Chapter 194: Sun Yuanhua

The Dengzhou Governor’s Yamen, newly established during the Tianqi era, was quite impressive. In front of the gate stood a large green sedan chair. Under the screen wall were several vermilion “high-footed plaques” with official titles and honors written in gilded, imitation Song-style script. The various flags hanging were numerous and dazzling to the eye.

Looking further into the yamen, two rows of personal guards with swords stood from the main gate all the way to the front of the main hall. There were also several military officials of the third and fourth ranks. Seeing this scene, Zhao Yingong knew that if he rashly approached, he probably wouldn’t even get a word in. He immediately stepped aside, took out his name card and a “eight-line letter” from the Xu family, and told Ji Ying to submit them.

“Use a one-tael gate fee,” he reminded Ji Ying.

After a long while, a personal attendant came out, holding his name card, and called out, “Which one is Master Zhao from Hangzhou?”

Zhao Yingong nodded, and with a dignified stride, stepped forward and replied, “That would be me.”

“The Governor summons you.”

“Yes. Please lead the way.”

Fenghua, who had been well-rehearsed, immediately held up Zhao Yingong’s name card and followed the attendant inwards. The Governor’s Yamen was large and imposing. When they reached the entrance of the flower hall, an attendant had already opened the door curtain, signaling him to enter.

Upon entering, he saw a capable-looking middle-aged official in plain clothes, sitting on a mahogany heated couch in the middle of the flower hall, holding a letter. Zhao Yingong knew this was likely the famous Sun Yuanhua.

He composed himself slightly, then lifted the hem of his robe to bow and announce his name.

“Oh, so you are Mr. Zhao!” Sun Yuanhua’s eyes were quite imposing. Although he was a civil official, he had served in the military in Liaodong for many years. The authoritative demeanor cultivated through years of military life exerted a pressure that made Zhao Yingong feel a slight chill of fear.

The man before him, as the Governor of Dengzhou and Laizhou, was a truly powerful court official with a large army under his command. With a single order, he could have someone’s head roll. Facing such a person, an ordinary man would naturally find it difficult to resist his authority—Zhao Yingong rationalized the cold sweat on his back. He had never been so clearly aware of his own weakness and powerlessness when separated from the collective.

Fortunately, Sun Yuanhua had a rather favorable impression of Zhao Yingong. The visitor was tall and imposing, with a dignified bearing and graceful movements. He was respectful yet confident. Sun Yuanhua nodded to himself in approval.

He had already received a letter from the Hangzhou church, and now he had received another from the Xu family, both of which spoke highly of this “Mr. Zhao.” In particular, this man had worked tirelessly for the church during the Hangzhou incident, doing a great deal to defuse the local hostility towards the church, which was a great service to the weak Chinese church. A smile appeared on his face, and he said:

“Mr. Zhao, please sit!”

Zhao Yingong took a seat, and an attendant placed a lidded tea bowl on the small table beside him.

“Listening to Mr. Zhao’s accent, it seems you are not from Guangdong.”

“That is correct. My ancestral home is Hangzhou. My ancestors settled in Sanshui, Guangdong, for business and registered their household there,” Zhao Yingong said cautiously.

Sun Yuanhua was very enthusiastic about this “seeker of the Way” introduced by the church—not only because of their shared religious faith but also because the letters mentioned that this Master Zhao was well-versed in “Western learning,” especially his deep understanding of “Australia.” Sun Yuanhua had also seen the “Australian goods” that had become more common in the past two years. He was more knowledgeable than the average person and knew that this was not just a matter of simple clever tricks but seemed to be a new field of knowledge more profound than his own Western learning.

Sun Yuanhua was most interested in the Australians’ military operations in Qiongzhou. He had already gathered bits and pieces of information about this battle. The Jesuits in Lingao had passed on information about the Battle of Chengmai to Macau, and Sun Yuanhua had not only Jesuit priests but also many Portuguese soldiers around him. Through this channel, the information he received was much richer and more accurate than what the court received.

Sun Yuanhua was particularly interested in the Battle of Chengmai because the Australians’ mode of combat was very similar to that of the Ming army. They also used their superiority in firearms to adopt a defensive posture, first using high walls and deep ditches with firearms to wear down the enemy’s assault, and then waiting for an opportunity to launch a counterattack.

The problem was that the Ming army’s practice of this type of combat had almost no successful examples. Sun Yuanhua had served in Liaodong for many years, and apart from the “Great Victory of Guangning” under Yuan Chonghuan, the Ming army’s tactic of using fortifications, wagon formations, and firearms to resist the enemy had been defeated time and time again.

The Australians in Qiongzhou, however, had used a similar tactic to defeat government forces several times their number—and it was worth noting that He Zhen’s troops also had Hongyi cannons, which were clearly much better than the Frankish ones. Therefore, his interest in the Kun thieves had greatly increased.

Thus, after only a few pleasantries, Sun Yuanhua turned the conversation to the Australians.

“Since you reside in Guangdong and deal in Australian goods, you must know their background very well, right?”

Zhao Yingong nodded. “I know a little.”

Sun Yuanhua immediately began to inquire about the Australians’ military situation, especially their firearms.

