On the sixth day of the fifth month, João IV looked at Shimazu Mitsuhisa, who was sitting cross-legged in front of him, and felt a little uncomfortable.

Because Mitsuhisa Shimazu sat cross-legged on the wooden floor of the conference room, João IV was also embarrassed to sit on the chair and had to sit on the floor like Mitsuhisa Shimazu.

Fortunately, the floor of this state guesthouse is very clean, and it is not a big problem to sit down.

João IV claimed to be Li Zhi's ally, but after three days in Tianjin, he saw all kinds of new things that were ahead of his time and saw Li Zhi's factory, but he never met Li Zhi. On the contrary, Li Zhi arranged for himself to meet with the subordinate forces of one town and nine provinces, the Japanese Shimadzu clan, and did not know what medicine was sold in the gourd.

But in any case, by letting the Shimazu clan, the subordinate power of Hu, come to see him first, Li Zhi clearly did not put Portugal in the position of an equal ally.

João IV was disappointed by this.

Raphael was even more angry, he sat behind João IV, glaring angrily at the low-ranking civil servants of Fanjiazhuang who came with Shimazu Mitsuhisa from beginning to end, as if he was about to explode at any moment.

Shimazu Mitsuhisa looked at Joao IV with a smile and said, "I'll introduce the situation of the Shimazu clan to His Highness." ”

"Before His Royal Highness King Qi attacked Japan, the Shimazu clan was a small prince in southwestern Japan, ruling over the territory of more than 300,000 people. Although these domains were managed by the Shimazu family, they had many obligations to the Tokugawa shogunate, and they were often requisitioned by the Tokugawa shogunate to complete various tasks free of charge. ”

So the Shimazu clan was semi-independent at that time. Due to the difficulties of the Tokugawa shogunate, the finances were very difficult, and the feudal government relied almost entirely on borrowing money. ”

"After His Royal Highness King Qi attacked Japan for the first time, the Shimazu clan was rewarded for his positive response. The territory expanded, and the number of people under its rule changed from more than 300,000 to more than 600,000. Independence was also greatly enhanced, and it was largely no longer under the jurisdiction of the Tokugawa shogunate. ”

Hearing Shimazu Mitsuhisa's words, João IV began to re-examine the Japanese princes opposite him.

If the Shimazu family ruled over a population of more than 600,000, they were indeed qualified to talk to João IV. After all, Portugal is also a small country in terms of population, with a total population of just over one million, which is only twice the size of Shimazu Mitsuhisa.

Mitsuhisa Shimazu continued, "After King Qi's second attack on Japan, the main body of the Japanese state was abolished and Japan became a province of Japan. We, the Japanese princes, also lost our territories and no longer served as local princes. ”

Hearing this, João IV's heart tightened.

Shimazu Mitsuhisa said with a smile: "But with the loss of the territory, at the same time comes the improvement of the position. ”

"The samurai of the Shimazu Satsuma Domain, as meritorious generals of the Hu Subordinate Kingdom, were recruited in large numbers by His Royal Highness the King of Qi, or by His Royal Highness the King of Qi's subordinate Heidong Bo Zheng Kaicheng. A large number of officials in the military administration of the Japanese province were feudal lords from the Shimazu Satsuma domain. A small samurai who used to manage a village may now be in charge of a castle town. The government that used to manage a castle town may now be in charge of the affairs of a 'country'. ”

"Satsuma's samurai have become important figures in Japan, and their fortune has also been greatly improved."

The administrative divisions of Japan are different from those of the Ming Dynasty. The castle town in Japan is equivalent to the rural town of the Ming Dynasty, and a "country" in Japan is equivalent to a prefecture in the Ming Dynasty.

"I, Shimazu Mitsuhisa, also became the governor of the entire Kyushu at that time, assisting the King of Qi in managing the population of more than one million people in western Japan. Although these populations are no longer my territory, the amount of money given by the King of Qi is very considerable, and the honor guards and pomp and pomp of my travel are more magnificent than before. ”

"And with the expansion of King Qi's career, we people have been more and more reused."

"After the capture of the Indochina Peninsula by the King of Qi, the feudal lords from the Satsuma Domain were greatly trusted and assigned a large number of them to the Indochina Peninsula to manage the mountainous areas. In Southeast Asia, the King of Qi used the Tokugawa shogunate and other feudal clans as junior administrators, and the Satsuma Domain, Choshu Domain, and other clan-descended feudal clans as middle-level administrators. ”

"My son, Shimazu Ienobu, became the administrator of the entire Siam Mountains. The population under its jurisdiction is more than 2 million, and the annual income is as high as more than 1,000 taels. I, Shimazu Mitsuhisa, was requisitioned into the 50,000-strong samurai army as a general general, and my annual salary was 3,000 taels of silver. ”

"These three thousand taels are my personal income. My former subordinates, family members, and those who were slightly capable, are now all in important positions and have a lot of money. ”

"Our status and wealth far surpass that of when we were a small lord in Satsuma."

After saying these words, Shimazu Mitsuhisa looked at Joao IV, as if waiting for the King of Portugal to digest everything he said.

João IV frowned and did not speak for a long time.

He came to Tianjin this time to express his loss and dissatisfaction to Li Zhi. Portugal fought side by side with Li Zhi's town and nine provinces for three years, and in the end they gained nothing. In any case, the Portuguese side was very unwilling to such a result, and hoped that Li Zhi would share some of the benefits to Portugal.

However, it is clear that Li Zhi did not mean to give the benefits to the Portuguese.

Li Zhi sent a leader of the subordinate forces to talk to João IV, as if to show João IV an alternative path. It seems to imply that João IV could become a subordinate state of one town and nine provinces, like the Satsuma Domain of Japan, and become a subordinate and peripheral force of Li Zhi.

João IV had never considered such a question.

But before he could respond to Shimazu Mitsuhisa, Raphael behind him spoke.

"Could it be that His Royal Highness the King of Qi sent His Excellency to the King for the purpose of making the Portuguese abandon their country and become second-class citizens under Han rule?"

Mitsuhisa Shimazu listened carefully to the translator's translation and looked at Raphael.

Raphael sneered and said, "The fact I heard from His Excellency Shimazu is that His Royal Highness King Qi not only did not mean to share the benefits to his allies in the slightest, but also tried to annex the countries of his allies, turning the allies who fought side by side into subordinates who listened to him. ”

Mitsuhisa Shimazu smiled.

After a while, he said slowly: "There is one thing I want to emphasize: King Qi's career is by no means comparable to anyone before. The sea and mountains and rivers could not stop the pace of King Qi. The sooner we join the cause of King Qi, the greater the achievements we can achieve, and the more benefits our children and grandchildren can receive. ”

"If His Royal Highness the King can figure this out earlier, His Highness's future future will be as limitless as one town and nine provinces."

Without waiting for João IV to respond, Raphael said loudly: "Your Excellency, General, we have come to Tianjin this time to ask the King of Qi for distribution, not to accept annexation. We Portuguese don't like your words very much. ”

Shimazu Mitsuhisa nodded and said, "You still don't fully understand the power of King Qi. ”

"Three days later, Zhenbei Bo Zhongfeng had a drill and training troops in the west of Fanjiazhuang, and His Royal Highness the King was invited to come and watch. After watching this exercise, His Royal Highness will have a new understanding of the strength of one town and nine provinces, and he will definitely have a new understanding of the problems he said to me. ”