The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 328: The Heavenly Ship Visits, the Qing Demons Surrender to the Barbarians (Request for Subscription, Request for Tickets)
Outside Nagasaki Port, Japan.

This port city is the only port in Japan that is open to the outside world. It is not completely open, but only allows merchants from the Dutch Sea Coachman and merchants from the Qing Dynasty, which is closed to the outside world, to enter the port for trade.

Although the Qing Dynasty was closed to the outside world and claimed that no ships were allowed to enter the sea, in fact, merchant ships of the Qing Dynasty could still go out to sea to do business in many places. The Nagasaki Port in Japan was a place frequented by sea merchants from Zhejiang and Fujian in China.

However, it is not easy to go to Nagasaki for trade. It is subject to the dual supervision of the Qing government and the Nagasaki Bugyosho of Japan! The Qing side must have customs certificates issued by the Guangdong Customs, Fujian Customs, Zhejiang Customs, and Jiang Customs to go out to sea, and then hold a letter card issued by the Nagasaki Bugyosho of Japan to enter the Nagasaki Port. Both the customs certificate and the letter card are indispensable. Among them, the customs certificate is relatively easy to get, which is nothing more than spending some silver to bribe, while the letter card of the Nagasaki Bugyosho of Japan is very difficult to get-this is because Japan has long been the deficit party in Sino-Japanese trade, and the gold, silver and copper dug out in China have flowed to China through Sino-Japanese trade.

Therefore, Japan has long been closed to the outside world and restricted Sino-Japanese trade. They started to do so after the fall of the Tang Dynasty in China and continued until the founding of Japan in 1854. Of course, Japan was not always closed to the outside world during this nearly one thousand years, because during this period, Japan also experienced two or three chaotic times, and no one cared about the isolation of the country.

Although Japan has been invaded by the black ships, the isolation order has not been lifted yet.

However, Japan's isolation order could not stop the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's missionary envoy Hong Daquan. Luo Xueyan could open the customs himself. Now the Jianghai Customs and Zhejiang Customs are under the direct jurisdiction of his Nanyang Minister's Office.

As for the letter card of the Nagasaki Bugyosho in Japan, how difficult would it be for a minister of Nanyang to get one? The Nagasaki Bugyosho in Japan always recognized the letter card but not the person. As long as you have the letter card, you can enter the port.

So on December 1853, 12, the steam paddle wheel armed merchant ship "Holy Angel" from Shanghai appeared in the sight of Zheng Ganfu, the Tang interpreter of Nagasaki Bugyoso, with black smoke coming out of the sound of "thump thump thump".

This Nagasaki businessman, who is in his forties, short in stature, and always has a gentle smile on his fair face, has a very prominent Chinese ancestor named Zheng Zhilong - the father of Zheng Chenggong, the Prince of Yanping, the richest man in East Asia at the turn of the Ming and Qing dynasties (and possibly the richest man in the world)!

Unfortunately, Zheng, the richest man, squandered all his billions of assets by himself, and there was not much left in the hands of Zheng Ganfu's ancestor, Zheng Zhilong's second son, Tagawa Shizaemon Zheng Zongming.

But a lean camel is still bigger than a horse! Although Zheng's fortune was not passed down, the descendants of Zheng Zongming, Tagawa Shichizaemon, obtained a hereditary position of "Tang Tongshi". Generation after generation, they were employed by the Nagasaki Bugyo to deal with merchants from the Qing Dynasty - this was a lucrative job!
"Commissioner Zheng" of the Nagasaki Bugyoso in Japan must also be taken!

If Commissioner Zheng didn't take it, how would the successive Nagasaki magistrates take it? If they didn't take it, how would the general's assistants and the shogunate's elders take it? If no one took it, how would Commissioner Zheng keep his lucrative position for generations?

However, this year, the number of Qing merchants doing business in Nagasaki is significantly less than in previous years! I heard that something big happened in Qing. The Christians in Qing rebelled and established the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, which attacked all the way from Guangxi to Nanjing!

A few months ago, they actually captured Nanjing, a city that even Koxinga had failed to capture. Afterwards, they continued to march south and north of the Yangtze River. It seemed that the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was about to divide the Yangtze River, no, the Huai River, by the Qing Dynasty.

Due to the chaos in Jiangnan, the silk, porcelain, tea and ironware exported to Japan were naturally less than in previous years, so "Commissioner Zheng" took less, while the Nagasaki magistrate Mizuno Tadatsugu above "Commissioner Zheng" refused to take less. So two days ago, Zheng Ganfu, his wife's uncle Wu Yongzang and his brother Zheng Jiangfu counted on the abacus beads, and it seemed that Tang Tongshi would suffer a loss this year!

And next year, the outlook is even less optimistic.

