Ming East India Company

As the sun set, Tokugawa Ieyasu returned to his residence in Kyoto, where his heir, Tokugawa Hidetada, came over and personally helped him change his clothes and boots.

"Father, it has been three days since you went to the Taige Palace a few days ago and you haven't returned home. Everyone in the family is worried that Lord Taige is going to harm you."

Tokugawa Ieyasu sneered:

"Taige will not be a disadvantage to me, because Taige no longer exists."

"No Taige?"

"That's right, Taige passed away yesterday, right before my eyes."

Tokugawa Ieyasu's words were unusually calm, but to Tokugawa Hidetada, they were like a thunderbolt.

"So, who will succeed her as Empress Dowager next...?"

"It doesn't matter who inherits," Tokugawa Ieyasu said in a very calm tone.

"You shall return to Edo immediately and organize your retainers to actively prepare for war and provisions in case of unforeseen circumstances."

Also, immediately inform our allies in Okinawa that the main force stationed in Korea is about to return, and prepare to intercept them.

Tokugawa Hidetada:

"But will the Ryukyuans listen to us? We've only had normal trade relations with them all these years; persuading them to do our work for us will be quite difficult!"

Tokugawa Ieyasu's eyes were filled with a confident, all-encompassing air.

"Don't worry, they will."

……

On Ryukyu Island, Kuroshimazu was enjoying wine given to him by the Ryukyuans while eating small yellow croaker.

This Western drink tasted so-so at first, but after drinking it many times, it became increasingly addictive. Nowadays, Heishan has long forgotten what the rice wine from his hometown tastes like.

Since Ryukyu began trading with the Tokugawa family in the Kanto region, Kuroshimazu became Tokugawa's special envoy, residing in Ryukyu to handle trade-related issues.

During this period, Hakuno on Ryukyu Island treated him very "favorably," frequently sending him various gifts and ensuring he was always included in banquets and ceremonies.

With the addition of Western gadgets he occasionally bought from the market, Kuroshimazu had long since become "forgetful of home".

Until Tokugawa Ieyasu's messenger arrived.

"Lord Kuroshima, this is a secret letter from the General."

After reading the letter, Kuroshimazu immediately sensed something was wrong. The letter asked him to act as Tokugawa Ieyasu's special envoy and persuade Ryukyu to send troops to intercept the Japanese troops returning from Korea.

During his years on Ryukyu Island, he has come to deeply appreciate the prestige and status of Hakuno, the de facto master of Ryukyu.

Trying to get anything out of him is nothing short of a pipe dream.

Kuroshimazu could only nervously present his official letter to Hakuno...

Kuroshimazu followed the guards leading the way, ascending the palace steps one by one. Ever since Hakuno seized power in Ryukyu, the Ryukyu Royal Palace had effectively become Hakuno's residence, and the outer palace had been habitually abandoned. The inner palace had become Hakuno's private property.

With each step, Kuroshimazu's legs felt like lead. As soon as he stepped into Shirano's reception room, the long swords held by the guards on both sides made his legs buckle, and he knelt down, his forehead pressed tightly to the ground, not daring to raise his head for a long time.

This scene left everyone present bewildered. According to etiquette, the envoy only needed to bow, so kneeling on the ground and not getting up was utterly absurd.

Bai Ye coughed lightly and said in a gentle voice, "Your Excellency, please rise. There's no need for such formalities."

Kuroshimazu lay prone on the ground, his body trembling like a leaf in the autumn wind, making muffled sounds in his throat, and he dared not raise his head:

"Your humble servant, Kuroshimazu, pays his respects to the master... I beg the master to calm his anger..."

Then, Kuroshimazu tremblingly handed the so-called "letter of state" to Hakuno.

Then Kuroshimazu swallowed hard, trying to recall the words Tokugawa Ieyasu had given him before his departure, and stammered:

"My lord, Tokugawa, has a request for the Ryukyu Kingdom. The Japanese army, formerly under Toyotomi, is retreating from Korea and is about to pass by sea. My lord hopes that Ryukyu can send troops to intercept them..."

After coldly reading the official document, Shirano turned to instruct Kuroshimazu below, and couldn't resist starting to tease the timid samurai:

"What will you do if I don't agree?"

Seeing everyone laugh, Kuroshimazu was so frightened that tears welled up in her eyes, and her voice became increasingly choked with emotion:

"I...I know this is troublesome, but...but my lord is extremely sincere, and the Tokugawa family will surely repay the Ryukyu Kingdom handsomely in the future! If Your Majesty does not agree, I...I will not leave, I will remain in this hall..."

"Hahahaha..." Everyone present burst into laughter, completely amused by the cowardly Kuroshimazu.

Bai Ling, standing to the side, also mocked:

"This guy usually seems like a decent person, but when something really happens, he's even more cowardly than a young lady from a wealthy family."

Seeing this, Shirano stopped teasing Kuroshimazu and got back to the main topic:

"You want us to send troops? Of course, but what will Lord Ieyasu offer in exchange?"

We in Ryukyu have never defaulted on payments in our business dealings with the Kanto region, and we hope that the Kanto region will provide satisfactory compensation this time as well.

Kuroshimazu remembered the secret envoy's instructions when they met before, and quickly agreed:

"If this matter succeeds, Lord Ieyasu is willing to request the current Taiko to grant Ryukyu a fiefdom of one million koku of land."

Upon hearing this, Shiro chuckled:

"The entire territory of Shikoku Island only has a little over two million koku of land. Are you taking out so much all at once? Do you think I'm a three-year-old?"

Kuroshimazu hurriedly kowtowed and bowed repeatedly:

"This is absolutely true. It was said by Tokugawa Hidetada's secret envoy himself, and there is no falsehood in it."

Tokugawa Hidetada once again fell into his trap of being overconfident. Although Tokugawa Ieyasu had instructed him not to make promises lightly, he still felt it was inconvenient to sway the Ryukyu people, so he specifically instructed Kuroshimazu to promise to divide one million koku of land in Shikoku.

Shirono smiled and nodded:

"Your Excellency need not be alarmed. Our Ryukyu Kingdom is willing to grant Lord Tokugawa's request to send troops to intercept the routed Toyotomi army."

Upon hearing this, Sanlang was first stunned, then his eyes widened in disbelief. He stared blankly at the king, unable to react for a long time, until an attendant gently tugged at his sleeve. Only then did he snap out of his daze, kneeling down again with a thud, kowtowing repeatedly, his voice filled with ecstatic joy: "Thank you, Your Majesty! Your Majesty's great kindness is something I will never forget! I, I finally don't have to go back to be punished!"

Baiye laughed again:

"Since that's the case, let's sign an alliance! It'll be in black and white, and there'll be no going back on it."

Kuroshimazu felt like he had been granted a pardon and quickly and eagerly signed his name on the contract.

This was the second treaty after Shirano took control of Ryukyu. The gist of it was that Ryukyu would send troops to intercept Japanese troops returning from Korea, while the Kwantung side agreed to cede a million koku of land on Shikoku Island to the Ryukyuans.

At the same time, Kuroshima also stated in the contract that he was willing to grant the Haku family special commercial benefits, exempting all goods from Ryukyu to the East from any taxes, and promising to close Nagasaki and only conduct foreign trade in Edo...