Zhu Jinsong was willing to give Zheng Jiangfu a chance, solely based on Tianchuan Shichizaemon's consistent supply of manpower and materials to Lord Guo, thus helping him maintain the lifeline of overseas trade.
As for whether Zheng Jiangfu was outwardly loyal to the Great Ming but inwardly to Wa Country, Zhu Jinsong was not worried at all.
The foolish eagle once said a famous quote: backwardness doesn't necessarily mean being beaten, it's because I don't want to beat you today.
Ever since Tokugawa Ieyasu came to power, Wa Country under the Tokugawa Shogunate had been implementing a policy of seclusion. Although Nagasaki was retained as a port for foreign trade, and they could even beat the Manchu Banners of the Great Qing into submission, compared to Zhu Jinsong's version of the Great Ming Dynasty, Wa Country's overall strength could only be described in two words.
Lagging.
A fight involving thousands of people was considered a large-scale village brawl in the Great Ming, but in Wa Country, it was on the level of a national war.
Thousands of cannons and tens of thousands of flintlock muskets might not be enough to equip a single army in the Great Ming, but in Wa Country, it was almost all the firearms they could deploy.
Not to mention warships, logistics, supplies, and troop replenishment.
To put it bluntly, if it were Wa Country after the Meiji Restoration, they might still be able to make a fuss. The current Wa Country didn't even have the qualifications to make a fuss in front of the Great Ming.
After seeing off Zheng Jiangfu, Zhu Jinsong summoned Zeng Cheng and other high officials to the temporary palace.
The Great Qing and Joseon combined were not enough for the short, stout ones to fight. The Joseon people were eagerly seeking to acknowledge a father and ask for help. Wa Country wanted to achieve the status of a country not to be conquered. Zheng Jiangfu, who was sent as an envoy by Tokugawa Ienari, wished he could sell Wa Country, perfectly embodying the saying of having his heart in the Great Ming while being in Wa Country.
These messy affairs all happening at once were indeed quite troublesome.
Once everyone was assembled, Zhu Jinsong got straight to the point, saying, "Jiaozhi, Myanmar, and Siam have just calmed down a bit. Now Joseon and Wa Country have caused such a mess. What are everyone's thoughts?"
Zeng Cheng and the other high officials exchanged glances, seeing the word "headache" in each other's eyes.
Under normal circumstances, accepting Joseon's annexation or granting Wa Country the honorary title of a country not to be conquered would not affect the Great Ming at all. On the contrary, it would further highlight the Great Ming's fatherly status in the world.
In any historical period, this would be proof of "tribute from myriad nations" and would be written into history books to be praised extensively.
However, from another perspective, accepting Joseon's annexation would mean losing a large number of laborers. Taking Wa Country as a vassal state and giving them the title of a country not to be conquered was ultimately not as appealing as direct rule and labor dispatch.
Not to mention Jiaozhi, Myanmar, and Siam, where four provincial governors, nearly a hundred prefectural magistrates, and several hundred county magistrates had already been appointed, along with over a million labor dispatch quotas, greatly accelerating the construction of roads and railways in the Great Ming.
So the question arises.
Where is the money?
Accepting Joseon's annexation seemed simple, but in reality, there would be many expenses. For example, Joseon would need to re-establish local prefectural and county offices, build roads, establish schools, and migrate people between the eighteen provinces of Han Dynasty, and other miscellaneous matters. Any one of these could be a bottomless pit.
Wa Country would be even more troublesome.
Directly attacking them wouldn't be easy to find a reason for in a short time. After all, Wa Country was dealing with the Great Qing and Joseon, and Joseon had not yet completed the annexation process. From a legal standpoint, Joseon was still a tributary state of the Great Qing and had no relation to the Great Ming.
If they didn't attack, they still couldn't bear to part with those laborers.
After a long period of silence from the high officials, Liu Huaiwen said while puffing on his dry pipe, "Migrating people to Jiaozhi, Myanmar, and Siam cost about 100 million, and military expenses for the war were 50 million, totaling about 15 million taels of silver. Therefore, the national treasury is genuinely tight. It's not that your humble servant is unwilling to provide the money."
Upon hearing Liu Huaiwen's words, the high officials present couldn't help but roll their eyes.
The national treasury of the Great Ming was like Liu Huaiwen's cat.
Liu Huaiwen's cat was always in a state of existing or not existing. The Great Ming's national treasury was always in a state of emptiness or non-emptiness.
Even though Liu Huaiwen was now repeatedly saying that the national treasury was empty, if the Great Qing, with him and his cronies, came to attack the Great Ming, Liu Huaiwen would probably be the most vocal, the loudest, and the most resolute.
Therefore, Liu Huaiwen's words were like farts, saying them was the same as not saying them.
