Mystery One, Toyotomi's Secret Order

"Mysterious Ocean One, Toyotomi's Secret Order" Author: S Chia

Copywriting

On June 1402th in the fourth year of Jianwen in Ming Dynasty (July 7, 13 AD), Zhu Di, king of Yan, led his army into Yingtianfu, the capital of the Ming Empire. Emperor Jianwen disappeared in a fire; it became the largest unsolved case in Chinese history. one.

In order to solve the mystery, three years later (the third year of Ming Yongle; AD 3), Zheng He led the largest fleet in the world at that time and sailed seven times to the sea.The results left more mysteries unsolved until 1405 years later...

An ancient travelogue, two ancient relics, and an ancient map: three clues lead the world-renowned historian Zhang Wei, his Chinese friend Jiang Long, Baghdad's daughter Ting Na, and two mysterious Japanese characters- Kodama Yoshio and Kaneji embarked on a secret-solving mission spanning three continents and two oceans, fighting wits, fighting strength, and chasing desperately.

The historical mysteries left over 600 years ago and the royal secrets of the Ming Dynasty will be revealed one by one with the cooperation of Zhang Wei and his partners.

Content label:

Search keywords: Protagonist: Zhang Wei┃Supporting roles: Jiang Long, Tingna & Kodama Yoshio and Jinzhi┃Others: Zheng He, Antiquities, Treasure Hunting, Wisdom, Sino-Japanese War

classroom

Manhattan (Manhattan, NYC) in 1940

"So, when Christopher Columbus (Christopher Columbus, 1451-May 1506, 5) led three sailing ships with a displacement of about 20 tons on August 1492, 8 AD, they brought the credentials to be presented to the Chinese emperor and the Indian monarch. , Sailing westward from Palos (Spain), the first transatlantic voyage in human history. After more than 3 days, land was found in the early morning of October 70, 1492. However, Columbus was not sure about his The real place where he landed... He always thought he was in...India. That's right. India. Until Columbus died in 10, he still thought it was India. Didn't know he was in another new continent. "

"But... In fact, as early as 87 years before Columbus set sail for the New World, that is, in 1405 AD. China's Ming Dynasty, Zheng He, the navigator representing China at that time, had already led his fleet to visit... the real India. And... At that time, Calicut on the west coast of the Indian Peninsula, which is now Kozhikode, was once an important relay station for his ocean-going fleet, and it was also the most prosperous trading port on the Indian Ocean at that time. Chinese, Arabs, Persians, Indians, and even Marco Polo (September 1254, 9-January 15, 1324) from Europe are said to have returned to his family - Venice (Venice) via Guri..."

Zhang Wei put his right hand on the desk, paused for a while, scanned the students' reactions for a few seconds, and then said, "Who can tell me, what is the size of the fleet led by Zheng He?"

After about 10 seconds, the students below were whispering like a swarm of bees, but no one responded to the questions raised by the teacher.

"Okay! Let me give you another hint. The size of this Chinese fleet is very... very large. Compared with the British Royal Navy in the Battle of the English Channel (the battle of Gr elines, August 180, 1588) 8 years later Fleet (Royal N□□y), or the Spanish Armada (Spanish Armada) are big..."

Another 10 seconds of silence passed, and the audience was still silent; apparently no student knew about this period of maritime history of China, a country full of mystery that belongs to the far east.The students returned their gazes to their teachers.Zhang Wei was not surprised by this result at all, he frowned slightly, his mouth was lightly flattened, showing a wry smile and a little bit of disappointment.Apparently none of the students did some homework before class.But he wasn't particularly depressed.Because in fact, the vast majority of Westerners, even scholars and experts who specialize in the East or the history of navigation, are not much different from these students in the audience.After all, even for the Chinese, this is a history full of controversy and mystery.

Zhang Wei took a deep breath and returned his gaze to the students.

"This fleet probably has... more than 200 large and small ships, and nearly 87 sergeants, which is far more than a hundred times the size of the Columbus fleet after 180; even... it was in the Battle of the English Channel [-] years later. British Royal Navy."

As soon as Zhang Wei's explanation came to an end, there was a commotion from the audience, obviously more surprise than admiration.Satisfied with the commotion he deliberately caused, Zhang Wei continued: "Although...the Royal Navy of the British Empire claimed to have 200 warships, most of them were transport and supply ships refitted from merchant ships. The ones that can really be called warships , but more than 30 ships.”

