Last time, I talked about urging my apprentices to complete the assigned tasks, and if you want to make money vigorously, you must develop foreign trade, and you must understand Southeast Asia before restarting your trip to the West.

The powerful fleet of Zheng He did not cause panic among the countries along the way, because they did not come for military conquest, but for the purpose of diplomacy and trade, they exchanged the splendid Chinese culture and exquisite Chinese goods with the locals, so the locals were amazed and convinced.

Zheng He's fleet brought back a large number of spices, rare timber, gold and silver and other valuables from the South and Western Seas, which also enriched the treasury and made the imperial court very profitable, and was able to offset the expenses of building the fleet, such as pepper, which was used as part of the money of the court officials, and was distributed until the middle and late Ming Dynasty.

Because pepper, spices, ivory, rhinoceros horn, various gems and other rare things were extremely precious in ancient China, they were also under the control of the imperial court.

The tens of thousands of soldiers in Zheng He's fleet are essentially used for self-defense, after all, the vast sea is full of dangers, not only countless greedy eyes are staring at the fleet, but also some arrogant monarchs of small countries and pirates from all walks of life are interested in making money, and they are desperate to attack the fleet.

For example, Chen Zuyi, a pirate leader entrenched in the Old Port, decided to intercept Zheng He's fleet on its way back after learning that it was carrying a large number of rare treasures brought back from the West. His plan was to surrender to Zheng He first, and then launch a surprise attack when the Ming army relaxed its guard, which would have a bad impact if he succeeded.

However, Chen Zuyi's plot was discovered by Shi Jinqing, the leader of another Chinese armed group. Shi Jinqing is a second-generation Chinese born overseas, who believes in Islam, but yearns for the Ming Dynasty, so he privately told Zheng He, the "eunuch of the three guarantees", about Chen Zuyi's sneak attack plan.

"Zheng He" is also called "Ma He", nicknamed "Ma Sanbao" or "Ma Sanbao", and his hometown is in Jinning County, Kunming, Yunnan. "Zheng" is the "surname" given to him by the emperor of the Ming Dynasty. When he was eleven years old, he was captured in the palace in the war launched by Zhu Yuanzhang, the Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, to unify Yunnan, and later became a close attendant of Zhu Yuanzhang's fourth son, Zhu Di, the king of Yan.

In 1403, Zhu Di, the king of Yan, ousted his nephew Jianwen Emperor Zhu Yunwen from power with the help of the "Battle of Jingnan", and became the emperor himself, as "Ming Taizong", known as "Ming Chengzu" in history. On the first day of the first lunar month of the following year, Zhu Di remembered that he was brave and resourceful, and repeatedly performed miraculous feats, so he gave him the surname "Zheng", and was called "the surname of the country" at that time.

After "Ma Sanbao" was renamed "Zheng He" by the Yongle Emperor, his identity and status soared, because he was promoted to the eunuch of the inner palace, and in the third year of Yongle (July 11, 1405), he led a huge fleet of ships from Liujiagang, Jiangsu, along the route of the Song and Yuan dynasties to the Western Ocean for the first time.

From 1405 to 1433, in this long 28 years, Zheng He's fleet passed through more than 30 countries in Asia and Africa, covering more than 100,000 miles, and established political, economic, and cultural ties with various countries, completed the great historical feat of seven voyages to the Western Ocean, and finally sent a detachment to sail to the Americas.

Zheng He once followed Zhu Di to fight on the battlefield, was accustomed to conspiracy and fighting, and had an early insight into Chen Zuyi's tricks, and now he has Shi Jinqing as an internal response, so he will plan and easily eliminate Chen Zuyi's pirates, capture him alive and return to Beijing for execution, and remove a major threat on the way to the West.

After Shi Jinqing became the de facto ruler of the old port, he sent people to Beijing to meet him and show his loyalty to Zhu Di, the Yongle Emperor. So, in 1407, Zhu Di issued an order to set up the "Old Port Propaganda Department", and appointed Shi Jinqing as the "Old Port Propaganda Envoy", and gave him the "Golden Seal" and "Official Uniform". Since then, the "Old Port Xuanwei Division" has been included in the territory of the Ming Dynasty and marked on the "Complete Map of Wanguo Kunyu" drawn by the Ming Dynasty, proving that this place was once China's overseas territory.

Is the "Old Port Propaganda Division" considered the territory of the Ming Dynasty? Later scholars have disputed this issue, as the Ming dynasty did not send officials or garrisons to the Old Port, nor did it collect taxes, which was weaker than the Yuan dynasty's brief rule over the Majapahit in 1291, when the Yuan dynasty at least sent officials and garrisons to Jawa.

