Chapter 817: If the Banquet Is Not Set, Then the Tripod and Cutting Board Are the Offerings

Wang Chonggu once intended to teach people how to be an official in a book called "The Self-Cultivation of the Five-Step Snake." He was afraid that people would feel annoyed by long-winded arguments, so he summarized it in four sentences.

Two of them were: maintain sympathy and attention for the group; maintain vigilance and distance for the individual;

Similar descriptions were also once given by His Majesty. The myriad people possess the power to change the world, but they never know how to release and use this power. The limitation of peasant movements is that it is very difficult to gradually correct their own mistakes in the movement, but instead go further and further in the wrong direction.

Once scholars participate in the movement, the limitations will be gradually corrected in the movement. For example, Zhu Yuanzhang obtained Li Shanchang and Liu Ji, Liu Bowen.

The reason for this phenomenon is also very simple.

Generally speaking, most people do not judge the merits and demerits of society and systems from the perspectives of systems, structures, concepts, spirits, and the essence of human beings, but start from their own daily lives, or rather, start from their intestines rather than their brains.

Due to the huge gap in economic and social development between the Great Ming and Japan, the Japanese saw the appearance of the Great Ming and wanted to become the appearance of the Great Ming. They didn't learn three parts of human appearance, but seven parts of beastliness were deeply rooted. The most important thing in beastliness is to admire the strong; whoever is strong, they follow.

Due to Japan's geographical reasons—narrow and long, extremely small depth, frequent natural disasters, etc. —the Japanese are naturally yearning for the vast territory with great depth and not-so-frequent natural disasters.

This natural yearning, reflected in Japan's reality, is that the Japanese scholar-officials deliberately shaped a concept of "no China after Yashan." From Oda Nobunaga to Toyotomi Hideyoshi, there was a wind of "entering Tang to replace it," and they even called the Great Ming "Great Tang," believing that the Great Ming was not the orthodox, deceiving themselves and the citizens, and shaping the rationality of entering Tang.

The invasion of Korea happened. When the Japanese pirates leveled the Korean royal family in one month, Japan's ambition from top to bottom began to expand. Two years later, they were completely driven into the sea by the Great Ming Army. The reason why it was so slow was because they were executing the Great Ming court's goal of eliminating Japan's young and strong.

Throughout the Korean War, the Japanese pirates who entered Korea had more than 80,000 samurai and foot soldiers who fled, were captured, or died, and even several daimyo died on the Korean battlefield.

By this time, the story of entering Tang to replace it could naturally no longer be told. From the anxiety and uneasiness of the invasion, to the joy of a lucky victory, to the confusion and loss after the defeat, this huge gap finally led to the current situation in Japan.

The tearing of opposition has risen to the point of Japan destroying Japan.

The Great Ming Minister of Ceremonial, Gao Qiyu, took a boat to the Osaka Bay Garrison Thousand-Household Office stationed in the heart of Japan. This place is called Sakai City, located at the intersection of Settsu Province, Kawachi Province, and Izumi Province. Many merchants gathered here and gradually became the maritime gateway to Japan's Kyoto.

Because it was at the intersection of three provinces, it was highly autonomous for a long time. It belonged to whoever wanted to manage it,

but no one could do anything about the others. Since Oda Nobunaga took this place, the environment of high autonomy ended, and the merchants of Sakai City began to move to Osaka to live, gradually declining.

Since the establishment of the Osaka Bay Garrison Thousand-Household Office here, the port has become busy again, people have gathered again, and it has gradually recovered its vitality.

The Sakai City Port in the early morning was shrouded in salty sea fog. The dragon flag fluttered on the mast of the fast sailing ship "Youlong."

The "Youlong" is His Majesty's seal boat. When the Celestial envoy goes to a vassal state, he will inevitably take this behemoth. The sails that covered the entire ship were slowly lowered, and the tugboats dragged it, entering the port slowly in the sound of the chant.

Theoretically, Japan is still one of the vassal states of the Great Ming, and Oda Nobunaga is the King of Japan enfeoffed by the Great Ming.

Gao Qiyu held a pocket watch nearly the size of his palm and looked at the time. It was just six o'clock in the morning. The Pacific warm current and the cold current flowing south intersected in the Seto Inland Sea, forming a thick sea fog, but the wharf was already full of coolies crawling like ants.

