I'm sure of the prosperous age of Kangxi and Qianlong!

Chapter 284 The reaction of the Edo shogunate

Edo, the shogunate.

"The Emperor of China only wants Ryukyu?"

Tokugawa Yoshimune was a little unbelievable that the Chinese emperor did not push the envelope and took the opportunity to ask for more benefits.

Mizuno Tadayuki said: "Your Excellency General, the Emperor of China not only wants Ryukyu, but also Satsuma Domain to pay compensation and apologize."

The second half of the sentence is obviously reminding Tokugawa Yoshimune that all the Chinese emperor wants are the things of the Satsuma clan, and he has no intention of going to full-scale war with the Edo shogunate.

Tokugawa Yoshimune was a very smart man. He understood it instantly and couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

Muro Hatochao was a close confidant promoted by Tokugawa Yoshimune. He was familiar with Confucian classics. He said at this moment: "Shogun, the two emperors of China are currently fighting, just like General Ieyasu and Hideyoshi Guanbai in the past. They will have no time to take care of Japan. Now. The Emperor of China wants to use the hands of the general to punish our shogunate vassals. This is evidenced by his request. I think we can send someone to test him a little more, and if necessary, we can even threaten him with war. "

Outline Tadashi was also the leader of Edo Town who was specially appointed after Tokugawa Yoshimune succeeded as general. He had been exposed to civil affairs for a long time and quickly advised him: "General, no! Now that the price of rice in the country has been slightly lowered, local people should be given cultivation. It is really not appropriate to recruit a large army and have nothing to do with China. The Emperor declares all-out war.”

Shijiu Chao was a little unhappy, but he still smiled and said: "It is too sensitive to follow the outline. I only said that you can force him, but I did not persuade the general to actually go to war with the Chinese Emperor. Moreover, if you do nothing, you will directly agree to the Chinese Emperor's Request, where is the majesty of Your Majesty the General?"

Seeing that the two cronies were about to quarrel, Tokugawa Yoshimune suddenly shouted: "Shut up!"

Although Tokugawa Yoshimune was the eighth shogun who became a virtuous man, he had a strong body and was six feet (1.8 meters) tall.

Not to mention Japan, he is considered tall in China. Coupled with his dark skin, he looks quite majestic as a samurai.

Murojiao Chaosu and Tadashi Soda were scolded by Tokugawa Yoshimune, and they all immediately bowed their heads and admitted their mistake.

Tokugawa Yoshimune then looked at Mizuno Tadayuki, who had been frowning and silent, and asked: "Do you think the shogunate should agree to the request of the Chinese emperor?"

Mizuno Tadayuki received permission and said: "Your Majesty General, I don't think I'm afraid of ten thousand, but just in case. If the Emperor of China really sends troops to conquer Japan, what should our shogunate do? Since the Emperor of China can defeat the Qing Dynasty, his national power must be greater than that of the Qing Dynasty. Powerful. If our shogunate really goes to war with them, it may be difficult to win. Moreover, the Shimazu family of Satsuma Domain has caused no more trouble. Our shogunate persuades them to leave the Chinese army and appease the anger of the Chinese emperor."

When Tokugawa Yoshimune heard this, he also felt that it was quite reasonable.

Mizuno Tadayuki was right. This matter had no impact on the trouble caused by the Shimazu family themselves. The shogunate had done its best to persuade the Chinese emperor to dispel the anger.

What's more, Japan has continued to seclusion since the Tokugawa Shogunate, especially in the hands of Tokugawa Yoshimune, who once again strengthened the seclusion policy.

Although Tokugawa Yoshimune also trained the shogunate army, this was only to centralize power and deter those disobedient daimyo.

If he was asked to lead the shogunate army and then recruit the national army to go to war with the Chinese emperor, he would not be able to sustain it if he was full.

But after thinking about it, Shijiu Chao was right.If he did nothing, he would sell the Satsuma Domain.I am afraid that his prestige as a general will be greatly damaged, and the daimyo of the feudal states in those places will only despise the shogunate more and more.

Tokugawa Yoshimune thought about it and could not make up his mind, so he said to Mizuno Tadayuki: "You have seen the Chinese envoy, so you can't compromise?"

