In fact, Zhu Cihong had some confidence in conquering the Jaffna Kingdom.
Part of the reason lies in the support of the Portuguese, and the other part lies in the current strength of the Yan army.
Although the Yan army only has 300 people, it has more than a hundred muskets. The small Mannar Peninsula is completely insufficient, and the territory it controls has reached two hundred miles.
Therefore, some troops were sent to attack this time, firstly to plunder wealth, and secondly to expand the territory and increase more tribal tributes to deal with the Portuguese trade.
Interests are forcing the Kingdom of Ceylon to move forward.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, the Portuguese are here again."
Just when Zhu Cixiang was feeling sad, a call suddenly came from the distance.
He took a look, and sure enough a sailboat appeared on the sea.
"What's the rush?" Zhu Cixiang scolded him, and his little nephew lowered his head in aggrieved manner.
With that said, he walked briskly down the castle and arrived at the dock.
A rough-looking sailboat was docked at a simple pier.
"Zhu, my King, I wonder if you have any other good things? I have brought you something satisfactory this time."
The bearded captain came down and muttered:
"You probably have no stock of ivory."
“Guaranteed to leave you satisfied.”
Zhu Cixi said loudly, with confidence written on his face.
The bearded man was startled, and immediately followed suit.
Bearded John could not look down upon the Kingdom of Ceylon, which had only 2,000 citizens, but he did not dare to look down upon it.
Regardless of the fact that it comes from the powerful Eastern Empire, just saying that it has an independent writing and can use muskets is enough for people to take it seriously.
The two walked away.
Passing through a salt field, dozens of people were boiling seawater continuously, while another group was cutting firewood and hauling it in an orderly manner.
Bearded John didn't care about this. Countries by the sea never lacked salt, especially those engaged in sea trade.
After walking hundreds of steps, the group came to a cliff that was more than ten feet high and looked extremely steep.
There are rocks everywhere on the beach, and the waves are crashing quite fiercely.
"You go on and watch."
Seeing that John was impatient, Zhu Cixiang said with a smile.
Sure enough, in less than a moment, several "mermaids" in simple clothes emerged from the sea and then came ashore.
A fishing net bag could be vaguely seen in their hands, filled with shellfish.
At this time, several women hiding at the bottom of the cliff quickly removed the shells.
Afterwards, 'mermaids' came ashore one after another, both male and female, with men accounting for the majority, about seventeen or eighteen people. Without exception, they all carried fishing nets.
The shells were left to the women to work on, and they just rested.
"Let's go and take a look." Zhu Cixiang smiled casually.
Bearded John is getting more confused. Is it possible to fish for gold at the bottom of the sea?
When we got off the cliff, we saw buckets of pearls, some big and some small, arranged according to color and size.
John's eyes widened at this time: "Damn, my God, is this a pearl? Look at the color, it's outrageously red, more beautiful than €."
Pearls are a common currency in the world, whether in Europe, India, or East Asia. They are very popular, especially large pearls, which are even rarer.
After looking around, John regretted: "It's really too little to have such a pile of shells."
"Don't worry, John, I have it in stock here."
Zhu Cixi smiled.
At this time, the relationship between the two became closer and closer, and Pearl was the glue between them.
Dozens of kilograms of round pearls made Bearded John extremely satisfied: "My Majesty, I am willing to exchange a pound of silver for an Arova pearl."
Zhu Cixiang frowned.
Having been in trade for a long time, he naturally knew the Portuguese weight units.
Arova is equal to about eighteen catties (Ming Dynasty), while one mark is only about six taels (Ming system), with a difference of nearly fifty times.
"impossible."
Zhu Cixiang rejected it flatly: "Unless you exchange it for gold, one mark of gold can be exchanged for one mark of pearls."
John's head was spinning like a windmill at this time: "It's impossible, I'm so at a loss."
The two refused to give in to each other and started to quarrel.
Zhu Cixiang was born as a prince and had been among the people for more than ten years. He knew the price of pearls very well.
A pearl measuring three and a half cents (one divided into three millimeters in diameter) is worth more than one tael of silver.
And the value of a piece that is more than six points and is very round cannot be obtained without six or seven hundred taels.
Of course this is in Beijing, it would be cheaper if it was on the beach.
In India, a place that loves gold jewelry, the price of pearls will be even higher.
John's attempt to use weight to ignore size and directly deceive him was completely unsuccessful.
As a last resort, the two reached an agreement:
For pearls worth less than three and a half cents, five marks (six taels) were exchanged for one mark of silver.
Three and a half to six cents, one mark for one mark.
Over six centimeters (two centimeters in diameter), one is worth half an Avaro silver.
If it is eight points (diameter 64) or more, one Avaro will be exchanged for one.
In other words, a pearl worth about six cents is sold for one hundred and forty taels of silver; a pearl worth about eight cents is sold for two hundred and eighty taels.
