On the vast ocean, Zheng He's fleet of treasure ships sailed like a giant dragon.

The 2,000-material flagship mast is towering, the canvas is full, and the hull is inlaid with a golden dragon pattern that symbolizes the power of the Ming Emperor, shining dazzlingly in the sun.

Everywhere the fleet went, the waves seemed to be afraid of three points, and gently retreated.

On this day, the lookout suddenly reported that a strange fleet had appeared ahead.

Zheng He stood on the deck of the flagship, and after a while with a telescope, he saw the fleet that was gradually becoming clearer, only to see that although those ships were not as majestic as the Daming treasure ships, they were also quite large-scale, and the sails were embroidered with strange totems.

Soon, news came that it was confirmed that it was the fleet of the Kingdom of Gamboro on the island of Ceylon.

Zheng He frowned slightly, this country located on the island west of the Manraka Strait, has always had an ambiguous attitude towards Da Ming, which is not friendly, but it is a place that must be controlled in Jiang Xinghuo's plan.

Ceylon Island, that is, Sri Lanka in later generations, was the first to immigrate to the island by the leader of the tribe belonging to the Aryan language family of India, so its tribe is also called the Sanhala, which is the most populous ethnic group on the island of Ceylon.

Xuanzang transliterated the Sanskrit Kāī as "Sinhala" in the "Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty", and Yijing's "Biography of the High Monk of Seeking the Dharma" transliterated as "Sangha Haluo".

Due to the chaotic distribution of power in the Southern Tianzhu States, Zheng He had always maintained a cautious attitude towards the Kingdom of Ceylon and did not rashly move troops, but through the previous port trade in Guli, Kezhi and other kingdoms, Zheng He figured out the situation of Southern Tianzhu.

Although there are dozens of states in Nantianzhu, which seems to be very chaotic, these states are mainly composed of two kinds of people, one is the Tamils and the other is the Malayalan.

The Tamils are predominantly Hindu, with their individual worshipping a monotheistic "chastity dedicator", while the Malayalans believe in the "snake god", which is characterized by a matriarchal society and a large family system.

These two types of people are still very easy to distinguish in terms of appearance, clothing and eating habits.

Outwardly, Tamils have a darker complexion, small, flat noses, thick lips, and dark, thick, curly hair; The Rayaran people originated from the Dravidian people, and were born of large-scale intermarriage with the Dravidian people after the Aryan invasion, so the current Rayaran people have a whiter complexion, a moderate nose bridge, and thin lips from the appearance.

From the perspective of dietary habits, Tamil food is rice as the staple food, and they like to eat sour and spicy, coconut oil and meat food; The Rayalan people steam rice and coconut rice in bamboo tubes, or cook rice, dried fruits and bean rice with coconut water, while fish and potatoes are the staple food of the poor.

But both the Tamils and the Malayalans are dressed in the same way, with men usually wearing a two-metre-long scarf, some wearing a small sheet or a collarless long-sleeved silk shirt, and women preferring to wear a veil with gold and silver lace.

And now on the island of Ceylon, there are also two kingdoms, one is the kingdom of the Tamils and the other is the kingdom of the Sangharas.

The kingdom of the Tamil people "Jaffna Kingdom" occupies a small area on the northern coast of the island of Ceylon, and the main body of the island is occupied by the Sanhalas.

And now the one who has the right to speak in the kingdom of Ceylon, or the kingdom of Gamporo, is the regent Arekhunal.

The elder brother of the previous regent, he had fled to Nantianzhu through the Jaffna kingdom after losing a coup d'état, and now that the previous regent had died, he had returned to seize control of the Gamporo kingdom.

However, Alek Kunel was far inferior to his younger brother in the governance of the country, and was an extremely warlike lord, not only training sailors in the coastal ports of the Kingdom of Gamporo, but also taking advantage of his geographical advantages to plunder merchant ships going to the Strait of Manraka, and even repeatedly rubbing with his neighbors to the north, preparing to destroy the Kingdom of Jaffna and unify the island of Ceylon.