The smoke of the Korean battlefield had not yet dissipated, and Sakai City Port had become a microcosm of Japan's drastic changes: the Shogun's Atakebune ships were moored side by side with the Great Ming's huge ships, forming a sharp contrast. The cold and heat of samurai sword light and fire guns were changing every corner and every aspect of Japan.

Gao Qiyu saw a group of Japanese women welcoming the arrival of the angel. Their kimono hems were mixed with the Great Ming's cross-collar jackets and skirts, looking extremely awkward, just like the attitude of the Shogunate.

On one hand, Oda Nobunaga issued a Hold-the-Line Order to resist to the end; on the other hand, he grandly celebrated and welcomed the arrival of the Great Ming angel.

These Japanese women's cheeks were frozen red, but they still raised their hands and jumped, showing a festive face. In this weather, wearing so little, perhaps a cold would take away their lives that no one cared about.

Gao Qiyu stood at the bow of the ship and tightened the cloak on his body. This was a New Year's gift issued by His Majesty. Every official in the Great Ming capital had one. The patterns were different. Gao Qiyu's was a cloud goose pattern, flying in order, spring goes and autumn comes, assisting the Son of Heaven in the order of the four seasons.

The Minister of Ceremonial stood at the bow of the ship, looking at the Japanese women who were trembling with cold but still wanted to welcome them, and suddenly thought of a question that the scholars in the capital had discussed: Does backwardness necessarily mean being beaten?

This question was an issue raised by Li Zhi during a gathering. Li Zhi said it was asked by Young Master Huang Zhongxing. This triggered a very extensive discussion. There were more than 8,000 articles in the gazettes, discussing it from various aspects such as morality, politics, and military strength.

Traditional scholar-officials were always narrating in morality, wanting to prove that backwardness does not necessarily mean being beaten, while a group of scholar-officials led by Li Zhi firmly argued that backwardness necessarily means being beaten.

Gao Qiyu's mouth twitched, and he whispered: "His Majesty said: The Age of Discovery has arrived, and a global trade network is being established. In future international relations, if you are not sitting at the dining table, you will appear on the menu. The reason why you haven't appeared on the menu yet is just because the diners at the dining table haven't ordered this dish."

This "menu theory" first appeared in the tenth year of Wanli. It was the original words of Wan Shihe when discussing maritime trade:

【The Age of Discovery has arrived, and the eight-direction trade network is gradually forming; the world is connected, and countries are competing. If you are not the knife and cutting board, you are the fish and meat, just like the planning of a banquet; if the banquet is not set, then the tripod and cutting board are the offerings; a night of peaceful sleep is not because the kitchen and cutting board have not arrived, but because the guests at the table have no need. In the current world situation, if you don't eat people, you will be eaten. Only those who sit in high seats can master the tripod.】

"If the banquet is not set, then the tripod and cutting board are the offerings," meaning if you don't sit at the table, you are the one being cooked in the pot.

Oda I said loudly: "The 'Book of Changes' says: One Yin and one Yang is called the Dao. How can there be simple confrontation without cooperation? Mencius also says: Serving the great with the small is wisdom, serving the small with the great is benevolence. Han used five baits and three tables against Nanyue, and Nanyue surrendered; 'Laozi' also says: If a great state lowers itself to a small state, it will take the small state. The Great Ming even built a tributary trade of non-conquering states in the Hongwu period."

"This does not conform to the Great Ming's etiquette and ancestral laws! It's not like this, it's absolutely not like this."

Oda I was obviously very proficient in Confucianism, and after arriving in the Great Ming, she didn't stop her steps. She cited classics and combined them with historical examples to refute the "dining table theory." What she said was really very reasonable.

Gao Qiyu didn't speak, quietly looking at the wharf of Sakai City Port. Facts always speak louder than words.

