, Ming 1805

Shen Fu instructed Zhu Jingyuan to familiarize himself with the logic and rules of the Ming Dynasty's foreign affairs, focusing on understanding the Ming Dynasty's demands and bottom lines in all aspects.

Remind Zhu Jingyuan of the details that need to be paid attention to in external activities, and how to discover and deal with various logical and linguistic traps.

In the end, he predicted what might happen in the negotiation and made a relatively comprehensive response plan in advance, so that Zhu Jingyuan knew what was going on.

In fact, these contents are very large and complex, and it is impossible to explain them clearly in a very short time.

Therefore, after the Zhoushan Island officially set sail, Shen Fu came to teach Zhu Jingyuan every morning, and Zhu Jingyuan also studied as patiently as possible.

As he learned more about the content, Zhu Jingyuan felt more and more that being an official of Honglu Temple in the Ming Dynasty was much easier than being a modern diplomat.

You don't need to pay too much attention to your attitude towards the outside world, you don't need to pay special attention to the details of etiquette, and you don't need to be particularly careful about what you say.

Don't worry about using the wrong word and angering a certain country or group, because it doesn't matter if you are angry.

There are no countries and groups that can make Daming cautious, but when other countries do things, they must first consider Daming's attitude.

Two days later, on the morning of January 20, the fleet arrived at Keelung Province, where the political envoy of Haidong was located.

Representatives of the Ryukyu Kingdom, the four feudal states of Japan, the two feudal states of Korea, the three feudal states of Xianbei, and the four feudal states of Northern Yinzhou also arrived in Keelung Province on these two days.

After careful verification of their identities by officials of the Ministry of Officials, the first representatives of the vassal states officially joined the mission.

In the afternoon of the same day, the fleet set sail again.

Five days later, on the afternoon of January 26, the fleet arrived at Huangzhuang on the island of Java and docked at the port of Coconut City.

The next step was for the fleet to enter the Little Western Ocean, followed by a voyage of almost 7,000 kilometers.

Therefore, the fleet should carefully check the mechanical condition here, and at the same time replenish sufficient fuel and living supplies.

Eight cruisers of the Huangpu River type from mainland China will also leave the escort fleet here and return home.

However, eight capital ships of 18,000 tons and 12 armored cruisers of the 10,000-ton class will be added.

After four days of repairs in the port of Coconut City, the fleet set sail again on February 2, the 34th year of Taiping, after meeting the representatives of the Nanyang and Tiannan vassal states.

The fleet passed through the Sunda Strait between Java and the Old Port, officially leaving the inland sea area around the Ming mainland and entering the Lesser Western Ocean.

Due to the addition of the capital ship with a speed of only eighteen knots, the entire fleet could no longer maintain a speed of 20 knots.

At the same time, in order to ensure that the fleet had enough endurance to cross the Little Western Ocean, the fleet commander kept the fleet sailing at a speed of fifteen knots.

Twelve days later, on the morning of 15 February, the fleet arrived at the supply port in southern Massachusetts.

Fuel and supplies were replenished again, the mechanical condition of the fleet was checked, and two days later it set off again.

After another five days of sailing, on the afternoon of 21 February, the fleet finally reached the Cape of the Western Ocean.

Zhu Jingyuan stood on the spacious balcony, looking at the increasingly clear coastline in the distance, and his mind flashed through all the things in this journey.

The voyage took 8,600 nautical miles, nearly 16,000 kilometers, and took a total of 32 days.

The Zhoushan Island passenger ship was large enough to be much more stable than a small boat during the voyage, and there was no particularly bad weather on the way.

Zhu Jingyuan, Lin Zexu, Shen Fu, and Wang Lai all often took the boat, and like most of the other passengers, there was no obvious seasickness.

"I Have a Catalogue of Ghosts and Gods"

Niu Jian, a person who had rarely taken a boat before, was a little dizzy for a while after getting on the boat, but it didn't take long to get used to it.

There were also a small number of people who reacted more violently, and after Zhu Jingyuan visited them at that time, he was originally going to stop at the Lion City before entering Xiaoxiyang.

The Lion City, also known as Singapore, is the southernmost point of the South Seas, with a railway line to the mainland of China.

Zhu Jingyuan prepared for those who were severely seasick to drop off the boat and buy them train tickets to send back to their homeland.

However, when the fleet reached the vicinity of the Ambuna Islands, the group was basically able to eat, and they would not continue to vomit.

These people themselves did not want to give up the opportunity of this ocean trip, and even more so did not want to quit the design team of the new warship.

So they all told Zhu Jingyuan that they didn't need to get off the boat, and they all thought that they could persevere.

Zhu Jingyuan asked the ship's doctor to check on them, and after making sure that they were fine, he finally gave up his plan to go to the Lion City and went straight to the Sunda Strait.

The space on board was also completely sufficient, and the large ship, which had a quota of more than 2,400 people, actually carried less than 2,000 people.

