From Zhejiang to Japan, in spring and summer, with smooth winds and rivers, it can be reached in about half a month.
Sea trade at this time was all based on luck. Those with extremely strong luck might be safe for ten or twenty years. Those with weak luck might be shipwrecked in Shandong and unable to escape from China's offshore waters.
Take the Portuguese as an example. In the tenth year of the reign of Emperor Zhengde, Pires (the governor-general of India, in charge of Malacca) set out from Malacca to Guangzhou. What a short distance and what an old waterway. As a result, he encountered an enemy in Champa (central and southern Vietnam).
Due to the storm and heavy losses, they were forced to return to Malacca.
Prime Minister Bao Chao was quite lucky. He led five merchant ships and set out with the pirates. They only encountered storms on the way from Shandong to North Korea. In fact, this was due to the influence of the "Yellow River Cyclone", which formed strong winds in the Bohai Sea, Yellow Sea, and Japan Sea.
There was also heavy rain at sea.
Several sailors were injured and the ship's hull was quite damaged, but fortunately no one died, which is common for ocean trade.
When Wang Yuan was watching the tide in Qiantang, Prime Minister Bao had already arrived in Fukuoka, Japan.
Fukuoka was the most prosperous port in Western Japan during Japan's Warring States Period. Before Prime Minister Tomo got off the ship, he felt that this poor place was very shabby. Although there were many two- and three-story buildings, most of them were low thatched houses.
Compared with Hangzhou, one is in the sky and the other is underground.
Thirty-four sea-going ships suddenly arrived, which surprised the Japanese because they had not encountered such a "huge" fleet for decades.
Moreover, five of the ships had the Tuanlong flag hanging on their masts!
Fukuoka Ichimao and Ichiyo were all alarmed. They trotted to the port and asked in Chinese: "But the messenger from the heaven is coming?"
After Chen Shuangxi got off the boat, he smiled and said: "Mr. Tao, don't you recognize your old friend?"
"I haven't seen him for a year, but I didn't expect that Shipowner Chen actually owned dozens of ships!" Tao Hongyi, the mayor of Fukuoka City (chief of the market management department), exclaimed.
Bao Chaoxiang and several other disciples of the Physics School also came to the dock at this time.
Chen Shuangxi introduced: "This is Mr. Bao Chaoxiang, Mr. Li Boyang, Mr. Li Wu, Mr. Zhang Youzhen, Mr. Long Huaili, the great disciples of the Governor of Zhejiang in the Ming Dynasty. Their merchant ships represent the emperor of the Ming Dynasty!"
Tao Hongyi immediately knelt down and kowtowed: "Tao Hongyi, the minister of the lower country, pays homage to the envoy of the emperor of the upper country!"
Prime Minister Bao Chao was from Northern Zhili. He had only been on official ships on the canal in his life. This time he went to sea and he was very frustrated. Now that he had not calmed down, he asked with a pale face: "Your surname is Tao, are you an immigrant from the Celestial Dynasty?"
Tao Hongyi said: "Reporting to the angel, the country below also has the surname Tao."
Chen Shuangxi knew a little about Japan's national conditions and explained with a smile: "The Ouchi family is the most powerful lord in Western Japan, and the Tao family is the most favored minister of the Ouchi family. This Tao Shizheng is from a branch of the Tao family.
"
"I see," asked Prime Minister Bao Chao, "I have a maritime trade document from the Governor of Zhejiang. With this document, I can trade in Hangzhou Port in the Ming Dynasty without any restrictions on the number of ships. Can this Tao Shizheng go up?
Let me know, I'm going to see your feudal lord."
"No limit on the number of ships?" Tao Hongyi said in surprise, "Please let the angel stay in Fukuoka temporarily. I will immediately send someone to Yamaguchikan (name of the city) to report the news!"
