The port of Lisbon is very lively and densely packed with merchant ships.
Although the Netherlands has resumed war with Portugal in the Indian region, the largest number of ships in Lisbon's port are Dutch merchant ships - wars are wars, business is business, and life still has to go on.
In Portugal itself, the largest industry is the sea salt industry.
Every quarter, 80,000 tons of sea salt are shipped from Portugal to various European countries. Portugal simply does not have enough merchant ships, so it can only rely on the Netherlands for sales, and watch helplessly as the Netherlands acts as a second-tier dealer and makes most of the profits from the sea salt industry.
Portugal's second largest industry is fishing.
However, the overseas colonial movement caused a sharp decline in fishermen and fishing boats. A large number of fishermen and fishing boats were requisitioned to serve overseas routes. This country, which led the development of large fishing grounds in Labrador and Newfoundland, is now unable to achieve self-sufficiency in cod and has to purchase Dutch products.
Cod brought in from the North Atlantic.
As the domestic economy declines, the local population loss becomes more serious.
Not only were fishermen fleeing to the colonies, but farmers and workers in the interior were also fleeing. As a result, Portugal could only import wood for its ships from Brazil and Sweden, rather than logging it from its own country's forests.
There is also food. Wheat is obviously produced locally, but the cost of river transportation is much higher than that of ocean transportation. Therefore, Lisbon's food supply continues to reduce the local supply and is imported from the Spanish coast.
As a result, Portuguese agriculture declined day by day, and later even developed to purchase grain from the British North American colonies.
This country is finished and has no future!
Industry withered, agriculture shrank, the population plummeted, and commerce was controlled by the Netherlands.
As for the huge profits from overseas colonies, they completely went into the pockets of the nobles and had nothing to do with the bourgeoisie and the common people. The common people who could not survive had to go to the colonies to make a living. This resulted in a smaller and smaller population. In the end, the royal family had no choice but to ban people from going to sea.
A colonial country prohibits native people from going to the colonies...
At this moment, countless foreign merchant ships and countless foreign businessmen were rushing to watch the landing of the Chinese mission.
The first to land were hundreds of the Emperor's bodyguards in plate armor.
Under the sunlight, the shining plate armor blinded countless Europeans.
King Joao IV murmured to himself: "Did China send hundreds of noble knights?"
Full-body plate armor is also non-mainstream in Europe. Only nobles or wealthy ancestors can afford to wear this thing to fight. The mainstream armor in Europe is similar to China, and is mainly chain armor and cloth armor.
Due to the rise of muskets, full-body plate armor gradually withdrew from the battlefield and became a symbol of noble status. Plate armor was made thinner and thinner, and at the same time, it became more and more fancy. This thing has become a work of art, often worn by nobles to dress up.
Forced to use.
Plate armor and plate armor are also different.
There is 1 mm thick plate armor with a thin layer of patches. Ordinary nobles can wear 2 mm thick plate armor to their death.
As for the 4 mm thick plate armor, it is not only a financial issue, but also a very serious physical issue. If you are not extremely strong, who can bear it? Such heavy armor will make you tired after walking a few steps.
Zhao Han's plate armor guards were selected from more than 200,000 soldiers, and all of them only had 3 mm plate armor. This kind of plate armor could withstand ordinary musket fire at medium and long distances, but it could not withstand heavy matchlock guns, nor could it withstand heavy arquebuses.
A common matchlock designed to withstand close range fire.
Following closely behind were the spear guards and musket guards.
The armor is also bright, with the spear guards wearing composite armor and the gun guards wearing exquisite leather armor (with iron plates embedded in key parts).
The navy did not disembark. The guards lined up in two rows. Lu Tianxiang, Zhang Ruifeng, and Fan Chao led the civil and military officials to disembark.
Lu Tianxiang and Fan Chao were both wearing armor, and Zhang Ruifeng was wearing a special silk official uniform.
"Distinguished Chinese envoy, welcome to Lisbon." John IV took his queen and children and walked forward to salute gracefully.
Lu Tianxiang took two steps forward, the armor on her body rustled, and said with a smile: "Hello, Your Majesty the King."
John IV had already known the situation in advance and was not surprised by this. There are queens in Europe, not to mention women as diplomatic envoys. He introduced his queen and invited the Chinese envoys to ride in the carriage.
The rise and fall of Portugal can be seen from the decoration of the carriage.
Before the great voyage, the Portuguese royal family was very poor, so the decoration of the carriage was very simple, with only some Gothic-style carvings.
