"How many of the barbarian ships in Ningbo are manned by foreigners, Japanese, and how many by coastal scholars and local tyrants?"

Upon hearing such queries from the governor, Shi Wende trembled uncontrollably, overwhelmed with fear. As a member of the maritime merchants, he actually knew the answer to this question. It was "Out of ten pirate ships, seven are fake Ming ships," "Out of ten sea ships, nine use unverifiable validations!"

Yet behind the distribution of the Ningbo Port sea trade profits, thirty percent goes to the Middle Officer managing the Market Department, forty percent to the local aristocratic families, twenty percent to the sea lords managing transportation, and ten percent to the Japanese merchants providing validation, without even a fraction handed over to the court!

This is a vast network of interests, continuously funneling a large amount of luxury goods and silver coins into the heart of Jiangnan in the Ming Dynasty. The wealth of coastal scholars has expanded rapidly, and land appropriation has been increasing daily. For a Governor from Jiangnan familiar with the private trade situation along the coast, naturally, they are well aware of it and won't apply any drastic measures.

The Market Department sea trade on the coasts of Zhe, Min, and Yue provinces has involvement from each coastal aristocratic family, albeit with varying issues. No noble family truly has a clean slate, and no one would wield a blade to cut themselves!

But now, this Governor from Shanxi, transferred from Shanxi to Zhejiang, truly has no ties to the vast maritime trade interests along the coast!

If he were to truly represent the court in restructuring the Zhejiang officialdom, tightening maritime restrictions, and starting to meticulously clear out "widespread illegal sea trade," then such an Advanced Scholar who has dealt with Northern Barbarians could indeed be a sharp guillotine in the Saint's hand!

As this great court blade swings down, not to mention whether it can actually kill those local tyrants, at the very least, the snakes and rats that emerge will undoubtedly be separated at the head and body. And the Shi family, already flagged by the governor and "quite famous," will not be spared, right? An ordinary scholar title cannot shelter from such a grand spectacle…

This is the lamentation of the Ming Dynasty's maritime merchants. Even if they gather hundreds or thousands, traversing South Ocean to Japan, they remain at the bottom of the Ming Dynasty "food chain." Unless the sea trade continues to expand and the power of sea merchants continues to swell until they can forcibly break free from this "food chain," but by then, when the court's gaze turns upon them, it's probably not just a matter of a guillotine and the death of hundreds of people!...

"Master! Governor Master!"

Shi Wende could no longer sit still and directly "thump" kneel before Governor Wang Zhe. He was trembling, dripping with sweat, trying hard to argue.

"Governor Master!... Although sea trade indeed has... many illegal activities... it nevertheless... always relies on the court-approved barbarian ship trade... never daring to openly fly flags in defiance..."

"And this barbarian ship trade has indeed provided many landless peasants in Zhe Province with a way to sustain their families..."

"The four major noble families in Ningbo of our dynasty... West Lake Lu Family, Cha Lake Zhang Family, Jiangbei Tu Family, Jingchuan Yang Family... are all families of Advanced Scholars! Over the past twenty years, they have consolidated thousands of acres of land, driving thousands of peasants into the city..."

"If not for the employment provided by barbarian ship trade, then these thousands of landless peasants... can only become displaced, dying from hunger and cold!... Hope the Governor Master will raise a hand and leave a gap in the sea trade, offering a way out for the peasants!... "

"Hmm? West Lake Lu Family, Cha Lake Zhang Family, Jiangbei Tu Family, Jingchuan Yang Family… landless peasants becoming chaotic vagrants?"

Upon hearing this, Governor Wang Zhe stroked his beard, remaining silent for a long time. Scholar-officials always speak of "agriculture as the foundation," but when real discussions of land appropriation arise, it gets difficult to answer. According to Zhu Zi's learning, the answer is undoubtedly to curb appropriation drastically, punish the local tyrants, and ensure the peasants have arable land!

But in reality, those truly occupying land in the Ming Dynasty are never the local tyrants but are the noble families with titles, the scholar-officials themselves. In this reality, it's really difficult to investigate land acreage and wield a blade upon the scholar-officials themselves.

Even if Wang Zhe is a Northern person with no conflicts of interest, without strong backing from the court, he cannot make up his mind to wield the blade against these noble families like Lu Zhang Tu Yang!

If the fundamental issue of appropriation is not resolved, if arable land is not provided, and if sea trade is simply banned without giving the landless peasants a way out, forcing them to become displaced... for Wang Zhe as a governor, the drawbacks would far exceed the benefits, easily leading to civil unrest.

And during the Hongzhi years of prosperity, he cannot speak such nonsense as "peaceful starvation" like the degenerate scholar-officials during the Chongzhen years a hundred years later.

"To the east and west of Ningbo, there are still mudflats and hills... If we exert effort to reclaim them, we might gain a little arable land... Ah!"

