Just as Minamoto no Tomonobu guessed, in the next four negotiations, more than 120 Japanese envoys were beaten to death outside the Fengtian Hall.

This also led to Zhan Hui's reputation as a cruel official becoming even more serious.

Other ministers all avoided it, but Zhan Hui enjoyed it.

"Master, isn't this a bit too much? I'm afraid it will be difficult to get rid of this reputation of bloodlust."

"Your Highness, the Crown Prince is like this. I think you should be more careful."

"Don't be the scapegoat."

At night, Zhan Hui's wife persuaded.

Zhan Hui snorted coldly: "You are a woman, how can you know what the court is."

"Right now, the Ming Dynasty and Japan are at war, and hundreds or even thousands of soldiers are losing their lives on the battlefield every day. What do these hundred or so people mean to us?"

"Besides, this is to vent the anger in His Majesty's heart. Who knows how happy His Majesty must be right now."

"Besides, this is also what His Royal Highness the Crown Prince meant. He must have hatred for Japan. You don't know that although His Majesty wanted to conquer Japan, he gave up after Liu Ji's persuasion."

"Later, we felt that conquering Japan was too dangerous and might repeat the mistakes of the Mongols, so we launched a maritime ban just to prevent Japanese pirates from invading the border."

"So the expedition against Japan was initiated by His Royal Highness. Now that Japan is under pressure from the loss of its country, it wants to stop the war. His Royal Highness will naturally not let go of this opportunity."

"Now, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is gaining more and more influence. Not only in the court, but also in the officials, common people, and warriors of the world, all worship him as a god."

"The recent improvement in the salary system can be said to have truly brought benefits to officials. Only by following His Royal Highness the Crown Prince closely can one's future career be guaranteed."

"Don't think too much about other things. You have to know that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is only 19 years old. The future of the Ming Dynasty depends entirely on His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

"I heard from the palace that His Royal Highness is in good health and vigor. This Ming Dynasty will be under His Royal Highness's rule for the next few decades."

"For a king like this, even if he bears some infamy, what impact will it have?"

As Zhan Hui spoke, he sighed.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is really too young, too young.

At such a young age, he has firmly grasped the power of the Ming Dynasty. Now, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has supporters from all walks of life, including scholars, farmers, merchants and workers.

Everyone can see that under the rule of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, the future of the Ming Dynasty will surely be prosperous.

…

In the Fengtian Hall, there were compilers of the capital's gazette.

After all, the Imperial Gazette has now been classified as an official position. Although its rank is among the eighth and ninth ranks, the power it controls cannot be underestimated.

With Zhu Ying's approval, Zhan Hui's deeds were naturally reported in the latest official gazette of the capital.

The people all share the same opinion on this.

Some people said that Zhan Hui was too vicious and committed such a massacre. He was not worthy of the position of Shangshu and brought disgrace to the image of the Celestial Empire.

As a great Ming Dynasty, we should be lenient to others and not be petty. This is the only way to embody the demeanor of a great country.

This kind of atmosphere was first prevalent in the capital city and is also the consistent style of Confucianism.

However, when an article titled "Repaying Kindness with Kindness, How to Repay Kindness?" was published in the Imperial Gazette, all public opinion suddenly reversed.

This article describes the measures taken by successive dynasties towards neighboring countries, especially some tribes on the grassland.

Including various favors, appeasement, even marriage and compensation.

When the Central Plains dynasty was weak, the originally peaceful small countries around it suddenly showed their ferocious faces, and everyone wanted to take a bite.

But when the Central Plains dynasty became strong, they would retract their claws and be as docile and obedient as sheep, just to get enough benefits.

Since the Tang Dynasty, Japan has received help from the Central Plains dynasties.

The Ming Dynasty was also a dynasty in the Central Plains, but Japan, because it was located in a remote corner, was not involved in the war. Moreover, because of the failure of the Mongol invasion of Japan, it became arrogant.

When the envoys of the Ming Dynasty went to Japan and asked Japan to return to the embrace of the Central Plains dynasty, it not only flatly refused, but also beheaded the envoys of the Ming Dynasty and openly challenged the Ming Dynasty.

How can one repay evil with kindness when doing this?

When this article became popular, coupled with the foreshadowing that Japan had laid during the war, the people's anger was finally ignited.

Zhan Hui, who was originally despised, seemed to have become a hero of the entire Ming Dynasty overnight.

"The power of public opinion is so terrifying!"

When Zhu Yuanzhang heard the report from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he couldn't help but sigh deeply.

