish normal trade relations with Egypt in the name of trade, and provide some assistance when necessary. It will surely gain the trust of the Mamluk Dynasty, and then the next work will be easy.

If we establish an inland trade route from the east coast of Egypt to the north coast and lay the foundation in Alexandria, then Europe will be within our reach!
Of course, as to how to implement it, you, Old Zhu, will have to think about it."

This is a good idea! Zhu Yuanzhang thought that Xu Da and his men had brought back a Arab interpreter from Egypt from Temasek, so this person could be used by the Ming Dynasty.

The world is so big and there are so many wonderful things. Daming should really go to faraway places to see the world and not miss these wonderful things!

"There is also a second sailing route, which is also the future development direction of the Ming Dynasty, to the east!"

To the east? Zhu Yuanzhang was stunned. By "to the east", did Lao Li mean Ryukyu and Japan?
That shouldn't be the case. Ryukyu is already under the control of the Ming Dynasty. As for Japan, it cannot escape from the Ming Dynasty's control. If we go eastward, what else is there except the vast Pacific Ocean?
No, Lao Li was talking about the two American continents!

In Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes, these two places were just two ownerless lands. Leaving them there and doing nothing with them would be a waste of resources!

Not to mention gold and silver, even using it to grow crops would be fine!

Mr. Zhu was born into a peasant family, and he hated to see good land lying idle.

However, the Pacific Ocean is too vast, like a natural chasm, stretching between the Ming Dynasty and America. It is within sight but out of reach, making people feel uncomfortable as if they are being scratched by a cat's claws!
"For this route, there are two options: sea and land. For the sea route, the fleet departs from Hokkaido, Japan, and travels northeast. This distance is closer than from Ming Dynasty to Africa.

As for the land route, Lao Zhu, please look at the map and see which place is closest to the American continent. "

Zhu Yuanzhang slapped his head and remembered that in the northeast of the Ming Dynasty, although it was extremely far away, it was almost connected to the American continent. There was a narrow strait there. What was it called?

Looking at the map, yes, it’s the Bering Strait!
"The Bering Strait freezes in winter, so it is possible to travel there, but it is bitterly cold and the journey is too long, so it is relatively more convenient to travel by sea."

Although what Lao Li said makes sense, I, Lao Zhu, prefer to take the land route. I remember what you said, Lao Li, that Siberia has a large amount of mineral resources such as iron ore, and I have always been thinking about it!
Oh, and besides that, there’s Australia!

His attention then shifted to the island of Java, which was not far from Australia. If the coal mines in Srivijaya could be developed and Palembang could be used as a fleet supply point, then Australia would be within reach.

I just don’t know what the situation is there and how strong the person is.
Alas, there are too many things to do and too little time. Zhu Yuanzhang wished he could split himself in half.

We need to come up with a long-term development plan and implement it one step at a time!
"My hands are tired from writing, so I'll stop here for this time. By the way, there are two things I need you to help me investigate, Old Zhu.

The first thing is that according to the fifteenth volume of the "Da Ming Zhi Shu", in the twenty-fifth year of Zhizheng, a local herdsman named Doji Boto was attracted by the silver light in the cave halfway up the mountain and entered it. When he came out, it was three years later. From the twenty-fifth year of Zhizheng to the sixteenth year of Hongwu, only nineteen years have passed. Doji Boto himself should still be alive. Can you help me verify this matter, Lao Zhu? It would be best to find him and find out clearly.

The second thing is about the theft of silver from Guangjiku in the eighth year of Hongwu. I need to know the details of the incident, the whole story and the conclusion of the investigation and analysis. Can you get me a copy of this information, Mr. Zhu?

Looking forward to your reply. ”

The letter ended here. Zhu Yuanzhang rubbed his swollen and painful eyes. There was too much information in Li Han's letter, and he still had to digest it carefully.

However, what he was more interested in at this moment were the two things Li Han mentioned at the end of the letter.

He was very familiar with the Guangjiku theft case in the eighth year of Hongwu. Even now, when Old Li mentioned it, he still found it unbelievable when he recalled it.

At that time, the prefectural governor of Yingtian and the Yiluansi, the predecessor of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, jointly investigated the case. For this, the prefectural governor of Yingtian, Liang Fu, and the commander of the Yiluansi, Mao Xiang, both cursed the police a lot, but they did their best.

In this case, no matter how they investigated, they found no traces of human intervention. Moreover, although the scholar who found the silver ingot had some evil intentions, he had no motive or possibility to commit a crime.

Because of this, he felt that it was God's will for the scholar to make a fortune, so he rewarded him with the silver ingot.

There are also two other stolen silver bars, and there has been no news of them to date.

Silver ingots weighing hundreds of pounds each disappeared without a trace. Zhu Yuanzhang didn't believe that anyone could do it quietly under the strict guard of Guangjiku!

Now that Lao Li has brought up this matter, why is he interested in this mystery? Is there a deeper hidden story behind it?

I have to take this matter seriously!
As for the other thing that Lao Li mentioned, which happened on the Kalwabo Mountain in Yunnan in the 25th year of Zhizheng, he really didn't know much about it. He had to ask Wei Junmin and others who compiled the "Da Ming Zhi Shu" at that time.

This is easy to handle. Wei Junmin is a third-rank scholar in the Hanlin Academy, but he should go home and rest now, right?

Now I have to call him over to ask him clearly.

He called his eldest companion and ordered him to quickly call Wei Junmin, Liang Fu and Mao Xiang!

Otomo received the order and quickly went down to give instructions. Taking advantage of this gap, Zhu Yuanzhang put away the letters and maps, then ordered someone to bring the "Comprehensive History of the Ming Dynasty" and began to read it himself.

Sure enough, this bizarre incident was recorded in the fifteenth volume. The more Zhu Yuanzhang read it, the more frightened he became. After reading it, he couldn't help but gasp.

What is this, Peach Blossom Spring?
This matter is so bizarre, no wonder it aroused the interest of a strange man like Lao Li. It seems that we really have to send someone to Yunnan to bring the herdsman named Doji Boto to Yingtianfu!

(End of this chapter)