My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 200 War of Words
Among the cabinet ministers and high-ranking officials, Su Ze saw many familiar faces.

Chen Qing, the Minister of Ceremonies; Huang Hua, the Minister of the Imperial Household; and Zhu Daqi, the Minister of the Imperial Stud—these were the Nine Ministers, whose presence was not particularly strong. Su Ze had already gotten to know them during the last meeting of the Nine Ministers.

The former Minister of State Ceremonies, Xiao Lan, has retired to Nanjing. The new Minister of State Ceremonies is Wang Shizhen.

Hong Chaoxuan, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice who attended the last meeting, has been dismissed from office, and he has been succeeded by Li Yiyuan, an old friend of Su Ze.

The position of Commissioner of the Court of Judicial Review is temporarily vacant, and Yang Sizhong, the Deputy Commissioner of the Court of Judicial Review, will temporarily attend the meeting.

Of course, there were a few new faces in the crowd.

Pan Jixun, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, was a middle-aged official with a long beard and a weathered appearance.

The vacancy for Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel was finally filled. Lü Diaoyang, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was the second-place scholar in the imperial examination of the 29th year of the Jiajing reign.

Lü Diaoyang was an elderly man with the demeanor of a Confucian scholar, and he was also a typical official who rose through the ranks by serving as a lecturer in the imperial academy.

Lü Diaoyang began serving as an imperial lecturer to the Longqing Emperor last year. He lectured the emperor many times and received awards. When the emperor was filling vacancies in the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Revenue, he was recommended by the court and then appointed by the emperor as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.

Currently, both the government and the public believe that Lü Diaoyang is a henchman of Grand Secretary Li Chunfang.

However, Su Ze knew that in the historical timeline before his time travel, Lü Diaoyang was Zhang Juzheng's staunch deputy.

A huge irony of history is that Lü Diaoyang was able to rise rapidly in the Ming Dynasty's officialdom because of his reputation for filial piety.

Historically, after Zhang Juzheng's father passed away, Zhang Juzheng should have returned to his hometown to observe the mourning period. However, it was Lü Diaoyang who led the petition to dissuade him from the mourning period and requested the emperor to retain Zhang Juzheng in office.

Ultimately, this incident ruined Lü Diaoyang's political career, and he died shortly after returning to his hometown.

Su Ze glanced at Zhang Juzheng; this Grand Secretary Zhang was indeed a professional when it came to poaching talent.

Gao Gong's prized disciple, Zhang Siwei, a civil official in the Ministry of Personnel, later also strongly assisted Zhang Juzheng in seizing the opportunity to quell the mourning period.

Su Ze glanced at Grand Secretary Li Chunfang. This Grand Secretary was quiet and inactive, but had superb political skills. However, not everyone could see his "inaction".

In contrast, Zhang Juzheng's methods were much more "effective." He was generous in promoting and appointing his students and disciples, and he did not shy away from recommending them.

Looking at Lü Diaoyang again reminded Su Ze of Zhang Juzheng's methods.

When "non-action" is paired with "active action," it becomes immediately clear how the people below will choose.

After the nine ministers of the cabinet took their seats, Su Ze saw a chair placed opposite a group of seats.

Good heavens, this is even more terrifying than a joint trial.

The only consolation is that at least I have a chair.

Li Chunfang read out the imperial edict, exchanged a few polite words, and then said:

"His Majesty ordered a debate among the nine ministers on the proposal to 'go to Southeast Asia again,' and His Majesty instructed that 'all ministers should debate clearly and thoroughly.'"

“Those who have something to say may stand up and ask their questions directly. There is no need for formalities in today’s court debate.”

After saying this, Li Chunfang sat back down and looked at Su Ze with a mocking gaze.

After Li Chunfang announced the start, the first person to stand up was Cao Bangfu, the Vice Minister of War.

"Su Hanlin, when Zheng Sanbao sailed to the Western Ocean, he had as many as 10,000 sailors. Now that he wants to sail to the Western Ocean again, where will these sailors come from?"

When Cao Bangfu asked this question, the cabinet ministers and high-ranking officials all nodded in agreement.

