The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 686 Oligarchic State Pays Homage
July is the hottest time of year in the East Coast of North America.

The temperature in the area where the main port of the navy is located is similar to that in southern Zhili.

Even during the day, the sun blazes down here, and the temperature can rise above thirty degrees Celsius.

Emperor Wanli originally thought that it wouldn't matter if he was hot, and besides, it was unrealistic to transport ice from the Ming Dynasty, which was tens of thousands of miles away.

He was prepared to brave the scorching summer heat before he even arrived.

Who would have thought that Deng Zilong knew he was coming and had specially dug many ice cellars for him, filling them with ice for him in winter, so he didn't have to worry about getting too hot at all.

That's the advantage of being an emperor.

If you truly have a group of loyal and capable ministers under your command, then wherever you go, people will consider your interests.

He had been considering where to receive the king of the vassal state, but now he didn't need to think about it anymore.

He immediately ordered his men to set up a platform on the second floor of the flagship. They built a platform about three feet high, used a screen to separate the bow from the cabin, and added some mirrors to reflect the sunlight in. That was about it.

The speed of the flying dragon ship was truly extraordinary. He had only been waiting for less than ten days when all the kings of the vassal states had arrived.

Li Zhizao and Dong Yikui also returned after circling the coastline of the East Capital Commandery in North America.

On the ninth day of the seventh lunar month, around 7:00 AM, as the sun rose, Wanli Emperor ordered his men to summon dozens of kings from vassal states to the second floor of the flagship.

When these kings arrived, they were all quite surprised.

They had originally thought this ship would be a bit hot, like the flying dragon ship.

To my surprise, it was quite cool up there, with a refreshing breeze constantly blowing around.

Moreover, although this is clearly a cabin, there are no lights on inside, yet it is brightly lit, and I don't know where the light comes from.

Furthermore, the sides of the enormous ship's cabin were lined with neatly arranged cannons and fully armed Ming soldiers!
Is this going to be a war?
Although they were very surprised, they were quite familiar with the etiquette of the Ming Dynasty.

After the Imperial Guards had them line up in the middle of the cabin, they bowed their heads respectfully before the high dragon throne and waited obediently.

"His Majesty has arrived."

A voice announced from behind the screen behind the dragon throne, and they immediately prostrated themselves on the ground, shouting in unison, "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

Emperor Wanli emerged from behind the screen and, upon seeing the scene, couldn't help but nod slightly.

The kings of these vassal states all wore red robes with gold dragon patterns, the same color as the uniforms of the imperial guards on both sides, clearly indicating that they were all from the Ming Dynasty.

It seems that Zhu Guozuo has put in a lot of effort here. He not only popularized the official language of the Ming Dynasty, but also standardized the robes.

He strode to the steps erected in front of the screen, sat down on the dragon throne, straightened his dragon robe, and then said sternly, "No need for formalities, rise."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

The kings of the vassal states quickly got up from the ground, divided into two rows, and stood neatly on both sides.

Wanli nodded slightly, then solemnly said, "You should have seen how many troops I brought. Do you know why?"

Upon hearing this, all the kings of the vassal states couldn't help but look solemn.

The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty suddenly led hundreds of thousands of troops to personally lead an expedition, as if a major war was about to break out.

This seems to be no ordinary battle. Even His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty has come, and he has brought with him a giant ship that they have never seen before, and the ship is even filled with huge cannons.

Emperor Wanli asked this question not because he expected anyone to answer it.

He was simply trying to make the kings of these vassal states think about why he had brought so many troops with him.

He even deliberately made sure that the cannons on his flagship were visible to the kings of these vassal states.

These things were originally supposed to be kept strictly secret. If they were colonial bandits, those guys wouldn't even be allowed to glance at them.

Since they already know how to build muzzle-loading cannons, a glance from them could potentially lead to the creation of breech-loading cannons.

However, the kings of these vassal states didn't seem to care when they saw it.

Because these vassal states had no industrial base, let alone artillery; they didn't even know how to refine the materials needed to make artillery.

The reason he deliberately showed these vassal kings so many cannons was to let them know that he was not joking and that he was genuinely prepared for a major battle by personally leading his army.

It seems that the kings of these vassal states have already thought of this.

He then added with a solemn expression, "You may not know this, but General Deng's naval fleet has already detected the ships of those European colonial bandits in the eastern waters of the Americas."

Moreover, by this time, those colonial bandits had already reached the Portuguese Viceroyalty of Brazil.

You should know where the Viceroyalty of Brazil was in Portugal, right?

That would be in the South America.

In other words, the European colonial powers were preparing for a full-scale invasion of the Americas.

The reason they attacked the Portuguese Viceroyalty of Brazil was because our defenses were already stronger than those of the Portuguese Viceroyalty of Brazil; they chose to target the weakest link first.

These colonial robbers didn't just want to take over Portuguese colonies; once they seized the Viceroyalty of Brazil, they would have a foothold, and then they could mobilize a large army to launch a full-scale invasion of the Americas.

