The huge Spanish fleet has rounded the Cape of Good Hope and is heading east.
The blond Bishop of Bria, holding a cross in his hand, was praying to a sailor who had just died of scurvy.
Another sailor in the fleet died of septicemia, a sea monster.
As a missionary to the Kingdom of Spain, Bria followed Viscount Sedes as a special envoy to the Kingdom of Spain.
They traveled to the East to formally establish diplomatic relations with Eastern countries on behalf of the Kingdom of Spain.
Mr. Sides returned to the Kingdom of Spain with a large amount of silk and tea supplies.
In particular, one substance called perfume caused shock throughout Europe.
The perfume was welcomed by nobles and ladies, and a bottle of perfume has been sold for one hundred gold coins.
But that pales in comparison to the piece of news Mr. Sides brought.
The great eastern country was undergoing a dynasty change, and a newly rising power calling itself Qin actually agreed to expand trade with the outside world.
They welcomed European merchants to do business in their ports.
You only need to pay the corresponding taxes and will not receive any harsh treatment.
This news immediately caused a sensation in Spain.
The King of Spain personally received Cedes and appointed him Viscount of the Kingdom of Spain.
Let him represent the Kingdom of Spain and formally establish diplomatic relations with the Eastern powers.
Sedes had just returned to Spain and stayed there for only a few days before he was immediately sent to the East.
But his status had become different, and he formally gained official rank and Spanish noble status.
As an ordinary missionary, Bria was sent to Dahua by the Holy See to spread the grace of the Lord.
He is still a little confused until now. He is an unconventional missionary and likes to study some miscellaneous subjects.
The old man who had always been rejected by the Holy See actually promoted him to a bishop and sent him to a new place to preach.
After the fleet passed through Mong Kok, many crew members were targeted by sea demons.
The sailors on the ship were very depressed, fearing that the next demon would find them.
Bria returned to the cabin, made himself a cup of tea, and wrote about his experiences along the way.
When he was a trainee priest, he heard an old seaman praying.
If you drink tea regularly at sea, you will not be targeted by sea monsters like septicemia.
Bria didn't know whether this statement was correct, but for the sake of his own life, he drank tea all the time during the journey.
The Lord's grace protected him and he never showed any signs of illness.
The huge fleet was drifting on the sea, and after a long journey, they arrived in Manila.
Sides was only in Manila for some supplies.
They recruited a translator here in Manila, and he embarked on the journey to the port of Canton.
Bria stood on the deck and soon saw many large cargo ships on the route.
From time to time, he stood on the deck blowing the sea breeze, praying for the safety of the fleet and never encountering a typhoon.
Bria saw a huge fleet approaching their fleet.
The leading battleship is comparable to the largest Spanish battleship.
Bria saw a large number of naval guns on the side deck of the battleship.
His face changed drastically, and he said in horror: "Is this a pirate? I didn't expect that there are such powerful pirates in this sea area."
Their fleet only has a small number of warships, and it will become very dangerous if it encounters large-scale pirates.
Sades saw Bria's horrified expression, he smiled and said: "Bishop Bria, you don't have to worry about pirates.
No pirate would choose to rob a fleet escorted by warships.
This is a warship of Qin's navy. He must have seen our huge fleet and came to confirm our identity.
This sea area is already within the control of Qin's power.
If there is a fleet like ours approaching the territorial waters of the Kingdom of Spain.
The kingdom’s invincible fleet will also be dispatched to check their identities.”
Bria crossed herself on her chest and said in shock: "Lord bless me, I didn't expect that the great Eastern countries also have powerful battleships."
Sides walked to Bria's side and said: "Yes, I was very shocked when I saw these battleships for the first time.
The country we are about to go to is not an ignorant indigenous country, it is a powerful civilized country.
They have battleships and powerful artillery.
China is the birthplace of gunpowder. Who knows how much technology they hide?
I heard news in Manila that the Dutch and Portuguese sent a huge navy to fight the Qin Dynasty, and their entire army was wiped out.
They did not have the ability to make an expedition to the east, so they could only suffer this loss in disgrace.
These people have hated Dahua, and the trade channel with Dahua will be exclusive to Spain."
Bria smiled and said: "Only civilization can communicate with civilization on an equal footing.
If Dahua can be a friend of Spain, their strength will not be too weak.
The friendly side of our Kingdom of Spain is only shown to our friends.”
