Although Governor de Vera showed great sincerity, Gao Zhenxin put on airs at this time and refused to go there in person no matter what. He only sent Takagi San and Zhu Yingfeng to represent him and Governor de Vera.
Continue to negotiate.
Takagi San is just a high-minded and pragmatic servant, and he can only be considered a middle-class status among the servants. Although Zhu Yingfeng does not have a title, he is of nobler origin. His uncle is the Duke of Laocheng, and his biological grandfather is the former Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guard.
Therefore, Takagi San took the initiative to give up the "lead position" to Zhu Yingfeng.
Zhu Yingfeng was not polite. He not only took the main seat, but also directly asked the interpreter to tell Governor de Vera that he was from one of the most famous "Duke Family" in the Ming Dynasty. He had also served in the Emperor's personal army for many years before.
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When Governor de Vera heard this, he was immediately in awe - a family of dukes is no joke in Europe. If it were in the Holy Roman Empire, it would be equivalent to being from an elector family.
Moreover, this gentleman has "served in the Emperor's personal army for many years." If he were in Europe, wouldn't he be close to His Majesty's military attache? It's amazing, this is His Majesty's confidant!
Apparently Governor de Vera fell into a strange cycle of thinking. How did he know that Jin Yiwei, the "emperor's personal soldier", was actually a "secret policeman", and that Zhu Yingfeng's so-called "many years of service" was just a salary from Jin Yiwei in name.
He himself has never even been to the Fusi Yamen of Jinyiwei North and South Town a few times.
In any case, Governor de Vera quickly stood up and took off his hat and bowed like a nobleman - the full name of this governor is Santiago de Vera, and the "de" in the middle means that he is a nobleman. The nobleman has his own
The etiquette and rules among nobles, especially at this time when he had truly experienced the power of the "Ming Army", this courtesy was regarded as a correct attitude.
Zhu Yingfeng was very satisfied, and stood up and bowed, and then said: "As entrusted by Commander Zhenxin, Captain Mu San and I will discuss with you and others on matters related to the surrender of Manila City and the release of prisoners of war in your country on his behalf."
What Zhu Yingfeng said was a bit "Western" because he had dealt with the Portuguese when he was doing sea trade in Japan and had a basic understanding of these things.
In fact, although the Ming and Qing dynasties were not far apart in time, their attitudes towards foreign exchanges were completely different. In particular, the scholar-bureaucrat class and even the entire ruling class had a completely different attitude towards foreign exchanges.
The attitude towards communication is completely different.
In the original history, there was a total of 72 years from the outbreak of the Opium War in 1840 to the abdication of the Qing emperor in 1912. During most of this time, all sectors of Chinese society were still immersed in the dream of a beautiful country and refused to change.
, refused to contact the West, and showed panic, hostility, and ignorance when facing new things such as foreigners, trains, and telegraphs, which are completely incredible to future generations.
This brings up another question: Were the Chinese in the Ming Dynasty also so conservative and insensitive?
The answer is no. Most of the late Ming literati, including officials at all levels, were very open-minded, and their curiosity was so strong that it even surprised Western missionaries.
There is a detailed record in "Matteo Ricci's Notes on China". In the book, Matteo Ricci described the strong "curiosity" of the Chinese people, which "seemed to go crazy" and there was an endless stream of visitors, just wanting to know about Western things.
People who couldn't meet him communicated through letters. He received many letters, from people he knew and didn't know, who discussed various topics with him, eager to gain new knowledge.
Many people in later generations believed that the literati of the Ming Dynasty were still intoxicated in the dream of the Celestial Empire, and only a handful of them were willing to associate with missionaries. However, Matteo Ricci's notes clearly subvert the traditional understanding.
Statistics show that there are at least 137 named Ming Dynasty people mentioned in Matteo Ricci's books. These are those whose names are mentioned directly, and there are even more who are not mentioned.
For example, in original history, in 1592, after Matteo Ricci came to Jiangxi, he was immediately surrounded by Jiangxi literati and became the object of competition.
Matteo Ricci's "Letter from Ricci to Father Meng Sande of Macao" records: "In this city... everyone is curious to see me. There are so many people coming to visit, including important literati and dignitaries (
official), it really makes me excited."