All kinds of living, leisure and entertainment facilities are readily available, and it is a very easy journey after getting used to it.

More than a month of life at sea came to an end before you knew it.

The Zhoushan Island is getting closer and closer to the coastline, and the scene on the coast in the distance is gradually emerging.

You can see the tall and majestic dark red city walls, as well as the rows of buildings under and around the walls.

When the Ming Dynasty got the Western Cape, the explosives that had been widely used could not be more extensive.

However, at the forefront of the Western Cape, the Ming Emperor still built a tall and heavy city wall.

Probably because I think this is my yard, and I don't feel safe enough without the city walls.

Later, with the development of the city, Xiyang Cape was also the same as the new city of Jingshi, and the building area soon expanded beyond the city walls.

Because the outside of the city walls is more free than the inside of the city, and it is closer to the docks, the area outside the city walls is now more prosperous than the inside of the city walls.

The distance between the coast continued to shrink, and Zhu Jingyuan's attention fell on the dock.

There are already a large number of ships docked there.

There are a large number of warships of different types and classes, as well as a large number of passenger ships of different sizes and shapes, with various colored flags flying above the ships.

The most numerous of them are the "Sun and Moon Flame Flag on a Red Background" of the Ming Dynasty......

Zhu Jingyuan's ship, as well as the surrounding escort fleet, also have this kind of similar flag.

Every time he saw this kind of flag, Zhu Jingyuan's mood was quite complicated.

Because I have seen this thing many times in my previous life, it is the so-called "Sun, Moon and Star Three Flags" circulating on the Internet.

It actually comes from the mural of the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang "Zhang Yichao Recovers Hexi", which is the graphic on the flag used by Zhang Yichao's troops in the mural.

The blue circle is inscribed with a smaller yellow circle, and the blue circle is surrounded by an irregular black decoration in the form of a flame burning.

Put this logo in the middle of the red flag, which is a universal flag that can be used by any Ming person, and its actual role is equivalent to the modern national flag.

Add a black border on the top and bottom of the red background, which is the Ming Army flag.

Add a few blue and white edges on the top and bottom of the red background, which is the Ming Navy flag.

Zhu Jingyuan felt that this banner must be the masterpiece of Emperor Shizu, because ordinary Ming people might not have seen this thing at all.

The original Ming people knew that the Sanchen Banner was actually the Taichang Banner, the head of the emperor's nine banners.

It depicts a red sun in the upper left corner and a white moon in the lower left corner, with a string of seven stars in between.

To the right of the three figures of the sun, moon and stars is the upper area of the main body of the flag, where are the twelve dragons horizontally.

The combination of the sun, moon, star, and dragon is the exclusive symbol of the emperor of the Central Plains.

In today's Ming Dynasty and even the whole world, this rather complex Taichang flag map is still the exclusive symbol of the Ming Emperor.

The Tessie people thought it was the most honorable family symbol in the world, two or three notches higher than Tessie's bells and whistles.

But the emperor of the Central Plains would not have thought of it, nor would he allow the Taichang flag to be used by ordinary people, so it was impossible for the Taichang flag to become a national flag directly.

Before Emperor Shizu made the sun and moon flame flag with a red background, the Central Plains Dynasty did not make a special national flag.

Because after King Qin swept Liuhe, in the inherent cognition of the Central Plains Dynasty, he was not another country coexisting with other countries.

He is the master of the world who has inherited the mandate of heaven, and there is no force that needs to take the initiative to distinguish it from him legitimately and equally.

Even during the period of secession, most of them thought that their own dynasty was orthodox and denounced other dynasties as pseudo-dynasties.

Even if you have to accept it on the surface, you still think so in your heart.

In most cases, the Central Plains Dynasty only needed its own internal distinctions, or even only the most special emperors.

The emperor's logo had very strict specifications, from clothing to architecture to flags.

But outside of the emperor, the logos of ordinary people and ordinary troops were very personalized before Emperor Shizu made a unified flag.

They either use their surnames as symbols, or they distinguish different formations by color according to their command habits.

The flag on the mural of Mogao Grottoes is actually just Zhang Yichao's own flag, and his surname should have been on the middle circle, but it fell off due to weathering.

It's just that his design is really good, alluding to the three stars of the sun, moon and stars, and is used by modern people in various Tang Dynasty TV series.

Later, it was circulated on the Internet, and finally was taken to the Ming Dynasty by Emperor Shizu and used as the national flag of the Ming Dynasty.

If there was no Sun and Moon Flag made by Emperor Shizu, the flag hung on the ships of the Ming Navy should still be the kind of completely personalized flag.

The navies of the Western countries, when they saw the banner of the Ming fleet, were mostly completely confused.

Others may not be able to read it, but this is not a problem at all.

Those powerful Central Plains dynasties have a solitary mentality that is unimaginable to modern people:

Why do I need you to understand what I am doing?

