Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 995 Yongle?

After readily agreeing to sell a batch of goods to the Governor of Goa, the Governor of Goa was very happy and became even more enthusiastic about the diplomatic mission of the Ming Dynasty. Moreover, after the banquet, the Governor of Goa also received several personal gifts from Wang Fuzhi on behalf of the mission, including not only a set of exquisite lacquerware, but also a set of porcelain tea sets produced by the official cellar and several pieces of Shu brocade.

Lacquerware is something that is unique to the East and has never existed in the West. Before the Age of Discovery, this thing was only available in the East. It was not until after the Age of Discovery that some lacquerware produced in Japan was gradually spread to Europe through the Nagasaki-Macao route.

At present, lacquerware is a real luxury in Europe. Only kings and nobles can own it. Moreover, Japanese lacquerware is far inferior to Ming Dynasty lacquerware in terms of craftsmanship and other aspects. What's more, the lacquerware that Wang Fuzhi gave to the other party is the product of the four departments and eight bureaus of the Ming Dynasty, representing the highest technology of Ming Dynasty handicrafts. How can it be compared with Japanese lacquerware?
As for the porcelain, it was so thin that one could even see the palm prints behind it through the sunlight. Such porcelain had never been seen in Europe. The Governor held it carefully in his hands, not even daring to breathe, fearing that he would crush the porcelain if he pressed it a little harder.

In the eyes of the Governor, this set of porcelain alone is enough to exchange for all his current wealth. If it is sent to Europe for sale, its value will be even higher.

As for the few pieces of Shu brocade, they were even more extraordinary. Although the Governor was a lower-ranking noble, he had never seen such exquisite silk. In his opinion, such silk was extremely gorgeous, and soft to the touch, just like colorful clouds plucked from the sky. Even His Majesty the King did not have it. Perhaps the only one in the whole of Europe who could possess it was His Holiness the Pope. However, a small noble like him could obtain it today, which was simply unimaginable before.

The three gifts made the governor stare straight, and he was so excited that he couldn't sleep well all night. The next day, when he learned that the subsequent purchase of materials was extremely smooth, the governor was even happier. He waved his hand and exempted nearly half of the fleet's supply expenses. Of course, this money was not taken out of his pocket, because it was a Ming Dynasty mission, and the fleet going to Europe was a hired Portuguese ship. As a local official, the governor also thought of using this mission to gain benefits for the Kingdom of Portugal. He personally wrote a letter to His Majesty the King, stamped it with his governor's seal, and gave it to Wang Fuzhi, asking him to carry the letter and submit it to the Portuguese royal family after arriving in Lisbon, meet with the King of Portugal, and seek help from the Kingdom of Portugal.

Wang Fuzhi and his entourage stayed in Goa for about a week. In addition to replenishing supplies and resting, they also sold a batch of goods they brought with them and bought some local specialties in Goa.

Goa is located in the east-west sea route, and there are many Arab merchants here. Many goods from the Arab region are also in great demand in Europe, which is why Europeans did not prohibit Arabs from conducting transit trade in Goa after they took control of the east-west route.

In addition, taking advantage of the rare rest time, Wang Fuzhi also visited the Goa area accompanied by people sent by the local governor and appreciated the local scenery and customs.

After the supplies were fully replenished and the goods were sold and purchased, the fleet was about to set sail again. On the day of departure, the Governor of Goa personally came to the dock to see them off. With the reluctance and enthusiasm of both sides, Wang Fuzhi boarded the Liberty. When the order to set sail was issued, the sails were raised, and the Liberty left the dock, then joined the other ships waiting outside the dock, reorganized the fleet, and continued to sail towards the destination.

After leaving Goa, the fleet continued to move northwest, headed north along the coastline, then turned back west, crossed the Arabian Sea, and reached the eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula.

Here the fleet will make another brief stop and replenish supplies, then sail along the Arabian Peninsula. After bypassing the Arabian Peninsula, it will continue to the Red Sea, which is the eastern end of the African continent and the location of the Gulf of Aden in later generations.

This section of the route is the easiest to travel, but the following voyage is not so easy. The fleet will then go around the southern part of the African continent, which is the Cape of Good Hope, and then turn back to the north and finally head to Europe. The Cape of Good Hope area is prone to frequent storms all year round and is the most dangerous area for traveling between the East and the West. Even with experienced captains and navigators, it cannot ensure absolute safety.

To be fully prepared, the fleet will make a stop and replenishment at Mozambique Island in eastern Africa, while ensuring the safety of the ships to cross the Cape of Good Hope where winds and waves are unpredictable.

Mozambique Island was also a Portuguese colony, so there was no problem with supplies here. And because of the special reasons of the fleet, they received the same warm hospitality on Mozambique Island as before. After giving a few gifts, the local governor provided great convenience, making everything go very smoothly.

Because they need to guard against storms when rounding the Cape of Good Hope and calculate the most suitable ocean currents and time to cross, they will stay on Mozambique Island for a few more days until the captain and navigator determine the best time to set off based on weather changes.

