Great Ming Dynasty Wen Chao Gong

Chapter 72 Is this map of all nations accurate?
  "I originally thought I would just teach calligraphy to the eldest son of the emperor, but now it's better. I teach everything, including Confucian classics, poetry, and calligraphy, and I only teach for such a short time. This But what's so amazing? The emperor's eldest son is already ten years old." Dong Qichang said with emotion.

"Brother Dong, thank you for your hard work. Brother Dong is not only good at calligraphy and painting, he is also proficient in classics and history. Otherwise, how could he have entered the Hanlin Academy. Brother Dong, you are from a decent background, not a wild person like me." Zhang Xiao said .

"It doesn't matter whether I work hard or not, I feel sorry for the eldest son of the emperor. At this age, the enlightenment should have ended long ago. Now it is time to hold a sutra banquet and invite famous teachers to lecture your highness on the great meanings of classics. Dong is just writing more beautiful words, The paintings are more beautiful, and I also recite the saint's principles from memory, but I can't say I have a comprehensive understanding. How can I be the only one to lecture the eldest son of the emperor on the principles of Confucianism? Brother Zhang Xian, you don't know, every time I go to class, I am terrified, fearing that what I said is wrong and will affect the future of the world." Dong Qichang sighed.

Zhang Xiao was not easy to talk about. This matter was indeed the fault of Emperor Wanli. In the original time and space, not only was Emperor Taichang's education not taken seriously, but Emperor Taichang's two sons, Emperor Tianqi and Emperor Chongzhen, were not taken seriously either, resulting in them not receiving royal education in a systematic way. Emperor Tianqi favored the eunuchs and lived deep in the harem. Emperor Chongzhen was sensitive and changeable. No one could believe it. This was inseparable from their dangerous growth environment.

"But why does Your Majesty ask Zhang Xiandi to teach the eldest son of the emperor? Brother Xian, you are also a great sage. You have a good knowledge of the past and the present. Your knowledge is not inferior to that of Shangshan Sihao of the Han Dynasty. Now you also want the third son of the emperor to come and listen. You are in class, Dong is just a helper," Dong Qichang said.

"I don't know either. Brother Dong, why do you belittle yourself so much? Zhang thinks he knows better, but he doesn't dare to compare himself to Shangshan Sihao." Zhang Xiao said helplessly. Anyway, as soon as the emperor saw him, he just wanted to come out and inadvertently assigned him a job. Although the emperor said that this job is not easy to do, so do it slowly, but who dares to do the job assigned by the boss slowly, and in such a large place with such a boss, it is difficult for Zhang Xiao to change jobs. My hometown is here, and I don’t want to change jobs.

"No, no, no, your Majesty must have a profound meaning. Now that the situation is complicated, you and I must work together to educate His Royal Highness, the eldest son of the Emperor." Dong Qichang said.

"Brother Dong, you can't be partial. According to the information you gave me, Brother Dong, His Royal Highness the Third Prince is now our student," Zhang Xiao reminded.

"Hey, it's difficult. I'll try my best, but if it doesn't work, I have no choice but to retire to the countryside." Dong Qichang sighed.

Zhang Xiao didn't speak, but secretly complained in his heart. Old Dong, you belong to a wealthy family, so it doesn't matter if you go back to be cool. He was being targeted, and he couldn't escape even if he wanted to. Just go back to your hometown and be nice to the folks. Forget it, for the sake of acquaintance, Zhang Xiao decided that if old Dong really returned to his hometown, he would be reminded not to cause conflicts with the people in his hometown.

……

Zhang Xiao was not able to stay at home for long, because he was soon summoned by the emperor again.

In the imperial study room, Emperor Wanli pointed to the world map that had appeared many times and asked Zhang Xiao: "Zhang Xiao, do you think this map I stare at every day is accurate?

"Your Majesty, please allow Weichen to observe carefully." Zhang Xiao said. "It's okay, come closer and take a look." the emperor said.

Zhang Xiao stared at this map. There were still some differences between the appearance inside and the "Comprehensive Map of Kunyu and Ten Thousand Kingdoms" seen by later generations. For example, the location of the Ming Dynasty was not so central, and the Ming Dynasty was drawn a little smaller, especially This is especially true when compared with the Japan pictured next to it. The others are generally good, and they already have the basic outline of a world map that will be used by future generations. However, the largest distortion is in the Southern Hemisphere. Antarctica is actually not that big, and Australia and New Zealand are not marked either.

"Your Majesty, when I was in Nanyang in my early years, I also saw the map used by the Folangji people for their own use. The drawings are almost as good as the ones above, so there is no need to worry about the Western Yi submitting fake maps to deal with it. But even if the Western Yi drew it, Naturally, it is impossible to prepare the map completely. The more accurate drawings are where they live, Europe, and other places along the Mediterranean coast. In this part of the Celestial Empire, there are relatively few Westerners, so the drawings are not so accurate. ”

"The outlines of Africa and America are generally pretty good. After all, Western ships have surrounded these continents."

"However, in the extreme north and extreme south, as far as I know, the Western Yi people have not explored much, so the strait (i.e., the Bering Strait) from the Celestial Empire to the north and across to the American continent is not that wide. The southern continent painted in the south is also so large based on imagination. What the south looks like still requires further exploration." Zhang Xiao explained.

"Oh, is it possible that there are many islands or even large pieces of land in these unexplored places in the south, which means there may be gold, silver and other minerals in them?" the emperor asked.

"I'm not sure, it's not impossible." Zhang Xiao said. There is no way, I can't just point out a big pen and say there is a big, big island here in the south. Moreover, there are not only gold mines on this island, but also many large iron mines. The quality of the iron ore there is particularly enviable. Then he has become a monster.

"Chen Ju, bring that round thing up."

After receiving the order, Chen Ju immediately took action himself and moved a somewhat bulky globe out of the corner.

"According to what you said, the Europeans such as the Flemish people expanded everywhere and ran around the world, so we have this world map and this globe. Over the years, those foreign businessmen and foreign monks have paid a lot of tribute to me I have kept them all, including sculptures and chime bells. I have also received many of these maps of nations and globes. I can still roughly understand the map of nations. The map presented by Matteo Ricci is in the best condition. , I took it and hung it up to look at it. But with this globe, according to this drawing method, don’t we live on a circle? How can that person stand still? Wouldn’t it fall?” The emperor asked.

Note: "The Complete Map of Kunyu and Ten Thousand Kingdoms" was completed by Matteo Ricci and Li Zhizao. Before this, the world map did not have this name. The previous article has been revised. In fact, Matteo Ricci's entry into Beijing to donate the map happened much later. For the sake of plot development, this article is set as before Matteo Ricci entered Beijing, and he had presented the map to the palace through other channels very early.

(End of this chapter)