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Qin Mu intends to make the soon-to-be-established Ministry of Foreign Affairs younger, as young people are more receptive to new ideas and are more enterprising.
The reason why Qin Mu values Huang Zhenlin is precisely because of his broad thinking and vision.
He had dabbled in Confucianism, Legalism and Taoism. As he was born in Zhangzhou, Fujian, he was also familiar with overseas situations. What was even more rare was that he dared to travel to Southeast Asia on a merchant ship, which was rare among scholars of the time.
If an old Confucian scholar were to preside over the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he would emphasize all day long that China is the Celestial Empire and a country of etiquette, just like previous dynasties, and would only engage in loss-making business in dealings with foreign vassal states.
When someone sent two pheasants and shouted "Long live the Celestial Empire", he would give them lots of gold, silver and treasures. So many vassal states that had tasted the sweetness rushed to pay tribute, and some even came under false names.
If Qin Mu's Ministry of Foreign Affairs was also messed up like that, Qin Mu would definitely die.
So he rejected the idea of being mature and prudent, and wanted a new and enterprising department that could carry out diplomatic work according to his will.
At this time, Japan happened to send envoys to pay tribute. Japan was not very important to the current Qin Dynasty. At least in the short term, it did not have the energy to deal with the four islands of Japan.
Qin Mu sent Huang Zhenlin to meet the Japanese envoy. Huang Zhenlin just happened to lack "actual combat" experience, so he let him practice on the Japanese envoy.
In addition, there is another candidate, that is Gan Nan, the current Shaoqing of the Honglu Temple. Qin Mu is also very optimistic about Gan Nan and has sent him on diplomatic missions many times.
After returning from Yanziji, Qin Mu summoned Gan Nan to the Huagai Palace to make a report. Gan Nan entered the palace and bowed. He then reported to Qin Mu: "Your Majesty, the Jiaozhi Mo clan sent an envoy to pay tribute. The envoy has been settled in the posthouse west of the city."
This news surprised Qin Mu a little.
Jiaozhi is Vietnam. In the fifth year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty, the Ho Dynasty in Jiaozhi rebelled and asked the Ming Dynasty for troops. Zhu Di sent 800,000 troops to attack Jiaozhi, destroyed the then Vietnamese Ho Dynasty, and established the Jiaozhi Provincial Administration in Thang Long Prefecture (Hanoi) to directly rule.
After the Ming Dynasty moved its capital to Beijing, it focused on dealing with Mongolia, and Jiaozhi was a bit out of reach. During this period, the Vietnamese monkeys continued to cause chaos, and different voices appeared within the Ming Dynasty. Some ministers believed that wasting energy on Jiaozhi would not be worth the loss.
The Ming Dynasty's rule over Jiaozhi actually lasted only more than ten years. After the death of Emperor Yongle, the Ming army finally withdrew from Jiaozhi in the second year of Ming Xuande and recognized the Jiaozhi Li regime.
After Qin Mu gave him a seat, he asked, "Has Gan Shaoqing made a detailed understanding of the Mo regime and the current situation of Jiaozhi as a whole?"
"Your Majesty, I have learned a little bit about it."
Qin Mu nodded and said, "Then Mr. Gan, please tell me about it."
The Qin Empire is now preparing to attack Guangdong and Guangxi, especially Zhu Youlang in Guangxi. Will he hook up with the Vietnamese monkeys? It's hard to say. It's always a good idea to understand the situation in advance and know both ourselves and the enemy.
Moreover, in Qin Mu's view, Vietnam and the Philippines are like China's two feet extending into the South China Sea. If these two pieces of land are occupied, the entire South China Sea will truly become China's inner lake.
Therefore, Qin Mu would not be like those Ming officials in the early Ming Dynasty who were limited by the times and regarded Jiaozhi as a dispensable chicken rib. If there was a chance, he would not hesitate to turn Jiaozhi into a province of China and restore the original territory of the First Emperor.
Gan Nan had naturally heard about Qin Mu's intention to set up a Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Qin Mu had taken the initiative to summon him to the Huagai Palace to make a report. This showed that Qin Mu's question was not only because the Mo regime was coming to the court, but also contained the intention of an assessment.
He sorted out his thoughts and said, "Your Majesty, in the 16th year of Yongle, the inspector of Ok Le County in Thanh Hoa Prefecture, Le Loi, rebelled against the Ming Dynasty and forced the Ming army to withdraw from Jiaozhi in the 2nd year of Xuande. In the second year, Le Loi usurped the throne and named his country Dai Viet.
In the 11th year of Zhengde, Zheng Wei launched a mutiny and killed Emperor Xiangyi because of his tyranny. Jiaozhi was in chaos, and the commander of the Thien Vu Guards, Mac Dang Dung, took the opportunity to support Le Yi as emperor, Le Zhao Tong. Later, Mac Dang Dung killed Le Zhao Tong and usurped the throne, establishing the Mac Dynasty and ruling the Thang Long area.
Another man named Zheng Jian supported Le Zhuangzong in Thanh Hoa in the middle of Jiaozhi. Another man named Nguyen Hoang occupied Hue and Quang Nam south of Hengshan. The whole Jiaozhi was divided into three separatist forces: the Mo clan in the north, the Zheng clan in the middle, and the Nguyen clan in the south.
