The loss of the Ryukyus was an unbearable burden for the Satsuma Domain. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

Take a step back, though. It's not an unbearable burden.

Ryukyu is important, but it is no longer the Sengoku period. In the past, the Satsuma clan could destroy the outer feudal domain and strengthen itself. Now there are shoguns, and Japan has been unified. Going against Tokugawa Iemitsu's will is an unbearable burden.

Of course, Tokugawa Iemitsu wasn't stupid either. He is not completely oppressive of Shimazu Mitsuhisa.

As a supplement, the Satsuma Domain would be among the first to be opened to the Ming trade. The Satsuma clan was originally in the southwest of Japan, close to the Ming Dynasty. Even though there was no legal trade between China and Japan before, there were still quite a few smuggling ships that came to the Satsuma Domain to trade with the outside world.

Tokugawa Iemitsu's compensation slightly comforted everyone's indignant state of mind.

However, compared to the expected gains from trade with the Ming Dynasty, the loss of Ryukyu gains is a certainty.

Thinking of the 3,000 iron artillery team stationed on Amami Oshima Island, Shimazu Mitsuhisa was in a good mood and depressed.

Why did you play Ryukyu in the first place?

In order to have nowhere to place the surplus military power in the Satsuma Domain, the Ryukyus were pulled out, and the Japanese officials, troops, and civilians above had to be withdrawn as well.

With the loss of Ryukyu taxes, these burdens will have to be squeezed out of the already modest finances of the Satsuma Domain, which can be called Alexander.

The words of Kayama Kumori aroused the resonance of Shimazu Mitsuhisa, and those two words were spit out, as if splitting a ray of hope in despair, illuminating Shimazu Mitsuhisa's hazy heart.

"That's it! But...... This plan must be kept completely secret. Shimazu Mitsuhisa's gaze sternly scanned everyone present: "No matter what kind of friendship you had with the Zheng family before, you must not reveal a little wind at this critical juncture!" ”

"Hay!"

"Hay!"

"Hay!"

……

Everyone was in awe. Of course, they knew that this was a rare opportunity.

If Zheng Zhilong hadn't been able to grasp that the Japanese wanted him, how would he have moved his entire net worth to Japan? Isn't he afraid of being hacked and eaten by black?

Therefore, if the rumor leaks out.

In the face of more than 20,000 Ming people who have entered the territory of Japan, in the face of at least 3,000 elite troops on the road, hundreds of warships......

This is not only a fat sheep, but also a vicious wolf in sheep's clothing.

The only difference was that now he needed to disguise himself, so he put away his minions. But if he is alarmed, he will reveal his original evil wolf face.

……

Bernie Bryan has been in good form lately, and God willing, he has been so lucky that after evacuating the Japanese warehouse, he has found a new replacement point - the Ryukyus.

It was as closed as the Japanese trade, but at the discretion of Captain Bernie, he dismantled a Hongyi cannon and successfully obtained the grace of His Majesty the King, and was able to enter the Ryukyus smoothly.

This is indeed an untouched virgin land. At least, in all Europeans. It was the first time they had come here and they had a surprising purchase. Tea from China, silk fabrics, fine porcelain, and numerous books from the Ming Dynasty.

They have reason to expect what kind of sensation these goods will cause when they return to Europe.

You know, these were the prerogatives of the Portuguese before. But now, let the British get.

Of course, if there are some things that don't go well, there are obviously some of them.

After seeing the English fill a shipload of Oriental goods, the Dutchman, like a hungry hound, sniffed and followed here.

The Dutch are not unaware of this place in the Ryukyus.

It's just that the Dutch, who had a war with the Ming Dynasty, are obviously very ill-informed, and they still don't know that this has become a trading port chartered by His Majesty the Ming Emperor, and countless Ming merchants have arrived here, so that there are all kinds of Chinese goods here, and the supply is not limited. This was something that was almost unbelievable in the past.

Hearing this information, the Dutch were quickly moved.

Feeling the tremendous pressure from the Zheng clan in Taiwan, the Dutch officials in Geranza acted quickly to try to gain a chance to trade here as well.

"Hmph, they even succeeded." Thinking of this, Bernie was a little upset.

In any case, monopoly trade is always surprisingly profitable. One person shared, not just saying that profits were cut in half. Most of the time, the reduction in profits will be as much as seventy percent, or even ninety percent.

