No matter how high the mountain is, there are people under their feet, and no matter how big the waves are, they are under the bottom of the boat.

- Burmese proverb

After the 10-day family visit holiday expired, Gong Chengxiang returned to Zheng He's side on time.

Zheng He told him: "The emperor ordered us to set off immediately within 10 days to start our second voyage to the West. ”

Gong Chengxiang's eyes widened in surprise, and he asked loudly, "Lord Zheng, why?" ”

Zheng He smiled mysteriously and said, "The secret of heaven must not be revealed." ”

Gong Chengxiang got on the big boat in a daze and set off again.

They mainly visited Champa, Java, Siam (present-day Thailand), Manraka, Nam Murri (present-day Aceh, Indonesia), Kajil (present-day southern tip of India), Ceylon, Kochi (present-day Cochin in India), and Guri.

Zheng He told Gong Chengxiang: "Before our trip, the emperor received reports from Champang, Sumatra and Manraka accusing Siam: Siam could not help but bully the weak, and sent troops to take away the seals and edicts given by the Ming Dynasty to various countries, and asked the Ming to uphold justice. ”

Gong Chengxiang asked, "Lord Zheng, what should we do then?" ”

Zheng He replied, "I brought the emperor's edict. Take this opportunity to educate Siam well. ”

Zheng He came to Siam and severely condemned the king of Siam on behalf of Zhu Di: "Champa, Sumatra, and Manraka are all vassals of the Ming Dynasty, how can you arrest their envoys and rob them of their seals?" The Son of Heaven rewards and punishes clearly, promoting good and punishing evil. The removal of the Annan Li thief from power by the Ming Dynasty is the best example. Thy rite shall return the messengers of Champa and the seals of Sumatra and Manraka. From today on, we will revere the Son of Heaven, abide by the law, live in harmony with our neighbors, and share the blessings of peace. ”

The king of Siam knew that he was wrong, and not only did it in full accordance with Zhu Di's imperial decree, but also sent envoys to pay tribute to the Ming Dynasty to pay tribute to Siamese specialties to compensate for his sins. Since then, peace and tranquility have been maintained in Southeast Asia for a long time.

Gong Chengxiang followed Zheng He to the Buddhist state of Mount Ceylon, on behalf of the Ming Dynasty to the Buddhist temples in the Mount Ceylon, and in Chinese, Tamil and Iranian inscriptions to erect monuments as a permanent memorial.

Gong Chengxiang's grandparents and parents were devout Buddhists. With the entrustment of his family, he presented gifts to the Buddhist temple, and then knelt down in the temple and prayed sincerely to the Buddha to bless the Gong family with peace and prosperity, and happiness and longevity.

Soon after returning home from his second trip to various countries, Gong Chengxiang received an order from Zheng He and hurriedly began to go to the West for the third time.

In October 1409, Zheng He's fleet set sail from Liujiagang in Taicang, Jiangsu.

This time, several prominent civil servants were added to the fleet. Among them, Yao Guangxiao was the most famous strategist of Yongle Emperor Zhu Di, the main planner of the Battle of Jingjing, and compiled the famous "Yongle Canon". Fei Xin is fluent in Arabic and wears two hats, both as a foreign affairs translator and as a propagator of the Ming culture. Ma Huan is a Hui man, fluent in Iranian and Arabic, and has the same responsibilities as Fei Xin's. Gong Zhen was Zheng He's staff and secretary.

Along the way, Zheng He had a warm conversation with them, explaining to them what was unique about the country they were about to arrive, what to pay attention to, and so on.

Those civil officials were so excited that they danced like children, and they did not have the solemn and pedantic appearance of the past. Every time they go to a country, they have to get to the bottom of it, just like doing a study, and they have to thoroughly understand the ins and outs of everything.

Gong Chengxiang thought that these civil officials were very funny, and from time to time he made a prank and made fun of them.

Whenever this happens, Zheng He will stop the naughty Gong Chengxiang and tell him solemnly: "These gentlemen are all literati and Confucian scholars who read poetry and books in the Ming Dynasty, and their stomachs are full of university questions." We will rely on their knowledge to travel around the West. Everyone must respect them and respect knowledge. ”

Later, those civil officials also followed Zheng He to the West many times, visited more than 20 countries successively, and gained an in-depth understanding of the customs of each country. After they returned to China, they wrote and wrote biographies. Fei Xin wrote "The Triumph of Xingcha". Gong Zhen wrote the "Western Fanguo Chronicles". Ma Huan wrote "Yingya Triumph". These books introduced the details of the Western countries to the readers of the Ming Dynasty from various aspects.

The flotilla basically sailed along the routes of the first two times.

When they reached the shores of the Indian Ocean, they heard all the kings crying about the conceited and stubborn deeds of the king of Mount Ceylon, Alek Chenal, who bullied his neighbors.

Zheng He then led the fleet to the mountain country of Ceylon and personally persuaded Alekunar to change his ways.

