Chapter 275: Using Ryukyu as a base, preparing the first armored fleet of the Ming Dynasty
As the suzerain state, the Central Plains dynasty adhered to the principle of "giving less and giving more".

In other words, for the envoys from those countries who came to pay tribute, the Central Plains dynasty would give them generous rewards several times or even dozens of times what they contributed.

To ensure that these foreign envoys can return home satisfied.

Zheng He's expedition to the Western Ocean with a huge fleet was actually a concrete manifestation of this "tributary system".

However, it should be noted that there was no commercial intention involved in the entire voyage.

Not only that, the cost of forming such a large fleet is enormous.

Add to that the various rare items loaded on the ship for rewarding other countries, and the expense is staggering.

According to Volume 1 of Guangzhiyi written by Wang Shixing in the Ming Dynasty, “In the early years of this dynasty, the national treasury was full and abundant.

The highly respected eunuch Zheng He, who was known as the Three Treasures, sailed west on the voyage, carrying more than seven million taels of silver.

After ten years, he still had more than one million taels of silver left when he finally returned. "

It can be seen from this that although this massive ocean voyage demonstrated the great national strength of the Ming Empire, it was undoubtedly a heavy burden from an economic perspective.

Due to the inability to obtain direct and substantial economic returns, the Ming Dynasty gradually became unable to continue such large-scale maritime expeditions, which eventually led to the decline of its ocean-going business.

From the vast and voluminous historical materials mentioned above, we can clearly see this fact.

Zheng He led a huge fleet and sailed to the Western Ocean in a mighty manner.

This feat actually cost more than six million taels of silver.

Such a huge expenditure is really staggering.

However, after going through untold hardships, this majestic fleet returned victoriously from the distant Western Ocean.

People were surprised to find that the treasure ships that returned home fully loaded did not contain any practical goods from foreign countries.

Instead, there are piles of priceless, dazzling and expensive jewels.

Faced with this situation, the important minister Liu Daxia, who had assisted Emperor Xiaozong of the Ming Dynasty in successfully creating the prosperous situation of "Hongzhi Restoration", came to the rescue.

He could not help but criticize bitterly: "The eunuch Zheng He's voyage to the West cost tens of millions of dollars.

Countless brave and fearless soldiers and civilians paid their precious lives for this, and the price they paid is simply immeasurable.

Even if we do return triumphantly with some treasures, what substantial benefits will it bring to our country?
In the final analysis, this is nothing more than a bad policy that wastes people's time and money!"

To be fair, Liu Daxia's remarks are not groundless if we examine them from the perspective of the actual historical development at that time.

After all, if you sail on the ocean, you will not be able to obtain sufficient economic benefits as a solid backing.

Then it seemed only natural that Zheng He's grand plan of sailing to the West was eventually forced to be shelved or even terminated.

In sharp contrast, most European countries at that time were poor and destitute.

Even the high-ranking royal family members often found themselves in the embarrassing situation of being stretched to the limit, so that they had to humble themselves and borrow money from merchants to survive.

That's why once they realized that ocean sailing was a profitable business.

No matter they were the noble royal aristocrats or the ordinary people, they all willingly and wholeheartedly joined in the struggle.

Let us pursue together the blue ocean of infinite possibilities and the wealth and glory it brings.

For example, Prince Henry of Portugal was an outstanding pioneer in ocean voyages and a strong organizer. There were many famous people, such as Vasco da Gama, Columbus, and Magellan.

All thanks to the strong support of the royal family, they were able to accomplish such a great feat.

It is worth mentioning that the King of Spain at that time even signed the world-famous "Santa Fe Treaty" with Columbus.

The treaty clearly stated: "The King of Spain is the legitimate sovereign and ruler of all newly discovered territories.

At the same time, the King of Spain appointed Columbus to important positions such as governor, imperial commissioner and naval commander of the above-mentioned areas.

Give them the right to receive one-tenth of all local income.”

Given its own overseas expansion plans, it is very likely that it will repeat the mistakes of Zheng He's voyages to the West in the future.

That is, at the most glorious and brilliant moment, it unfortunately encountered the fate of dying halfway.

Therefore, after that in-depth conversation with his father and brother, Zhu Gang began to spare no effort to maintain close contact with Taiki, the younger brother of Satto, the King of Chuzan of the Ryukyu Kingdom.

He was fully looking forward to successfully promoting the establishment of Ming Dynasty's first overseas military base.

"The Ming Dynasty had already made careful preparations and decided to set up Ryukyu Halls in the Imperial College and Fuzhou to receive students from vassal states.

In this way, young students who leave their hometowns and travel across the ocean to study in a foreign country can immerse themselves wholeheartedly in the long, profound and vast Chinese culture.

Absorb to your heart's content the endless wisdom and essence contained therein.

Among these outstanding students, the ones who performed the best and stood out from the crowd.

There is even a chance to take the imperial examination, which could potentially lead to an official position in the imperial court.

When Zhu Gang took the initiative to throw out this extremely attractive "big pie", Taiqi seemed calm and composed.

His face was as calm as water, and he replied calmly: "I, Ryukyu, have always had deep respect and admiration for your splendid culture, and I long to have more extensive and in-depth exchanges with Ming.

However, as the old saying goes: No reward without merit, if His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin has other requests for our service.

Please do not worry about anything and just tell us directly and frankly. ”

Now that he had met someone as clear-headed and sharp-eyed as Taiqi, Zhu Gang naturally didn't want to beat around the bush any more.

Anyway, the other party has already seen through my plan, so it would be better to be honest with him.

Zhu Gang then said directly: "I do have something to ask of you. To be honest, the Ming Bank needs gold and silver as reserves.

As far as I know, there has always been trade between Ryukyu and Japan.

I hope that you and I can jointly develop Japan's gold and silver mine resources based on the principle of "mutual benefit".

In return, the Ming Dynasty can help Ryukyu and train a coastal fleet that is no less powerful than the Yuan Dynasty's navy."

Zhu Gang knew that if he wanted to expand the Ming Dynasty's maritime power, relying solely on a few ironclad ships would be far from enough.

It is necessary to be able to organize an ironclad fleet so that one can gain an advantageous position in battle.

This requires increasing the number of ironclad ships to at least three.

In addition, the fleet is not only about gathering a number of ships, but more importantly, it is about making these ships form an efficient combat group through coordinated actions.

(End of this chapter)