Good morning Daming

Chapter 1031 Unexpected Discovery
After wiping out the Japanese pirates in the small village, Lin Xi and Zhou Wang both advised Jiang Qingzhi to return.

However, Jiang Qingzhi insisted on his own way and ordered the fleet to follow this line...which was the sea area where the Japanese pirates were most concentrated.

But for two consecutive days, they didn't see even a sampan.

This sea area is as clean as Zhang Tong’s eyes.

It was not until after breakfast today that we discovered the two merchant ships.

The two merchant ships looked quite sturdy, and Jiang Qingzhi actually saw a cannon mounted on the bow.

Jiang Qingzhi felt a little regretful.

When heading south, he thought about taking artillery with him, but thinking that the artillery would slow down his movement, he left them behind.

"Firearms ready!" Jiang Qingzhi shouted.

The fleet began to turn.

After a beautiful arc, the fleet aimed its broadside at the two merchant ships.

On the side, the dense array of various firearms made one's scalp tingle.

Jiang Qingzhi grinned and said, "Tell them that it's not too late to surrender now!"

Boll shouted at the other side, "This is the Ming Dynasty Royal Navy. If you surrender now, you will still be treated with humanitarianism..."

Sun Bu Tong scratched his head, "What did Paul say?"

Everyone shook their heads. Boll was the only one on the boat who understood what the French said.

Humanitarianism and kindness, these are the words of Jiang Qingzhi.

Bol said it very fiercely, "The great emperor ordered the navy to attack and just wiped out a group of ferocious Japanese pirates. The corpses of those pirates are piled up like a mountain..."

To those who make a living on the sea, you will only make them laugh if you say something official. The more straightforward the better.

Naked threats are best.

"Surrender and you will be spared. If you don't surrender... you will be dragged at the stern to feed the fish." Boll was proud.

A few men on the opposite side were discussing in low voices. Soon, someone shouted, "We are just businessmen."

"This sea area belongs to the Ming Dynasty." Bol said righteously: "Even a fly cannot enter without the permission of the Ming Dynasty."

When they went south, Jiang Qingzhi and Xu Wei discussed the issue of tax collection. Jiang made a harsh statement that even if a fly flew by, a layer of oil would be scraped off its legs.

After a hasty discussion among the Portuguese men, the man shouted again: "We are willing to pay the tax."

Boll turned around and said, "Uncle, they said they are willing to pay the tax."

"Come closer." Jiang Qingzhi said, "Be careful. If the other party starts to attack, we will overwhelm them with firearms."

With more than thirty warships and a fire coverage, the two merchant ships will become torches on the sea in an instant.

Jiang Qingzhi has always been puzzled. After the two naval battles off the coast of Guangzhou, the Ming Navy learned from their mistakes and equipped their warships with cannons. But why didn't the Zhejiang Navy have cannons?

He asked Zheng Yuan yesterday, and Zheng Yuan said that there were some originally, but it was not safe to load gunpowder on the ship. An accident had occurred before, and the gunpowder spontaneously ignited and burned more than a dozen warships. Since then, the artillery has been moved to land.

According to the navy, it's rare for us to go out to sea anyway, so wouldn't it be better to move the artillery to the ground to assist in defense?
Jiang Qingzhi smiled when he heard this, but after he came to Hangzhou, he only saw a dozen or so cannons scattered on the city walls.

So, where did the navy’s artillery go?
This problem has been bothering Jiang Qingzhi and Xu Wei.

Jiang Qingzhi had just arrived in Hangzhou. If he investigated the matter in a high-profile manner from the beginning, it would inevitably arouse hostility within the navy.

According to Jiang Qingzhi's plan, the first priority of this trip to Hangzhou was to suppress the Japanese invaders.

The court has decided to lift the maritime ban after a long time, but still few people dare to go out to sea.

