Chang Feng was confused and puzzled: "The Japanese pirates know the situation of coastal cities better than our Ming army ourselves? Why?"
You Tianjue explained: "I just asked the general what is a real Japanese and what is a false Japanese?"
"The so-called real Japanese are just as the name suggests. They are real Japanese bandits."
"The fake Japanese are pirates, smugglers, and gangsters from the Ming Dynasty."
Chang Feng was surprised: "You mean, there are Han Chinese among the Japanese pirates?"
You Tianjue said: "Yes. And the number far exceeds that of the real Japanese. They are Han people, so they naturally understand the conditions of each city."
Chang Feng asked: "Just now you said that the ones chasing us should be real Japanese, how can you judge?"
You Tianjue said: "The boats that the envoys are riding on are three-hundred-seat boats. Only high-ranking officials of the imperial court can ride on them."
"And the ship's mast is also hung with the imperial flag of 'On an errand.' It looks like an official ship at first glance."
"If it were Han Chinese pretending to be Japanese, they would never attack official ships."
Material is a unit of measurement used in the Ming Dynasty to calculate the displacement of ships. Zheng He's treasure ship during the Yongle period could cost up to 2,000 pieces of material.
Chang Feng asked: "Are the fake Japanese so knowledgeable? Can they still distinguish between official ships and civilian ships?"
"Aren't they just a bunch of illiterate pirates?"
You Tianjue patiently explained: "That's a mistake. What the fake Japanese are doing is not robbery to make a living, but smuggling."
"Their bosses behind the scenes are the gentry of all sizes in the southeast!"
"The people who do the dirty work for the gentry naturally have some knowledge."
In the past, Chang Feng only ransacked homes in the capital and had never been to the southeast coast.
You Tianjue's words shocked him greatly. To use the words of later generations to describe it, it would simply destroy all three views.
Regardless of whether they are real or fake, they are all considered Japanese pirates. Behind the Japanese pirates stood the gentry from the southeast?
Yang Tinghe interjected from the side: "I have heard a little bit about this. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, private and overseas trade has been strictly prohibited."
"This has led to huge profits from coastal smuggling."
"Many gentry in the southeast privately support desperadoes and sell their private goods to the Japanese."
"These desperadoes are getting closer and closer to the Japanese. In order to remove the suspicion of smuggling from the gentry, they simply joined forces with the Japanese."
"In this way, even if smuggling is reported, it is the work of Japanese pirates. It has nothing to do with the gentry."
You Tianjue said: "It's good to be knowledgeable. That's right. Han Chinese fake Japanese usually do things like robbing homes and houses with real Japanese. But they mainly smuggle for profit."
"There's a literary saying about it. Oh yes, it's about attracting Japanese invaders."
You Tianjue ordered a hundred households to closely monitor the movements of Japanese pirates. Then he followed Chang Feng and Yang Tinghe down the city wall.
You Tianjue set a table of wine to calm everyone down.
Li Guang exclaimed: "With the enemy in front of us, who can still think about drinking?"
You Tianjue explained: "My father-in-law, we will see this kind of scene more often. Although the Yongning Guards don't have many defenders, they are all brave. The city is impregnable."
"Please, father-in-law and all of you, please feel free to drink."
Huotoujun prepared several dishes and a pot of wine. Naturally, there can't be any Confucian banquet in the acropolis. It's just side dishes and wine.
Chang Feng said: "We are on an imperial mission. We are going to Nanhai Jinghao. Can You Zhenfu send troops to escort us?"
You Tianjue said: "When the Japanese pirates on the beach disperse, we will eventually send someone to escort the sergeants south."
"We can't leave now. The Japanese pirates haven't dispersed yet, and I'm afraid they might intercept the sergeants on the way. It's safer to stay in the city."
At night. Changfeng couldn't sleep and climbed up to the Acropolis wall.
Yang Tinghe was also watching the enemy's situation on the city wall.
Chang Feng said: "Mr. Yang, I heard for the first time that 70% of the Japanese pirates are Han. And they also have the support of the gentry behind them."
"Those southeastern gentry all claim to have read the books of saints and sages. How could they do such a heinous act of betraying the country?"
"Also, why didn't anyone tell this emperor and all previous emperors the truth? The Jin Yiwei has at least five thousand eyes and ears in the southeast!"
Yang
Tinghe sighed and said, "Alas, not all people who have read books are good people. There are even some people who are not bad in nature. After reading books, they have gained fame and status, but they have become bad people."
"For profit, what can't they do?"
"The gentry in the southeast all have countless backers, large and small, in the court. When it comes to interests, there is no escape from the word 'intricately entangled.'"
"Do you dare to say that the big officials in the capital haven't benefited from the coastal smuggling trade?"
"Without the connivance and protection of the capital officials and local officials, how could those gentry have the courage to collude with Japanese pirates?"
Chang Feng said: "But why has no one reported the situation in the southeast to the past emperors and the present emperor?"
Yang Tinghe smiled slightly: "How can Chang Qianhu conclude that the previous emperors and the present emperor did not know about this matter?"
"In the final analysis, it still comes down to 'the law does not punish the public.'"
"Half of the imperial court's fiscal revenue is in the southeast. The gentry control the wealth lifeline of the southeast."
"Once the court investigates this matter, it will be like pulling out the carrot and bringing out the mud. The southeast will be in chaos, and the court will be in chaos."
"The Japanese pirates in the southeast are just a skin disease. The Mongolians in the north are a serious problem."
"If the southeast is in chaos, the imperial court's finances cannot make ends meet, and the military in the north cannot sustain its pay. The Tatars and Oaras invade the south... To put it bluntly, the country is in danger of subjugation."
Chang Feng said: "You mean that all the previous emperors have always turned a blind eye to the evil things in the southeast?"
Yang Tinghe nodded slightly.
Chang Feng said: "But if you continue to indulge in this way for a long time, aren't you afraid that the Japanese invasion in the southeast will snowball like a snowball, getting bigger and bigger until it becomes a serious problem?"
Yang Tinghe sighed: "That is something for future generations to consider."
The next day.
Suddenly more than a dozen Japanese boats appeared on the sea. The Japanese reinforcements have arrived! The total force reached two thousand! Moreover, the Japanese pirates removed the siege ladder and city pillars from the ship.
Changfeng looked from afar. There were also many Japanese pirates standing on their original boat. It seems that Japanese pirates looted a ship last night.
That doesn't matter. The Poseidon Pearl and the sacrificial objects have been transferred to Yongning Acropolis. There was nothing of value left on the ship.
You Tianjue remained calm and composed. On the one hand, he sent a messenger to request reinforcements from the nearby Gaopuwei and Chongwuwei. On the other hand, strengthen vigilance.
Suddenly, a Japanese pirate came to the city on horseback.
The Japanese pirates did not speak poor Japanese-sounding Chinese, but authentic Hokkien.
The Japanese pirate shouted: "The adults in the city have listened! We are the troops under the command of Tokichi Hachiro."
"Lord Dongji said that he is compassionate and does not want to break into the city and start killing people!"
"You just need to hand over the Poseidon Pearl. Lord Tokichi will let you go, and we will all evacuate!"
Chang Feng was shocked: The Japanese pirates actually knew that the Sea God Pearl was in our hands? You want this thing by name?
Could it be that the attack at sea was not a sudden encounter, but that the Japanese pirates had already planned it?
Their purpose is to snatch the Sea God Pearl?
The sea is vast. How did they happen to intercept our boat?
Could it be...that a concubine leaked the route?
