I

Zhang Ruifeng, the right young minister of Honglu Temple, was summoned by the emperor for no apparent reason.

He guessed that there might be a mission, perhaps to North Korea, or to the Western Regions. He never dreamed that it would be Europe.

"Are you from Longyou?" Zhao Han asked.

Zhang Ruifeng replied: "Reporting to your Majesty, my hometown is indeed in Longyou County. However, when I was young, I went into business with my father and went as far as Yunnan. During the war in the southwest and the war, I and my father started doing business in Jiangxi. Thank you for your kindness. , Jiangxi is stable and conducive to business, and there was no place that was more stable at that time. Because of this, my father asked me to serve His Majesty. He who says that he who conquers the world must be Your Majesty."

"You have a good father," Zhao Han asked with a smile. "The Longyou Merchant Gang is famous all over the world. I heard that it has been particularly active in recent years."

Zhang Ruifeng said: "Longyou merchants are not as wealthy as Hui merchants and Ganxi merchants, nor are they as cliquey as Western merchants (merchants from Shanxi and Shaanxi), and they do not have the benefits of maritime trade of Fujian, Guangdong and Zhejiang merchants. The Longyou merchant gang relies on It’s because of hard work that other business gangs don’t dare to go, and other business gangs look down on them, so Longyou merchants will take the lead.”

"The Longyou merchants have made the greatest contribution to restoring people's livelihood in the north." Zhao Han nodded in approval.

In recent years, the imperial court has immigrated to the north in large numbers, and business taxes have also been reduced. Businessmen from Anhui, Jiangsu, and Jiangxi took action, but they basically only went to the big cities in the north.

Longyou merchants, however, took a different approach and went to small northern counties to do business. In the backward areas of Yunnan and Guizhou provinces, big businessmen from all over the country were unwilling to go, so it was Longyou businessmen who came out en masse. The Longyou business gang can be seen everywhere on the southwest border. Since last year, they have even gone to Vietnam to do business.

Zhang Ruifeng said: "Not only can people's livelihood in the north be restored, but the businessmen themselves can also make money. This is a matter of benefit to the country, the people and themselves, and Longyou businessmen have a duty to do so."

Zhao Han asked: "I heard that Longyou merchants have begun to develop overseas?"

Zhang Ruifeng said: "Taiwan and Luzon are mostly Fujian merchants, and they are grouped together to exclude foreigners. Longyou merchants can't get in, so they can only go to Ryukyu and Fangzhang counties to collect some local goods and timber. Now the imperial court has seized Malacca, Fujian Cantonese merchants thought it was too far, so they basically only went to Banten and Palembang. When Longyou merchants encountered this gap, they were already organizing overseas trips and decided to go to Malacca."

Maritime merchants from Guangdong, Fujian, and Zhejiang are of course willing to sail to Ryukyu and Malacca. However, they are engaged in maritime trade, while Longyou merchants want to stay and develop.

The Longyou merchant gang did not have a sea ship, so they went to live in Liuqiu and Fangzhang counties. They were responsible for collecting goods from the indigenous people and selling them to passing Fujian ships. In fact, they earned only scraps of hard-earned money.

The imperial court was happy to see this situation, so when organizing immigration, it basically did not recruit people in Longyou County. The land there is mountainous and the land is barren. Young and strong men like to travel far away to do business. As a result, most of the people working at home are old, weak, women and children. Recruiting immigrants in Longyou County will cause chaos.

In fact, men in Anhui and Shanxi are also accustomed to leaving home to do business, and most of them start from small businesses. But they didn't go far, maybe to neighboring counties or provinces, while Longyou merchants directly crossed several provinces, and even went to the Western Regions and Myanmar as early as the Ming Dynasty.

Zhao Han smiled and said, "You dared to go to Yunnan to do business when you were young. You must not be afraid of traveling far, so I will give you an errand as an envoy to various countries."