You don't understand what I have to do with me?

Emperor Shizu's Sun and Moon Banner helped the Taixi people solve a big problem.

In the current port of the southwest cape, only one-third of the sun and moon flags of the Ming Dynasty are hung, and more of them are those bells and whistles of Taixi.

In other words, a large number of representatives of the Taixi countries had already arrived at the Western Cape before Zhu Jingyuan.

After all, among the Taixi countries, even Lucia, who is the farthest away from the Western Cape, is a little closer to here than the Jingshi of the Ming Dynasty.

The representatives of the Tessie countries and the princes and nobles couldn't wait to come to the event.

Zhu Jingyuan dragged on for ten days before leaving.

Zhu Jingyuan is still not sure that the Ming delegation led by himself will be the last to arrive from time to time.

But isn't the protagonist the last to appear?

The speed of the Zhoushan Island became slower and slower, and it slowly moved into a harbor full of ships.

Huangzhuang Wharf received news a few days ago that martial law has been in place since the day before yesterday.

Now there are no ordinary people on the shore of the wharf, only groups of brocade guards and soldiers patrolling back and forth.

The representatives of Xiyi, who had already arrived at the Western Cape, although they really wanted to come out to watch the Ming fleet landing, were all required today to stay in their respective rooms.

No one dares to violate it easily, because no matter what their identity is in their country, they are all white ghosts in the eyes of the Jinyi guards here.

They don't dare to try, they deliberately run out in violation of the requirements, will they be beaten directly.

Anyway, this situation will only take a day or two, and it will be good to get through it.

After the Zhoushan Island officially entered the port, it finally completely closed the propellers, completely relied on the assistance of tugboats, and slowly approached the dock specially reserved for it.

The sailors on board threw off the cables, "tethered" the passenger ship, and the sailors lowered the gangway.

Guan Tianpei first arranged for 200 soldiers to disembark the ship to inspect the environment and personnel around the wharf.

directly took over the security of the wharf where the passenger ship was located, and Zhu Jingyuan got off the ship with two staff members under the escort of Guan Tianpei.

Then he didn't stay too much on the dock, and was sent directly to the Cape Huangzhuang City, where he lived in a mansion specially prepared for the princes and grandchildren.

The overall pattern of the city wall of Haijiao Huangzhuang is very similar to the old city of Jingshi in the Ming Dynasty.

It's just that the direction is completely opposite to that of Jingshi, the old city of Jingshi is sitting in the north and facing south, and the urban area of Xiyang Haijiao does sit in the south and facing north.

And there is a clear difference in the specific zoning, and the manor of the Western Cape is more of a fortress than a city.

The city walls are still three-story matryoshka structures, and the innermost core city is the emperor's palace, where only the emperor and his concubines can live.

Zhongcheng is a palace garden, where the emperor, the children of the royal family, and the favored ministers can live after obtaining permission.

The Outer City is the largest of the fortified urban areas and includes large tracts of land and dedicated docks.

The outer city was originally intended for the garrison, guests from all walks of life, as well as local residents and workers, and there was space reserved for various urban facilities.

Now there is actually a ring city, that is, an outer city that surrounds the city walls, and a larger area of civil docks.

Zhu Jingyuan was arranged to live in the palace in Zhongcheng, and Zhu Jianfeng also followed closely and lived in the courtyard opposite Zhu Jingyuan.

Then the ordinary officials, craftsmen, and representatives of the Tessy kingdoms who had arrived earlier lived in the manors of the outer city.

Zhu Jingyuan entered the palace arranged for him, and after finding the bedroom, he fell asleep.

It's not tiring to live on a passenger ship, but after all, after floating on the sea for more than a month, when you suddenly board land, it's inevitable that the world will spin.

And the time zone has been changing in the second half of the entire voyage, but Zhu Jingyuan has always maintained the rhythm of life in the Ming Dynasty.

It is now the evening of the Western Cape, but it is already early in the morning, and Zhu Jingyuan is now like getting up and getting off the boat in the middle of the night, in fact, the body is the most sleepy.

Now that you've arrived at your destination, it's finally time to adjust to your jet lag.

Zhu Jingyuan slept until six o'clock the next morning, and when he woke up again, his spirit became much better, and the feeling of the world spinning was significantly reduced.

I stretched out and got up, went to take a shower, and had a quick bite to eat, while I started planning my next trip.

First of all, I went to meet the treasurer of the Cape Imperial Village, and then there were the theoretical courtiers, the delegation from the Great Food Kingdom.

Next are the representatives of the feudal states of Tianzhu, Dashi, Dongmo, Mazhou, Nanmo and other places, as well as representatives of Huangzhuang from all over the world.

In fact, it's easy to talk about these things of Daming's own people, and the more important thing is to say hello to Xiyi after that.

After studying with Shen Fu on the road for a month, now his diplomatic mission has finally begun.