Wanli 1592

Chapter 399 History is always strikingly similar

Chinese cuisine is one of the three major cuisines in the world, but Chinese cuisine with such a reputation has a very embarrassing position in the world today, a feeling of being despised by Western food, a feeling that eating nothing is as high as Western food I feel that this is directly related to the fact that Chinese food was gradually known to the world after 1840. The country’s weakness and backwardness not only discriminated against Chinese people, but Chinese food also suffered in the world. It has the name of one of the three major cuisines in the world, but it does not have the corresponding status.

But if at this very moment, during the Ming Dynasty, Chinese food began to spread in Europe, would the development of Chinese food be different from that in history?
Xiao Ruxun didn't dare to speculate at first, but Chen Longzheng told him that Chinese food has become something sought after by the high society in many European countries.

After the Governor of Genoa ate the first Chinese meal in his life, he couldn’t forget the gourmet products combining firework and knife work. The representatives of Western-style meals are French and Italian dishes. As for the United Kingdom, it is the hometown of dark cuisine. The well-known food quarantine area seems to have no connection with food by nature, where athletes have to bring their own chefs to compete...

French cuisine is famous for its small quantity, exquisiteness, and rich dishes. French cuisine is a representative meal of Western food, but at this moment, French cuisine has no future reputation. At this moment, France is implicated in Spain's war against Britain. Among them, my own life is not easy, let alone the development of French cuisine that will be called a work of art in the future, but at this moment in Europe, it is the time when Italian cuisine shines. Success is inseparable from the integration of classic Italian dishes.

Italian cuisine is inherited from Roman cuisine. Roman cuisine is known as the ancestor of Western cuisine. It also has a long history. At this moment, it has matured due to the prosperity of cities such as Venice and Florence. It is different from French cuisine that is struggling on the edge of dark cuisine. , Italian cuisine at this moment is very distinctive, such as pizza in the civilized world.

After eating the delicious Chinese food, the Governor of Genoa and Chen Longzheng talked enthusiastically about the Chinese cuisine. When he learned that what he ate was only one of the simplest and easiest dishes in Chinese food, he was deeply depressed. ——The color, aroma and taste of Chinese food are really outstanding, surpassing most of the western dishes at this time.

Thinking that he is the governor of a country, but he was overwhelmed by a few simple Chinese dishes. This is really a shameful thing. The food in his impression is meat cooked with spices. This is the most precious food. , in addition to a few Italian dishes, and when Matteo Ricci explained to him that the Chinese eating habits are mainly cooked food and rarely eat raw food, he thought of an important way to save face.

He recommended pizza to Chen Longzheng.

"This... is called pizza, right?"

Chen Long was looking at the round pancake-like food with many strange fillings in the disc on the table, and asked Matteo Ricci.

Of course Matteo Ricci had eaten pizza, looked at the governor of Genoa with a worried face, and explained: "This is a kind of food in my hometown, it is called pizza, to be precise, it is different from the scallion pancake I ate in China. It’s a bit similar, so there are also legends that this pizza was made when Marco Polo traveled to China. He ate Chinese scallion pancakes. After returning home, he wanted to eat it. He hired a chef to make it. , but it's also quite tasty, you can taste it, it's perfectly cooked."

Looking at the steaming and fragrant pizza, Chen Long nodded and said, "It smells delicious. I've been tossed miserably by your half-baked things these days. Let me taste it first."

So Chen Long was just following Matteo Ricci's instruction, holding a piece of pizza in his hand and bringing it to his mouth. After hesitating for a moment, he opened his mouth to bite a piece and began to chew, then his eyes lit up.

"Mr. Li, don't tell me, it's really delicious. It's not bad. It's very different from my Daming's pies and scallion pancakes. This taste is quite strong and delicious! It's delicious! It's even better than the meat here. !Um!"

Seeing that Chen Long was eating happily, the Governor of Genoa was very happy, and quickly asked Matteo Ricci if Chen Long thought this food was delicious. Matteo Ricci replied that it was, and the Governor was very happy that he found To save face, it just so happened that the two chefs came in from the outside at this time and brought a few dishes over.