As the two fleets approached, the commander of the fleet of the Kingdom of Gamporo sent a small boat with several envoys on it to negotiate with the Ming fleet.

The envoy boat of the Gamporo Kingdom slowly approached the Great Ming Treasure Ship, and the envoy's face was full of pride and disdain.

Dressed in colourful collarless long-sleeved silk shirts and holding a golden scepter as a symbol of authority, they seem to be the masters of the seas.

Zheng He stood on the deck, behind him was a row of majestic Ming soldiers.

Zheng He is tall, dressed in a bullfighting suit at this time, with a jade belt hanging from his waist, and he is arrogant and arrogant, not angry and arrogant.

"Who are you? Why trespass into our waters? ”

The envoy of the Kingdom of Gamporo was the first to speak, and his tone was arrogant.

Zheng He stared at them for a while before he said, "We are at the behest of the Ming Emperor to lead a fleet to inspect overseas, preach peace, and promote trade. I don't mean to be offended, I just want to establish friendly relations with your country. ”

The envoy of the Gamporo Kingdom sneered when he heard this, and said, "Da Ming? Hmph, if you want to establish friendly relations, you have to pay tribute and pay taxes to us, or you won't want to pass through here! ”

Zheng He's voice became cold and firm: "The envoy's words are wrong, my Ming Dynasty is the kingdom of the Heavenly Empire, rich in products, and the national strength is strong. We patrol overseas to promote peace, for free trade, not to bow to others, if you really want to be the enemy of the Ming Dynasty, please see clearly what kind of enemy you are facing. ”

The envoys of the Gamporo Kingdom followed Zheng He's gaze, but saw two huge fleets emerging on the sea in the distance.

This can't help but choke them!

They have gathered all the sailors, and they thought that although there was a slight gap with the size of the Ming fleet and the size of the ships, it was not to the point where they could not fight, but who knew that the fleet in front of them was only the forward fleet of the Ming Dynasty!

The last time Zheng He's fleet returned, they didn't see the scale at all, so this time there was inevitably an information gap.

The envoys of the Gambolo Kingdom were intimidated by Zheng He's momentum and the might of the Ming army, and they were speechless for a while.

They looked at each other with unease and trepidation in their eyes.

You must know that this negotiation did not get any bargains, but made Daming see their pretense.

After a while, feeling that it was really embarrassing, the envoys of the Kingdom of Gamporo tried to be tough again in order to save face.

One of the messengers cleared his throat and said in a loud voice, "If you don't come according to our rules, don't blame us for being rude. ”

When Zheng He heard this, he couldn't help but sneer.

He stepped forward, approached the messenger, and said sharply, "You're welcome? How do you want to be polite? Do you still want to start a war with my Daming? ”

The interpreter translated Zheng He's words, and the messenger's face was blue and white.

Seeing this, Zheng He already had a plan in his heart, he turned to the soldiers behind him and said: "Pass the order, prepare for battle, if the enemy is obsessed, let them see the power of the Ming fleet!" ”

The soldiers promised in unison, and the sound shook the heavens and the earth.

The envoy of the Kingdom of Gamporo was so frightened that he could not move for a long time.

Although they were tough on the lips, deep down they were already terrified of the strength of the Ming fleet.

They know that at the current scale, once they really make a move, their fleet will not be an opponent at all.

At this time, another envoy from the Gamporo Kingdom hurriedly stepped forward to play a round: "The Ming envoy is angry, we have no intention of starting a war with you. ”

When Zheng He heard this, he felt even more confident in his heart, the envoys of the Gamporo Kingdom had begun to show weakness, which showed that they did not really have the confidence to be enemies of the Ming Dynasty, and at the beginning, most of them were planning to use force to deter and verbally intimidate.

Therefore, Zheng He decided to temporarily stabilize the Kingdom of Gamporo and wait for the preparations to merge vertically and horizontally before starting.

