Chapter 131: As long as the price is right, even a soul can be sold to the devil

Before Deng Zilong docked and went ashore, Luo Lian returned to her original attire: a black headscarf tucked up the hair on her forehead, a white shawl collar—which could even cover her ears and nose—a crucifix, and finally, a heavy, loose-fitting nun's habit that was extremely conservative and revealed no skin. Luo Lian had explained to Deng Zilong the reason for such a design: moral defense, to prevent depravity.

In this guise, Luo Lian looked somewhat eerie and terrifying.

Deng Zilong finally understood why Luo Lian privately disliked wearing pants so much: it was a rebellion, a desire to break free from shackles that she could not escape.

"It's very hot," Deng Zilong said, expressing his concern for Luo Lian.

Luo Lian smiled and said, "I'm used to it. Let's go."

As they disembarked, a young sailor with a head of golden hair reached out and, quite casually and as a matter of course, patted the nun's backside. Deng Zilong grabbed the sailor's hand and twisted it with force. A scream immediately rang out across the entire pier of Boracay Island. The Red-Haired Barbarians, who were already on edge, immediately picked up their weapons, looking as if they were ready to fight at the slightest provocation.

Deng Zilong did not let go; instead, he kicked the man off the gangway and said sternly, "Keep your claws to yourself. If there is a next time, I will kill you."

Deng Zilong said this in very authentic classical Latin. After deep exchanges with Luo Lian, Deng Zilong had learned foreign languages extremely well.

During the Great Travel activities in the West, anyone who possessed fluent Latin was a symbol of noble status. A trend of "returning to the source" was popular in the West, with many scholars advocating for the abandonment of Latin-derived words in various countries in favor of the pure, classical Latin of the Roman Empire as a fashion.

This was thanks to the Greek Academy, where stories were told all day long, using Latin while promoting the beauty and culture of Rome.

Deng Zilong understood it roughly like this: pure, classical Latin was actually equivalent to the official language of the Great Ming, while Frankish, German, English, and Castilian were all dialects. At poetry gatherings where people recited poems and composed verses, speaking a dialect naturally made it difficult to be respected.

"Thank you," Luo Lian's tone was incomparably sincere, heartfelt, and one might even say devout—more devout than when she prayed.

Deng Zilong clapped his hands and asked with some confusion, "I don't quite understand. Although you haven't said it, I guess you must be a noble in the West, having received a good education since childhood, with broad knowledge and a keen insight into problems. And you were able to cross the ocean to reach Lu Song. No matter how you look at it, he is just a sailor—how dare he take advantage of you so openly?"

"Because of the hair," Luo Lian said, somewhat helplessly, but with a tone that carried a hint of lightness.

"Hair?"

Deng Zilong looked at the bit of red hair Luo Lian revealed and, not understanding, said, "Hair?"

"Yes, hair," Luo Lian thought for a moment and said, "Black hair represents nobility, holiness, and authority; it is the most esteemed in the West. Golden hair originated from the barbarians of Northern Europe, but they occupied a lot of territory and had strong power; it represents barbarism, tyranny, and intimidation."

"Red hair represents nakedness, depravity, and betrayal."

"I am a nun, a nun with perpetual vows, who will never marry for life. That means I have renounced my noble status, which is why they are so rude."

Explaining the reason for this discrimination requires covering many aspects. For example, in "The Last Supper," Judas, who betrayed God, had red hair. In religious culture, red hair is usually the incarnation of a devil or a witch, needing to be burned to be purified. In universal culture, red is the color of life, which is the color of blood; red hair represents impurity, following instincts, and licentiousness. In the era Luo Lian lived in, most of the naked women in paintings had red hair.

Of course, the Black Barbarians were slaves; on the plantations, they wouldn't get fewer lashes just because they had black hair.

This kind of discrimination was also another reason why Spain and Portugal were excluded from the Great Travel cultural activities, even though they had defeated the French five times; they still could not gain recognition and respect.

Deng Zilong suddenly thought of the most wicked things: hitting a blind man or scolding a mute. To tell the truth, the Great Ming also had this kind of discrimination regarding hair, such as the shaved heads with a small tuft favored by the Japanese, or the "money-rat tail" braids of the Jurchens. This discrimination did exist, but those were hairstyles they shaved themselves into; red hair color was natural.

The existence of this discrimination was also why those who crossed the ocean to reach the Great Ming were contemptuously called "Red-Haired Barbarians"—those who came were all lowly people.

People living on land, in any era, find those who go to sea to man ships to be very miserable.