The Ouchi clan was at its most prosperous at this time, and Yoshihiro Ouchi was the guardian of the Seven Kingdoms. Moreover, he was killed with one sword and one gun. He succeeded to the throne when he was more than ten years old, overthrew his father-in-law, expelled his brothers, and monopolized official trade between China and Japan.
It is to dominate Western Japan.
However, Japan can only send a maximum of three tribute ships each year. Ouchi Yoshihiro is eager to expand trade, and Prime Minister Takara came with documents, which will probably drive this guy crazy.
Ten days later, Prime Minister Bao took a boat to Yamaguchi Hall.
As for merchant ships, they are parked in Fukuoka Port. Selling and receiving goods takes a lot of time, and money is also spent to repair the ships.
Prime Minister Tomo was warmly entertained at Yamaguchi Castle. On the night he settled down, the feudal lord sent geisha to wait on him. The white face and black teeth frightened him. The next day, a samurai came and took him to see the owner of the Ouchi Hall, Ouchi Yoshiki.
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In addition to Ouchi Yoshihei, a large number of Ouchi clan's retainers also came, and they all showed great respect to Mr. Baochao.
The banquet was of a very high standard and was the most elegant tea party cuisine of the Muromachi period.
Only three utensils are used for staple food, namely chopsticks, soup bowls and small plates. Dishes include rice, vegetable soup, prunes, fruits, sashimi, tempura and other items.
None of these Japanese nobles can speak Chinese, so translation is required throughout the process, making it a bit troublesome to be polite.
Prime Minister Bao was sitting cross-legged, with a maid waiting beside him.
Ouchi Yoshihiro smiled and said: "Angel, please use the soup. This is fresh puffer fish soup, caught just this morning."
After Prime Minister Bao Chao followed Wang Yuan to Zhejiang, he also knew what the hell the pufferfish was. He immediately took a spoonful of soup and took a sip, not daring to put it in his mouth, and immediately said: "It's very fresh!"
Ouchi Yoshihiro was even more happy and said: "If the angel likes it, there will be more after drinking."
Prime Minister Baochao declined and said: "The sea is quite stormy. I am from the north and am not feeling well. My appetite is limited these days."
"That's really a pity," Ouchi Yoshihiro pointed to a small blue plate and said, "Then let the angel try the sashimi, which is also puffer fish."
Bao Chaozhen still wanted to live, so she quickly declined: "I'm not used to raw food, so I'm really sorry."
Ouchi Yoshihiro added: "The tempura is also excellent."
The whole table consisted of rice and tempura. After taking two bites, Mr. Bao immediately praised it loudly.
Ouchi Yoshihiro felt that it was very honorable and invited all the retainers in the palace to enjoy it together.
Japan was very poor during the Warring States Period. Soldiers could only eat bran mixed with wild vegetables, lower-level samurai could eat brown rice and pickles, and only general-level samurai could eat rice, fish and shellfish.
The most powerful and famous retainers in Western Japan turned into gluttons at this moment, staring at the food on the table with bright eyes.
Moreover, the tables at the back were not qualified to enjoy puffer fish at all. The tables at the front were served puffer fish sashimi, and one of them fell down while eating, which made the people next to him so excited that they couldn't help but eat it again.
Ate a few more mouthfuls of puffer fish.
Prime Minister Baochao was stunned and felt that he had arrived in the land of Shengban.
There was a feast, a geisha performance, and then a tea ceremony.
While drinking tea, all the other retainers withdrew, leaving only the first retainer, Tao Xingfang.
Ouchi Yoshihiro asked: "I heard that angels are the disciples of the king's minister in heaven?"
"Of course." Bao Chaoxiang replied.
Ouchi Yoshihiro said: "I heard from the envoys of the shogunate when they returned to Japan that Wang Shilang was the number one scholar in the upper country, and he also led troops to destroy a country in the Western Region? I wonder if the angel can explain it in more detail."
Baochao smiled and said: "My master won the first prize at the age of sixteen."
