Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 284 We are speaking for you!

"Is the road from Hangzhou to Yingtian easy to travel?"

After seeing Zheng Zhilong paying his respects, His Majesty neither let him stand up nor showed any special cordiality. He just asked a question in a faint tone and then turned his attention back to the memorial in his hand, as if the person he was meeting this time was not some "King of Fujian", and it was no different from meeting an ordinary minister.

Regarding this, not only Zhou Quan, who had been serving Zhu Cilang, felt a little surprised, but even Xu Yinjue, who had never been very sensitive to these things, noticed that something was wrong.

"Your Majesty, I took the Grand Canal. All the boats I met along the way were in good order and the waterway was quite smooth. It can be said that the journey was smooth."

After hearing His Majesty's question, Zheng Zhilong answered directly without thinking too much. After he finished speaking, Zhu Cilang put the question book back on the table, looked deeply at Zheng Zhilong who was lying on the ground, and then asked again.

"If everything went smoothly, why did it take you nearly a month to reach Yingtian?"

When this question was asked, Zheng Zhilong's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

According to common sense, although Your Majesty is in Yingtian, he must have known about the "inadaptability to local climate and water" through various channels, and he can probably think of the real root cause of this "inadaptability to local climate and water".

Under such circumstances, Your Majesty could either take this as true and falsely express your concern for him as a provincial governor; or simply skip this matter and pretend not to be aware of his delay in Hangzhou.

This is not because Zheng Zhilong is arrogant. After all, although Fujian is surrounded by Zhejiang, Jiangxi and Guangdong, the imperial court has not yet really penetrated into it. If Your Majesty does not want to tear your face with Fujian when the foreign enemies have not been pacified, then there are actually only two paths you can choose.

What's more, he has been very humble since he set foot on the land of Jiangnan, which can be regarded as giving face to the court.

No matter how you think about it, the central government of the imperial court would not ignore the overall situation and fall out with the Zheng family for such a "small matter".

As I said, if you don’t weigh it, you won’t be able to weigh even three ounces, but if you weigh it, you will feel like you can’t even weigh a thousand pounds.

If everyone tacitly ignored this matter, then the harmony between the monarch and his subjects could be maintained. However, if this matter was exposed, Zheng Zhilong, who had two minds, would certainly be doomed, and Fujian, which had been stable, would definitely be in trouble.

With such considerations in mind, Zheng Zhilong naturally would not think that his delay in Hangzhou would have any impact on his meeting with the emperor this time, so when Zhu Cilang unexpectedly asked this question, he naturally couldn't help but tremble in his heart.

"Your Majesty, it may be because of my age that I am not used to the climate in Hangzhou, which is why I have been delayed for so long."

"Oh? Don't you want to wait and see?"

It broke! He actually broke it!

Could it be that the use of troops against Jiangxi was fake, and the court's real target was Fujian? !
After hearing Zhu Cilang's question, Zheng Zhilong felt his body go limp, but his thoughts did not stop at all.

But he really couldn't understand, is His Majesty really not afraid of unrest in Fujian?
"Your Majesty! I missed my trip because I was not used to the local climate. I was definitely not waiting and watching!"

"Be flat."

Facing Zheng Zhilong's appeal, Zhu Cilang did not respond directly. After asking him to stand up, he just frowned and stared blankly.

Just as everyone thought, he planned to deal with Zheng Zhilong in the usual way, but for some reason, the idea of ​​keeping Zheng Zhilong in Yingtian appeared in his mind again and again last night.

Indeed, under the pressure of the general trend, Zheng Zhilong had to go to Yingtian in person. As long as the Ming Dynasty under his control continued to develop according to the current situation, it would only take seven or eight years at most, and the court's control over Fujian would be the same as it is now over Jiangnan.

But he didn't want to wait, no matter how long it took. If he really waited until all the problems south of the Yangtze River were resolved, the Tartars would surely gain a foothold in the north of the Yangtze River.

Who knows if I will still have the energy to recover the Central Plains by then? Who knows if I will still be as wise as I am now?
He thought clearly that people's ambitions can only last for a few years. As they grow older, they will instinctively seek stability and will never be as motivated as when they were young.

Moreover, if one stays in such a high position as emperor for too long, he will become more and more conceited and stubborn.

Now he can still behave like a wise ruler because he knows the direction of history, but if that long lasts, his advantages will inevitably be gradually lost.

