Sailors on the sea are inherently vulgar, but it is natural for sailors to be vulgar. To be polite and courteous in rough seas is simply harder than climbing to the sky.
It was obviously impossible for Zheng He to personally take care of these two prisoners.
To be honest, Zheng He's fleet imprisoned a lot of prisoners, so these people were obviously guarded by the lower-level sailors.
But now... Zheng He realized that... the two captives who communicated with the sailors day and night and learned Chinese... now came to the imperial court, under the eyes of the emperor and many ministers, they might become a huge hidden danger.
In other words... these are two time bombs.
He hurriedly apologized, but Zhu Di was not the kind of petty person. He just smiled, pressed his hands and said, "No problem."
Zhu Di immediately looked at the man named Erdan and said, "Where are you from?"
Erdan was the first to say: "My family is from Portugal."
Another one named Donkey Ball said: "My home is Sicily."
Zhu Di had obviously never heard of such a place name, but he was not eager to understand it. Instead, he asked: "What is your business?"
Erdan said: "Fishermen."
Zhu Di was obviously a little surprised and frowned: "Fishermen?"
Zhu Di's face was already slightly ugly, and then he said: "Since you are a fisherman, why did you attack my Ming ship?"
This question was embarrassing, Erdan could only hang his head and said: "I heard there is treasure on the ship..."
When Zhu Di heard this, he became angry and immediately cursed: "Your mother, there is treasure on the ship, and you rob it?"
Zhang Anshi was thinking about it, it seems that His Majesty is also a person who loves to learn foreign languages!
Erdan was obviously frightened, and his face suddenly turned a few shades white.
Zhu Di continued angrily: "You two are really barbarians. Fortunately, our Ming ships have the power to repel the enemy. Otherwise, we will lose our lives at your hands."
Donkey Ball hurriedly said: "Now that I know I was wrong, I won't dare to do it again."
Zhu Di sneered and said: "Since I am a first-time offender, I will not care about it. I will imprison you for a year and a half. I will wait until my next voyage to the West and then take you back to my hometown."
Zhu Di did not say anything further. It was precisely because these two men were ferocious fishermen and they really had nothing to ask. Ignorant people were of little value.
Zheng He breathed a sigh of relief.
The officials didn't seem to pay much attention to these two people, and they found it boring. The sight of these people who looked like evil spirits made it difficult to eat and turned off people's appetite.
At this moment, Zhang Anshi, who had been silently listening to their conversation with Zhu Di, suddenly said: "Your Majesty, I think... there is something wrong with these two people."
Zhu Di was stunned as soon as he said this.
All the officials looked at Zhang Anshi one after another, many of them showing surprise.
Donkey Ball and Erdan obviously didn't understand what it meant to have a ghost, but they also realized that... it seemed that they were coming from a bad place, and their expressions changed slightly immediately.
Zhu Di looked at Zhang Anshi and said, "Oh?"
Zhang Anshi stood up, looked a little more serious, and said: "Your Majesty, please strictly investigate the identities of these two people and let me come and pry open their mouths."
Zhu Di frowned slightly, he had obviously lost interest in Donkey Ball and Erdan.
But Zhang Anshi killed him halfway, and he insisted that Zhang Anshi's serious attitude did not seem like he did it rashly. It seemed that these two people were indeed not simple, but they didn't know... what was fishy about it.
After Erdan and Donkey Ball heard this, their expressions changed, and they immediately complained in panic: "We are unjust. Although we are prisoners, why should we..."
Zhang Anshi turned around, looked at the two people with a smile and said: "Donkey Ball, are you Portuguese?"
Donkey Fairy said: "No, I'm Sicilian."
Zhang Anshi added: "Then he is Portuguese?"
Erdan said: "Yes."
Zhang Anshi evoked a sarcastic smile, and then said: "But I have seen the chart submitted by the fleet. This Sicily is on the Italian Peninsula, and this Portugal is on the Iberian Peninsula. These two places,
But it is still thousands of miles away. But when Jin Yiwei escorted you here, the two of you were communicating in language, and the language was not Chinese. It can be seen that you... In addition to the local dialect, you also master other languages that can communicate.
"
Zhang Anshi spoke so eloquently that the monarchs and ministers gradually began to feel something strange.
Donkey Ball and Erdan were about to deny it.
Zhang Anshi didn't give them any chance, and said: "Let me guess, you may use French or Latin to communicate... right?"
As soon as these words came out, the two people's faces suddenly became even more ugly.
Zhang Anshi, however, did not give them any chance to argue, and continued: "Ke Ruoer and you are just ordinary fishermen, how could you... use such language? This is obviously inconsistent with your status!"
"Just like me in the Ming Dynasty, only scholars can learn Mandarin at an early age. Ordinary people mostly use their own dialects. If you are a fisherman, you will never be able to do this. So... you must not be ordinary fishermen."
Donkey Ball and Erdan looked at each other, and then... they began to rack their brains to argue.
In fact, there are many loopholes in Zhang Anshi's speculation. For example, the two men can definitely say that since they were able to learn Chinese while being captured on the ship, they must also be able to learn each other's hometown language to communicate.