When Sides saw the Dahua Navy, they had already surrounded their fleet.
The black muzzles of the battleship's guns were aimed at all the ships.
He immediately raised a flag and strictly ordered all ships to calm down and never fire back.
No ship dared to fire back in this situation.
Except for a small number of their fleet, which are official ships of the Kingdom of Spain, they are protected by warships.
The remaining ships were merchant cargo ships, with only a few cannons on each ship.
It's okay to deal with ordinary pirates, but there's no chance of winning against a heavily armed warship.
Sides said to Bria: "Let's take a boat together and explain our identities to Qin's naval generals."
Sides and Bria, with their translators, went to the battleship Qin Shihuang, the flagship of the South China Sea Fleet.
They were received by Lu Yuanshan, Governor of the South China Sea Fleet.
Bria boarded the battleship Qin Shihuang and saw the thick muzzles of the battleship.
He took a breath of cold air. The main gun on the Dahua battleship had a larger caliber than the main gun on the Spanish first-class battleship.
Bria liked all kinds of novel knowledge that emerged after the Renaissance. He knew that battleships could have such a large caliber.
The bearing capacity of the keels of Eastern battleships is much stronger than that of Western battleships.
Could it be that there are unique trees in the east that make the keels stronger?
Bria carefully observed the structure of the Qin Shihuang battleship.
At the same time, he listened to the exchange between Viscount Seides and the general on the opposite side.
Sides said politely: "I am Sides, the special envoy of the Kingdom of Spain. On behalf of the Kingdom of Spain, I want to establish formal diplomatic relations with your country."
Lu Yuanshan said: "This matter is not under our control, our navy will escort you to Guangzhou Port.
There will be a dedicated person responsible for receiving you then."
This fleet has warships and is relatively large in scale.
Lu Yuanshan will not allow them to run around.
The itinerary of this group of people must be monitored by the South China Sea Fleet.
Sides smiled and said: "Then thank you General for escorting us."
After they confirmed each other's identities, Sides took the boat and returned to his flagship.
Bria asked in surprise: "Viscount Seldes, how do I feel that things are going so smoothly.
The generals in the East did not make things difficult for us and directly sent people to escort us."
Sides explained directly: "Of course the two of us know each other, and he knows my identity.
Otherwise, how could it be so easy?
If we are strangers, it will take a very long time just to confirm our identity."
Under the escort of warships, their fleet gradually approached Guangzhou Port.
Sides looked at the busy cargo ships and said with a smile: "This is already the main channel, and we are about to arrive at Guangzhou Port, the largest port in the south.
Guangzhou Port is very prosperous and there are many strange things there.
Bishop Bria, you will be surprised when you see him."
Bria would stand on the deck and look out every day. There was nothing to see in the vast sea.
Only land is the place he yearns for.
On the deck, he saw the faint land and knew that they were about to reach their destination.
Their fleet soon docked at Guangzhou Port.
Bishop Bria saw a group of people quickly boarding the ship to inspect the supplies on the ship.
Viscount Sides explained to him: "These people are officials belonging to the Guangzhou Shipping Department.
Here, you need to pay taxes when buying or selling any goods.
If there is no tax payment certificate, it will be verified by the Shipping Department.
These people will be taken directly to prison.
Here, as long as you pay taxes normally, you will not be extorted by officials."
Merchant ships accompanying them are subject to inspection by the Municipal Shipping Department.
Sides took Bria to Guangzhou Port and stayed in a hotel at the port, waiting for an official interview.
Bria looked at the busy gantry cranes in Guangzhou Port.
A machine emitting black smoke drives the iron hook on the steel frame.
They hooked the bundled cargo from the ship directly to the shore.
A large number of dock workers moved these goods onto horse-drawn carriages.
After Bria observed carefully, he said in surprise: "What are these?
You only need to burn coal to generate such huge power."
Just by simply watching the operation of such machines, he felt that these machines had more potential than that.
Sides briefly introduced: "These are machines unique to Qin, and their names are steam engines.
Not only can things be transported on the docks, these machines are installed in cloth factories.
One machine can drive dozens of looms.
These machines will not tire like humans and can weave cloth 24 hours a day."
When Bria heard the news, her eyes seemed to turn into the shape of gold coins.
"If we get these machines, how valuable it will be."
Sides shook his head and said: "It is very difficult to obtain these machines.