"Since you say so, then Da Ming is not unreasonable, as long as the Gamporo Kingdom maintains a friendly attitude towards Da Ming in the future and no longer provokes trouble, Da Ming will naturally not embarrass you. But if you are obsessed with becoming an enemy of us, you will be responsible for the consequences. ”

The envoys of the Gamporo Kingdom nodded their heads in agreement, saying that they would definitely convey Zheng He's words to the regent Yalie Kunaer.

For these envoys, although this negotiation did not fully achieve the goal, at least it did not make the fleet much larger than they imagined Da Ming to send troops, which was already a blessing in misfortune.

Seeing this, Zheng He no longer embarrassed them, and after driving away the fleet of the Gamporo Kingdom, Zheng He immediately summoned the top brass of the fleet and held an emergency meeting in the spacious council hall of the flagship.

The crowd sat around in front of a huge nautical chart.

"Ladies and gentlemen."

Zheng He's voice was calm: "The Kingdom of Gamporo is disrespectful to me and intends to provoke, how should we deal with it?" ”

The commanders discussed one after another, and some advocated responding to the provocation of the Gamporo Kingdom by strong means to demonstrate the military strength of the Ming Dynasty; Others suggested resolving the issue diplomatically to avoid unnecessary conflicts.

Zheng He quietly listened to everyone's opinions, and already had a plan for the next action in his heart.

Zheng He said calmly: "Although the Gamporo Kingdom has some fleets, it is nothing to us, but this time we went to the Western Ocean, the goal is to continue westward from the last destination of Nantianzhu, establish diplomatic relations with the Timurid Khanate, the Aries Dynasty, the Mamluk Dynasty and other countries, and at the same time carry out trade and supplies, and finally go around the entire continent in one go and arrive in Spain. Therefore, if we can properly solve the problem of the Gamporo Kingdom, we still have to minimize our losses. ”

Unlike navigators in other countries, the Ming ocean-going fleet had complete globes and charts, as well as state-of-the-art positioning methods.

This is equivalent to Mr. Jiang has already told you the standard answer, you just follow the steps, and there are not too many unknown dangers.

Therefore, although the journey is long, it is not very difficult, and it only needs to walk along the edge of the continent, but it is more of a test of logistics and the endurance of sailors.

And now that a contract has been reached with the Timurid Khanate, the supply problem is no longer a problem, and the sailors of Zheng He's fleet are not inexperienced rookies after these several voyages, and they are fully able to withstand the pain of a long journey under the premise that the goals and routes are very clear.

It is precisely because the goal of Zheng He's fleet is very clear that he does not intend to invest too many resources in the Gamporo Kingdom, so that the entire fleet will be depleted.

If there is a large-scale naval battle, and the fleet has suffered large losses, it will have to return to repair the ship, which will lead to the failure of the plan to reach Spain, which Zheng He cannot tolerate.

Of course, Daming is not a vegetarian.

"We need to show our prestige and keep our sanity, and I think we should adopt a two-pronged strategy."

Zheng He paused and continued: "On the one hand, make the fleet combat-ready and ready to deal with a possible conflict with the Gamporo Kingdom at any time. On the other hand, we also have to send envoys, not only to contact the Kingdom of Gamboro, but also to contact the Kingdom of Jaffna established by the Tamils Judging from the Tamil state of Southern Tianzhu, the Tamils are still more keen on trade and are willing to interact with the Ming Dynasty. ”

Wang Jinghong answered: "I am a state of etiquette, but I am not afraid of any provocation, so we must not only show our national prestige, but also avoid the abuse of force, which is to salute first and then soldier." But if the kingdom of Gamporo is obsessed, then it must be taught the lesson it deserves. ”

and other high-ranking fleet officials also expressed their agreement with the two.

"Good! Since everyone agrees, let's go along with this plan. ”

When everyone heard this, they agreed in unison.

With Zheng He's order, the entire Ming fleet was mobilized, and the soldiers were busy, some inspected weapons and equipment, some inspected watertight cabins, and some prepared first-aid medicines, and the entire fleet was filled with a tense and orderly atmosphere.

At the same time, Zheng He also personally selected several shrewd and capable envoys to go to the Kingdom of Jaffna for diplomatic representations.

