ushernet Page 330
Page 330
At this time, the secretary of the Marquis of Mendoza, Garcia, who was very cute, knocked on the door of the office.
"Come in!" said the Marquis.
Then, he heard the creaking sound of the door opening.
"Marquis," a young Spaniard entered, "the Bishop of New Andalusia, Raúl Torres, has arrived."
"Oh, invite him in."
The Marquis of Mendoza knew this Raul Torres. In the early years, they had fought together on the European continent against the enemies of the Kingdom of Spain, so they formed a deep friendship.
However, the Marquis of Mendoza did not invite Bishop Raul Torres to Mexico City because of their personal relationship.
Bishop Raúl Torres was summoned to Mexico City by a newly discovered "lost civilization" in the northwest of the New World.
"Raul, long time no see." Marquis Mendoza saw his friend for many years, and asked him with a smile while beckoning him to sit down, "Are you okay? I heard that you were almost beaten to death by those barbarians... ..."
Raul Torres smiled wryly, "It was true that he almost died... But those people are not barbarians."
"Not a savage?" Mendoza laughed. "They almost killed you, didn't they?"
"I was pointed at the head by a thousand musketeers with flintlocks..." Raul Torres said, "and I was surrounded by more than 200 useless half-breeds! Marquis, who do you think is a barbarian?"
"That's it..." The Marquis of Mendoza thought for a while, "Can they use those flintlocks proficiently? Also, do you know where they bought their flintlocks?"
"They were well-trained soldiers!" Raúl Torres said, "not only could they use the flintlock skillfully and correctly, but they could also form very neat cavalry formations.
As for where did they get so many flintlock guns?I think they either built it themselves, or bought it from Daming on the other side of the Pacific Ocean. "
"Build it yourself? Who are they?" The Marquis of Mendoza said, "Are they some kind of lost Indian civilization?"
"No, they should not be Indians. They are probably Chinese!" Raul Torres said, "According to them, he was from the Shang Dynasty who left China more than 600 years ago and fled across the ocean to the New World." Descendant."
The bishop has already figured out what is "business"?This was only figured out after he inquired in Mexico City to the consultant of the Red Clothes Mansion, a Chinese hand who had come back from the Philippines.
"What?" The Marquis of Mendoza couldn't believe his ears. "More than 600 years ago? That was 1000 BC? Isn't that too old?"
"It's really ancient..." Raul Torres said, "Maybe I was deceived, maybe their ancestors really came from ancient China."
"You must have been deceived by them!" said the Marquis of Mendoza. "How could people cross the Pacific Ocean more than 600 years ago?"
"What you said makes sense. They are most likely a group of liars belonging to the Nanyang Trading Company." Raul Torres quickly expressed his conjecture respectfully.
Although the Marquis of Mendoza and Torres guessed part of the answer, the deputy king of New Spain could not send troops to start a war based on this guess.
This is not only because the Marquis of Mendoza is an old and cunning bureaucrat, but also because the Kingdom of Spain is already in decline.
The Kingdom of Spain can no longer afford a major defeat in the colonies of the New World!
"Raul," the Marquis of Mendoza looked at his old friend, "Is there a way to find out the truth?"
"Marquis, after I returned, I sent several groups of people across the desert to find out. But they were all driven back by the merchant cavalry guarding there!"
It turned out that the bishop still had some brains and knew that he might be fooled.
Raul Torres continued: "Maybe we should formally send a mission in the name of the king or vice-king... Only in this way can they reach the capital of the Shang Dynasty."
Although Raul Torres was a bishop, he was also a bureaucrat.A Catholic bureaucrat...so what he could come up with was very bureaucratic.
It hit Zhou Peigong's arms!
The Marquis of Mendoza nodded, "Very well, Thor, then I will order you to go to the capital of these people as the envoy of the father of New Spain, to pay homage to their king, and to find out their truth."
The Marquis of Mendoza is a master of "kicking the ball" and kicked the ball directly to Bishop Raul Torres.
However, throughout New Spain.Only Raul Torres had contact with those merchants, and he could understand a little bit of their language.
If he does not go, who else can take this trip for the Kingdom of Spain?