However, in order to obtain the right to enter the Ryukyu trade as well. The price paid by the Dutch was not light, and the king of the Ryukyus seemed to understand the preciousness of this trade right, and only after asking for a thousand muskets and twenty small guns did he agree to the Dutch to enter the Ryukyu trade.

Thinking of this, Bernie's mood finally made a little more cheerful.

At the very least, this led to a rapid decline in the power of the Dutch in East Asia, which was good news for the very weak British merchants.

The sea coachman was not only a merchant, but also a thief. Their acts of robbery and killing in East Asia were enough to terrify Bernie.

But in the same way, the company's warehouses in the Ryukyus want to trade smoothly and even gain more share of the trade...... Had to deal with local power figures. I think the English might be more suitable for businessmen than the reckless Dutch. "The Dutch are too strong, and such a strong force makes them have the urge to fight against the Ming Empire.

Of course, this impulse was not a blow to the Dutch. In order to defend the colonies of the Philippines, the Spaniards even had the idea of conquering China in one fell swoop, and even sent troops......

Fortunately, it was not done in the end, otherwise no one could have imagined the difficult situation of European merchants in East Asia from now on.

Putting aside these distractions, Bernie quickly cleared his mind. He thought of a good Ryukyu orchard, Zheng Qiwu. Zheng Qiwu is the grandson of Zheng Ji and a trusted general of the current Ryukyu king, not only controlling the artillery team of the Ryukyu Kingdom, but also training the musket team obtained by the Dutch.

The weapons were foreigners, and most of the Ryukyuan people had not used them at all before.

That's when Bernie found his chance. He promised to train soldiers for the Ryukyu army free of charge.

Although this kindness was rejected in the end, Bernie hung up in Zheng Qiwu's heart. Joined the Chinese League. Regardless of whether the Ming Dynasty will protect Ryukyu at that time, at least the army drill does not have to worry about the instructors.

Compared to the yellow-haired fanzi, who was more like a pirate, the Ming instructor from the suzerainty country was obviously more prestigious. These are the foundations laid down on the basis of winning battles one after another.

In the mood to pull the relationship, Bernie knocked on the door of Zheng Qiwu's home. But he was unlucky, and when he inquired, he found that Zheng Qiwu was in the barracks.

Bernie thought about the next trip of the fleet and ran to the North Camp.

The North Camp was located on a mountainside halfway north of Shuri Castle, and the mountainside was close to the sea, and a newly built battery was built to house the Hongyi cannons that had been dismantled from British warships.

At the same time, it is also a place where Ryukyu officers and soldiers train.

reported his name, and Bernie met Zheng Qiwu as he wished.

Zheng Qiwu is as his name suggests, with five big and three thick, and his eyes are bright, and he is the kind of person who is thick on the outside and thin on the inside.

Bernie tried to learn the etiquette of the East, but he was still made up of many jokes by the complicated etiquette. Under this experience, Bernie gained an unexpected advantage, and said directly: "In order to thank General Zheng for his help in the warehouse, I and several soldiers on the ship decided to provide us with the greatest help. We are willing to join the army of the Ryukyus as a mercenary and help the Ryukyus reach the hateful Japanese. ”

Zheng Qiwu listened to it and was in a very happy mood: "There is more help for the righteous and less help for the unjust." Even the foreign feudal lords came to help me in the Ryukyus, which shows that my Ryukyus are a state of enlightenment. Mr. Bernie had such a heart, and General Ben was very pleased! ”

The happiness was not fake, but Bernie had a premonition that something was wrong.

Sure enough, Zheng Qiwu changed his mind and said, "But it's a pity that even I have to lament the uselessness of heroes now." Mr. Bernie's help may not be needed. ”

"This ......," Bernie looked dazed.

Thinking that this guest who was thousands of miles away was willing to help when he arrived in the Ryukyus, and he was even more willing to fight together. Zheng Qiwu was a little less vigilant and a little more happy, and said with a smile: "Da Ming has already made a move." Willing to negotiate with the Japanese and withdraw the Japanese from the Ryukyus. It's a great event. The dark clouds that had hung over the Ryukyus for forty years were dispelled. From now on, my Ryukyu is really safe! ”

"Congratulations to the general, congratulations to the general! There is no war, but peace. Of course, everyone trades together to make money, which is of course a good thing. Bernie spoke jerkily in Chinese, but there was a faint sense of loss in his heart.

Without war, there would be no chance for them. It was obviously not so simple to defeat the Dutch and gain control of the Eastern trade.

