New Shun 1730

Shi Shiyong was a confidant around the emperor and a very traditional "scholar".

Especially after being around the emperor for a long time, he is very sensitive to the hierarchy.

Originally, he was somewhat puzzled by the emperor asking him to go to Japan.

But after living here for a few years, I feel more and more confident that I have figured it out.

The Japanese are so arrogant, arrogant, and self-righteous. If they are not punished, it will be very wrong.

This is different from North Korea. Although North Korea has always respected the Ming Dynasty, because of Wanli's aid to the Dynasty, there is also a traditional morality involved, and Dashun also acquiesces - as long as you don't respect the Ming Dynasty as orthodox when paying tribute, you secretly It's understandable that Dashun doesn't care about it. It's a favor to save the country.

But Japan is completely different. No matter how arrogant North Korea is, it never says that it thinks "I am also orthodox and can replace it."

Liu Yu liked Shi Shiyong's attitude very much. This was exactly what Liu Yu wanted.

He didn't care about the armaments and other intelligence collected by Shi Shiyong in Japan. The high-level information was out of reach and the low-level information was meaningless.

What he cared about was the content about orthodoxy and transgression collected by Shi Shiyong.

If he wanted to attack Japan, although Liu Yu's idea was to get money, the court was very particular about being honest, so if he said he wanted to get money, it would definitely not work.

But this incident, coupled with the fact that Ryukyu paid tribute from both sides, was enough to cause a great turmoil.

I already have a pretext, and I'm just waiting for an opportunity to detonate it.

"Brother Heisei, are you feeling unhappy? I just have some words, please remember them."

"Speaking."

"Don't take risks. Brother Heisei is someone close to His Majesty. Some words, I say, may not be useful to Brother Heisei. In a few years, Brother Heisei will find an opportunity to return to the country. Before that, he must cherish himself."

Shi Shiyong nodded and said: "Don't worry, I know what I'm here to do. I can distinguish between severity and relief. As Brother Shou Chang warned before, I don't ask, just watch, and keep it in my heart silently. The Japanese want to learn. I teach cavalry and archery, and I don’t hide my secrets. Since Your Majesty trusts Brother Shouchang, I naturally follow the orders, and I am confident that cavalry and archery are already outdated. However, after living in Edo for several years, I heard that the Japanese also did this eighty years ago. Have you ever studied Western military formations?”

"There is also a book called "Siege Methods of Arlando Yurian Mou" written by a Swede. I also asked someone to help translate and read it. The methods in it are too different from those used by Brother Shouchang in the north. And Not to mention that there has been no progress in eighty years, but I think it is difficult for the Japanese to reuse the contents of this military book. "

Liu Yu thought to himself, you said you knew what you were doing, but I think you didn't know at all.

"Brother Heisei, you really don't need to worry about the armaments of the Japanese. I know what the armaments of the Japanese are like. How can there be usable soldiers in the world who have not fought for a hundred years? It goes without saying that their armaments are lax. Brother Heisei should pay more attention to it. This is their general attitude toward the country, and you will tell it to your Majesty when you return."

Since the emperor asked Shi Shiyong to listen to Liu Yu's arrangements, and Liu Yu asked him this, he readily agreed.

"Yes, I have written this down. Brother Shouchang has to be careful when he comes this time. Now that he has left the town, he can't hide it if he wants to. Those maritime merchants said everything, and Brother Shouchang robbed them again. How can they not care about the trade letter? "

Liu Yu laughed and said: "Hide it? I didn't want to hide it at all. Brother Pingcheng didn't even think about it. In the first trade, I can transport master warriors like you and uncastrated war horses. No matter how stupid the Japanese are, You should also know that my identity is not that simple.”

…………

As Shi Shiyong guessed.

Tokugawa Yoshimune was very interested in Liu Yu's identity. In the Tang Dynasty storybooks sent from Nagasaki, businessmen from Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Fujian used various channels to find out Liu Yu's identity.

Although it is not clear, it is also known that he seems to have a prominent family. It's just that the businessman has a low status after all, and it is impossible to know too much about the affairs of the capital.

As a side branch who inherited the position of shogun and experienced the suffering at the bottom, Tokugawa Yoshimune can be regarded as a reformer.

It's just that the so-called reforms are just to stabilize the rule of the shogunate.

Culturally, he promoted Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism, and economically he also carried out many reforms to maintain his rule. He himself also liked to study Western knowledge, especially mathematics and astronomy.

The price of rice has been bothering him over the years. Until a few days ago, Nagasaki sent a pamphlet.

It briefly introduces the meaning of some currencies, but it is quite shocking in this era.

Tokugawa Yoshimune never suspected that Liu Yu was a spy sent by Dashun, because a spy could not really bring war horses, doctors, military books, or even pamphlets on rice price reform.

The only thing I doubt is what Liu Yu's purpose is.

