In Xiamen at the beginning of the lunar month, the southeast wind is gentle and soothing, and the sunshine near the end of the year is no longer blazing. It shines slantly into the room, leaving a golden-red grid on the blue brick floor.
When Zheng Haizhu and Xu Xinsu followed Zhang Yanke into the flower hall behind the navy commander-in-chief Yu Zigao's office, they saw a middle-aged civil servant in red robe sitting at the head with a peacock on his chest.
It must be Shang Zhouzuo, the new governor of Fujian.
Except for the general Yu Zigao, there was no one else sitting in the hall.
Xu Xinsu and Zheng Haizhu were both white-bodied grassroots people, and they knelt down without hesitation.
Xu Xinsu kowtowed and raised her body, staring down at the blue brick floor, secretly happy.
None of Yu Zigao's generals were present, and none of the civil servants in the Zhangquan and Xiajin areas were seen.
The fewer people in the room, the more it means that Shang Zhouzuo wants to ask about key matters. He is afraid that the presence of local civil servants will make Yu Zigao hesitate and not be able to express his feelings frankly.
It also shows that people who can come in to discuss matters are favored by Shangguan.
Of course, while Xu Xinsu was complacent, she also realized that as a woman, Zheng Haizhu could become a discussant like herself. Obviously, she had been paved with a lot of praise by Yu Zigao and Zhang Yanke, and was also praised by Shang Zhou Zuo. Pay attention.
This second-grade governor didn't even put on airs about drinking tea and showing off. He waved his hand and said: "Get up and sit down. Although you two are neither officials nor officials, nor generals nor soldiers, you have done a great job this time. Especially Miss Zheng, your name is in the newspaper sent to the imperial court by Wang Junmen in April."
Zheng Haizhu was busy and blessed, so Xu Xinsu cupped her hands to express her congratulations.
This congratulation comes from the sincerity of interests. Xu Xinsu knew very well how her identity and origins would make her famous in the court, so she hoped that Zheng Haizhu would receive official recognition. In the future, he would be able to ask her to buy artillery and heavy muskets, or to make friends with her children and nephews.
Shang Zhouzuo put his robe sleeves on the handle of the chair, leaned forward slightly, stared at Xu and Zheng and said: "One of you is a proficient merchant, and the other is General Yu's guest. Don't have any worries, and be with me." Officials tell us why the Hongyi people tried every possible means to occupy Penghu Island before this disastrous defeat. Even though they are old enemies with the French people in Guangdong and Luzon and cannot go to trade, my Moon Harbor in the Ming Dynasty is not there. Do maritime merchants trade with them?"
Xu Xinsu looked at Zheng Haizhu. Zheng Haizhu understood clearly and spoke first: "Master Junmen, the Hongyi people are now more powerful at sea than the Frankies, and their ambitions are as high as firewood. They believe that the pepper from Southeast Asia is Spices, homespun cloth from India, silver from Japan, and silk, porcelain, and tea from the Ming Dynasty are the roots of prosperity in the East and South. If their East India fleet can control these four transactions, they will have nothing to lose. White wolves, without having to transport silver coins from Europe, can carry back rich goods from the East to the South Sea at a huge profit. Therefore, they soon no longer want to go to the Moon Harbor to trade honestly, but want to occupy a place between the East and the South Sea. The strategic point is not only the stronghold of our navy, but also a cardinal place where merchant ships from all over the world are gathered to exchange money and goods. This place is Penghu, or Taiwan."
Shang Zhouzuo sneered: "Well, now, they don't want to get involved in these two places."
He returned to his approachable tone and continued to ask: "Do the Hongyi people really have money in their hands?"