Zeng Cheng glanced at Liu Huaiwen and said, "If it's according to Official Liu's statement, then it would be best to use Wa Country's money to handle Joseon's affairs. This way, not only can Joseon's problems be solved, but also a part of Wa Country's problems can be solved. Most importantly, it can save the national treasury money."
As Zeng Cheng's words fell, Zhu Jinsong nodded thoughtfully and said, "It's not impossible."
With Zhu Jinsong's statement, the high officials present became troubled.
Was Zeng Cheng's statement flawed?
Of course, it was not flawed.
Everyone knew that spending someone else's money didn't hurt, and if they could spend someone else's money while doing their own business, it would be even better.
The question was, was Wa Country that foolish?
Zhu Jinsong, while trying to recall, slowly said, "Since Wa Country wants the honorary title of a country not to be conquered, I will give it to them. However, since Wa Country is a country not to be conquered by the Great Ming, it means Wa Country acknowledges itself as a tributary state of the Great Ming."
"Therefore, Wa Country has the obligation of tribute every three years, and the Great Ming has the right to station troops on the four islands of Wa Country. Wa Country's small court must accept the guidance and management of the Great Ming, and when Great Ming citizens go to Wa Country, they will naturally be citizens of the superior state."
Zhu Jinsong became happier as he spoke, while Zeng Cheng and the other high officials became more confused and more troubled.
Since Wa Country wanted the title of a country not to be conquered, its court and shogunate would naturally have to acknowledge Wa Country as a tributary state of the Great Ming. There was nothing to say about this.
As for tribute, it was even more so. This was originally the obligation of a tributary state. If they performed well, tribute every three years could be changed to tribute every year. If they performed poorly, tribute every three years could also be changed to tribute every five years as punishment. These depended on the mood of the Great Ming Emperor.
It was the latter three points that were somewhat troublesome.
Among the latter three points, only the last one was a matter of course. Not to mention going to Wa Country, even going to France or England, Great Ming citizens were naturally superior. Ordinary Great Ming citizens enjoyed the treatment of nobles. A mere Wa Country was an injustice to Great Ming citizens!
It was the first two points, such as the Great Ming having the right to station troops on the four islands of Wa Country, and Wa Country's small court having to accept the guidance and management of the Great Ming, that were truly troublesome.
From the Hongwu era to the Chongzhen era, the Great Ming had never had the habit of stationing troops in vassal states, except for Joseon.
However, stationing troops in Joseon was mainly because Wa Country and the Jurchens at that time often wanted to attack Joseon, and Joseon was too weak to fight. They often cried and sought their father. Therefore, the Great Ming stationed some troops in Joseon.
As for guiding the officials of vassal states, even fewer people were willing. In the eyes of Great Ming officials, vassal states were barren and remote places where birds wouldn't shit, offering little oil to be squeezed. Moreover, they had to worry and labor over the affairs of these vassal states, and no one was willing to go.
Furthermore, even if the Great Ming officials were benevolent and willing to go to those poor remote places to offer warmth, would the Japanese barbarians be willing?
Please call them vassal states, not grandchildren. Although in the memorial, they had to address Zhu Jinsong as "His Imperial Majesty, the Great Ming Grandfather Emperor" and place the ruler of Wa Country in the position of a grandchild.
However, Zhu Jinsong thought more and more clearly, and his speaking speed became faster and faster: "First, the ruler of Wa Country shall be addressed as King, not Emperor. He shall not be enfeoffed by the Great Ming, nor shall he face south to proclaim himself '孤'."
"Second, the East Sea Fleet shall establish the Yingzhou Navy, using Kyushu Island of Wa Country as the station for the Yingzhou Navy. All military expenses shall be borne by Wa Country, and Wa Country shall not establish its own navy."
"Third, since Wa Country offers Kyushu Island as the station for the Great Ming's Yingzhou Navy, the island shall forever belong to the Great Ming. The Great Ming shall establish the position of Governor-General of Kyushu Island, with the same rank as the Provincial Governor. The Great Ming law shall be enforced on the island, and a division shall be stationed there. Without the permission of the Great Ming, Japanese people shall not enter or leave Kyushu Island at will."
"Fourth, the Great Ming's Governor-General of Kyushu Island shall also serve as the political, financial, and military advisor to Wa Country's court and the Tokugawa Shogunate. The policies of Wa Country's court and shogunate shall not be implemented without the approval of the Governor-General of Kyushu Island."
"Fifth, the coastal harbors and islands of Wa Country shall not be leased or ceded to other countries. Wa Country's mines shall be exclusively operated by companies jointly established by the Great Ming and Wa Country. Wa Country shall not mine them privately, nor shall people from other countries mine them."
