The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 546 Is This Worth Risking Your Life?

When Hisayoshi Kabayama entered the Zoshikan, his heart sank.

Because in the messy Zoshikan, the dozens of Satsuma warriors who were gathered around did not draw their swords, but listened very seriously to what the Tang envoy was saying.

This is a big problem, because the Shimazu family has supported these people and their ancestors, and the two sides have had a monarch-subject relationship for hundreds of years, which is quite solid.

In Hisayoshi Kabayama's opinion, no matter what happened, when someone had already reached the Zoshikan in Tsurumaru Castle to cause destruction, the samurai should have killed that person immediately.

but.

"According to the Great Emperor, the world today has entered the Second Warring States Period, and this time the Warring States Period is not the Seven Kingdoms of Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao, Wei, and Qin in the Central Plains.

Of course, it is not the Japanese Warring States Period of the Sixth Heaven Demon King Nobunaga of Fusang, the monkey Hideyoshi, and the old turtle Tokugawa. "

When the warriors heard this, they burst into knowing laughter.

Of course, this is not laughing at Oda Nobunaga, or even at the monkey Hideyoshi, but at Tokugawa Ieyasu being a turtle.

In Satsuma Domain, cursing the shogunate always resonated the most.

“Since times have changed, the old concepts also need to change.

In the past, our Eastern world was the whole world, so naturally whoever won in the East would win the world.

But at this time, those Tethysian barbarians who looked like monsters and beasts had caught up with us and even surpassed us in many aspects.

At this time, the competition has shifted from competition within the Eastern world to competition between the East and the West.

In the past, Japan could live its own life behind closed doors because the Great Emperor of the Central Plains, the lord of the East, did not have much ambition towards Japan.

But now, I believe you all have seen it clearly. Even if Japan is an unconquered country in the Eastern world, the Western devils will not care so much.

I don't need to say much about their ambitions for the whole of Japan, because they have put them into practice many times over the past hundred years.

The reason why there haven't been so many invasions in recent years is because of the protection of the Eastern Emperor, and the Taixi barbarians dare not act so recklessly."

When Hisayoshi Kabayama heard this, he almost fell to the ground. The person who came was much more capable than he had imagined.

Instead of directly speaking from the Confucian perspective, he packaged it a little bit, divided the world into the East and the West, and pushed the emperor of the Central Plains Tang Dynasty towards the position of the great emperor of the Eastern world.

And it does sound reasonable, even a bit natural.

"Your Excellency Angel is still being lenient with your words. The reason why the Kingdom of the Rising Sun has become an unconquered country in the Eastern World is actually because of its poverty.

They are so poor that there is no need to launch a conquest, and even if they were conquered, the proceeds would not even cover the military expenses."

Zheng Jinshui looked up in surprise. He had been talking for so long just to find a collaborator from the Satsuma domain who would come forward on his own initiative and had certain abilities.

"Who is coming? He is a straightforward person and does not shy away from seeing a doctor." Zheng Jinshui immediately shouted at the young man who was quite tall, well, at least taller than his shoulders.

"My name is Shimazu Tadamichi, and I am the lord of the Satsuma Domain, the outer lord of the Dohara Domain, and the fifth rank lower lord of Awaji, Shimazu Uji's Hisahara. I am your father."

Shimazu Tadamichi answered loudly, and Zheng Jinshui nodded with satisfaction. Before he came to Kagoshima, he naturally had some knowledge of the Shimazu family and the Satsuma domain.

The Sadowara Domain, with only 27,000 koku, which was equivalent to the output of less than 20,000 acres of fertile land, was a small domain that was too small to rely on, but it was still very suitable for using to pry open the Shimazu family and the Satsuma Domain.

Zheng Jinshui immediately laughed loudly and said, “The gentleman is very frank, and this is also one of the real important reasons.

The great emperor of the Middle-earth was rich and his territory was as large as a hundred times that of Japan.

Even the North River, the Mingxiang River (Mekong River), the Tang River (Chao Phraya River), and the Irrawaddy River in Southeast Asia are far richer than Japan, not to mention the good land in the Central Plains.

As he spoke, Zheng Jinshui looked at Shimazu Tadamichi meaningfully and said something even more meaningful.

"With so many rich and prosperous lands, they naturally wouldn't think of attacking Japan. In fact, because the territory is too large, there is a great lack of talented people to defend it.