"Mr. Chen, Mr. Li, why are you eating it? Our brothers have cooked some side dishes for you, try it!"

Chen Longzheng and Matteo Ricci were very surprised when they saw the "small dishes" in the plate with all kinds of color and fragrance.

"Where did it come from?"

Chen Longzheng asked.

The cook replied with a smile: "Although there is no seasoning here, there are still ingredients. We have a pot, a spoon, and a kitchen knife to make dishes. There is also oil and salt here. Get some ingredients to cook." Simple dishes are okay, but there is no soy sauce, the taste may be a little bit worse, and braised dishes are difficult, but their seasoning sauces can also be used, but I don’t understand why they don’t know how to stir-fry, so they just know how to stew.”

Chen Longzheng smiled.

"There are so many things they don't know, come and come, put it down, and be with me often, Mr. Leigh, you call the governor to come and taste it, this pizza tastes good, ask me if I can bring some to make this Let the cake cooks go back, or ask them to learn and bring them back for Xiao Hou to taste, we can’t just eat it, Xiao Hou doesn’t have to eat it! Don’t you think so?”

Chen Longzheng was quite conscientious and knew to think about Xiao Ruxun.

Matteo Ricci smiled bitterly, and then invited the Governor to enjoy these small dishes together. The Governor was drooling when he smelled the aroma, and immediately became happy when he heard what Matteo Ricci said. As for the chef who can make pizza, he brought it back to him The Chinese general made pizza and enjoyed it, and the governor waved his hand—what a big deal, this is our honor, I will give you ten, take it back!
Then the governor took the chopsticks he had just learned to use and joined this small luncheon. After he went back, he kept showing off that he had eaten the special Chinese food, which aroused more people's yearning, so Under the pressure of the nobles, the governor had no choice but to come to Chen Longzheng with the cheek to ask him to hold a Chinese banquet for the nobles, otherwise he would not be able to do business.

Of course, Chen Longzheng didn't care. He asked the governor to teach the nobles to use chopsticks, and he ordered the cooks to cook some exquisite stir-fry. He conquered the stomachs of those nobles. After that, using chopsticks to eat Chinese food became a favorite of the European nobles. A trend, centered in Genoa, spread to the whole of Europe.

And just as the Chinese cuisine craze was unfolding, the first people from the Holy See arrived in Genoa and asked to meet Chen Longzheng and Matteo Ricci.

The Holy See has a very special historical position in the entire history of Europe. Chinese people don’t know enough about it, and it’s more general, but it’s much easier to explain it in another way. For example, it can be used in Chinese history. Go in, and the contrast is Confucianism.

Confucianism became China's official political ideology during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Emperor Wu of the Han deposed a hundred schools of thought to respect Confucianism, and established a history of Confucianism dominating China's ideological circles for nearly 2000 years. Out of political considerations, Emperor Theodosius I banned all paganism in the Roman Empire and declared Christianity to be the state religion of the Roman Empire.

At that time, the Holy See was still an institution under the Roman emperor. It could preach, but the object of service was the emperor. In order to unify the thoughts of the subjects and facilitate the rule, it was the same as what Emperor Wu of the Han thought. The emperors thought that what they gave , can be taken back in the future, but just as Emperor Wu of the Han did not expect that Emperor Han and Yuan were brainwashed by Confucianism and thus released the shackles around their necks, Theodosius I also did not expect the division of the Eastern and Western Roman Empires and the Western Roman Empire. demise.

The original intention of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to depose a hundred schools of thought was to unify his thinking and establish his own position so as to launch a full-scale counterattack against the Huns. He could not allow ideas different from his to spread in his country. Confucianism perfectly fit his needs. So he chose Confucianism as his ruling tool, and Theodosius I also chose the Christian Church as his ruling tool because of such considerations.

But none of them expected that their chosen instrument of governance would eventually develop into a terrifying behemoth.

The Western Roman Empire perished due to the barbarian invasion. The Holy See is the only light of hope for civilization standing on a piece of wasteland after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. A large number of Roman survivors can only rely on the Holy See to survive. This is an invisible expansion. The prestige and momentum of the Holy See.

