After the luncheon, the navy's top civil and military eunuchs went to a wing room in the east. At this time, the eunuch Wang Jinghong made time to call the old port envoy Shi Jinqing to talk.
The fact that Shi Jinqing appeared on the Semite ship and arrived in Da Nang was in itself a surprising thing.
In the "Srivijaya Kingdom" (located on the west coast of the Strait of Malacca), or the Old Port Xuanweisi, Shi Jinqing was one of the most important figures; Liang Daoming, known as the King of Srivijaya, was even less important than Shi Jinqing in the Ming court. Why would such a leader like Shi Jinqing be in Da Nang?
There were eunuchs, military commanders, and civil officials sitting in the side rooms, and Shi Jinqing was obviously the person that everyone paid the most attention to.
He was a Cantonese Han Chinese, and his appearance showed that he was from Guangdong and Guangxi. His skin was dark from exposure to the sun, and his facial features were
The naval fleet stayed in Da Nang for only a few days before setting sail again.Kuo Er, a "loyal servant" of the Indian lord Ji Er Da Er, claimed to be amazed and admired the magnificent fleet of the Ming Dynasty, and requested to go on the ship of the Shangguan Army. After several people discussed, the Central Army agreed to his request. So Kuo Er handed over the position of captain to his deputy and boarded Wang Jinghong's flagship alone.Eunuch Wang Jinghong also invited Liu Ming to join him on the flagship of the Central Army, but Liu Ming declined the offer and took a small boat back to the treasure ship commanded by Tang.This season is autumn in the Ming Dynasty, but in Annan and Champa, people can't feel the change of seasons. The weather is very hot and there is a lot of rain. But today is the only day with good weather, no rain, and hotter than usual.When Liu Ming walked onto the deck, he suddenly felt a pain in his head and heard the sound
The news that the Ming fleet had arrived spread quickly and had already reached Angkor, the capital of Zhenla.In people's hearts, this capital has long been on the verge of collapse.In addition to the current threat from the Ming Dynasty, the eastward expansion of Siamese forces over the years also seriously threatened the safety of Angkor. The terrain between Ayutthaya and Angkor is flat, with no strategic locations to defend, fertile land, and sufficient supplies. The Siamese army had approached the city more than once and almost broke through the capital.Fortunately, Siam had not started a war recently, and the Ming army was still far away. So on the surface, the scene in the capital still looked peaceful.The weather in Angkor Thom was very hot when it didn't rain for a day. The sky was bright and beautiful, and most people stayed away from the outside. The only noise among the lush vegetation was the chirping of birds and insects. On the grass
The windows in the King's Hall were high and small. The sun was blazing outside, drying the castle's bricks and stones; the sunlight through the windows and the flying dust were visible to the naked eye.The envoy from Manchiga came in. He looked at Queen Isuwa, who was sitting on the upper throne, and then glanced at her brother, An, who was standing at the lower throne. The envoy showed a look of realization on his face."May God protect the noble king." After the envoy bowed, he immediately said in Zhenla, "The two strategies of war and peace prepared by your king and his ministers earlier, it seems that the strategy of peace negotiation is no longer possible." He then pretended to be calm and made a little joke, "Unless Your Majesty is willing, ask the Ming Kingdom to punish and publicly cede all the land north of Saigon to Champa."King Benhaja calmly responded, "You know you can't."The messenger said, "As for the war strategy, the current situat
The calendar used by the Zhenla people is relatively close to the solar calendar used by the Ming Dynasty. After entering November (the tenth month of the lunar calendar), the climate enters the cool season; this is the season with the lowest temperature subdivided from the dry season.Even the Zhenla people, who are accustomed to the hot and rainy climate, like the cool season.During this short period of three or four months, the temperature is mild and pleasant, neither too hot nor too cold, and the rainfall is relatively minimal. Although it often rains at this time, the rain is usually very short, the ground is wet and then evaporates quickly, and the roads are not muddy.However, the Ming army did not arrive at the beginning of the cool season. When the Ming army approached Saigon, it was already the end of November (the tenth month of the lunar calendar), wasting almost a month of good days. The Zhenla people and the Manchus speculated that it might b
The Ming fleet in the bay remained motionless. There were no sails on the bare masts, and it was lifeless . Countless huge ships were arranged in a relatively neat matrix, swaying gently in the waves. This scene looked like a huge tomb, and the magnificent water ruins were abandoned here.The Zhenla people found it very strange. The warship in front was gradually approaching the Ming army, and people could even see the copper deck cannon on the bow of the Ming army ship.Suddenly, the northeast wind blew in the face, and the sound of a zither string drifted in. Things became even stranger. Shouldn't the Ming army be panicking at this moment?More than one Zhenla general had sensed that something was not right.But the Ming army's giant ship was already in sight, so the Zhenla people took no practical action for a while. Even if they want to turn around immediately, the sailing ship cannot do it immediately. Countless ships are still drifting forward wi
The slow rhythm of drums beating in the sea breeze never stopped. The drumbeats were like the beating of the heart in the body. People could feel them everywhere, as if they were everywhere. That was the effect of the Ming army's multiple warships beating drums at the same time.The Zhenla general had already discovered the arrogance of the Ming army. The Ming army broke into the coalition's formation in two columns connected head to tail; such a long and thin column was very easy to be boarded and besieged by several warships of the coalition. But the Ming army seemed to be unconcerned.The sound of artillery fire in the distance mixed with the sound of the waves, forming a continuous and loud noise.The admiral's ship had already turned southwest, and he stood on the deck, watching the gradual changes in the situation coldly. He didn't have much to do at this time. The pace of naval warfare was relatively slow, but tactical arrangements and preparations we
The waters in the bay were very wide. The depth of the coalition army and the warships in the rear had turned southwest and retreated towards the exit of Saigon Bay.The Ming army's treasure ships and warships formed two columns, shuttling through the enemy's formation; the two armies maintained the same course, with little difference in speed. Two long dragons of white smoke clearly distinguished the Ming army's fleet.The sound of cannons on the water almost never stopped, and warships near and far were firing cannons one after another. The clear sea and sky seemed to be shrouded in thunder. The wind was mixed with the noise of drums and trumpets and the bustling voices of people.Most of the coalition warships were trying to avoid the Ming army's attacks; therefore, the Ming army was actively approaching the place where the bombardment occurred. Therefore, the Ming warships mostly chose to fire from the port side, which was roughly upwind of the enemy shi
In the early morning of the 28th, the dark grey sky was already beginning to lighten. The Qianjiang River was covered with fog and there was no wind.Several small boats were lined up with glazed lanterns on their masts, flickering orange and yellow lights in the mist, looking like will-o'-the-wisp fires from afar. The wooden oars paddled in the water, making a crisp sound.These small boats in front are leading the way because the vision is still unclear.Behind the boat, a ball of light shone in the air. Where the light was, a huge black shadow slowly swam forward through the fog. Its mountain-like size was daunting, like a dark monster, giving people a suffocating pressure at first glance. This was the outline of a treasure ship.The noise from the rear was also louder, and the ends of the long oars on both sides of the ship moved like propellers. Many soldiers were in the cabin, rowing hard.There were several more treasure ships, plus variou