"Yes, Your Excellency the Marquis." Bishop Raul Torres did not refuse, and could not refuse - he was the one who asked the question!If it weren't for him to find mountains of gold, mountains of silver, and lost cities when he was full and had nothing to do, where would there be so much trouble?
Chapter 785 Go away, big businessmen are going to close their doors!
"Boom boom boom..."
Shang Fangguo is really not a barbarian, but also quite civilized and progressive!
Because they not only have flintlock guns that are a symbol of intermediate civilization, but also front-loading smoothbore guns that are a symbol of high-level civilization... and they can shoot fast and accurately. At first glance, you can tell that this Shangfang country is a very civilized and progressive country!
And the target of this cannonball of civilization is the ferryboat on which Raul Torres, the envoy of the vice-king of the Kingdom of New Spain, took—he has not yet entered the area around the City of God, but was blocked by merchants in the Sonoran Desert On the Red River in the north.The so-called Red River is also known as the Colorado River, and Colorado is Spanish, meaning red.
The last time Raúl Torres went treasure hunting in the City of God, the Colorado River was still undefended.But after more than a month, when he crossed the Sonoran Desert with a small mission as the deputy king of New Spain, he found that the merchants had already arrived at an important place in the lower reaches of the Colorado River leading to the City of God. The ferry was fortified, and a civil fortress was also built. There was also a large white flag hanging on the fortress, with the eight Chinese characters "Secluded and locked up the country, ghosts will not enter" stabbed on it!
"Bishop," this time Raul Torres brought a businessman with a better level of Chinese as an official. The businessman took a look through the binoculars and smiled at Raul. People from Guifang Kingdom go in... we are Spaniards, so we should be able to go in."
"It's okay!" Raul Torres gave the man a look, "We are from Guifang... Guifang means the place of foreign devils!"
"Oh, so that's how it is." After gaining some knowledge, "Bishop, let's go back... They don't welcome us, and we're still having sex!"
"boom……"
As if to prove that the businessman's words were correct, before he finished speaking, another cannon rang out!
This time the shells fired whizzed past Raul Torres' head, much more accurate than before!
This frightened the Spaniard, and the cannons of the merchants were too civilized and progressive, so he couldn't accept it!
So he hurriedly asked people to stop the boat, but he still refused to give up, he finally came here once, how could he go back without asking anything clearly?
So he had someone unfurl a white and flawless banner, and then yelled loudly in blunt Chinese: "My, the envoy of New Spain, was ordered by the vice king to go to the merchant side, and I beg you to inform..."
As soon as his words were out of his mouth, the artillery on the opposite side stopped firing.
Then I saw a middle-aged man in a white robe, who looked quite gentle, appeared outside the civil castle.
The man in white robe spoke loudly with a Shanxi accent: "Ah, this is the prefect of Honghe Pass in Shangfang Kingdom. He is guarding here by the king's order. You and other people from Guifang are not allowed to enter the pass, so leave quickly!"
This is still a person from the Shang Dynasty from Shanxi!
When Raul Torres heard this, he immediately replied: "Your Majesty, our country of New Spain has no ill will towards the country of Shangfang. We came here to seek free trade... I hope that we can pass the customs and enter the country to meet your king. !"
Whether there is malice or not, you have to go to the capital of Shangfang country and meet the king of Shangfang to decide.
If the merchants have many people and strong soldiers, then the Kingdom of New Spain certainly dare not do anything to them.
But if they are rich and weak, then I'm sorry...
The Shang Dynasty official from Shanxi on the opposite side was not stupid, and immediately shouted: "I heard you, Spanish ghost Fangguo, Etianyi is a big merchant, a big country with thousands of miles of land, tens of millions of people, rich products, and everything , there is no need to trade with you and other ghosts. Now the king has ordered you to lock the country and retreat, and no one from your ghosts is allowed to set foot in the north of the Hongshui River. You leave quickly, otherwise the guns will be blind!"
What?Thousands of miles of land?Ten million people?is it possible?
Bishop Raúl Torres was not convinced.Although there is a large piece of land in the northwest corner of North America that has not been carefully explored by white people.
