Ming East India Company

"Because the Bai family is currently in the process of starting a business, anyone who is willing to expand their influence, even an ambitious person, is better than a cowardly crab that stays at home."

Bai Ye raised his head and stared intently at Bai Ling, as if the last sentence was describing her.

Bai Ling looked embarrassed and quickly changed the subject:

"Even so, shouldn't you at least send someone to check it out? Don't you have any backup plans?"

Baiye shook his head:

"I trust those I employ, and I don't employ those I don't trust. I'm not the kind of person who holds grudges."

Shirono gazed out the window at the soon-to-be-completed dry dock and fell into deep thought.

Developing Dongfan was indeed his plan, but he and Bai Kecheng had disagreements on the specific development order.

Shirano's plan was to follow the old path of the Dutch in history, first establishing colonial outposts in central and southern Tohan, and then gradually expanding.

The reason is simple: since it has been successful in the past, we can't go wrong by following the same path.

However, after Bai Kecheng suggested starting from the north, Bai Ye agreed to the suggestion out of consideration for setting an example.

For Bai Ye, whether Bai Kecheng succeeds or not is not important; as long as he is willing to take this step, he has already made a great contribution.

Since seizing Ryukyu, the Bai family has developed a strong "laissez-faire" mentality, attempting to live off the transit fees collected from the Ryukyu trade routes forever.

In this situation, Bai Kecheng is willing to step out of his "comfort zone" and protect the company at all costs, regardless of success or failure.

As for whether it will eventually break free from Baiye's control, that's all up to fate.

After all, even European countries in history inevitably encountered situations where colonies were not under the control of the mother country during the process of establishing colonies. Since history cannot be avoided, there is no need for Baiye to throw the baby out with the bathwater.

In any case, given the historical difficulty of developing colonies, it would be decades before Bai Kecheng could pose a threat to him.

"Master, our fleet that led the expedition has returned." Luo Sigong ran back to report the good news to Bai Ye.

"How were the results?"

"As instructed by our master, this raid also targeted the Shimazu clan, resulting in the capture of over four thousand heads. The report of our victory has been written and is awaiting your review."

Bai Ye examined the memorial submitted by Luo Sigong word by word, and suddenly asked:

"I'm afraid this year's kill count is a bit low!"

Luo Sigong hesitated for a moment:

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"Last year, just over two thousand levels pleased His Majesty greatly; this year we've doubled that number, so how could it be less?"

Shirono took out a stack of official gazettes from the box behind him.

Since Baiye arrived in Ryukyu, in order to prevent information from being blocked, he has been instructing Bai Wencheng, who is far away in Yuegang, to report first-hand information about the Ming Dynasty to him in a timely manner. Therefore, a ship is specially sent to Baiye to deliver messages to Ryukyu every month.

"This is a report on the great victories the Imperial Court has achieved in Korea from last year to this year. Compared to them, do you think we have achieved much?"

After Zu Chengxun suffered a defeat in Korea, Wanli regrouped his troops, appointing Song Yingchang as commander-in-chief and Li Rusong as admiral, and assembled more than 40,000 elite troops to fight in Korea.

Li Rusong lived up to his reputation as a fierce general, defeating the Japanese army one after another. Although he suffered a minor loss at Byeokjegwan, he had generally recovered most of the Korean territory, including Seoul.

At present, Dongyang Jun has retreated to several ports in southern Korea, such as Busan, to avoid the Ming army's advance.

Interspersed throughout this process were countless battle reports, and the number of heads taken by Bai Ye in these reports had already exceeded ten thousand.

"The emperor had never seen so many heads before, so he was happy for our victory and rewarded us handsomely. Now, we're not sure how to explain this to him."

Luo Sigong also realized the seriousness of the problem and was so anxious that he scratched his head and cheeks:

"How about we behead two of the Japanese slaves on the island? Mix their heads with the ones we've already cut off and submit them to the court? Anyway, I've already taken care of the governor of Fuzhou, so he definitely won't be able to find out."

Bai Ye scoffed after hearing this:

"It sounds incredibly simplistic coming from Ambassador Luo's mouth to describe killing innocent people and claiming credit for them!"

Luo Sigong quickly explained:

"Aren't I trying to find a solution for our master? As for the authenticity of the heads... I simply don't believe that all the heads of Admiral Li Rusong and his men in Korea are genuine."

Shironodo:

"I still have a great use for these slaves, so it would be a waste to exchange them for bounty money."

However, I do have a way to please the emperor without having to increase the number of heads taken.

"What the owner says is true..."

"Offering auspicious omens."

Luo Sigong pondered for a moment:

"That's a good idea. His Majesty has been on the throne for over twenty years, but he hasn't really encountered many auspicious omens."

"But Master, the weather has been unusual lately, and Ryukyu doesn't have any rare treasures. Besides, it's not an emergency. What should we offer?"

"Does offering auspicious omens require choosing the right time?"

Luo Sigong quickly explained:

"Of course, since ancient times, the presentation of auspicious omens has varied depending on the circumstances. If it is the ascension of a new emperor, the change of dynasties, or the usurpation of power by a powerful minister, then the requirements for auspicious omens are low. Celestial phenomena such as Mars guarding the heart, the wonder of a stalk with two ears of grain, or even a centenarian can all be considered auspicious omens."

After all, His Majesty only needs to go through the motions to increase legitimacy, so his demands won't be too high.

However, it is very difficult to present auspicious omens during times of peace and prosperity; one must genuinely convince His Majesty.

So far, apart from the few years after His Majesty ascended the throne and began to rule personally, His Majesty has "collected" some auspicious omens.

In normal years, His Majesty has never even approved of an auspicious omen.

Baiye said with a smile:

"No rush, let's go check out Yuntian Port. That whale should be almost dry by now."

Last winter, a whale was stranded on a beach near Unten Port. Shirano ordered that island residents and soldiers be allowed to cut off its flesh and eat it at will, but not to take the bones.

Now, after more than half a year of wind and sun exposure, the whale's flesh and internal organs have been almost completely eaten by people and seabirds, leaving only eerie white bones on the beach.

"Ambassador Luo, what do you think of the auspiciousness of presenting His Majesty with the bones of a dragon?"

"If it were truly dragon bones, His Majesty would be overjoyed, but what we see here looks like nothing more than a pile of ordinary whale bones!"

Baiye laughed heartily:

"Then please let Ambassador Luo see my skills."

Immediately, Shirano directed his men to flip the whale's lower jawbone over and insert it upside down into the skull, then removed any excess bones such as the phalanges...

"Ambassador Luo, what do you think now?"

Upon closer inspection, Luo Sigong saw that after being flipped over, the original mandible instantly transformed into the shape of dragon horns. With the removal of other accessory bones, a "giant dragon" with two horns on its head and a body length of ten meters instantly appeared before his eyes.

Luo Sigong was overjoyed:

"The owner is truly a god; with just a flip of the bones, these whale bones instantly transformed into dragon bones. They really do look just like dragons."

"So, Ambassador Luo, do you know what to do now?"

"I understand," Luo Sigong said, beaming with joy.