Deng Zilong looked around. Although these sailors had picked up their weapons, they did not immediately come forward, but instead scrambled to rescue the golden-haired barbarian.

Deng Zilong was testing, testing the bottom line of this negotiation. He had bullied a sailor, but it hadn't triggered any adverse consequences.

"A bold man. We seem to be at war, yet you actually came here flying the Great Ming's naval flag. I admire your courage," Antonio walked out of the crowd and said to Deng Zilong, "Can you join my command? I think I really need a warrior."

The Great Ming's naval flag was the Big Dipper flag, while the Red-Haired Barbarians' naval flag was the red cross.

Antonio was a captain, not a shipowner; his shipowner was King Philip II of Spain. Antonio possessed the qualifications of a Portuguese throne heir, but the old king did not like him and drove him out.

Antonio naturally wanted to be king, so he needed to recruit warriors.

"Better to talk about serious business," Deng Zilong refused. He was a Great Ming Assistant Regional Commander—why would he go and be a lackey for Antonio?

Antonio did not pester him, but smiled and said, "Alright, the Emperor you serve is indeed more noble."

Last time, Antonio entered the capital as Legazpi's deputy to pay respects to the Great Ming Emperor. That spectacle truly opened Antonio's eyes. When he first arrived in the Far East, Antonio thought the Great Ming Emperor was a secular agent. Later, on the road to the capital, he thought the Emperor was the Pope. After entering the capital, he was convinced that the Great Ming Emperor's power in the Great Ming was that of a Trinity God descended to the human world.

Everything in the Empire revolved around the Great Ming Emperor, just as the natural stars revolved around the North Pole.

It was fortunate that Zhu Yijun didn't know Antonio's thoughts; if he did, he would certainly sneer at them. He only wanted to be a Great Ming monarch who farmed well; gods and ghosts were all heresies.

Deng Zilong had been speaking in the official language. He could speak classical Latin to avoid being deceived, but he would not speak foreign languages in formal occasions. He had warned that golden-haired barbarian just now because the man had provoked his woman, but now, as an envoy of the Great Ming Lu Song Viceroy's Office, he would only speak the official language.

And Luo Lian was the translator.

The first negotiation began.

"The Great Ming rashly attacked our fort. We didn't even know the reason before we were ambushed by you. Our homes were destroyed, and everyone in Lu Song was captured by you," Antonio first spoke of the Great Ming as the one who provoked the war.

Deng Zilong opened his mouth and said, "In the third year of Jiajing, Emperor Shizong issued an edict to the Portuguese, ordering them to return the occupied territory of Srivijaya, but they never did so. In the fifth year of Longqing, you killed the exiled King of Lu Song. The late Emperor issued an edict ordering you to return the land to the exiled King of Lu Song and not to lightly start a war, but you didn't do that either."

"The documents still exist. Your Viceroy Francisco wrote in his notes: 'A country that can be destroyed by forty-two soldiers actually dares to give me orders; they must be dreaming.'"

"Therefore, Francisco was captured by us."

Upon hearing this, Antonio said with some anger, "Damn fool Francisco!"

Francisco peddled his arrogant war concepts everywhere, and the budget also rose from forty-two soldiers to twenty thousand. Projecting twenty thousand elite soldiers to the distant East—that was the real dream. If they had that kind of projection capability, the damn British would have been wiped out clean long ago.

Antonio thought for a moment and said, "I can mobilize the Portuguese from the Strait of Malacca and India to help take back the territory that belongs to us. You know, I am one of the heirs to the Portuguese throne; I have the ability to call upon them."

Deng Zilong said unhurriedly, "Are you talking about those desperate outlaws who only came to sea to seek wealth? Do you think they have the strength and the courage to engage with the Great Ming's professional soldiers? If they could do it, would the Portuguese only occupy one port in Macau and still be driven into the sea?"

"We also have two of your proud three-masted carrack giant ships. To be honest, the carrack giant ships that are boasted about to the heavens are still a bit disappointing."

"If you insist on fighting, then let's fight."

After Deng Zilong finished speaking, he stood up and looked at Luo Lian, saying, "Do you want to stay or come back with me?"

"Go back with you," Luo Lian stood up immediately, intending to follow Deng Zilong back to Lu Song. Besides gaining freedom from Deng Zilong, she also gained dignity—things she could never have obtained in the West.

Deng Zilong shook his head and said, "Minister Yin is right; we must have a big fight before there will be a result."

