Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 560 The noblewomen and young girls of Europe, and the brave Zhu Gaochi!

It wasn't just that infatuated noblewoman; many of the noble ladies and young women who came to welcome the Ming Dynasty fleet felt the same burning desire.

In their view, the Ming Dynasty was undoubtedly the most civilized, advanced, and powerful country in the world.

Therefore, the men of the Ming Dynasty were naturally the most magnificent and perfect men in the world.

Compared to them, those European men who fawn over them, flatter them, and think they are full of chivalry and gentlemanly manners are so mediocre, utterly useless, and utterly worthless!

Those European men are always sycophants to them, summoning them at will and dismissing them at will, just to win their favor. They are such useless people!

How can they compare to even a fraction of the men of the Ming Dynasty?

If they had a choice, they would rather be mistresses of men in the Ming Dynasty than marry native European men as their wives.

Their heartfelt admiration and longing for the men of the Ming Dynasty had reached an almost fanatical level.

European women have always been open and passionate, and dare to boldly pursue what they love.

At this moment, many women couldn't wait to express their love in public. They either blew kisses, expressed their admiration with burning eyes, and waved and shouted to each other.

However, their bold voices and actions were drowned out by the thunderous cheers in the harbor. The Ming soldiers and sailors thought they were just excitedly expressing their welcome, without realizing the deeper meaning behind it.

Zhu Gaochi was also unaware of this.

If he knew that thousands of women in Venice were professing their love to him, a prince from the East, he would probably faint on the spot from excitement.

This huge surprise was enough to make him lose his usual composure.

At this moment, Zhu Gaochi stood upright behind Zhu Di and his wife Xu Miaoyun, his eyes scanning the excited crowd around him.

He waved from time to time, each wave eliciting even louder cheers, as if he were the center of this sea of ​​fervor.

The giant ship smoothly and easily docked at the pier of Venice.

Zhu Gaochi waved his hand, and the well-trained sailors immediately lined up in two rows, carrying long guns on their shoulders, and disembarked first with neat and uniform steps.

They quickly stood still, forming a neat human wall, and then Zhu Di and his wife slowly walked down the gangway and stepped onto the land of Venice.

The Doge of Venice, Michele, dressed in a magnificent gown reserved for the grandest ceremonies, strode forward to greet him.

His expression was respectful, and his tone was solemn yet full of enthusiasm: "Your Highness of the Ming Dynasty, you are an envoy sent by Heaven, the most honored guest in the history of Venice!"

"Please allow me, Doge of Venice, Duke Michele Steno, on behalf of the Senate of Venice and all the people of Venice, to extend our sincerest and warmest welcome to you!"

The guide quickly translated Governor Michele's warm welcome to Zhu Di.

Zhu Di responded modestly: "I have long heard that Venice is the commercial capital and the city of wealth of Europe, and the most prosperous place on the entire continent."

"What I saw with my own eyes today is indeed true to its reputation; it is truly breathtaking."

His gaze swept around, and he exclaimed in admiration, "The architecture here is extremely elegant and ingenious; the people here are warm and hospitable and have a refined manner. It is almost comparable to the most prosperous city in our Great Ming Dynasty!"

Zhu Di turned his gaze to Michele and smiled, "Duke Michele's governance of Venice has been remarkably effective, truly deserving of the position of Doge, and is indeed admirable!"

"This time, Zhu Di came to Europe as a prince of the Ming Dynasty and chose to land in Venice. This has caused a lot of trouble. I hope that Your Highness will forgive him."

After a series of compliments and pleasantries, Zhu Di finally revealed his name and identity.

After a brief and polite exchange of pleasantries, the two introduced their respective wives and children to each other, completing their initial social etiquette.

Immediately afterwards, Governor Michele extended a warm invitation to Zhu Di and his entourage to attend a welcome banquet prepared for them at the Governor's Mansion.

Zhu Di readily agreed and, together with Michele and a group of Venetian nobles, entered the magnificent banquet hall of the Doge's Palace.

In Europe, it is customary for noblewomen to accompany their husbands to such ceremonial social occasions.