Nowadays, the Gothic style has turned into the Baroque style. The carvings of the carriage are extremely complex and exquisite, and the entire carriage is covered with gold, and there are also gems and ivory for local decoration. This thing is very large, and the overall look is like
A stretched version of the original car.
In other words, the appearance of the earliest automobiles was imitating the royal carriage.
Lu Tianxiang rode in the same car with Queen Louisa, King Joao IV and Zhang Ruifeng rode in the same car, and Fan Chao rode in the same car with the Portuguese Minister of State.
Luisa is in her forties and has given birth to four sons and three daughters. Her father is a Spanish Duke.
In order to welcome the Chinese envoys, Louisa specially changed into silk clothes, and it was also a replica of the Ming Dynasty women's clothing style. Although it was a bit nondescript, and the hem of the coat skirt was held up with whale bones, this kind of skirt that combines Chinese and Western styles can be regarded as having a unique flavor.
She intended to compete with the Chinese princess in fashion, but unexpectedly, the Chinese princess wore a suit of armor.
Looking carefully and secretly, Louisa felt that women wearing armor were very heroic. She suddenly had an idea in her mind that after the Chinese mission left, she would also get a set of armor to wear, and she must send someone to Italy to make it.
Italy's top armor master has a specialized noble business.
Leather or cloth is used as the main material for making armor. The outer armor can be made of paper or thin copper sheets, plated with a layer of gold and silver, and partially decorated with inlays and carvings. The armor can dazzle the eyes of nobility.
The armor is ready.
The cost is extremely expensive, but the queen doesn't care, the Portuguese royal family is still very rich.
"Hello, can you understand Spanish?" Luisa asked.
Lu Tianxiang understood a few words and said: "On the way... I learned... a little Latin."
The two began to communicate, but it seemed a little difficult and a translator was still needed.
Cai Yuncheng was riding in an ordinary carriage. He observed the interface along the way. He found that there were very few beggars in Lisbon and the people's mental outlook was pretty good. He subconsciously felt that the people here were living a good life.
In fact, there are very few beggars or homeless people because they can go out to sea to make a living.
Every six months, a seagoing ship recruits sailors or colonial employees. As long as there are no shortage of hands and feet, individuals can sign up, and at worst, they can go to Brazil or Africa to work for the plantation owners there.
Or just become a pirate!
This is how Portugal's native population is lost year by year.
That night, although the dinner was sumptuous, it was still understandable. A few days later, a large banquet was held in the palace, which made the Chinese envoy lament the extravagance of the European royal family.
Nobles from all over the country, as well as distinguished scholars and businessmen, heard the news and came to see the Chinese.
Hundreds of people gathered in the hall, and the food seemed rough and luxurious. Rough is how to describe the dishes, and luxury is how to describe the dishes. Wine was brought in barrel by barrel, and the guests enjoyed eating, drinking and having fun, and there were European "troupes" throughout the process.
Serve.
King Joao IV was also a composer and music theorist. He did everything possible to obtain musical works published throughout Europe, and even used diplomats to do this kind of thing.
Portugal’s music collection is definitely among the largest in the world.
King John IV was so drunk that he suddenly stood up and said: "To express my welcome to the Chinese envoy, I will personally conduct and play a song!"
"Long live the King!"
Amid the cheers of the crowd, John IV walked over to the band.
Lorenzo Rebero, who was drinking, was the most famous musician in Portugal. Since the king himself conducted the music, he had to play it himself and be accompanied by other musicians.
At this time, the symphony had not yet taken shape, but polyphony was about to reach its second peak. John IV was a staunch supporter of polyphony, and he even wrote papers to argue with others, pointing out that polyphony was the future development.
direction.
Zhang Ruifeng sneered and whispered in Chinese: "The king is not the king, and the ministers are not the ministers. How ridiculous it is. The king of a country, on this occasion, actually makes a show with an actor."
Cai Yuncheng said: "It's nothing. Didn't Emperor Taizong Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty also come to dance in person? It's just that the nobles in this country are too extravagant, and I'm afraid the life of the common people will be difficult. Looking at the decoration of his carriage, you know that he must be a nouveau riche, similar to the Moguls
Just like the royal family. Along the way, they are just like the Persian royal family, with a little bit of elegance and taste."
The term nouveau riche has been around since the Ming Dynasty.
But Cai Yuncheng didn't know that this nouveau riche style was not only found in Portugal and the Mughals, but also in the entire European royal family. Those who can use gold for decoration will definitely not use silver!
