Lu Ming

Page 235

You must know that this batch of goods includes the best-selling products such as heating pots and oil lamps.In the city of Guangzhou, where rich people gather nowadays, as long as Master Bai gets the goods, he doesn't need to go out of the warehouse at all, he can sell them at a high price, and make money while sitting at home.

After initially experiencing the benefits of being a shareholder of Nanyang Company, the next two masters went through a series of procedures.This includes not only the two of them, but also the subordinates they are going to take to Nanyang.These people are all selected capable people, and now they are all incorporated into the "security team" of Nanyang Company, which can be regarded as having a reputation.

After all the formalities were completed, the two masters finally got their official documents.

There are two types of certificates.One is a work card with a cowhide cover, which is no different from the later generations. There are also photo names and stamps on the inside page, but due to technical reasons, the photo on the card is black and white.

Knowing that this little pamphlet is a "declaration document", the gentlemen hastily put it away.

The second type of identification is the badge.

The hang tag made of glass, colored rope, thin iron sheet and identity paper is undoubtedly much heavier than the authentic ones of later generations, but the two masters put it away solemnly, without considering the importance of this weird "waist tag" at all. Hangs indecently around the neck, sort of like a dog tag.

Mr. Tang told them that in the future attack on Haojingao, only those with this "waist card" will be allowed to observe the battlefield and enter the post-war Macau as soon as possible.

Taking the day when the two masters bought shares as the starting point, from the second day onwards, there were people who came to buy shares one after another, and the East India Company founded by the crossing crowd was considered to be on the right track.

At the same time, the traversing group, who were well prepared in all aspects, also began to show their fangs gradually.

On April 1631, 4, a group of soldiers from the Ming army, surrounded by soft sedan chairs, entered through the gate of the lotus stem and rushed all the way to the gate of the Macao City Council.

Chapter 543 Envoy Training

The official of the Ming Dynasty standing outside the gate of the Macau City Council was named Zhong Mingsheng.In the official sequence of my Ming Dynasty, since he was wearing a flamboyant grass-green official robe with a quail patch, then this person was undoubtedly an eighth-rank official...to be exact, the county magistrate.

In other words, this middle-aged man with an ordinary appearance and long beard, although he is a sesame official, has a lot of background.Gai's younger sister was married to Huang Ping, Zanhua of the Governor's Mansion of Guangdong and Guangxi.

Yes, Zhong Sheng is Zhong Xiuxiu's brother, the eldest son of Master Zhong in Hangzhou, and the brother-in-law of Huang Ping, the time traveler, as I said before.

To say that Huang Ping is now considered to be the person who has more brother-in-laws among the time-traveling crowd.The family where Zhong Xiuxiu was trafficked when she was young had seven elder brothers/cheap brother-in-laws.After that, Zhong Xiuxiu returned to Hangzhou, and Zhong Sheng and other brothers-in-law of the same family were added.This kind of big family scene with a large number of people once made Master Huang, the only son of time travel who grew up in a family of three, extremely uncomfortable.

As for the real brother-in-law Zhong Sheng, the magistrate of Xiangshan County, who was originally unknown in history, is destined to leave a mark in the history books because of the arrival of the traveler.

In other words, during the period when the Nanyang head office was established and was constantly recruiting talents, the high-level time-traveling forces hidden behind the scenes were not idle.

First of all, through telegram remote command, the cabinet coordinated the pro-Cao faction in the capital and the local conservative forces in Guangzhou, so that a group of letters to expel the Portuguese in Guangdong appeared at the Ming court at the right time, and delivered ammunition to the pro-Cao faction. In the end, the imperial court issued a decree and gave Xiong Wencan, governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, permission to act cheaply.

When the imperial court's decree arrived in Guangzhou in April, it seemed to be calm on the surface, but behind it was a series of intense preparations for war.

These tasks are tedious.It not only includes various preparations for the traversing forces themselves, but also promotes the Guangdong administrative system of the Ming Dynasty to make a difference.The latter point is particularly difficult, as it takes a lot of effort to keep a blob of sludge moving along a given path.

