The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

In theory, these envoys were not qualified to be received in person by the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty. It just happened that the emperor was young and not yet in power, so he was relatively free. He was bored to death being locked up in the palace, and receiving a few foreign envoys was just to add some fun to his boring life.

The emperor received the Spanish delegation, and Min Xi and Yun Ji, who knew Spanish, must be present. Min Xi and Yun Ji entered the palace first, and Emperor Wanli first learned about the Spanish delegation and the specific situation of Spain from them.

"You say that Greater Luzon is currently the most powerful country at sea in Europe?" Wanli asked.

"Your Majesty, that is indeed the case." Yun Ji replied.

Wanli asked again: "How many large ships do they have? Which is stronger, the Luzon Navy or the Ming Navy?"

Yun Ji looked at Min Xi, who nodded slightly and took over the topic: "Your Majesty, overall, our Ming navy is definitely stronger. Because our Ming is far more powerful than Greater Luzon, with a much larger land area and population than Greater Luzon, and a much larger number of navy and warships. If Greater Luzon invades Ming, it will naturally not gain any advantage. But if the number of ships is equal, and the two sides clash, I think the Ming warships will find it difficult to compete with the Luzon warships."

Wanli asked: "Because their ships are better than our Ming ships?"

Min Xi said respectfully, "Ships are one of our advantages. On the other hand, the ships of Greater Luzon, whether merchant ships or warships, were all forged in large and small naval battles, and they have rich naval combat experience. Our navy is mainly defensive, and the navy in Fujian and Zhejiang has more practical experience. Our opponents are Japanese pirates, and the navies in other places have very little practical experience."

Wanli tapped his finger on the table and said, "So we can't underestimate Greater Luzon. I think we should reject this trade request, so that they won't take advantage of the situation."

Min Xi and Yun Ji both bowed and said, "Your Majesty is wise!" He could analyze the pros and cons by himself without having to persuade the emperor, which showed that the governance strategies he had learned over the years were still in place.

Yun Ji said: "Your Majesty, I think that although the two countries do not trade, these European countries can be allowed to pay tribute to the Ming Dynasty every few years, just like the vassal states of the Ming Dynasty." In this way, exchanges with European countries can be maintained and future exchanges of technology will be facilitated. This has always been Min Xi's idea.

Wanli nodded: "Yes!"

Soon after, the Minister of Rites personally accompanied the Spanish delegation into the palace.

After the ceremony, the delegation presented the gifts they were going to give to the emperor, including several coral trees of different colors, a pair of huge giant clam shells, ten perfectly shaped South Sea gold beads, and a snuff bottle from the New World. None of these things were produced in Europe. The only gift that could be considered as from Europe was an oil painting of the Virgin Mary.

In Min Xi's opinion, these things are of no value, but in the Ming Dynasty, whether it is coral, giant clam, or golden pearl, these things are rare and valuable. They are real luxury goods, especially loved and sought after by royal families and dignitaries.

Even Emperor Wanli had never seen such a large giant clam and showed great interest in it. Min Xi roughly estimated that the giant clam was at least one meter wide, which was really rare, so it was no wonder that Emperor Wanli was curious.

These gifts sent by the Spaniards really touched Wanli's heart. They must have been instructed by an expert, otherwise how would they know that the Ming nobles were interested in such flashy things?

Marquez also specifically explained the origin of the pair of giant clams, which they salvaged from the sea at a great expense of manpower and resources. Generally speaking, giant clams that grow to more than one meter are very rare, and they have lived in the sea for at least nearly a hundred years. Moreover, when they captured this giant clam, it was still alive, so they had such a complete pair of giant clams, and their value is inestimable.

He also specifically emphasized the value of giant clams, but Min Xi didn't want to translate it. It was just a rare big shell. How valuable could it be?

Wanli asked: "What is the use of this giant clam?"

Marquez was stunned when he heard Min Xi's translation. He didn't know what the Ming people wanted to do with the giant clams.

Min Xi asked again: "Mr. Marquez, this big shell is not just a decoration, right?"

Marquez had no choice but to say, "Yes. This thing is extremely rare and is usually used as a decoration."

Wanli was a little disappointed after listening to Min Xi's translation: "It's so big, but there is no other use for it?"

Yun Ji interrupted, "Your Majesty, there is actually another use for this giant clam. It can be polished into beads and made into a string of beads that are as white as jade."

"After all, it's just a toy. It took hundreds of years to grow to this size. If it has no other special use, it would be a waste to polish it into beads. It would be better to just leave it like this for people to admire." Wanli said.

After looking at the gifts, Wanli said to Yunji: "Yunqing, you can estimate the value of these tributes and give them gifts of equal value in return. It doesn't matter if you give more."

Yun Ji quickly responded: "I obey your order!"

Wanli asked some more questions about Spain. Min Xi translated his words to Marquez and others, and then translated Marquez and others' words to Wanli.

Although the Fujian translator was listening, he did not interrupt. It was obvious that Marquez and others trusted Min Xi very much.

Marquez was very concerned about the issue of trade, so he asked it in person: "Your Majesty, our Spanish King has always admired you and your country very much and hopes that our two countries can establish friendly diplomatic relations and conduct trade between the two countries. So we sincerely ask Your Majesty to agree to our request."

After listening to the translation, Wanli said, "Min Qing, tell them that trade between the two countries is not allowed. However, it is possible for the two countries to establish friendly diplomatic relations and allow them to come to the Ming Dynasty to pay tribute every three years."

Min Xi said to Marquez, "Mr. Marquez, our emperor said that trade between the two countries is not possible for the time being. In fact, there is not much difference between our Ming merchant ships and Spanish merchant ships in Luzon. Our emperor has allowed the two countries to establish friendly diplomatic relations. You can visit Ming once every three years. When our country's policies change in the future, perhaps foreign merchant ships can dock at our Ming ports for trade."

Marquez was a little disappointed when he heard this: "Why? We abide by the laws of the Ming Dynasty and pay taxes like the Ming merchant ships. Isn't it okay?"

Min Xi shook his head: "I'm really sorry, it's not possible for now. Although I personally hope that European ships can enter the ports of Daming, I am just a small diplomat, and these are not up to me."

Marquez thought about it and couldn't help sighing: "We have been here for so long and still got nothing."

Min Xi comforted him: "Don't worry, our emperor will reward you with gifts and will not let you down."

In fact, this result was within Marquez's expectations. The Ming Dynasty's maritime trade policy was like this, and it would never change because of their visit. He knew that he could not gain anything, so he had to stop talking.

At noon, Wanli rewarded these foreign guests with a court banquet.

The Spaniards experienced true luxury and elegance. Everything from the food to the utensils were exquisite. While they were eating, there were musicians playing and court dancers performing, which truly opened the eyes of these country bumpkins.

After the palace banquet, Min Xi and Yun Ji accompanied the Spanish delegation to leave the palace.

Min Xi said: "Mr. Marquez, our emperor will give you generous rewards, so please wait a few days before leaving Beijing."

Marquez nodded somewhat listlessly: "I understand."

Min Xi added: "In fact, from my personal point of view, I still hope that Spanish merchant ships can dock at Quanzhou Port. After all, Lord Yun and I have been doing business with Spanish merchants in Luzon."