On the wharf of Sakai City Port, there were all coolies. These coolies shouted chants to move goods, while the supervisors whipped those who were slow. The coolies who were whipped didn't make a sound, just quickened their pace;

Besides the women arranged by the Shogunate to welcome the Great Ming, there were also some Japanese compradors. These compradors held beautiful tea-serving girls, stood on tiptoe, hoping to see the details of the Great Ming ships clearly, and emotionally told the people around them, seeming to say loudly that their choice was not wrong;

The Shogunate's authority was gradually collapsing and being deconstructed by Great Ming commodities and treasure notes. The Great Ming dragon flag pierced the sky above the Garrison Thousand-Household Office, and its shadow happened to cover the faded family crest flag of the Azuchi Shogunate;

The plight of the samurai class was exposed in the noise of the port wharf. They no longer had weapons. They should have pawned their ancestral short swords and long swords to merchants. Their samurai clothes were already dilapidated, far less gorgeous than the merchants' clothes. The family crest embroidery on the inner lining of these fallen samurai and their shaved hairstyles were their last stubbornness;

"Those are Extreme Joy Sect followers. You don't know much about the Extreme Joy Sect, do you? After all, when you left, there was no such evil rampant. The Great Ming commoners don't know what happened in Japan, do you? You don't know either." Gao Qiyu's gaze looked at the most special group of people on the wharf.

These Japanese were Extreme Joy Sect followers. They used all their strength to wave a dragon flag they embroidered themselves to welcome the arrival of the Great Ming. The embroidery was very poor, obviously imitated from the dragon flag hanging at the Garrison Thousand-Household Office. In such cold weather, they exposed their feet. There were words tattooed on their ankles. It was blurry from a distance, but Gao Qiyu had heard more than once that it was the word "Ming."

Besides those waving flags, the remaining believers knelt piously on the ground, kowtowing to welcome the arrival of the Great Ming angel.

"I... don't know about the Extreme Joy Sect." Oda I was a bit dazed. She finally admitted that she had left Japan for too long, so that Japan was so familiar and yet so strange.

Gao Qiyu's mouth twitched and he smiled: "Actually, the gazettes have reported the various illegal acts of the Extreme Joy Sect many times. It was a year ago that the Great Ming designated it as an evil. Shen Shixing, the Governor, expelled these believers to Nanyang on the grounds of not being pious enough."

"Look, you actually don't care about Japan."

This sentence, seemingly ordinary, pierced Oda I's last psychological defense line. She knew very well that she was no longer willing to be a Japanese again.

She had already become accustomed to everything in the Great Ming: everything was available in the prosperous market, all kinds of books were dazzling in the bookstores, society was stable and there was no need to be terrified, and so on.

Compared with Li Yashi's calmness, Oda I appeared a bit pretentious. In fact, from body to mind, she had already accepted this change long ago, but she just refused to admit it.

Gao Qiyu thought of Wan Shihe again. Wan Shihe once discussed: People who leave their homeland for a long time inevitably have the problem of localization.

Li Yashi, Shah Mamaiti, Oda I—these envoys, as they did it, had already been influenced by the local culture and inevitably became locals, and their way of thinking about problems was more like locals.

"More cruel things are still happening. Nagasaki Governor Xu Wei told me that in Hiroshima and Osaka, one bird gun equals one Japanese woman, equals ten years of annual supply for a farmer; one catty of gunpowder equals ten Japanese slaves; one box of opium equals three hundred pleasure girls and five hundred Japanese slaves; one bottle of quinine can be exchanged for one thousand Japanese women." Gao Qiyu's mouth twitched.

The difference between Japanese women and pleasure girls: one is from a good family, the other is a prostitute.

Before he went as an envoy, he had tried his best to understand the various changes in Japan, but when this cruelty came rushing towards him, it still formed a huge impact on his deeply rooted traditional moral values. People were sold with clear prices, and everyone was accustomed to it.

Oda I was a bit broken. She squatted on the deck and covered her face and cried. At first, there was some sound, but later there was no sound at all. Amidst the Japanese people's kowtowing and worship, the 33-zhang-long "Youlong" stopped steadily at the berth. This sea behemoth brought great shock to the Japanese.

Not to mention the ignorant Japanese, when His Majesty participated in the fleet review in Tianjin Prefecture and saw the "Youlong" for the first time, he was also incomparably shocked. Of course, as the Son of Heaven, showing joy and anger would make the ministers feel

unstable. His Majesty didn't show that kind of horror too much, and the Great Ming officials also widened their eyes, very shocked.

Humans have a natural worship of giant objects, and the Great Ming possessed eighteen such fast sailing ships.