Mizuno Tadayuki said: "Your Majesty General, you can agree to the request of the Chinese Emperor, but you must also send an envoy to Nanjing to pay homage to the Chinese Emperor. While trying to find out what China is and what is true, you can also ask the Chinese Emperor for the shogunate's golden seal."

Hearing the golden seal of the shogun, Tokugawa Yoshimune was stunned for a moment, and then suddenly realized.

Murojiucho and Zhongxiang Zhongxiang also reacted with surprise.

What does the shogunate have to do with the troubles caused by the Satsuma clan and the Shimazu family themselves?
Even if the shogunate helps them solve the problem, it will be a waste of money and troops, without any benefit, and it will also provoke other feudal lords and merchants.

Because the two countries are at war and trade is cut off, merchants will definitely explode.

Not only will the merchants be exploded, but the maritime trade interests monopolized by the shogunate will also suffer huge losses.

Moreover, the Satsuma clan has monopolized the interests of Ryukyu for a long time, but now it needs help from other feudal lords when something goes wrong. What's the point?
Tokugawa Yoshimune finally made up his mind: "What Mr. Mizuno said is reasonable. Then we will first agree to the Chinese Emperor's request and select envoys to go to Nanjing to pay homage to the Chinese Emperor."

Shi Jiuchao then prostrated and said: "General, I would like to go to China and ask the Chinese Emperor for the General's Golden Seal."

Tokugawa Yoshimune did not refuse. Muroha Tochao was the great scholar he promoted. As the candidate to replace the former shogunate adviser Arai Shiraishi, he was naturally the most loyal to him.

Moreover, Shi Jiuchao is familiar with Chinese Confucian classics, so it would be best for him to go to China as an envoy.

The diplomacy between the two countries is not all about fighting, but more about the exchange of interests.

The only one who suffered a loss was the Satsuma clan. Not only did they lose Ryukyu, they were also blamed by the shogunate and had to bear huge war reparations.

It's okay not to obey, because Shimazu Yoshiki's only son, the lord of Satsuma Domain, is in Edo Castle.

However, Tokugawa Yoshimune didn't really want to push too hard.The Shimazu family was a powerful feudal clan after all, and ranked high among the three hundred feudal clans of Edo.

Tokugawa Yoshimune thought for a moment and added: "I sent an order to the Satsuma Domain to immediately return the Ryukyus to China, and to pay compensation to the Chinese army. Also, to prepare, I will talk about the marriage between Takehime and the leader of the Satsuma Domain, Shimazu Tsuyoshi. The general agreed."

"Yes, General."

The three of them bowed down quickly.

Mizuno Tadayuki suddenly said: "Your Excellency General, there is one more thing. The Chinese envoy has one more person to consult with our shogunate."

Tokugawa Yoshimune asked: "Who?"

"Nagasaki Port Authority Commissioner (Translator) Zheng Rui."

"Zheng... Rui? Who is this?" Tokugawa Yoshimune pronounced these two words quite awkwardly, still pronouncing them in Chinese characters.

Mizuno Tadayuki said: "I wonder if General still remembers Zheng Yiguan of the Hirado Domain?"

"Zheng Yiguan?" Tokugawa Yoshimune was stunned for a moment, and then he remembered this person.

Zheng Yiguan is the nickname of Zheng Zhilong as the Pirate King. After inheriting most of the legacy of the previous Pirate King in his early years, Zheng Yiguan became the most powerful pirate group in the entire Far East Sea.

Even though Zheng Zhilong was later tricked to death by the Manchus, his son Zheng Sen (Zheng Chenggong) maintained long-term contact with the Hirado Domain of Japan.Zheng Chenggong's mother was from the Hirado Domain, and he also had a brother from the same mother in the Hirado Domain, whose Chinese name was Zheng Zongxin and his Japanese name was Tagawa Shichizaemon.He has been a hostage in Japan all his life and has a good relationship with Zheng Chenggong. He has provided Zheng Chenggong with military supplies to fight against the Qing Dynasty for many years.

He even wanted to come to China in person and fight against the Qing Dynasty with Zheng Chenggong, but was stopped by Japan.

Now this Zheng Rui is the grandson of Tagawa Nanzaemon. Although Tagawa Nanzaemon used his Japanese name, his son returned to the Chinese name Zheng Dozhou.

