In the year after setting off from Tianjin Port, Xu Guangqi, who was extremely lonely, often felt ashamed of his own insignificance and ignorance when facing Polaris' neurotic mumblings. Let's not talk about the vastness of the universe that he experienced along the way.
, his respect for the emperor became more and more profound as he traveled further and further away from China. Every colonial supply point left a deep impression on him, and his sense of mission became clearer and clearer.
It's not that these supply points are so prosperous, some places are not as good as the towns on the border of the Ming Dynasty. What impressed Xu Guangqi deeply was the various races, strange languages and bizarre everything. He was dumbfounded as if in a dream. He was in the night
When he woke up during the voyage, he often didn't know where he was, thinking that he had left the real world and that the big ship carrying him had sailed into the "Book of Mountains and Seas".
In the past year, he has written nearly 100,000 words of "Journey to the West", recording everything he experienced in detail. As the first Ming Dynasty mission to bypass the Cape of Good Hope, they also attracted countless curious onlookers and even
He was tempted with bad intentions, but Luo Mingjian protected him very well and did not let Xu Guangqi directly face the challenges and threats along the way.
After all, cardinals and even cardinals in the next step are not just cats and dogs who can talk to him, and when the top officials of each colony face Luo Mingjian, they basically cannot look at him levelly. When Luo Mingjian did not say "please sit down"
, everyone can only stand and talk to him.
After fighting for tens of thousands of miles, Xu Guangqi, who was standing on the deck looking at the pilot ship in front, knew that Luo Mingjian's mission was mostly over. In the face of this new land and a new civilization, the national prestige of the Ming Dynasty and the dignity of the emperor depended on it.
Himself - a former poor boy who ran away from home in Shanghai County and finally married a princess.
Luo Mingjian, who was standing aside, saw that Xu Guangqi's body was a little tense and said with a smile: "Master Xu, don't be nervous. I firmly believe that what you bring to Europa is exactly what they need, and you will be welcomed beyond imagination.
"
Xu Guangqi forced a smile on his face, tried hard to pretend to be calm, nodded and said, "I hope so."
Luo Mingjian smiled and said nothing. In fact, he received the news sent by the clipper on Port Saint Island: the entire Europe has fallen into a state that he could not imagine in response to the arrival of the Ming Dynasty mission.
After receiving a large amount of detailed information about the Ming Dynasty, Pope Gregory XIII even issued an edict calling for a truce throughout Europe and welcomed the distinguished guests from the East in a peaceful manner - which shows that the Catholic Church attaches great importance to this exchange.
The first to respond to the order was the Republic of the Netherlands, whose first consul was Orange the Silent. William was assassinated three months ago, and the entire Netherlands fell into a state of leaderlessness, with each city fighting on its own. If Spain
If the order can be obeyed and the lowlanders can at least elect a second consul, it will be much easier.
Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma, the governor of the Low Countries who was in the midst of the siege of Antwerp, cursed loudly and wrote to Felipe II asking him to stop the papal edict, saying, "This is to give the heretics a chance to breathe, and to let the bitch in England
You can wake up laughing even in your sleep."
Of course Felipe II was unhappy with the decree of Gregory XIII, but His Majesty the Pope was trying to cause trouble for Felipe with his righteousness, and of course he could not change his mind. So he pinched his nose and Farnese wrote back, saying
He could continue building the Farnese Bridge to besiege Antwerp, but it would be best not to engage in battle with the defenders.
The otaku of the Holy Roman Empire and the celibate Rudolf II was the second to respond to the papal edict because he had long been tired of the endless uprisings and repression in the empire - if the rebels responded to the pope, then Rudolf could live a peaceful life.
Day, this is exactly what he dreamed of.
In France, the "Three Henrys' War" has just begun. Henry I, Duke of Guise, led the Catholic Alliance Army and Henry de Bourbon, the leader of the Huguenots, and King Henry III, a moderate king who leaned towards Protestantism, are fighting. The people who obey the crowd are fighting.
From a perspective, the Pope's decree was very fair, because the armistice was not good for the Catholic Church. At this time, the Duke of Guise was in great power, and Henry III was concerned about one thing and the other. Therefore, public opinion throughout Europe believed that His Majesty the Pope's decree did not distinguish between ourselves and the enemy, and was very fair.
In addition to these major wars, the armed fights between the major lords across Europe have also stopped. The rich and powerful people went to Lisbon to see the visitors from the East. The poor and powerful also held their breaths. The whole continent was looking forward to the mysterious visitors from the East.
's first appearance.
On the seventh day of September in the twelfth year of Wanli, the Ming Dynasty envoy arrived in Lisbon. On the dock of Lisbon Port, thousands of people dressed in festive costumes finally saw the shadows of sails in the distance in the cold wind of late autumn.