What does it mean to be afraid of what people say? This is what it means to be afraid of what people say.

When everyone thinks that something is right, even if it is wrong, it is still right.

Zhu Yuanzhang now has a clearer understanding of the official reports. Zhu Ying's operation made Zhu Yuanzhang deeply realize that the people's hearts can be manipulated in this way.

During the seventh negotiation between Ming and Japan, Zhu Ying finally appeared in the Fengtian Hall.

At this time, there were only about twenty Japanese envoys left.

The first moment he saw His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty, Minamoto Tomonobu offered all the beauties and treasures to him without hesitation.

Zhu Ying naturally had no reason to refuse and accepted it all.

Let’s not talk about the treasures. At this time, the Japanese envoy’s true intentions were revealed.

Among the many beautiful women in Japan, there is actually one who is the daughter of the current emperor of Japan.

Even most of the Japanese envoys did not know about this matter. Only a few people, including Minamoto no Tomonobu, understood the inside story.

The Emperor of Japan obviously wanted to establish a marriage alliance.

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has issued an order for the Japanese princess to enter the Fengtian Palace."

At Zhu Ying's signal, Liu He stepped forward and gave orders loudly.

Minamoto Tomonobu was overjoyed and immediately asked someone to bring the Japanese princess over.

Of course, Zhu Ying did not have any special feelings for the Japanese princess, but he wanted to see what the Japanese princess looked like.

It can be predicted that after this war against Japan, coupled with the development of maritime trade, the exchanges between Ming and Japan will continue to deepen.

On the political level, there are of course other means besides war.

For example, Zhu Ying’s son, who has the blood of the Japanese emperor.

The Japanese Kingdom was influenced by the Tang Dynasty, and everyone, whether it was the emperor, the guardian daimyo, or the nobles of each tribe, were very obsessed with bloodline.

This kind of persistence is even stronger than that of the dynasties in the Central Plains.

In the Ming Dynasty, according to moral principles, only cousins ​​were allowed to marry.

But in Japan, even cousins ​​can get married. In order to maintain the so-called purity of blood, marriage between close relatives is a very common phenomenon in Japan.

If you cannot completely change their cultural customs, then look for loopholes in their culture and attack them.

The fastest way to gain nominal power in Japan is through bloodline.

When a child has the blood of the Japanese emperor and the royal family of the Ming Dynasty, he will be the most noble person for Japan, which attaches great importance to the nobility of blood.

But there is still a premise here.

Zhu Ying doesn't want to compromise herself because of this plan.

It is said that Japanese princesses are generally very ugly, so you have to look at the person first, otherwise you would rather spend the cost of forcibly conquering Japan than taking her as a concubine.

This is his bottom line.

Not long after, the Japanese princess arrived at the Fengtian Palace accompanied by her maid.

Fortunately, Zhu Ying had good eyesight and could see clearly even when standing in the Golden Throne Hall.

Overall, it is pretty good.

In terms of appearance and figure, she meets Zhu Ying's standards.

When Yuan Youxin saw His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty nodded slightly, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, as he had finally passed the test.

You have to know that Minamoto Tomonobu took great pains to present the princess this time.

When selecting the princess before coming here, Minamoto Tomonori insisted that the princess must be one who met the aesthetic standards of the Ming Dynasty, because the princess for this marriage would be the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty.

The Crown Prince is less than twenty years old, so he must attach great importance to beauty.

Choose repeatedly among many princesses.

Both body shape and appearance are strictly checked before the specific candidates are selected.

When they came, according to Japanese customs, they were dressed like women from the Tang Dynasty.

After arriving in the Ming Dynasty, she immediately changed into the most popular female dress in the Ming Dynasty, and every detail is worth mentioning.

This is why His Royal Highness the Crown Prince nodded today.

…

Xiangzi quietly raised her head and looked at her future husband, and a blush suddenly appeared on her face.

I think the princesses of Japan are used as objects of marriage, which is a tradition since ancient times.

After a princess gets married, her title of princess will be revoked. This is also influenced by some customs of the Central Plains dynasty that if you marry a chicken, you follow the chicken; if you marry a dog, you follow the dog.

Not only the Japanese princesses, but the Japanese royal family themselves do not have surnames, perhaps because of the unanimous lineage.

The royal family of the Japanese kings used the palace name or honorific title plus their names.

The title of an unmarried princess is Princess In-law.

Xiangzi's current title should be Jinggong Xiangzi Inner Prince.

Jinggong is the name of the Japanese palace, Xiangzi is her name, and Neiqinwang is her title.