Oda I finally finished crying, her eyes red. She got off the ship and followed the Oda family's samurai to Kyoto. Gao Qiyu became exceptionally busy. He refused the Extreme Joy Sect's idea of requesting a meeting. This was an evil designated by the Great Ming and absolutely could not be contacted. But these Japanese local compradors were really too enthusiastic.

They used half-baked Chinese to crazily flatter him, which made Gao Qiyu break out in goosebumps. Beauties, gold, silver, jewelry, and various luxury gifts piled up in the room where Gao Qiyu stayed.

"If the Minister of Ceremonial doesn't take it, how can future envoys take it, and how can I take it?"

"I won't take it. Governor Xu and Shipping Commissioner Sun can't take it. Everyone can't take it, and Great Ming merchants can't take it either." Internal official Huang Bin checked the gifts and divided them into three parts: large, medium, and small. He saw Gao Qiyu's moral sense at work and that he didn't want to accept these bribes.

Gao Qiyu was not a person who didn't know how to adapt. He knew very well that these Japanese compradors were probably for a certification from the Great Ming. If he really didn't take it, these compradors wouldn't be able to lobby the daimyo behind them to let Oda Nobunaga agree to negotiate peace.

"The large part belongs to the internal official, I take this small part, and Governor Xu and Shipping Commissioner Sun take this medium part." Gao Qiyu proposed a new distribution plan.

Huang Bin smiled and said, "Eh, the large part belongs to the Minister of Ceremonial, the medium part belongs to me, I will bring it back to the palace, and the small part is for Governor Xu. They don't lack this bit of filial piety on weekdays. Giving it to them is an attitude."

"His Majesty exhorted me: The Emperor does not send hungry soldiers. It is not a shame to let soldiers charge and fight on an empty stomach when the country is broken and the family is destroyed."

"The Minister of Ceremonial should keep His Majesty's kindness in mind. If you should take it, take it. Otherwise, who will do this kind of life-and-death business in the future? The risk of being an envoy is extremely high—astronomical phenomena, plagues, injuries, and illnesses, etc."

The Great Ming scholar-officials are a class of meat-eaters who live in luxury, a class of officials selected by officials, second only to hereditary officials.

There are three-foot waves without wind on the sea. Gao Qiyu had been an envoy to the West once, but this time, he still vomited messily, was dizzy and couldn't sleep well all day. If he encountered big winds and waves, plagues on the ship, or harassment by barbarians, these were all dangers.

Being an envoy is a life-risking job. If you want future envoys to handle things sincerely, if these benefits are really taken, the Emperor will pretend not to see them.

"Don't take these Japanese women. Send them back to the Great Ming to the Prince of Lu's mansion. I am mainly worried about safety. The danger on the pillow still needs to be taken into account." Gao Qiyu finally refused part of the bribes for the sake of safety.

The Japanese women here were all carefully selected from good families, and some were even daughters of daimyo and daughters of Kyoto court nobles. Sending them to the Prince of Lu's mansion was the safest choice. The Prince of Lu lived very freely, doing whatever he wanted, and was not bound by feudal etiquette at all, and no one in the court dared to impeach or criticize him.

Because the Prince of Lu's own brother was the Emperor.

These Japanese brokerage compradors were not simple behind their backs. At the very least, they were all daimyo who occupied one side.

The situation in Japan today was by no means Oda Nobunaga's fault alone, but the choice of most people in Japan.

"The soaring grain prices recently are because these Japanese compradors bet heavily that Japan could win in Korea, lost messily, and then raised the price of grain to make the Japanese bear this loss."

"The most unacceptable thing is that these compradors, when grain supply in Japan was tight, were still exporting grain, exchanging for enough treasure notes to offset the losses." Li Chengli arrived at Sakai City Port and finally understood why the grain price was so high.

This was also the fact determined by the intelligence network of the coastal defense inspectors.

The compradors lost money and made all the Japanese bear it together. When they made money, they wouldn't share a penny with these Japanese.

After the Korean War started, the Nagasaki Governor's Office had a gambling table. The bankers were Fujian merchants. There were many contents for betting. In this gambling table, Great Ming merchants and Japanese merchants all placed heavy bets, and some even bet on the other side to win.

Since the news of the great victory in Busan spread to the four seas, Japanese merchants lost a lot of silver.