Compared with the market price, Zhu Cixiang was selling it at a discount of 20 to 30%.
And John only needs to travel around Goa and travel for a few days, and he can make two or three times the profit. It can be said to be a huge profit.
After months of accumulation, Zhu Cixiang exchanged ten thousand taels of silver on paper.
After being satisfied, John held out his belly and said, "My king, this is a gift I have brought you. I guarantee you will like it."
After saying that, the two returned to the dock.
At this time, a cannon appeared in front of him.
"This is a three-pound cannon. Considering your relationship, I only charge you one thousand taels of silver, which is an advantage for you."
John said boldly.
Zhu Cixiang liked it quite a lot, but was extremely uncomfortable with the price.
Good guy, a three thousand kilogram red artillery in the Ming Dynasty only cost three to five hundred taels. Your artillery can support several hundred kilograms, and one hundred taels is too expensive.
Naturally, he didn't want to be taken advantage of. There was still a long time to come, but he couldn't let it be at his mercy.
In the end, Zhu Cihong bought it for eight hundred taels.
Immediately, using the 10,000 taels of quota, Zhu Cixiang bought 20 taels of matchlock guns and 2,000 jins of gunpowder.
The rest of the ironware, cloth, shoes and socks, etc...
In the end, there were still two thousand taels left.
John kept urging.
Zhu Cixiang was unmoved. He raised his head and said, "I need a craftsman, Mr. John."
"The blacksmith, the carpenter, the potter, even the shipwright."
"Easy to say." John narrowed his eyes: "One hundred taels of silver per person, I will bring it to you next time."
"No, twelve."
"Your Majesty, this business can no longer be continued..."
"You are too treacherous."
In the end, each person made a deal of thirty taels.
"Then ten blacksmiths, ten carpenters, and ten shipbuilders."
"Where's the rest? My king." John couldn't wait to ask.
"I need Han people."
Zhu Cixiang stared into John's eyes, took a closer look and said, "A Han Chinese who can speak Chinese."
"This is India, my lord."
John smiled bitterly, spreading his hands with helplessness on his face.
"To the East Indies."
Zhu Cixi vaguely remembered that the fleet passed by the East Indies on the way. That Java Island was extremely prosperous and should have everything.
"I remember there were quite a few Han Chinese there."
"One hundred taels of silver."
John the Lion opened his mouth.
"Fifty taels for young and middle-aged men and women; only twenty taels for children and old people."
"If there is a craftsman or scholar, I will give you one hundred taels."
"Deal." John nodded in agreement.
The East Indies are not far from India and cannot be visited even once.
Besides, these pearls cannot be sold at high prices in India, so you can go to East India to see them.
Such an expensive price was also intentional for Zhu Cixiang.
The price is low, maybe people don't care anymore, and they don't feel bad if some die on the road, but for the Kingdom of Ceylon, Han people are the rarest.
A Han man who marries two or three local women can directly win over three Tamil families with about twenty people.
Only if there were a thousand strong young men could Zhu Cihong dare to attack the Jaffna Kingdom.
This is not because there are not enough troops, but because the Han people in Yanbao, as well as the Zhu family, will all be integrated into the indigenous people.
This was unacceptable to him.
A few days later, all the craftsmen arrived.
At this time, the Kingdom of Ceylon began to make paper, build and repair weapons, manufacture looms, and pottery, and various handicrafts began to develop.
The development of handicrafts and agriculture allowed a small kingdom to take shape.
…
Songjiang Mansion.
Zheng Sen took the train and arrived at this prosperous city from Suzhou.
With the opening of customs in Songjiang Prefecture, goods from the entire Jiangsu Province are concentrated here for export.
Tea from Anhui and porcelain from Jiangxi also traveled down the Yangtze River and came to Songjiang Prefecture.
It can be said that the place is densely populated, crowded and prosperous.
"Smoke willows paint bridges, wind curtains are green, and there are hundreds of thousands of homes."
As soon as he stepped into Songjiang, Zheng Sen couldn't help but start chanting lyrics.
At this time, Songjiang Prefecture was already one of the top counties in the entire Ming Dynasty.
Without mentioning anything else, it is beyond everyone's expectation to say that its tax revenue is equal to that of Suzhou and even slightly exceeds it.
According to Songjiang Prefecture's own estimation, if the foreign population is included, Songjiang City has accommodated nearly 600,000 people.
If the outer city is not expanded, it will simply not be built and the people will be allowed to build houses near the city.
Zheng Sen was invited to a banquet by the civil and military officials of Songjiang Prefecture, and he gave up after being extremely drunk.
The next day, he came to the dock with his entourage.
"Hey, there are actually Yi people in Songjiang Mansion." Zheng Sen was quite surprised.
The butler on the side said: "Master, wherever the customs is located, Xiyi will be allowed to move and live. Songjiang Prefecture's customs is huge, which is normal."