But to say that such a large piece of land is almost all occupied by Shang Fangguo.It is still unbelievable that the New Spanish authorities have been with them for more than a hundred years without knowing anything about it.
However, Raul Torres couldn't be sure that these merchants were the people from the Daming Nanyang Trading Company... After all, in the Kingdom of New Spain, there are many legends about lost civilizations, and there are also some ancient cities that were abandoned.
If it was just a legend, Raul Torres might not believe it.But in the Sonora Desert, there is a lost city that was built by unknown people and abandoned for unknown reasons!
And such a city is obviously not capable of being built by the Indian tribes near Sonorasha!
Maybe it was a border city of the Shangfang Kingdom, which was abandoned for some unknown reason...
Just when Raul Torres was thinking about continuing to negotiate with the other party, trying to get some words out.The cannon on the opposite side fired again, which meant that there was nothing to discuss.
Although the cannonball just flew over Raul Torres' head, it was obvious that the muzzle was raised, and there was no intention of killing him.But Raul Torres still dare not float on the Colorado River.Hurry up and order the boatmen to row the boat to the south of the river bank... The first attempt to find out the reality of the merchants just failed.
However, Raul and his party were not in vain.They at least figured out that this Shang Fang Kingdom claimed to be a "big country", with "thousands of miles of land", "tens of millions of people", and "abundant products" and "everything"!
Moreover, Torres also knew that this merchant country not only had very powerful flintlock guns, but also had very accurate front-loading smoothbore guns... This military technology is not the same as that of the American Indians!
Even if they don't have a population of 1000 million, if they make a big discount and only have 100 million people, they can casually mobilize tens of thousands of troops equipped with artillery and flintlock guns. This is not something that the Kingdom of New Spain can win quickly. opponent!
Therefore, whether the relationship between the Kingdom of New Spain and the Shangfang Kingdom is friendly or not can only be determined after further investigation.
And when Bishop Raúl Torres returned to Mexico City with the news.The vice-king of New Spain, the Marquis of Mendoza, is no longer in the mood to manage Shang Fang, because the news of the complete fall of the Philippine colony has just been sent to Mexico City by the escaped Spaniards!
"Marquis...the Philippine colony is really gone? That's a huge colony!" Raul Torres looked at the ashen-faced Marquis of Mendoza with inexplicable surprise.
The Marquis of Mendoza shook his head and said with a long sigh: "No, nothing... More than 100 years of colonization and development, once the largest Christian fortress in the East, the land under the banner of God, the home of hundreds of thousands of Christians , it’s all gone now...it’s lost in my hands, and now my Vice-Prince of New Spain is coming to an end.” He looked at Raul Torres and said, “You still have to deal with Shang Fangguo. Let the new deputy king speak."
The Philippine colony in these days is not limited to one Luzon Island, but includes most of the territories belonging to the later Republic of the Philippines.The area is less than 20 square kilometers, at least 10,000+ square kilometers.And it is divided into countless islands...a considerable part of the islands have manors run by Spaniards or rich people of Fio mixed blood, as well as cities and ports controlled by the Spaniards.
Moreover, the Santiago Fortress in Manila, where the Philippine Governor's Mansion is located, is still a solid fortress that has not been repaired for more than 100 years. How can it be guarded for a year or so?
How do you say you lost it?
After listening to Raul Torres' question, the Marquis of Mendoza also looked helpless and anxious.Although there is a Pacific Ocean between the Philippines and Mexico, the Governor of the Philippines is a subordinate of the Vice-Prince of New Spain.The Philippines, across the Pacific Ocean, is actually the fault of his deputy king who sits in Mexico... Is there anything more absurd in the world?
And because Japan fell into the hands of Daming a few years ago, Daming immediately deployed a huge Eastern Fleet there.The sea near Japan is the only way for the Philippines to return to North America... So the communication between the Philippines and North America is very easy to be cut off by the Ming Navy's Eastern Fleet.
Under such circumstances, the Marquis of Mendoza did not dare to use the small number of galleons in the Pacific Ocean to transport reinforcements to the Philippines.Because the small number of reinforcements sent from thousands of miles may not be able to play any role. If those precious galleons are lost, the Marquis of Mendoza will be even more responsible.