Not only did Alie Kunaer not correct it, but became more and more arrogant, and even shamelessly opened his mouth to ask Zheng He for gold and silver property.

Zheng He, of course, would not agree to such a scoundrel.

Alekhunar and her son secretly plotted together to rob Zheng He's fleet. He deliberately sent people to invite Zheng He and other commanders to the island first, and then secretly sent an army of 50,000 people to block the way for Zheng He and others to return to the fleet, and finally sent a large group of soldiers to rob the fleet.

Zheng He and others landed on the island of Mount Ceylon, sensed the sinister intentions of Alie Kunaer, and planned to turn around and return to the fleet, but the way back was already heavily guarded and could not be walked.

In this severe and dangerous situation, Gong Chengxiang was afraid that Lord Zheng would encounter an accident, so he followed closely behind him and focused on ensuring his safety.

Zheng He said to everyone: "The main force of the mountain country of Ceylon has gone out, and the fortifications in the royal city must be empty. We might as well take the opportunity to give them a heavy blow now, teach them a good lesson, and let them die from trying to rob while the fire is burning. ”

All the officers and men and their entourage expressed their resolute support for Master Zheng's proposal.

Therefore, Zheng He led the officers and soldiers to occupy the capital of the Ceylon Mountains, surrounded their royal palace, captured King Alekunar and his family alive, and escorted them all to the ship, and sent them to Yingtianfu, the capital of the Ming Dynasty.

Yongle Emperor Zhu Di adopted a policy of leniency and preferential treatment for the captives such as Ah Lie Kunaer, allowing them to live in Yingtianfu temporarily. At the same time, Zhu Di arranged for the Ministry of Rites to choose the more virtuous Yebanali among the relatives of Alekunaer, and sent an ambassador to Mount Ceylon with the edict and the seal to canonize Yebanahar as the new king, and sent Alekunar back to China together.

Zheng He also completed an important thing during his trip to the West this time. That is to welcome back the teeth of the Buddha Shakyamuni from Mount Ceylon. Zhu Di intended to use this to capture the psychology of the people who generally believed in Buddhism, prove the legitimacy of his rule, and calm the people's dissatisfaction and resistance to his seizure of power.

In December 1413, Emperor Zhu Di of Yongle summoned Zheng He and said to him earnestly: "You have already been to a relatively close Western country in the past few trips. The farther countries have not yet been visited. This time, you will take my seal book to a distant country, and send brocades, silks, and saras to their kings, princesses, and ministers, while continuing to inquire into the whereabouts of your nephew. ”

Zheng He was ordered to lead the fleet to set off again.

This time, he planned to visit the Muslim kingdom of Celestial Heaven, which is the area of present-day Saudi Arabia, with the assistance of Hui Hui Huan, who knew Arabic.

The fleet sailed northwest for about 25 days from the kingdom of Guri on the coast of the Indian Peninsula to the Western power of Khurmus (present-day Hormus) on the Arabian Peninsula.

Gong Chengxiang was amazed to see that the country of Kurumus, located at the end of the West Sea, was a refreshing country. The people here are fair-skinned and tall. The women walking on the streets covered their bodies with black scarves.

The climate here is only hot and cold. In winter there is frost but no snow, and in summer there is dew but drought and little rain. Large areas of land are highly saline, and hardly any vegetation grows. Cattle, sheep and other livestock eat dried fish.

Merchant ships from the East and the West and merchants from the Western Regions came here to trade. As a result, the market is particularly thriving, with a wide variety of treasures. There are many kinds of vegetables and fruits in the market, such as walnuts, almonds, pine nuts, pomegranates, grapes, flower reds, and dates. They trade with silver coins.

The land here is very barren and produces almost no wheat. As a result, food is imported from other places in large quantities and at very low prices.

The common people live well-being, affluent, and helpful. If someone lives in poverty because of a disaster, everyone will take the initiative to send him money and silk to help him tide over the difficulties.

The locals built their houses out of stone, which were three or four storeys high. The bedrooms, kitchen, toilets, and reception rooms are all in one building, unlike the Ming Dynasty, which is scattered in the courtyard.

There is a great mountain in the territory of Hurumus. The four sides of the mountain are four colors. There is a kind of red salt stone, which can be carved into utensils, and the food is served without salt, and the taste is moderately salty. The mountains also produce white, laterite and loess, which can be used both to paint walls and as paints for drawings.

The doctor's treatment and medication, as well as various skills, are very similar to Daming's.

The script that people wrote was the back script (i.e., Arabic).

Most of the kings and subjects were Muslims. Weddings and funerals are also all in accordance with Muslim etiquette. Bathe before fasting. Pray five times a day. It is forbidden to drink alcohol, and the offender can be sentenced to death.

The peculiar customs and landscapes opened Gong Chengxiang's eyes. He couldn't help but think: The world is really wonderful.

The king of Hurmus happily received guests from the Far East. Later, he specially sent ambassadors to visit the Ming Empire with inscriptions made of gold leaf, tall horses and native products.