Fortunately, relying on financial resources, technology and management levels ahead of this era, in the end, when the time came to April 1631, the Time Travel Group secretly took care of most of the mess.

The big mouth of Commander Wang Bo at the Baietan Merchants Conference before was actually a premeditated briefing after the finishing work started: the war is about to start, giving partners an advantage of information asymmetry.As for how to take advantage of this advantage... Just look at the boss of Zong Benzong. Ming people just lack the knowledge of hundreds of years later, and in terms of IQ, they are not lacking at all.

After that, of course, it was time for an official ultimatum.Thus, there was the "feat" of my uncle's brave trip to Haojingao today.

Having said that, Mr. Zhong stood in front of the Macau City Council today, and he himself was quite excited.

In the years when the crossing people did not come, as the magistrate of Xiangshan County, Mr. Zhong's life was actually very "busy".Unlike the leisurely and powerless magistrates in other counties, the magistrate of Xiangshan County, because of the existence of Macau occupied by Franji people under his rule, usually sleeps with one eye open-whenever Franji people make trouble, Whether it is a major event such as building the city wall or a trivial matter, it will alarm the chief envoy and the governor level, and it must not be ignored.

However, things are unpredictable.Ever since his sister-in-law got married, Zhong Sheng's life as the county magistrate has been getting better day by day.

First, my uncle followed Xiong Wencan to take office in Fujian.After the two parties established contact, Zhong Sheng realized that he had inadvertently gained a powerful backer.After that, the aunt introduced Zhong Sheng to a new strongman in Fujian and Guangdong.

Later, as this group of strong men recruited security and quelled thieves, King Qin became bigger and bigger and became a pillar of the imperial court. Zhong Sheng was also pushed by the current situation involuntarily, and unknowingly, he became a peripheral official of the "Cao Clan".After all, he was already inseparable from Huang Ping, and the real political leader of the Zhong family's generation was Huang Ping, so Zhong Sheng could only follow along.

It's not over yet.In August last year, Zhong Sheng was pleasantly surprised to receive the news: Xiong Wencan has come to be the governor of Guangdong!

This time Zhong Xiancheng really shook, and even the county magistrate's attitude changed a lot when he saw him.After all, his relationship with Xiong Wencan's family is no secret.In the past, it could be said that the mountains were high and the emperor was far away, but now that the old bear is fondling Yue, that good son-in-law of the Zhong family can reach any official in Guangdong and Guangxi.

This needs to be treated with care: the more this kind of staff is trusted by the big boss and has real power, the more afraid the people below are... If you fiddle with any official document, the people below will be overwhelmed. Walk.

In this way, Zhong Xiancheng spent the first few months of the old Xiong Fuyue happily and leisurely.Until one day not long ago, his good uncle Huang Ping personally called him to Guangzhou City, informed him of the current situation, and assigned him an errand: to deliver an ultimatum to the Frangji people.

To be honest, Zhong Sheng was quite shocked when he heard the news: Is the fight about to start?

As a member of the outlying faction of the Traveling Group and an official of Xiangshan County, Zhong Sheng still has the exact information that some high-level officials know.He knew that the Cao family and Franji were at odds with each other, but he didn't expect that Xiong Wencan was so deeply trapped that he abruptly asked the imperial court for a suppression order to open the way for the Cao family.

Since Xiong Wencan rolled up his sleeves, Huang Ping, who was used to being in close contact with the Cao family, naturally couldn't get away with it.Huang Ping couldn't get away with it, let alone his brother-in-law.

After figuring this out, Zhong Sheng stopped boycotting and agreed with the matter with a nod.After all, his position was originally the most suitable for issuing ultimatums, and he was "one of his own" in Huang Ping's eyes, so he would not lose the chain at critical moments.

Only at this time did Zhong Sheng realize that the relationship between his uncle and the Cao family was far deeper than he had imagined.

Because right after he returned to Xiangshan County, the "Cao family" came to visit him.To be precise, it was a team sent by the General Military Mansion.

In this team, there are not only warriors in charge of military strategy, but also scholars in charge of copywriting. In addition, there are "staff officers" with weird official titles.

Zhongxian Cheng warmly received the visitors.He is very clear that everyone is "one of our own" now.

