readx; In the early morning of the second day, the air was flying again, and the red walls and green tiles of the imperial city were already covered with a thick layer of snow quilt, which was even more solemn. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 Just after the hour of info, the noon gate suddenly opened, the Ming Empire Emperor Zhu Youzhen's Luan, the queen mother and the concubines slowly drove out, through the Zhonghua Gate, Zhengyang Gate and Yongding Gate in turn, and then turned to the west, along the official road covered by ice and snow to the Tanzhe Temple dozens of miles away.

Usually, for the sake of convenience, Zhu Youzhen often goes out of the palace in micro-clothes and does not make any publicity. Today, however, he went to participate in the sensational uncovered conference and the supernatural puja of the soldiers and civilians who died in battle, which was also an important ceremony, so it was widely publicized through the "Beijing Times" in advance. Many people in Beijing also went to Tanzhe Temple to worship the Buddha and give alms, and when the holy car passed by, everyone bowed and worshipped, and was proud that they had the opportunity to participate in the same activity as the current son.

Outside the Zhengyang Gate, Zhu Youzhen met with three beautiful women, Anna, Qiu Lina, and Li Xiangjun, as well as two missionaries Tang Ruowang and Maldini who were missionaries in Beijing. After leaving the outer city of Beijing, except for the Queen Mother, everyone abandoned the car and rode the horse, and walked forward in the snow. Although the road is difficult and dangerous, it is just like a bird getting out of the cage, and it is full of laughter and laughter all the way.

Especially Anna, she has a lively personality, she doesn't care about Zhu Youzhen's emperor status like other beauties, and because she has never seen such a big snow in her life, like a child, she shouts and laughs excitedly and rides her horse to the front, and often leaves the official road, leaving a long series of deep horseshoe prints on the snow. Everyone was also quickly infected by her, although the cold wind was like a knife, but they ran fragrantly and sweated slightly, and they didn't feel cold at all.

Zhu Youzhen seemed to be preoccupied, and when the beauties spoke to him, sometimes he reacted and reluctantly smiled to deal with two sentences. Rui'er and the others naturally knew that their husband was usually like this, and this must be something important for him to think about again, so they stopped bothering him and chatted and laughed with other women. Only Anna deliberately stepped forward and pretended to be dissatisfied: "Your Majesty the Emperor, you are not very enthusiastic as a host, why don't you enjoy the snow scene with everyone!" ”

Zhu Youzhen was stunned for a moment before he smiled and said, "I was looking for Her Excellency the Princess!" Go and call Qiulina and the two missionaries, for I have something important to consult with you. ”

Anna called a few people in surprise, and Zhu Youzhen walked with them, while the others kept a certain distance in an interesting way. It's a long way in the snow, and a painstaking negotiation begins inadvertently. Qiu Lina was "attending" as a translator, but in fact, John Tang and Maldini were already proficient in Chinese, and Anna was also very quick to learn Chinese, but she was not very fluent.

Zhu Youzhen said straight to the point: "You must know that we have just experienced a cruel war, although we have defeated the enemy, but our own losses are also very large, and we need to recover as soon as possible, which requires a lot of funds, and now it is difficult for the imperial court's finances to cope with this situation." I want to borrow from Western countries and merchants, I wonder if you can help? ”

Anna, John Tang, and Maldini didn't expect Zhu Youzhen to do this, and they fell into deep thought for a while. In fact, it is not uncommon for European countries to borrow money because of financial difficulties. The commercial and financial industries in Europe are also relatively developed, and Antwerp, the largest city in the Spanish Netherlands, also has a financial market covering the whole of Europe, and transactions are quite active, and some warlike monarchs often borrow here at high interest rates to meet the huge expenses of the war.

But is it feasible to borrow money now that the borrower is the Ming Empire, the largest country in the world, and thousands of miles away from the West?

Anna put away her smile at this time and said seriously: "Your Majesty the Emperor, you should also know that the Kingdom of Portugal has just announced that it is now in the midst of a war with Spain, and it is also in urgent need of funds. I can understand His Majesty's eagerness with the Emperor, but I am afraid that the Kingdom of Portugal will not be able to help. ”

Maldini said slyly: "Your Majesty the Emperor, the Holy See has sent me to China in the hope of spreading the Gospel of the Lord here, which is more precious than any wealth. Of course, His Majesty the Emperor is now in dire need of funds, and the Church can find ways to help you get in touch with the wealthy merchants of Europe. But the rule of the Church is to serve only believers, and if Your Majesty can obtain permission to preach in China in the form of an official edict, I will certainly serve the Church to help His Majesty the Emperor wholeheartedly. If Your Majesty can be baptized and become a Christian, I can persuade the Pope to provide you directly with a large sum of money..."

Before Maldini could finish, Zhu Youzhen immediately interrupted him with a mocking smile: "Are you threatening me?" ”

Maldini was so frightened that he immediately stopped, knowing the absolute authority of the young emperor in China. As long as Zhu Youzhen said a word, the heads of all the missionaries had to be moved immediately. Although they were "martyred" with their mouths closed, they really faced the threat of death, so they did not dare to act rashly.

It was still Tang Ruowang who knew Zhu Youzhen better, and said with a smile: "His Majesty the Emperor has misunderstood, of course Maldini hopes that you can become a Christian, but the power to decide is yours, and the church will not tie this point to debt." ”

"I have no objection to your missionary work in China, but I should not support it vigorously, otherwise I will be suspected of being biased." Zhu Youzhen was not angry with Maldini, and said with a smile, "Because before you, Taoism has been spreading in China for thousands of years, and Buddhism was also introduced hundreds of years ago, and there are many believers and deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Your opponent is not me, but a Buddhist monk or a Taoist priest. This is one of the reasons why I have invited you to the Unveiled Assembly, where you can preach the doctrine in public and see who can obey whom. If anyone wishes to convert to Christianity, I will not interfere. ”

Maldini couldn't help but be a little disappointed when he saw that he had not been able to accept Zhu Youzhen's religion. John Tang was very excited, because Zhu Youzhen's words actually gave the bishop an opportunity to debate with Buddhism in public, which was unimaginable before.

So he immediately glanced at Maldini and muttered: "In Europe, although the king is the monarch of a country, it must be crowned by the pope before it is legal, and marriage, divorce, and the selection of an heir to the throne must also be approved by the church. Since His Majesty is in urgent need of funds, we are willing to mediate for His Majesty, but this will take time, and the results may not be immediate. ”

What Zhu Youzhen wanted was his sentence. The missionaries can't threaten him, but he can threaten the missionaries, and if John Tong and others are false to him and don't do practical things, he can issue an order to ban missionaries, and John Tang must know this. With the church, it is much easier to deal with European countries.

Then Zhu Youzhen turned to Anna again, and said with a slight smile: "Your Excellency Princess, although modesty is a virtue, it is a bit hypocritical to be too modest. How much wealth does Portugal have, do you think I don't know? ”

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