After getting married, the family becomes part of the husband's family.

When Zhu Ying took her as his concubine, she should have been called Zhu Xiangzi.

After hearing Envoy Minamoto Tomonori kowtow to express his gratitude to His Majesty the Crown Prince, Xiangzi also hurriedly followed suit.

She was delighted to know that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had taken a liking to her, and that she would be chosen to become his concubine in the future.

This is an extremely lucky thing for her.

According to the current situation in Japan, her title of Japanese Princess will not be revoked and will be retained.

The key point is that she is now going to marry the richest, most powerful man in the world, who has the strongest soldiers and the most vast territory, and the future Emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

In today's world, no one can resist the prosperity of the capital.

During the time she was waiting at Tianjie Temple in the capital, she had been to the capital once. Even though it was only for a short half day, she had already fallen deeply in love with this place.

Compared to the capital of the Ming Dynasty, the capital of Japan is simply a rural place.

There are endless delicacies, various clothes from beyond the distant ocean, and rare treasures from all over the world.

Exquisite and luxurious buildings, clean and tidy streets, every citizen here is energetic and full of vigor.

She really likes it here.

Especially, she was going to marry the man in the Golden Palace who completely intoxicated her at first sight.

At the same time, she felt a little worried.

Because she is already sixteen years old, which is considered relatively old in Japan.

Originally, she should not have been selected, but among all the beauty pageants, she was the only one who best met the aesthetic standards of the Ming Dynasty. It was Yuan Youxin next to her who strongly recommended her that led to her inclusion.

When she looked up, Xiangzi couldn't help but show a look of gratitude to Minamoto Tomonori.

Yuan Youxin knew the taboos of the Ming Dynasty, so naturally he didn't dare to look at it any more at this time.

Xiangzi was taken away.

Because there is a rather cumbersome process of identity verification.

For example, we need to make sure that Xiangzi is a virgin, and her physical health must also be strictly guaranteed, without any infectious diseases.

The palace has its own imperial physician and the nanny is in charge of these.

After that, Xiangzi will no longer follow to Tianjie Temple, but will live directly in the back hall of Kunning Palace.

According to the current rules of the Ming Dynasty court, Xiangzi can choose a Japanese maid to be by her side to dress her up.

Of course, even a maid must be a virgin.

This is not directed at anyone, but all women in the palace must be like this.

Things turned out just as Minamoto Tomonobu had guessed. After Princess Xiangzi was chosen by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty, the subsequent negotiations went relatively smoothly.

At least there were no more cases of Japanese envoys being beaten to death, and the officials from the Ming Dynasty had changed from their previous aggressiveness to serious conversations.

Finally, normal negotiations have been restored.

It seemed that because the Japanese princess became the concubine of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty, the Japanese envoys spoke with some confidence.

On the Ming side, Zhan Hui also began to relax a little.

For example, the war compensation of 100 million taels has been negotiated to 90 million taels, and instead of the previous one-time payment, it can be paid in installments over many years based on the situation of the Japanese royal family.

Of the five countries that were originally to be ceded, the situations of four countries have now been discussed, and this includes one country from Goryeo.

After all, Goryeo also made contributions. As the leader, Ming Dynasty cannot just eat meat itself and not give soup to its younger brothers.

Yuan Youxin could only express his understanding of this.

Then there is the issue of the burden of military expenses for Ming stationed troops. Originally, Ming proposed that Japan should bear the entirety of the food and wages for Ming stationed troops, but now it has been changed to bearing 60%.

And then there is the right of way.

The original requirement was that all Ming merchants could travel freely to any place in Japan.

Now it has been changed to exclude the Japanese royal palace, private residences of the nobles, etc.

Opening up trading rooms throughout Japan is a gift to Japan, not a punishment.

The Japanese were eager for the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty and would ship more goods to Japan for dumping. Tea, silk, porcelain, etc. from the Central Plains were the best-selling items in the world.

As for Ming people committing crimes in Japan, they will naturally be punished by the Ming side. No Japanese government has the right to deal with them. No matter what the crime is, even if it is murder or arson, it should be dealt with by the Ming government office in Japan.

There is nothing to discuss on this point, and it is also the bottom line of this negotiation.

Yuan Youxin is already very satisfied to be able to talk about this.

There was even louder cheering from the Japanese envoys at Tianjie Temple.

The next step was to send the content to His Majesty the Emperor as quickly as possible, and then immediately issue a letter of surrender, recognizing the Ming Dynasty as the suzerain state and ending the war in Japan.