Next, Zhong Xiancheng was surprised.

He really didn't expect that a simple errand to deliver a letter to the door would be so particular.Master Zhong was a little surprised when he saw the group of people took out thick bound paper and began to explain to him item by item, and then asked various pre-set questions and asked him to remember the answers.

This is the Ming Dynasty version of envoy training.

The training is very detailed, from manners, to the words to deal with various situations, and even how to deal with being under house arrest or detention.In short, what kind of training did the embassy officials who went to take up posts in other countries receive in later generations, and what Mr. Zhong also received this time.

After all these projects were completed, the time quietly came to April 1630.

On April 4, the Xiangshan County Government officially received the official document from Shangfeng.This official document is stamped with the seals of the Governor's Yamen, the Chief Envoy's Yamen, and the Guangzhou Mansion, and it can be said that the procedures are complete.

The county magistrate, who had been greeted before, hurriedly delivered the official document to Zhong Xiancheng himself this time.And told him with the eyes of a hero: I am afraid that my brother is going to Haojingao for a walk.

"It's easy to talk about, my lord has something to ask, how dare I refuse to obey my orders?"

So on the morning of April 4rd, Mr. Zhong left the yamen after packing up, got into a sedan chair, and went straight to Macau City.Accompanying him, of course, was not those treacherous servants in the Xiangshan county government office, but a team of people who had been waiting in front of the county government office for a long time.

It goes without saying that this team must be named Cao.

……

Under the circumstances that no one seemed to be paying attention, Mr. Zhong and his party passed through the gate of the lotus stem, swaggered into the city of Macau, and arrived in front of the city council.

The Macao City Council in this period was a stone building with a Balotte architectural style.

Seeing Mr. Zhong in an official robe get off the sedan chair, and the city council door wrapped in a turban, the dark-skinned Indian guards hurried in to report.After a while, four or five white men in gorgeous silk robes came out in a hurry.

Speaking of which, among the few white people who came out to greet them, Cheng Zhongxian knew two of them seriously.After all, the Xiangshan County Government Office is the government office of the Ming Dynasty that the Franji people deal with the most. After decades, the Franji people have given gifts and bribes to the gentlemen in the Xiangshan County Government Office, so when there are no conflicts on weekdays, Francois can also be regarded as an international friend.

But today is different.

When several international friends came to Mr. Zhong, they found that this smiling man had changed his template today.I saw Mr. Zhong standing on the stone steps in front of the city council, with his hands behind his back and his feet uneven, looking up at the sky with his neck stuck. Those who didn't know probably thought that the old man had a nosebleed.

"Dear Zhong, I don't know where the wind blows to you. Haha, this is so happy, please come with me, today you will enjoy a special, sincere hospitality from the Franji merchant."

It was Andrade, the clerk of the Macau City Council, who spoke the welcome speech in Chinese with a bit of grammatical error.

After hearing Andrade's voice, the trained Master Zhong slowly lowered his neck and left the B mode: "Hmph, I know who it is, it turned out to be Master An."

"Forget it, it just so happens that I know that you are capable of managing affairs." Master Zhong was full of official air at this moment, without any pretense: "This is an official document from the governor's yamen, and it is for you. Master Ander, this is the Have you signed it and taken it?"

At this point, Zhong Xiancheng stretched out his hand, took the official document wrapped in oiled paper from his entourage, and handed it to the Portuguese.

Although Andrade felt something was wrong at this moment, but the matter had come to an end, he had no choice but to reach out and take the official document.

Chapter 544 Home

The establishment of the Macao City Council dates back to 1583 (the 11th year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty).However, at the beginning, the focus of this council's work was not actually Ming.

At that time, an important historical event happened: Chen Rui, the new governor of Guangdong and Guangxi in the Ming court, summoned the chiefs and bishops of the Portuguese people living in Macau, and formally allowed the Portuguese to live in Macau, putting an end to the vague attitude of the Ming court towards Macau.

This was followed by the establishment of the Macau City Council.

Since it is a city council, it naturally represents the interests of the native Portuguese in Macau.In other words, the city council was established by local churches and high-level Portuguese businessmen who have interests in Macau.