People are always the most important factor.

Su Ze stood up with a smile, bowed to Cao Bangfu, and then said:

"Young Master, my suggestion is to establish a military examination for coastal defense to select officers who are proficient in naval affairs."

"In addition, I would like to request Your Majesty to establish an academy at the Zhigu Maritime Trade Office to train specialized personnel proficient in navigation, seafaring, and naval warfare, in preparation for another voyage to the Western Ocean."

"As for the sailors, Yu Dayou, the commander of Shandong, is currently training the Shandong Coastal Defense Post."

"Furthermore, Zheng Sanbao's fleet was not as large as it was later when he first went on his voyage to the Western Ocean. The first voyage only required sending a dozen or so ships to search for old news about the mountains and rivers and to find out about the situation of the tributary states that had lost their tribute."

Upon hearing Su Ze's proposed solution, everyone nodded in agreement.

Many ministers breathed a sigh of relief when they heard Su Ze suggest sending a small fleet on a voyage to the Western Ocean.

If it's just a small fleet, the cost won't be too high, and the opposition from the government and the public will be much smaller.

After listening to Su Ze's words, Cao Bangfu stopped asking questions.

As the Vice Minister of War, he actually wanted to know Su Ze's coastal defense strategy.

When it came to reorganizing the coastal defense garrisons, Cao Bangfu was naturally at ease with Yu Dayou, a renowned naval commander.

Coastal defense martial arts examination and maritime affairs training institute of the Maritime Trade Office?

Cao Bangfu was satisfied with these two proposals.

The reason is simple: whether it is setting up training institutes to cultivate talents related to coastal defense or opening up special coastal defense military examinations to select naval officers, these are all things that benefit the Ministry of War.

In the Ming Dynasty, military positions were hereditary, and the only ways to break through the hereditary barrier were a few, such as the military examination.

In recent years, however, the path to becoming a martial arts examination has become increasingly blocked.

After the war against Japanese pirates in Southeast China ended, the success rate of military examinations was almost the same as that of the imperial examinations.

The benefits of military examinations were obviously not comparable to those of civil service examinations for scholars, and the candidates also faced fierce competition.

Historically, by the time of the Chongzhen Emperor, the military examination system had reached its peak, and the number of military positions that the court could actually appoint was extremely limited, so the military examination system was eventually abolished.

If the emperor agrees to establish a special military examination for coastal defense, it would mean that the Ministry of War would have many more positions available.

Cao Bangfu shut his mouth in satisfaction, and Huo Ji, the Minister of War, also nodded slightly. The Ministry of War had passed the test.

After the Minister of War sat down, Pan Jixun, the Vice Minister of Works, stood up and said:

"Su Hanlin, how should we build ships for the Western Ocean?"

Su Ze said:

“Kuwugong wood can be used to build seagoing ships.”

This result was within the Ministry of Works' expectations, and Pan Jixun did not react in any particular way.

Su Ze continued:

"Su submitted a memorial to the Guangdong Coastal Defense Office of the previous dynasty, and the officials reported that the Portuguese had privately set up a shipyard in Langbai'ao and built sailing ships."

Li Chunfang and Gao Gong frowned. Su Ze was referring to a memorial from the Guangdong Coastal Defense Office during the Jiajing era concerning the occupation of Langbai'ao by Portuguese near Macau.

Emperor Jiajing once ordered Guangdong officials to collect ambergris. After Portuguese merchants learned of this, they used ambergris to bribe officials of the Guangdong Coastal Defense Office, allowing them to stay in Macau.

In order to obtain ambergris, Guangdong officials allowed these Portuguese to come to Macau during the day to trade, but prohibited them from staying overnight on the island.

As a result, these Portuguese occupied several islands at the mouth of the sea of ​​Macau, with Langbai Island being the largest. They also built churches, shipyards and cannon factories on the island.

After Emperor Longqing ascended the throne, he stopped the tribute of ambergris. The newly appointed Guangdong officials expelled the Portuguese from Macau, but did not take action against the Portuguese in Macau.

