September 1657, Tsushima Island, Asu Bay.
The morning fog on the sea has not yet dissipated, and the fishing boats that got up early to go to sea have returned to the port one after another loaded with fish and shrimps.
However, today's port seemed a little different from usual. The fishermen on the boat were surprised to find that the noble Lord Soyizhen appeared on the dock with a group of retainers and warriors.
Several warriors shouted loudly on the pier, directing the fishing boats preparing to dock in the bay to dock elsewhere. Although the fishermen were curious, they did not dare to disobey the samurai's order and quickly rowed their boats away from the waters.
At least one thing is certain. Zong Yizhen came to the dock early in the morning, obviously not to buy the fresh catch brought back by the fishermen.
Zong Yizhen was sitting on a huge soft chair, with two young women beside him peeling fresh fruits and putting them into his mouth.
This soft leather chair was a gift given to him by the Haihan delegation when they visited the year before last. It was named "sofa". The seat cushion and backrest were not only thick but also full of elasticity. Zong Yi really liked it.
He also built a huge new Chinese-style sedan specifically for this purpose, so that he could put this sofa chair in it and enjoy the highest level of comfort when traveling.
When Zong Yizhen went out early this morning, he didn't forget to bring his own baby chair, so that he could stay on the dock in the most comfortable position and wait for the arrival of distinguished guests.
Ever since the Kaihan delegation visited Tsushima the year before last, Mune Yoshizhen had truly felt that significant changes had taken place in Tsushima where he was located.
If Tsuima Fan’s previous positioning was to use its unique geographical advantages to do some small business between North Korea and Japan, then since Haihan made the trade commitment, Tsuima Fan has become a genuine middleman between the two countries. Asu Bay has also rapidly evolved from a fishing port into a trading port.
The sudden increase in trade volume not only brought considerable income to Zong Yizhen's treasury, but also changed the lives of the people on the island.
Hotels, restaurants, and restaurants that catered exclusively to foreign businessmen began to appear along the Asu Bay. The straw sheds near the fishing port that were originally used to store old fishing gear were vacated and rented to out-of-town businessmen for use as warehouses.
Tsushima Island is all hilly and mountainous, and the soil is too barren to grow any crops. Most of the people make a living by eating from the sea and fishing. But now some fishermen who are familiar with the sea conditions of the Tsushima Strait have begun to change careers and become merchant sailors, traveling between North Korea and Japan. People who cannot adapt to life at sea can also choose to make a living by working as laborers at the dock.
For Zong Yizhen, what was more important than improving the local trade environment was that Tsushima had obtained Haihan's military protection, and he no longer had to be humble to anyone from now on.
For this reason, since the year before last, Mune Yoshizhin has successively sent a dozen young people he carefully selected to study abroad in Sasebo Bay.
It would be best for these young people to learn their true skills from the Haihan Army, but even if they fail to become outstanding officers, Zong Yizhen will not feel any regrets.
In his view, this was originally a channel to express his attitude to Kaihan. Sending some nephews and descendants to Sasebo Bay and placing them under the eyes of the Kaihan people would also help reassure the other party to maintain a good cooperative relationship with Tsushima.
As for making Tsushima a strong military domain, Mune Yoshizhin didn't have much ambition in this regard.
Tsushima had a limited population and could not afford to support a large army, and now Kaihan was providing shelter. Kaihan troops were stationed at Busan Port in the north and Sasebo Bay in the south, and the voyage to Asu Bay was also limited. All within one day, Zong Yizhen basically doesn't have to worry about Tsuima Fan's safety. Of course, when facing the Haihan officials, Zong Yi really didn't dare to show such a divisive attitude. He had to send those who should be sent to military training and buy the weapons and equipment that should be bought. The arms purchased from Haihan in the past two years were enough for Tsushima to arm a firearms force of one to two thousand people.
Zong Yi really thought clearly, everyone is a businessman, if Ma Fan doesn't spend some money to go out, why should Hai Han provide him with military protection?
It's just that Zong Yizhen is still not sure whether this attitude towards Ma Fan can satisfy Lord Shi Diwen.
If we count from the period when the Hirado clan was at war with Haihan, Shi Diwen has appeared in Haihan's various methods of suppressing Japan in the past ten years.
Mune Yoshizhen also knew that that gentleman had always intended to support the southwestern vassals to establish independent countries and completely get rid of the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate. But this kind of decoupling will inevitably mean war, and Mune Yoshizhen does not want the small island of Tsushima he rules to fall into war.
Regarding Shi Diwen's visit, Haihan's diplomatic department did not explain the detailed purpose, which made Zong Yizhen feel a little uneasy.
If it is just to discuss trade, it seems that there is no need for a big man like Shi Diwen to go out in person, or just send a letter directly asking Zong Yizhen to meet at Sasebo Bay. The other party took the initiative to visit him, obviously he had something more important to discuss.
A ship on the distant sea released a firework signal, indicating that the visiting Haihan fleet had appeared.
Zong Yizhen came back from his thoughts and quickly ordered his men to arrange the welcome measures on the dock.
In addition to Zong Yizhen and his subordinates, those who came here in advance to wait were also a group of Haihan merchants and sailors currently stationed on Tsushima Island.
For these people who are begging for food overseas, a visit by a senior executive committee official to their place is definitely a first-class event that must not be missed.
Although there were only less than a hundred people, almost every one of these people held a red and blue flag representing Haihan. They stood in two lines on the pier and were quite impressive. Their formation was not inferior to that of the landlords.
Zong Yizhen knew that the Haihan people paid more attention to the sense of ritual in diplomacy, so he also dispatched his own personal guards and all important retainers to show how much they valued Shi Diwen's visit.
The sails of the Haihan fleet appeared on the sea in the distance. Zong Yizhen stood up and asked his subordinates to remove the comfortable soft chairs, and led his subordinates to wait in line. If someone on the ship used a telescope to see him sitting there waiting for Shi Diwen's arrival, that would be quite rude.
After a long time, the Haihan fleet sailed into Asu Bay. The leading giant ship shocked everyone who witnessed it on the shore, and Zong Yizhen was no exception.
It was hard for him to imagine that there was such a large warship in the world, but the Haihan people seemed to be good at accomplishing such incredible things.
When the Zhoushan slowly docked at the dock, Zong Yizhen looked at the ship's side, which was higher than the wall of his own Jinshi City, and couldn't help but feel a little nervous. If this thing comes to attack Asuwan, wouldn't our side be unable to fight back?
It wasn't until he saw Shi Diwen's figure appearing on the gangway that Zong Yizhen put away his random thoughts, squeezed out a smile on his face and waved to the other party.