By then, how could he, an ordinary person with no talent, lead such a huge empire to glory?
"Give me a reason not to kill you."

As his mind turned, Zhu Cilang's determination to speed up the resolution of internal problems gradually became firm. Just when General Zheng Zhilong, who was still lying on the ground, just stood up straight, his murderous words reached the ears of everyone in the warm room.

"Your Majesty! I am wronged!"

"His Majesty!"

As the saying goes, when the emperor is angry, millions of corpses will be buried.

The current Zhu Cilang is no longer the "fake prince" imprisoned in the Ministry of War's prison. His power has become known to everyone through the more than a dozen large families in Jiangnan that were wiped out overnight.

Under such circumstances, his words not only made Zheng Zhilong, who had just stood up, kneel back on the ground, but also made Xu Yinjue, who had remained silent from beginning to end, call out.

In his impression, although Zhu Cilang is not very old, his style of doing things is calm and sophisticated.

But in this situation, there is obviously no need to tear each other apart with the Zheng family, but His Majesty still asked such a question with murderous intent. How could he not cry out in surprise?
"I really don't want to get entangled with you. The Tartars need to be dealt with as soon as possible, Xi."

"Your Majesty! I have a navy here! I can help you deal with all matters at sea!"

It can be said that this man's desire to survive was quite strong. Just when Zhu Cilang was still expressing his thoughts somewhat tiredly, Zheng Zhilong suddenly said this, as if as long as His Majesty finished that sentence, his head would fall to the ground immediately.

"Does the Zheng family still have this ability?" "Yes! Your Majesty! My Zheng family still has hundreds of warships. Even if we can't defeat the Westerners, we can still make them feel wary!"

Although there is no record in historical materials, we can still understand it through various clues.

The Ming Dynasty's foreign trade was divided into three routes: East Asia, South Asia, and West Asia.

The East refers naturally to the Wa people. Earlier, they were in the so-called Warring States Period. In order to expand their own strength, various daimyo vied with each other to trade with the Ming Dynasty.

During that period, the trade between the two sides was prosperous. In order to compete for the qualification to trade with the Ming Dynasty, the "Ningbo tribute dispute" incident occurred.

But now, the Tokugawa shogunate issued the "Seclusion Order" to prohibit Japanese merchants from trading with foreign countries. Even though the Zheng family can still send some merchant ships every year based on their relations in Japan, the quantity and types of goods are strictly controlled by the Tokugawa shogunate, and the trade volume is naturally incomparable to before.

The rest are Southeast Asia and the West.

Needless to say, ever since the Ming Dynasty banned voyages to the West, the trade routes to the West have been monopolized by the French and the Dutch. By the end of the Ming Dynasty, not only had the Ming Dynasty's profits from this trade been greatly reduced, but even the Zheng family, who made their living by sea, had found it difficult to intervene.

As for the South Seas.
Just from the literal understanding, many people would think that the Nanyang trade is only worthwhile in South Asia and Southeast Asia, but these places were basically still in the uncivilized stage at that time, so this trade route was dispensable.

But in fact, the vast amount of silver of the Ming Dynasty came from here.

At this time, the colonies occupied by the Franks in Southeast Asia were not directly managed by the mainland, but were under the jurisdiction of the Governor of the South American colonies.

When Ming Dynasty's goods arrived in Southeast Asia, some luxury goods would go to Europe, but goods such as cotton cloth that could actually be exchanged for a large amount of silver went directly to South America after some twists and turns.

Of course, no matter how much profit there is, the Western trade routes and the South American trade routes can bring a large amount of precious metals to the Ming Dynasty. However, since the Dutch and the Franks began to fight for hegemony, the war spread all over the world with their colonial expansion.

Specifically, in the areas surrounding the Ming Dynasty, there were constant frictions between the two sides as they competed for trade with the Ming Dynasty. Although no large-scale battles occurred here, the Zheng family's sphere of influence at sea was greatly reduced under such pressure.

Up to now, they can only survive by relying on trade with Xiao Ri Zi, which is why the Zheng family is eager to be recruited by the declining Ming Dynasty.

With such an understanding, the threat and value of the Zheng family in Zhu Cilang's eyes would naturally be greatly reduced, until it was reduced to such an extent that he felt that there would not be much backlash if he took direct action against them.

