Emperor Ming Dynasty

Chapter 639

Almost in line with the Qing Dynasty, Japan's Tokugawa Shogunate began a policy of closing the country shortly after its establishment, and it lasted almost throughout the entire shogunate era.

Japan's seclusion has begun since the time of Tokugawa Ieyasu. The second-generation general Tokugawa Hidetada and the third-generation general Tokugawa Iemitsu followed suit.

After Japan locked down the country, only merchants from the Ming Dynasty, Korea, Ryukyu, and the Netherlands were allowed to trade in Nagasaki.

Because Nagasaki is the territory of the general, the shogunate monopolized the foreign trade of the whole of Japan, which is exactly the same as the Thirteen Banks in Guangzhou.

What is more realistic is that Catholicism developed vigorously during the Warring States Period in Japan, and the number of believers gathered exceeded 30. It was a powerful force that could not be controlled.

For example, Catholic tithes, not worshiping ancestors, trading guns with daimyo without authorization, etc., all touched the backs of the Japanese shogunate.

Later, in the Shimabara Rebellion that broke out in 1637, the shogunate spent a lot of effort, killing and injuring more than [-] people to suppress this Christian-dominated uprising.

The reason why the Dutch can occupy a place in Japanese trade is because Protestantism is more Buddhist and not keen on centralization.

The mission of Catholicism is not to spread the love and teachings of God, but to seek benefits.

For China, Catholicism is not worth mentioning, but for the shogunate of feudal princes, it is a behemoth.

"Nagasaki—"

At this time, Iemitsu Tokugawa muttered suddenly, and opened his eyes that had been closed long ago. The bright light made all the officials dare not look up.

"Yes, there are many Tang merchants in Nagasaki."

Abe Tadaaki bowed his head, and said in a deep voice: "During this period, Tang things swept across Edo, daimyo warriors were proud of Tang things, and our country's silver and gold were lost to foreign countries. If things go on like this, I'm afraid it will be detrimental to the shogunate..."

"You can't say that." Baoke Zhengzhi shook his head: "Among Tang objects, most of them are the Four Books and Five Classics, which were annotated by Zhu Zi. Now that the country has stopped its troops, it is time to advocate the style of writing—"

Hoshina Masaoyu loves Confucianism, and Tokugawa Iemitsu does the same. In other words, the generals of the shogunate all love Confucianism, Zhu Zixue, and Wangxue, which are extremely popular in Japan.

Originally, Buddhism was very good and could fool the people, but it mutated in Japan. Not only can it eat meat, but it can also marry wives and inherit the family business.

More importantly, he also likes to launch Yixiang Yikui to brainwash the people to rebel.

Under such circumstances, how can Confucianism be unpopular?In particular, Toyotomi Hideyoshi failed to invade North Korea, and the trend of Mu Tang was once again set off in the country.

Iemitsu Tokugawa heard about the loss of silver, and sighed: "Silver in my country is cheap, but silver in Tang Dynasty is expensive. This is also the foundation of exchanges between the two countries. Fortunately, there is Nagasaki, otherwise there will be more losses."

Sakai Tadakatsu on the side was silent.

For the Japanese, the silver in the mountains is endless, and when they are dug up, they are used for shopping. Instead of buying domestic coarse cloth, it is more cost-effective to buy Tang cloth.

Even the female officials and concubines in General Dayao are all keen on Tangbu Jinxiu.

"General, this is a silver dollar brought by a merchant from the Tang Kingdom."

Sakai Tadakatsu greeted him, and Xiao Xing walked over quickly, presenting a plate of silver, gold and copper coins.

"I heard that the Tang Dynasty no longer minted coins with square holes such as Yongle Tongbao, but cast solid coins like the Nanman (referring to Westerners)."

Saying that, Sakai Tadakatsu pointed to the wooden plate and said, "This is a copper coin, which is worth ten copper coins; a silver coin is equal to a tael of silver, and a gold coin is worth ten silver coins."