When it came to delivery, the merchants and the retainers they brought even had a fire fight. If the tooth soldiers of the Nagasaki Governor's Office hadn't been dispatched to suppress it, I'm afraid there would have been a big mess.

Japan is short of grain. The compradors not only didn't try to find grain but tried their best to sell the already scarce grain, exchange for treasure notes, and use the treasure notes to recover losses from the poor and suffering.

If such compradors were put in the Great Ming Dynasty, the Emperor would definitely lead the army to their door himself and tell them that the Great Ming only had one sky, and that was the Emperor!

"Wait a minute, ah, no wonder these powerful and wealthy families have been submitting memorials to donate. His Majesty refused, and they kept urging. So they were waiting here?!" Gao Qiyu suddenly realized that he had thought too well of these powerful and wealthy families.

Li Chengli thought about it and shook his head, saying, "It's not entirely to win money. Most of it is to take revenge. The Garrison Thousand-Household Office has quite a few children from wealthy families. They traveled thousands of miles to Japan, not to win anything, but to take revenge."

Li Chengli thought Gao Qiyu was too arbitrary. His statement did not conform to the basic ideas of the theory of contradictions, simplifying things. Winning money is winning money, and revenge is revenge. 330 children of powerful families—this proportion is really high. These people have a way out. Joining the army is to come to Japan to harm the Japanese.

"What you said makes sense." Gao Qiyu frowned slightly, then relaxed, and recognized Li Chengli's statement.

Huang Bin took out chess pieces one by one and laid them out, saying, "I found that the poor and suffering in Japan don't want to fight. If they fight again, the price of rice will rise three times a day; the Japanese samurai and foot soldiers don't want to fight. Now they all know that the Great Ming's fire weapons are extremely powerful. Without armor, it's sending them to death;"

"The Japanese merchants don't want to fight either. If they fight, the trade routes will be cut off. Hoarding goods and waiting for a high price—how can fast circulation of goods make money? If goods don't turn, they can't make money; the Japanese daimyo don't want to fight either. Anyway, these gold, silver, copper, and iron mines will eventually be sent to the Nagasaki Governor's Office to exchange for Great Ming treasure notes."

"So, the main obstacle to negotiating peace is Oda Nobunaga's wishful thinking."

Oda Nobunaga's Hold-the-Line Order, each daimyo seemed to agree, but they sent various compradors to welcome the Great Ming envoy. It looked a bit strange. These daimyo didn't sincerely agree with the Hold-the-Line Order and resist to the end, but they feared Oda Nobunaga's authority and could only agree.

Most of the time, you have to look at what people do, not what they say. It's normal for people to say one thing and mean another.

The daimyo had already suffered huge losses on the Korean battlefield and didn't want to continue fighting.

Gao Qiyu took a deep breath and said, "I will try to persuade Oda I to let Oda I lobby Oda Nobunaga. If Oda I refuses, then fight until he surrenders."

"Minister of Ceremonial, it doesn't matter if Oda Nobunaga doesn't agree. We can contact other daimyo and station troops in their mines. As for whether Oda Nobunaga agrees or not, that's his own business. As long as the daimyo reach a consensus with us, isn't that enough?" Huang Bin turned sideways and smiled, "Things can be changed."

"Japan is not our Great Ming. This place is all daimyo who occupy one side. It's not that they listen to Oda Nobunaga in everything."

Huang Bin had been persuading Gao Qiyu to accept the gifts from merchants from the beginning, the purpose of which was actually this: talk to Oda Nobunaga first. If he doesn't agree, talk directly to the daimyo. Whoever agrees will naturally not be attacked by the Great Ming Army and Navy. If they don't know what's good for them, then the Great Ming fire weapons might not be unfavorable.

Divide and conquer, break them one by one.

Gao Qiyu and Li Chengli's eyes lit up. They were obviously dominated by the Great Ming collective consciousness. When thinking about problems, they didn't fully consider the situation.

In the chaos of Japan, a new power network was quietly forming.

The Fujian merchant group was bold and ruthless, and their main business was Japanese slaves and Japanese women; the Zhejiang merchant group was better at calculation, they played with abacuses, planning to use compound interest to hollow out every Japanese, and then sell them to the Fujian merchant group; Ningbo merchants set up gold and silver banks in Japan to help the Japanese save gold, silver, and other things, and issued gold and silver notes to exchange at the Nagasaki Governor's Office;

"Japan is not our Great Ming. This place is all daimyo holding territories, and it's not like they listen to Oda Nobunaga in every single thing."