After this pamphlet on currency reform was delivered, Tokugawa Yoshimune spent five days reading it carefully, and shared it with his close friends and discussed it, and found it quite reasonable.

Most importantly, this pamphlet provided a "benevolent and righteous" basis for the shogunate's reforms.

Re-coining and reducing the fineness of coins will definitely be considered as "coining profit" and "exploitation".

However, this pamphlet gave a valid reason: the reason why the price of rice is so low is because the total amount of currency is too small, which makes people unwilling to buy rice with currency, but are willing to keep the currency and wait for appreciation. If there is less money circulating in the market, the price of rice will be low; if you want to increase the price of rice, you need to mint more money. The fineness of gold and silver coins has decreased. If copper coins are not enough, iron coins can be cast instead.

This is not a trick, but there is a reason behind it.

After reading it, several close ministers and confidants all felt that it made sense, and they all praised this person for his talent. This statement is not only very reasonable, but also makes people suddenly enlightened.

But judging from his knowledge, it is clear that this person's identity is very different.

Merchants are not necessarily without talent, but they are limited by their vision and it is difficult for them to think about problems from the perspective of a country... Of course, they are not without talent, but it is just the special situation of East Asian scholars, farmers, merchants and businessmen, and they regard the special situation here as the norm.

Based on this matter alone, they think that Liu Yu must have a noble identity, at least he is someone who has been exposed to national politics since childhood. According to Japan, a society where kings, princes, generals and ministers are indeed kind, it is indeed right to think so.

Tokugawa Yoshimune was more and more confused. Even though he knew that Liu Yu had a strong background in China, he couldn't figure out what Liu Yu was going to do?

Was it because the Chinese side was embarrassed to say that they were reunited, so they sent someone to explore the way by means of business?

If so, it is not impossible to make some contact. If the previous Kanko trade can be restored, it is not impossible, but the premise is that Dashun cannot recognize the Japanese monarch system in the name of making Japan pay tribute.

Or does this person have other purposes?

Or does his family want to accumulate strength and plot something bad?

If so, we can learn more about it. If there is chaos on the mainland, it will also be good for Japan.

With this curiosity, Tokugawa Yoshimune specially summoned Liu Yu to meet him according to the specifications of the Dutch trading house.

Through the bamboo curtain, Tokugawa Yoshimune looked at Liu Yu outside. He was very young, too young.

About twenty years old, wearing a very ordinary blue shirt, with a young man's arrogance on his face, the image of the monitor who said to the elephant three days ago "Wei Yigong likes cranes" gradually became fuller.

Tokugawa Yoshimune did not let the translator ask, but wrote a few words by hand and asked someone to pass them to Liu Yu.

He can write Chinese characters and is familiar with some of the Four Books and Five Classics, but he can't speak Chinese.

The paper with the words on it came to Liu Yu's hand. The words were well written. Liu Yu took a look and found that the question was really profound.

"Since you are a Tang official, you know the difference between scholars, farmers, merchants and workers. Since you are a scholar, why do you despise yourself?"

Liu Yu picked up the pen and wrote a word on the paper.

"Money".

The paper was handed over, and Tokugawa Yoshimune shook his head. He did not agree with this answer, or was very dissatisfied with this answer.

He knew that money was very useful, but he always felt that it was a bit unreasonable for a person of noble birth to love money so much.

He knew more or less about the system of Dashun, and understood that it was not a feudal system.

Officials had salaries, but the salaries were not very high. At least from the collected rules and regulations of the Ming Dynasty, the salaries were really not good.

He was a very frugal person. He only ate rice and vegetables for two meals a day, and tried to make the world's celebrities as frugal as him.

Although it is not as bad as Korea next door, which believes that money is the source of everything and even abolishes money, Tokugawa Yoshimune's attitude towards money is really not very good.

Is it really for money that you dare to send warriors and sell war horses?

Tokugawa Yoshimune is very suspicious.

Traitors are looked down upon everywhere.

Although the shogunate is very happy to get war horses, intelligence and other contraband from Liu Yu, it is a bit of a traitor after all. It can be used when needed, but in the heart...

Especially after seeing Liu Yu reply with a simple and straightforward "money", Tokugawa Yoshimune felt a little contemptuous.

However, after the contempt, he thought about it carefully and felt that something was wrong.

This answer is too simple and too broad. Going to Nagasaki for trade must be for money, but what do you need money for?

Is the family preparing to rebel?

Or is it for some other purpose?

Money is just money, and what do you use the money for is the real purpose.

Tokugawa Yoshimune thinks he can still distinguish this point, but it is not easy to ask Liu Yu directly what he wants the money for.

After thinking for a while, he wrote another sentence full of sarcasm and ridicule on the paper.