In this place, Zheng Hongkui's experience was of no use, and he could only follow the arrangements of the fleet commander and the captain. While waiting, they had nothing to do on the ship, so they got off the ship and wandered around the local area out of boredom.

The African continent was different from the areas and countries they had passed through before. The people here were no different from the legendary Kunlun slaves. Their skin was as black as charcoal, and due to the hot weather, the locals, both men and women, had no proper clothing. Most of them just wore a piece of cloth around their lower body, or even skirts made of straw. They wore necklaces made of animal teeth and unknown metal around their necks, and their naked bodies were painted with patterns made of white, red and other mineral pigments. They looked no different from savages.

This custom opened everyone's eyes. Adolf, who had been here before, volunteered to be a guide. The group walked and stopped, occasionally buying some local specialty fruits or strange things from the natives as souvenirs. These things were basically worthless except for precious metals, but Wang Fuzhi and his group enjoyed it.

After walking around for a while, when Wang Fuzhi was about to go back, he passed by a native's stall and his eyes fell on several ivory products on display. These small gadgets with a strong local style looked pretty good, and the ivory used was also of good quality. Wang Fuzhi couldn't help but stop, squatted down, picked up a handful and looked at it, and then asked the other party how much he wanted to sell it for. The native selling the goods was a young native, with a dark face and smiled at Wang Fuzhi, his two rows of white teeth shining in the sun, looking a little creepy.

The native gestured with his hands and spoke something incomprehensible. The accompanying translator told Wang Fuzhi the price. Wang Fuzhi could not help but laugh and cry. The price offered by the native was a little higher than he expected. It was probably because he saw that the natives were dressed gorgeously and were different from ordinary people. The natives were not stupid and thought they had met a big customer, so they deliberately offered a high price.

Shaking his head, Wang Fuzhi was about to stand up as he had no desire to buy anything. But just as he was about to stand up, his eyes suddenly fell on a corner of the native's stall. A tile-like thing caught his attention. Wang Fuzhi couldn't help but exclaimed and reached out to that thing.

Just as he was about to take it, the man stopped Wang Fuzhi, mumbling something and shaking his head. Wang Fuzhi was puzzled and looked at the translator who accompanied him. The translator stepped forward and scolded the native a few times, then apologized to Wang Fuzhi and explained, "Sir, this man said he doesn't sell it, he uses it for himself."

"Not selling it? For your own use? Can you help me find out where this thing came from?" Wang Fuzhi curiously asked the translator to help him ask.

The translator said something strange and then explained, "This guy said this was passed down from his ancestors, so he doesn't sell it to the public."

"Passed down by our ancestors? Ask again if you can let me take a closer look. Tell him to rest assured that I will not force him to buy anything. I just want to take a look. If he is willing, I can give him one riel as compensation."

"Okay, sir, I'll ask for you." The translator shrugged his shoulders. He didn't understand why this distinguished lord would be interested in the things of an ordinary native? And he was willing to give him one riel as compensation.

Although one riel is not much, it is a day's salary for an ordinary Portuguese colonial official, and it is even more valuable to these natives.

Helplessly, the translator could only continue to negotiate with the other party. At this time, Zheng Hongkui and Adolf, who were not far away, noticed the movement here and couldn't help but walk over to ask what happened.

Wang Fuzhi waved his hand and did not answer their questions, but watched the negotiation between the translator and the native with expectation. After a while, the translator told Wang Fuzhi that the native said he could show it to him, but he had to pay him the promised compensation of one riel first.

Wang Fuzhi laughed in silence. Although the native looked simple and honest, he was not stupid! He even knew to get the reward first. A mere riel was nothing to Wang Fuzhi. Wang Fuzhi took out a riel silver coin and threw it to the native. The native couldn't wait to take it and took a closer look. He smiled and then pointed at the thing, indicating that Wang Fuzhi should take it himself.

Wang Fuzhi then reached out to take it. When his fingers touched the thing, his expression became slightly solemn. When he picked it up and put it in front of his eyes to look at it carefully, Wang Fuzhi looked at it very seriously, turning it over and over again. His actions made Zheng Hongkui and Adolf even more puzzled.

"Brother Nong, what is this treasure? Is it something rare?" Zheng Hongkui asked curiously, and Adolf also looked inquiring.

"Haha, this thing is rare and common. To other people, it is just a worthless waste, but to you and me, it has a different meaning." Wang Fuzhi sighed. Seeing Zheng Hongkui's confused look, he sighed and put the palm-sized thing that looked like half a tile in his hand into the other's hand, letting him see it for himself.

Zheng Hongkui took it and touched the material of it. He was surprised when he touched it: "This is not tile, but porcelain?"

Wang Fuzhi nodded, and Zheng Hongkui picked it up and looked at it carefully. The more he looked, the more confused he became. When he finished reading the front and turned it over to look at it again, his eyes suddenly froze, his hands trembled slightly, and his face was full of disbelief.

"This... this... this is actually porcelain from the Ming Dynasty, and it's from the Yongle period! How... how is this possible!"

(End of this chapter)