Ma Huan led several Hui people to make a special trip to worship the Hejaz (i.e., the holy city of Mecca) in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Zheng He's fleet left the Celestial Kingdom and sailed for the first time to Malindi (present-day Malindi, Kenya) in eastern Africa.

The king of Malindi warmly received Zheng He's fleet and accepted silk and porcelain presented by Zheng He on behalf of the Yongle Emperor Zhu Di.

When Zheng He set off for China, the king of Malindi specially sent an envoy to follow Zheng He's fleet to the Ming Empire with a special product of Malindi, a unicorn (i.e., giraffe).

Gong Chengxiang had never seen such a strange-looking animal: the shape and coat color of the body resembled a deer deer in the forests of the Central Plains, but the neck was surprisingly long, and there was a small head with short horns on top of it. However, it has a docile temper.

When Gong Chengxiang had nothing to do, he took some twigs and vegetables to tease the unicorn.

When the unicorn sees the branches and green vegetables, it will spread its four hooves, kick the floor hard, hang down its long neck, and then stretch out its slender tongue, roll up the green leaves and send them to the mouth to chew.

One day, Gong Chengxiang asked Zheng He in confusion: "Lord Zheng, this unicorn is extremely tall, where will it be locked up after it is transported back to Tianfu?" ”

Zheng He smiled and said, "Why do you want to lock it up? It originally lived in the prairie of the wilderness, and it was free. Now, if you want to go against its nature and keep it in captivity, isn't that against family and the ancient precept of 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you'? ”

Gong Chengxiang felt that Master Zheng seemed to be talking about this unicorn, and it didn't seem to be talking about the unicorn, which contained some kind of life truth, so he nodded as if he didn't understand.

Yongle Emperor Zhu Di saw the unicorn brought back by Zheng He's fleet, and felt very fresh and interesting, and brought Empress Xu, concubines and princes to admire.

Empress Xu is graceful and elegant, noble and generous. She smiled and said, "This unicorn is both pitiful and ridiculous. ”

Zhu Di turned his eyes to Empress Xu and asked with interest: "Please tell the Empress about it, and we will all listen to it too?" ”

Empress Xu said unhurriedly, "It is said that it is pitiful because its slender neck is high up, and it is very hard." It's cute because its little head sways from side to side, like a smart toddler. ”

Queen Xu's words caused everyone to burst into laughter.

In June 1417, Zheng He led the fleet to set off again.

This time, Gong Chengxiang had just married his daughter-in-law and was specially approved by Zheng He to stay at home to rest.

On the day of the fleet's departure, Gong Chengxiang came to the port early and repeatedly told Zheng He's other guards: "You must take care of Lord Zheng and not make any mistakes." ”

The guards promised.

The fleet led by Zheng He first came to Quanzhou, a famous port city in Fujian.

Zheng He met Pu Rihe, a descendant of Pu Shougeng, a Hui envoy from Quanzhou during the Southern Song Dynasty.

The Pu family is a well-known seafaring family in the southeast and is well versed in overseas affairs. Pu Rihe was devout and enthusiastic about Islam, and at the end of the Great Yuan Dynasty, he and Jin Ali jointly built the Qingjing Temple in Quanzhou.

Zheng He used Pu Rihe to go to the Western Ocean with the fleet.

On the eve of leaving Quanzhou, Pu Rihe took Zheng He to the Lingshan Holy Tomb to worship the sages and visit the tomb with incense.

Between 618 and 626 in the early Tang Dynasty, Muhammad of Arabia sent four wise men to the East. They preached in Guangzhou, Yangzhou, and Quanzhou. Among them, Sha Shijie and Wan Gas were missionaries in Quanzhou all their lives. After their impermanence, they were buried on a hill outside the city of Quanzhou.

On the night of the funeral, the hill suddenly became bright.

People say that it was the manifestation of the sages, so they called their cemetery the Holy Sepulchre, and the hill the Spiritual Mountain.

In front of the Holy Sepulchre there is a natural boulder. When the wind blows, the boulder is shaky, so it is called the wind stone, which is one of the three wind stones in Fujian Province. The wind stone has become a scene in Quanzhou, "jade ball wind".

Zhou Daoguang, the prefect of Quanzhou, inscribed the three big characters of "jasper ball" on the boulder, and the descendants engraved the four words "natural and wonderful" on it.

Pu Rihe wrote an inscription and erected a monument for Zheng He's incense touring tomb, leaving precious first-hand information for future generations to study Zheng He's voyage to the West.

From Quanzhou, they crossed the Taiwan Strait, passed through the South China Sea, and then went to Champa and Java, and as far as Mugudushu (present-day Mogadishu, Somalia), Burawa (present-day Burawa, Somalia), and Malindi in present-day East Africa.

On August 8, 1419, Zheng He led the fleet back to Daming.

After returning to China, Pu Rihe was crowned as Wei Zhenfu of Quanzhou by Zhu Di, Emperor Yongle, and was responsible for managing the Holy Tomb of Lingshan.