Emperor Jiajing was sitting high on the throne, looking down at Pires and his party.
Below, the Portuguese envoys saluted extremely skillfully. They had practiced quite skillfully while waiting for the emperor's summons.
After all, they were the losers in the war.
Pires took it for granted that their invincible Duke of Goa had just crashed several times in Manga and suffered heavy losses.
These Westerners do not understand the real relationship between the Governor-General of Luzon and the Ming Dynasty. They do not know that the Governor-General of Luzon and their Indian Governor are completely different things. The Governor-General of Luzon has actually broken away from the control of the Ming Dynasty and is equivalent to the local emperor. , while the Governor-General of India was still appointed and dismissed by the King of Portugal.
For Pires, it was the Governor of Luzon under the Ming Dynasty who had just defeated them. Although Portugal could not be said to be a defeated country, it also could not hold its head high.
Coupled with the request, his knees instantly bent and his attitude was extremely humble.
This attitude made the Ming Dynasty monarchs and ministers very satisfied.
As for the Yi people, this is how they express their respect and reverence for the Heavenly Kingdom.
Do you still want to stand and make money?
Pires also presented tributes from the West, gorgeous jewelry, etc. to the emperor, but this did not surprise the emperor and ministers of the Ming Dynasty because there were so many of these things in the Ming Dynasty.
They even secretly despised it in their hearts. Sure enough, it was still a small country, but they still cherished this little treasure so much.
However, the other party's attitude still satisfied the courtiers, and the etiquette was perfect. Neither Yan Yuan nor Yang Tinghe had anything to say.
Emperor Jiajing also showed his generosity by reciprocating the favor, giving them generous gifts and allowing them to pay tribute.
As for trade, there is no need to say much. All vassal states have permission to trade with the Ming Dynasty. Emperor Jiajing has regarded Portugal as his vassal state.
Pires naturally didn't know how their behavior would be interpreted in this way in the eyes of the Ming Dynasty's monarchs, but he was equally happy that he had achieved his goal.
"Dear His Majesty the Ming Emperor, our Duke of Goa from the Kingdom of Portugal offended the Governor of Luzon appointed by you some time ago, for which we express our deep apologies. This was the militant's own opinion and not the kingdom's original intention. .”
In order to win the favor of the Ming Emperor, Pires sold Albuquerque without hesitation:
"I beg your Majesty to forgive us for our recklessness. Now our caravan is stuck in the Strait of Manchuria by your governor in Luzon, unable to trade with your empire. I also hope that you can order them to open the strait so that our Businessmen enter.”
Emperor Jiajing was confused when he heard this. He did not know what happened in Nanyang. After all, since the end of the Seven Voyages to the West, Nanyang and the Ming Dynasty had no other exchanges except paying tribute. It was Pierce who saw the confused look on the Ming emperor's face and hurriedly explained. Only then did he finally get the relevant information.
"You should have been severely punished for violating the territory of our Ming vassal." Emperor Jiajing was also smart and immediately continued what he was saying, but then he changed his tone:
"But because you and other small foreign countries don't know the etiquette, and you know your mistakes, you correct them, and you immediately come to pay tribute and admit your mistakes, I will forgive you."
"The Luzon Governor's Mansion...well...I will ask them to open that, that strait."
Luzon Governor's Mansion, Emperor Jiajing thought for a long time before he remembered this name from the depths of his memory.
It was an official position granted to Nanyang during Taizong's seven voyages to the West, but it was never taken care of after that. In the first few years, they would come to pay tribute, and the governors would come to ask for Ming's approval, but since Xuanzong passed away , Luzon directly cut off contact with Ming Dynasty.
However, since the other party still recognized that he was the governor of the Ming Dynasty, he would definitely obey his will. Emperor Jiajing was still confident in this, and he immediately agreed.
After nearly a hundred years, the Ming Dynasty issued an order to the Governor-General of Luzon for the first time.
The Governor's Mansion did not refuse and readily agreed.
"The barbarians are afraid of power but not moral. However, the elites of the imperial court are all in the north. The soldiers in the southern guard are like peasants. In addition, the generals are on empty pay and so on. When the Portuguese see it, I guess... But if we really If I stand in the way of the imperial court, I'm afraid that I will not be pleased if I try my best."
These are the exact words of the Luzon Governor.
Given the importance the Ming Dynasty monarchs attached to the court's reputation, if they continued to stop Manalajia, they would be publicly losing face to the court, and they might even endanger the Ming Dynasty. Why would they do such a thankless thing?
The navy lifted the blockade of the strait, but the Governor-General also seized the opportunity and set a very high tariff. The Portuguese had to pay the tax if they wanted to pass through here, otherwise they would be expelled. Faced with this situation, the Portuguese They had no choice but to pay taxes in order to go to the country full of gold and silver, which made the Governor's Mansion make a huge profit.
The development of the matter did not exceed the expectations of the Governor of Luzon.
At the beginning, the Portuguese were quite honest. They learned about the wealth and power of the Eastern Empire through "Marco Polo's Travels", and the Luzon Governor's Palace taught them how to behave.
However, after more than half a year of peaceful transactions, they gradually figured out the strength of Ming Dynasty. The Portuguese discovered that the Ming army was far less powerful than Luzon, and even learned that Luzon was not actually directly affiliated with the Ming Dynasty.
At that time, the Ming Dynasty had begun to lag behind the West in terms of both muskets and artillery, not to mention the quality of the army. Compared with the Portuguese army that had gone through long-term colonial operations, the guardsmen stationed in the south were not even a bit behind.
The greed and ambition deep in his bones can no longer be restrained.
Simon, who commanded the escort fleet, continued their usual colonial strategy directly on Chinese soil. He set up a fortress on Tuen Mun Island, and then carried out a series of violations of the Ming Law, such as setting up private courts, human trafficking, and refusing to pay customs duties. behavior, and threatened and robbed businessmen from other countries.
He clearly ignored the Ming Dynasty's laws and regulations!
How could the officials of the Ming Dynasty tolerate these barbarians, whom they looked down upon, acting wantonly on the land of the Ming Dynasty?
They immediately reported it, and Emperor Jiajing was furious when he heard it.
The vassal country invaded the suzerain country, and the barbarians, who had always looked down upon, bullied the people of Yan and Huang!
How can this be tolerated?
Wang Hong, deputy envoy of the Guangdong Ancha Division, was ordered to lead his army to expel the Portuguese army.
It has to be said that the Portuguese army at this time was indeed strong in ships and artillery and had strong combat effectiveness. However, the Ming army was victorious in fighting on the mainland and received support from the local nobles. Each of them received high rewards, including Wang Hong. A capable man, the Portuguese army was immediately at a disadvantage after the initial advantage.
Under the continuous offensive of the Ming army, the armed merchant ships and warships of the Portuguese army were sunk one after another, and in the end only two of them managed to escape.
In this naval battle of Tuen Mun, the Ming army achieved a complete victory.
(End of chapter)