While the fleet was preparing for war and the envoys were busy preparing, Zheng He was not idle, Zheng He was not the kind of careless person, although he thought that the strength of the Gamporo Kingdom was not strong, but the preparations that should be had should not be left behind, he always paid attention to the dynamics of the Gamporo Kingdom's fleet, collected intelligence through various channels, and repeatedly discussed the response plan with the fleet commanders to ensure that they could respond quickly in case of emergencies.

But Zheng He's preparation actually didn't come in handy, the only fleet in the Gamporo Kingdom that could handle it, in fact, there was no consciousness of "fighting all your own and biting a piece of meat from the Ming fleet", and he didn't even dare to monitor, seeing that the Ming fleet was going west, thinking that it was the same as last time to go to Nantianzhu to do business, and directly returned to his own port in disgrace, breaking away from contact with the Ming fleet.

The envoys sent by Zheng He also embarked on a journey to the Kingdom of Jaffna, and they sailed through the rough seas for more than ten days before finally reaching the northern part of the island of Ceylon.

Based on a long historical tradition, the Tamils of northern Sri Lanka and south India are known as the ancient maritime peoples, who sailed as far west as the Red Sea and as far east as Java as far as the Age of Discovery.

As an important part of the current maritime trade, the Kingdom of Jaffna, established by the Tamils, mainly exported cinnamon and other spices, as well as betel nuts, precious stones, elephants and other goods, while imported rice, sugar, textiles and other goods.

The main cities of the Kingdom of Jaffna were Jaffna City in the north across the sea from South Tianzhu, and Trincomalee City in the east, both of which were port cities.

The task of the Ming envoys was to explain to King Jaffna the friendly intentions of the Ming Dynasty, to express the desire to maintain peace and promote free trade, and to tentatively propose the possibility of jointly dealing with the Kingdom of Gamporo.

The officials of the Jaffna Kingdom warmly received the Ming envoys and led them to the royal palace to meet the king.

In the royal palace, the king of the Jaffna Kingdom hit it off with the arrival of the Ming envoy, and the two sides quickly negotiated the conditions.

The Tamils are completely different from the Sangharas, and they know very well what the Ming are like.

The envoy reported the good news to Zheng He, and Zheng He was greatly excited when he heard it.

But the news that came later directly made Zheng He make up his mind to eliminate the Yalie Kuner regime.

- Alekhunar killed the messenger sent by Zheng He!

As a result, Zheng He sent an envoy again to contact the Jaffna Kingdom, and the Jaffna Kingdom agreed to the request for the Dao.

However, the cautious Tamils only opened the eastern port of Trincomalee for the Ming army to land, and did not dare to give their own capital Jaffna to the Ming army, and clearly told the Ming army that they would not send troops to help.

The meaning is also obvious, while waiting for the Ming army to start a war with the Gamporo Kingdom, at the same time gathering troops to guard against the Ming army to "destroy the enemy on a false way" and swallow themselves.

After the successful alliance with the Kingdom of Jaffna, the next plan of the Ming fleet became clear - they planned to use the infantry to land in the city of Trincomalee, which was controlled by the Kingdom of Jaffna, and then march south to take the capital of the Kingdom of Gamporo, so as to avoid the loss of the fleet and change the ruler of the Kingdom of Gamporo.

This plan is quite reasonable, because even if the Ming fleet defeats the fleet of the Gamporo Kingdom, the final result will still be to land in order to physically eliminate Yarekunaer, so it is better to land directly in one step and take advantage of the road.

Zheng He's voyage to the West this time had a total of 800 officers and generals, 20,000 sailors and oarsmen, and 7,000 soldiers.

Therefore, Zheng He planned to send a thousand households of heavy infantry, and two thousand households of light armor infantry, as well as a thousand households of firearms troops, as well as hundreds of cavalry, in his eyes, these forces were enough to sweep these small countries.

After all, only the fleet of the Gamporo Kingdom still looks decent, and the combat effectiveness on land can be described as "Fira is unbearable".