Although the Holy See still submitted to the Byzantine Empire during this period, the Byzantine Empire was too far away from Rome to effectively control this ruling tool, which prompted the rapid development of the Holy See into a huge independent political force.

Religion can develop rapidly in war-torn lands, but in the era of peace, the demagoguery of religion has greatly declined. The Holy See seized this opportunity precisely, and in the next few hundred years, enveloped its influence throughout Europe. When it reached its peak, the imperial power of the European monarchs was under its clerical power, and the emperor needed the Pope's recognition. It even launched eight "Crusades".

Almost at the same time, Confucianism in China also reached its peak, and it bloomed with strange brilliance in the Song Dynasty. While pushing the culture and economy to the peak, it also brought the military to the bottom. Europe has the dark middle ages and extravagance and lust China also has the dark Song-Ming Neo-Confucianism and morally corrupt Taoists.

History is always strikingly similar.

The only difference is that Christianity still maintains its status and substantial influence in modern society, and has expanded to the whole world, while Confucianism, which once influenced the entire East Asian cultural circle, is different. Its influence has almost completely disappeared, and it has degenerated back to its original state. It's just a theory, and the root cause is that a strange person has appeared in China that has not appeared for thousands of years.

He not only single-handedly brought China from a right-wing government to an extreme left-wing government, but also completely destroyed the Confucian gentry class that had been passed down for hundreds of years in the Ming and Qing dynasties in China, and brought down the power of the government to the lowest level. The rural units in the country achieved the most straightforward and thorough rule in Chinese history, thus eradicating the influence of Confucianism fundamentally, uprooting it, and there is no possibility of recovery.

This is the only government in China that has not been influenced by the Confucian gentry class since the Han Dynasty, and it is the strongest government in the world, even tougher than Qin. Compared with it, the burning of books and Confucianism by the Qin government is just small noisy.

It does not need to share power with any other class in the country except itself. Landlords and scholar-bureaucrats no longer exist. The only class power maintained by China’s self-born Confucian culture that can resist imperial power or even overhead imperial power has completely disappeared. will be born, because the example of the Ming Dynasty is at hand.

In the whole world, there is only such an example, an example of such a success but at an extremely heavy price, an example of destroying and taming all forces in a country except the government, an example of the most thorough and thorough rule, and other countries also have There are extremely strong hidden dangers that are not available, but whether it is desirable or not, this is at least one way.

Xiao Ruxun found Chen Longzheng alone before Chen Longzheng and Matteo Ricci left, and told him about the Vatican in detail, so when Chen Longzheng knew that the Vatican was coming, he was not ignorant of the purpose of the Vatican He knew that among the things Xiao Ruxun ordered, this was the only thing that Matteo Ricci could not be allowed to participate in the decision-making.

The Holy See came from a cardinal, whose rank was higher than that of Matteo Ricci, but in view of the different status of Matteo Ricci at this moment, and the purpose of the Holy See to spread Christianity in China, this cardinal The bishop treated Matteo Ricci very politely, let alone Chen Longzheng, who was even more polite because Chen Longzheng was not a Christian.

The purpose of his visit is very simple, to inquire about Matteo Ricci's current missionary situation, and to ask Chen Longzheng whether the Chinese general behind him can allow Christians to formally preach in his jurisdiction.

Matteo Ricci had already informed the bishop of Xiao Ruxun's basic situation, and the bishop knew that Xiao Ruxun was actually an aristocratic lord, with a population of more than 100 million under his jurisdiction, and his influence spread over dozens of small countries in Southeast Asia. Tens of millions of people, that is to say, with the support of this Chinese general, at least Christians can formally and unrestrictedly preach in these countries, unlike inland China, where it is not easy to even enter China. simple thing.

The Holy See is quite dissatisfied and eager for the sluggish and difficult-to-develop missionary work in China. China's huge population is necessary for it to enhance its prestige. The declining prestige of the Holy See is eager to restore its status and power before the Crusades. It wants to coerce the entire European continent again, so as to severely suppress those monarchs who put secular power on the Pope's power. For this reason, it urgently needs the support of China.

(End of this chapter)