The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

In addition to modifying the sails, Min Xi and Yun Ji also had to check the purchased goods and recruit sailors. It was not easy to recruit sailors for this ship. Those who came to apply for the job backed out when they heard that they would be going to Europe for more than a year.

Because so far, no Ming ship has ever been to Europe. It is too far, too long, and too dangerous. Although Min Xi and Yun Ji repeatedly emphasized that they could guarantee everyone's safety, most people were unwilling to go. Making money is important, but saving lives is more important.

In order to recruit enough sailors, they had to raise the wages, even to four times the wages of going to Southeast Asia. A trip to Europe could earn 300 taels of silver. This was equivalent to the income of many farmers for more than ten years, and was several times higher than the wages of European sailors. There was no other way. No one had been there before. It was too risky, and a big reward was needed to attract brave men.

In the gap between modifying the sails, preparing supplies and recruiting staff, Min Xi also took the time to go to the government office and ask the clerk in charge of farming about the harvest of the crops they brought back.

All in all, there are good and bad. The corn harvest is OK, the pepper is not so good, the tomato is neither good nor bad, and the sweet potato has not been harvested yet. In any case, the seeds are there, and they can be planted again next year. Min Xi's purpose of bringing the seeds back to Daming has been achieved.

By the end of September in the Western calendar, the sails were finally modified, and Min Xi had prepared everything he needed for going out to sea: cargo, food, water, medicinal materials, fishing nets, fishing rods, etc.

Their ship was the largest among Chinese sailing ships, with a size similar to that of a galleon, and its carrying capacity was no less than that of a galleon. However, since Chinese sailing ships were not as fast as galleons, Min Xi and Yun Ji intentionally reduced their load, so they could carry less cargo than galleons. But for safety and speed, it was worth it.

After everything was ready, they finally set sail south to meet the Jazz in Macau.

They also knew that the Jazz must have been waiting anxiously. But Min Xi knew that even in the middle and late October of the Gregorian calendar, there would still be typhoons in the South China Sea and the North Indian Ocean. At that time, the Yunxiang fleet encountered a typhoon in the Indian Ocean in November.

Although the chance is very small, you should still try to avoid storms if you can. If you encounter one, you may never recover.

Yun Ji explained the matter to Yun An and asked him to return to Beijing to assist Yun Zhen in managing Yun Xiang. Yun An accepted the order, and as soon as Yun Ji left, he settled the affairs of the Quanzhou branch and also set off to return to Beijing.

By the end of September, the autumn wind began to rise, and the wind blowing on the South China Sea was no longer entirely from the south. There was occasionally north wind, so the ship's speed was still acceptable. However, due to the heavy load, the speed could not be fast, and it took eight days to reach Macau.

Captain Almeida stayed in Macau for more than half a year. He often looked at the calm sea and thought that he should not listen to Min Xi and Yun Ji's advice and wait in Macau. He should go to the South Seas for one or two trips. Whenever he had this idea, a typhoon would come unexpectedly, blowing his ship docked in the harbor tossing and turning, almost flipping over. He would be glad that he didn't go out, otherwise everyone would be buried in the belly of the fish.

After repeating this two or three times and seeing several typhoons, he finally gave up the idea. Now that September had passed, he felt that he should prepare to set off, so he exchanged the remaining silver for tea, lacquerware, silk and other items, and began to prepare food.

But Min Xi and Yun Ji never showed up, and he was so anxious that his mouth was covered with blisters. Could it be that they were not going? As a last resort, he had to ask someone to write a letter to Quanzhou Yunxianghao to ask them whether they were going or not.

As a result, before the letter was sent, Min Xi, Yun Ji and their ship had already arrived in Macau.

Almeida looked at them and spread her hands: "My dear friends, I thought you would never come again."

Min Xi went up to him and hugged him. "I'm sorry, there were a lot of things to do at home, and then we modified our sails, which took some time, but I think it's not too late to set off now. I even suggest that we can leave a little later."

Almeida showed an exaggerated expression: "Will it be later?"

Min Xi smiled and said, "In the southern ocean of our Ming Dynasty, there may even be typhoons in October."

"With all of September being calm, I think the likelihood of a return is slim, if any. I suggest setting off early," Almeida said.

"Okay, let's prepare everything and then we can set off." Min Xi said.

Almeida said: "Give me two more days to prepare food and water, and then we can set off. Are your things ready?" Almeida asked.

"Just replenish some food and water. I have to make it clear to you first, our ship has changed its sails, so its speed will definitely not be as fast as yours. You need to slow down and don't leave us too far behind." Min Xi said.

Almeida said, "No problem! I plan to go to Malacca and find one or two more ships back to Portugal, and form a team together, so that the safety factor can be higher."