In the 20th year of Wanli, Zheng defeated Mo and occupied Thang Long Prefecture. Mo was forced to retreat northward to the Cao Bang area bordering Guangxi. During this period, Zheng also attacked the Nguyen several times in the south, intending to unify Jiaozhi. Both sides won and lost.
At present, the Zheng family that occupies Thang Long Prefecture is the most powerful, and its current head is Zheng Xuan. The head of the Nguyen family in the south is Nguyen Phuc Lan. The Mo Clan regime in Cao Bang is Mo Jingyu;
The envoy who sent the tribute this time was Mo Jingyu. In the 11th and 17th years of Chongzhen, Mo Jingyu defeated Zheng's attacks twice, but generally speaking, the Mo family has been on the defensive until now. The land they occupied was high and flat, with few people and little land, so it was difficult for them to achieve great things. "
Gannan only briefly described it. As far as Qin Mu knew, there was not only the Northern and Southern Dynasties in China, but also in Japan and Vietnam. And now, it is the Northern and Southern Dynasties in Vietnam.
Qin Mu thought for a moment and asked, "What do you think, Mr. Gan, should our Great Qin treat the Mo regime?"
Gan Nan cheered up and replied, "Your Majesty, the northern part of the country that Mo Jingyu currently rules borders Guangxi. We can use it to attack Zhu Youlang of Guangxi first."
"Gan Shaoqing's intention is to have Mo Jingyu send troops to attack Guangxi from behind?"
"No, if we allow the Mo family to send troops to attack Guangxi, they will inevitably take the opportunity to plunder, which is like inviting a wolf into the house. Moreover, with the military power of our Great Qin today, there is no need for the Mo family to send troops to help.
"My intention is to have the Mo family provide our army with a landing site and a logistics supply base. Our army will use their base to attack Zhu Youlang from both sides."
Qin Mu would definitely not agree to let the Mo family enter Guangxi to take advantage of the situation to rob, rape and plunder.
The war with Zhu Youlang was a civil war. Qin Mu would rather the war slowed down rather than let outsiders come in and take advantage of the situation.
If Gan Nan's idea was followed and the Mo family's territory was used as the Qin army's logistics supply base, it would be fine. Qin Mu remained calm on the surface, but in his heart he admired Gan Nan's idea.
"I'm sure Mo Jingyu is not stupid. What can Shaoqing Gan do to make Mo Jingyu willingly provide logistical supplies to our army?"
"I dare not say that I am completely sure, but if Your Majesty has this intention, I am confident that I have a 70% chance of convincing the Mo family."
"Okay, then I'll leave Mo Jingyu's tribute envoy to Shaoqing to receive." Qin Mu asked someone to make tea, took a sip, and then asked casually: "Jiaozhi was originally the homeland of my Great Qin. If the Great Qin wants to restore its rule over Jiaozhi, how do you think Shaoqing Gan should proceed?"
Qin Shihuang once sent an army of 500,000 to conquer Lingnan, bringing Guangdong, Guangxi and Jiaozhi under the rule of the Central Plains dynasty for the first time. At that time, Jiaozhi was under the jurisdiction of Xiangjun.
During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, the Han army once again marched south and established Jiaozhi County. The name Jiaozhi originated from that time.
However, Qin Mu's question was beyond Gannan's expectations. After all, given the current situation of the Qin Dynasty, it was not suitable for a large-scale invasion of Jiaozhi. Even the strategy for the invasion of Guangdong and Guangxi was to seek a quick victory.
He said honestly: "Your Majesty, this matter is of great importance. Can you allow me to consider it carefully before making any suggestions to Your Majesty?"
"No problem, then you should think about it carefully first."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Qin Mu talked with him for another half an hour, all about the affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and ended the conversation at 5 p.m.
In ancient times, officials usually got off work at the time of Shenshi, also known as the time of Chushi, which was roughly between 15:00 and 17:00. According to the dining habits of the ancients, the second meal was eaten at the time of Chushi.
The You hour is from 17:00 to 19:00, also known as the sunset hour. According to the habit of working at sunrise and resting at sunset, the You hour should be the time for many people to go to bed.
The days are short in winter, and by the time it is You time, the sun is almost setting.
Qin Mu returned to the palace in a relaxed mood. He walked around the Red Pavilion and the Gallery, humming a little tune: "Mandarin ducks live together and butterflies fly together. The spring scenery in the garden is intoxicating. I quietly ask the holy monk, is my daughter beautiful... Is my daughter beautiful? What's the use of royal power and wealth? I'm not afraid of any rules and regulations. I just hope that I can stay with my beloved forever..."
As he hummed to this point, a giggle suddenly rang out from the corner of the gallery. Li Xiangjun stood up gracefully and bowed: "Your Majesty, may you be blessed."
"Xiangjun, what are you laughing at?" Qin Mu immediately put on a solemn and sacred look and asked righteously.
"Hahahaha... ... ... "
It would have been fine if Qin Mu hadn't asked. As soon as he asked, Li Xiangjun couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh. Her petite body almost couldn't stand steadily. "Your Majesty also said that you are the king of a country, but you sing this... this... ..."
Ahem, this girl quietly asked the holy monk, am I beautiful? Am I beautiful? Am I beautiful? This is indeed a bit immoral.
"Hush! Xiang'er, this is a top-level secret of the Qin Empire. You are not allowed to spread it around, or I will punish you severely."
"whee... ... ... ... "
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If you have any suggestions about Vietnam, please leave them in the book review section.
.(To be continued..)
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