In the study of Emperor Hongzhi in the Qianqing Palace in the capital, the ministers of the DPRK and China gathered together again to discuss the current tribute payments from the missions of various countries.
"Your Majesty, the envoys from various countries have arrived in the capital, and I have made arrangements."
Fu Han, the Minister of Rites, reported on the status of the missions from various countries, including who came, which countries, and what tribute they paid to the Ming Dynasty.
"My dear friends, there are more than thirty countries' missions coming to Nanyang at one time. I'm afraid they are not just here to pay tribute. They probably have other purposes."
Emperor Hongzhi listened carefully to Fu Han's report, thought about it and said.
"Other purpose?"
When the ministers heard this, they were slightly surprised, especially the civil servants.
What they always like the most is when small countries come to pay tribute. It is even more remarkable that there are so many delegations from many countries at once. This is a glorious moment that can be written in history.
In their view, the Ming Dynasty was so powerful that it was just normal for these small countries to come to pay tribute.
"Your Majesty, is it because our Ming Dynasty occupied the northern part of Luzon that these Southeast Asian countries are very afraid?"
Liu Jian, the chief assistant to the cabinet, thought for a while and said.
"Hmm~ I'm afraid that's the case."
"Look at the tributes paid by various countries. It is very rich. It can even be said that it was richer than before. In history, during the seven voyages of the Three Treasure Eunuchs to the Western Seas, the countries in Southeast Asia did not pay such rich tributes."
"But now, everyone is very generous."
"Obviously, they are frightened by the powerful power of our Ming Dynasty, and they are also afraid of our Ming Dynasty's expansion in the Nanyang region."
Emperor Hongzhi nodded slightly and said.
"Your Majesty, the countries in Nanyang have been friendly to our Ming Dynasty for generations. They have always been vassal states of our Ming Dynasty and pay tribute from time to time. I believe that we, the Ming Dynasty, should appease the hearts of the countries in Nanyang and promise that we will not use force against them."
Fu Han, the Minister of Rites, thought for a while and said.
"I think it's inappropriate~"
As soon as Fu Han finished speaking, Liu Jin stood up and said.
These civil servants really succeeded more than they failed. After finally getting a good start in the Nanyang region, they actually said that they would ensure that they would not expand in the Nanyang region.
If the Ming Dynasty did not expand in Nanyang, where would the land come from to build plantations?
If the Ming Dynasty did not expand in Nanyang, how could it control the transportation, navigation and hubs in Nanyang?
How will we then go south to Australia and west to Europe and Africa?
At this time, the situation in the Ming Dynasty is very good. Why not take advantage of this opportunity to expand aggressively and seize more land and resources? Do we have to wait until the Ming Dynasty's national power is weakened?
"Oh, Liu Jin, what do you think?"
When Emperor Hongzhi heard this, he immediately became interested. In terms of overseas expansion, Emperor Hongzhi was still more willing to listen to Liu Jin's suggestions, because Liu Jin could always make Ming Dynasty gain the greatest power.
"Your Majesty, this time countries from Southeast Asia have come to Korea. This shows that our Ming Dynasty is strong, and it also shows that our expansion in Nanyang is right."
"It is precisely because of our expansion in the Nanyang region that the countries in Nanyang are afraid of our Ming Dynasty, so they come to pay tribute in such a grand manner."
"But tribute is just tribute, and the vassal state and the suzerain state are not the same country."
"When our Ming Dynasty engages in foreign relations, there should be only one principle that we should adhere to, and that is to take the interests of our Ming Dynasty as the fundamental and core."
Liu Jin thought for a while and said slowly.
"Your Majesty, gentlemen, please look at the map~"
"The geographical location of the Nanyang region is extremely important. To the north is our Ming Dynasty, North Korea and Japan. To the south and east you can go to Australia, and through Australia you can reach the South Golden Continent."
"To the west is the throat leading to the South Asian subcontinent, the Middle East, and Africa."
"In such an important place, our Ming Dynasty should not only expand here, but also keep these places firmly in our hands."
"In addition, in Nanyang, because it is a tropical area, it is summer all year round, and there are no four seasons. The climate here is hot and humid, and the land is fertile. Rice can be harvested three times a year and four times every two years~"
"As long as we occupy this area, our Ming Dynasty will no longer have to worry about famine. Even if the population is ten times larger, we can easily feed it."
"In such an important place, I believe that we, the Ming Dynasty, should continue to expand in the Nanyang region based on the interests of the Ming Dynasty for all generations, and eventually control the entire Nanyang region."
Liu Jin introduced the geographical location and natural conditions of Nanyang in detail, and then bluntly stated that Nanyang must be in the hands of the Ming Dynasty.
"I think it's inappropriate. The countries in Southeast Asia have been friendly to our Ming Dynasty for generations. They have always been vassal states of our Ming Dynasty and admire our style. How can we treat our own vassal states like this?"
"Luzon slaughtered the people of our Ming Dynasty, and sent troops to prove his reputation. However, other countries did not harm our Ming Dynasty in the slightest. Since ancient times, those who resorted to war and resorted to war will inevitably die."
