To achieve an important goal, it often requires huge investment and even huge sacrifices.

Historians have done relevant research, the Ming Dynasty's maritime history was a hundred years earlier than Europe, and the technology at that time was much more advanced than Europe.

In summary, I think the most important two words are "geographical" and "sea power".

But in fact, in essence, the two words do not conflict, but complement each other.

In Chinese history, the Huangxia, Shang, Zhou, and Chun fought against the Qin, and the Three Kingdoms of the Han Dynasty followed the two Jins. The two dynasties of the north and south, the Sui and Tang dynasties, and the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties were flat in turn. But no matter which dynasty or generation, it has always multiplied and replaced in the vast Central Plains.

Historically, the powerful Han and Tang dynasties also expanded their territory, but in fact, they were all limited attacks with an active defensive nature, and their main activities were concentrated in the vast land of the Yangtze River and the Yellow River basin.

And this land is vast and rich enough to carry all the ambitions and dreams of the emperors of the past, and China has always been highly centralized, so the rulers put more – or almost all of their minds on internal management.

Externally, they are more inclined to declare their strength, and accept the worship and submission of various countries as the upper kingdom of the Celestial Empire, and do not have a strong desire for external conquest, because there is no need for that.

The results of Zheng He's several trips to the West are the best illustration.

Since the Middle Ages, European countries as large as a province in China and as small as a state and county in China have been at war with each other for hundreds of years.

In the process, these large and small kingdoms poured out each other, repeatedly squeezing out the last vestiges of vitality and blood they possessed. However, because they are all low-end rookies pecking at each other, they have not really eliminated anyone or destroyed anyone after hundreds of years of fighting.

But the interesting thing is that these countries do not admit defeat and shout at each other. With their current strength insufficient to crush their rivals, these small, resource-poor countries have had to expand outward to capture more resources.

With the continuous improvement of various technical indicators at this time, the areas that human beings can explore and reach are also expanding, which makes European countries with greater survival pressure have to rush to embark on the road of foreign colonization.

The most typical of these are the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Portugal. The common characteristics of these three countries are that they face the sea in all areas, the land is very small, and the resources are highly poor, so they became the pioneers of the Age of Discovery.

Objectively speaking, because the pressure is the greatest, it has to be so.

Coming from the future, I naturally know that since the entry of the Manchu Qing Tartars, although there is a much-touted and exaggerated Kangqian rule, in fact, it is constantly widening the gap with Europe.

If China is backward, it will be beaten, and because of its backwardness, China has been beaten for more than 100 years, which has brought heavy disasters to the entire country and nation. As a son and daughter of China, I can't forget this history, and now that I have the opportunity to change all this, why not make my own efforts?

The pampered royal family of the Ming Dynasty has no pressure to survive, and has always lived in the lofty dream of the unification of the world, completely unaware of the great danger lurking around them, and unaware that Europe on the other side of the world is running with all its might, plotting to encroach on all the land, including the Ming Dynasty, at any time!

I have to wake it up! Let the big countries in the East see the world soberly and realize their own shortcomings!

And the best way to wake it up is to make it really feel the crisis! Feel the pressure and pain from the outside world!

If there will be war, sacrifice and suffering, then I can only say that this is a process that must be experienced, whether today or tomorrow, after all, you can't avoid it!

The Oriental Expo was a great success, and after the three events in London, Amsterdam and Copenhagen, it brought great shock and impact throughout Europe.

Silk, porcelain, embroidery, woodwork, tea, wine, gastronomy, drama, books, technology, ideas. I brought everything Europe could bring!

While the government and the opposition of the three countries have increased their knowledge and better enjoyed the products and benefits from the Eastern civilization, the three host countries have also made a lot of money because of taxes and shares.

This made the prestige of the Ming Dynasty unique in Europe for a while! Everyone yearns for that magical and rich land, and different people have different yearning and different thinking.

As a result, many countries have expressed the hope that we can increase the number of expos, and of course, more importantly, invite the American Chamber of Commerce and myself to hold the expo in their countries, and bring them more business opportunities is the most important thing.

This even includes Spain, a Spain that has been hostile to me for a long time.

This fully shows that in the face of huge economic interests, any face, any dignity, and any hatred are all floating clouds. There are no eternal friends, no eternal enemies, only eternal interests.

So after careful consideration, why not make the money that can be made? However, because of the greedy nature of the Spaniards, in order to prevent them from being greedy for money and money, I made an additional request to Spain.

Pay a security deposit.

Of course, not to me, but to a third party, France, in escrow, and if the Spaniards default, then the security deposit goes to me.

The Spaniards were reluctant to say yes at first, but the reality was that in a strong seller's market, they had no choice.

Eventually, we reached an agreement guaranteeing 55,000 gold coins. The security deposit is held by the French royal family, and whether the money is returned to me or to Spain, they will take a fee of 5,000 gold coins.

As an intermediary, of course, my friend - Henry, Crown Prince of France. In order to negotiate this, and because of the need for another fair in Paris, I met him in late autumn at the Champ de la Château de l'Elysee, which was covered with maple leaves.

Compared to two years ago, Henry from Navarre is obviously much more mature, but the future king of France, who is famous for his casualness, has a helpless smile in his smile, and he just toasts me frequently.