However, in China, traditional values ​​discourage women from showing their faces in public.

When the hostesses and ladies are needed to entertain guests, the banquet is usually held separately for men and women. The men entertain the guests in the front hall, while the women keep them company in the back courtyard.

After all, Confucian etiquette has long stipulated that "men and women should not touch each other," and the customs on both sides are quite different.

If it were an ordinary Chinese woman, she would probably be at a loss and unable to cope with such a mixed-gender social situation.

However, Xu Miaoyun was an extraordinary woman with the reputation of being a "female scholar". Her knowledge and abilities were far beyond those of ordinary women in their boudoirs.

Dealing with these kinds of social situations is naturally a piece of cake for her.

In fact, Xu Miaoyun's composure and elegance far surpassed that of the Duchess, drawing attention from all quarters.

This earned the secret admiration of many nobles in Venice.

She truly deserves to be the wife of a prince of the Ming Dynasty!
So poised and elegant, so stunningly beautiful, she surpasses the women of Europe a thousand times over!
However, despite the most prestigious status of Zhu Di and his wife, and the Michele couple, it was Zhu Gaochi who received the most admiration and attention.

After all, he was a young, unmarried prince from the mysterious and powerful Ming Dynasty!
This unique identity alone was enough to make countless noblewomen in Europe fall for him.

Moreover, having successfully lost weight after the long sea voyage, Zhu Gaochi now possesses a very robust physique.

His skin color, hair color, and face shape, so different from those of Europeans, were exotic in the eyes of those noble ladies and young girls, enough to make them fall head over heels for him.

Several alluring noblewomen and some young girls with budding hearts were gathered around Zhu Gaochi at this moment. Their eyes were different, some were gazing at him with infatuation, some were looking at him with affection, and some were looking at him with blatant seduction.

Those bold and direct gazes revealed their innermost thoughts, as if they wished they could immediately drag him into a secret room and "devour" Zhu Gaochi alive.

Although Zhu Gaochi had done a lot of "homework" for landing in Venice, his mind was mainly focused on strategy and politics, and he did not expect to encounter such a situation!
Why do these European women have such... eyes? They lack the reserved and gentle beauty of women from the Central Plains. Instead, they are as bold and direct as courtesans. Don't they know the saying "Don't look at what is improper"?

Their behavior was somewhat "shameless".

They really are uncivilized "barbarians"!
Even though they built tall buildings and wore decent clothes, they still lacked the sage-like teachings of the Central Plains, the "land of propriety and righteousness." As Zhu Gaochi thought this, his heart still pounded wildly. He could feel his blood rushing through his veins, and his lower body was already erect, ready for battle, as if responding to the fervent and bold gazes around him.

Faced with this scene, Zhu Gaochi felt a complex mix of emotions that were hard to describe.

As a result, compared with the open-minded Europeans, the people of the Ming Dynasty, who were strictly bound by Confucian ethics from childhood, often lacked experience in matters of love and sex.

As a member of the royal family, Zhu Gaochi should have had no shortage of maids and servants to teach and serve him.

Unfortunately, he was too young and immature to have had any such thoughts.

Over the years, he has grown up, but he has been drifting at sea, and his living conditions are naturally incomparable to those in the Ming Dynasty.

At present, Zhu Gaochi is in the prime of his life, and being closely watched by so many women who are "like wolves and tigers" inevitably makes him feel both nervous and excited, and even a little at a loss.

A beautifully dressed noblewoman could no longer contain herself and gracefully walked to Zhu Gaochi's side, boldly saying, "Your Highness Prince of the Ming Dynasty, your hair is so lustrous, so black and straight, as if the night has solidified; your eyes are brighter than the most dazzling pearls, shining like stars."

"You are my ideal partner. Whenever I see you, my heart races and I almost faint."

"Would I have the honor of inviting you to dance with me?"

As she spoke, she winked and swayed her hips, showing off her alluring figure.

"Dancing?" Upon hearing this, Zhu Gaochi froze on the spot, his mind going completely blank.

How can a man and a woman dance together?