The reason was that these Guangdong officials discovered that the Portuguese had already built large ships on Langbai'ao Island. Learning from the lessons of the Tuen Mun naval battle, the Guangdong Coastal Defense Office dared not rashly engage in battle. However, the Guangdong officials did not dare to be negligent, sending people to monitor the movements on Langbai'ao Island and submitting a memorial to the imperial court for instructions.

Faced with this thorny issue, neither the cabinet nor the Ministry of War could offer any good suggestions, so the Longqing Emperor simply ignored all the memorials from Guangdong, treating them as if they didn't exist as long as the Portuguese didn't invade the coastal waters of the Ming Dynasty.

Langbai'ao also became a smuggling base near Macau, with a large number of people from Guangdong rowing sampans to Langbai'ao Island to trade goods with foreign ships on the island.

Langbai'ao was the farthest shipbuilding base for the Portuguese.

The Portuguese shipbuilding center in the Far East was Goa, India, but after discovering the Far East shipping routes, the Portuguese needed to build ships in more distant places, and this shipyard was built in Langbai'ao.

The sailboat that Langbai is currently building is a sailboat for ocean voyages. The model of this sailboat is the Caravelle, which is the sailboat used by Columbus when he explored the ocean.

This sailing ship was built by the Portuguese in Langbai'ao and used to operate merchant ships on the routes between Japan, Ming Dynasty, and Malacca. It appears in historical records of Ming Dynasty, Japan, and Malaysia.

Su Ze was not sure if there was really a shipyard in Langbai'ao until he found the memorial from the Guangdong Coastal Defense Office, which confirmed that the Portuguese were indeed building ships in Langbai'ao.

Since Su Ze publicly revealed Lang Bai'ao's affair, the court officials could no longer pretend to be ostriches.

Minister of War Huo Ji said, "The Guangdong Coast Guard has reported the matter of Langbai'ao many times, but Your Excellency has not expelled the Portuguese from the island because the Wokou (Japanese pirates) in the southeast have just been quelled."

"Su Hanlin, what does this have to do with shipbuilding?"

Su Ze said:

"The Portuguese seized Malacca, and the King of Malacca appealed to the Ming Dynasty for help, but Emperor Wuzong had just passed away at that time, and the court imprisoned the Portuguese who had impersonated tribute envoys from Malacca and did not help the King of Malacca restore his kingdom."

"The Malacca people, both men and women, have their hair tied up in a topknot, and their skin is black, with some having white skin; they are of Chinese descent."

"Malacca is a vassal state of our Great Ming Dynasty, but it has been seized by barbarians. These barbarians are wolves in sheep's clothing. They have also occupied Langbai'ao and spread heresies in Guangdong, causing chaos among the people."

"In my opinion, the imperial court should retake Langbai'ao."

"The slave laborers at Langbai'ao Shipyard and Gun Factory were mostly brought from Malacca by the Portuguese; they were originally subjects of the Ming Dynasty."

Su Ze's words were already very clear.

Malacca, also known as Malacca, was a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty when Zheng He made his voyages to the Western Ocean.

However, during the reign of Emperor Wuzong of Ming, the Portuguese occupied Malacca and even impersonated Malacca's tribute envoys to pay tribute to the Ming Dynasty, attempting to trade with the Ming Dynasty through a shell company.

After the fall of his kingdom, the King of Malacca fled to the capital and complained to the newly enthroned Jiajing Emperor.

After being exposed, the Ming Dynasty only imprisoned the Portuguese envoy but did not send troops to help the King of Malacca restore his kingdom.

The veteran officials present still remembered this case.
Minister of Works Lei Li nodded in agreement; in fact, he had long wanted to dismantle Western sailing ships.

Contrary to later stereotypes, the Ming Dynasty was both open and conservative.

The Ming Dynasty was most open to foreign technology.

After the Battle of Tuen Mun, the Ming Dynasty quickly realized the gap between itself and Western cannons and immediately began to introduce breech-loading cannons.

Later, the Ming Dynasty witnessed the power of the Hongyi cannons and began to imitate and manufacture cannons themselves, and even spent money to buy cannons from the Dutch.