There is an endless stream of visitors, are they just looking at the foreigners, that is, "looking at the strange things" as the saying goes? It's really not the case, because many scholars asked to be a disciple of Matteo Ricci, asking him to teach Western knowledge, so as to
As for Matteo Ricci, he was too tired to deal with it. Moreover, when Zhang Huang, the dean of Bailudong Academy, learned that Matteo Ricci was in Nanchang, he even invited him to give lectures at the academy. Later, King Le'an and King Jian'an of Jiangxi vassal also invited him
Matteo Ricci went to their house as a guest and inquired about some matters in Europe.
In 1598, Matteo Ricci arrived in Nanjing, causing an even greater whirlwind, because Nanjing was one of the cultural centers of the Ming Dynasty. It is clearly recorded in "Ricci's Letter to Father Costa" that "when the Chinese came to visit me, some of them seemed to find
People are going crazy, scrambling for the first place, and there is an endless stream... Some want to study mathematics, and some are interested in ethical science."
In 1601, Matteo Ricci arrived in the capital and was still very popular. Among them, a young official named Zhang Yangmo even directly became a disciple of Matteo Ricci. He often quoted "Pythagoras's motto 'The teacher said so'" as his
motto".
In short, from south to north, the people of the Ming Dynasty not only did not reject Matteo Ricci's Western learning, but instead pursued it frantically, but most of them did not take his Catholic faith seriously.
The Ming Dynasty people's curiosity about Western learning was also reflected in the enthusiastic translation and printing of Western learning works by officials and people. In 1605, "Ricci's Letter to Father Costa" contains: "A few years ago, I sent you "The World".
"Map" was printed in Chinese in Beijing... It has been printed more than ten times, and many people want to own one and are rushing to buy it."
The "Letter of Ricci to the President of Rome" in 1608 records: "At the beginning of this year, I presented a large map of the world to the Chinese emperor (Wanli). The emperor was very happy and ordered craftsmen to take pictures of the map I presented.
After engraving, many copies were printed soon, and "Map of the World" was hung in many temples."
It can be seen that not only the common people and scholars welcomed Western learning, but Emperor Wanli himself was also very interested in it and did not reject it at all.
At that time, in addition to theological books, Matteo Ricci’s other Western studies could attract the interest of Ming dynasty literati. Even many of Ricci’s books were actively printed and disseminated by Ming dynasty literati. For example, the first volume of Matteo Ricci’s book won great reputation.
A philosophical book, "On Friendship", was printed repeatedly.
In addition to Matteo Ricci's books, other missionary Western books with non-missionary content are also very popular. For example, "Zifang Wai Ji" translated by the Italian missionary Ai Julius, aroused great enthusiasm among the literati of the Ming Dynasty.
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Regrettably, this book mentions many major countries in Europe, including Ukraine, Scandinavian countries, Greece, etc. However, during the Opium War, Emperor Daoguang of the Qing Dynasty and his ministers
But they don’t even know where the UK is!
Amidst this crazy learning, there was no significant difference in the development level of mathematics, astronomy and physics between China and Europe in the late Ming Dynasty. Leibniz said in the preface of "Recent Affairs in China" in 1697,
"China, an ancient civilization, is indistinguishable from Europe, and both sides are in an equal competition."
Of course, even if there are some gaps between the Ming Dynasty and Europe, it doesn't matter much. The reason is very simple. The Ming Dynasty did not rely on the Celestial Dynasty and was blindly arrogant. The Ming Dynasty literati were curious and had the ambition to catch up - even if there was no such thing in the original history.
The changes brought about by high pragmatism can be clearly seen by giving two examples:
First, during the war with the Portuguese, Dutch and other colonists, Ming people realized that only strengthening their weapons and equipment was the only way to "control the barbarians", so they studied enthusiastically, introduced Western firearms, and quickly narrowed the gap between the two sides.
.In the Tuen Mun naval battle with Portugal, Wang Hong was the first to propose "training the barbarians to control the barbarians", introducing Portuguese cannons, and ultimately defeated the Portuguese fleet.