"Okay." Min Xi knew that this was necessary, but he also knew that if he found another boat to go with him, he would have to tell others that they would have to wait for him.

Almeida suddenly asked, "Where's Mr. Hughes?"

Min Xi sighed and said, "Mr. Hughes passed away. We originally wanted to leave him in the capital, but he didn't want to. He said he wanted to come with us. As a result, he encountered a hurricane in Suzhou. He was caught in the rain and became very ill. He died before he reached Quanzhou. We buried him at sea."

Upon hearing this, Almeida quickly made the sign of the cross and said, "May God bless him! It's such a pity. But his health is really not very good. When I left Macau last time, I felt that I might never see him again, and it turned out to be true. What about the navigator on your ship?"

Yun Ji said, "I'll do it myself."

Almeida nodded: "That's fine, just follow us."

So everyone took the time to restock and prepare to set off.

When Almeida went to prepare food, he suddenly remembered something. Min Xi would not be on the Jazz this time. He would definitely take his own ship, which meant that they would never be able to eat delicious meals again. When buying food, they could only focus on finished products and not buy too much ingredients.

Min Xi said: "Igor's cooking skills should be pretty good. He learned a lot of dishes from me."

"He is a little better than before, but his skills cannot compare with yours." Almeida said with great regret.

Min Xi said, "It's okay. Every time we get to the supply point, we can cook and eat together. I'll buy you some seasonings. I'm sure the dishes Igor makes will taste almost as good as mine."

"Really?" Almeida asked doubtfully.

"When have I ever lied to you?" Min Xi bought a large piece of soy sauce paste for Jazz, which is a solid soy sauce made from soybean meal bran.

The same is true for what Min Xi brought with him. This kind of soy sauce paste is durable and easy to carry, so there is no need to worry about the soy sauce bottle being broken by bumps and collisions at sea. Every time you cook, you can cut a small piece and put it in warm water to dissolve it and then use it.

It has to be said that the wisdom of the Chinese people is endless.

In addition to the soy sauce paste, Min Xi also asked Almeida to buy a lot of oranges to bring on board, which would solve the problem of vitamin intake for the sailors. Min Xi planned to eat oranges in the Nanyang section, and when he arrived in Southeast Asia, he would find lemons to bring on board. Lemons have thick skins and are high in vitamin C. They are not easy to rot even after two or three months, which can prevent scurvy.

The Ming sailors had never been on such a long voyage. They had never experienced scurvy and did not know how terrible it was. Min Xi knew this, so he had to take precautions and make adequate preparations. They had brought so many people out, so they had to bring them all back safely.

What Min Xi and Yun Ji were most worried about were storms and pirates. If they encountered a storm, they would have no choice but to leave it to fate. If they encountered pirates, since the Ming merchant ships did not have cannons installed, they would be like fish on the chopping board, and could only be slaughtered at will.

Therefore, their ship had to follow the Jazz closely, and it would be best if they could find a few Portuguese merchant ships to return together. Pirate ships were still quite wary of large fleets, and they usually would not take action if they did not have an absolute advantage.

It took several days to purchase various supplies. By the time we set out, it was already October and September in the lunar calendar, and the Mid-Autumn Festival had long passed. However, Macau did not feel the autumn atmosphere and was still very hot and stuffy.

Min Si said to Almeida, "This weather is not right. It is abnormally hot. Let's wait a few more days. I think there will be another hurricane."

Almeida looked at the blue sky and white clouds and said, "It's a bit hot these past two days. Are you sure there will be a hurricane?"

"I feel like there will be. If you don't believe me, let's go ask a local fisherman," said Min Xi.

"Alright."

So Min Xi and Yun Ji led Almeida to ask the owners of the small sailboats waiting to load cargo. Min Xi was about to ask when he heard Yun Ji say, "Look over there, the Cai brothers."

Min Xi looked in the direction of his hand, and sure enough, there was a small sailboat moored at the harbor. Min Xi waved happily and said hello: "Brother Cai!"

Cai Da and Cai Er heard his voice and looked over, both smiling in surprise: "Boss Min, you're here again? Are you going to hire a boat again?"

Cai Da jumped off the boat and walked towards them.

Min Xi also took a few steps forward: "No, we plan to go out to sea. I feel that the weather has been abnormally hot these two days. I feel that a typhoon is coming. What do you think?"

"Yes, the tide has been loud these two days, and the waves are bigger than usual. There must be a typhoon. Don't go out to sea these two days. Wait until the typhoon is over before setting off again." Cai Da suggested.

"Yes, I also feel something is wrong. My friend from Fulanji doesn't believe it, so I brought him out to ask you locals." Min Xi said.

"That's right, there will be a typhoon. Don't go out to sea. Wait until it's over." Cai Da said very confidently.