In Macao, in 1553, that is, in the 32nd year of Jiajing, the Portuguese paid a lot of money to buy off Wang Bai, the deputy envoy of the Guangdong Sea Route, and asked to temporarily live in Macao under the pretext of a storm on merchant ships, and was allowed to live ashore.

After that, he expanded his residence at will with an annual rent of 20,000 taels of silver.

In the end, it developed to build city walls, build forts, and set up officials without authorization, forming an autonomous situation.

In other words, the Portuguese obtained the right of residence by way of bribery, and not the so-called colonization.

However, in order to do business well, the Portuguese had to go through a lot of hardships to get the little land of Macau.

The first time: In the 11th year of Zhengde (1516), the Portuguese Billitelo made his first voyage to China.

The second time: in the thirteenth year of Zhengde (1518), the Intrite brothers went to Tuen Mun Island to do business, were violent and greedy against the Chinese, set up a fortress privately, exercised the power of punishment, and provoked

aroused the public indignation of the Chinese people.

In the sixteenth year of Zhengde (1521), Wang Hong, the deputy envoy of Guangdong Haidao, led his troops to attack them, expelled them from Tuen Mun Island, sealed the port, and imprisoned the Portuguese minister Billis.

The third time: In 1522, the new Portuguese minister Miró led the fleet into Tuen Mun Island, and the Guangdong soldiers and civilians severely punished the invaders in Xicaowan, Xinhui, killing 35 people, capturing 42 people including the general Shu Shili, and capturing two warships.

Fourth: In the twenty-seventh year of Jiajing (1548), he invaded Dinghai, Zhejiang and Zhangzhou, Fujian with the Japanese invaders.

The Ming Dynasty appointed Zhu Kun as the governor of Zhejiang and the governor of Fujian's military affairs. After Zhu Kun took office, he immediately blockaded the sea, and the Zhoushan Islands and Zhangzhou defeated the joint invasion of the Portuguese and the Japanese, and severely punished 96 people, including Li Guangtou, a wealthy merchant who had passed through the Portuguese and the Japanese.

In desperation, in 1553, a group of Portuguese merchant ships asked to go to Haojing (today's Macao) to dry the "wet tribute" under the pretext of encountering wind and waves at sea, and the Guangdong officials accepted a bribe of 500 taels of silver, which was allowed.

The Portuguese were able to go ashore and have since settled in Macau.

The Portuguese only had the right of residence, while the judicial and administrative powers, as well as the military power, remained in the hands of the Ming people.

In addition, in order to manage the Portuguese well, the Ming Dynasty stipulated that the Portuguese in Macao must pay land rent every year, and set up a customs office to collect foreign taxes, set up a guard to Macao, and set up a Xiangshan County Order (Zhixian County) to implement the administrative power and the final judicial disposition power.

However, with the erosion of money power and the Portuguese (paying taxes on time, collecting dragon incense for Jiajing, etc.), the Portuguese slowly built walls and forts, and had the ability to defend themselves.

It was not until 1877 that Portugal forced the Qing government to sign the Draft Treaty of the Sino-Portuguese Conference and the Sino-Portuguese Treaty of Beijing (also known as the Sino-Portuguese Treaty of Peace and Commerce), imposing on China the clause that "China would still allow Portugal to permanently reside and administer Macao and the territories that belonged to Macao".

From this point on, Macau was transformed from a Chinatown-like autonomous region into a colony.

So, in the spring of 1565, as the first Englishman to come to the ancient country of the East.

On the eighth day of the first month of March, a fleet of 10 ships, large and small, lined up in a flotilla in the prosperous port of Macao, slowly anchored in the port and stopped.

"Lao Zhang, there are a lot of ghosts here this time, we are going to be tired!" At the port, a young man with a pimple on his face squatting on the ground said excitedly to his partner who was not much older than him.

"Yes, there are more ships coming today than yesterday, and we can have a good day today!" The young man named Lao Zhang immediately stood up and said happily.

Sure enough, as the ten tall ships entered the port, hundreds of dock workers rushed over, eager for work.

"Garya, are these the people of the Ming Kingdom? How does it look different from what you described! ”

Robin. Halt stood on the deck, looking at the swarming laborers, squinting and questioning.

"No, my dear captain, these are just the lowest part of the Ming people, the real Ming people, gentle and polite, personable, and dressed in expensive silks, wearing precious ornaments, looking, more elegant than the real nobles!"

The Portuguese captain shook his head again and again, and said in denial, only to see his eyes shining, staring into the distance, and his face was full of intoxication.

"They ate fine food, lived in splendid mansions, dressed in expensive silks, and were humble and courteous, no different from true aristocrats! Even, the aristocrats of Europe are not as good as them in life! ”

Looking at the Portuguese captain in front of him with an envious face, Robin was a little unimpressed, he didn't see this scene with his own eyes, it was really hard to imagine that ordinary Ming people were better off than nobles.

Soon, after paying the parking tax, Robin took a few people to the streets of Macau.

At this time, there were only two or three streets in Macao, and there were only more than 1,000 Portuguese people living in Macao.

But there are a lot of pedestrians coming and going, crowded with people, people are crowded, people are crowded, at a glance, they are all heads, and they are more prosperous than the streets of London.

The brightly dressed young lady did not attract Robin's attention, but it was the Ming people who came and went, locking his eyes.

They were about five feet five inches tall (one meter seven) on average, much taller than any Englishman he had ever seen.

And one by one they were fair-skinned, wearing cloth shoes, burly figures, hair coiled, heads held high, and wearing unknown expensive satin, which was simply surprising.

With a short nose, black and white eyes, and wide sleeves and fair skin, this is another race, Robin confirms.

"Are these people white?" Robin's mouth opened wide and said exaggeratedly.

"Yes, sir, when we came here, we found that their skin was whiter and softer than that of Africans and Indians, and whiter than us Europeans, so at first, we called them white!"

"Later, we learned that the name of this ancient oriental country is 'Ming'! That's why we call them Akito! ”

The guide saw his confusion and explained.

"Akito?" Robin read the name of the tongue-twister, his mind full of doubts.

"It means light!"

"The Land of Light is indeed a good name!" Robin suddenly felt a little unclear.

Robin walked on the streets, observing the Ming people one by one, as if he had seen a fresh toy, and his face was full of excitement.

And the Ming people walking on the street don't care, such a curious ghost, they basically have to see it once a day, and they are used to it.

"Oh! Oh my God, what is this? Robin looked at the red things in front of him that were strung together on wooden skewers and wondered.

"It's an ice tower slurry—" The guide also twisted his tongue with a tangled face.

"Ice Tower Mulu, what a strange name!"

Robin looked at the streets full of novelty goods, which made him feel that he had arrived in another world, a place that was more prosperous and civilized than Europe.

At this moment, he is full of desire to understand this ancient country.