Tokugawa Iemitsu was stunned, with some doubts in his eyes.

"Little Binhou, there is no skill in casting copper coins in our country. It is better to learn from the Tang Dynasty and cast these round coins so that they can be implemented in the whole country."

Baoke Zhengzhi bent down and explained.

The casting of copper coins seems simple, but in fact it is extremely technical, no matter today or later.

Nowadays, what circulates in North Korea, Japan, Annan and other countries are all copper coins of Ming Dynasty. The money of one's own country is not recognized, and it is called evil money, which can be broken in half when used.

Tokugawa Iemitsu's eyes were fixed: "Our country, I am afraid it will be difficult."

"Lan Kingdom can do it."

Sakai Tadakatsu said: "Such methods should not be difficult for Nanman."

"One or two can be trial-produced."

"In addition, Lan Guo and Tang Guo had an affair because of the officials. Although they reconciled, Zheng Yiguan still refused to allow Lan Shang to come to Nagasaki. I hope our country can persuade us."

"It would be better not to come."

Tokugawa Iemitsu sneered and said, "Although Languo is peaceful, it is still a Nanman, which is different from us."

"That's it."

Suddenly, Tokugawa Iemitsu thought of a check and balance, and changed his tone: "Let the people in Nagasaki persuade."

"Yes--"

Immediately, they reported one after another, big and small.

After the governance of three generations of shoguns, Tokugawa Ieyasu, Tokugawa Hidetada, and Tokugawa Iemitsu, the Edo Shogunate was officially on the right track for nearly 50 years.

Although the events of the Ming Dynasty were thousands of miles away, they still caused ripples here.

The Zheng family, which has no taboos in the China Sea, is still rich and prosperous after taking over Taiwan.

Zheng Zhilong served as the commander-in-chief of the East China Sea Division, stationed in the coastal areas of Zhejiang, Fujian, and Jiangsu, and stationed in the Zhoushan Islands.

Some of the old and weak Zheng Jiajun under his command were sent to the Taiwan government, distributed their fields and became farmers, and settled down.

And some small boats, that is, sea-going ships with a size of two to three hundred materials, were basically placed in the Penghu navy to protect the safety of the Taiwan government.

The remaining big ships were divided into three parts.

One followed Zheng Zhilong to Zhoushan and established the Donghai Division, with a scale of more than [-] people and more than a hundred warships.

The other, in Guangdong, became the South China Sea Navy, with a scale of over [-], and the head of the navy was no longer the Zheng family, but was appointed and dismissed by the court.

The last part, which is purely wild, and those who are not willing to be recruited as soldiers, belong to the Zheng family fleet, traveling between North Korea and Japan, and dealing in commercial goods.

Although they no longer monopolize Japan's trade, relying on the advantages of the fleet and the route for many years, the Zheng family is still full of food.

"Brother, the Dutchman is clamoring again, thinking about going to Japan!"

When Zheng Hongkui came to Nan'an County, seeing Zheng Zhilong who was at home on vacation, he opened his chest and showed his fat belly, so he couldn't help laughing.

"It's okay to go, let him pay the share."

Zheng Zhilong didn't take it seriously: "Don't think that if you build an embassy in Beijing and have the opportunity to meet the emperor, you will be able to avoid paying tolls. It's a pretty idea."

"In the entire China Sea, except for the emperor's ship, everyone else pays money to me, even the prime minister's family."

"Of course, the Dutch are also sad to pay."

"correct."

Zheng Zhilong suddenly thought of something: "Has the shipyard in Quanzhou finished building our warship? How long has it been?"

"No!" Zheng Hongkui said in one go, even though he was only serving as the commander-in-chief of Fujian Province:
"I came to see you to talk about this matter, there are not so many Yinmu."

"Also, isn't this the imperial palace that needs to be repaired? Fujian has cut a lot, and you need your navy to go out and transport it away."

"He's a bastard, flattering the emperor and asking our sailors to run errands!" Zheng Zhilong said angrily.

(End of this chapter)