Chapter 787: Can You Make Firelocks?

However, not long after, the arrival of a new group of Westerners shattered Louis's last hope into bubbles — by this time, the Dutch had also discovered the commercial opportunities in Asia. They extended their own business tentacles to Japan, dispatching large numbers of merchant ships to trade there. These Protestant Dutchmen cared only about making money through trade and had little enthusiasm for missionary work, which naturally made them more favored by the shogunate than the Spanish. Consequently, the shogun ultimately ordered the expulsion of all Spaniards, trading only with the Dutch — and without question, Louis was among those to be expelled.

The missionaries unwilling to leave incited a rebellion among the Japanese Catholics, but it was brutally suppressed by the shogunate's army, and a great many Catholic faithful and missionaries were killed.

Louis once witnessed with his own eyes how the Japanese executed these Catholics — after suppressing one Catholic rebellion, the shogunate troops brought a group of Catholic faithful to a beach. They were forced to wear straw rain capes doused in oil, which the shogunate soldiers then set alight. The burning faithful wailed and kept leaping up, while the surrounding officers and soldiers roared with laughter, mockingly calling it dancing.

Louis, who had not taken part in the incitement, was terrified out of his wits by such slaughter. In the end, he had no choice but to take the little property he had scraped together over those years and board a Japanese merchant ship, reluctantly leaving Nagasaki Harbor, intending to return to the Philippines to seek new opportunities.

It was only after the merchant ship encountered a typhoon that Louis realized his run of bad luck was far from over. In the fierce typhoon, the ship he was on was torn to shreds by the storm. He fell into the water and nearly drowned outright, but his old servant grabbed a fragment of the wooden deck and then pulled him up, preventing the sea from swallowing him directly. The two of them drifted on the boundless ocean, searching for a slim chance of survival.

A full two days later, when Louis, starving and parched, had begun to drink seawater uncontrollably, a ship finally appeared before his eyes. After observing it carefully, he realized it was no illusion but a real ship. He and his servant immediately mustered their last strength and shouted loudly, hoping the people on board would show mercy and save their lives. When the people on the ship finally spotted Louis and began turning the rudder to sail toward him, an immense ecstasy engulfed Louis entirely.

He was finally saved. Bearing the joy of having survived a calamity, he passed out.

"... Big Brother may not know, but these Franji missionaries who come preaching rarely have much substance. They always like to boast of being all-powerful to trick others into joining their faith. After staying in our Great Ming for a while and being steeped in our rites and laws, they only then come to understand some rules. This Lu fellow I rescued also spoke grandly when questioned, but the Jiangnan region has far too many such people; they're nothing rare. So I questioned him in finer detail..."

There's a saying that foreign monks are better at chanting scriptures, and another that a thing is valued in proportion to its rarity. However, everyone had seen plenty of Semu people during the Mongol Yuan period, and the missionaries arriving from the West were considered much the same sort. They couldn't fool many people from the very start, and the Western goods they brought were merely treated as rare, curious trinkets, with no one paying them much serious attention.

Under such an attitude, Louis from France found himself in an extremely awkward position at first. Following his habits from Luzon and Japan, he initially boasted of his exceedingly noble status, inevitably adding titles like Duke or Marquis, along with the position of Cardinal. But these claims were disdainfully exposed by the interpreter hired by the Yu family, who had seen too many such tricks and would not be fooled at all.

Fortunately, Louis had endured too many setbacks over the years to care about this slight awkwardness. He analyzed and drew a conclusion from the other party's questions: they seemed very eager to know what skills he possessed. Louis instinctively sensed this was an opportunity. He began to state his skills — philosophy, art, finance, navigation, and even mechanics. One by one, he listed these crafts that he either understood or could make others believe he understood.

No matter how extravagantly he spoke, perhaps because the interpreter's vocabulary was insufficient, the young man who had come with the interpreter kept a sullen expression the whole time. Louis, adept at reading people's expressions, knew that what he had just said had not moved the other party. Louis remained composed on the surface, but inwardly he grew anxious. When he had been rescued and brought here, Louis had already observed his surroundings. Such a flourishing city surpassed any he had seen in Japan, and this household's wealth exceeded that of the wealthy merchants and daimyo he had encountered there. This must be near the capital of the Great Ming, and the person who saved him must be some noble of the Great Ming. As for the sailors on the ship saying the Great Ming's capital was in the north or something — sailors' words these days couldn't be fully trusted at all...

The other party definitely needed something. Louis told himself he must seize this opportunity, but he simply couldn't figure out what exactly they wanted. Somehow, the topic turned to firearms. Louis did indeed know something about this; after all, in the Netherlands and in the Americas, there were far too many places where matchlock guns were used. Louis hadn't considered this a skill — far too many people used them, far too commonly, even in Japan.