In addition, the connection between the "Old Port Xuanwei Division" and the Ming Dynasty court was limited to a few tributes, and its status was similar to that of a "vassal state". In addition, in addition to paying tribute to the Ming Dynasty, Shi Jinqing also paid tribute to the "Majapahit" kingdom in order to maintain peaceful relations.

Of course, the "evidence" that can best prove that the "Old Port Xuanwei Division" belongs to the territory of the Ming Dynasty is probably Shi Jinqing's inheritance struggle. In 1424, Shi Jinqing died, and his son Shi Jisun sent someone to ask the Ming court for a title, wanting to inherit the official position of "Old Port Propaganda Envoy".

Shi Jisun's envoy claimed that the golden seal of the "Xuan Comfort Envoy" had been destroyed by fire, and asked the imperial court to regrant it. The inheritance of the father's position and the inheritance of the son was the most common rule in ancient human society, and the Ming court did not notice the abnormality in it, so it fulfilled Shi Jisun's request, and asked Zheng He to go to the "old port" to complete the canonization ceremony of the "new consolation envoy" when he went to the West again in 1431.

After many days of sailing, after the fleet arrived at the "old port", Zheng He announced the holy decree of the Yongle Emperor according to the custom, thinking that the locals would gladly accept the order, and the post of "consolation envoy" would be canonized one day earlier, and the "old port" would be settled one day earlier.

However, what is unexpected is that the "old Hong Kong Chinese" group, who have always been deferential to Zheng He and the Ming Dynasty, dared to openly disagree with this appointment.

The experienced Zheng He did not get angry, and quickly summoned representatives of local clans and giant merchants, and after careful inquiry, he learned that Shi Jinqing had a will before his death, and passed the position of "Xuanhui Envoy" to his daughter Shi Erjie, and handed over the golden seal to her, because the "Golden Seal" is a symbol of the power of the "Xuanwei Division".

The people in the old port also said that the rule of "passing on the daughter but not the son" was indeed brought from the "Chinese hometown", and after the second sister Shi succeeded to the throne, she continued Shi Jinqing's governance method and maintained the stability of the "old port" society, so she has been convinced by the local Chinese people.

As a son, Shi Jisun was unwilling to lose the right to inherit, so he concealed the truth and asked the court for a title, trying to use the authority of the Ming Dynasty to seize the position of "Xuan Comfort Envoy". Unexpectedly, although the imperial court was deceived by him, he sent Zheng He to canonize him, which shows that the Ming court still attaches great importance to the "Old Port Propaganda Division".

Although it is inconsistent with the usual rules to "pass on the daughter but not the child", the basic policy of the Ming Dynasty towards the "Xuanwei Division" is to respect the local customs. Therefore, Zheng He believed that it was in line with local customs and imperial court policies for Shi Erjie to take over, so he re-canonized the new "Old Port Propaganda Envoy" as Shi Erjie.

This move was warmly supported by the people of the old port, and Shi Jisun, who had been exposed to the conspiracy, went into exile overseas and never returned to the old port, fearing that the Ming Dynasty government would blame him for "committing the crime of defrauding the king" and kill him. From this point of view, the position of "Old Port Propaganda Envoy" can only be justified if it is canonized by the Ming Dynasty.

Although Shi Jinqing's family was a vassal to both the Ming Dynasty and the Majapahit at the same time, they regarded themselves as the subjects of the Ming Dynasty and should be recognized by the Ming court, both from the official and civil psychological levels. As for why the "Shi family" insisted on paying tribute to the "Manjapahit", the reason was that the other party was strong and close.

Because the Ming Dynasty was too far away from itself, once a battle broke out with the enemy, the Ming Dynasty army would definitely not be able to arrive in time to relieve the siege. And the "neighbor" of "Majapahit" is not only too close, but also does not talk about martial virtues, dares to attack everywhere, and is strong, if it can't be defeated, cure and obey it, otherwise it will be destroyed at any time.

It is worth mentioning that Shi Jinqing and Zheng He are both Muslims, and they also played a certain role in promoting the spread of Islam in the old port. At the same time, some local Chinese also began to convert to Islam, which served as a bridge between the Chinese and the Muslim community, which contributed to the prosperity of the "Old Port".

Shi Jinqing, Shi Erjie, father and daughter, governed the "old port" in accordance with the traditional Chinese model, promoted agriculture and business, spread Confucianism, and actively developed economic, trade and cultural exchanges with Daming and the surrounding areas. At that time, the "Old Port" covered an area larger than the 400 square kilometers of the current "Palembang", and the Chinese also made up the vast majority of the local population. Although there are also many indigenous people, the long-term harmony between the two has made the old port a famous commercial port in Nanyang.