These European colonial invaders were far more powerful than Spain and Portugal, because the camps to which Spain and Portugal belonged were defeated and forced to surrender.

what?
Upon hearing this, the kings of the vassal states were all horrified. These colonial invaders who had attacked the Americas were even more powerful than Spain and Portugal!

They only managed to drive away the Spanish colonial invaders with the help of the Ming Dynasty.

This time, an even more formidable group has arrived.

How to do?
Emperor Wanli naturally did not expect these vassal kings to come up with a solution.

Seeing the change in the expressions of the kings of these vassal states, he solemnly said, "Don't worry, with the Great Ming Dynasty here, those colonial bandits will not be able to invade the heart of North America to bully you."

The reason I personally led the army here is to help you establish a solid defense line to protect against the invasion of colonial bandits.

This defensive line will extend from the east coast of North America all the way to all the islands in the central America. I will also mobilize more troops and ships to protect your safety.

However, the soldiers need a place to stay, and we also need to build a large number of cities and fortresses for defense.

These are not things that hundreds of thousands or millions of soldiers could build in just a few years. Therefore, I am prepared to conscript a large number of able-bodied men to help build the city walls, fortresses, and the soldiers' quarters.

I have already ordered people to estimate that if we want to build the coastal defense line within a year, we will need to conscript at least four million able-bodied men to help.

You should have this much able-bodied young man around, right?

Oh, so you recruited us here to have our able-bodied men help build city walls, fortresses, and quarters for the soldiers.

We need to send these people out; it's to protect our own safety.

Moreover, the Ming Dynasty wouldn't need them to fight the colonial bandits; they only needed to help build cities and fortresses.

Upon hearing this, the kings of the vassal states nodded repeatedly, saying, "We have it, we have it, no problem, no problem."

Emperor Wanli nodded with apparent satisfaction and said, "It's good that you have people here. I won't let your able-bodied men do this work for nothing."

Here's what we'll do: every able-bodied young man who volunteers will receive a gold or silver coin worth one tael of silver per month, and will be provided with unlimited beef, mutton, fish, and other meats.

what?
You even get paid, and you can eat as much meat as you want!
Upon hearing this, the kings of the vassal states shook their heads repeatedly and said, "Your Majesty, we don't want wages. We'll work for free."

I am not trying to trick you into working for free. I just want you to understand that you are living your leisurely lives only because of the protection of the Ming Dynasty.

Emperor Wanli slowly shook his head and said, "The Ming Dynasty is not a colonial bandit. We must pay wages to hire your able-bodied men to work. If you are willing to provide your able-bodied men to help, you will be richly rewarded. Men, bring out the rewards."

As soon as he finished speaking, hundreds of imperial guards came up carrying large trays of gold and silver coins, with each vassal king receiving a large tray of gold and silver coins.

The kings of the vassal states were all dumbfounded upon seeing this.

This protection not only freed them from having to work for free, but also rewarded them with so many gold and silver coins!

Seeing this, Wanli pretended to explain, "The reason I only rewarded you with such a small amount of gold and silver coins is not because I am stingy, but because I was afraid you couldn't afford it."

These gold and silver coins awarded to each of you weigh dozens of kilograms; it must be tiring for the Imperial Guards to carry them. You should quickly fill them up in the large money bags on the plates.”

It's not that we think it's too little; we just didn't expect you to reward us with so many gold and silver coins.

Upon hearing this, the kings of the vassal states repeatedly expressed their gratitude and quickly picked up the large money bags to fill them.

Emperor Wanli then feigned concern and said, "I've heard that it's very inconvenient for you to buy things. You have to send naval ships over every time to buy things from the Ming Dynasty."

How about this? This time, I will build docks and cities for each of your vassal states, and order Ming merchants to open shops in the cities.

"Whatever you want, you can buy it directly in your own vassal state. What do you think?"

That would be great.

Upon hearing this, the kings of the vassal states nodded repeatedly and said, "Good, good."

That'll do.

When Wanli saw that the group had packed up the gold and silver coins, he immediately waved his hand and said, "Then you should go back and quickly gather the able-bodied men."

"When you can gather all the able-bodied men, tell the naval officers and soldiers who will escort you back, and I will send naval ships to retrieve you."

The kings of the vassal states bowed and thanked them repeatedly before picking up the two large money bags and walking downstairs.

As Wanli watched the departing figures of these vassal kings, he couldn't help but smile slightly.

He seems to have suffered a huge loss, having invested money, manpower, and ships.

Actually, he made a fortune.

Compared to the few gold and silver coins he pulled out, the gold, silver and copper mined and smelted by the Ming Dynasty in the Americas were just a drop in the ocean!

The reason he was so eager to win over the kings of the vassal states here was to ensure long-term peace and stability in the region.

This way, they can easily make money or even pick up money here.

European colonial powers were rather foolish; they had no idea how to win people's hearts and minds.

Those guys are blatant thieves wherever they go; it's no wonder they provoke resistance.

By doing it this way, the money spent suppressing resistance is many times more than the money spent winning people's hearts and minds.

(End of this chapter)