As soon as the emperor said he had met, the Ministry of Rites immediately got busy.

After the Lifan Yuan became independent, it took away the chieftains. The inner vassal states and the most difficult foreign barbarians were left to the Ministry of Rites.

As soon as you opened your mouth, the Ministry of Rites immediately sent someone to prepare an interpreter.

As a result, among the dozens of translators, none could speak Rakshasa, which confused the entire Ministry of Rites.

It's impossible to talk to the emperor and his queen in front of the emperor.

This is still second, etiquette and other things need to be communicated to understand!

At this time, news of the Russians' arrival in Beijing reached several embassies.

Today, there are only four embassies in the capital: Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands, and England.

The four maritime powers controlled the Ming Dynasty's waterways to the west, and their goods were almost bought out by them.

The Dutch Ambassador Jose Coronado immediately saw the opportunity and came to the Ministry of Etiquette to work part-time as an interpreter.

The Dutch were sea coachmen, their country was on the rise, and they were extremely skilled in the financial lending business, and they immediately gained the favor of the Ministry of Rites.

Ivanov was very happy to hear pure French spoken.

However, the Sir Jose who appeared in front of him was wearing a Ming Dynasty's toga and a square bonnet. If it weren't for his deep eyes, big nose and brown eyes, he would have thought he was a Ming Dynasty.

"Sir Ivanov?"

"It is the count, sir."

"Okay, Your Excellency, Count." Sir Jose didn't take the title seriously and translated casually.

Although the dress etiquette was cumbersome, it was a rule and Ivanov did not want to violate it. But when he knelt down, Ivanov snarled and shouted:

"This is the posture of a farmer. As a noble, even the king is just kneeling down on one knee."

"Oh, my Earl, this is different in the East, in the Ming Dynasty."

Sir Jose did his job faithfully, and the Dutch also participated in many trades in Russia and established good relations with the Russians, but it was related to family business.

For the sake of gold coins, Sir Jose has always been very serious. He explained:

"This emperor, like the Ottoman Empire, has the noble status of emperor and autocratic power, and is also the head of religion."

"Both secularity and religion are controlled by him. If you kneel down to him, imagine him as the pope!"

When talking about this, Jose was quite indifferent.

Ivanov narrowed his eyes, and his heart was full of anger. He was indeed a heretic. Although he was not the Pope, he was still the Patriarch after all!

However, even the Patriarch cannot let me kneel down easily.

"I heard that the Emperor of Ming Dynasty was extremely generous. He usually gave rewards to envoys. The most generous ones were tens of thousands of gold marks, and even the smallest ones were only two to three thousand..."

Hearing this, Ivanov's face immediately softened a lot: "In order to fulfill His Majesty the Tsar's order, what does it mean to sacrifice me?"

When practicing etiquette, the officials of the Ministry of Etiquette found that he was much more sincere and serious, and he was indeed looking for the right person.

Although he followed the etiquette of a serf, Ivanov thought about wealth:

It would be too much to ask for money directly later. If you give me more silk and tea leaves, you can multiply the value several times by taking it back!

A few days later, the Ministry of Rites reported that the envoys of the Rakshasa Kingdom had learned the etiquette diligently and had mastered the etiquette in a short period of time, and could come to have an audience.

Seeing this, Zhu Yixi agreed, and the time was set for the afternoon.

At this time, he was meeting a missionary from Taiwan.

Since the expulsion of the Portuguese from Macau, Taiwan has implemented an open policy, allowing overseas people to settle down. The household registration is relaxed. After living for three years, they can be naturalized and settled if they own real estate.

So when Europe arrived in China, Macau, which was the first stop, has been changed to Taiwan.

In Taiwan, the number of overseas Yi people exceeds 10,000, the financial industry, shipbuilding industry, handicrafts, etc. are becoming increasingly developed, and overseas trade has become the mainstream, and they are the biggest beneficiaries after the takeover of Macau.

Wei Kuangguo, formerly known as Martino Martini, was an Italian, Jesuit missionary, famous geographer, historian and theologian. He arrived in Macau in the summer of 1643 and fought against

After the chaos subsided, he went to Nanjing to settle down and preach.

At this time, in 1648, the second year of Shaowu, he returned to Europe and, as a representative of the Jesuit mission, went to the Holy See to defend Chinese rituals.