Zhang Wei glanced to the left and turned to the other half of the students: "Spain's Armada is better, with more than 60 warships. However, back then... the largest warship in the Ming Dynasty fleet led by Zheng He—the Great Treasure Ship, The great treasure ships alone... there are 62 of them."

This answer, like a meteor falling to the ground, a volcanic eruption, instantly detonated another wave of commotion, and more voices of surprise and doubt came from below.Zhang Wei frowned slightly, pursed the corners of his mouth, and shook his head slightly, showing a disapproving expression.

"Guys... guys... don't be so... easily intimidated. Don't be so surprised! I promise, if you know the size and tonnage of these Chinese ships, I guarantee you... will be more surprised. And these huge Chinese treasure ships Compared with the Western ships of the same period, even a hundred years later, of course, including the three ships that Columbus discovered the New World, it is like a small California sea lion...meeting a huge...Humpback whale. "

Amidst bursts of exclamation and clamor, a sentence popped up from a corner of the classroom: "Will the sea lion be swallowed by the big whale?"

There was a burst of laughter in the classroom.Zhang Wei immediately shifted his gaze to the student - Matthew.

"Wrong answer! Humpback whales... are baleen whales, they only eat krill and plankton; killer whales are toothed whales, so they eat sea lions and seals."

Zhang Wei looked at the blank-eyed students below, especially Matthew who had just expressed his objection of "whales eat sea lions".

"How big was Columbus's ship? How many mainmasts? How much tonnage?"

"Columbus' ship? Barque, about 100-120 tons... 85 feet long!"

Zhang Wei slapped the desk heavily with his palm, making a loud bang, full of dramatic effect, but it scared Matthew and other students.

"Good answer, Mr. Matthew."

Zhang Wei's tone sank, as if he had fallen into the world's deepest Mariana Trench (Mariana Trench), which made people feel awe.

"The largest ship in Zheng He's fleet is the Great Treasure Ship. It is said...it has nine masts and twelve sails, it is 400 feet long and 160 feet wide. As for the displacement...it is as high as thousands of tons. ...Maybe tens of thousands of tons, can accommodate thousands of crew members, sergeants and passengers...plus supplies..."

Zhang Wei's supplementary narration has not yet ended, and the world is in chaos.

"Are you kidding me? That's impossible. No one but God can build a wooden boat that big. It's not Noah's Ark!"

Matthew shouted exaggeratedly, and the church was filled with laughter again.Zhang Wei approached Matthew's seat, snapped, put his left hand on his table, and asked, "So, Matthew, have you... seen "Noah"...and "Noah's Ark" ?”

Matthew, who is short, lean and confident, is a bit embarrassed for a moment, but he still doesn't flinch.

"Of course not! That's a myth."

Of course, Matthew didn't bow his head to concede, he raised his head even higher, looked at Zhang Wei, and asked, "Teacher, has anyone seen those wooden boats? Or...have you dug up any relics, fossils, or...documents? "

"China's official history -- the history of the Ming Dynasty... has such a record." Zhang Wei replied firmly.

Matthew was speechless for half a second...

But the smart man blurted out immediately: "Then...it must be a typo."

Set off another wave of laughter.The laughter gave Matthew more confidence, so he continued to fight back at Zhang Wei:

"If that's the case, then...why didn't China dominate the seas? Became a sea supremacy? Discovered a new continent? Later...the British...slapped the shit out of it?"

Matthew triumphantly expressed his extraordinary insights, which attracted a series of loud noises and warm applause in response and support.

"Matthew, that's a good question."

This is not the first time Zhang Wei has been challenged by a student, but he doesn't take it seriously.This is also the feature of this class-teacher-student debate.Zhang Wei believes that debates can arouse more different views and opinions.Because he firmly believes that only one view and value is the root of sex and sex.And this is what he can't bear the most!

"I personally think that the main reason why China did not compete for hegemony at sea and expand outward is because... Later, the emperor of China changed his policy and adopted a policy of self-defense, which prevented himself from... the opportunity to develop outward. Otherwise, human history may not be the same. rewrite……"

Zhang Wei replied seriously.After a pause, he turned around and then Huafeng also turned around.

"But... this is a historical "unsolved case". The real reason is waiting for us young people to find out... the real answer."

"'Unsolved case'? Teacher, you said unsolved case...