In fact, after the landing in Trincomalee, the Ming infantry did not stop, but immediately marched south, directly to the capital of the Gamporo Kingdom.

The regent of the Kingdom of Gamporo, Arekhunal, heard the news of the Ming army's attack, and hurriedly mobilized his army to prepare for battle.

Outside the capital, the plains were covered with nearly 10,000 troops, and the soldiers of Gamporo were dressed in colorful battle suits and armed with all kinds of weapons, their faces were painted with the color of war, and the sound of war drums and shouts were intertwined, and the earth trembled.

And the infantry cavalry of the Ming army, obviously inferior in numbers, was ready to charge.

The hoplites lined up in close formations, wearing heavy armor, some holding shields and some holding spears, while the cavalrymen rode on tall horses and held spears and swords.

With an order, the Ming army began to attack.

The Ming army marched in unison, with the infantry shielding their bodies and spears piercing the enemy like a forest, while the cavalry used the speed and impact of their horses to disrupt the enemy's position on the flanks and scatter the enemy's formation.

The firearms of the Ming army also played a huge role, and in the roar of artillery, flowering shells exploded in the enemy formation, blowing the enemy into flesh and blood.

The Musketeers took aim roughly at the enemy and began firing, and with the sound of "thump", their guns reaped the lives of the enemy like the scythe of death.

Gamboro's soldiers were defeated by the Ming army's charge.

These enemies, who had not fought a tough battle, were quickly dispersed in formation, and the loss of the complete formation was equivalent to the loss of organization, and their morale quickly dropped.

Although there were warriors who were not afraid of death who fought hard, they soon fell into a desperate situation under the powerful offensive of the Ming army.

The Gamporo army was losing ground one after another, and Alek Kunael saw that the tide was turning, and tried to organize a final counterattack, but it was too late. Subsequently, the Ming army poured into the capital of the Gamporo Kingdom like a tide, completely crushing the remaining enemy forces in the city.

In the chaos, Alekhnar tried to escape, but was eventually captured by the Ming army.

When he was brought to Zheng He, the previous unruliness had disappeared without a trace, and seeing his dejected appearance, Zheng He just said to the translator in a calm tone: "Translate it for him, 'Nanyue killed the Han envoy and slaughtered it as nine counties; King Wan killed the Han envoy and hung his head in the north; What does it mean for North Korea to kill the Han envoy and destroy it immediately'. ”

Yalie Kunaer was speechless, he could only bow his head silently and accept his fate, that is, to become a prisoner of the Ming army and be sent to Nanjing to parade as prisoners.

With the breaching of the capital of the Gamporo Kingdom, the local royal sage Evil Naiya, who advocated being gentle on the Ming Dynasty, was made king, and the prestige of the Ming fleet near Nantianzhu also reached its peak.

At the same time, Zheng He also obtained a treasure, that is, the Buddha's tooth relic.

The tooth of the Buddha is the tooth of Shakyamuni, and after the cremation of the body of Shakyamuni, the tooth is intact, which is called the tooth of the Buddha, which has a very important significance in Buddhism.

After writing the "Tablet of the Buddhist Temple on Mount Ceylon", Zheng He solemnly invited the Buddha tooth relics out.

And welcoming the Buddha tooth relics back to the Ming Dynasty will undoubtedly make Zhu Di's rule more legitimate in the hearts of Buddhists.

Next, Zheng He smoothly traded with the Southern Tianzhu states such as Gajil, Xiao Gelan, Kezhi, and Guli, and established trading bases (called 'official factories' by the Ming Dynasty) and tax bases (called 'Draw Branches' by the Ming Dynasty).

Because Zheng He's fleet was loaded with gifts for rewards, it also had Ming fist products, such as silk, porcelain, tea, cotton textiles, etc., and before the Ming Dynasty completed the currency reform, it was still used in the form of barter.

The two sides used a very contractual high-five pricing method.