This exchange reached its peak at the end of the Ming Dynasty, with Emperor Chongzhen even commissioning Western missionaries to compile a new calendar.

The insightful people of the Ming Dynasty actually saw the gap in shipbuilding technology after the Battle of Tuen Mun.

Fujianese treasure ships were superior to Western sailing ships in coastal transport, but in terms of warfare and ocean exploration, Western sailing ships were still more advanced than Ming Dynasty ships.

But ships are not cannons; they cannot be disassembled for research.

Shipbuilding requires qualified craftsmen and a complete set of shipbuilding blueprints.

Now that Su Ze has pointed out that there are shipbuilding craftsmen and a complete set of blueprints in Langbaiao, the Ministry of Works is naturally interested.

Studying the structure of Western sailing ships could also improve existing Ming Dynasty vessels, which naturally tempted Lei Li.

But Rayleigh asked:

How can we get the Portuguese to hand over the blueprints?

Su Ze said:

"It's actually quite simple. We just need to open up Guangzhou as a treaty port and allow the Portuguese to trade legally, in order to force them to withdraw from Langbai'ao and hand over the shipyard to the Ming Dynasty."

"As for the Portuguese who occupied Malacca, we will discuss it after the fleet sails to the Western Ocean and surveys the local situation."

Lei Li nodded, saying that exchanging the return of Langbai'ao for trade rights with the Portuguese was not a losing proposition.

Moreover, the court officials were well aware of the many underhanded tactics the Portuguese had employed in order to trade with the Ming Dynasty.

If we allow them to trade in Guangdong, they'd probably be willing to negotiate not only the return of Langbai'ao, but even the return of Malacca.

The Portuguese embarked on the Age of Exploration in search of a sea route to the East.

There was no other way; Eastern silk, tea, and ceramics were unique goods in the world, and shipping them back to the European continent yielded huge profits.

The Portuguese went to great lengths to trade with the Ming Dynasty, impersonating tribute envoys and bribing coastal defense officials. They were willing to do anything to buy goods from the Ming Dynasty.

Isn't it just about giving up the Australian outback?
The technology for building sailboats was also no secret in Europe.

In Europe at that time, there was no concept of counter-espionage or technological secrecy.

Shipbuilding technology and nautical charts can be published freely.

In Europe, sailing ships were copied from the Portuguese by the Spanish, the Dutch by the Dutch, and the British by the Dutch.

Lei Li nodded and sat down. Maritime trade had already begun, and in fact, some Portuguese had already gone north to trade.

Anyone with eyes to see knows that the opening of Guangzhou as a treaty port was inevitable. Why not use it to exchange for Langbai'ao and the shipbuilding technology of the Portuguese?

The Ming Dynasty had no shame in learning foreign technologies.

The Ministry of Works is satisfied.

Some ministers who were initially eager to take the lead also calmed down.

Su Ze is unconventional in his approach to things and always manages to come up with solutions in unexpected ways.

Those ministers who harbored the intention to make things difficult for Su Ze also decided to suspend their questions.

At this moment, Wang Shizhen of the Court of State Ceremonial stood up.

"Our dynasty is generous in giving but stingy in receiving, with the gifts exchanged being more valuable than the tributes we offer. This led to the Chenghua Emperor prohibiting excessive tributes from overseas, and there were even cases of merchants posing as tribute envoys to arbitrarily present gifts and deceive the court into giving them rewards."

“Su Hanlin, if this continues, paying tribute will become a burden.”

Su Ze glanced gratefully at Wang Shizhen. This was an issue that Su Ze had discussed with Wang Shizhen yesterday through Shen Yiguan. In fact, Wang Shizhen was passing on a message to Su Ze, asking him to express his views in public.

Su Ze cleared his throat, bowed to Wang Shizhen, and continued:

"All tributes from vassal states go into the imperial treasury. According to the memorial 'Respectfully Presenting the Clarification of Finances to Demonstrate the Wise Governance' approved by His Majesty, the return gifts from tribute should also all come from the imperial treasury."

(End of this chapter)