After a debate with the Dominicans, they won a great victory. The Holy See allowed the Jesuits to implement Matteo Ricci's rules, that is, to respect Chinese believers in worshiping Confucius and their ancestors.

When returning to Europe, it passed through Germany, France, England, Belgium, and Norway. It widely promoted Chinese geography and culture, causing another wave of Chinese trends.

As a representative of the Society of Jesus, it is the most basic rule to meet the emperor.

Zhu Yixi was always tolerant of religious people and allowed them to kneel on one knee.

"Dear Your Majesty, when we return to Rome this time, we, the Society of Jesus, have obtained the approval of Rome and will abide by the previous Matteo Ricci rules and will not change them."

Wei Kuangguo had a big beard and dark brown hair and beard. He was a purebred Italian. He lowered his head slightly and said sincerely.

"Matteo Ricci's rules are the prerequisite for preaching. As long as Jesus will abide by them, how can I stop him?"

The emperor's words sounded nice, but Wei Kuangguo would not take them seriously.

Having been in China for many years, he already knew the local customs well. How could he not understand the emperor's suspicion?

But the Jesuits are not the crazy group of missionaries in Spain. They currently have no political ambitions and only want to preach.

"Princes have been enlightened for a long time. Now that they are getting older, it is time for them to be more knowledgeable."

Zhu Yixi looked at Wei Kuangguo's respectful look. If his Western appearance was removed, he would be a scholar-official.

Thinking of this, his heart moved and he said, "I wonder if you, sir, have enough energy to tell some of my children the story of Europa?"

"Of course, you can talk about geography, politics, country, culture, mathematics, etc., don't be too rigid."

Wei Kuangguo was overjoyed.

Sure enough, my flattery these days was not wrong.

Teaching the emperor's son is a good thing that many people can't ask for. It would be great to train a pro-Jesuit monarch.

"Your Majesty, please put it down. I will definitely explain it carefully."

Wei Kuangguo bowed hurriedly, and then added: "I will work hard at the steam engine."

"That's good."

The emperor nodded with satisfaction.

He was naturally extremely serious about the prince's education.

In the early Qing Dynasty, Kangxi's princes were particularly outstanding. Lao Jiu, for example, was proficient in the languages ​​of the Three Kingdoms. When Jiulong was seizing the throne, he even used Latin and Chinese to send secret messages. He was also proficient in mathematics and astronomy.

Of course, this is also because Kangxi was saved by missionaries many times and was naturally close to the West. Later, when Nan Huairen taught mathematics, his Chinese was not good and his speech was difficult to understand. He actually invented "Yuan" and "Ci".

"Root" is another name.

With his example, the princes will naturally get closer to Western culture.

Zhu Yixi thought that his sons would be entrusted to various places in the future and learn more about the West, mathematics and geography, etc., so that they would be able to govern the country in the future.

Broadening your horizons is essential.

In the afternoon, Ivanov came to the royal garden - Yuquan Villa.

The eunuch led the way, and he followed step by step, looking down at the ground and not daring to look around.

Even so, with his peripheral vision, he could still spy on the wealth of the Ming Emperor.

With its huge palace complex, splendid buildings, and countless attendants, the rough Russian Imperial Palace simply cannot compare with it.

Similarly, Jose, the Dutch ambassador who followed him, was also able to see the emperor as an interpreter.

We came to a loft, Tingtao Pavilion.

The waterfall was flying, the spring water was tinkling, the emperor was sitting in front of him, the mist was filling the air, and the whole person showed a transcendent and otherworldly attitude.

The two were shocked.

"Your Majesty, the Rakshasa Kingdom's envoy and interpreter have all arrived."

"Let them in."

Soon, the two of them met

The emperor.

His thin face, bright eyes, and black robes showed that he was spending his leisure time.

"Foreign envoy Ivanov comes to see His Majesty the Ming Emperor——"

Both of them knelt down, one in French and one in Chinese.

"Get up."

The emperor glanced at Jose. Although he didn't know what the Dutchman had in mind, everything was in vain in the face of absolute strength.

With the construction of the three major naval divisions, the Ming Dynasty's water strength in the east has reached its peak, occupying absolute dominance.

For example, after the Western-style Galen ship was transformed from the East and integrated with Chinese and Western styles, its tonnage reached 3,000 tons (approximately 1,000 tons) and became the absolute main force.

Each of the three major navies has two ships.
To be continued...