He's begging to get drunk, and that's how I feel.

"Hi Henry, my friend, you can't finish your drink." I put down my glass and smiled, "I'm more concerned about your sorrows than drinking, don't you want to talk about it?"

Henry looked at me deeply, shook his head, poured another big sip of wine, wiped the wine from the corner of his mouth, and then said in a hoarse voice: "Sun! My dear friend! It's not that I don't want to say it, but ...... It's really helpless. ”

I picked up my glass and touched it with him again, before I chuckled and said, "I was born in the Ming Dynasty and has been at sea for more than two years now. At this stage, there are countless people who want my life, but I am still doing well! ”

There was a glint in Henry's eyes, and he stared at me until I continued.

I stared into his eyes and said word by word: "To do all this, you rely on the word "fight!"

Henry's hand holding the wine glass trembled slightly, and it took a long time before he whispered: "Future, love, freedom, I have nothing!" My friend, I want to fight for it too, but ......"

I remained silent, waiting for him to continue. Henry entered his emotions and muttered under the influence of alcohol.

"My father and mother, in every sense of the word, were related to the Valois royal family by marriage. I am cousins of the deceased François, Charles IX, and Henry III, and Henry III has no heirs, and I am the strongest heir."

"Margaret is a good woman and a beautiful woman that everyone admires, but I don't have much in common with her. And my mother-in-law, Catherine de Medici, was too ambitious to be a woman. ”

"During the years of her regency, the current King Henry III was completely under her control, not to mention me, a crown prince with no real power, who could be said to have no value in existence."

"But I'm not reconciled! Although I am a Huguenot, I love France no less than any Catholic*! Why am I being an outlier for such reasons? Do you want to be subject to it everywhere? ”

"I want to make France really stand up! Let every French farmer have a chicken in his pot! But...... But the hope is too slim......"

"It's so hard! My friend, it's so hard! You can't help me. ”

He muttered, picked up his glass and poured himself a few more sips, and when I was about to drink, I pressed it on the flask!

Henry looked up at me blankly, not knowing what I was going to do. He had a good impression of me as a lifesaver and believed in my strength, but he still had no hope that I would be able to help him.

"In China, from ancient times to the present, most kings have come out of recklessness. For example, Zhu Yuanzhang, the Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, is an emperor who was born recklessly. ”

I glanced at Henry, who was listening, and I continued: "He grew up in a poor family, and he couldn't even afford to eat. Under the enslavement of the Tatars, all his family members were separated and fled, and he grew up herding cattle for people, doing hard labor, and eating a full meal was his greatest wish. ”

"Later, he became a monk, huh...... It's the monks, and it's also for survival. Later, he took refuge in the rebel army, that is, the Revolutionary * Destiny * Party, and after decades of hard work, finally completely drove out the Tatars and unified the Ming Dynasty, which was ten times larger than France! ”

As I spoke, I took my glass and said to Henry with a playful smile, "You have almost everything compared to him!" Your starting point is something that the first emperors of the Ming Dynasty never dreamed of! Compared to him, you lack nothing, the only thing you lack is ......"

"Courage!"

It's like a hammer slamming into Henry's heart! He looked at me a little dumbfounded, repeating the word in a low voice.

After a long time, Henry looked at me again, his eyes regained some lightness, and asked, "What do you mean...... Should I fight once? Is that right? My friend? ”

I laughed and didn't say anything. Henry changed his position, rested his elbows on the table, pressed his weight forward, and asked in a low voice, "Do you think I can do it?"

I snorted and said, "Otherwise, do you think I like to waste time?"

Henry asked, "My mother-in-law...... Medici, how did you get past her? ”

I said in a deep voice: "She is an outsider after all, if her name is not right, her words will not be good, and when the time comes, this problem will definitely be solved."

Henry was stunned for a moment, and then asked again: "What about the sect?" I am a Huguenot! My comrades-in-arms and friends shed countless blood for the freedom of faith! Am I going to betray their sacrifice? ”

I looked at him coldly and said, "You have no right to speak, you are just a poor Huguenot worm like a cold trumpet!" Only by standing on the commanding heights can your will be carried out! ”

Without waiting for him to answer, I lifted the bottle and said, "Whether the bottle is red wine or beer, no one else knows, what matters is what is written on the label, and that's enough!"

Henry muttered, "What do you mean...... Am I pretending to be converted to Catholicism? This...... This does not seem too difficult to accept compared to being banished to the Pyrenees for the rest of your life. ”

Henry drank a glass of wine, and seemed to have courage, but asked me one last question: "But the biggest question is, Henry III is still very young, must I have consumed him?"

Speaking of this, he poured a glass of wine a little dejectedly, and picked it up, but did not drink it, but waited for my answer, his eyes were very anxious.

I smiled faintly, gently picked up the wine bottle, and said slowly in a low voice: "A breath of people, a pillar of incense of the Buddha." For the supreme position that aspires to be obtained, human life is too fragile! ”

"Smack"! The glass in Henry's hand slipped to the ground, and his hands were still shaking! It took him a long time before he asked in a muffled voice, "You mean...... Assassinate!? ”

I laughed again without saying a word. The air in the room was as thick as asphalt that could not be dissolved, and no one spoke......