My Pen Pal Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 180 Ultimatum
"Your Majesty, do you mean to let Liu Sanwu continue to provide false information to the Northern Dynasty?"

Mao Xiang hesitated for a moment, then bravely said, "Isn't this too risky?
According to Jinyiwei's previous experience in handling cases, if it was all fake news, it would be easily exposed.

The fake news that can often convince people is usually 90% fake news mixed with 10% true news, or 90% true news with the key 10% being fake.

But if this is the case, will the people of the Northern Dynasty be able to see a clue, or even guess the general manufacturing process of the needle-fired gun?"

"Commander Mao, you are worrying too much. Do you know what an assembly line is?"

Zhu Yuanzhang pinched his beard proudly. He was sure that even if Liu Sanwu gave the real manufacturing technology to the Japanese, the Japanese would not be able to make guns at all as long as it was not a complete production process!

This is the power of assembly line manufacturing. Each production and manufacturing link is only a small part of the entire project. Even if the Japanese get one of the links, they can't figure out the entire process.

Even if they mastered the entire production process, they did not have the right steel to make gun barrels, and the steelmaking technology was still in the hands of the Ming Dynasty!

Mao Xiang looked at Zhu Yuanzhang in a daze, then lowered his head in shame. He had no idea what an assembly line was. A buffet was more like that.

"Your Majesty, please forgive me for my lack of knowledge and knowledge. I really don't know what this assembly line is!"

Zhu Yuanzhang chuckled. Even the head of the Jinyiwei didn't know what an assembly line was, let alone those Japanese.

"Your Majesty, Cui Wenyuan, the Left Junior Secretary of the Honglu Temple, requests to see you."

At this moment, the unique voice of the eunuch came from outside the door.

Zhu Yuanzhang was stunned. The officials from the Honglu Temple entering the palace at this time were most likely related to the Japanese delegation.

Cui Wenyuan was an old hand in the Honglu Temple. As the Left Shaoqing, he had handled many affairs concerning officials from other courts and tributes from foreign nations, and could be considered an experienced official.

But this time, envoys from both the Northern and Southern Dynasties of Japan paid homage to the Ming Dynasty at the same time, which gave him a headache.

Apart from anything else, the people of these two dynasties were like mortal enemies to each other, and it was considered polite not to fight when they met.

Even if it was just a simple arrangement of food and lodging, a lot of issues had to be considered, to prevent the two groups from fighting as soon as they met. If a bloodbath occurred, it would be the dereliction of duty of the Honglu Temple.

Moreover, in the past, whenever envoys from foreign countries came, His Majesty would meet them very quickly and would personally receive the envoys at the grand court meeting. No matter how small the vassal state was, as long as it was willing to submit to the Ming Dynasty and establish a tribute system, His Majesty would give it enough face, not to mention the rewards, which would be as generous as possible.

After all, the Ming Dynasty was the supreme country, and that’s what they wanted!
However, the envoys from the Northern and Southern Dynasties of Japan have been here for nearly half a month, but His Majesty has no intention of summoning them for an audience. The question of whether it complies with the etiquette is still under discussion. After all, the etiquette was set by His Majesty.

But this posed a big problem for the Honglu Temple. The Japanese envoys came every now and then to urge them to do so. Their attitudes were all very nice, and when they spoke of their emotions they burst into tears. It would be difficult to just chase them away, right?
In recent days, she has been going to the Honglu Temple three or five times a day, as if the young widow had suffered a great injustice and was going to the capital to file a complaint.

Now, when the people in the Honglu Temple see Japanese envoys, they act as if they have seen a ghost. They try to hide if they can, and if they can't, they pretend not to understand. But it is useless, because some of the envoys can speak the Ming official language, and speak it better than the Ming people themselves.

Originally, these matters were presided over by the Minister of the Honglu Temple, but he had long been recuperating at home on the pretext of illness, and the huge burden fell on the shoulders of Cui Wenyuan, the Left Shaoqing.

Although there was a Right Shaoqing in the Honglu Temple, the Right Shaoqing said, "You are the second in command. When the Temple Minister is not here, everything will be decided by the Left Shaoqing."

Cui Wenyuan had no power to make any decision, so he could only let his men delay the envoys from the Northern and Southern Dynasties first, especially the Right Shaoqing who wanted to quit his job. Since he said he was the superior, the superior should order him to be responsible for receiving the Japanese who came to the Honglu Temple every day.

But in the end, the Japanese found him and went directly to his house.

First, the Southern Dynasty sent a heavyweight figure, who seemed to be the left minister named Ono Hideyo, who was also a well-known figure there. I don't know how this Japanese name came up, Ono doesn't sound like a double surname.

This Ono Hideyo was not like the Japanese who went to the Honglu Temple to cry and complain in the past. Instead, he directly issued an ultimatum to Cui Wenyuan.

They have been waiting in the Ming Dynasty for many days and have shown all their sincerity, but the Ming Emperor has avoided them. If they continue like this, it means that the Ming Dynasty has no sincerity in accepting Japan's becoming a tributary state, so they will prepare to return home.

Just as Ono Hideyo of the Southern Dynasty left, envoys from the Northern Dynasty came and said the same thing. This made Cui Wenyuan wonder, had these two groups actually discussed it long ago?

Cui Wenyuan certainly did not dare to make the decision on his own regarding such a big matter. He hurried to the palace and reported the matter to Zhu Yuanzhang in detail.

Zhu Yuanzhang's face suddenly turned gloomy.

"Hey, these damn Japanese pirates, how dare you threaten us?"

Mao Xiang couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty, why don't you just arrest all these guys and put them in prison!"

Cui Wenyuan waved his hands and said, "Commander Mao, you can't do this. After all, they are envoys from foreign countries. Even the two sides at war will not kill envoys. Besides, they are here to pay tribute, not to declare war!"

"How long has it been since the Japanese invasion of Shaoxing Prefecture was quelled? Have you forgotten so quickly, Mr. Cui?"

Cui Wenyuan couldn't help but shiver when Mao Xiang got angry. It was impossible to reason with the people from the Jinyiwei.

"Your Majesty, what do you think we should do now?"

"Mr. Cui, you are the Minister of the Honglu Temple of the Ming Dynasty. Are you really stumped by a mere Japanese envoy?"

Zhu Yuanzhang was not as impatient as Mao Xiang. The fact that envoys from the Northern and Southern Dynasties put pressure on Cui Wenyuan again and again could only mean one thing, that these two groups of people were becoming a little impatient.

If they really wanted to leave Ming Dynasty, why would they send people to frequently contact the people from Ming Dynasty Industry Bureau?
Moreover, Zhu Yuanzhang was certain that as long as he did not see them, they would not leave the Ming Dynasty.

Whoever obtains the title from the Ming Dynasty can become the legal ruler of Japan. Are they willing to give up such a huge temptation?

In addition, the right to trade with the Ming Dynasty made it impossible for these greedy guys to refuse.

If we can trade legally, who would be willing to risk being beheaded to engage in smuggling, and who would be willing to become a pirate?

According to Lao Li, Japan was divided into the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and the struggle for territory between the two sides had reached a fever pitch. Whoever could get support from the Ming Dynasty would win the fight.

Although this is just their wishful thinking.

However, although Cui Wenyuan is well-versed in academics, he lacks understanding of political struggles and geopolitical structures.

This problem was not unique to Cui Wenyuan; it seemed to have become a common problem among some officials in the Honglu Temple and the Ministry of Rites.

It seems that we need to strengthen their geopolitical education.

(End of this chapter)