Taking Guli as an example, after the arrival of the Ming fleet, the Ming army was responsible for bringing the goods to the trading place, and the two sides negotiated the price in person under the auspices of their respective senior officials, and finally the two sides high-fived each other to indicate the deal, and once it was decided, they would never go back.

At the same time, after two voyages, coupled with the information from foreign merchants, Zheng He's fleet also thoroughly figured out the route from Daming to Nantianzhu, and drew the "Zibao Shipyard Sailing from Longjiang Pass to the Water Zhidi Nantianzhu Zhufan", this chart includes dozens of countries, accurately records the course, voyage, port of call, reef, shoal distribution, there are more than ten sailing places, and there are dozens of routes.

Next, after a long voyage, the fleet reached the ports controlled by the Timurid Khanate.

The port is busy and orderly, with merchants and people of all colors trading and mingling, including Europeans.

And the arrival of Zheng He's fleet also attracted great attention from the Timurid Khanate.

Under Khalil's clear instructions, the officials of the Timurid Khanate warmly received the Ming envoys and provided them with ample supplies.

The Ming fleet also sold its inventory of antique firearms and weapons seized from the Mongols to the Timurid Khanate in exchange for a large amount of gold.

As for the grain in the back, naturally there were fleets from the Annan Kingdom and the Champa State to do it on their behalf.

The Ming did not want Khalil to gain an overwhelming advantage in the civil war to reunite the Timurid Khanate, nor did he want Khalil to be physically visited by his fourth uncle with a big knife, so he could only use this method to give Khalil a blood transfusion.

After replenishing its supplies, Zheng He's fleet continued westward and soon reached the Persian Gulf region controlled by the Aries dynasty (located in present-day eastern Iraq and western Iran).

The Aries Dynasty was established by the Turkmen people, "Aries" is a Turkic transliteration, transliterated as "Akyi Koyonglu", because its flag is painted with the Aries pattern as a symbol, so the name was originally a loose alliance of Turkmen nomadic tribes, and the East is adjacent to the Black Sheep Dynasty, and the two have been hostile to each other for a long time.

Later, Kara Osman was supported by various Turkmen nomadic tribes, as the leader of the alliance, founded the Aries Dynasty, a vassal state of the Timurid Empire, and accepted the conscription to participate in the Ankara Campaign as part of the Timurid Khanate.

As a vassal state of the Timurid Khanate, although the Aries Dynasty had the ambition to completely get rid of the Timurid Khanate at this time, it was still greatly influenced by the other party and needed to wait and see the situation of the civil war in the Timurid Khanate.

After leaving the territory of the Aries dynasty, from the Persian Gulf, Zheng He's fleet headed non-stop to the Red Sea, which was occupied by the Mamluks.

This dynasty in Egypt and Syria, with the same attitude as the Aries dynasty, had long received a move from the new Great Khan Khalil, and also warmly welcomed the arrival of the Ming fleet.

Talk +1

Trade Pact +1

However, the Mamluk sultan also sent envoys to the Ming Dynasty to meet Zhu Di with some of the ships returning from Zheng He's fleet, so as to further strengthen the friendly relations between the two countries.

The Mamluks were very good at defeating the Mongol expeditions and understanding how powerful the Ming Empire, which had just defeated the Timurid Khanate, in the east of the world.

The influence of the Timurid Khanate on the Aries Dynasty and the Mamluk Dynasty is different, the Aries Dynasty is a vassal state of the Timurid Khanate and is obliged to fight with the Timurid Khanate, while the Mamluk Dynasty is only a vassal state of the Timurid Khanate, the kind that does not listen to the tune or the proclamation, at most pays tribute and submits to the surface.

Therefore, the Mamluk dynasty wanted to "make friends from afar and attack closely", establish good relations with the Ming Dynasty, and use the Ming Dynasty to completely get rid of the influence of the Timurid Khanate.

It's almost equivalent to shouting at Haril: "Look, I pay tribute to the Ming Dynasty, I am a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty, you can go to the Ming Dynasty if you have something." ”

Zheng He did not fail to see what the Mamluk sultan meant, but he did not refuse.