In his view, this was utterly immoral and utterly shameless.

Is this the custom of the "barbarians" of Europe?
Should I do as the locals do?
The problem is, I can't dance at all!

Moreover, in his mind, dancing was something only the lower classes and lowly people did.
Scholars and officials would never dance; they would only watch others dance.

As a descendant of the Ming Dynasty imperial family, how could I dance in front of everyone for their enjoyment?

Zhu Gaochi's mind was churning with all sorts of thoughts, like a tangled mess.

The scenes at the banquet always reminded him of the brothels of the Ming Dynasty.

After all, in the Ming Dynasty, only in places as vulgar as brothels would men and women have such unrestrained intimate contact.

If we consider that all of this happened in a brothel, then it seems perfectly reasonable.

If all European women were as promiscuous as the courtesans of the Ming Dynasty, then perhaps I wouldn't need to be polite or care about propriety and shame.
But then I thought, my parents are here, what kind of logic is there in the world to visit a brothel and play with women in front of my parents!

Just as Zhu Gaochi was struggling with his thoughts, a young girl much younger than the beautiful noblewoman suddenly stepped forward and blurted out in a sweet but angry voice: "Your Highness Prince of the Great Ming Dynasty, you must not accept her invitation!"

"She was the infamous 'Black Widow,' whose two husbands both died mysteriously one after the other."

"It is said that she has countless lovers and has slept with numerous men!"

"You are a noble prince of the Ming Dynasty, you absolutely cannot, and should never, be with this kind of woman!"

Although this young girl did not have the allure of a noblewoman, she was more innocent and youthful in appearance, with more delicate features. However, her tone of voice was full of intense hostility.

Her gaze toward the noblewoman was filled with rage, as if she were facing an irreconcilable mortal enemy.

“Diisa, I have no grudge against you, do I?” The noblewoman, enraged by being publicly accused, retorted sharply, “How dare you slander me like this?”

Hearing the noblewoman's rebuttal, the girl called Daisy was not to be outdone and retorted sharply, "You should go find your own man, not come and harass the prince of the Ming Dynasty! He is our most distinguished guest in Venice, and I will not allow you to harm him!"

The noblewoman immediately retorted sarcastically, "I think you're just in heat and have taken a fancy to the prince of the Ming Dynasty!"

"Who would have thought that Miss Daisy, who is always so noble and beautiful and disdainful of men, would have such an impatient side?"

She laughed sarcastically, "The way you're acting like a horny woman right now is no different from those lowly sluts!"

Enraged, Daisy's almond-shaped eyes widened as she threatened furiously, "If you dare to spout nonsense again, I will immediately have my father imprison you in the Inquisition, torture you with the cruelest punishments, and then execute you!"

The noblewoman stared fiercely at Daisy, her eyes filled with resentment.

However, she seemed genuinely stunned by the girl's words. After her gaze darted back and forth between the girl and Zhu Gaochi a few times, she finally said nothing and turned away angrily.

Clearly, Daisy's status was far higher than hers, which made her wary and dare not pursue the matter any further.

"Thank you for helping me out of that predicament!" Zhu Gaochi said sincerely to the girl in front of him.

Compared to the alluring noblewoman who reminded him of courtesans, he clearly had a greater fondness for this pure yet somewhat wild young girl.

In his view, the girl in front of him was more dignified and more like a respectable woman, even though her words and actions revealed a shrewishness that was inconsistent with her appearance.

But perhaps all barbarian women are like this.

Barbarians are always barbarians, and cannot be compared with the Central Plains, a land of propriety and righteousness!

“It’s alright, Prince of the Ming Dynasty. You are our honored guest, and this is what I should do.” Facing Zhu Gaochi, Daisy no longer had her previous arrogance and domineering attitude, and instantly became polite.

Her deep blue eyes continued to scrutinize Zhu Gaochi, and she would occasionally lower her head shyly, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, her chest heaving violently, revealing the turmoil in the young girl's heart.

This shy expression only emboldened Zhu Gaochi.

He suddenly reached out and grabbed Daisy's soft hand.

……

(End of this chapter)