"That's not right. How does Your Majesty know that I am here to deliver a message?"
But soon, Lu Fang felt relieved. She looked at the envelope in her hand and said silently to herself: "Yes, your Majesty has now become a Taoist. It is natural to know this!"
After figuring out the ins and outs of the matter, Lu Fang handed the envelope in his hand to Jiajing's hands in awe.
Jiajing took the envelope from Lu Fang's hand. After glancing at the signature on it, a look of surprise appeared on his face and he said to himself.
"Hey, it turns out that this letter was not sent by Hu Zongxian, but by Tan Lun to me. Tan Lun suddenly wrote to me. Did something happen in Fujian?"
With such doubts in mind, Jiajing opened the envelope in his hand and scanned the contents meticulously, only to see what was written above.
"Your Majesty, Wei Chen received a letter from Xu Jie not long ago. In the letter, he asked Wei Chen about the whole story of his recent trip to Zhejiang to adjust grains."
"Wei Chen thought about it again and again, and finally decided to inform Xu Jie of your order to adjust the grain supply. Please forgive me!"
"Besides, in recent days..."
After Jiajing finished browsing the contents of the letter, the expression on his face suddenly became stern, and he slammed the table and said in a deep voice.
"This Xu Jie is really impatient. He even dares to investigate such things. It seems that if I don't teach him a lesson, he will not know how high the sky is!"
Lu Fang, who was waiting beside Jiajing, was startled by this sudden change. He immediately stepped forward and asked cautiously.
"Your Majesty, what happened?"
At this moment, Jiajing was not interested in explaining the ins and outs of the matter to Lu Fang. He just handed the letter in his hand to Lu Fang and said.
"See for yourself!"
"As you command, Your Majesty!"
Lu Fang took the letter from Jiajing's hand and began to read it carefully. After Lu Fang finished browsing the contents, he immediately lost his voice and said: "Ah, this... this..."
After that, Lu Fang looked at Jiajing, his face full of hesitation, and asked immediately.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, what are your plans for this matter?"
Jiajing heard Lu Fang's words and after thinking about it for a moment, he immediately gave instructions.
"In this case, you go and ask those Jinyi guards to keep Xu Jie in check. If you have any news, report it to me immediately!"
When Lu Fang heard this, she immediately calmed down and answered in a deep voice.
"As ordered, Your Majesty, I will do it now!"
…
The first ray of sunshine in the morning shines on the waves raised by the sea in the distance, making the sky and sea blend into each other and shine.
The fleet of thirteen treasure ships was arranged in a tight battle formation without any flaws, sailing in the designated direction. The Ming flag hung on the ship was blown by the sea breeze.
At this moment, on the deck of the ship, the fleet's supreme commander, Gu Yan, was observing the situation in the distance with the monocular telescope in his hand.
Not long after, Gu Yan put down the monocular telescope in his hand, and immediately called his subordinates to give instructions.
"Bring me the map!"
"Yes, sir!"
After that, a map drawn on parchment was presented in front of Gu Yan. Immediately, after comparing the route drawn on the map and the signs on it, Gu Yan excitedly asked The subordinate announced.
"According to the markings on the map, we have now reached the vicinity of Tianzhu. Next, we only need to continue sailing in this direction to reach the place named the Strait of Malacca by His Majesty!"
The subordinates on the side were quite excited when they heard this. At least two months had passed since the fleet officially set off.
For the past two months, the fleet has been sailing in this endless sea, and can only rely on the compass to determine the direction.
Since a large amount of bean sprouts were prepared on board before departure, none of the crew members on these thirteen treasure ships showed symptoms of scurvy.
At this moment, a panicked voice was heard: "Sir, five unidentified warships suddenly appeared not far ahead!"
"What, give me the telescope quickly!"
After that, Gu Yan took the monocular telescope from his subordinate and began to observe the five warships in the distance.
On the other side, the commander of the five warships, Nils Rosen, also received a report from his subordinates, saying that a large number of unidentified warships suddenly appeared in the sea not far ahead.
Niels Rosen, who belongs to the Spanish Armada, the purpose of his trip is to go to that mysterious eastern country and start trade with it.
The silk, tea, porcelain, etc. produced in that eastern country have been widely welcomed by the aristocracy throughout Europe. The Spanish royal family, which is notorious for extravagance, is no exception. It is for this reason that Niels Rosen accepted this offer. A mission from the Spanish Crown.
The purpose of his trip was, on the one hand, to start trade with the Ming Dynasty, and on the other hand, to take this opportunity to explore the reality of the Ming Dynasty, to better understand the situation of this eastern country, so as to prepare for the next conquest!
After all, just five years after the new king Philip II took the throne, the national power of the Kingdom of Spain reached its peak. The ambitious new king eagerly wanted to expand the territory of the Kingdom of Spain, occupy more colonies, and spread the glory of Christianity to more places. Far away.
After that, Niels Rosen was seen taking the monocular from the hands of the sailors on the deck and looking in the direction of the Ming Dynasty fleet. But what he saw next made him fear. .
In the distance, thirteen ships with wide crests, high heads and sterns, and blue national flags were gradually changing their formations and lined up in a line. The cannons on board were shining in the sunlight. Underneath, a dazzling light was reflected.
When Nils saw this, he immediately panicked. He knew very well that the fleet on the opposite side was ready for battle!
"Oh God, how could such a powerful fleet suddenly appear here!"
"Even in the Armada, there is no such huge warship. Moreover, judging from the caliber of the cannons mounted on those warships, their power must be terrifying!"
After Niels put down the monocular, he hurriedly called the most experienced first mate on the ship, handed him the monocular, and asked.
"Hey, Danny, can you identify which country's flag the fleet opposite is flying?"
"I don't know, boss, maybe I can try it!"
After the first mate named Danny finished speaking, he took the monocular telescope from Niels's hand and began to look at the Ming fleet in the distance.
"It's really strange. Those ships all have blue flags with thirteen stars embroidered on them. In the center of the flag, there is also a dragon with teeth and claws embroidered. Next to it seems to be the sun...and the moon?"
After observing for a long time, the first mate, named Danny, reluctantly put down the monocular in his hand and reported to Nils.
"Boss, I've never seen such a flag before!"
Seeing this situation, Niels had no choice but to shake his head and ordered rather helplessly.
"Let's use the flag language to tell the other side that we are not hostile and do not want to go to war with them!"
"Follow your orders!" (End of Chapter)