"But according to His Majesty's orders!" Zhang Ruifeng quickly stood up and held his hands.

Zhao Han waved and said, "Come here."

Zhang Ruifeng stepped forward, stood cautiously, and looked at the world map that the emperor took out.

Zhao Han pointed to the map and said: "After Malacca, the fleet will move along the land. They will encounter a small country that has been taken over as a vassal. Further north is the territory of Siam. You can just negotiate with the local officials. There is no need to go there. See the king of Siam. Then Taungoo (Myanmar), order him to surrender quickly, and send an envoy to Nanjing to present his credentials."

"If Dongxu is unwilling to surrender, should we go ashore and teach him a lesson?" Zhang Ruifeng asked.

Zhao Han warned: "Remember, your mission is to go to various countries as envoys, not to fight. If Taungu doesn't accept the king's request, just write it down. Don't delay your trip."

"Please remember this!" Zhang Ruifeng accepted the order.

Zhao Han continued: "Further ahead is Arakan (the southwest coast of Myanmar and the eastern coast of Bangladesh). This country is a mortal enemy of Siam. Its citizens are not afraid of the ocean. If there is damage along the way, additional sailors can be recruited in Arakan."

Chittagong, which later became Bangladesh, also belonged to the territory of Arakan at this time. This country was the maritime overlord in the Bay of Bengal.

A hundred years ago, Arakan was repeatedly plundered by the Portuguese and occasionally cooperated with the Portuguese. It had already mastered Portuguese navigation and gunnery technology. Arakan has a close relationship with Taungoo (Myanmar), and they often join forces to attack Siam, and once even roped in Portugal.

Zhao Han said: "Further ahead, there is India, also known as Tianzhu. Try to make friends with the southern kingdoms of Tianzhu. The north is the Mughal land, and there is a Mughal emperor of Mongolian descent. You should visit Mughal. Emperor Wo'er, maybe we can cooperate in the future, I will write a letter for you to pass on."

"Further ahead is Persia. You should also visit the king. As for the coast of Africa, there are not many countries. They are just city-states and tribes. You should try to make friends with them. Of course, use force when you need to, so as not to be looked down upon by these natives. In Europe, Britain, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, these countries should all go and see it. The Netherlands is so arrogant that it has become a target of public criticism, and it has tempted other countries to go to war with the Netherlands!"

The pile of place names and country names made Zhang Ruifeng dizzy.

Fortunately, he had understood it before and didn't know anything, otherwise he would have been blinded at this moment.

Zhang Ruifeng flattered him and said, "Your Majesty has a deep mind and is very knowledgeable about overseas countries. I admire you so much!"

Zhao Han smiled and said: "Go and prepare, and go to sea when the trade wind comes. Remember, collect information about each country along the way. The country's name, capital, monarchs and ministers, language, writing, geography, religion, special products... these must all be recorded. "

"According to the order!" Zhang Ruifeng bowed and retreated.

Zhao Han took out a memorial and continued to review it.

This was a report from the Ministry of Household Affairs. It was a daily official document, but it made Zhao Han feel very good.

According to reports from various provinces and counties, from last autumn to now, the weather has been good across the country. Only some areas have snowstorms in winter, and only a few counties have experienced spring drought since the beginning of spring. As long as there are no major floods, this year's summer and autumn grain harvests will be bumper.

Such a good year is the most honorable year that God has given Zhao Han since he regained the north.

"good!"

Zhao Han picked up the ink pen and approved only one word, then leaned on the chair and took a nap.

This official document made him relaxed and happy, and he had to enjoy a good mood.

Zhao Han was helpless with the issue of education funding. Three years of compulsory education for all was not something that an agricultural country could afford.

Moreover, in remote and backward areas, the quality of education is falling further and further behind.

There are not only problems with teachers, but also with textbooks.

The local government complained endlessly because textbooks were provided free of charge. To save money, students must turn in their books when they graduate or drop out, and the next class of students can reuse old books.

