Chapter 358 Good News
Ningbo Maritime Customs, foreign merchant ships came to the Ming Dynasty one after another, and stayed in Mason for several months. The Ministry of Revenue collected taxes from here up to 700,000 taels of silver.
Zhu Di ordered that all the ships going to the West be prepared, in order to let Mason feel the national strength of the Celestial Empire. He specially gave his fleet 30,000 pieces of silk and 30,000 pieces of porcelain, as well as 20,000 boxes of tea. This is his goodwill to your country.
As for the goods that Zheng He was going to travel, silk, porcelain and so on were loaded on the ship, filling dozens of ships.
Mason became a guest of the emperor, and he received Zhu Di's rewards every time. He also took the opportunity to visit many ministers and nobles, hoping to expand his reliance in the Eastern court.
Civil officials are not good, especially those called Hanlin Academy scholars, who say that the ancestral precepts cannot be violated, but they need to change when they need to change. They are tougher than those nobles. If they were in Constantinople, they would have been beheaded long ago.
"This trip to the West, not only to make friends with foreign countries, but also to let every country know the power of our Ming Dynasty. In addition, you should also look at the country you are in."
"Thank you for the gift of the Emperor of the Celestial Empire."
There is no accurate name for Mason and others in the Ming Dynasty. Some say they are the people of the Qin Dynasty, some say they are the Fulin people, and there are all kinds of names. It was Zhu Di who made the final decision and called these people Fulin. One is to call them for the Tang Dynasty, which is more credible; the other is to avoid duplication with other Qin regimes.
On April 15, the third year of Yongle, Zhu Di ordered Zheng He to be the chief envoy and Wang Jinghong to be the deputy envoy to the West. Mason led the way for the Ming fleet as a guide.
More than 300 ships set off from Ningbo and headed towards Southeast Asia. Mason also wrote a letter in advance to have the clipper delivered to Peter. He changed from the original hope of free trade with the Celestial Empire to maintaining limited trade.
He found that there was almost nothing missing here after a few months in the Ming Dynasty. They have the best food - rice, the best textile raw materials - cotton, silk, hemp, the best beverage - tea. They have everything they need and can be completely self-sufficient without relying on trade. This also makes it difficult for many Roman merchants to sell goods. Except for some wealthy people who want to buy, the general public has no desire to buy.
In response, Mason wrote a 13-page proposal, suggesting that the East India Company should not only maintain good relations with East Asia and monopolize the trade between Tomorrow and Japan, but also contract the coastal defense of East Asian countries. He believes that the current emperor's voyage to the West will not last long. Faced with such strong resistance at home, even if the emperor is willing, it will only last a long time. The successor is likely to abandon the policies of the previous ruler. The company needs to establish a solid stronghold and appease the Seres. They will be the basis of rule in East Asia and Southeast Asia.
In Southeast Asia, the basis of Rome's rule continues to expand. The Romanians, Seres and other Seres who are responsible for ruling the bottom Seres and indigenous peoples have different construction progress in different places because the battle line is too long. Mason has to ask for more power for colonization when he returns.
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After a long journey, Peter finally arrived at Tunceli. The defenders here were quite courageous and announced that they would not surrender. They could defend here until reinforcements arrived.
But Peter knew that they had no reinforcements, so he fought quickly. All the artillery was moved over, and then there was a bombing.
A large number of shells fell on the city walls, and those walls that were not well maintained were directly blown down by the artillery. The soldiers captured the city in one go and resolved sporadic resistance.
Central Anatolia has returned to the hands of Rome. Vlad and Stefan have learned a lot from their elder brother. From administration to military affairs.
Anatolia is not like Europe. It is vast here. It takes a long time for infantry to travel, and it takes more time to transport supplies.
Muhammad was also ruthless. Peter was full of refugees along the way, most of whom ran to the west after being robbed. It is said that the bandits have already run to Van. It seems that they have to hurry up, otherwise they will run to Timur.
At this time, a group of Turks came to the Roman army. Peter thought they were coming to fight, but they came to surrender, hoping to give them a way out.
This tribe is not large, but it is also the tribe that has followed Muhammad the longest. When the Sultan ran to Van, he ordered the leader to guard here, and then fled with others.
The leader knew that this was waiting for death, so he planned to surrender to Rome, maybe he could save their lives. In order to surrender, he could do anything and say anything.
Peter looked at the leader in front of him, who was the same age as his father, and a plan came to his mind.
"You mean, Muhammad asked you to resist us?"
"Your Highness, Muhammad is asking me to die. Fighting with your country is a sure death, and he is no longer suitable to be the ruler here. Your country is the only master here."
Seeing that the tribes that enjoy a lot of resources are now scolding the Sultan, Peter feels funny. The nomadic peoples are no less than them in fighting for power.
"In that case, I can accept you, but you have to do what I say."
"Listen to your Highness' orders."
The order to destroy the Turks these days has made many people panic. Some Turks who want to surrender dare not surrender, and there are also cases of killing innocent people to take credit, using the surrendered Turks in Western Anatolia to pretend to be Turks in the eastern region. If this continues, Western Anatolia, which has been stable, may also become unstable, so Peter decided to change his strategy. Withdraw the order to destroy the Turks and change it to appeasement, while breaking up the Turkish tribes and moving them to Ukraine and the Balkans in a small model to enrich the population.
At this time, Muhammad was anxiously waiting for news from the front line. The escape route had been planned. As soon as the Roman army arrived, they could quickly leave Van and head for Tabriz. Unexpectedly, a letter from the front line was delivered to him.
"Sultan, the Roman army has already gone to Antioch. They will not go to Van for the time being. Even if they come, I will not let them move forward."
The army changed direction, which made him feel relieved. It seems that there will be no battle here for the time being.
At this time, there were only more than 30,000 troops surrounding Muhammad, and this was the army he directly controlled. The other tribal soldiers had already run away. Only the so-called direct troops followed him.
They piled up the stolen treasures and food in the city, drove away all the residents, and strengthened the city defense. Not only did they dig trenches, but they also prepared a lot of stones. It seems that they also learned lessons from the previous battle.
However, this time, it was Peter who took the initiative. He had time to waste with Muhammad to see who was better.