Before Jiang Qingzhi went south, some people ridiculed him, saying that you, Jiang Qingzhi, insisted on lifting the maritime ban, but we said it was not possible and the disadvantages outweighed the advantages. You fucking think you are the second stubborn Prime Minister Wang Anshi, and you have to be so stubborn. Your face must be swollen, right?
Jiang Qingzhi just laughed it off.

He didn't bother to argue with such an idiot.

Lifting the maritime ban was a prerequisite, followed by suppressing the Japanese and clearing out the pirates... and then allowing merchant ships to go out to sea.

Next, comes the second opponent.

--Portuguese!
At this moment, the Portuguese controlled Malacca and regarded that sea area as their own back garden. By the way, they also regarded the entire East Asian waters as their own private land.

If it were not for the rise of the Spaniards, according to the development momentum of the Portuguese, within twenty years, the ambitious Portuguese monarchs and ministers, driven by their ever-growing strength, would inevitably launch an eastward expedition.

Comparing the history he learned in his previous life with the present moment, Jiang Qingzhi could not help but feel that God had really treated the Ming Dynasty well. In each crisis, there was always the vitality of phoenix nirvana and rebirth.

But the emperor and his ministers in the court could not handle it... well, the ministers were all a bunch of pigs with pig brains, only caring about infighting and fighting for power.

Is Confucianism good?
Jiang Qingzhi thought it was a great idea. Using it for internal education and cultivation would be beneficial to governance, greatly enhance internal cohesion and create a harmonious society.

But when it comes to governing a country and using it for diplomacy... our Confucianism is omnipotent.

This is a bit outrageous.

The Legalist sages sneered before the monuments of the Han and Tang dynasties.

——You bastards, when we were running rampant in the world, you Confucians could only hide in the dark corners, looking at us with envy.

The Portuguese eastward advance was a crisis for the Ming Dynasty, but also a huge opportunity.

The two naval battles off the coast of Guangzhou are a reminder of this.

The Ming Dynasty’s first step was fine. We discovered that the Portuguese firearms were powerful, so we imitated them!

The skilled craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty took action and quickly imitated the cannon.

Learning foreigners' advanced technology to defeat them, the Ming navy attacked and defeated the Portuguese adventurous fleet.

Subsequently, the Ming Dynasty began to imitate the so-called Portuguese guns on a large scale and distributed them to the nine border areas and the navy.

Up to this point, the Ming Dynasty had not taken a single wrong step.

But, that's all.

The Portuguese stopped their attacks, and everyone in the Ming Dynasty felt safe, so... what, firearms?

How could it be more important than the struggle for power between the emperor and his subjects?

The ministers were eager to seize power from the emperor, and the emperor rose up in resistance... The two sides fought to the death for more than 20 years...

The Ming Dynasty's power also continued to decline. Xu Wei once said scathingly: "If there is no external enemy, the Ming Dynasty's rulers and ministers will forget everything and only care about fighting for power and profit. In my opinion, we should find an enemy for the Ming Dynasty."

This statement is consistent with the foreign policy of the Eagle Sauce in later generations.

If you want to ensure a country's proactive and enterprising attitude, the best way is to constantly make enemies for yourself.

Look at the Eagle sauce. Since the founding of the country, since the domination of the country, the wars of all sizes have almost never stopped. As for the opponents, there are even more. When one opponent falls, they will look for the second opponent...

War and hostility have greatly promoted the development of science and technology. Arms dealers have made a lot of money. The financial sector has sucked blood from the military everywhere, shouting that the great era of the Eagle Sauce is coming...

Xu Wei noticed that the boss looked drooling, "Uncle, Uncle?"

"What's the matter?" Jiang Qingzhi wiped the corner of his mouth. He had just reviewed the development history of Eagle Sauce and found many things worth learning from.

How about transplanting those methods to the Ming Dynasty?

Jiang Qingzhi was moved.