Secondly, in the process of interacting with Western missionaries, the people of the Ming Dynasty realized their own shortcomings and backwardness. Therefore, in 1629, Xu Guangqi proposed in a memorial to Emperor Chongzhen that “to achieve transcendence, one must know how to communicate;
"Before, it must be translated", it can be said that every word is precious and thought-provoking.
It can be seen that many literati at that time had already realized the problem and proposed solutions. This was an open attitude, which was in sharp contrast to the strange self-confidence of the Qing Dynasty who did not ask questions but firmly believed that "I am the best in the world."
In fact, there is another living example. The different fates of "Hai Guo Tu Zhi" in China and Japan fully illustrate this difference.
Before and after the Meiji Restoration, Japan eagerly wanted to know and learn about the West, which was the same as China's attitude toward the West in the late Ming Dynasty. "Hai Guo Tu Zhi" was unsalable in the Qing Dynasty and could not be sold at all, but after being brought to Japan, it immediately sold out, several times
Even the additional printing is not enough to sell it, and it is as popular as Matteo Ricci's books in the late Ming Dynasty.
I won’t say whether attitude determines everything, but a correct attitude must be the foundation of success. If there is no foundation, how can we start talking about success?
Although Zhu Yingfeng is a member of the "ignorant and backward traditional aristocratic class", it is not surprising that he is a person who loves maritime trade and is concerned about Western affairs. He can almost draw the "World Map" printed by Jinghua Publishing Company.
[Note: However, the "world map" of Jinghua at this time was not fully drawn due to Gao Pragmatic's deliberate concealment. For example, Australia was completely in a state of "fog", and the Americas only had a rough outline, including the interior of Africa.
Parts are also deliberately drawn into a fog. Generally speaking, the Beijing version of the world map is just a "revised version" based on Europe's understanding of the world at this time.]
From another perspective, Zhu Yingfeng's current performance also shows that Gao Pragmatism has achieved certain staged results in "driving the noble class to open up".
They no longer buy fields after making money, but continue to invest in commerce and trade in order to obtain greater benefits. Because they want to invest in commerce and trade, considering their own interests, they need to know more about the West, so they adopt highly pragmatic "profit-driven reforms"
"Succeeded in their subjective thinking.
At this moment, Zhu Yingfeng directly defined this negotiation as "negotiating the surrender of Manila City and the release of prisoners of war from your country and other related matters." He was also influenced by the views that Gao Pragmatic often preached in the Beiyang Sea Trade Alliance: Western etiquette
On the surface, their attitudes are mostly determined by the actual performance of both sides on the battlefield.
To put it simply, whoever has a big fist can be strong-willed when speaking. This is why "Yi and Di are afraid of power but not virtuous".
It is true that Yi Di is afraid of power but not immoral. Although Governor de Vera is unhappy, he is currently defeated in the naval battle and the threat of "flooding the seven armies" is like the sword of Damocles hanging above his head.
He had no choice but to acquiesce in Zhu Yingfeng's statement. He could only nodded stiffly and replied: "As you wish, Your Excellency."
However, after a pause, Governor de Vera couldn't bear his European heritage and asked: "Your Excellency, although I already know your noble origin clearly, for the convenience of calling me, I still hope to know more accurately.
Your own title."
After this sentence was translated to Zhu Yingfeng, the latter was in a bit of a dilemma. The Ming Dynasty had always been stingy with royal rewards (except during the chaos in the late Ming Dynasty). Although the Duke had a distinguished status, there was only one "Crown Son" with the right to inherit. This Crown Prince was officially
The title is "the prince of a certain country", but usually he can be respectfully called "the young prince" in colloquial terms.
As for the remaining sons of the Duke, they may be addressed as "Little Duke" only in very private situations by some people who forcefully flatter them, but that cannot be put on the table. Normally, their identities are at least
Officially, they are equivalent to white bodies - to ensure that they are not truly "white bodies", they usually have some official positions in the Imperial Guards or the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion.
For example, Zhu Yingfeng was originally a member of a hereditary household of 100 Jinyiwei when he came of age. After passing the exam for three years (he did not pass the exam, he just lived in vain for three years), he became a member of the 1000 household. If nothing else happened and he did not show any special talents.
, this Qianhu is probably the "official" he has been working for all his life.
