It was the twelfth lunar month, and the weather was cold and the streets and alleys of the capital became lively.

As the end of the year approaches, the earth is frozen and the people have free time. They can walk around the streets. While preparing New Year's goods, they can also pass the last time of the year. The markets can see the gentry and wealthy people taking their servants to the streets. There are also many people in the neighborhoods who are rushing around. The downtowns of the capital are crowded with vendors, and most of them are related to the New Year.

Of course, New Year pictures are indispensable!

There will always be good things in the capital city. There will always be scarce goods everywhere in the world. Any good sales will be shipped to the capital city. This is a great business opportunity.

Since the colorful New Year pictures produced in Tingzhou have become famous in Jiangnan, more and more people have begun to rush New Year pictures, but more of them are copy and imitate.

After several years of technological improvement, the colorful gilded New Year paintings imitated from various places have become similar. From the appearance alone, it is difficult for even the inventor Chen Xi, the inventor, to determine the authenticity. However, it will be clear if you just touch it carefully with your hands. The outer layer of the fake New Year paintings will easily fade, while the authentic Tingzhou New Year paintings will not fade over time.

Because the Tingzhou Chamber of Commerce has not really developed into the capital, even if there are genuine Tingzhou New Year paintings, it will be transported through business, and the majority of the profits have been earned by these people.

Chen Xi is about to celebrate his second Spring Festival in the capital.

When he first arrived in Beijing last year, his goal was to take the exam after the spring. He had no intention of preparing for the New Year. He had won the imperial examination this year and became a court official. He should have had less time to spare, but his responsibilities were very special and he did not have lectures to the prince every day. His official rank can only be of the middle and low level in the huge bureaucratic system of the capital, and there was no part-time job to do, so he had more time to go to the street market.

Without Xie Yuner here, Chen Xi always felt that something was missing. Fortunately, Lin Dai's heart knot was untied. The two of them spent more time together on weekdays, and the two finally had the same time as before.

But he is just a childhood sweetheart and has not developed into a couple who are in line with each other.

Chen Xi felt that the time to collect Lin Dai was almost ripe, but for some reason, he couldn't bear to take action against a small flower that was about to bloom, even though he knew that Lin Dai was almost unprepared for him.

On the 14th day of the twelfth lunar month, Chen Xi told Zhu Houzhao the "History of the Five Dynasties", which was actually the "New History of the Five Dynasties" compiled by Ouyang Xiu in the Song Dynasty.

Because of the constant disputes of the Five Dynasties, there were many ministers and gentlemen killing their fathers, full of darkness, far less majestic or magnificent or ups and downs than the "History of Tang" or "History of Song". Zhu Houzhao fell asleep from the beginning of class, and Shenxi told several stories intermittently in the middle, involving the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, and Zhu Houzhao was not very happy to listen.

In Zhu Houzhao's opinion, you can't play with me, and it's useless to say too much. If I don't like you, you can't do anything to me.

Chen Xi did not continue to use his own methods to transform Zhu Houzhao. The two of them are now very strange in getting along. They are not like monarchs, ministers, teachers and students, nor are they like friends... You talk about you, I sleep with mine, I don't interfere with each other during class, and don't care about how I play after class, and you can't go to my father to complain.

But Zhu Houzhao was quite polite to Chen Xi and basically never escaped Chen Xi's class. However, for other lecturers, it is easy for the prince to be away during the lecture and wait alone in the lecture.

Chen Xi came out of the East Palace and returned to Zhan Shi Mansion. Before he could finish cleaning up and get off work, Xie Qian was already waiting at the door with a smile.

As a senior minister of the cabinet, Xie Qian rarely goes to the lower yamen because he usually only needs to stay in the cabinet and wait to read the memorials and draw up a ticket. However, Xie Qian looked for Chen Xi too often, which made Chen Xi feel like he was followed by Xie Qian wherever he went.

"Chen Xi, your annual exam is almost over? Is it time to go home to visit relatives?" Xie Qian came up and asked with concern.

