Accompanied by Zhao Houhou and Jiang Liang, they arrived in Spain. At the same time, Carlster and Zhao Houhou also brought many things from the Ming Dynasty to Spain.
These goods and news also spread throughout Europe at an unimaginable speed.
They found a rich country in the far east.
This country is called the Ming Empire.
It has vast and boundless land. It is said that from the northernmost to the southernmost part of the Ming Dynasty, it would take more than two months to ride a horse between the north and the south.
Its territory is said to be larger than all the countries in Europe combined.
It is said that the population of the Ming Empire exceeded 10 million. There was a city called Tianjin with a population of over 5 million, which was larger than the population of many European countries.
The Eastern Ming Empire was extremely wealthy.
Their envoys donated a full-length mirror to the Queen of Spain, which became her favorite treasure. It is said that the French King offered a sky-high price of two million francs to buy this full-length mirror from the Queen of Spain, but
He was rejected by the Queen of Spain.
It is said that people in the Ming Dynasty used something called soap. If you take a bath with soap, you will have a charming fragrance on your body.
It is said that in the distant Ming Empire, their cities had no night. At night, the lights were brightly lit and everything was very bright.
In short, various legends about the Ming Empire spread rapidly across Europe, and Marco Polo's Travels once again sold out. Countless people were looking at Marco Polo's Travels while quickly asking for information on how to get to the Ming Dynasty.
Get in touch with people from Ming Dynasty.
The monarchs of some European countries even sent people to Spain as soon as possible to invite these Ming people to visit their countries. They wanted to meet these Ming people in person and listen to what they said about the Ming Dynasty.
The Ming Dynasty of this era, in the minds of Europeans, is synonymous with wealth, prosperity, prosperity and power.
With the spread of Marco Polo's travels in Europe, countless people are yearning for the Ming Dynasty, eager to go to the country of silk and porcelain and obtain fascinating silk and porcelain.
The emergence of the Ming Dynasty triggered an explosion in the whole of Europe. In addition to European businessmen, the most excited people were also those astronomical scientists.
The Ming Dynasty is in the far east.
But Spain went west all the way to America, where they actually met the Ming people.
It is said that the Indians in America are a branch of the Ming people, and the entire America is where the Ming people used to exile their branch.
The distance from Daming to the Americas is about the same as that from Europe to the Americas, and it also takes more than two months by boat.
In other words, if you go eastward from the Ming Dynasty, you can also reach Europe in the west. If you go west from the European side, you can also reach the Ming Dynasty in the east.
In addition, the Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama opened a route to Tianzhu not long ago. From Tianzhu, they can be sure that the Ming Dynasty is in the east, and there is a connection between Tianzhu and the Ming Dynasty.
So you can be 100% sure that the world we live in is a round ball? No matter which direction you go from, as long as you keep moving in this direction, you can eventually return to the starting point.
The living world is a big ball.
European astronomers and geographers have gone crazy.
Although they have already deduced that the world they live in is a ball, it has never been confirmed. Some people even proposed a global voyage to prove that the earth is a big ball.
Now there is no need to carry out global routes, they can also confirm that the world we live in is a big sphere.
European astronomers and geographers were so excited that they even began to make globes, depicting all the places they now knew.
Of course, the real excitement was among the European businessmen.
Lisbon, Portugal.
The Portuguese and Spanish have always been at odds with each other, and this was also the case during the maritime era.
The Spaniards have always been pursuing a voyage to the west, heading for the Ming Dynasty in the distant east where gold is everywhere, while the Portuguese believe in opening up routes to the east? To the distant east.
So when Spain started colonizing the Americas? The Portuguese were also opening up routes to the East.
Starting from the second half of the fifteenth century, the ambitious King Joao II of Portugal attempted to dominate the world and sent several fleets to explore a waterway to India.
In 1486, he sent the famous navigator Dias along the west coast of Africa. After finally arriving at the Cape of Good Hope, he was forced to return to Portugal because the wind and waves here were too great.
Within a few years, in 1492, the news that Columbus had discovered the New World in America spread throughout Western Europe. Facing the challenge of maritime hegemony from Spain, the Portuguese royal family was determined to speed up the exploration of maritime activities to India.
In 1497, King Manuel I of Portugal sent a fleet led by Vasco da Gama to successfully open a route to the Indian Ocean.
It can be said that the early European navigators were basically Portuguese and Spanish.