"Only by convincing people with virtue and benevolence and righteousness can we prevail in the world. We, the Ming Dynasty, are a huge country with a territory of thousands of miles. Why do we have to fight for the territories of these small countries in Nanyang?"
Fu Han, the Minister of Rites, also stood up and shook his head.
His words also made many civil servants nod their heads, thinking that the Ming Dynasty should be like this. Although Nanyang is good, the Ming Dynasty is a big country, so there is no need to rob it. The most important thing is to cherish your own feathers.
Daming has always been a good man, and his image as a good man cannot be ruined.
"Convince others with virtue?"
When Liu Jin heard this, he couldn't help but sneered.
"My Ming Dynasty has always convinced people with virtue. The grassland people in the north can convince you. Didn't they go south every year before?"
"Is Japan convinced by you?"
"In the past, Japanese pirates roamed the southeastern coast, burning, killing, and plundering. How many people of the Ming Dynasty died?"
"Can Luzon in Nanyang surrender to you? What should we say to the people of the Ming Dynasty who were massacred and killed in Crescent City?"
"this?"
Hearing Liu Jin's rhetorical question, Fu Han was speechless.
"In these lawless and barbarian lands, they only believe in the law of the jungle and that power is the truth. Benevolence, justice and morality have no meaning at all to them."
"Our Ming army wiped out the northern grasslands, so now the northern grasslands herd horses and raise sheep for us, and conquered the Japanese countries, so the Japanese countries looked down upon us, and the Japanese pirates disappeared completely."
"In Luzon, Luzon was taught a severe lesson, so countries from Southeast Asia came to court one after another."
"This is the best explanation~"
"It would be really funny if we in the Ming Dynasty still believed in the so-called persuading people with virtue."
"Behave in a royal way when dealing with others~"
"If you are willing to surrender to me and be a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty, that would be the best. From now on, you will pay tribute to the Ming Dynasty on a regular basis every year, and you must also stipulate the tribute, quantity and scale."
"Not only must we pay tribute, but we must also let these vassal states learn the culture of our Ming Dynasty, learn Chinese, write Chinese characters, and change their surnames to Chinese."
"If they are unwilling to surrender to me, or even show their teeth to me, the Ming Dynasty, I, the Ming Dynasty, will use strong ships, cannons, and iron weapons to teach them a lesson and let them know the consequences of offending me, the Ming Dynasty."
"Barbarians are afraid of power but do not possess moral integrity, and do not understand propriety, justice and shame."
"My Ming Dynasty should be prepared with two things, strong ships, cannons, and an army of iron cavalry. If they disobey my Ming Dynasty and dare to harm my Ming Dynasty, they should be severely punished."
"The other hand is to constantly spread the civilization of our Ming Dynasty, so that they understand benevolence, righteousness, morality, etiquette, justice and integrity. Only in this way can we promote the prestige of our country and strengthen our national strength."
Liu Jin looked at everyone and said loudly and forcefully.
"Hmm~"
After listening to Liu Jin's words, Emperor Hongzhi couldn't help but nodded.
He is the most experienced person.
In the past, he had great trust in civil servants and was very kind to people. Emperor Hongzhi was a good man. This is definitely not an exaggeration, but he was really a good man.
But, do these civil servants deserve his trust? Are they worthy of his conscience?
Emperor Hongzhi was kind to them, but they always wanted to plot against the imperial power. Several major cases occurred one after another. Starting from the famine in the three northern provinces and the imperial granary being devoured, Emperor Hongzhi gradually realized the mistakes of his role as emperor.
.
As an emperor, he cannot be a good man, otherwise the people below will become more and more excessive and will not take you as the emperor seriously.
After killing a large number of officials one after another, he could clearly feel that the ministers below were more obedient and handled things more efficiently. Unlike before, they always had various reasons to attack you.
There are also those families, businessmen, gentry, etc. in Jiangnan. They have all stopped now, and they don't dare to have any more conspiracies.
The same is true between countries. Before the Ming Dynasty, it was good enough to the Japanese, the Jurchens, and Luzon. But what did they get in exchange?
It is the Jurchen tribe in the Liaodong region who often plunders the border people, it is the Japanese pirates who run amok on the southeast coast, burning, killing, and plundering, and it is the Luzon Kingdom who plots to rob our people of the Ming Dynasty.
On the contrary, after the Ming Dynasty sent troops to these places, these places suddenly became much quieter. The Japanese pirates that roamed the southeastern coast disappeared. The Jurchens in Liaodong were beaten into obedience. Luzon in Nanyang was trembling, and the countries in Nanyang were also afraid.
To die.
This is enough to show that what Liu Jin said is right, people are cheap, fearful of power and not ethical.
The same is true for this country. Just treat it as one person.
What Daming wants to do is to make them afraid of Daming. Only if they are afraid of Daming, will they obediently listen to Daming and do things according to Daming's wishes, instead of just thinking about benefiting from Daming, a good old man.
After Liu Jian, Xie Qian, Li Dongyang, Zhong Zhong, Liu Daxia and others listened, they pondered carefully, and in the end, they all couldn't help but nod slightly.
No matter how much you say, nothing can be more convincing than using facts. Everything that Ming Dynasty has experienced shows that what Liu Jin said is correct. You should act kingly when dealing with others, that is, you should be domineering.