It can also be said... In fact, the two reported their hometowns wrongly. In fact... they were from the same hometown. However, because of their status as prisoners, they had other worries, so they lied about the situation in their hometowns.
But at this moment, Zhang Anshi grinned at them and suddenly said: "Hello, good ones are poisonous, okay?"
This sudden nonsense suddenly caused the two people who were racking their brains to suddenly break their guard at this moment.
Erdanman's whole body shriveled up quickly and visibly to the naked eye. He slightly opened his eyes with fear and said, "I...I'm guilty!"
Donkey Ball's expression has also changed, and he is full of fear and trembling.
They completely broke through the defense.
In fact, this is just Zhang Anshi's trick.
In fact, Zhang Anshi is not very proficient in foreign languages. He can't even reach the level of English and plastic taste.
He first questioned the other party without giving the other party a chance to defend himself, but then suddenly spoke a familiar English vocabulary in a very simple way.
This is what is expected. Although there must be some differences between the English of this period and the English of later generations, such vocabulary should be barely understandable.
And these two people may not have studied English. After all... the common language in Europe at this time is either French or Latin. But after all, they are in Europe. Even if they are not familiar with English, some of the most basic simple vocabulary,
You must have heard about it.
It's just like the Chinese people of later generations, even if they don't leave home, they will probably have heard of "Omai Karma" in English.
Or it may be words like yakubi in Japanese.
After all, culture will always communicate invisibly, but often through some kind of popular way.
At this time, the two of them heard the words that smelled like plastic coming out of Zhang Anshi's mouth. Their first reaction was...the other person really had such a deep understanding of Europe.
The second reaction is that since the other party can master such vocabulary and has so many doubts about it, is it because the language they used to communicate during their detention was also mastered by the other party.
Or, if the other party has a certain understanding of Europe, then... it is not too difficult to know his identity well.
They even began to worry whether there were other European colleagues who had already arrived here and thought they were working for the young man in front of them.
Immediately, Erdan said with a pale face: "I...I am indeed not a fisherman. None of us are fishermen..."
Zhu Di: "..."
Seeing Zhang Anshi's miraculous operation, all the officials were so dumbfounded that they were speechless.
Sometimes you have to admire Zhang Anshi, this guy... can always do something unexpected.
Although no one knows why Zhang Anshi exposed the two men's tricks, this operation is indeed dazzling.
Even Yi Shiha couldn't help but blush. He obviously felt more and more that the Dongchang seemed to be in his own hands and was really just a decoration.
If we want to revitalize Dongchang, the only possibility is to invite His Highness the Prince of Wuhu County to enter the palace and become an admiral eunuch.
Zhu Di didn't like these two people very much. When he heard that he had been deceived, he was immediately furious: "How brave, do you know what is the crime of deceiving the emperor?"
Erdan and Luqiu looked repentant and hurriedly begged for mercy.
Zhang Anshi said: "Your Majesty, you might as well hear their true identities first."
Erdan and Donkey Ball no longer dare to lie. They must have known something about the situation in the Central Plains on the ship, and they knew the consequences of their identities being exposed. If they were not honest at this time, they might really die without a burial place.
Immediately, Erdan said: "A few years ago, a large number of goods from the Ming Dynasty began to appear in places such as Byzantium and Venice..."
Zhu Di looked at Zheng He.
Zheng He explained: "Your Majesty, Byzantium is bordered by Dashi and is located near Persia and other places. As for Venice, my slaves have never heard of it."
Erdan continued: "I heard from them that these goods were brought by the Turks."
"Turk?" Zhu Di finally heard a familiar tribe.
Erdan continued: "After that, I heard that these Turks were trafficked from the Mongols. They included exquisite porcelain, delicate silk, and tea. These goods changed hands many times, from Mongolia to Turks, and then again.
Byzantium and Venice, it appeared in Italy and other places. Therefore, the price is extremely high, especially for porcelain, which is equal to the value of gold."
After hearing this, Zhu Di couldn't help but change his face slightly. At this time, he no longer cared about the two people's forged identities, but focused on... the gold equivalent.
Erdan said: "These scarce goods became so popular quickly that they were even hard to find. But what followed was the Ming Dynasty's fleet. After the fleet arrived, everyone knew that the East, thousands of miles away,
They were able to use ships to reach Italy."
"I'm a pastor and so is he."
Zhang Anshi was listening, and he probably felt that the identity of these two people should be reasonable.
Because in this era, almost all knowledge and language are in the hands of these people.
As for the others, except for a small number of nobles and businessmen, they were almost all ignorant and could not master common French or Latin and writing.
"Our plan is to find a sea route, learn about ships that can sail across the ocean and the knowledge of navigation, and also...find the East."
"In order to achieve this plan, we had intense discussions and finally chose this method... that is, as prisoners..."
Zhu Di was surprised and said: "In the way of prisoners? Why...not in the way of envoys?"
"If it is the identity of the envoys, it will inevitably cause controversy. It is even possible that the kings of various countries will send envoys, and this is not allowed. We do not understand the full picture of the Ming Dynasty, and rash contact will cause unknown consequences." Erdan jerky.