Zheng Sen nodded slightly.
The development of Songjiang Mansion was so unexpected that the imperial court was also caught off guard.
At the dock, several warships have been docked for a long time, and another large ship is located among them, looking very small.
The butler smiled and said: "Master, this boat was specially chosen for you. It is spacious and bright. The most important thing is that it can run very fast. No ordinary ship can catch up with it."
Zheng Sen chuckled and said, "Master Hou is really thoughtful."
This time he went south, naturally not for fun, but to take office in Luzon as the governor of Luzon.
It has been nearly nineteen years since he became a Jinshi in the first year of Shaowu. He has also passed the age of forty and is heading towards fifty.
Until this time, he had been tossed back and forth from the local to the central government several times, and now he was released as a feudal official.
From the left minister of the Ministry of Justice to the governor of Luzon, they were all third-rank officials.
But it can be expected that once he returns to Beijing, he will further become the eight ministers, or even directly join the cabinet.
At the age of forty-three, he holds the position of governor. It is not an exaggeration to say that he is young and promising.
With his moral integrity perfected, Zheng Sen no longer complained so much about going overseas to Luzon.
The wives and children are very satisfied with the spacious and comfortable boat. The specially modified room is not only spacious, but also has all kinds of food, drinks and entertainment, which is extremely convenient.
There are no less than two hundred books in the collection alone.
The luxury of the Zheng family is fully reflected in this aspect.
The ship that could originally accommodate five or six hundred people now only holds about a hundred people, with only thirty or forty sailors, and the rest are maids and servants.
Under the escort of the navy, the group arrived at the capital of Luzon: Zhenhai City without any danger.
The salty waves are blowing, but they can't blow away the prosperity of Luzon.
Just the precious woods on Luzon Island, such as huanghuali, rosewood, mahogany, etc., are enough to support thousands of people and a large number of timber merchants.
Not to mention the sugar industry, shipbuilding industry, tobacco, cotton, cinchona, etc., they have also made great achievements.
Of course, the Philippines also served as a transit point at this time, and was the third expansion of the Europeans' settlement when they came to Asia.
The first and second stops were Goa in India and Batavia in East India respectively.
Luzon Governor Jin Bao and other civil and military personnel greeted him at the dock.
What surprised Zheng Sen was that there were a few blue-eyed Xiyi among the team, which was strange.
However, he also understood that Luzon was overseas after all, and it was a normal move to appoint Xiyi.
Needless to say, there was a banquet. After Jin Bao stayed in Luzon for a few days to handle matters, he couldn't wait to leave and return to Beijing.
In the past ten years in Luzon, Jinbao worked hard and achieved great results, so the emperor rewarded him. He was promoted to Minister of Finance and was in charge of the Ming Dynasty's taxation. It can be said that he was in a high-power position.
Some of the remaining chief envoys, academic administrators and other officials returned to Beijing to report on their duties and were promoted, and some were replaced one after another. They were basically old people from Luzon, ensuring the stability of Luzon.
The new chief envoy was replaced by the inspector-general. He reported to the new governor Zheng Sen with excitement:
"Under the jurisdiction of the Luzon Governor's Mansion, there are a total of 19 counties and about 200 small and large towns, Zhenhai, and nearly 500,000 people under its jurisdiction."
"Among them are 350,000 native people, 100,000 Han people, and 50,000 Western Yi people. Overall, it is considered stable."
Zheng Sen said softly: "There are five thousand infantrymen alone and three thousand navy troops. How can we be safe?"
Spreading out the eucalyptus slip, Zheng Sen rubbed his temples. The situation in Luzon was not optimistic.
The huge Luzon Governor's Palace looks domineering, but in fact it only occupies less than 30% of Luzon Island, and the rest is occupied by native people.
Therefore, Luzon is developing and fighting at the same time, which can be said to be very busy.
The chief envoy did not take it seriously: "Luzon is a barbarian land, and we fear power rather than virtue."
As he spoke, his eyes were quite proud.
Last year, Luzon paid 3 million in taxes and paid 1 million to the court, so this year's officials will be promoted one by one.
Zheng Sen naturally understood the source of his pride. Unexpectedly, he shook his head and said: "Education is also fundamental. I am a student in Luzon, but I can't even get a Jinshi!"
The chief envoy was speechless for a moment and lowered his head.
The Luzon Governor's Mansion, like Mobei, has a very low presence among the people. Therefore, there is no mention of the two Beijings, two Mongolians, two generals, and twenty-two provinces in the popular folk sayings.
At the same time, in terms of imperial examinations, Luzon and Mobei were both directly under Beijing. They could only produce talents locally. The provincial examinations were taken in Beijing and they participated in the Shuntianfu Township Examination.
Mobei was fine, his writing style was close to nothing, but Luzon was unlucky. The pressure of competition was too great, and there was no harvest.