However, when the Governor-General of the Philippines was attacked by Ming Dynasty, the Marquis of Mendoza also did his best to help - he prayed seriously to God every day, asking Almighty God to help guard the Fortress of Santiago in Manila and other People in the fortresses on the islands of the Philippines!To allow them to hold on for as long as possible against an overwhelmingly superior enemy.
The longer they hold out, the more the Kingdom of Spain and its allies can do!
It's a pity that the Marquis of Mendoza's prayers are of no use to the defenders in the Philippines... In fact, the [-] Ming army officers and soldiers mainly from Japan and North Korea under the command of the Ming army general Su Zhanshan carried flintlock guns , artillery, rocket launchers, and all kinds of sugar explosive mines, when hundreds of large and small sea boats rushed into Manila Bay.Their defeat is irretrievable, and they are destined not to last long.
Because the strength difference between the two sides is too great!In the face of absolute strength, God is powerless!
The total number of Spaniards and mixed-race Spaniards in the Philippine colony is less than [-]. Even if you count the indigenous or Japanese and Chinese mercenaries who converted to Catholicism, the total force that the Philippine governor can use is less than [-]. One-twelfth of the opponent.
Although the army of the Philippine Governor's Palace also has many sugar weapons - New Spain has brown sugar, and the Philippines can easily obtain white sugar produced in Guangdong, Fujian, and Zhejiang.However, the huge disadvantage in numbers, coupled with the fact that the army of the Philippine Governor's Palace has not experienced in the fierce Ming and Qing wars, so the war has been one-sided from the beginning.
From the landing in Manila Bay, the army of the Philippine Governor's Palace was overwhelmed and couldn't even breathe!
The Spanish fortress of Santiago, which has been repaired slowly and meticulously for more than 100 years and has not yet been completed, was declared in just a few days under the explosion of sugar rockets, sugar flower bombs and sugar bombs. fall!
The main force of the Spaniards in the Philippine Islands is located in the Fortress of Santiago. Once the fortress is lost, all that remains is to suppress and suppress the indigenous people. Catholicism cooperates with colonization.Not only colonize the economy, but also colonize the people of thought!
Therefore, after the Ming army seized the Fortress of Santiago, occupied the military port of Cavite, and basically defeated the main force of the Spanish colonists, there were still many mixed-race aboriginals and aboriginals who believed in God continued to resist with the support of the Catholic Church...
However, Zhu Heqi, who launched this war, had already anticipated this situation... That's why he recruited tens of thousands of samurai who had no chance of obtaining territories and salaries in Japan to join the Luzon Army.
These samurai are meant to be brutal!
They are not Juntian soldiers with houses and land in their families. These Juntian soldiers basically have no idea of going abroad to take root, they just want to earn a silver and go home to live a peaceful life.
So it's okay to let them play a short-term dignified battle.But they can't fight a long-term public security war.
However, the military soldiers recruited by Zhu Heqi from Japan never thought about returning to Japan when they went out to fight.
Because there is no chance of getting the land of knowledge and practice when you go back, you will be a worthless ronin if you go back!
And if you want to become a samurai master with a territory, you can only receive the land here in the Philippines!
Therefore, before the Ming army attacked Luzon, a land distribution plan had already been formulated.
Including Manila and its surrounding land, about one-third of Luzon's land will be entrusted to Zhu Hechi and Aoi Makoto's son, Ming Lu Wang Zhu Yilu.
And the remaining two-thirds, more than half will be distributed to meritorious Japanese soldiers - these people will become King Lu's retainers after receiving the land.Responsible for suppressing the local resistance in Luzon, and assisting the Luzon Mansion in governing the Luzon Kingdom and managing Wangzhuang (the territory directly under the Luzon King).
Another part of the land will be distributed to the local leading party in Lu Song who surrendered to Ming Dynasty, and they will also become King Lu's retainers.
At the same time, the Confucian Luzon General Hall was also established in Manila—all the retainers of King Lu who received land in Luzon must become Confucian disciples.