Ouchi Yoshihiro clapped his hands and said: "What a coincidence, I am also sixteen years old and inherit the guardianship of the Zhou Dynasty!"
Prime Minister Bao Chao added: "My division led two hundred cavalry and defeated more than ten thousand bandits. Such achievements are countless. Before he won the first prize, he single-handedly chased two hundred bandits for dozens of miles, killing nearly a hundred bandits along the way!"
This is not a boast, the people of Liangxiang County witnessed it with their own eyes."
Ouchi Yixing and Tao Xingfang looked at each other, feeling incredible.
Prime Minister Bao Chao said again: "My division led four thousand troops to the Western Regions. Without even a single attack, they subdued ten Mongolian tribes. Thousands of Mongolian cavalry volunteered to follow them to fight. My division also strengthened the walls and cleared the fields to lure the enemy deep into the country. I personally led the troops to attack thousands of miles.
Bypassing the Tianshan Mountains and going straight to the enemy's royal city, the Turfan Kingdom, which dominated the Western Regions, was destroyed, and even the king was captured alive and brought back to the capital."
Tao Xingfang asked: "How big is the Turpan country?"
Prime Minister Bao Chao smiled and said: "It's bigger than North Korea."
"hiss!"
Ouchi Yixing and Tao Xingfang gasped.
Ouchi Yoshihiro said: "I never imagined that there is such a person in the world. I wish I could meet him face to face!"
Prime Minister Baochao said loudly: "What's even more rare is that my master is not from a proud tribe. He was born in the barbarian land of Guizhou. He was born in the barbarian land of Guizhou. He did not have enough to eat when he was young, and he had no teacher to teach him knowledge."
Tao Xingfang asked curiously: "How did Wang Shilang pass the exam?"
Prime Minister Bao Chao said: "When I was ten years old, an assistant officer was exiled to Yunnan. When he was passing through Guizhou, he encountered bandits. Fortunately, he was rescued by my teacher's father, Wang Bao Quan Gong. My teacher followed this officer and became a monk. Three years later
, and met Duke Shouren, the king who was demoted to Guizhou, so he followed Duke Shouren in the mountains to study classics. After three years of this, he went to Beijing to take the exam and won the first prize in one fell swoop. Isn't this the calling of God to indulge his talent? "
Tao Xingfang nodded and said, "It's true that God favors his talent."
Prime Minister Bao Chao said: "When my master was a child, he studied with strangers in the mountains. He was able to kill hungry wolves at the age of ten. He even subdued a tiger with his bare hands in the Leopard Room of the Forbidden City."
Ouchi Yoshihiro was dumbfounded when he heard this, and at the same time he admired Wang Yuan inexplicably. He succeeded to the throne at the age of sixteen, conquered the south and the north, and was a master of literary and military skills. He boasted that he was invincible in all over Western Japan and was known as the "Hero of the Western Kingdom".
"General of Civil and Military Affairs of the Western Kingdom". Compared with Wang Yuan like this, it seems that he can't stand up to him at all.
Or Tao Xingfang remembered the business and asked: "Wang Shilang opened the sea in Zhejiang?"
Prime Minister Bao Chao said: "For the time being, we will only open sea in Hangzhou. If the Ouchi family can obtain the sea introduction documents, they can go to Hangzhou for trade within five years, with no limit on the number of ships."
The Ouchi family was able to quickly dominate Western Japan by monopolizing the official trade between China and Japan. Historically, once Jiajing banned the sea, the Ouchi family quickly began to decline, and finally became a puppet of the retainer Tao.
Ouchi Yoshihiro quickly asked: "How can I obtain Haiyin?"
"Thirty thousand taels of silver!" said Bao Chaoxiang.
Ouchi Yixing and Tao Xingfang looked at each other, neither of them bargaining, and immediately said: "Okay."
Japan does not lack money, but it lacks various daily necessities.