"Lord Annan, do you want me to directly clarify the situation of the Zheng family at sea?"

After he finished speaking, the last card in Zheng Zhilong's hand was of little use. When he saw Zhu Cilang's expressionless face, he was not only filled with despair, but also with deep regret for his indecisiveness.

If Ruan Dacheng had not been attacked and killed, I probably would not have been so cautious. If I had not been so cautious, I probably would not have ended up in this situation.

But how could he be so reckless?
Aren’t you afraid that after I die, the Zheng family will rebel?
Yes, local forces in Fujian such as Huang Daozhou have already surrendered to the imperial court. Taiwan has been taken away by the red-haired people, and my Zheng family is like a rootless duckweed.

Considering both factors, even if my family is willing to avenge me, there is no way I can get the attention of the imperial court other than struggling to my death on land.

Thinking of this, Zheng Zhilong felt even more desperate. But just when he thought he could not escape this disaster, an idea suddenly appeared in his mind. He then knelt down and took a few steps. When he was seven or eight steps away from Zhu Cilang, he kowtowed and begged for help.

"Your Majesty, please understand! Your Majesty, please understand! I came to see you this time to ask for a central position so that I can live with you in my old age. With this in mind, how could I have any second thoughts?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Zheng Zhilong's intention to give up his military power in order to find a way out was immediately revealed. When the people around him heard this, Zhu Cilang was a little surprised but managed to remain calm on his face. However, Xu Yinjue was really shocked by Zheng Zhilong's decisiveness.

Although it takes a long time to say, it only took seven or eight breaths from the time Zhu Cilang uttered those murderous words to the time Zheng Zhilong voluntarily gave up his military power.

But within just seven or eight breaths, the situation changed again and again. How could someone like Xu Yinjue, who was quite lacking in improvisation, not be frightened?
Although he was shocked, how could a man who had been a subject for half his life not know what he should do now?
"Your Majesty! Although the Earl of Annan made some mistakes and had a wait-and-see attitude earlier, his son Zheng Sen understood the righteousness of the cause. It is said that he even rushed back to Fujian day and night, just to make his father devote himself to the country and not have any other thoughts!"

Honestly speaking, Xu Yinjue's excuse was rather abrupt. Not only was Zheng Zhilong quite frightened, but even Zhu Cilang felt that the reason was not sufficient.

just
What can he do given the situation?
If Zheng Zhilong was really a tough guy who was determined to maintain his small kingdom even if it meant risking his life, then he would naturally want to see whether the fish had the ability to tear his net. However, the other party had already surrendered, and the situation became completely different.

Under such circumstances, how could he not re-weigh the pros and cons in his mind?

"Your Majesty, what the Duke said is true. My eldest son returned to Fujian when you went south to Huguang. After being taught a lesson by him, I have realized my previous mistakes. This time I came to see Your Majesty to apologize in person!"

When he saw a flash of hesitation on Zhu Cilang's face, Zheng Zhilong knew that his words had already made the emperor somewhat moved. However, no matter how he hesitated, the final decision had not been made. How could he not follow up on Xu Yinjue's words and add some strength?
"Is it Zheng Damu?"

"Your Majesty, it is Zheng Damu. The name Damu was given by Lord Qian."

Xu Yinjue was not very good at political struggles after all. When Zhu Cilang asked another question, he told him the origin of the word Damu in Zheng Damu. But who would have thought that this simple sentence not only made Zhu Cilang frown slightly, but also made Zheng Zhilong hurriedly explain.

"Your Majesty, I wanted my descendants to get rid of the reputation of pirates, so I spent some money to let my eldest son live in the home of Lord Qian for a year. The word "Da Mu" can be considered as something I bought with money."

Ok?
What does it mean?
We are pleading for you, why are you so eager to sever your relationship with Lord Qian?

Seeing that Zheng Zhilong seemed to disagree with what he said, Xu Yinjue immediately had a lot of questions in his mind. However, based on his ability in political struggle, if no one else could answer his questions, these questions would probably remain in his mind for the rest of his life.

"Draft an imperial decree to promote Zheng Zhilong to the rank of Marquis of Annan and transfer him to the position of Minister of Military Affairs, to assist Shen Tingyang in the construction of warships; promote Zheng Sen to the position of Deputy Governor of the Front Army Governor's Office, to act in charge of Fujian's coastal defense."

(End of this chapter)