In the future, they will not only be responsible for suppressing local resistance, but also shoulder the responsibility of educating the local people.
Once these tens of thousands of feudal manors are established all over the Luzon Islands, the whole of Luzon will be firmly controlled by the Lu Palace of the Ming Dynasty (Lu Wang has not yet become a feudal vassal)!
Just when the vice-king of New Spain, Marquis Mendoza, was troubled by the fall of the Philippines, Zhu Heqi was standing on the tower of Guidemen in the inner city of Guangzhou, watching his old brother Su Zhanshan lead the victorious army, Accompanied by a large number of captured white skins and natives, they came in mighty force!
Chapter 786 Daming is the Celestial Dynasty Again, Does Any of You Want to Be a Loyal Servant?
In the summer of 1686 in the Western calendar, on the fifth day of the fifth month of the seventh year of the Great Duke of Ming Dynasty, outside Guide Gate in Guangzhou City, there were crowded crowds.
At this moment, outside the city of Guangzhou, it has long been a lively scene with thousands of houses and shops.When Zhu Heqi designated Guangzhou as the Great Ming Haijing, this No. [-] city in the south of the sky had not yet recovered from the chaotic times of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and there were only a few tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians in the city.After more than ten years of living and gathering, this number has already reached hundreds of thousands, and it can be said that the prosperity and prosperity of the late Ming Dynasty have been restored.Especially facing the direction of the Pearl River in the south, commercial banks, banks, and shipping companies that have sprung up relying on this international trade metropolis have the most buildings.
These buildings are almost all in the style of square enclosures, but these new enclosures are much more luxurious than the traditional enclosures in Chaozhou.There are no adobe walls, they are all built of bricks and stones and cement one by one, and there is nothing load-bearing or non-load-bearing, all of which are strong and durable.The outside of the brick wall is generally inlaid with granite or tiles as a veneer, which looks extraordinarily decent.The most luxurious windows are all small pieces of transparent glass windows, most of which are crystal palace glass with the best light transmittance and no bubbles!
Merchants who can afford glass of this quality must have sufficient strength, and it is reassuring to look at!
And there are hundreds of powerful merchants here in Guangzhou!Guangdong has always been an important sea trade center. In the middle and late Ming Dynasty, thanks to the influx of silver from America, tens of thousands of folks made a fortune in sea trade.Although some people died in the troubled times of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and another group fell into disrepair, some people still fled to Annan or Nanyang by boat.After Zhu Heqi opened the Ming Dynasty again, these people returned to Guangdong one after another with their capital and channels, and Guangzhou, as the undisputed number one city in Guangdong, naturally became the gathering place for these maritime merchants.
Driven by them, Guangzhou's business has become more prosperous!
In addition, due to the support and promotion of Zhu Heqi, Guangdong's handicraft industry has also developed extremely fast!It has also formed four world-renowned fist products such as crucible iron, milk white porcelain, special white (white sugar), and sugar cane wine!
In addition, the financial industry in Guangzhou also started very early, almost at the same time as the reopened Ming Dynasty.By the seventh year of Dagong, a financial system with four banks and one institution as the core, such as Dongchang Guanyin Bank Guangdong Headquarters, Nanyang Bank, Penglai Bank Guangdong Headquarters, and Guangfu Bank and Guangfu United Exchange, had been formed. .
And these commercial banks and banks built luxurious surrounding buildings on several streets in the south of Guangzhou and the outer city of Guangzhou.If you walk into the city from the Tianzi Ferry Pier, the tall buildings and mansions along the way can shock the jaws of those foreigners who have never seen the world.
Most of the triumphant athletes who just disembarked from the Tianzi Ferry Pier, walked along the wide and straight streets into the outer city of Guangzhou, and then walked all the way to Guidemen, as well as the captured Westerners and natives, had never experienced such prosperity. When disembarking at the Tianzi Ferry Pier, everyone was already shocked, with their mouths wide open and eyes wide open, looking around, for fear of missing any celestial weather in this city on top of a mountain, one of the three capitals of the Ming Dynasty. But it's a scene that can blow with people for a lifetime!