Governor Wang Zhe said half the sentence, then sighed lightly. The Ming Dynasty has been established for one hundred and fifty years now. In such a populous heartland like Jiangnan, where could there still be undeveloped land? Those mudflats and hills are simply impossible to cultivate; rice and wheat barely survive, and even the seeds cannot be retrieved...

"Forget it, forget it! The court does not compete with the 'people' for profit. During my tenure as the Zhejiang Governor, I'll probably stay at most two or three years. Some matters, I open one eye and close the other, unwilling to investigate deeply..."

Governor Wang Zhe shook his head, the murderous intent in his eyes disappeared, leaving only a helpless bitter smile.

The Ming Dynasty indeed does not compete with the 'scholar-officials of the civilian world' for profit. For over a hundred years, there has neither been the establishment of trade tariffs nor the collection of sea trade taxes, nor has there been control over copper and silver, or minting of silver coin currency. The majority of sea trade profits have consistently flowed into the pockets of coastal scholars and local gentry with a tacit and oblivious stance of the bureaucratic system.

In recent years, there have been scholar-officials petitioning for the reform of the Market Department. The court also realizes the loss of "barbarian ship" trade taxes, and internal debates are endless. But within this developed civil service system of the Ming Dynasty, how difficult is it to implement any reform? As long as one truly wants to reform something or change the distribution of interests, they will face tremendous political resistance!

And those court officials who openly or secretly obstruct are all selected through the imperial examination among millions, experts in politics and culture. They are interconnected in a tight network with many reasons and methods to oppose. Without the resolve of Wang Anshi to break the stalemate, or a drastic external change like at Tumu Pass, the Ming would remain unchanging and unmoving like the "Black Tortoise" in "Chu Ci"!

"Sigh... In this world, it's rare to open your mouth and laugh, chrysanthemum must adorn your head on your return... Today as I watch the lone reed, the green mountains and trees remain plentiful."

Governor Wang Zhe recited two lines of poetry, feeling disinterested, and no longer wishing to waste words on the kneeling Shi Wende. He stood up, put away the "Li Wenxi's Collection" into the bookcase completely. Then, with a cold expression, he stood before the desk, overlooking the kneeling Shi Wende.

At this moment, the "mentor" who loved to instruct was nowhere to be seen, leaving only a high-ranking second-grade official of the Ming, overseeing one of the thirteen provinces' governors, looking down on a low-ranking scholar sea merchant!

"Shi Wende, this time I'm meeting you to entrust a matter to you. It concerns the grand scheme of Zhejiang, so you must listen carefully!"

"According to the court's regulations, next April, a Japanese envoy will lead a large fleet to formally submit tribute. Such a grand tribute occurs only once every ten years or so, and the scale isn't small; the Japanese fleet that will appear then may have two to three hundred people. Upon reviewing records, each grand tribute involves Japanese who are 'Back Flag Samurai' carrying swords, similar to Northern Barbarians' elite cavalry..."

"Whenever the Northern Barbarians come to pay tribute, the Northern Land dispatches scouts to monitor, mobilizing garrisons along the way, constantly preparing for 'barbarian defense'. Prior to the arrival of these Japanese envoy fleets, Zhejiang also needs to 'prepare for the Japanese', strictly guard like 'barbarian defense'!"

"Jiangnan has been peaceful for too long, the garrisons need proper reorganization! On this point, I will deal with it strictly. For now, your Chongming Shi family, having dealt with the Japanese and managed sea trade with Japanese goods... you'll act as scouts for this 'Japanese defense'..."

"Investigate the situation of the Japanese fleet in advance! Any important information must be reported to me immediately at the first instance! Once the pirate ship arrives, your Shi family will also need to act as translators, accompanying the communication throughout!"

"Next year's grand tribute of the Japanese fleet must be smooth and peaceful. If any trouble arises, and the court's punishment descends, I'll have no choice but to enforce the Ming law, properly apprehending a batch of 'bandits' colluding with the Japanese! You must understand, illicit trade with the Japanese is a crime that leads to decapitation and extermination of the family!"

"Yes! Yes! I will follow the governor's orders!... As a student... a humble one, I will surely scout all the circumstances of the Japanese thoroughly, ensuring the Japanese do not cause any trouble!"

Upon hearing the governor's strict order, Shi Wende deeply bowed, touching his head to the ground, his sweat soaking the floor. Governor Wang Zhe lowered his eyes, glanced at the trembling sea merchant in fear, and only after several moments spoke lightly.

"Do well! Si Cheng, the reason you came to see me, you don't need to say, I've long known... I will send a governor's note to several coastal inspection bureaus and garrisons... As long as I'm in Zhejiang for even a day, your Chongming Shi family won't encounter major issues!"

"However, I am already old and won't stay in Zhejiang for too long. Once I complete this term smoothly, I will petition the Holy Emperor to retire and return to my hometown. Your Shi family should make plans early, make decisive decisions... do not let any incident arise after I retire!"

"Someone! Bring tea!"