Chapter 950 Please make a sacrifice, Your Majesty!

Princess Catiaga held up the treasure in her hands and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, this is a treasure of our country. In order to express our sincerity, I present it to you."
"Your Majesty, please protect our country. We are willing to regard Your Majesty as our beloved Emperor." "
Our country is willing to follow the lead of the Great Ming Dynasty." "
The Emperor remained silent for a moment before giving Wang Cheng'en a slight nod." Sure, let me know if there is anything else I can help you with.
Wang Cheng'en stepped forward and took the box embedded with jewels from Princess Cardiga's hand.
He first opened it to inspect it, confirmed everything was in order, and then presented it to the emperor.
Inside, there lay a curved blade, with gemstones also embedded in the scabbard, exquisitely crafted.
"Your Majesty, this is a dagger that once belonged to the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. My grandfather purchased it at a high price from Istanbul and it has been treasured in the royal family as a national treasure. Upon learning that Your Majesty admires the previous great emperor who possessed extraordinary talent and strategic vision, the Queen sent me to present this item as a token of respect."
Chongzhen picked up the treasure knife from the box. If I'm not mistaken, this is a Damascus blade, and the previous one was exquisitely crafted, undoubtedly made by the hands of royal artisans.
The tempering technique of the Damascus sword originates from Persia and was beloved by many countries in ancient times, including India, Arabia, and the Turks. It is one of the most outstanding knives of its time in terms of its texture and can rival the Tang Dynasty's Tang sword.
Chongzhen pulled out a knife, its blade dark and sharp, radiating a sense of uniqueness even from a close distance.
Zhang Fan still liked this knife a lot. As an emperor with a strong offensive nature, he was interested in knives, guns, luxury cars, and various industrial products.
"I'll take this knife."
Then, he said to Wang Chengen, "Take the princess down to rest."
"Yes."
"I'll take my leave first."
Catiag followed Wang Chengen out of Qianqing Palace.
Chongzhen said to Li Yan, "What do you think of this matter?"
Li Yan replied, "I believe that the Kingdom of Aceh has come seeking survival."
"We didn't say we wanted to destroy Aceh."
"It is possible that Aceh has also smuggled firearms and steam engines from the Ming Dynasty." Li Yan calmly said, "It is not ruled out that possibility. In the past two years, a large number of firearms and steam engines were smuggled to Nanyang. As the once most powerful country in Nanyang, Aceh cannot remain unaffected."
So you mean they intentionally tried to show goodwill, while secretly smuggling firearms and steam engines from Da Ming, and at the same time seeking asylum in Da Ming? Oh no, not asylum, but deceiving Us?
“It is possible. Some smugglers in Shanghai have claimed that merchants from Aceh made a stopover in Luzon Island.”
“So, how do you think we should arrange the Aceh Kingdom?”
After a moment of contemplation, Li Yan said, "If our army wishes to cross the Malacca Strait and engage in military activities in India, we must first handle our relations with the Kingdom of Aceh, which lies along the coast of the strait. Since Aceh is willing to show goodwill towards our dynasty, it would be better to give them a way out."
After contemplating for a moment, Chongzhen stated, "Giving them a way out is possible, but we must put forward certain conditions. They must agree to my demands. You go and talk to Princess Katika about it."
First, you must join the Great Ming's trade system and accept silver currency.
Second, you must provide a port allowing the court to construct a naval base there to maintain order in the South Seas and protect merchant ships.
"3. They must send members of the royal family to Beijing for studies."
"4. Exemption of all Han Chinese from commercial taxes in the Kingdom of Aceh."
Li Yan said, "Your Majesty, you have great foresight. I will explain this to Princess Katiya one by one." Note: The
Li Yan pondered for a moment and then said, "However, even so, I still think that the relationship is not reliable."
"Oh, if it is not reliable then let Sun Chuantiang take the navy battleship fleet to the port of the kingdom of Aceh and let them know what to do."
"Your Majesty, the navy is still dealing with Malacca. Even after the recapture of Malacca, there are still many places like Java and Malaysia that need to be dealt with one by one. There is no need to immediately resort to force against the Aceh Kingdom, which has shown us goodwill."
"Moreover, the countries in Southeast Asia are spread across the seas. Our country must resolve the issues with these countries within three years. We need to first deter them, open up trade fully and quickly, and then politically deal with them one by one."
If we were to engage in warfare against a small country that is currently showing goodwill towards us, other small countries, upon learning of this, would most likely fight to the bitter end against our military. This would be detrimental to our strategic goal of reclaiming the South Seas within three years and would contradict the Emperor's strategy of rapid expansion towards the Western countries.
"Then how do you propose to make the Kingdom of Aceh more loyal and less likely to cause any trouble?"
"I believe, Your Majesty, you can marry Princess Katiga just like you married the princess of Japan in the past. Now there is stable public opinion within Japan."
Chongzhen forced a bitter smile and said, "Do you think I'm a person who would marry a princess from an extinguished country every time Ming conquers one? Is that what you suggest?"
Li Yan didn't answer his question, but said, "From the current perspective, this method is the most reliable. It can strengthen the trust between both sides, and will increase the likelihood of the implementation of Your Majesty's policies in the kingdom of Aceh."
Yeah, even if Princess Catiya agrees to those demands, and even if Queen Azi of Aceh agrees, if the officials of Aceh feel there are issues, it can greatly affect the speed of policy implementation.
Of course, Ming can send a large army to conquer them, but it will take quite a bit of time.
The three-year strategy to settle the South Seas would have to be postponed.
"The queen of Aceh has sent a young and beautiful princess to visit Ming. Your Majesty, I believe you already know her true intentions."
Li Yan, oh Li Yan, do you know that being too smart can lead to a short life?
You've uncovered everything, how can I have fun playing with you?
Chongzhen walked up to the map, glanced at the world map, and said, "You can leave now." Translated content:
"I will take my leave."
We must conquer the countries in the Nanyang region within a few years.
Conquering them doesn't necessarily mean annihilating their nations; we want them to join the Ming Empire's trade system to rapidly boost our strategy of exporting commodities to the outside world.
Once overseas trade fully emerges, it can quickly boost the coastal economy. This is also the viewpoint expressed by Emperor Chongzhen in his work "General Discussion on Coastal Economy" written in Xiamen last year.
After the coastal economy picks up, government revenue will greatly increase, and commercial capacity will also be activated accordingly.
This way, the court will have sufficient funds to build more railways to stimulate the inland economy, as well as expand westward through land and regain the lost territories of the Han and Tang dynasties.
As for the subsequent situation of the countries in Nanyang, it can be completely resolved through political means, by progressively eliminating them one by one.
And now, time is efficiency. By advancing the progress earlier, numerous households can participate in this large-scale trade, improving the lives of countless families. It can also accelerate the development of the inland economy.
Princess Cardija currently resides in the Forbidden City.
She had just arrived at her new residence when a woman came to see her.
This woman was none other than the former Japanese Emperor Ming Zheng, who is now the Consort Xing. Translated content:
Her title as Empress has already been taken away.
Ming Zheng is wearing a loose Hanfu and has her hair styled up, looking adorable.
She smiles and looks at Princess Katiya, saying, "Hello, Your Highness."