"Merchants value profit but not morality, so among scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans, merchants are the lowest. From your observation, you can understand the meaning. You are a minister of Tang, is your salary not enough?"

Liu Yu did not waste words, thought about the text he had memorized before, and directly wrote down an ancient text.

...The King of Qi said to Mengchangjun: "I dare not take the minister of the previous king as a minister." Mengchangjun returned to his country in Xue. Before he had reached a hundred miles, the people, carrying the old and the young, welcomed him on the road. Mengchangjun looked back at Feng Chen and said, "I saw your article on market justice today." Feng Chen said, "A cunning rabbit has three burrows, which can only save it from death. Now you have only one burrow, but you can't sleep soundly. Please dig two more burrows for you."...

Feng Chen's three burrows are: one is to market justice in Xue; the second is to lobby Liang and Wei in the hope that Liang and Wei will know his virtue and hire him; the third is to ask for the sacrificial vessels of the former kings and build a ancestral temple in Xue.

Now, the Heavenly Dynasty is no longer feudal, and I have no act of market justice in Xue, so this burrow is over.

Now, all the land under the sky is the king's land, and all the people are the king's subjects. The burrow of lobbying Liang and Wei to make the world know his virtue is also over.

Now, the emperor is Li, and I am Liu. I have no qualifications for the sacrifices of the former kings, so this burrow is also over.

Accompanying the king is like accompanying a tiger, so I should think about retreat first.

Money can be used in China, Japan, and the Netherlands and other European countries. This is the real cave. I don't need three caves, just this one is enough.

To retreat bravely in the face of adversity is to know the opportunity. When the fire is boiling, the flowers are blooming, and the building collapses in the blink of an eye.

The shabby house is empty, but in those days the bed was full of wats; the grass and poplars are withered, but it was once a singing and dancing place. Yesterday there were bones in the loess; tonight there are mandarin ducks under the red light tent. Because I thought the gauze hat was too small, I had to carry the shackles. Yesterday I felt sorry for the coldness of my broken coat, but now I think the purple python is too long. After you sing Luan Hengheng, I will appear...

The paper was passed over, and after reading it, Tokugawa Yoshimune couldn't help laughing.

Of course he could understand the story of the Three Cunning Rabbits. Soshichiro Ogi was able to compile a book like "The Seven Classics of Mencius", so of course he had told such stories.

The latter's arrogance in an empty room is quite interesting. It's really interesting to have such a desire to escape from the world at such a young age.

Looking at the previous content, it seems to make sense.

Nowadays, the Chinese dynasty is no longer feudal, and it does not have a fiefdom like Xuedi, so there is no such thing as buying a favor from the public.

But the Qi State did not keep me, so I went to join the Wei State and was gone. In the last cave, I am not a member of the clan, and I don't naturally have one.

But money is a good thing. If you are rich, you will be an uncle in China, you will be an uncle in Japan, and you will still be an uncle in Europe.

As long as you have money, there is no need to have three burrows, as long as one burrow is enough.

This truth is quite clear and refined, and it is simply a refreshing stream of treasonous remarks.

Tokugawa Yoshimune thought about it for a long time, not knowing what to say.

If we talk about talent, the man in front of him is undoubtedly talented. The pamphlet on currency reform alone is the talent that the shogunate urgently needs at this time.

The cronies who are presiding over the reform know a little bit about things like monetary policy, but they don't have such a deep understanding.

This person's pamphlet is already in the category of "Tao", not "technique", and Tokugawa Yoshimune still understands the difference.

Moreover, in the previous Tang Feng storybook, Nagasaki Fengxing asked those sailors and said that this person did not take a normal route, but sailed directly to Japan by relying on navigation technology, which proves that this person's practical knowledge is sufficient.

Thinking like this, Tokugawa Yoshimune picked up his pen and wanted to reply.

He wanted to say that Dashun is not a feudal system, but Japan is, and you can try to stay here.

Secondly, Dashun is a royal land in the world, but Japan is not included in this world. You may not be able to go to North Korea or Vietnam, but there is no problem in coming to Japan one day.

However, as soon as I picked up the pen, I thought of the word "money" mentioned by Liu Yu, and finally put down the pen.

This is a man of talent, but he has no loyalty.

Is talent more important, or loyalty?

It goes without saying that loyalty is of course important. Besides, Emperor Dashun had already given enough, but this man still felt that he was "like a tiger who accompanies you", so why should I ask this man to be loyal to him?

After hesitating for a moment, he picked up the pen and wrote on the paper: I heard that you were going to Nagasaki to transport grain and rice to several ships. Isn't it a feeling of compassion?

Liu Yu didn't show any pretense and replied directly: "It's not out of sympathy, but because of the great famine in Japan and the feeling of providing help in times of crisis, I just asked for a few more trade cards." A few boats of grain and rice can't relieve the people's poverty. I have something that can relieve the people's hunger.