The two countries are on the sea to each other, one to the east and the other to the west, and have opened up routes to the rich east for each other.
With the opening of the Indian Ocean route, the Portuguese nation's enthusiasm for sailing to India rose again. In 1500, King Manuel I once again dispatched a second fleet, which was huge in scale and consisted of 13 ships.
In 1501, this fleet successfully returned to Lisbon. Not only did they confirm the Portuguese trade in cities along the Indian Ocean, but they also brought back a large amount of cinnamon, spices, silk, gems, etc., which impressed all those who invested in this fleet.
They all made a fortune.
Also in February 1502, Vasco da Gama was ordered to the Indian Ocean again, this time with 23 warships. Not only did they want to consolidate their trading rights in the Indian Ocean, they also wanted to attack Arab merchants and merchants in the Indian Ocean.
Persian merchant.
At the same time, this time we want to rule the coastal areas of the Indian Ocean, especially the west coast of India north of Calicut!
Of course, the Vasco da Gama fleet was still on the sea route at this time, but with Zhao Houhou and Jiang Liang arriving in Spain, the whole country of Portugal was shocked.
In Lisbon, Portugal, in the palace of King Manuel I, he summoned many famous Portuguese navigators, big nobles, and big businessmen.
"Gentlemen and ladies, everyone should already know the news. The Spaniards in America have come into contact with the Ming people in the far east. I think everyone should also know the various rumors about the Ming Dynasty."
Manuel I, who had only succeeded to the throne not long ago and became the King of Portugal solely by luck, was only in his thirties at this time, and was in the prime of life.
He also urgently needs to prove himself with outstanding political achievements, so he has been strongly supporting the fleet heading to the Indian Ocean.
His voice was very loud and clearly reached the ears of the great nobles, businessmen, and navigators present.
"In the Ming Dynasty in the far east, there is gold everywhere, but now all trade with the Ming people is in the hands of the hateful Spaniards."
"We must take action and cannot let the Spaniards monopolize trade with the Ming Dynasty."
"I need someone to go to the Americas to contact the Ming people and gain trade rights with the Ming people. I also need more people to go to the Indian Ocean. After crossing the Indian Ocean, I will continue eastward to open up a route to the Ming Dynasty and communicate with the Ming people.
direct trade.”
Manuel I spoke very directly.
Cabral's fleet returned from the Indian Ocean last year, bringing them immense wealth. The entire Portugal was very enthusiastic about overseas trade and overseas colonization.
Now even if he doesn't stand up, there will still be big nobles and big businessmen who will stand up and support those navigators to go to America and the distant east to trade with the Ming Dynasty.
"Your Majesty the Great King, I am willing to go to America to find the people of Ming Dynasty~"
Cabral stood up. He had just returned from the Indian Ocean last year. Not only had he gained a large amount of wealth, but he had also been given the title of nobility by King Manuel I.
Therefore, he was very keen on sailing. Although his voyage to the Indian Ocean cost him half of his personnel and ships, the benefits he gained were also huge.
"Very well, my captain~"
When Manuel I heard this, he immediately laughed happily.
"Your Majesty the Great King, when I headed to the Indian Ocean, before I rounded the Cape of Good Hope, I actually arrived at a huge continent. Now that I think about it, it should also be part of the Americas."
"I think that as long as we circumvent this continent and continue sailing westward, after circumnavigating the American continent, we can also reach the Ming Dynasty, make contact with the Ming Dynasty people, and obtain their silk, porcelain, spices, etc."
Cabral thought about it and said that when he was heading to the Indian Ocean, he accidentally arrived at the eastern bulge of the South American continent (later known as Brazil) because of strong winds in the South Atlantic.
Later, he continued sailing east, bypassed the Cape of Good Hope and arrived in the Indian Ocean. After careful study, they also believed that there must be a huge continent in the south of America. This is why the Portuguese later occupied Brazil in the Americas.
Because Cabral was the first person to arrive in Brazil, and he also erected the cross of the Portuguese royal emblem there and declared the area to be owned by the King of Portugal.
"Great captain, I think you are right, and all of us will fully support you."
"Put on the letter I wrote to His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Empire and set off to bring back endless wealth to our great Portugal!"
Manuel I also laughed happily after hearing this, and immediately appointed Cabral. As for the surrounding nobles and businessmen, they applauded. They only had to invest and wait to share the wealth.