I think that if someone could gain the favor of the great emperor, even if the reward was equivalent to the Satsuma Domain's stone high, it would only be a vassal earl in the Middle Earth, which is not difficult to obtain."

When Shimazu Tadamichi heard this, his eyes turned red.

The Sadowa clan was too poor. Shimazu Tadamichi estimated that if this continued, by the time he succeeded to the throne, he would not even be able to afford pickled green plums to eat with his meals.

Not to mention getting a Satsuma domain with nearly one million stones, even going to the Central Plains to become a county magistrate, or going to Southeast Asia to become a manor owner would be fine.

"Since the Great Emperor despises the land of Japan, why do you Tang people attach so much importance to Tsurumaru Castle in Kagoshima?"

Shimazu Tadamichi continued, "Do you think he's questioning or trying to embarrass me?" No, he's just delivering a message.

Zheng Jinshui was even more satisfied. He said loudly, "Of course it's because there are so many patriots here who care about their country and their people. Gold, drums, and fine food are not expensive. The only thing that is valuable in this world is talent!"

When the surrounding warriors heard these words, even though they were starving and had no place to display the skills they had learned for more than ten years, they couldn't help but straighten their backs, and their faces glowed with excitement and pride.

It's over, it's over!
When Kabayama Hisayoshi saw this situation, he realized that every point accurately reflected the needs of the Satsuma samurai. If he allowed this guy to continue inciting them, people like Shimazu Tadamichi, and even the samurai of the Jinshiroku faction around him, would definitely rebel.

"Since you know that the Satsuma samurai are patriots who care about their country and their people, and that they are loyal to their emperor, how dare you come to Tsurumaru Castle and act recklessly?

Do you think that the warriors of Satsuma would become the treacherous ministers who kneel before you Chinese and betray our country?"

After hearing this, Zheng Jinshui pretended to be surprised. He looked at the old dwarf who asked the question, and his tone was full of surprise.

"Who said I came here to make the Samurai into treacherous ministers and villains?"

Hisayoshi Kabayama was also stunned for a moment, and then he became furious. You almost said it clearly, do you think I'm a fool and can't hear it?
However, he also knew the seriousness of the matter, so he suppressed his anger and asked gloomily, "What is the purpose of that envoy? Is he here specifically to blow up the Satsuma Domain Zojikan?"

Zheng Jinshui suppressed all the expressions on his face and said seriously, "Please take me to see your lord, for I am here to declare war." He raised his voice deliberately, "The Satsuma clan took advantage of the Korean War to launch a surprise attack on the Ryukyu Kingdom, a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty. They captured the Ryukyu royal family and killed 36 Chinese surnames from Fujian.

This not only offended the Ming Dynasty and the majesty of the emperor represented by the Ming Dynasty, but also did not have the permission of the shogunate at the time. It was the result of local forces and the unauthorized provocation of the ministers.

Although the Ming Dynasty did not send troops to punish you in the past, it does not mean that the crime is gone. Therefore, this envoy has come to inform your lord and his subordinates.

Next year, when the trade winds rise, the Great Emperor's heavenly troops will recapture the Ryukyu Kingdom and punish Kagoshima."

"Ah!" The warriors present were stunned by the explosive news.

Some people were indeed complacent just now, thinking that the Great Emperor of Dayu might really think they were talented and wanted to recruit them.

But now I know that they didn't mean that at all. They looked down on people like them and they came to hold them accountable.

This feeling of suddenly falling from heaven to hell makes most people extremely uncomfortable, and many people cannot even accept this change for a moment.

Zheng Jinshui smiled in his heart, this was exactly the effect he wanted, to pick him up first, then throw him to the ground, then beat him severely, and finally give him a little hope by allowing him to eat some leftovers.

This is the only way to train a dog, and it works on any group of people.

Karayama Hisayoshi was completely dumbfounded. He did not expect that the Tang envoy would say that he was here to declare war.

Moreover, he had no room for quibbling, because the Satsuma Domain's swallowing of the Ryukyu Kingdom was indeed problematic.

The Ming Dynasty did not pursue the matter, and the Qing Dynasty turned a blind eye to it, but that does not mean that the fault did not exist.

"Ryukyu originally belonged to Japan. The Ryukyu royal family moved there from Kyushu Island. We, the Satsuma clan, did not attack Ryukyu. Instead, they voluntarily returned to their homeland.

Otherwise, how could they have quietly accepted the rule of the Satsuma Domain for over a hundred years, not only without resistance but also without appealing to the Ming or Qing dynasties?"