As the sailing ship approached, the entire dock burst into cheers, and the noise in various languages reached the sky. The special envoys of Felipe II of Spain and Felipe I of Portugal (note: these refer to the same person)
Antonio Perez smiled at Francisco de Sandoval Rojas, Marquis of Denia, who was beside him:
"Your Majesty the Marquis, I personally think that this welcome ceremony is a bit too grand for a visiting Earl from the East."
The Marquis of Denia touched his mustache and replied with a smile: "I think His Majesty, who is about to go bankrupt again, still has certain illusions about Seris. If Lisbon can become a transit point for Eastern goods, then we will
I hope I can repay those loan sharks."
Palace advisor Antonio Perez was speechless and could only stand there and smile bitterly. The Marquis of Denia continued: "Have you heard of the proverb that is popular in Lisbon recently?"
Perez expressed his willingness to hear the details, and the Marquis of Denia narrowed his eyes and said with a smile: "On the noble table, there are more napkins than wine and food." After saying this, he couldn't help laughing.
Perez was speechless in the face of this humorless joke, thinking that the Marquis had a bad taste for his little friend Felipe II, as if he could always get endless pleasure from Felipe II's poor economic situation.
.
He had no choice but to change the subject and said: "I think that on the east-west route, there are only His Majesty's sailing ships - if Your Majesty is willing, it is feasible to collect taxes in any port he wants."
The Marquis of Denia stopped laughing, and his face became serious: "You may be right, Mr. Perez, but Seris can choose not to trade with us. What can you do with it? After all, arriving at Seris
The members of the papal mission in Lys, without exception, all said that Siris has no need for Europa's goods, and they are much richer than us."
"If we only rely on daily consumables such as spices, we won't be able to draw many ducats, and the king already owes 2.8 million ducats."
Perez opened his mouth to refute the Marquis of Denia, but the Marquis interrupted him and said: "They are starting to disembark, it's our turn."
With a burst of noise, the first large sailing ship carrying the head of the Ming Dynasty mission docked at the pier. A long pedal covered with red carpet connected the deck and the pier. The Ming Dynasty mission finally showed up.
The first to appear were two rows of Jin Yiwei standing on the deck. They held embroidered spring knives and wore ceremonial armor. Phoenix-winged helmets, golden round guards on their chests, tiger heads on their waists, and red inverted triangle "hanging fish" battle skirts inserted into their legs.
Between their skirts, these six-foot-tall men shimmered and looked majestic in the autumn sunshine.
After they got off the ship, they lined up in two columns on the pier. Then came Xu Guangqi, who was holding a dragon festival, and members of the mission. Everyone at the pier saw the leader, Xu Guangqi, wearing a seven-beam Jinxian crown, a golden Diao Chan, and a red dress.
Luo Sheng is wearing a python robe, a leather belt and a ribbon. The dragon knot in his hand is made of gold, with the dragon head at the top, two silk sash under it, and three clusters of yak tails hanging down - the twenty-five-year-old earl is standing with the scepter in his hand.
As soon as he appeared on the deck, he looked around and saw the calm demeanor of a great Chinese nation.
The appearance of the Ming Dynasty honor guard and members of the envoy made the entire pier suddenly quiet. The gentlemen wearing stockings and lantern trousers and the women in tight tops and bell-shaped skirts invariably closed their mouths and stared with jealous eyes.
Hold them.
Not to mention the blind Xu Guangqi and his entourage, just when the honor guard was in action, people could see that the trousers under their battle skirts were smooth and shining with unique luster. And even on the pier to watch the excitement
The poor people also know that it is a luxury product that can only be placed on the edge of a woman's skirt or hat to enhance the quality of the entire clothing, silk!
"Serys! Sires!" Suddenly, a loud shout broke the silence, and everyone at the dock shouted "Serys" in unison, leaving Xu Guangqi standing there in confusion, not knowing what kind of ceremony this was. Following closely behind him
When Liu Chengxi, the personal guard, saw him stop, he quickly stopped too, and everyone in the delegation also stopped.
Cardinal Luo Mingjian, who was standing behind the mission, saw that Xu Guangqi was confused and quickly separated from the people in front, walked to Xu Guangqi and said: "Your Excellency, this is the residents of Lisbon expressing their welcome to your arrival. You don't need to pay attention to this.
.....I think this kind of welcome ceremony is a little bit weird compared to the grand ceremony of our court. Please keep walking. I think the person standing opposite you should be the Marquis of Denia.
Your Excellency and the King’s envoy Mr. Perez.”
Xu Guangqi calmed down and held the dragon festival in his hand a little tighter. He no longer looked at the crowd of strangely dressed onlookers around him. Under the protection of his entourage, he officially took the first step in the exchange between the two major civilizations.