Chen Xi thought to himself that the new Jinshi examination and evaluation period ended in one year to return to his hometown to visit relatives is a rule in the court. You, Xie Qian, wouldn’t you want me to do things and prevent me from returning home?

Chen Xi saluted respectfully: "That's right. What order does Master Xie have?"

"It's nothing, don't think too much..." Xie Qian habitually beat him up, but he soon changed his words, "I'm fine, but... the court has something important to you for doing."

Chen Xi frowned when he heard this, thinking, "Is it that important? It's like the court left me and I can't turn it normally."

Chen Xidao: "What is the purpose of Mr. Xie? Just say it bluntly."

Xie Qian shook his head and sighed softly: "Do you remember the strange text I asked you some time ago? Later I found out that it was the text of the Buddha Jiren. By comparing the manuscripts written by the Buddha Jiren in the past, I probably knew that they were going to contribute tribute to me ****... This dynasty was in a prosperous era, and the four barbarians surrendered, haha."

Chen Xi knew that Fo Ji was a common name for the Spaniards and Portuguese in the Ming Dynasty.

However, according to history, the Portuguese initially arrived in the coastal areas of China.

In the early years of the Great Age of Discovery, it was almost a history of exploration by the Portuguese. Enrique led the discovery of a series of islands in Europe and Africa, and opened colonies on the west coast of Africa. Later, the navigator Diaz arrived at the Cape of Good Hope, and Dagama successfully arrived at Guli on the west coast of India ten years later.

But so far, the Portuguese footprints have not yet reached the Far East, and there is no category like the Foshan Pavilion. Because historical records show that the Portuguese fleet did not arrive on the coast of China until the eighth year of Zhengde, and it was called "Fushanren" in the thirteenth year of Zhengde.

It is only the twelfth year of Hongzhi, and it is in conflict with the history of the Portuguese overseas colonial expansion records. Chen Xi can only understand that perhaps because of his appearance, under the butterfly effect, the Portuguese arrived on the coast of China and took the initiative to have contact with the Ming Dynasty.

Chen Xidao: "I wonder what this has to do with the students?"

Xie Qian smiled with a cunning smile: "The fleet of the Fofeng Crew is now in Quanzhou Prefecture, which is in Fujian. Your Majesty wants to find someone to receive these envoys and discuss tribute. You happened to go back to visit your relatives and understand foreign languages. I recommend you to Your Majesty and prepare to let you go to Quanzhou Prefecture... This is a good job!"

Good mother's head!

You calculate with your toes. It is a great thing for the Portuguese to pay tribute to the national letter, which shows that the majesty of the Ming Dynasty has spread thousands of miles away. In order to show the style of the great power, you have to find someone to collect tributes, and then take them back to the court to show off to the people, proving to the people how glory it is to be a Ming man!

But if the Portuguese don't give gifts and run away in a boat, what do you want me to chase them and ask for tribute?

The great era of navigation pioneered by the Portuguese was accompanied by colonial expansion. Those ambition navigators basically invaded wherever they went.

For example, when Da Gama first arrived in India, he was warmly welcomed. He led a fleet full of spices and gems to Portugal, and the net profit from his sailing was 60 times the cost of his sailing. But only three years later, Da Gama led his fleet to travel to India for the second time, intercepting merchant ships along the way, killing people to silence, bombarding Guli, and occupying Goa and Kochi, doing all kinds of evil.

In addition, as far as Chen Xi knows, in order to open up the border defense of the Ming Dynasty, the Portuguese harassed China's southeastern coast. Later, they saw that the Ming Dynasty was not like those in Africa and Indian natives were easy to bully, so they changed their tactics and occupied Macau by bribing local officials and foreign traders, and obtained trade rights with the Ming Dynasty.

Now these Portuguese have just arrived in the Ming Dynasty and have the pride of "God's envoy" and hold the attitude of "My is mine, yours is mine". It is better to say that you ask me to ask them for tribute, but you want me to die.

Chenxi Road: "Master Xie Ge's name may not know that Quanzhou is in southeast Fujian and Tingzhou is in western Fujian. It is not the same as the way to go to Jiangxi and return to Tingzhou from Ganjiang River..."