Bidding farewell to Zheng Qiwu, although he didn't get what he hoped for, Bernie still cheered up.

As the captain of the ship, and as the de facto head of the company in the Ryukyus, Bernie has a lot of work to do. If you want to make a fortune in the Far East, you need not only a good enough body, but also a good enough psychology to face challenges again and again.

He needs more shares.

After the Dutch joined the trade competition in the Ryukyus, the British warehouse, which had few people and little capital, soon had to stop the acquisition. Or rather, rush to buy. The Ming goods on the market, as long as they are available, are almost all bought by the Dutch. If it weren't for the quota set by the Ryukyuans, the British would not even be able to buy enough goods.

Rao is so, the last merchant ship that is about to return to Europe is still more than half empty.

Although it was possible to compromise on some worthless Ryukyu goods, the delay in sea and the extremely long time span made it unbearable for Bernie not to get the most profitable Ming goods.

Eventually, Bernie thought of someone: "Zheng Zhilong." ”

"Did they really leave the Ming Kingdom and go to Japan? Even, joined the camp of the Satsuma Domain? Looking at the old drunkard in front of him, Bernie was excited.

The old drunkard was a frequent visitor to Zuisenya, the largest restaurant in Shurijo Castle, and was once an old sailor who later opened a restaurant. But he doesn't want to drink his own for free, and always asks someone else to invite him.

Many people lined up to invite him in order to pull a precious message out of his mouth.

The old drunkard listened to the words of the red-haired fanzi, and laughed: "Your Chinese language is good, but your brain is not very bright." I remind you that this is the second problem. ”

"It was my mistake! Please forgive me, honorable sir, waiter, please bring another pot, no...... A barrel, a barrel of your best wine! Bernie perked up.

The old drunkard hiccuped and said with a smile: "This news, when it comes to me, it will spread in a few days." If you want to buy Zheng's goods, hurry up. They could hope for some food, cloth, and building materials. But if the news of the Ming Dynasty's opening of trade with Japan in exchange for Ryukyu spreads, the Zheng clan may be devoured by the Japanese and eaten into the bones......"

"Happy working together!" Bernie's eyes lit up, he dropped the money and ran away.

But soon, he suddenly thought of something, hurriedly ran back to the Drunken Immortal Tower, and spent another hundred taels of silver to buy a barrel of wine and obtained another news: Zheng Zhibao is in Ryukyu!

……

Zheng Zhibao's eyelids kept jumping, and he didn't know what to think.

Experience told him that this was due to his poor rest recently. But his intuition told him that something bad was happening.

"Is it fighting against the Ming official army? On this day, if you want to come, you can't hide from ......" Zheng Zhibao thought of this, feeling anxious.

To win the first wave, he is confident.

But he was not facing the Second Fleet of the Ming Beiyang Naval Division, he was facing a huge empire. Angered His Majesty, a second, third, and even tenth fleet pounced in minutes. Maybe he can become more and more courageous, but in the face of the inevitable defeat, no one can cheer up.

"It's time to come, it's time to return." Jeong Ji Leopard met Bernie in Shuri Castle.

Zheng's firm is engaged in smuggling business, and it is also doing legal business. The Ryukyus were open to trade, and the Zheng family did not go to the firm, but also established a stronghold.

Zheng Zhibao originally planned to rest here and inquire about the news. Unexpectedly, the news came to the door by itself.

"I think my news is enough to exchange for the friendship of the Zheng family. In my opinion, he is worth a thousand dollars! Bernie wanted to show off his Chinese skills.

But Zheng Zhibao was not in the mood at all, and his mind became more and more uncalm: "What's there, just say it." Whether it's worth it or not, you have to say it to know. ”

"The Ming Dynasty has promised Japan that it is willing to open up trade with Japan in exchange for the Ryukyus being free from the control of the Satsuma Domain!" Bernie said leisurely, looking at Zheng Zhibao's body for a while, and realized that he had come to the right place.

"The Ryukyu Question...... Solved? Zheng Zhibao was shocked, and he breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, but quickly lifted it up again. A conjecture that frightened him came out.

Don't worry about fighting Da Ming anymore.

The Ryukyu issue has been resolved, and the war between the Ryukyu Kingdom and the Satsuma Domain will not break out.

But......

Zheng's trouble is coming, big trouble!

"Message...... When is the news? Zheng Zhibao suddenly felt the urgency of time, he wanted to race against time, this was saving the Zheng family!