What is popular at the moment is called the "Baroque" style, which applies to architecture, painting, and music.
The literal meaning of Baroque is: strange, weird, deformed, gaudy, messy.
The Renaissance brought innovation and change, and the voyage brought wealth and enjoyment. When the two were combined, the Baroque style was born.
Local nobles, businessmen and scholars were not qualified to sit at the long table. Together with their wives, they sat on the pony in the corner, but this was already a supreme honor, and they were enjoying the music with intoxicated faces.
Gradually, the tune changed and people stood up and danced in twos and threes.
The Chinese envoys were all speechless. Men and women hugged each other openly. Moreover, you hugged my wife and I hugged your daughter. The scene was impossible to watch.
"Extremely rude and extremely shameless!"
The civil servants shook their heads repeatedly, but there were always a few who couldn't help but look towards the dance floor.
Lu Tianxiang had already changed into Chinese palace clothes, and a young man came over to invite her to dance: "My beautiful royal concubine, would you be honored to dance with you?"
Lu Tianxiang said with an ugly face: "No!"
"Bang!"
Pan Wei stood up, pointing at the young man's nose and cursing: "You are so rude, how dare you disrespect the imperial concubine, are you really at a disadvantage to our country's military?"
The young people were dumbfounded and didn't know why the Chinese envoy was angry.
This young man is none other than the eldest son of João IV, Theodosio, Duke of Braganza and Prince of Brazil.
The other Chinese envoys, hearing the commotion, quickly inquired about the situation and stood up one after another.
The ball was interrupted unexpectedly, and King John IV personally came to apologize.
In fact, even without Lu Tianxiang, this kind of thing would probably happen. It is inevitable that some noble lady would come to ask a Chinese official to dance, but Chinese officials would not dare to openly hug a foreign woman.
Everyone waved their sleeves and left, and the Portuguese nobles looked at each other.
Although they found it baffling, their admiration for China deepened. In front of the Chinese envoys, they inevitably felt a little ashamed of themselves.
Let's just say that when the banquet just started, the Chinese envoy did not use knives and forks, but brought out his own tableware. The exquisite lacquer box was opened very elegantly, and inside was a pair of chopsticks.
When it is necessary to use a knife for food such as roasted suckling pig, the female officer of the regiment will do so.
The female officials cut the meat with knives and placed it neatly in front of the Chinese envoys. The envoys talked and laughed freely, picked up the chopsticks elegantly, and put the cut meat into their mouths. Their movements and temperament were indescribably noble.
At the end of the banquet, Queen Louisa called her maid: "I asked, Chinese people use chopsticks to eat. You have people make dozens of pairs of chopsticks out of ivory or silver. All members of the palace must learn to use chopsticks."
Also, in the future, when eating, arrange for maids to cut meat. Real nobles will not cut meat by themselves. This kind of dining etiquette comes from the far east and will become the Portuguese court etiquette in the future."
Portugal is learning all court etiquette from the French royal family.
Now that she finally has the opportunity to learn from China, Queen Louisa truly feels a sense of superiority. She is finally more fashionable than the Queen Mother of France in some aspects.
However, Louisa was not the only one who thought this way. The nobles who attended the banquet that day also tried to use chopsticks.
The nobles spent an hour every day learning how to use chopsticks. After learning, everyone was very happy, so the silversmiths got a new business, and making silver chopsticks became very popular.
The maids also have new jobs. From now on, when the nobles eat, they must stand by and wait. Cut the whole piece of food into small pieces and put them neatly on the plate for the noble gentlemen to eat.
The nobles began to compete with their maids. Which family's maid could cut the meat quickly, thinly and beautifully would definitely bring glory to their faces.
On the day of Lu Tianxiang's banquet, the Chinese palace clothes she wore were also imitated by the ladies. Because they were told orally, the tailors couldn't get the style right, so the clothes they made were all kinds of different.
The noble lady of the local lord's family is even more funny.
Dressed in "Chinese palace style", she would take a stroll in a carriage when she had nothing to do. After walking in the city, she went for a walk in the countryside. Everyone would tell everyone she was wearing Chinese palace clothes. Amidst countless envious eyes, the ladies held their noble heads high.
The entire Portuguese fashion trend changed dramatically because of a banquet.
Dutch businessmen were the quickest to respond. The Chinese mission had not yet left Portugal. They had already heard the news and asked tailors to make a large number of Chinese-style clothes for sale in the Netherlands and major cities in Germany.
