"Father, father, please let the floats into the palace for the performance!" Zhu Huiyin shook the emperor's hand and begged with her little face tilted up.
Zhu Huiying grinned in her mother's arms, nodded her head repeatedly with a smile, and echoed in a childish voice, "Okay, okay."
The emperor laughed, patted his daughter's head, and said, "The float parade will be held in front of the Meridian Gate tomorrow. I'll show it to you."
Performing in the Meridian Gate Square and entering the palace are two different things, but it was not too much for the two little girls. When they heard that they would perform alone, they immediately smiled from ear to ear.
There is a difference between watching outside the palace and attending a special performance. In any case, the emperor prefers this kind of activity in a joyful atmosphere rather than watching a dry performance without an audience.
But the royal rules and majesty are still necessary. Holding a float parade in the palace will be very troublesome with a large number of people and security issues must also be considered.
The two little princesses were sensible and didn't want to go out for a walk or mingle with the crowd.
In the future, the emperor would take them out of the palace for a tour, a so-called incognito visit. But with so many people watching today, they still didn't dare to act casually.
Seeing that the float procession had passed, the emperor set out to return to the palace. He was under the strict protection of the Jinyiwei. Although he was riding in an inconspicuous carriage, it was made of steel plates and was very safe.
The naughty little princess lifted the car curtain a little and glanced at the shops passing by, her face full of curiosity.
Living in the palace is something that countless people envy and desire, but after staying there for a long time, they find the outside world more interesting and fun.
The emperor smiled and straightened his daughter on his lap. He listened to the noisy sounds gradually fading away, feeling deeply moved.
But no matter what, under his wise leadership, the Ming Dynasty's most vicious enemies were defeated and the accumulated evils of the Ming Empire were eliminated.
Although it is not all, and the road to reform is very long, decades of peace and happiness should be guaranteed.
As for major disasters, there are many ways to deal with them, and the emperor is confident that he can continue to lead the Ming Dynasty to sweep across the four directions and become the well-deserved empire on which the sun never sets.
The most direct manifestation of the empire's endurance was the reaction of the people. The people, starving and underfed, overthrew the empire with hoes and sticks, without needing external enemies.
Therefore, expansion, aggression, and plunder are merely means, not ends. The emperor's ultimate goal is to make the country strong and the people prosperous through these means.
As for some wise and powerful rulers, some emperors who expanded the territory, the emperor did not care. A hundred years later, whether it was good or bad, he had no right to care, and what did it have to do with him?
The little princess leaned in the emperor's arms, looking at the scenery outside, grinning and laughing happily.
The emperor felt relieved, knowing that not only his children, but also thousands of other children of the same age in the Ming Dynasty were basically free from the worries of war.
The disasters and turmoil at the end of the Ming Dynasty were a catastrophe, but he had saved the people of the Ming Dynasty from this disaster.
But apart from himself, no one knew about his contributions, just as no one believed that the Jiannu would sweep the world and replace the Ming Dynasty.
But did the emperor care? Holding his daughter in his arms and seeing her smile from the bottom of her heart, everything was worth it.
……………….
History is changing, but not everything is changing. Some things remain much the same as they were in history, only the objects are different.
In the battle of the South China Sea, all the Dutch ships were destroyed, forcing the Dutch to face up to the changes in the foreign policy of the Ming Empire.
Raising an army to retaliate was one option, but after weighing the strength of both sides, the Dutch helplessly discovered that they could not achieve this goal with the power of the East India Company alone.
Moreover, the Ming navy only lagged behind the Western barbarians in terms of ship size, but in terms of quantity, and even the total amount of artillery, it already had an advantage.
Another unchangeable advantage was that the Ming navy could fight in its own coastal waters. In other words, even if they could not defeat the Dutch directly, they could still pose a great threat to the Dutch's maritime trade routes in East Asia.
Considering the number of warships of the East India Company, if every merchant ship going to Japan for trade needed escort, it would be an absolutely impossible task.
Even if we could win a few battles, we would not be able to force the Ming navy to surrender, but would instead risk cutting off their trade routes.
Trade with Japan was one of the main sources of income for the Dutch in Asia. The silk, porcelain, cotton, sugar and other commodities of the Ming Empire were sold well in Europe, generating huge profits.
The Dutch attacked the Portuguese in Macau several times because they wanted to monopolize the Ming Empire's commercial goods and sales in Europe.
In particular, the glass mirrors made in the Ming Dynasty are of much better quality than the mercury mirrors of Venice. They have now become the object of pursuit and purchase by European royal families, nobles and even wealthy people.
In view of the Portuguese's help in the Ming Empire's suppression of the Jiannu Rebellion and the establishment of its navy, the Ming Empire gave a large share of glass mirrors to the Portuguese, which was also the reason why the Dutch were jealous.
But don’t think about targeting the Portuguese now. The Ming Empire has already taken back the administrative power of Macau and stationed troops to protect it.
Some Portuguese chose to continue living in Macau, some went to the newly established trading area in Guangzhou, and others went to the Saigon trading post.
In other words, if the Dutch attack Macau again, they will have to fight against the Ming army, which is an act of war. There is no question of replacing the Portuguese and continuing to maintain trade with the Ming Empire.
Ultimately, the deciding factor is strength.
The Ming Dynasty navy was established on the basis of the navy, but the ideas of ships, artillery and naval warfare were advanced.
In terms of quantity, the number of ships was not more than that of Zheng Zhilong in history, but in terms of quality, it far exceeded the Zheng family fleet.
Cannons, garangs, rockets, the performance of the Ming Navy's weapons and equipment has surpassed the Dutch and even all the Western barbarians.
Of course, the number of ships and artillery far exceeds that of the Dutch East India Company, but it is not the Netherlands. However, it is impossible for the Netherlands to send too many ships to Asia.
However, the Ming Empire has reversed its decline. After solving domestic problems, it has invested more in the navy and developed it faster.
After comprehensive consideration and repeated negotiations, the Dutch East India Company reluctantly accepted the result of failure. In response to the Ming Dynasty's conditions, they sent people to negotiate and paid a ransom for the prisoners of war.
The Dutch were pleased that the Ming Dynasty liberalized free trade, with Shanghai, Guangzhou and Saigon becoming the first ports and trading houses to be opened.
In other words, the Dutch could achieve some of their goals without resorting to war, but it was impossible for them to monopolize the Ming Empire's foreign trade.
As for the taxes collected through the Taiwan Strait, which can also be called protection fees or tolls, it was a normal operation in the international community at that time.
For example, the Dutch signed a treaty with Denmark to obtain the right for cargo ships to pass through the Sound duty-free.
In other words, whether to collect taxes or not depends on negotiations and agreements, and the amount to be collected must also be determined after consultation between the two parties.
Therefore, the bottom line for the Dutch was to accept all the conditions of the Ming Dynasty and participate in the foreign trade of the Ming Empire as a competitor.
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