Through the above two articles: Qianlong and Britain, Daming and Portugal have failed to trade, non-famous officials say three reasons; the smuggling and shelling of Portuguese envoys, the cabinet sub-auxiliary angrily said: Where did this country come from (see the first link at the end of the two articles), we can talk about a very important question: what is the existence value of the imperial court in feudal society.
Qiu Daolong of the Ming Dynasty and Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty both saw the value of the existence of the imperial court
After occupying the malacca vassal state, the Portuguese Empire saw huge profits in its dealings with the Ming Dynasty of China through pirate plunder and smuggling of the economy. They hoped to defeat the Ming government through colonial occupation, but after the interaction, they quickly changed their minds.
The Portuguese imperial system established "normal economic and trade relations" between the two countries through envoys, gradually colonizing as India did. These conspiracies were not only analyzed from top to bottom by the Zhengde Dynasty of the Ming Dynasty (qiu Daolong was the most typical), but also the Qianlong Emperor of the Qing Dynasty.
The annexation of vassal states led to changes in the "clan relations", and the issue of etiquette became the key: to be the boss is to be the boss
The reason why the Zhengde Jiajing and Jiajing dynasties refused the Portuguese Empire's request for trade and trade was mainly due to the annexation of the Malacca vassal state, which created the obligation of the "suzerainty" to protect the "vassal state".
Since you want to be the boss, the younger brother also admits that you have a relationship of "maintaining order", and in the dispute between Malacca and Siam (Thailand) and other countries, the Ming Dynasty, as the boss, also mediated. Well, as Malacca was annexed, you as the boss can only show your attitude. The Ming Dynasty, since Emperor Xuanzong and the late Qing Dynasty, has not done enough in this regard.
For the relationship between the vassal states and the annexation of the vassal states, the relationship of "contempt" is actually adopted. This is mainly due to the shackles of traditional Confucianism and the idea of pragmatism. Among the vassal states, China actually attached the greatest importance to the Korean Lee clan, and during the quelling of the chaos and the war against Liaodong and Mongolia, the Korean Lee clan sent troops to help the army several times. But in Southeast Asian countries, there are fewer.
Not to mention the late Qing Dynasty, the whole world knows that even they do not cherish the territory, let alone the vassal states.
But the problem is that since you are "ruling the country according to the Confucian concept", you have to react, which is the reaction of the "idea" to the dynasty itself. You can't always talk about Confucianism to others, and when it comes to yourself, you don't talk about it. Therefore, it is always necessary to do the show.
Then, I do not recognize the statement of your behavior, which became the usual means used in the middle and late Ming Dynasty and the late Qing Dynasty. But the problem is that you say you don't admit it, but you don't act without acknowledging it. Buy and sell as if you were a nobody else. Your lack of recognition, then, means nothing to the vassal states.
Therefore, in the hearts of the Ming Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty, in addition to the economic "temptation", the "clan obligations" were actually not reliable. This is mainly: the boss does not have the appearance and spirit of the boss.
What exactly did the Portuguese Imperial personnel do in the southern coastal areas of China
The vassal states, especially in Southeast Asia, had the necessity of observing order in the traditional agricultural economy of the Ming Dynasty and Confucianism. But in terms of practical interests, neither the Ming Dynasty nor the Qing Dynasty used the motivation to act.
However, the actions of the Portuguese Empire personnel in the territory of our country, as well as their performance in the process of trade in China, made the Ming Dynasty's civil and military forces adopt a "hostile" attitude towards them from the central to the local, from the administrative organs to the supervision organs.
On the one hand, this is related to the question of whether the imperial court can ensure the safety and justice of the people and the "legitimacy of the existence of the dynasty";
On the other hand, the Portuguese Empire's colonization of Southeast Asia had clearly been extended to Daming, and in this case there was a direct threat to the "security of dynastic existence".
The former, why did I kneel down and shout long live you? Why do I pay you taxes? Because the imperial court uses its own power and force to protect me from being bullied by other countries and other people! This is the "rationality of the existence of dynasties."
The latter, just give it simple. The former is to prevent the domestic people from rebelling; the "security" of the latter is to be solved by not being overthrown by other countries.
It is related to these two points, that is, people who do mud have to fight back, get angry, and do something. From this, there were the chapters and instructions of the sub-auxiliary Mao Ji and the supervision of Yushi Qiu Daolong.
So what exactly did the Portuguese Imperial personnel do in the southern coastal areas of China?
The Portuguese Empire travels the world: plundering by force, bribing the powerful; The Ming Dynasty greets the envoys with an essay
The Portuguese colonial governor in India sent Pires to China in August 1517, into Canton in September, and did not move north to Beijing until the end of 1519. On January 23, 1520, Pires and more than 20 other people went north and arrived in Nanjing in May.
On July 10, 1519 (June 14), Zhu Chenhao, the King of Ning, launched a rebellion, and on August 18 (July 24), the rebellion was quelled. Emperor Mingwu of Beijing, Zhu Houzhao, hurried to march in person, and although he received news that King Ning had rebelled and was quelled, he continued south. Therefore, in 1520, Emperor Wuzong received Portuguese envoys in Nanjing.
The Zhengde Emperor didn't have anything serious to do, so he let them come to the palace to play, or chat, or play checkers, or invite them to dinner, or watch things, or learn the Portuguese language. After that, Zhengde continued to the south, and Pires and others were ordered to go to Beijing to wait for the emperor to return to Beijing before making a formal handover. Pires and the others continued to go north, arriving in Beijing in January 1521, and as soon as they arrived in Beijing, they received Qiu Daolong's "Please But Flang Machine Contribution".
Immediately after that, Zhengde arrived in Beijing and soon died. After Jiajing ascended the throne, he refused the Portuguese request for trade and commerce, and Pires began to move south. It can be said that his entire "knocking on the door" lasted 4 years and was the closest "trade trip" to China's supreme ruler.
In the past four years, Pires has used the Chinese translators and attachés he hired to do everything. It can be said that you dress yourself up very rationally and virtuously. Although they inadvertently became involved in the political struggles of the Ming Dynasty, these can be said to be inadvertent moves. It is also in line with the conventions of that era.
Judging from Pires's behavior, he is still rational, reasonable, and well disguised. However, his men did not do so.
From Pires to the crew, they are essentially some colonial invaders who come to Asia with the simple psychology of making a fortune, and morality has no place in them.
At first, people like Ovis were just selling spices for profit. However, Pires's men began to fight for wrongdoing.
Fernand and his brother, who escorted Pires to China, were even more guilty. Fernan was always ready to plunder, and as long as the local authorities in Guangdong did not allow trade, they were ready to fire.
His younger brother Simon built a fort on Tuen Mun Island, led four armed merchant ships to pirate, collect tolls, rape Chinese women, force men into slavery, and hang a disobedient Chinese teenager.
Thus, there are even more excessive things, perhaps because of the clash of etiquette between the two sides, perhaps because it is a demonstration of force, and the armed attack of the Portuguese envoys on the Ming Dynasty is even more unforgivable.
In the following, we will talk about several armed conflicts between the Ming Dynasty and Portugal.