This is actually a heart-dissecting and bone-changing transformation, the last remnant of the Shogunate. If Japan can survive this sudden change, it may also usher in a new life and the first ray of dawn of a new era.

Oda I arrived in Kyoto and lived in Honno-ji. This place had been renovated, and the raging fire of the Honno-ji Incident could no longer be seen.

She walked in Honno-ji, a bit dazed. If she hadn't left Japan, and Oda Nobunaga had been burned to death here, what would her ending be? Perhaps to protect herself, she would have married a daimyo loyal to her brother, and then died in the flames of war in the attacks of other daimyo.

As Oda Nobunaga's sister, this was probably the most decent way to die.

"The Shogun is looking for you." Mori Ranmaru found Oda I, who was dazed by the well in the temple, and invited Oda I to go inside to talk.

Oda Nobunaga still liked to live in Honno-ji. Of course, he brought many soldiers now and would no longer be forced to a dead end by rebels like Akechi Mitsuhide.

"Are you here representing yourself or the Great Ming?" Oda Nobunaga looked at his sister who was bowing to him and asked coldly.

Oda I closed her eyes for a moment before opening them and saying: "I represent myself. The Great Ming is a Celestial Empire and has no intention of making things difficult for a woman. This time they sent me back, probably to find someone who is familiar with my brother."

"I tried my best, but after the Battle of Incheon and Seoul, the Great Ming stopped communicating, and I couldn't see the officials of the Ministry of Rites."

"No, actually you came representing the Great Ming." Oda Nobunaga suddenly laughed and said: "Sit down, don't be restrained. The Emperor of Ming sent you back. It doesn't matter what you say. As long as I see you, I understand the Emperor's meaning."

"Are you threatening my brother to make unwise decisions?" Oda I asked anxiously.

Oda Nobunaga shook his head and said: "No, individuals cannot influence the competition between states, and you are not such an important individual. Even if I don't agree to hand over the mining rights, the Emperor won't do anything to you. At most, he will send you back."

"Does my brother want to agree to negotiate peace?" Oda I asked with a lost look.

"The General is looking for you." Mori Ranmaru found Oda I, who was dazed by the well in the temple, and invited her to go inside to talk.

"It disrupted all the arrangements."

Oda Nobunaga thought the Great Ming Emperor's manifestos were all talk. The Chengzu Emperor also said he wanted to clear the monarch's side, but as a result, the Jianwen monarch disappeared without a trace.

The Emperor sending an envoy this time put Oda Nobunaga completely on the fire rack. Agreeing is not right, and not agreeing is not right either. ===== CHAPTER 818 =====

"I tried my best, but after the Battle of Incheon and Seoul, the Great Ming stopped communicating. I couldn't see the officials of the Ministry of Rites."

"No, actually you represent the Great Ming," Oda Nobunaga suddenly laughed and said: "Sit down, don't be restrained. The Great Ming Emperor sent you back; what you say is not important. As long as I see you, I understand the Emperor's meaning."

"You haven't aged; this proves that you are living well in the Great Ming. The Great Ming is, after all, the Celestial Empire; it keeps its word and has the magnanimity of a great power."

"Are you using me to threaten my brother into making unwise decisions?" Oda I asked anxiously.

Oda Nobunaga shook his head and said: "No, individuals cannot influence the competition between states. Moreover, you are not such an important individual. Even if I don't agree to hand over the mining rights, the Emperor

won't do anything to you; at most, he will send you back."

"Is brother going to agree to negotiate peace?" Oda I asked in a daze.

"I don't know," Oda Nobunaga shook his head and said: "I originally thought the Great Ming's manifesto was just talk. Since they had already taken Tsushima Island, how could they not attack? That's why I issued the defense order. As a result, the Great Ming suddenly sent an envoy to talk."

"It disrupted all the arrangements."

Oda Nobunaga thought the Great Ming Emperor's manifestos were just talk. Emperor Chengzu Wen also said he wanted to clear the Emperor's side, but in the end, the Jianwen Emperor disappeared without a trace.

The Emperor sending this envoy completely placed Oda Nobunaga on the fire—agreeing is not right, and not agreeing is not right either.