But in order to engage in maritime trade, he resigned from his official position in Jinyiwei, including his worldly position. This actually meant that he had become a white body in the true official sense. Now De Vera asked him to explain his title...
It's very troublesome.
Zhu Yingfeng was silent for a moment, and had no choice but to reply: "The regulations of our Ming Dynasty and those of Europa are different and cannot be generalized. Our dynasty has hundreds of millions of people, but apart from the royal family members, there are only a few dozen people with hereditary titles, so we
I do not hold a formal title. However, if I were to live in a different place under the equal system of Europe, I would at least be regarded as a viscount, or even an earl."
De Vera really didn't know that the Ming Dynasty's title system was so harsh. He was a little surprised when he heard this. After thinking about it, he suddenly asked: "I see, then... I would like to ask Mr. Count, does Mr. Gao Jingshi have a title in the Ming Empire?"
Zhu Yingfeng shook his head and said: "Gao Situ does not have a title, but there is another extremely important honorary title in our dynasty, which is 'Three Dukes, Three Masters, Three Solitaries, and Three Young Masters', which are the most important titles besides titles."
Gao Situ is the current 'Prince and Grand Master', and his title is Congyipin. According to European customs, he can be regarded as between a duke and a marquis."
In fact, Zhu Yingfeng's "roughly" is a big problem, because Gao Pingshi's "Prince and Grand Master" actually has little to do with the title. Zhu Yingzhen's "roughly" is probably a personal classification he made based on his own grades.
It can't be taken seriously.
However, de Vera believed it - probably because at this time, most of the important ministers of European countries were great aristocrats, and he felt that the high-pragmatic "analogous title" was completely appropriate between dukes and marquises.
However, he was still very curious about the strange honorary title of "Prince and Grand Master", and asked: "Mr. Earl, maybe it's a translation problem. I don't quite understand the meaning of this title. Can you explain it to me?"
What does it mean?"
"Uh, well..." Zhu Yingfeng couldn't help scratching his head and thought for a moment: "I think you can understand it as 'the chief teacher of His Royal Highness'."
When Governor de Vera heard this, he couldn't help but be in awe, nodded repeatedly, and said: "That's it, that's it. It seems that Your Excellency Gao Pragmatic will definitely be the Prime Minister of your country in the future."
Uh... Zhu Yingfeng coughed lightly and said nothing, just pretending to be acquiescent.
In his opinion, is there any necessary connection between the "Prince's Grand Master" and the Chief Assistant? In fact, there was no such thing in the Ming Dynasty. However, Zhu Yingfeng knew that the European "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's Chief Teacher" was indeed likely to be the future Prime Minister (or
"Palace Prime Minister") is an important candidate, so it's hard to say that people have understood it wrong.
Of course, another reason why Zhu Yingfeng did not object was that de Vera's statement was probably wrong, because in his view, as "Mr. Earl", it was really a high probability that Gao Pragmatic would become the first assistant in the future. How could he say it?
Did people understand it wrong?
With his acquiescence, de Vera naturally thought that he had guessed correctly, and he became a little more excited. He looked at Zhu Yingfeng eagerly and asked: "In this case, your influence must be enough to ensure that the agreement signed after this meeting is
The treaty can be truly affirmed by the Ming Empire government and can be effectively implemented, right?"
Of course Zhu Yingfeng would not say that he could not guarantee it at this time, so he nodded and said: "That is natural. Gao Situ is not only the 'chief teacher of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince', but also the only classmate of His Majesty the Emperor during his ten-year student career..."
I believe you can understand the huge impact this has."
"Of course, of course, I can completely understand." Governor de Vera actually became a little excited and immediately said: "Then, I hope that our talks can be more open and honest. To this end, I am willing to release my goodwill first to show my hope for peace.
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What I want to say is that if Your Excellency Gao Pragmatic can ensure that the fair trade between the Kingdom of Castile and the Ming Empire will not be affected by this war, and ensure the freedom of religious belief in Manila and even the Kingdom of Luzon in the future, ensure that the Catholic Church can
The property security and missionary freedom of the Kingdom of Luzon, then on the premise that your army releases our prisoners of war, we can completely consider the peaceful transfer of the city of Manila."
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