Because this summer, the "black ships" of American barbarians broke back into Edo Bay and demanded that the Tokugawa Shogunate open the port for trade!
If this port is opened, Japan will be able to trade everywhere, and the number of merchants coming to the Qing Dynasty will definitely decrease. Where will the Nagasaki Tang Tongshi get the money then?
In addition, the shogunate was very hostile to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom - because the shogunate had always been hostile to Catholics, and an important reason why the Tokugawa shogunate closed the country to the outside world was to prevent foreigners from spreading Catholicism.

It is said that the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom also worshipped God, or that God sent his son down from the sky to establish the country. If they had taken over China, wouldn't they have gone on to preach in Japan?

So there are rumors in Nagasaki that the shogunate is going to ban Taiping Heavenly Kingdom merchants from trading in Hong Kong.
In short, it is becoming increasingly difficult to be a Tang interpreter in Nagasaki!

When Zheng Ganfu was thinking deeply, a burly man dressed as a warrior beside him suddenly exclaimed "Huh".

Zheng Ganfu looked back at the man and said, "Wu Sang, what did you find?"

This "Wu Sang" is the same as Zheng Ganfu's "Zheng Sang", both of them are Chinese in Japan, and their ancestral home is in southern Fujian. His ancestors did business in Nagasaki in the late Ming Dynasty, and they have been doing business for two or three hundred years, becoming a "trade immortal". However, he always felt that the world in Japan was not very stable, so two years ago he worshipped a samurai from the Hizen domain as his godfather and obtained the status of a samurai. Wu Yongzang Wu Sang pointed to the "Holy Angel" and said: "Zheng Sang, look, the Tang ship entering the port today is a steam paddle steamer, which is very rare!"

Zheng Ganfu looked up and frowned, saying, "Wu Sang, although the Qing Dynasty has been in chaos in recent years, their progress is also obvious! I heard that General Luo Xueyan in Shanghai has set up a new army, implemented new policies, and made great efforts to make Shanghai and the surrounding counties look brand new! This steam Tang ship might have been sent by Lord Luo Xueyan!"

"Yoshi!" Wu Yongzang nodded slightly and said expectantly, "I wonder if Japan will be the same as the Qing Dynasty. No!"

"What's wrong again?"

"Zheng Sang, what do you see embroidered on the yellow flag hoisted on that Tang ship?"

Zheng Ganfu took a closer look and was immediately shocked: "Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. Baga, this is the Tang ship of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom!"

Just as Zheng Sang and Wu Sang were horrified, the sailors on the Holy Angel had already dropped anchor and lowered the gangplank. Hong Daquan and James Goff had already changed into the official uniforms of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

One of them is a special envoy of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and the other is the captain of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's Wu Wang Mansion. Both are regular officials of the Heavenly Kingdom!
They immediately got off the boat one after another, followed by a group of Taiping Heavenly Kingdom soldiers carrying foreign rifles!
Zheng Ganfu and Wu Yongzang on the shore were stunned.

This dress is obviously not from the Qing Dynasty! And there is a foreigner. How come there are foreigners in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom?

However, the two of them quickly stepped forward, bowed to Hong Daquan and Gao Fu, and began to speak fluent Chinese.

"You are not Qing Dynasty merchants, so what kind of work do you do?"

"You need a letter plate from the magistrate's office to enter Nagasaki Harbor. Do you have one?"

Hong Daquan clasped his fists towards the two Japanese Chinese with great momentum and said, "I am the Minister of Rites of the Wu Wangfu of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Hong Daquan, and the special plenipotentiary ambassador. I am here by the order of the Heavenly King, and I have something important to tell the Japanese Shogun. You should report it to the local officials in Nagasaki as soon as possible!"

"Yours, yours are officials from the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom? We have no diplomatic relations with the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom." Zheng Ganfu did not dare to receive officials from China casually - Japan would not receive them whether they were from the Qing Dynasty or the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

Because Japan has not yet been founded!
"Hey, I've already said that there is something important that needs to be reported to the Japanese Shogun!" Hong Daquan said solemnly, "This matter concerns the survival of Japan and the fate of the Tokugawa family. If it is delayed, you, a small official, will not be able to bear the consequences!"

What? Japan's survival? The fate of the Tokugawa family?

Zheng Ganfu and Wu Yongzang were both shocked.

This matter might cause me to have to commit seppuku, which would be very painful!
But if they report this to Mizuno Tadatsune, he might also have to commit seppuku. Many officials of the Nagasaki Bugyosho accidentally cut their stomachs when dealing with foreign negotiations!

"Sir," Wu Yongzang asked with a bitter face, "can you tell me what happened?"

"Of course!" Hong Daquan said, "The Qing demons have formed a four-nation alliance with Britain, the United States, and France, and are preparing to send troops together to pressure the Tokugawa shogunate to open up and sell out the country. Isn't this a major event related to the survival of Japan and the Tokugawa family?"

(End of this chapter)