However, primary and secondary school textbooks have been supplemented and adjusted many times.

Schools with good educational conditions naturally use the latest version of textbooks. And those remote and backward schools are still using old textbooks from a few years ago. When students take their graduation exams, they will find that some topics have not been learned at all.

The only good thing is that the number of middle school students in the country is far lower than the number of primary school students. Middle school textbooks happen to be the most frequently adjusted. New mathematics and physics content are included every two or three years. These two subjects are in the period of explosive growth.

After a short rest, Zhao Han reviewed the memorial again.

The good mood was soon ruined by a massive earthquake in Chengdu Prefecture, which destroyed more than 3,000 houses and killed and injured thousands of people (accurate statistics cannot be counted).

The cabinet has approved disaster relief and also recommended tax reductions and exemptions as appropriate. Zhao Han casually approved it with the word "approval". Local officials must have been doing disaster relief for a long time. Not to mention Datong officials, even officials from Ming Dynasty would make arrangements quickly. Although Emperor Jiajing turned a blind eye to the Guanzhong earthquake during the Jiajing period, local officials were very active in disaster relief.

Alas, if I had known earlier, I should have slept more, God cannot praise me enough.

As I continued reading, my somewhat bad mood suddenly became extremely bad.

The chief envoy of Yunnan reported to King Toungoo that he sent the envoy to Kunming and requested that it be annexed as a vassal state of China.

Myanmar took the initiative to recognize his father, which was originally a good thing. But when the chieftain of Mubang learned the news, he also secretly sent people to Kunming to report that Toungoo had invaded the Chinese border, and also requested that Mubang be granted the seal of consolation.

The northern Myanmar regions of Mubang, Mengyang and Mengmi originally belonged to the Ming Dynasty.

In the 32nd year of Wanli, Taungoo (Myanmar) attacked Mengmi and asked Mengyang chieftain to send troops to help. Meng Yang Tusi Si Hong refused and killed the Taungu envoy. Dongyu then turned to attack Mengyang, but Sihong was defeated and died.

In the thirty-fourth year of Wanli, Dongyu attacked Mubang. Before the reinforcements from Yunnan arrived, Mu State fell, and the governor of Yunnan, Chen Yongbin, was imprisoned and threatened with death.

Everyone knows about the three major campaigns of Wanli, but during the Wanli period, the Ming Dynasty also fought with Burma for decades. The Taungoo dynasty of Myanmar continued to encroach on the territory of the Ming Dynasty. The Yunnan army had to station tens of thousands of troops on the border. The mountain roads were rugged and it was difficult to transport military supplies. A large number of civilians lost their families and died trying to transport food.

Nowadays, Mubang, Mengyang, and Mengmi are all in the hands of Myanmar. They have never returned the territory. Now they have the nerve to attach it and ask for gold seals and documents.

Historically, the Taungoo dynasty of Myanmar also requested canonization in this way after killing Emperor Nanming. The Manchus and the Qing Dynasty ignored it and gave all the three lands of Mubang, Mengyang and Mengmi to the Toungoo dynasty. Later, during the Qing-Burmese War, China once regained its lost territory, but Emperor Qianlong had a sudden seizure and with a wave of his hand, he took the initiative to reward the territory.

The memorial is attached with Huang Yao's "sticker", which is the military's accompanying document.

Huang Yao, who is based in Yunnan, writes things more clearly. Those who lost land were very poor, and the mountains were high and the forests were dense, making it extremely difficult to transport military supplies. If you want to fight, please give him two years to prepare, and you must use the Yunnan Armed Police Force to assist. It is best not to mobilize troops and reinforcements from other places. The climate on the Yunnan border is complicated and the troops from other provinces may not be able to bear it.

Zhao Han replied: "The Yunnan patrol troops are at your disposal, and the prefectures and counties in Yunnan will also try their best to cooperate. Within three years, I will recover Mubang, Mengyang, and Mengmi."