Antonio hurriedly said, "Wait a moment, wait a moment. We brought three large sailing ships this time. May I ask if we can enter the port smoothly and then go to Songjiang Prefecture to trade?"

Both sides obviously needed a consensus. Deng Zilong clearly knew what that consensus was, but he just wouldn't say it, waiting for Antonio to bring it up. This consensus was that the Great Ming needed silver, while the Spanish needed Great Ming goods.

Deng Zilong turned around and said, "Naturally, you can."

Antonio saw Deng Zilong finally sit down again before he said, "The King appointed Legazpi as the special envoy; only he can decide to mobilize the resources of the Lu Song Viceroy's District. I am just a captain, a businessman. I just want to do business. Whether you want to fight or negotiate peace, you can negotiate with Legazpi, not me. My mission is just to take the three four-masted sailing ships, complete the trade, bring the goods back, and earn the money I deserve."

Antonio was a businessman; he loathed war. Although war could allow one to hoard goods and obtain incredibly high profits, war represented huge risks. In Antonio's view, this war was completely unnecessary because there was no room for profit in this war happening in the distant East.

The Great Ming Viceroy's Office was occupied by the Spanish, and now the Great Ming had taken back its Viceroy's Office. The matter seemed to be just that simple.

Deng Zilong said with some strangeness, "I can represent the Lu Song Viceroy's Office and let you pass, but if you do this, it will make Legazpi very passive. These four-masted sailing ships are one of Legazpi's important bargaining chips."

Antonio smiled and said, "My mission is my mission; his mission is his mission. It has nothing to do with me."

Deng Zilong frowned slightly before saying, "Understood. Everyone sweeps the snow from their own door; don't worry about the frost on others' roofs. Your merchant ships have already been delayed for quite some time; you can set sail."

"Has the tax rate changed? Is it still the old six percent?" Antonio asked quite urgently.

Deng Zilong and Antonio communicated many details about entering the port, including not being allowed to disembark, armed merchant ships not being allowed to load cannons or draw bows, and other details.

When Deng Zilong boarded his hydrofoil sailboat to return to Manila, he said with wonder, "Are you people in the West all so profit-seeking? Is it that you only have money in your eyes, and as long as you can make money, everything else doesn't matter?"

Luo Lian had changed out of her heavy clothes. Hearing Deng Zilong's question, she smiled and said, "Money possesses a magical power that can corrupt the human heart. The Antonio you see is not the minority, but the majority. It seems that as long as there is money, one has everything. It is like this in the West, and this is also one of the troubles brought by gold and silver."

"Antonio doesn't care that Manila was captured by the Great Ming, doesn't care about the Spanish and Portuguese captured by the Great Ming, and doesn't even care about Legazpi. He only cares about profit."

"As long as the price is right, even a soul can be sold to the devil."

Deng Zilong nodded and said, "Understood. Sit tight and hold on; the wind is picking up."

On the return voyage, Deng Zilong adjusted the angle of the sails to the wind, and the speed increased sharply. Then, under a gust of wind, the bow of the ship nodded violently twice, and it began to constantly skip across the water surface like a stone. As the speed gradually increased, the ship began to float stably on the water, drawing a line of water as it sped away.

Luo Lian grabbed the gunwale tightly, looking at the ship floating on the water in disbelief. Stunned, and even somewhat panicked, she said, "How is this done?! It's too magical. Is it magic?"

Deng Zilong shook his head and said, "I'm just a ship operator; how would I know why it flies?"

Luo Lian opened her arms, enjoying the sharpness of the wind blowing across her cheeks. This was a magical and mysterious country.

"Are you just a ship operator? Then what about me?" Luo Lian tossed her head of red hair.

Deng Zilong heard this and said helplessly, "It's not easy to learn good, but easy to learn bad. You are a nun; how can you use foul language?"

"Don't you know that learning foreign languages always starts with foul language?" Luo Lian smiled and said, "I'll do it myself."

When Deng Zilong returned to Manila port, Luo Lian had turned back into a dignified nun, but her face was flushed, looking very much like the ruddy glow on the horizon when the sunset fades, and her eyes were still slightly dazed.

"No, you just made a trip to Boracay Island, and you're tired like this?" Chen Lin saw Deng Zilong's somewhat unsteady footsteps and asked with some strangeness, "Are you not capable?"

Deng Zilong looked at the sunset on the horizon and said with some melancholy, "Of course I am capable. Sigh, why did I have to provoke her in the first place? Can't say, can't say."

