Ming East India Company

"So, do you know where they are headed?" Luo Sigong asked.

"To be honest, I haven't asked about that, but some of my previous boat captains said they were inquiring about whether there were any sailboats going to Luzon."

Luzon? Luo Sigong became alert. Generally, Ming Dynasty officials rarely went there, and some less competent officials might not even know that Luzon existed.

Clearly, these people are quite influential. If we can get some information out of them, we might gain the boss's favor.

Once he made up his mind, Luo Sigong asked the boss:

"What time do they usually go out?"

The boss thought for a moment:

"Except for the two leaders, the rest of them never go out. There are always people in the rooms upstairs every day."

Luo Sigong felt a bit tricky; these two seemed to be quite vigilant.

"However, it's not certain today. I heard them say that they're planning to go to the brothel next door tonight."

Luo Sigong immediately realized that the opportunity had come, and then instructed the boss:

"Give me a room across from theirs, and let me know immediately if they leave."

……

As expected, everyone in the opposite room left in a large entourage. Luo Sigong noted down the room numbers of two people dressed in official robes and immediately sneaked in.

Luo Sigong had already learned a lot of skills from his time working at the Eastern Depot, and now they came in handy.

Luo Sigong crept under the bed, bracing himself against the ground with his bare hands, holding his breath and waiting for his prey to take the bait.

As evening approached, the two officials, thoroughly drunk, finally returned. The innkeeper, following Luo Sigong's instructions, "thoughtfully" served them supper.

Two plates of salted dried sea fish, a plate of sour and crisp pickled vegetables, and a pot of cheap local green tea. The two men drank tea to sober up while lowering their voices and, fueled by the alcohol, expressing their worries about this trip.

"Commander Yu, you and I have served in Haicheng for many years, dealing with ocean shipping every day. When have we ever seen anything like the Luzon Gold Mountain?"

This rumor is clearly a fabricated story concocted by the mining supervisors in the capital to curry favor with His Majesty and gain imperial favor.

The civil official in his blue cotton robe raised his wine cup, took a small sip of green tea, and spoke in a very low voice, almost drowned out by the surrounding noise:

"His Majesty, secluded in the palace, listens to slander and actually issues an edict ordering you and me to travel across the ocean to find this fictitious treasure. Such an absurd task, yet you and I have no way to refuse it."

The military officer who met his gaze frowned slightly, his eyes sweeping across the deep twilight outside the window, his voice low and solemn:

"What Magistrate Wang said is all true. I have been patrolling the coast for many years and have often heard merchants returning from Luzon complain that the Spanish barbarians who occupy the area have always been suspicious and harsh towards our Ming merchants and civilians. Not only do they impose exorbitant taxes, but they also set up defenses and suppress us at every turn."

Now, as government officials, if we rashly go to prospect for minerals, even if we have no intention of causing trouble, it will inevitably arouse the suspicion of the local people. We might find ourselves in danger as soon as we arrive in Luzon. Moreover, the ocean is unpredictable, with treacherous seas and pirates lurking everywhere; the journey is already fraught with peril.

He paused, tapping his fingertips lightly on the table, his voice filled with helplessness:

"We cannot disobey the imperial decree, and the mining supervisor is pressing us relentlessly, urging us to set off immediately. Even though we know that the road ahead is a bottomless abyss, we can only grit our teeth and move forward."

I only hope this trip will end safely, without implicating innocent people or causing any great disaster.

"Hey, Commander Yu, since we're heading south, why do we have to go north to this Ryukyu first? Wouldn't that be a pointless journey?"

County Magistrate Wang seemed to remember something and asked a question.

"You're unaware of this, aren't you, Magistrate Wang?" Commander Yu explained in detail:

"Since His Majesty sealed Yuegang, merchants from Yuegang can only go out to sea to do business under the banner of Ryukyu."

Moreover, the Ryukyuans had a group of experts who could navigate and know sea routes. With these people leading the way, the probability of ships capsizing was much lower than usual, so major maritime merchants competed to hire them at high prices.

These guides are only available in Ryukyu and are never to be taught to others; therefore, ships traveling north and south must hire them from here.

Magistrate Wang then suddenly realized what was going on, but soon had a new question:

"But as the saying goes, 'Where there's a high price, there's a brave soul.' Since there are experts in this field, won't anyone try to poach them?"

Yu Baihu smiled wryly:

"It's true, but digging won't help. Because these guides are all one with the person. Before each ship sets sail, they have to get some kind of nautical chart from the Ryukyuans."

Then, the Ryukyu guides would go out to sea with the watch. Without this watch, even these guides would be blind. Therefore, even if you recruited them, it would be useless!

"What kind of magical nautical watch is this?"

"You might not believe it, but someone stole the nautical charts of the Ryukyuans, and found that every single one was different. The characters on them were so strange that ordinary people couldn't recognize them at all, and they couldn't even be copied. Isn't that amazing?"

……

The two exchanged heartfelt words, and Luo Sigong, who was under the bed, overheard most of what was going on. It turned out that Emperor Wanli had run out of money in recent years and had sent mining supervisors to open mines at an alarming rate.

Domestic mines were not being exploited enough, and it was said that large sums of silver were flowing out of Luzon under the rule of the Red Hair every year. Therefore, it was believed that there were mineral deposits in the area, so Wang Shihe, the magistrate of Haicheng County, and Yu Yicheng, a centurion, were specially sent to Luzon to search for minerals.

Since Hakuno established the sextant and lunar distance method for navigation, the number of ships coming and going to Naha Port in Ryukyu has been increasing.

Compared to the traditional, unreliable method of using needles and star charts, the navigation technique developed by Shirano is obviously much more stable.

Furthermore, under the command of Shirano, Gou established a unique nautical calendar for Ryukyu through years of measurement.

Each ship employing the Ryukyu navigation service receives a nautical chart for measuring longitude.

Since each ship departs at a different time, the nautical charts you receive will also be different.

In addition, Shirano took certain encryption measures to keep the nautical charts secret, making it extremely difficult for laymen to replicate them.

The current navigators are all "loyal servants" who have been tested by the Bai family for many years and whose entire families have been brought to Ryukyu. The risk of leaks is very low, and outsiders cannot poach them.

As a result of these measures, Shirayokawa established a very strong technological barrier regarding navigation, forcing maritime merchants to obediently purchase his navigation services.

As a result, not only government officials and merchants, but also many private merchants obediently came to Ryukyu to ferry passengers, pay taxes, and hire navigators. Hakuno basically controlled a large part of the Ming Dynasty's foreign trade.

This is also why Wang Shihe and Yu Yicheng transited through Ryukyu.

Meanwhile, Luo Sigong, who was under the bed, was overjoyed. He knew that this was "intelligence" that would definitely satisfy his master.