Xie Qian's old face suddenly turned dark: "I'm following what you meant, I want to resist the emperor's order! Chen Xi, what do you think I'm hurting you? This is the emperor's mission. After you go out, you are the imperial envoy. Others are looking forward to it but can't. How can you actually push yourself to the point of being hindered?"

Chen Xi was complaining in his heart. Since becoming an official, Xie Qian's envoy was called by Xie Qian. He thought that returning home to visit his relatives would be peaceful for several months, and it would be enough to let go of his heart. Maybe he could also visit famous scholars in Jiangnan, such as Tang Yin, Wen Zhengming, Xu Zhenqing, etc., and arranged an errand for Tang Yin to make a difference in the future.

Now, even returning home to visit relatives has been remembered by Xie Qian, and he named him the imperial envoy. But if he was a general imperial envoy, Chen Xi would naturally be unable to ask for tributes, but now he asked him to ask for tributes from a group of Portuguese named Navigators who were actually pirates.

Chen Xidao: "Students are afraid that they will not be competent. What students are good at is English language, not Buddhist scripts. Even if they see these people, they cannot communicate with them. In fact, it is better for Mr. Xie to send others to do this job."

Xie Qian said angrily: "Things are settled! Your Majesty will give you preferential treatment. You will set out before the end of the year and arrive in Quanzhou Prefecture at mid-February at the latest. This trip, it is best to come back before the end of May..."

To be honest, Chen Xi will not have any chance to refuse.

Chen Xi shook his head and smiled bitterly.

The imperial envoy's responsibilities were arranged a bit hasty. Even if the emperor did not give the king's orders, the emperor should give him the imperial seal, so that he could have the power to act cheaply in the local area. But now, Xie Qian came over and told him to "take the way" to get the imperial envoy...

I'm afraid I'm going to go but I'm going to come back!

Chen Xidao: "Master Xie Ge, it's not a student's conspiracy. The Buddha's craftsman is far away from the Obaro continent and has no diplomatic relations with our dynasty. This time, he arrived at my southeastern coast with a fleet, with the benefits of military armor and firearms. If I go there, if the other party is willing to accept my great power tomorrow, if there is a disagreement, what should I do about it?"

Xie Qian obviously didn't think too complicatedly about the problem.

In fact, Xie Qian knew that after receiving the memorial from Fujian, the "Fuji Ji" had no contact with the Ming Dynasty and had a language barrier. The dialogue between the two sides was actually translated through a third country. The letter of nationality submitted by the other party was said to pay tribute according to the local officials, but the real intention was not clear.

Only Chen Xi secretly complained: Will a group of robbers on the sea pay tribute to the Ming Dynasty?

"Just a few ships, my Ming Dynasty is vast and powerful, and my military strength is strong. How could I be threatened by a few small Buddhist gangs?" Xie Qian held the idea of ​​going to the country, but Chen Xi's words still aroused his vigilance, "Let's do this, I'll go back and mention it to Your Majesty. See Your Majesty's meaning. You go back and prepare and leave in a few days."

"That student's one-year assessment..."

"It's a long time. Since you have let you go back to your hometown, your assessment will naturally be approved. You will continue to be your job after you come back."

Xie Qian said angrily, "But being a lecturer in the East Palace is also annoying enough. Mr. Wang doesn't stare at others, but just stares at you. After you go back, you have to reflect on it and come back to see how to teach the prince's knowledge well."

Chen Xi heard this, and this time he went back not because he was able to go back to his hometown to visit his relatives after the exam, but because of poor teaching, he was "exiled" and "received meritorious service" when he met the Portuguese.

Chen Xi thought to himself: "I'm just going back to my hometown to visit a relative. Do you need to be so scared?"

After all, Xie Qian was not a slander who could only talk. After hearing Chen Xi's analysis, he realized that these Buddhists might have bad intentions, so he hurried back and gave some suggestions to Emperor Hongzhi to prevent problems before they happened.

Chen Xi began to worry about his visit to relatives.

***************

ps: The second update is here!
Chapter completed!