This continued until the 12th generation, when the surname was changed to Fuzumi.

The Zheng family of Japan was born in the Hirado Domain. After the shogunate forcibly moved the Dutch merchant house to Nagasaki, the Zheng family served as general officers in the Port of Nagasaki for many years until the seventh generation descendant Zheng Jiang (Qian) Fu was recruited by the shogunate. Go ahead and be a general officer.

Although Zhu Yijiong mentioned it casually that he wanted to find this Zheng family member, he was cleverly used by the cabinet.

Although the Zheng family surrendered back then, and he is still serving as the Duke of the Eight Banners in Beijing (although his life is not very good), just like the Holy Duke of Nanyan who was canonized by the Ming court, the Zheng family in Japan can also be used.

It is not impossible to win people's hearts, and it can also be turned into a bridge for communication and trade between Ming Dynasty and Japan.

After listening to Mizuno Tadayuki's explanation, Tokugawa Yoshimune instantly realized the value of this person, nodded and said: "Well, in that case, I will recruit this person from Nagasaki Port to work for me as the shogunate's official... Fan also ordered him to join the Hajj mission and go to Nanjing to pay homage to the Chinese Emperor."

Mizuno Tadayuki bowed: "Yes, Your Excellency, General."

……

Japan, Kyushu Island.

The Ming army fleet also started a war with the Satsuma clan fleet.

It's a war, but it's just crushing.

These Satsuma clan fleets are said to be fleets, but they are actually the merchant ships of the Shimadzu family. Most of them will also appear as pirates during the recession.

With the rise of Nagasaki Port, the sea trade of the Satsuma Domain has gradually declined, and the Shimadzu family's merchant ships have become obsolete.

Those broken ships were too lazy to repair. After Shimazu Yoshiki ordered them to be sent out, only about twenty warships of different sizes were gathered.

"What? The Chinese fleet is coming?"

The Satsuma Domain fleet rushed to fight, but its number could not match the Ming army's warships, let alone its tonnage and displacement.

The fleet just engaged in battle.

"Boom boom boom!"

Under the continuous bombardment, only three large ships of the Satsuma Domain fleet were damaged by the cannons, and they were so shocked that they turned around and ran away.

These so-called sailors of the Satsuma clan have long forgotten how to fight a naval battle.

"Catch up and use explosive bullets!"

The Ming fleet noticed that several warships were approaching, so they switched to using medium-sized artillery to fire explosive shells.

"Boom boom boom!"

"Bang bang bang bang!"

At a closer distance, multiple cannonballs hit the Satsuma clan's warships.

The warship exploded, and the destructive power was secondary. The key was burning.

These warships caught fire on the spot, and the fire spread quickly, and soon the entire ship could not be saved.

Countless Satsuma sailors jumped ship and ran away, and the remaining Satsuma warships were also frightened.

Cannonballs can actually explode. What the hell is this?

"The magic is magic! There is magic in the Chinese army!"

"Run!"

"Oh Gasang, help!"

"..."

Liu Sheng sat on the flagship, not expecting it to be so easy.

This wins?
Are these Japanese pirates too vulnerable?
This is actually the fault of the shogunate's isolation from the country. Because the shogunate was closed to the country, all the daimyo's shipbuilding and business were done secretly. Where did the big ships come from?

You know, when the Satsuma Domain invaded Ryukyu, hundreds of warships were dispatched.

But that was more than 100 years ago.

In another 100 years, the Americans will use only four black warships to pry open Japan's door.

　The Hirado clan is a pirate group, and even the daimyo of the Hirado clan are pirates. However, after the Dutch merchant house was moved to Nagasaki, the strength of the Hirado clan was greatly reduced, and now it relies entirely on exploiting the domain to maintain its finances.

　　By the way, Japan under the control of Tokugawa Yoshimune, although it seems to be reviving, has blindly increased taxes on the people at the bottom.

　　Kamio Haruo, the official of the Kasho Ginmi Service in the Yoshimune era, once said: "Farmers are like sesame seeds, the more they are squeezed, the more oil they produce." Under their squeeze, the Kansai region was in trouble in the 17th year of Kōnho (1732 AD) A great famine broke out, and the resulting changes in food prices in the city caused the poor in Edo City to rebel one after another.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)