He muttered, as if he was afraid that his words would not make an accurate expression.
Zhang Anshi smiled and added: "Is it an internal issue involving you?"
"yes."
Zhang Anshi added: "Then your mission is...to understand our situation first, make a conclusion, and then decide on the official method of contact?"
Erdan and Donkey Ball said in unison: "Yes."
Zhang Anshi frowned and said, "But doing this is very risky."
Erdan said without hesitation: "This is God's will."
The more Zhu Di listened, the more confused he became, so he stared at Zhang Anshi and said, "Zhang Qing, what does he mean?"
Zhang Anshi smiled bitterly and said: "Your Majesty, I think what they mean is...the appearance of Ming Dynasty caused them some panic! These two people...are probably equivalent to the monks there. These monks are extremely powerful, and now they suddenly appear
They discovered the Ming Dynasty, which made them worried. After all, the Ming Dynasty did not believe the lies of these monks, but it appeared out of thin air, making them think that... it might cause their believers to......"
Having said this, Zhang Anshi pointed to his mind and said: "Ideological issues are just like... just like... the knowledge of Sage Confucius. Scholars are always wary... there will be people with bad intentions, so we must monopolize it with us."
The right to contact, lest someone 'confuse the public with evil words' and affect the saint Kong and his elders..."
Among the hundreds of officials, many people were so angry that their noses were twisted. This Anshi is really a yin and yang, and he does everything he can.
But Zhu Di understood it roughly and said: "So, if these two people are allowed to come in contact, aren't they afraid of death?"
Zhang Anshi said: "There will always be people who are not afraid of death, and their teachings are much more powerful than the knowledge of Sage Kong. At most, Sage Kong only taught people to cultivate themselves and improve their families. They taught people how to ascend to heaven, just like the Buddhist masters.
Going to the Western Heaven to enjoy blessings will be like being reincarnated as a human being in the next life. So they are not afraid of death, they are just afraid that they will not be able to go to the Western Heaven after they die."
After Zhang Anshi stitched it together, Zhu Di could probably understand.
Zhu Di looked at Donkey Ball and Erdan, and he didn't know what to say.
Zhang Anshi said: "Your Majesty, these two people have ulterior motives. In my opinion, it is better to leave them to the Jin Yiwei to deal with them."
Zhu Di nodded: "These two people are ambitious and should not be spared lightly."
Erdan and Donkey Ball, ignorant of their fortunes and misfortunes, were quite frightened at this time.
Zhu Di drank the two men away, but frowned and said: "The barbarians are really cunning, I was almost deceived by them. What does Zhang Qing think of this?"
Zhang Anshi said: "They are cunning, and we must be even more cunning than them. However, the information received this time proves two points."
Zhu Di stared at Zhang Anshi with interest and said, "Let me hear it."
Zhang Anshi said: "First, the trade routes of the Mongolian tribes have indeed been opened up. It is a gratifying thing to actually pass through these Mongolian tribes and create a Silk Road on land."
"As for the second one, this also means that there is still room for further expansion of trade on the sea route. Our Ming Dynasty's merchandise includes both high-quality and low-price goods, as well as... expensive ones like porcelain and silk. Although Europe
It is far away, but there is enough profit, and it is possible to open up sea routes and earn a lot of wealth."
After hearing this, Zhu Di's eyes became brighter and brighter, and he couldn't help but excitedly said: "Are they really willing to use the same amount of gold in exchange for silk and porcelain from the Ming Dynasty? This is unimaginable."
In the Ming Dynasty, although porcelain and silk were expensive, the annual output was not small, so they were not unattainable.
But if the price is compared to gold, it is really shocking.
Zhang Anshi said: "It is said that things are rare and valuable. What's more, the Ming Dynasty can build it, but they can't. Naturally, they can live in rare things. It's just that... we need to expand sea routes, sir..."
When Zhang Anshi said this, he seemed a little embarrassed.
Zhu Di said: "It doesn't matter what you say."
So Zhang Anshi said: "This road is really far away. Starting from Quanzhou, we have to pass through the Western Sea Channel, pass through the Tianzhu Sea, and also pass through the Sea of Dashi, and we have to go around the entire continent where black people live before we can reach it.
, I’m afraid it will take two or three years to go back and forth!”
"If there are not enough docks and ports to support and sufficient supplies along the way, this is absolutely impossible. In addition, we also need to consider the large number of piracy problems along the way. After arriving at the other side's port, because there is no port, and
The problem of not being able to sell the goods, and all the above, if the court cannot come up with a charter, even if the porcelain and silk are worth tens of thousands of gold, it will not help."
I have to say that what Zhang Anshi mentioned is a very real issue.
It is true that you can make money by doing business, but this money is not so easy to earn.
In fact, in the original history, the Francons arrived in East Asia a few centuries later and began trading and colonizing.
But all of this is based on the fact that they opened up sea routes and established countless trading stations.
There are no ports and trading stations established in Africa, Tianzhu, or islands scattered around the world. In this era, the occasional merchant ships sailing to the northwest coast of the entire mainland island are purely adventures similar to extreme sports, and there is not much to copy.