When the meeting ended, Cao Ke lingered and refused to leave. Gao Pragmatic saw this and knew that he must not understand what he had just said and wanted to get an answer.
Cao Ke's father, Cao Gan, has been in charge of the Jinghua Trading Company for twenty years. He is equivalent to being in charge of almost all the land trade exports of the Jinghua Department and the circulation trade between many provinces in the country. He even manages a large number of Jinghua Department stores. The armed cavalry can be regarded as the core figures in Jinghua, second only to Gao Mo, other than Gao's blood relatives.
Cao Ke's own status in Beijing is also very special. He is Gao Pragmatic's first disciple, and he also obtained the title of Juren a few years ago. Although he failed in the examination, he was still a serious candidate for the imperial court official. It is enough to prove his level of knowledge.
Of course, what is really powerful is the status of "first disciple". The so-called "people around the leader should treat him as a leader" means that as long as he does not commit suicide, very few people in Jinghua dare not take him seriously. And his performance is worthy of this status. As early as when Gao Pragmatic was still the patrol commander of Guangxi, he played a decisive role in quelling the civil strife of the Cen family in Sicheng.
Gao Pragmatic also had high hopes for him. He first trained him to study. Later, after he made it clear that he did not aspire to officialdom, he placed him in several positions for training. After the Secretariat was established, he was assigned the extremely important position of Business Secretary - you must know that as a Business Secretary, he is responsible for both land and sea.
Perhaps it was precisely because the work of the commercial secretary was so extensive that Gao Pragmatic just mentioned that he would increase exports of rice to Japan. Cao Ke immediately discovered that this matter was very suspicious. Even though Gao Pingshi had just "refuted" his reminder with "just do it", he still wanted to stay and ask for details.
This is not arrogance, but responsibility. The teacher gave me such an important responsibility, how could I act in a daze?
But what surprised Cao Ke was that Gao Pragmatic not only kept him, but also Ruan Fuyuan. Ruan Fuyuan seemed to have guessed something, his expression was relatively calm, and he was not surprised at all.
After everyone left, Gao pragmatic waved his hand, asked them to sit down, and then said to Cao Ke: "If you have any questions, you can ask them now."
Cao Ke knew that the teacher was busy with military affairs and spoke very directly, so he did not waste any nonsense. He bowed slightly and asked, "The student just doesn't understand the need to increase the export of southern Xinjiang rice to Japan."
Gao Pragmatic nodded and said: "Southern Xinjiang reported that with the increase in Han immigrants and the increasing proportion of naturalized Han people, the number of newly cultivated fields alone reached nearly one million acres. In addition, last year, the weather was smooth and there were After a bumper harvest, rice production has increased significantly, so much so that reports say the original storage system is very tight, and it is imperative to increase exports."
This is of course a reason, but Cao Ke already knew this news, and he thought this should not be the main reason. Moreover, although one million acres of new farmland may sound impressive, in comparison, this figure is normal and not an exaggeration.
Why? There are more than 800 million acres of cultivated land in the Ming Dynasty! Although Southern Xinjiang cannot be compared with the Ming Dynasty in terms of territorial area, it is home to five major rivers: the Red River, the Mekong River, the Chao Phraya River, the Salween River, and the Irrawaddy River. Almost all of them, especially the downstream areas, are high-quality plains, which are extremely suitable for growing food.
In the past, the local people's cultivation level was not good, and due to other reasons, not only was there a lot of uncultivated land, but even the land that had been cultivated did not perform as well as it should.
Under these conditions, with the large influx of Han people, it is only natural that food production will increase significantly. The reason why the area of cultivated land is "only" increased by one million acres is because the newly influx of Han people have land tax holidays of varying lengths.
In essence, the million acres of cultivated land added last year were probably developed three years ago, and the grain tax was just imposed this year. As time goes by, the annual increase is likely to be even greater in the future.
As for the grain storage problem in southern Xinjiang, it has actually been considered before. For example, large-scale grain warehouses have been built everywhere in major garrison locations, such as Jingang, and construction has continued until now.
Even if last year’s harvest was much better than expected and there was pressure on grain procurement and storage, it wouldn’t be so big that it had to be exported to Japan—if nothing else, wouldn’t it be okay to sell it directly to Ming Dynasty? What's the matter, are you afraid that Daming won't be able to consume it? Therefore, Cao Ke believes that the bumper harvest in southern Xinjiang may be one of the reasons, but it will definitely not be the main reason.
He expressed his meaning in euphemistic words, and Gao Pragmatic smiled: "It seems that you are still very serious about your work. I am very pleased."
Cao Ke bowed slightly, but didn't say much. As expected, Gao Jingshi took over the conversation on his own and said to Ruan Fuyuan: "Shou Zhong, tell Shouxin briefly about the recent developments in Japan." Shouxin is Cao Ke's name, Gao Jingshi chose it for him, and Shouzhong Naturally, it was Ruan Fuyuan's name, which was also chosen by Gao Pragmatic, a teacher.
"Yes, teacher." Ruan Fuyuan bowed, then turned to Cao Ke and said, "Senior brother, Japan has been doing some secretive things recently. There are generally three things that deserve caution."