"Oh." Chen Lin looked at Luo Lian's appearance and knew that something had happened. Then his face changed suddenly, and he grabbed Deng Zilong by the collar and said sternly, "My ship! You dirtied my ship! I'm not finished with you!"

Chen Lin realized what had happened and was immediately furious, looking as if he were about to kill someone. This was his ship, and the two of them had done such a sordid thing on his ship!

Chen Lin was beyond angry. No wonder when Yin Zhengmao mentioned this, his face was written with four words: hard to describe in a few words.

It was truly damnation.

"Do you want to engage in a private fight? The Great Ming military strictly forbids private fights," Deng Zilong said with a reckless look. According to Great Ming military regulations, those who engage in private fights receive one hundred strokes and are exiled to malarial regions.

Chen Lin finally let go of Deng Zilong and said viciously, "My ship!"

That day, Chen Lin scrubbed the ship for a whole day. His precious, precious ship had been dirtied.

The four-masted sailing ships from the West began to enter the port slowly. Because they were not trading in Manila, after anchoring for half a day and obtaining the customs clearance documents, Antonio took the ships north again. When they arrived at Songjiang Prefecture, it was already nearly the end of the seventh month.

Antonio spent another fifteen days arriving at the capital and meeting the special envoy Legazpi.

Antonio looked at the indifferent Legazpi and asked with some strangeness, "Do you know that Manila was captured by the Great Ming army?"

Legazpi sighed and said, "I know. In fact, the war in Manila has been ongoing. We organized three counterattacks, but none achieved results. Later, we couldn't organize any more offensives, so we could only tacitly accept the Great Ming's sovereignty over Lu Song."

"Our power in the Far East is too weak. That Viceroy Yin of theirs has three thousand elite troops, and they are elites with rich combat experience, plus more than five thousand six hundred surrendered pirate troops. Our power in the Far East simply cannot support us in taking back Lu Song."

Antonio said with a look of surprise, "How did you know? The Great Ming's management of the postal relay is extremely strict. How do you know what happened in Manila?"

"There are also private mail bureaus in the Great Ming that can deliver letters, so naturally, they can deliver letters." Legazpi did not hide it either and explained the matter clearly.

Private mail bureaus were pioneered by Ningbo merchants around the Yongle period. Private mail bureaus were profit-making institutions operated by private individuals, with businesses including delivering letters, items, and handling remittances. Legazpi also dispatched some troops to counterattack through private mail bureaus, but the results were minimal.

After Legazpi was silent for a moment, he continued, "Of course, after the Great Ming received the report of victory, they informed me. They have taken back the governing power of Lu Song. We can't beat them, so should I be like that fool Francisco and convince the King to send heavy troops to take back Lu Song? Is it not enough that the King has enough trouble? Damn British!"

The Spanish Armada was engaged in fierce exchanges with England at sea. This kind of exchange forced the Armada to stay in the Mediterranean to guard against the harassment of British privateers, and the Armada's main warships, the galleasses, were not suitable for long voyages, and the problem of insufficient flexibility was gradually being exposed.

The British were just a frame; anything could be stuffed into it.

Even without the British, the Spanish Armada could not be deployed to Lu Song because the main warships simply could not make long ocean voyages; relying on rowers, they simply could not cross the ocean.

"The Great Ming did not conquer the archipelago regions like Boracay Island and Cebu Island. It seems they don't intend to let the conflict escalate further," Legazpi said, somewhat unsure.

Antonio said with extreme worry, "You must think clearly. If you give up Lu Song Island now, in the future, the Great Ming will definitely come again like this, constantly nibbling away at our influence in the Far East, and finally, completely incorporate this sea area into their rule."

"A greedy viper will never be satisfied with just one successful hunt."

Legazpi stood up and shouted at Antonio, "Do you think I want it to be like this? It's that we can't beat them, can you understand? We can't beat them!"

"Alright, you are right." After Antonio heard this, he could only nod. When he anchored in Manila for a day, he didn't have the intention of probing the reality, but the forts built by the Great Ming army were also extremely difficult to break, and the Great Ming's defense was tight. It was indeed extremely difficult to win.

Antonio tilted his head and said with a confused face, "When I was in Manila, I saw the Great Ming people operating a kind of ship that could fly. Do you know what that is?"

"A ship that can fly? Antonio, listen to what you are saying yourself. How can a ship fly?" Legazpi asked with a look of bewilderment.