In fact, the main task of the establishment of the Macao City Council at that time was not to work with the Ming Dynasty, but to "unite and work together to prevent the Spaniards who had annexed Portugal from coming to share the profits of trade with China."

Yes, the Spanish colonists at that time were the enemies of the Portuguese colonists—although the two peoples had legally become one country at that time, for the Portuguese in Macau, the Spaniards were their enemies.

It's a long story.

Five years ago, in 5, King Sebastiao of Portugal launched a jihad against Moslin in North Africa, but the jihad failed and Sebastiao was captured and executed.

Since King Sebastiao had no heir, there was a succession crisis in Portugal.In the next few years, there were heirs such as the uncle Yinliji and the nephew Antonio in Portugal.However, all of the above were opposed by Pope Gregory XIII.

After that, the Spanish King Philip II, who was favored by the Pope and had the highest priority to the Portuguese throne in terms of blood relationship, appeared.So in November 1580, Philip sent the Duke of Elba to lead the army to capture Lisbon, and Antonio was forced to go into exile.

In 1581, under the pressure of the military and the Pope, the Portuguese Council finally conditionally recognized Philip as the successor to the Portuguese throne and became King Philip I of Portugal.Although the Portuguese still retained considerable autonomy, the two countries were legally united.After that, the Portuguese in Macau were recognized by the Ming Dynasty.

To put it simply, a group of bereaved dogs and people who lost their country, hated Philip I of Spain, and feared and guarded against the Spanish bandits who had just occupied the Philippines, established an indigenous Portuguese city council in Macau to protect the interests of the colony.

The time came to 1623, when the Macao City Council had been operating happily for decades, the Portuguese once again officially obtained the "residence" document from the Ming Dynasty, and at the price of 500 taels of silver per year, they obtained a long-term "lease" legally. "Macau rights.

At the same time, Portugal began to officially send a governor to the Macau colony.

The first Governor of Macau to officially take office in Macau was named Ma Shijialuye.And at this point in time, it is not far from the arrival of the crossing people.

Like the officials of the Ming Dynasty, the governor sent by the Portuguese "court" was naturally not welcomed by the native Portuguese.You must know that at this point in 1623, more than 70 years have passed since the Jiajing year when the Franji people first came here... The indigenous Portuguese living in Macau have multiplied for several generations, and many of them have no He has been back to his mother country of Portugal and is a pure "colonial native".

The Macao City Council, which is dominated by the indigenous people, naturally does not like the governor/imperial envoy sent from above.Therefore, from the first Governor of Macau, the relationship between the two parties has not been very harmonious.The governor's authority was firmly limited to military defense by the native council, and the official residence was also located at the Fortress.In the original history of this situation, it took at least 100 years of evolution to form a pattern in which the later governors were in charge of the military and political power of the colonies.

……

At noon, April 1631, 4, the City Council of Macau.

The council hall with rows of fan-shaped tables and chairs and a lecture table in the middle has begun to take the shape of a mature parliament for later generations.

In the current parliament, there is chaos.About [-] or [-] MPs who rushed over after hearing the news were making noise without grace, and completely lost the order that should have been in the past.

And in the center of the hall, a group of important figures were gathered around a long table, turning a deaf ear to the noisy voices behind them—everyone was listening carefully to the words of a translator from the Ming Dynasty.

This chubby translator in a satin gown is none other than Mr. Niu Xijian, who just swallowed the shares of Zong's Trading Company not long ago.

At this moment, Mr. Niu stretched out his finger, and swipe line by line on the Chinese official document specially sent by his uncle.At the same time, fluent Spanish came out of his mouth, which can be called a simultaneous translation machine for human flesh in the seventeenth century.

All in all, this official document sent by the Guangdong bureaucracy of the Ming Dynasty is quite "special".

The special point is that although this is a standard official document of the Ming Dynasty, it is also written in traditional Chinese characters, but the words and sentences in it are extremely straightforward, not the style of the Ming Dynasty at all... Yes, this is the time-traveling style, that is, The memo mode of later generations strives for accurate text and no ambiguity.