Departing from the Red Sea, Zheng He's fleet soon arrived in Mugudushu, Burawa, Malin and other countries in East Africa.

The kings of these countries, nay, chieftains to be precise, were both surprised and excited by the arrival of the Ming fleet, and they sent envoys to greet them and led Zheng He and his party on a tour of the local rudimentary palaces, markets, and religious sites.

Zheng He introduced them to the Ming Dynasty, and they also showed Zheng He the local customs and unique culture.

But after leaving East Africa and continuing south, the traces of civilization gradually disappeared.

At the confluence of the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, Zheng He finally saw the cape in Jiang Xinghuo's mouth - the Cape of Good Hope.

Of course, Jiang Xinghuo's geographical knowledge here is not so profound, and what Zheng He saw was actually Cape Agulhas, the southernmost point of the African continent, that is, the "Needle Point".

But none of that matters.

Zheng He's fleet faced great difficulties, as it was a confluence of warm currents from the Indian Ocean and cold currents from Antarctica, and was plagued by strong westerly jet currents.

Even, there is the most terrifying "killing wave"!

The front part of this wave resembles a cliff, the back part resembles a gentle hillside, the wave height is generally 15-20 meters, and it occurs frequently in winter, and here, the "killing wave" is also sometimes combined with the "swirling wave" caused by the polar wind, and when the two waves are superimposed, the entire sea surface rolls like a boiling pot, forming one of the most dangerous nautical sections in the world.

Zheng He's fleet, as the world's largest ocean-going fleet, can be said to be invincible in the world, and the only thing that can be called "enemy" is nature.

As the fleet slowly sailed into this area, the sky suddenly became overcast, and the dense dark clouds seemed to swallow the entire sea.

Then, the wind howled and rolled up layers of huge waves, slapping fiercely on the hull of the fleet, even if it was a treasure ship of fifteen hundred or even two thousand materials, in terms of tonnage, it was equivalent to the frigate or light destroyer of later generations, but in the face of this terrifying natural power, it was still as small as a fallen leaf floating on the sea.

Although the ships of the Ming fleet were strong, they also had to stagger and move forward with difficulty in the face of such a storm.

The sailors on the ship clung to the ropes in their hands and struggled to keep their bodies balanced.

Many people have a fear of the unknown in their eyes, a terrifying sea situation that they have never encountered before.

Zheng He stared at the rough sea ahead and began to order to adjust his course as far away from the coastal currents as possible near land.

Visible land can seem safe and unmistakable, but in this complex situation, staying away from coastal currents is the right choice.

With Zheng He's order, the fleet began to slowly adjust its course, and they tried to bypass the center of the storm, but the strong winds and huge waves did not seem to intend to let them go.

Every time the hull shakes, it is really terrifying.

In the storm, some ships with smaller tonnage were overturned by huge waves, some sails were destroyed by strong winds, and many people were injured because of the back and forth turbulence, and it was good to fall with a blue nose and swollen face, and even internal bleeding could not be saved. But after a long ordeal, Zheng He's fleet finally sailed out of the storm.

When they saw the clear sky and calm sea again, everyone couldn't help but cheer.

The rest of the journey was much smoother, and Zheng He's fleet soon arrived in the Kingdom of Castile, Spain.

The Kingdom of Castile in this era, basically equivalent to Spain, the kingdom is named after the founder of Castile, one hundred and eighty years ago Castile unified the León region, and then successively conquered Córdoba, Murcia and Seville, the southern border to the Atlantic coast, his son Alfonso X compiled the famous "Castilian Charter" (also known as the "Seven Chapters of Code"), so at this time European countries generally regarded the Castilian court and Spain as one.

The king of the Spanish kingdom of Castile at this time was Henry III, the one who sent Kraviyo to the Timurid Khanate.

In fact, even if there were losses when passing through the southern tip of Africa, Zheng He's fleet was the largest in the world in terms of size, ships, personnel, and equipment.

The local population was so shocked by the sheer fleet that they poured into the streets to see the rare spectacle.