Last time I was in Guangzhou Port, I wanted to spend a lot of money to get these machines.
But no good results were achieved, a lot of money was spent, and not even a broken machine was seen.
Local officials monitor this kind of machine very strictly.
As a permanent envoy here, the Bishop of Bria will also stay here to spread the glory of the Lord.
One of our most important tasks is to learn how to make this machine.
Even if you can't get the physical object, you can still grasp the principles.
This requires the ability of Bishop Bria, and I don't understand these things."
When Bria heard this, he realized why he, as a small missionary, had reached the heights of success.
It turns out that he understands these miscellaneous subjects.
After a short wait, they got the opportunity to meet local officials and the governor of Guangdong, Honeysuckle.
They hired a carriage and entered Guangzhou City.
Bria took a carriage and looked at the bustling city of Guangzhou.
His first impression of Guangzhou was that it was clean.
He lives in Madrid, a city still littered with donkey and horse dung.
The street in front of the residential area was full of feces, urine and swill, making it impossible to get down.
Here in Guangzhou City, every beast has a dung bag behind its butt.
He saw many small houses on the roadside, and after asking for a translator, he learned that these were public toilets.
In Guangzhou, no one is allowed to defecate anywhere and must go to public toilets.
Public toilets are free, but if you are caught using them outside, you will be fined one silver coin.
Bria's second clear impression of the city of Guangzhou is order.
Everything here is in order, and when the carriages pass through the road, there are people directing the traffic.
All carriages pass through the road in a certain order.
They arrived in front of the Guangzhou Governor's Yamen.
Bria looked at this building. There were two stone lions in front of the door, and the decoration was very simple.
It doesn't have the luxurious feeling of Spanish government at all.
Honeysuckle, the governor of Guangzhou, received the news from the navy.
He immediately chose to receive the Spanish envoy.
After the establishment of the Dahua Dynasty, it has not formally established diplomatic relations with other countries.
The Kingdom of Spain, the first Spanish country, wanted to establish diplomatic relations with them.
If he can handle this matter well, it will be a great achievement and will help him get promoted.
As the governor of Guangdong, Honeysuckle managed one of the major financial provinces of the Great China Dynasty.
Of course he wants to go one step further and enter the cabinet.
Sides and Bria met with Honeysuckle, the governor of Guangdong.
Sides handed the credentials to Honeysuckle and said: "I am the special envoy of the Kingdom of Spain. On behalf of the King of Spain, I want to formally establish diplomatic relations with you."
Honeysuckle opened the credentials handed over by Sides.
The contents of this certificate of credence are written in Spanish and Chinese characters.
After reading it, Honeysuckle said: "Mr. Sides, this kind of matter must be left to the cabinet and His Majesty the Emperor for decision.
As a local governor, I have no way of deciding this matter.
I can report this matter and wait for His Majesty the Emperor's order."
Sides was a little disappointed, and he said with emotion: "Your capital Hanzhong is too far away, and you are still at war with the Ming Dynasty.
I am not fit to travel through a war zone to your capital."
When Honeysuckle heard this, he said in a serious tone: "Mr. Sides, your news is out of date.
Our Dahua Dynasty has already defeated the Ming Dynasty and became the only dynasty in China.
Now all our wars with the former Ming Dynasty are over.
Our capital is not in Hanzhong either, and His Majesty the Emperor has made the capital the capital."
After hearing this, Sides took a breath and said in surprise: "You fought with millions of Ming troops, and you actually won the victory in less than two years."
The Dahua Dynasty was so powerful that fighting hundreds of thousands of people in Europe would take years or even decades.
When Sides learned the news, he imitated the etiquette of the Han people, cupped his hands and said: "In that case, then we will go to the capital in person to meet His Majesty the Emperor of Dahua.
Part of our Spanish caravan will stay in Guangzhou Port, and I hope Governor Jin will take some care of it."
Honeysuckle said with a smile: "Everyone coming from afar is a guest, and we will definitely entertain them well."
These Spaniards purchased a large amount of materials and could promote the industrial development of Guangdong.
Of course Honeysuckle will take care of them and will not let anyone disrupt sea trade.
Sedes and Bria said goodbye and left.
They continued to take the boat north and rushed to the capital.
Since Dahua has unified the country, the Kingdom of Spain will gain greater benefits by establishing formal diplomatic relations with Dahua.