Cao Ke nodded and said politely: "Please tell me if you are loyal to me."
"I don't dare, I should." Ruan Fuyuan organized his words a little and said: "The first thing is that Toyotomi Hideyoshi has obviously increased his emphasis on Japan's 'Navy Army'. This matter is divided into three aspects. One is that he may have reached some kind of closer secret alliance with the Maori family.
Especially in terms of naval forces, the two naval forces were concentrated in Hyogotsu, and the area began to be tightly sealed, and our people could not get in... However, according to our insider report at the Toyotomi family, Toyotomi, The Maori navy has begun rigorous training there, and they are even modifying their ships. "
"Where is Hyogotsu?" Cao Ke asked with a frown. This was the first time he heard this name.
"Oh, that place is also called Hanakuma Castle. It is located about fifty miles west of Osaka, but the locals are generally accustomed to calling it Hyogotsu." Ruan Fuyuan explained.
In fact, although the name Hyogotsu is not famous, its later name is famous: Kobe. In later generations, Kobe was not only one of Japan's five major ports, but also an important base for Japan's steel and machinery heavy industries, and of course the famous Kobe beef. As for now, Toyotomi Hideyoshi seems to be planning to use this place as a naval base or even a shipbuilding base.
Ruan Fuyuan introduced a few more words, and Cao Ke nodded to express his understanding and said: "What you mean is that I understand, that is, Toyotomi Hideyoshi is considering improving the naval combat capability."
Ruan Fuyuan agreed with this, and then said: "The second is that Toyotomi Hideyoshi has stepped up his efforts to win over the Sea Trade Alliance, which may also be accompanied by infiltration. We found that the Toyotomi family members are obviously more proactive than in the past in cooperating with the Sea Trade Alliance. The Sea Trade Alliance 'connects emotionally', but it is more about liaising with the fleets of noble families.
We have observed and analyzed this through various channels, and believe that the Toyotomi family is probably inquiring about the armament, organization, and combat methods of the Sea Trade Alliance ships. Perhaps in their view, it would be difficult to reach Jinghua directly, so they turned their attention to the fleets of various distinguished families to infer the true strength of Jinghua and even the Sea Trade Alliance. "
Cao Ke narrowed his eyes slightly: "Want to know yourself and the enemy? It seems that Toyotomi Hideyoshi is not a reckless person."
Ruan Fuyuan nodded and continued: "Third, the Toyotomi family is trying every means to obtain more artillery. At the same time, they are lobbying Beijing and other noble families, hoping that we will open up the saltpeter trade - of course, these lobbying are all It was done in secret. It is said that the Narita family received a lot of benefits from the Toyotomi family and made an interesting deal proposal to the Kanto Fleet."
Narita family? Cao Ke glanced at the teacher Gao pragmatically carefully, and when he saw the teacher's face was calm, he asked: "What deal?"
Ruan Fuyuan smiled and said: "The Toyotomi family is willing to 'lease' Sado Island to us in exchange for the Maritime Trade Alliance lifting the saltpeter ban - provided that the sale of saltpeter is opened."
Cao Ke was greatly surprised: "Sado Island? He doesn't even want Tsuruko Yinshan, what a courage!" He quickly looked at Gao Pingshi and asked: "This condition..."
Gao Pragmatic smiled: "Of course I agreed. But there is something you may not know. There is not only Tsuruko Ginzan on Sado Island, but also an even more amazing Aikawa Gold and Silver Mountain - there are both gold and silver mines. And the reserves are huge, but the Japanese don’t know it yet.”
Good guy! Cao Ke was stunned at first, and then laughed: "Toyotomi Hideyoshi prides himself on being shrewd, but this time I'm afraid he picked sesame seeds and lost the watermelon, and he suffered a huge loss!"
Isn't that right? In later generations, Aikawa Gold and Silver Mountain, often called "Sado Gold Mountain", was discovered in 1601 AD. However, in the early 17th century, more silver was mined here than gold, making it the largest mine in the world after that time. A mountain of silver in the Potosi silver mines in Bolivia.
It is said that in its heyday, in addition to 400 kilograms of gold, Sado Gold Mountain also produced 40 tons of silver - equivalent to 800,000 taels. Moreover, this amount was mined based on Japan's productivity at that time. If it were Jinghua at this time, it is estimated that there would always be a lot of improvement.
However, even if the Aikawa Gold and Silver Mountain has not yet been discovered by Japan, the Tsuruko Silver Mountain that has been discovered on Sado Island alone has already produced a lot of silver, plus the Nishimikawa Placer Gold Mountain (also in Sado, which is close to drying up but is close to exhaustion). There are also some output), Toyotomi Hideyoshi was actually willing to give up such a huge benefit, just in exchange for the Sea Trade Alliance to open the sale of saltpeter. The reason is simply obvious.
Cao Ke pondered: "The three aspects are pointing to the same goal. Toyotomi Hideyoshi is preparing to fight, and he is preparing to fight a big battle that consumes very much gunpowder."