The treasure ship is like a moving castle, the flags flutter on the deck, the cargo in the cabin is piled up, and all kinds of people shuttle through, busy and orderly, Zheng He ordered the hatch to be opened, showing the treasures from the East, silk, porcelain, tea, spices, cotton textiles. These objects, which were extremely rare in the West, dazzled the nobles and merchants of Castile.

Soon, Zheng He met with King Henry III of Castile, and they showed respect for each other by giving each other gifts.

Henry III warmly welcomed Zheng He's visit and agreed to establish long-term trade relations with the Ming Dynasty.

The news of the arrival of the Armada from the far east soon spread from Spain to all corners of Europe.

At this time, Europe was still in a rather chaotic state.

King João I of Portugal in the south of Spain was busy competing with the Moors in North Africa, and his son Prince Henry's fleet raided the Moors in the southern Mediterranean. Oh yes, this Prince Henry can also be said to be the one who started the Age of Western Discovery, but in this time and space, he obviously doesn't have this opportunity.

Britain and France, north of Spain, were in the 20-year truce of the famous "Anglo-French Hundred Years' War", and both sides were in a state of exhaustion and could not fight, and in another seven years, when the British returned to blood, Britain and France would have to go to war again.

If the line of history had not changed, King Henry V would have defeated the strong at the Battle of Agincourt, killing more than half of the French nobles, leaving many French families extinct, and forcing France to sign the Treaty of Troyes.

Further northeast, in the German region of Central Europe, although not in a state of large-scale war, it was not peaceful, the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire was not as powerful as Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty, and the separating tendency of the princes and free cities in various places was very obvious.

Continuing to the east, in the Bohemian region of Central Europe near Eastern Europe, an iconoclastic priest named "Hussite" is preaching in various places. Just take this to the idea of "Bohemian Horns", and in another ten years, his followers and supporters will start the famous Hussite War.

The rest of the Kingdom of Hungary, the Knights Hospitaller, the Republic of Venice and other powers had not yet fully recovered from the defeat at the Battle of Nicopolis at the end of the last crusade, and the Swiss Confederation was gradually becoming independent from the control of the Holy Roman Empire.

Further southeast, the Ottoman Empire, to which Bayezid I had just returned.

By defeating the Timurid Khanate and establishing diplomatic relations with Haril, the Ming gained the respect of several important countries in the Middle East and West Asia, and Zheng He's fleet was able to replenish and complete the feat of circumnavigating Africa to Western Europe.

And in the face of the Ming fleet, not all countries behaved very friendly.

The first to stab was the British.

At this time, England was under the rule of Henry IV, and the first king of England of Lancaster had to endure leprosy while organizing a fleet of nobles to defend British maritime interests in the midst of protests from Parliament.

Henry IV actually didn't want to be an enemy of the Ming fleet at all, and the reason was very simple, just last year, the improper Henry IV had just put down the rebellion set off by the Earl of Marshall, the Earl of Northumberland, and the Archbishop of York, Ricskroup, and after the civil war, the British army was quite tired.

But Henry IV couldn't help it, he was the grandson of Edward III and the son of the Duke of Lancaster, and it stands to reason that the British throne has nothing to do with him, but he actually came to the throne because he was supported by the British Parliament.

From the accession of Henry IV to the present, in order to maintain the improper throne he obtained, the civil war has hardly stopped, and every year Henry IV has to bargain fiercely with the parliament to obtain taxes, and the parliament also has to pay every cent of the tax paid by Henry to point fingers at Henry's policies, this time it is because the parliament requires the king to defend their maritime interests, Henry IV has to be tough on the Ming fleet.

Because of the obvious fact that . As an island country, Britain's maritime trade is an important source of income, and the sudden intrusion of the behemoth of the Ming fleet will inevitably greatly affect its interests, while other major powers on the European continent are less dependent on maritime trade.

Therefore, after a "careful" estimate, the British Parliament unanimously agreed that Britain should teach the Ming fleet a small lesson, so that these Orientals who came from afar knew who was the master here.

(End of chapter)