As long as Zheng He's fleet exists, the Chinese in the "Old Port" and other places can get support from the "mother state" without worrying about being bullied. However, "Majapahit" has always had ambitions for the old port, but due to the strength of the Ming Dynasty, this ambition can only be suppressed temporarily. However, in 1431, Zheng He's seventh voyage to the West finally completed the last voyage of his life. This is also the last swan song of ancient China's overseas strategy!

Zheng He died on his way back in April 1433, and the fleet returned to Nanjing in July, and the official ocean-going fleet of ancient China disappeared.

The reason for the termination of the Ming Dynasty's activities in the West was that the traditional view was that "the state treasury was spending", which increased the burden on the country and the people. However, it is also believed that Zheng He's fleet monopolized overseas trade on behalf of the imperial court, which led to a joint struggle by some coastal local officials and large merchants, or because of excessive military pressure from the north.

Losing the "big backer" of the Ming Dynasty, the survival of the "Old Port Propaganda Division" immediately became difficult, because the ambition of the "Majapahit" became more and more exposed.

After more than ten years of struggle, in the face of the aggressive Majapahit Kingdom, the second "Old Port Propaganda Envoy" Shi Erjie had to adapt to reality and accept the complete rule of the "Majapahit" in 1440, which meant that the "Old Port Propaganda Division" came to an end, and the Ming Dynasty also lost its only overseas territory.

Officials sent by the "Majapahit" kingdom demanded that the Chinese in the old port disarm and pay taxes, and that the Chinese should be allowed to maintain a certain degree of autonomy, so that the prosperity of the old port could continue. According to historical sources, after the abolition of the "Old Port Propaganda Division", Shi Erjie was sent by the "Majapahit" to Java Island to manage other Chinese groups.

This proves that the "Old Port Xuanwei Division" should end peacefully, but the Ming Dynasty did not say anything about it, after all, since it has abandoned the "ocean-going fleet", it can only let this lonely overseas "enclave" fend for itself. However, the kingdom of "Majapahit", which annexed the "Old Port", soon suffered the same fate.

The widespread spread of Islam led to the rise of several "sultanates" in the Indonesian archipelago, and at the end of the 15th century, they united to destroy the Hindu kingdom of "Majapahit". As a result, the Indonesian archipelago, including the "Old Port", has also largely completed Islamization, turning local Chinese into Muslims.

Although more and more Chinese in Old Hong Kong have converted to Islam and gradually integrated with the locals, many of them have retained traditional Chinese customs.

In the 17th century, the "red-haired ghosts" Dutch occupied the "Old Port" by force, used it as an important stronghold to colonize the Indonesian archipelago, and renamed it "Palembang". At that time, the decline of the Ming Dynasty's national strength coincided with the rise of the Taungoo Dynasty in Burma, which annexed most of the "Three Propaganda and Six Consolations" in the southwestern border. Nandian, Ganya, Longchuan, the three Xuanfu Divisions went through the Ming and Qing dynasties, and lasted until 1940, and the longest-lived Cheli Xuanfu Division was not abolished until 1956.

Today, Palembang is the fourth largest commercial port and one of the top ten ports in Indonesia, with an annual cargo throughput of more than 10 million tons. In 2018, Palembang and Jakarta jointly hosted the Asian Games. And these achievements are inseparable from the commercial foundation built by the Chinese of the "Old Port Propaganda Division".

To this day, Palembang is still one of the cities with the largest Chinese population in Indonesia, and there are many relics left over from the past, such as the famous "Zheng He Mosque". The "Old Port Propaganda Division", China's "enclave" in Southeast Asia, proves that this place was a "symbol" of national prosperity and overseas strategy in the early Ming Dynasty.

However, after the middle of the Ming Dynasty, the Chinese government abandoned ocean voyages, so this "enclave" did not survive, causing regret.

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Hit by the economic crisis and the new crown epidemic, Qiongdao's tourism industry is struggling. I was depressed because of the company's bankruptcy, and wrote this book "Heaven and Earth Let Me Do One" in his spare time to show that he did not give in to the cruel reality! Although I have a great love for novels such as urban romance and Xiuzhen fantasy, I have also been dissatisfied with many "eunuchs" in the books I am reading! Recently, several consecutive typhoons have hit, making the "National Day Golden Week" in Qiongdao ruined, and it is more difficult to find a job! In order to survive first, in order to cope with family expenses, housing loans, car loans, online loans, bill installments, part-time courier delivery and errand shopping, making the book update slower, it is really helpless, please understand!