This is a fatal memorandum, or final announcement.It is divided into two parts.

The first part: The "Solution Regarding the Expiration of Land Rent in Haojingao in the Four Years of Chongzhen" drafted by Hufang of Xiangshan County has been approved by the superior department of Guangzhou Fuhufang and Guangdong Zuobu Governor's Yamen: From this year, the Ming Dynasty The Guangdong government decided to take back the land rights in Haojingao and stop leasing it to outsiders.At the same time, the ground rent of 500 taels per year for Frangji people was stopped.

The document clearly states: All the buildings and their appurtenances on the ground of Haojingao are the irrefutable property of the government of the Ming Dynasty, and those who intentionally destroy or damage them will be prosecuted for criminal responsibility.

The second part of the document is about the placement of Franji tenants.

First of all, the government of the Ming Dynasty generously gave Frangji 7 days to find a new house to live in.Here, Manila, Batavia and Banten are recommended in the document.

For those foreigners who cannot leave, the Guangdong government also generously made a promise: foreigners are allowed to apply for green cards and work visas according to the amount of their family property (the above business such as capital verification and certificate issuance is entrusted by the Guangzhou Chief Envoy Yamen to Zhangchao General Military Office) ).

All foreigners who successfully apply for visas will be provided with temporary accommodation in Yizhou by Zhangchao General Soldier and properly settled.

that's all.

When Mr. Niu was sweating and loudly translated the guild, the high-end Macau people present were completely silent.

Before that, the Portuguese who had just received the official document did not actually understand the meaning of the official document.Gein, the few gentlemen present at the time were not familiar with traditional Chinese, so they could only make guesses, plus a little wind from Uncle Zhong.

Even so, the Portuguese felt a strong sense of danger, so the clerk Andrade sent someone to summon the governor, parliamentarians and bishops urgently.

When the congressmen came to the parliament one after another, the superficial meaning of this official document had been translated, which caused a collective noise among the congressmen.After that, the official translator, Mr. Niu, came to read out all the superficial and hidden meanings of the official document in Portuguese.

"Declaration of war, my lords, this is a declaration of war from the Ming government!"

Although there is no murderous word in the official document, it is a declaration of war.Master Niu was sweating profusely, and his last words sealed the situation.

Following Master Niu's words, the most urgent closed-door meeting since the establishment of the Macau City Council began.

First, the current speaker, Laro, will speak.This noble descendant from Lisbon, with the help of Mr. Niu, clearly informed the congressmen and the governors and bishops who came to the meeting: the Guangdong government of the Ming Dynasty, under the impetus of Cao's influence, officially made the most important measures for the Portuguese residents. bad choice.

Yes, as soon as the document was completely translated, the Portuguese executives realized who was behind the document.

After all, the Franji people had lived in the land of Ming Dynasty for decades, and they knew the government of the Ming Dynasty quite well, and they knew that the government could not write such legal documents.

So who can write it?Didn't it say in the official document: Zhangchao General Military Mansion.

The big black hand behind the scenes.

In fact, many Portuguese present, after hearing the shocking news announced by the speaker, had a feeling that the second boot had finally fallen.

In recent years, the Cao's Pirate Group, a force emerging from Yizhou, has already become the enemy of the Portuguese.

From cutting off Japanese trade at the beginning, to monopolizing cross-strait trade, to suppressing the Portuguese forces in Macau, and finally showing their fangs publicly, they made it clear that they asked the Portuguese to leave Macau. This series of changes happened before the eyes of the Portuguese. .

However, the development of the other party is too fast. Whether it is hard power or soft power, whether it is a large gunboat or the position of deputy commander of the Ming Dynasty Navy, all these make the Portuguese have nowhere to say.

By today, the boots had finally dropped.In this official document, the Portuguese can analyze who is behind the scenes from the so-called green card and visa. After all, this is a strange word that appeared in the previous negotiations with the cross-travelers.Not to mention that the name Zhangchao General Soldier has already appeared on the official document.

"So, gentlemen, this is the official announcement of Cao and his independent pirate group declaring war on us, and it has been endorsed by the Ming Kingdom's Guangdong administrative agency!"