Zheng Jinshui laughed heartily, "Everyone knows the truth, there's no need to tell lies that you don't even believe.

I respect the character and talents of the Satsuma samurai, but that is a private matter, and Satsuma's invasion of the Ryukyu Kingdom was for the public good.

Everyone, prepare for battle!"

Zheng Jinshui grasped the timing and rhythm very well. If he had said at the beginning that he was here to declare war, he would have been hacked to death by the Satsuma warriors and would have had no chance to stir up people's hearts.

Now, he first intimidated the Satsuma samurai with the picric acid bomb, then talked about Confucianism and the world order, gained the admiration and even closeness of the Satsuma samurai, and then released the news of declaring war.

This not only prevented the Satsuma warriors from feeling united against a common enemy, but also made them feel heavy in their hearts and think.

Does the Satsuma Domain really need to be an enemy of the Middle-earth Dynasty under such circumstances? Isn't the price a bit too high?
Perhaps some people will place their hopes on the shogunate. After all, the shogunate is the pillar of the military generals and has the responsibility to protect the entire world (Japan).

Of course, there were also people like Shimazu Tadamichi who had just gained a little hope, but it was immediately shattered. He was very depressed. He looked at Zheng Jinshui and said, "Your Excellency Angel, is war inevitable?"

Zheng Jinshui slowly shook his head. "It's difficult, unless the shogunate can admit its mistakes to the Middle-earth, compensate for the losses, withdraw from Ryukyu, and make guarantees. Or the Shimazu family can show up themselves."

Only in this way can the emperor's anger be dispelled, but will the shogunate do this for Satsuma? If Satsuma does this on its own, will the shogunate spare Satsuma?

This rhetorical question made the entire Satsuma clan sad and angry. Yes, apart from exploiting the Satsuma clan, the shogunate would never think of anything else about the Satsuma clan.

"My lords, prepare for battle. As the ruler of the land, I, Zheng, receive an annual salary of 100,000 dan (approximately 1,000 dan) from the Great Emperor, so naturally I must serve him.

Since you receive salaries from the Tokugawa Shogun and the Shimazu family, you naturally owe them your loyalty."

Mist grass!

It would have been fine if you hadn't said this, but as soon as you said it, the warriors felt like their lives were over.

The Tang envoy across from us, an official’s salary is equivalent to that of a mid-level daimyo, but what about them?

He didn't get a single grain of rice from the shogunate, and the Satsuma domain didn't give him much either.

It's so sad. The worst-off one among them is Yamamoto Gorozaemon, who is about to cry. His salary is only a pitiful 36 stones.

During the Edo period, one stone in Japan was equivalent to about 220 jin in later generations. Thirty-six stones was equivalent to 7920 jin, which was about 21 jin a day.

This seems like a lot of food, but the Satsuma domain at that time, or a large number of domains, had one thing in common, which was that they could not afford to support too many officials.

Therefore, the salary for a large number of warriors was actually to give them a piece of land, and for larger ones, to give them a village, and let them collect the crops themselves.

Among them, Satsuma Domain was the most typical. A large number of Satsuma samurai did not actually live in Kagoshima Castle, but lived in the countryside, guarding the area for the Shimazu family.

Therefore, Yamamoto Gorozaemon's salary of 36 stones was not given to him, but produced.

According to the Taiko land survey's tradition of four public officials and six private citizens, he only received about fourteen and a half public officials out of the thirty-six public officials, which means only 3168 kilograms a year.

Then there is the brown rice mixed with a lot of bran. In the end, we only got about 2700 kilograms, which is a little more than kilograms a day.

Eating is enough.

But how could a samurai have only the option of eating? Clothes, weapons, outings and gatherings, recruitment training, etc. all require money.

In fact, even if you only eat it, you can't force yourself to have carbohydrates. Don't add other diesel, salt, sauce, vinegar or tea.

Therefore, Yamamoto Gorozaemon's income was barely enough for him to use alone. In order to keep his family alive, he often needed his wife and children to secretly go to the beach to catch shrimps, crabs and shells.

This is not the life of a warrior at all. Is this kind of life worth risking your life for?
He can't be allowed to speak anymore. This was the only thought in Hisayoshi Kabayama's mind, and he roared.

"Leaders, please invite the Tang envoy into the inner palace to meet the feudal lord!"

(End of this chapter)