Ruan Fuyuan nodded in approval. Cao Ke added: "These three aspects constitute one of the three major events that you mentioned are worthy of attention. So what are the remaining two things?"
Ruan Fuyuan said: "Shortly after the death of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's son Toyotomi Katsutsu, he called himself Taikaku and gave up the position of Guanbai to his nephew and adopted son Toyotomi Hidetsu."
Cao Ke didn't think there was anything wrong with this matter. He frowned and said, "Given his age, it may not be easy for him to have children in his old age, so it seems normal to do this, right?"
"Originally, this is true, but our insider discovered something." Ruan Fuyuan said carefully: "Toyotomi Hideyoshi's concubine, Mrs. Yodo, is pregnant again."
Cao Ke's heart moved, he gasped, subconsciously touched his chin, and said: "It's just a daughter, but if it's a boy, Toyotomi Hideji's status will be embarrassing... …How old is this Toyotomi Hidetsu?”
"Twenty-five years old (virtual age)." Ruan Fuyuan replied, and then added: "It is said that Xiuji is quite knowledgeable and has a deep study of Waka, tea ceremony, calligraphy, and shogi. He also had some pretty good ones before. He has great military success, so he has many fans among Toyotomi's retainers."
This time, Cao Ke didn't make any more comments. Instead, he thought about it carefully, then changed the subject and said, "What about the third thing?"
"The third thing is that after Kyushu Ikaku was pacified, although Sasaki Narimasa was executed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, northern Kyushu was quickly re-enfranchised by him and has now generally stabilized. After that, Toyotomi Hideyoshi first After appeasing the Shimazu family in Satsuma, we started major repairs and construction in Nagoya, and built some large-scale warehouses. Among them, there are all kinds of armor depots, gunpowder depots, grain depots, etc. "
"Nagoya? Where is this place?" It was also a not-so-famous place, so Cao Ke couldn't help but ask.
Nagoya is not Nagoya. This place is in Matsuura County of Hizen Province, which is the northernmost tip of Kyushu Island, facing the Tsushima Strait and the Korean Peninsula on the other side. At this time, the local lord was Terasawa Hirotaka, the lord of Karatsu Castle in Hizen Province and a man with 90,000 shi - this man was loyal to Hideyoshi.
When Ruan Fuyuan mentioned the position, what else did Cao Ke not understand? But he was even more puzzled, and immediately asked Gao Pragmatically: "Teacher, the above three points are enough to prove that Toyotomi Hideyoshi has coveted North Korea and is likely to cross the sea to start a war. At this time, we are open to supplying saltpeter to him , increase the export of rice, wouldn’t that open the door for him to attack the Ming Dynasty’s vassal states?”
"I can no longer control the fact that he wants to attack North Korea, so I can only find another way." Gao Pragmatic did not try to cover up, and said very directly: "Shou Zhong will give you another more detailed intelligence later. There is also a very critical thing in it, which is that as the war in Japan subsided, the problem of too many samurai in Japan has reached a point where Toyotomi Hideyoshi cannot solve it."
Gao Pragmatic took a deep breath and said: "This conflict Toyotomi Hideyoshi can no longer resolve by relying on the original political and economic means. If a war is not launched to consume it, the samurai will rise up and rebel against him. Here Under such circumstances, he can only deflect conflicts, and the war's spearhead can only be directed at North Korea.
He is currently building a navy while trying to win over the Sea Trade Alliance. The former is preparing to attack North Korea, while the latter hopes to use the Sea Trade Alliance's interests with him to speak for him in the Ming Dynasty... Hum, he was not sure at first. I still wanted to fight with the Ming Dynasty, but now I may be frightened by the maritime power of the Sea Trade Alliance, so I have lowered my expectations. "
However, Cao Ke still frowned, and even said in a persuasive tone: "But the imperial court will not tolerate the attack on North Korea, right? If North Korea is captured by him, it will border Liaodong. There are fifty people in Japan. Ten Thousand Warriors, this is too great a threat to Liaodong!"
Gao pragmatic glanced at him and said: "Of course I know this, that's why I want to control all sources of saltpeter in Japan, and use low-priced rice from southern Xinjiang to overwhelm Japan's local rice production and sales system. Do you think Am I just doing it to make money? It’s not that simple.”
He narrowed his eyes slightly and said: "Japan's saltpeter is controlled by me, and how much combat effectiveness it can have on the battlefield is within my control; Japan's rice production and marketing system is overwhelmed by the low-priced rice from southern Xinjiang, which will form dependence.
In this way, when the Ming Dynasty wants to attack him, I only need to cut off his saltpeter, and his army in Korea will lose the ability to attack fortresses; I only need to cut off his rice supply, and Japan's five hundred thousand samurai will die. Chaos (ordinary people eat anything, but samurai usually only eat rice). As for whether there is chaos on the front line or behind the scenes, it doesn’t matter to me..."
"But didn't he build a large warehouse in Nagoya?" Cao Ke was still a little worried.
Gao Pragmatic smiled unconsciously after hearing this, and Shi Shiran said: "But Nagoya is a coastal city and is within the range of our naval guns."
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