Antonio said quite affirmatively, "It is that kind of ship that can fly. I saw it! It's very magical. If you don't believe it, you can ask my crew members; they all saw it. Don't those damn privateers rely on their small ships and fast speed to take the initiative? If we had that kind of ship, could the British still be so arrogant?"

Legazpi still didn't believe it, shaking his head and saying, "It's normal to have hallucinations after a long voyage."

A translator from the Hall of Foreign Envoys walked in and said, "Two special envoys, the Minister of the Court of Ceremonial, Chen Xuehui, has arrived."

Chen Xuehui walked in and looked at Antonio, revealing a smile. The Great Ming conquered Lu Song, but also wanted the silver from the large sailing ships. This was obviously wanting both. The Great Ming could do it because the Great Ming possessed an absolute commodity advantage. Spain's demand for Great Ming goods was greater than the Great Ming's demand for Western silver coins. This was the fundamental reason.

At worst, the Great Ming could go to Japan to bully the Japanese to ensure the supply of silver.

"Is the diplomat Chen here for the matter of Lu Song?" Legazpi said with a heavy face.

Chen Xuehui shook his head and said, "No. In the 'Contradiction Theory' of the Prime Minister, it says: The struggle of contradictions is complex and long-term. The compromise and balance formed without sufficient struggle are short-lived and hypocritical, so we must continue to struggle. Only after sufficient struggle can we achieve balance and harmony."

"In other words, we haven't fought enough; let's just keep fighting."

"I came here this time to urge tax payment. The Tax Inspection Office of the Northern Secret Service sent a payment notice. Your three ships have hidden a total of 320,000 taels of silver. According to the regulations, you must pay the gold flower silver. The large ships will leave the port at the end of August. If it is not cleared by then, they cannot leave the port, and a 20% tax penalty will be added. If you resist the tax, then in the future, a punitive tariff of 20% will be applied. The net of heaven is vast, and nothing escapes; don't have any lucky psychology."

"This time is just a reminder. If such a thing happens in the future, it will be punished as a whole."

After the three four-masted sailing ships entered the port, the three ships smuggled a total of 300,000 taels of silver, which had not been declared. During the trade, they were caught by the Embroidered Uniform Guards stationed by the imperial court in the Songjiang Prefecture Tax Inspection Office. The tax-paid stamps did not match the actual trade quantity. After checking the accounts, the Tax Inspection Office found out the amount of smuggled silver and sent the payment notice to the capital.

The Court of Ceremonial was responsible for the first and second notifications; for the third time, they would have to board the ship to urge payment.

"Damn it, I have repeatedly told them many times, don't hide it. Are you even trying to evade a 6% tax?" Antonio looked at the payment notice. This thing was actually written in both Chinese and Latin; he could understand it completely.

His ship smuggled less than 1,000 taels of silver, but the other two ships actually hid more than 300,000 taels and were caught by the Great Ming imperial court!

"Alright, you two, pay it off as soon as possible. We won't collect an extra hair of tax, nor will we collect a hair less." Chen Xuehui stood up, preparing to leave.

"This diplomat, does your Great Ming really not have a ship that can fly?" Antonio put away the payment notice and instead asked quite urgently about the flying ship he had seen.

Chen Xuehui said with surprise, "Captain, do you want to listen to what you are saying? How can a ship fly? Of course not."

"Alright." Antonio said somewhat unsurely, "Did I see it wrong?"

What the ship shrouded in the water line looked like, Antonio actually hadn't seen clearly. Legazpi said it was a hallucination, and the Great Ming official denied it, making Antonio doubt himself.

Antonio shook his head and said more urgently, "Diplomat, I have some gifts to offer to the Emperor. These treasures, I believe the supreme and noble Emperor will definitely like."

"I am very convinced."

"Oh? What are they?" Chen Xuehui sat down again and saw Antonio take out a list, on which were the gifts Antonio wanted to offer.

Chen Xuehui finished reading the list and nodded, saying, "Indeed, the Emperor will definitely like them very much. Then, Captain Antonio, what do you need to obtain? I know you are a businessman. Let's talk business. If the conditions are not too excessive, we can discuss them."

Antonio said with great anticipation, "I want exclusive rights."

"Do you think it's possible?" Chen Xuehui shook his head.

Antonio waved his hands repeatedly and said, "No, no, no. The exclusive rights you understand are different from the exclusive rights I am talking about. I mean the Portuguese trade, which I am responsible for, not the exclusive rights to a certain Great Ming commodity."

Only death and taxes are inevitable. Seeking monthly tickets, Aowu!!!!!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 132 =====