When the other party pressed further about firelocks, Louis, though finding it strange, still realized this was the key point. He exchanged a few words with his old servant, then asked the other party for paper and pen. Of course, he had no idea how to use that kind of writing brush, so he could only ask them to bring charcoal. Using a knife, he whittled a barely usable charcoal stick and, haltingly, drew a sketch on the paper.

Sketching from life was also one of the seminary's courses, and this realistic drawing method was a great help to clergy in their missionary work, so both teachers and students took it very seriously.

The picture Louis sketched rapidly showed a soldier firing a heavy matchlock gun, using a wooden fork to prop up the gun. The posture was very standard, and both the soldier and the matchlock gun were quite lifelike. The accompanying servant, however, noticed many details in the drawing that were not quite right, though he certainly would not point them out. Louis still remembered the source of this picture: it was from a booklet captured from a Dutch soldier during the war in the Netherlands. It was said that Prince Maurice had drawn every motion of firing a matchlock into pictures for the soldiers to follow.

This non-standard picture played a decisive role. The Yu family had been on the sea for some years, had dealt with the Franji people, and had seen Franji firearms. What this picture depicted was precisely that kind. Moreover, Louis had his servant demonstrate a firing posture. Even though the servant's right hand was no longer very functional, and even though he was only gesturing with a wooden stick, it was still a very standard stance.

The sketch and the demonstration immediately excited Yu Zhiyuan. When he had first received Zhao Jin's commission, he had thought it would be an easily accomplished task. He hadn't expected it to drag on longer and longer, and Zhao Jin was very concerned about this matter, which put increasing pressure on Yu Zhiyuan. These two people before him, however, solved this difficult problem. Although Zhao Jin wanted the actual object, finding two people who understood the trade could also serve as a satisfactory report.

Yu Zhiyuan dared not be vague with Zhao Jin. The search for an actual Franji firelock would certainly have to continue, but sending these two men over first would at least prove that his family was working on the matter.

As for what this missionary and his servant thought, Yu Zhiyuan paid no heed at all. Although the Yu family was a scholarly lineage, they ran a maritime fleet and were no strangers to bloodshed.

Of course, Louis was also very much looking forward to what would come next. Especially after he inquired through the interpreter and learned that this Songjiang was merely a wealthy small city of the Great Ming, and that the Yu family was merely a rich merchant household, Louis became even more interested in this land. He even regretted not having come to the Great Ming sooner. This fabled continent from The Travels of Marco Polo, it now seemed, was truly a land brimming with gold.

The people brought before Zhao Jin naturally could not be vague. Yu Zhiyuan had done his utmost to question them thoroughly. When he saw that Zhao Jin was very interested, Yu Zhiyuan breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. At last, he had something to show for it.

"Bring them in for a look," Zhao Jin said with a smile. Ji Xiang and Niu Jinbao, who was behind Zhao Jin, exchanged a glance, then made a hand signal to the outside. Niu Jinbao and several household guards outside walked out together.

Not long after, Niu Jinbao came back in first and reported to Zhao Jin: "The older one is a veteran soldier, but his right hand is half-crippled, and his strength is lacking — nothing to worry about. As for the younger one, he has decent physical ability. Judging by the calluses on the web of his hand and his standing posture, he's likely trained with blades. Both have been searched; nothing harmful."

Louis and his servant were brought in. Along with them came the interpreter hired by the Yu family. Zhao Jin narrowed his eyes and looked at the interpreter, asking Yu Zhiyuan: "Is this interpreter trustworthy?"

"This interpreter works and serves in the Yu household; his family has been with us for two generations. Please rest assured, Big Brother," Yu Zhiyuan assured him.

"This is the noble person you are to meet, Grand Sir Zhao," Yu Zhiyuan announced, and the interpreter translated.

Louis had not expected the person he was to meet to be so young. Based on his experience in Europe and Japan, those in power were always at least forty years old, and many were aged. Such a young nobleman could only be a scion of those great and powerful families. Louis, well-versed in human nature, instinctively wanted to assume the reserve and profundity of a missionary, but upon noticing this young man's sharp gaze, Louis immediately changed his mind. He performed an exaggerated bow, his head nearly touching the ground.

However, the difference between Eastern and Western etiquette was too great. Louis's exaggerated gesticulations made several people in the room unable to suppress their laughter. Zhao Jin smiled and asked, "Do you know how to manufacture firearms?"

Just as the interpreter was about to speak, Zhao Jin added, "What I'm asking about is firearms, not just firelocks. What I'm asking about includes both firelocks and cannons."

Since they did not share a language, the translation had to strive for precision. The interpreter stammered for a moment before speaking again. Naturally, no one could understand the Franji language, but seeing the interpreter stumble and even use his hands to gesture, it was clear that the interpreter might not be very proficient either.

"Master, this foreigner says he knows how to make firelocks and also knows how to cast cannons," the interpreter said, turning his head.

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