Zheng Haizhu nodded affirmatively: "Yes. Mr. Junmen, tens of thousands of miles east of the Ming Dynasty, across the sea, the Frankies are mining silver in a continent called North and South America. The Frankies of Luzon People use the silver dug out there to buy goods in the East and Southeast Asia. The silver will also be transported to Europe and exchanged for goods in Europe. Therefore, as a country in Europe, the Hongyi people can definitely get silver. Our Ming Dynasty is short of silver. Why don't we trade silk and porcelain with them? It's just that we have to set up our Ming rules for these barbarians. They must either come to Yuegang or go to Taiwan. Under the eyes of our Ming officers and soldiers, we can enter and leave the harbor, and collect silver goods. Both ends; the goods and taxes will be paid according to the actual situation; if there is another evil act of disturbing the people on the border and robbing merchant ships and people, we will not give warnings in advance and kill them directly like this."
With a "ding" sound, Zhang Yanke, who was sitting next to Zheng Haizhu, tilted the tea cup in his hand, touched the lid, and shook out the tea.
Shang Zhouzuo glanced sideways at this junior from a family of close friends.
Zhang Yanke apologized in panic: "This subordinate is rude, I was a little confused when I heard it."
I felt really sad in my heart. When I saw this little woman making firearms in Songjiang, I thought her talk about a strong army to fight thieves was just a way to defraud money and have fun. I didn’t expect that she was serious, and it was only a few years ago. , a grassroots man can already propose to the governor strategies to suppress the barbarians.
Shang Zhouzuo, who was sitting in the seat, was thinking rapidly.
This time he was suddenly transferred to Fujian as governor. Fang Congzhe, the chief assistant who was also from Zhejiang, gave him some advice, and Liu Shimin, a close confidant of Eunuch Wang An, also visited him. Unsurprisingly, the two men gave him completely opposite hints.
Fang Congzhe advocated that Hongyi merchant ships should no longer appear in the Ming Dynasty waters.
Liu Shimin's meaning is also very direct. Long live the Lord still needs money, the more the better.
Zhou Zuo of Shang Dynasty was inclined to Liu Shimin.
Not only because he also knew how short of money the Ming Dynasty was now, but also because Fang Congzhe was accused by the Qingliu people for being suspected of protecting Concubine Zheng. Last year, he also sent Yao Zongwen, a fellow countryman with the same bad reputation, to patrol Songjiang Mansion and even more court officials. Don looked sideways.
It didn't matter that they were all from Zhejiang. Shang Zhouzuo, a Shaoxing native, was shrewd and had a lot of character. He hated being included in the "Zhejiang Party" and he didn't want to serve as a pawn for Fang Congzhe.
Besides, what Liu Shimin meant was what Wang An meant, and Wang An was a big man serving the prince. The courtiers all kept saying "Long Live Long Live", but in fact they all knew that the Emperor did not have many years left to live.
Shang Zhouzuo's face became a little more amiable, and even looked like a courteous corporal. He looked at Zheng Haizhu and said, "If you have anything else to say, Miss Zheng, feel free to tell me."
In the past few days, Zheng Haizhu had gone through the key points of the post-war treaties that he knew a little about, and then added a few more clauses, such as compensation for the damage to the Ming army's ships and casualties, the tonnage of incoming ships, and the number of guns to be carried. Terms such as the quantity shall not exceed the number of doors.
Finally, he added: "Junmen, apart from silver, there are very few goods in Europe that can be used by our Ming Dynasty. There is only one thing. We can ask the Red Yi people to buy some. When the Junmen summons the Red Yi envoys, they can promise to underwrite some every year. This shows my magnanimity towards the Heavenly Kingdom."
Shang Zhouzuo asked curiously: "Oh, what is it?"
"Whale oil," Zheng Haizhu said, "the barbarians in northern Europe are good at catching big fish in the deep sea, that is, giant whales, extracting oil as fuel, or using it for lamps to light up the night. Candles, rosin, and animal oil are brighter than me. It’s easy to use. Whale oil is quite expensive in Europe, but Europeans also regard our products as treasures. We can exchange them for silk and porcelain, so it’s not a waste.”
Shang Zhouzuo nodded: "It's just a few barrels of grease, it's not a big deal."
Zheng Haizhu smiled respectfully and thought to himself, this is not a trivial matter, because whale oil is not only used for lighting.
(End of chapter)