"Sixth, all of our Great Ming shall have the freedom to trade freely with and reside in Wa Country. Wa Country shall be responsible for protecting the safety of our Great Ming citizens. If there are disputes or fights between Great Ming citizens and Japanese people, the Great Ming law shall apply, not Wa law. All local government offices in Wa Country shall have no right to arrest or punish Great Ming citizens. Regarding civil and criminal lawsuits, all matters involving Great Ming citizens shall be handled by the Governor-General of Kyushu. Wa Country may send representatives to observe, and if there are objections, they may appeal to the Great Ming court."
"Seventh, any matters not covered shall be subject to the final interpretation by the Great Ming."
"Well, let's tentatively call these the 'Seven Articles of Tomorrow's Friendship'."
After Zhu Jinsong finished these seven articles, Zeng Cheng and the other high officials' faces turned as black as the bottom of a pot.
Such ridiculous conditions, what was Your Majesty thinking? Using his brain?
The problem was that any one of these seven conditions didn't seem to be thought out with a brain!
Who would dare to sign such a treaty that insulted the country and its people?
In any case, no one in the Great Ming dared to sign.
This was something that would be written into history books and cursed for thousands of years by future generations!
After careful consideration, Zeng Cheng felt that he still had to persuade Zhu Jinsong. After all, this was dealing with vassal states, and treaties could not be so childish. "Reporting to Your Majesty, your humble servant believes that the seven articles proposed by Your Majesty may not be agreed upon by the Japanese barbarians, especially since the precedent of the Former Song is not far away. How dare the Japanese barbarians cede their Kyushu Island?"
Zhu Jinsong thought to himself, why couldn't they sign it? It was just a broken treaty.
Compared to the Twenty-One Demands or something similar that the little devils made, the seven articles he proposed could be considered generous treaties.
Furthermore, if the Japanese barbarians wanted to refuse to sign these "Seven Articles of Tomorrow's Friendship," it would be fine. They just had to be able to contend with the Great Ming's three fleets.
If they couldn't contend with the Great Ming navy, and still wanted to refuse to sign these "Seven Articles of Tomorrow's Friendship," then Zhu Jinsong could only express his regret and let the Great Ming's North Sea Fleet, East Sea Fleet, and South Sea Fleet tour Wa Country, and perhaps add a few more articles to the "Seven Articles of Tomorrow's Friendship."
Thinking about it, Zhu Jinsong added, "This way, I'm not unreasonable. I will offer some benefits to Wa Country."
"First, allow Japanese women to come to the Great Ming. If they know Chinese, whether to marry or to work, they shall be treated the same as Great Ming women."
"Second, Japanese men are allowed to work in the Great Ming. For activities such as clearing mountains and mining, and any work that does not involve Great Ming's secrets, they are permitted."
"Third, the period of tribute shall be changed from three years to two years. This can be considered me showing consideration for Wa Country."
"Also, the wages of their men and women shall be settled by the Japanese shogunate, so that these people do not save money in the Great Ming."
Zeng Cheng was too lazy to retort.
For the Japanese barbarians, only the third article among these three was a superficial preferential treatment. In reality, which of these three articles was not a fatal strategy?
Was Your Majesty bullying the Japanese barbarians for not knowing how to count, or for not knowing how to read?
Allowing Japanese women who knew Chinese to come to the Great Ming? To marry or work as Great Ming women? The problem was, besides jobs like embroidery for women, what else was there to recruit women for?
Yes, brothels did recruit, but wouldn't the bodies of these Japanese women be ruined? How would they get married in the future?
As for marriage, this was even more ridiculous.
If Japanese women ran to the Great Ming and married, and never returned, how many women would be left in Japan?
And those Japanese men, they were allowed to do work like clearing mountains and mining. But Your Majesty, look at the kind of people doing this kind of work now?
They were basically all Kunlun slaves. Great Ming citizens did jobs that were not dangerous and could earn money!
And changing the tribute from three years to two years was even more of a pitfall!
If this was in the Great Qing, this kind of treatment would indeed be considered preferential treatment. After all, those vassal states would exchange two broken stones for a pile of gold and silver jewels. But in the Great Ming, it was like a tributary state offering ten pearls in tribute, and receiving half a jin of Great Ming tea in return.
If they pleased the Great Ming, perhaps they could even get half a bolt of silk or something.
But Zhu Jinsong clearly didn't think so.
Were the conditions he proposed excessive? What reason would they have to disagree?
Didn't the foolish eagle in later generations station troops in Guam?
Zhu Jinsong felt he was much better than the foolish eagle. At least the Great Ming army strictly enforced military discipline and did not act recklessly like the soldiers of the foolish eagle's country.
Seeing that Zhu Jinsong's mind was made up and the matter was settled, Zeng Cheng could only bow helplessly and agree, "May I ask Your Majesty, who should be sent on this mission?"