Zhao Yingong dared not say too much about this, nor did he dare to spin a wild tale. He knew the man before him was an expert, and more importantly, Sun had the Jesuits as an intelligence channel. If he was so inclined, he could find out many things. To gain his trust, he had to be careful with what he said, and as much as possible, not lie about what he could say.

Therefore, although he only talked about some relatively superficial content, he still mentioned some details that might interest Sun Yuanhua, especially a simple explanation of the power, range, and types of projectiles of the Australian cannons.

He then talked about the Australian muskets. Sun Yuanhua was very interested in the Minié rifle and the revolver. Zhao Yingong learned from him that several Minié rifles and revolvers had fallen into the hands of the Ming army and had been sent to the mainland. Therefore, Sun Yuanhua was very familiar with the design of these firearms. He even took out a drawing that was not quite to scale. Zhao Yingong saw at a glance that many details were missing and was immediately relieved.

“I have always wanted to find a real gun to examine,” Sun Yuanhua sighed. “I heard that it is different from the fowling pieces of our dynasty and the red-haired barbarians. Not only is it not afraid of wind and rain, but its lead ball can travel one or two li. I wonder what kind of ingenious technique the Kun thieves use?”

“Where are the real guns now?” Zhao Yingong was very concerned about this.

“They are still in Guangdong. I sent people to get them but only managed to obtain this drawing. I heard that a few fell into the hands of Governor Xiong in Fujian.” Sun Yuanhua seemed very regretful about this. As he was training new armies and casting firearms in Dengzhou, he was naturally very interested in “new-style firearms.”

Zhao Yingong immediately explained the function of the rifling in the Minié rifle. Revealing this technological secret had been approved. Even at that time, rifling was not much of a secret—early rifled guns had already appeared in Europe, but they had no practical combat value, and it would be even more difficult to replicate them in the Ming Dynasty. As for the Minié ball, although its principle and structure seemed simple, no place in this era had the industrial capacity to manufacture it—not to mention the crucial percussion cap.

Sun Yuanhua listened very carefully, occasionally asking questions. At this moment, Zhao Yingong felt that Sun Yuanhua was more like an engineer than a Ming bureaucrat, and he couldn’t help but feel a bit more favorable towards him.

He noticed that although Sun Yuanhua was impressed by the Australians’ “orderly formations” and “daring to fight,” his main interest was still in “Australian firearms.” He couldn’t help but shake his head inwardly. It was clear that Sun’s mindset was still that of the “Westernization Faction,” focusing on “implements.”

Whether it was Xu Guangqi or Sun Yuanhua, although they were very diligent in introducing Western weapons and technology, they had very little involvement in the nascent modern European military theory and system of that time. Zhao Yingong remembered that besides firearms, Sun Yuanhua’s greatest interest in Western military affairs was in European-style fortresses. He had even personally designed some defensive works that “blended Chinese and foreign” elements.

“…I didn’t expect you to have such a deep understanding of firearms,” Sun Yuanhua praised him greatly. He instructed an attendant, “Invite Master Zhao to sit on the heated couch!”

This was another upgrade in etiquette. For the governor to invite a xiucai to sit with him on the heated couch was a great honor. Even Zhao Yingong felt flattered. He was very pleased with himself and felt more confident in dealing with Governor Sun.

After the attendant moved the lidded tea bowl to the small table on the couch, Zhao Yingong expressed his thanks and sat down.

Only then did Sun Yuanhua slowly say, “Master Zhao’s understanding of the Australians is so deep, I’m afraid it’s not as simple as just doing business, right?”

Zhao Yingong was taken aback and quickly stood up and cupped his hands. “Your Excellency’s insight is as vast as the sky! My business with the Australians is indeed very deep.”

The so-called “very deep” meant that he had also dealt in contraband with the Australians, which was not uncommon in the maritime trade of that time.

“Sit, sit,” Sun Yuanhua said, gesturing downwards with his hand. “How does it compare to Mr. Gao?”

Zhao Yingong thought, he even knows about Gao Ju. He immediately put on an expression of both surprise and respect and said, “How dare I compare myself to Mr. Gao.”

Sun Yuanhua smiled faintly and asked, “You have traveled thousands of li from the gentle lands of Hangzhou to this place. What is your purpose?”

Zhao Yingong knew this question would come and cautiously replied, “Although I have studied, I have stumbled in the examinations. I can only follow my ancestors’ profession and practice the arts of Guan Zhong and Tao Zhu.”

The Dengzhou area was on the front line against the barbarians. Not only were millions of shi of grain, military supplies, and silver transported from here every year, but the consumption of the local garrison was also a considerable figure. It was not surprising for a merchant to want to get a piece of the action here, and it was a very plausible explanation.

Sun Yuanhua said, “Although there is a lot of military supply business here, the risks are also great.” Because they were fellow “believers,” he felt it was necessary to remind the other party that the Dengzhou and Laizhou area had always been a key logistical base for the military in Liaodong. The place was full of business opportunities, but traveling to Liaodong was fraught with the danger of storms, and many ships and goods were lost at sea every year. Although there was no Jin navy at sea, the Ming navy was not to be trifled with, and incidents of them secretly attacking and plundering merchant ships were not uncommon.