"Those people on the other side refused to bow their heads." Bol was secretly proud of his fellow villagers... Some of the guards disliked him as a barbarian, and often said that barbarians were rude and afraid of death.

Am I, Bol, a person who is afraid of death... Bol was angry and wanted to duel with him, but was kicked away by Mo Zhan.

At this moment, the villagers would rather die than surrender, which made Boll feel proud.

"Ten numbers." Jiang Qingzhi said lightly.

"Ten counts, surrender or die!" Boll shouted.

He seemed to be back in Lisbon, running through the sewage-filled alleys, avoiding the older kids who were chasing him, eating the looted bread as he ran.

The firearm is ready to fire.

The cannon on the opposite side began to reload.

Bol grinned, "Just one shot, this is a wave!"

The two sides are constantly closing the distance.

Jiang Qingzhi lit the incense and prepared to wave.

"My Lord!" Xu Wei pointed to the opposite side, "They are hanging a hundred flags."

A white flag…actually a white, grey, or even somewhat black piece of clothing was hung on the flagpole.

"Tell them to turn their artillery around," said Jiang Qingzhi.

The other party did so.

Obviously, they knew the consequences of a volley of those firearms.

The infantry boarded the ships and took control of them.

The leading Portuguese was brought to Jiang Qingzhi's boat.

He saw two men in official robes standing behind a young man, who looked like high-ranking officials.

Who is this young man?
"Reuben greets the nobles of the Ming Dynasty." Reuben bowed.

"Tell me why you're here." Bol said, trying to bully others.

There are actually compatriots working for the Ming Dynasty?

Reuben was secretly stunned. Ever since the battle off the coast of Guangzhou, the Ming emperor had an extremely bad attitude towards Portugal. The delegation was almost expelled, and the two sides had cut off contacts since then.

The Portuguese naturally refused to stop, and kept probing the area around Osprey. Today they said they were going ashore to resupply, and tomorrow they said they were going ashore to avoid the wind and waves...

But the Portuguese in East Asia warned each other not to go to the Ming Dynasty unless necessary.

The emperor was said to be very cruel... Every time the northern enemy sent an envoy, the emperor would have his head beheaded and the head would be taken to the borders of the empire on the fastest horse to demonstrate his determination not to surrender.

"I'm here to go to Japan for trade."

"What cargo?" Boll asked. The soldiers were searching the ship. Reuben lowered his head and said, "It's a batch of... muskets."

When Boll translated it, Jiang Qingzhi was stunned.

Historically, Japan obtained muskets from the Portuguese and successfully imitated them.

Boll whispered, "My Lord, a businessman who can smuggle muskets must have a very simple background."

The boss's attitude towards Portugal can be seen from his daily words. He is quite dissatisfied. He even said that once the navy is rebuilt, he plans to go to Malacca in person.

The boss went out to sea himself, so it’s impossible for him to come back empty-handed, right?
Therefore, Boll judged that there would be a war between Ming Dynasty and Portugal sooner or later.

In this case, we are all enemies and there is no need to leave any room for us.

"Ask him who the other party is!"

Reuben said a name, Jiang Qingzhi waved, Xu Wei bowed his head slightly, and Jiang Qingzhi whispered: "Remember this person, and check it after the matter is clear."

"Yes." Xu Wei nodded.

Reuben said dejectedly: "According to the rules of the sea, I am willing to offer the goods, and I only beg you to leave a ship for us to return."

Jiang Qingzhi’s current primary target is Japanese pirates and pirates, as well as Japan.

So he didn't plan to alert the enemy.

Just when he was about to say yes...

"Master, we found a lot of silver! So much silver!"

What the hell!

Jiang Qingzhi took a puff of the medicinal smoke and said:

"It seems that you can't leave."

……

I have been updating four chapters a day for a long time, and I need to relax. From now on, I will update three chapters a day, and cancel the chapter at 14:. Please understand. I bow degrees.

(End of this chapter)