Wang Jingqi has been the Minister of Propaganda for many years, but his right assistant minister of the Ministry of Rites has been moved to the left assistant minister. Although he has not been promoted in terms of rank, his actual position has been nearly half a level and he has become the second-in-commander of the Ministry of Rites.

However, the current Ministry of Rites is different from the Ministry of Rites back then. Since Zhu Yicheng split the Ministry of Rites and merged some of the functions of the Ministry of Rites and the powers of the Honglu Temple. After the newly established Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Rites is no longer directly responsible for diplomatic matters.

Therefore, Wang Jingqi, the left assistant minister of the Ministry of Rites, was even slightly inferior to the first right assistant minister in terms of authority, but this was nothing to Wang Jingqi. He was a very smart person, knowing that he was different from Liao Huanzhi and Jiang Jin. He was not outstanding in politics and was not suitable to serve as the chief executive.

What's more, Wang Jingqi is still a bachelor's degree in the Hanlin Academy. This position is the most suitable for him. In addition, Zhu Yicheng arranged for Wang Jingqi to compile "The History of the Ming Dynasty", which is enough to prove Zhu Yicheng's emphasis on him, and he has enjoyed it over the years.

Now, Wang Jingqi, a second-rank official in the Ming Dynasty, was not in the capital. Instead, he took a boat to Ryukyu first. After staying in Ryukyu for a few days, he arrived in Nagasaki, Japan.

As a literati, Wang Jingqi's eyes lit up after getting off the boat and looked at the scenery of Nagasaki. Today, Nagasaki is the most prosperous port city in Japan. After the Ming Dynasty forced the door to Japan, Nagasaki was the hub of commercial exchanges between Japan and the Ming Dynasty. Nagasaki has developed very fast in recent years, and there are many Ming people living here.

However, these are not the places that aroused Wang Jingqi's interest. On the contrary, the typical Japanese architecture and urban structure made him really happy. As a literati, especially a literati who was proficient in history, Wang Jingqi felt the pattern of the old Tang Dynasty here, and this pattern was rare in the Ming Dynasty. I didn't expect to see it here.

Just as Wang Jingqi was extremely moved by it, thinking back to the prosperous Tang Dynasty of the Celestial Empire, the Japanese receptionist came up, which made Wang Jingqi temporarily give up the idea of ​​preparing to recite a poem.

"The Japanese country, the old master of the Shogunate, the general of the expedition, Masato Inoue, has met the envoys of the Celestial Empire." Masato Inoue brought people forward and bowed to Wang Jingqi with extremely respectful etiquette.

In the early Ming Dynasty, when the contact with Japan was the negotiations conducted by Masato Inoue on behalf of the shogunate. In recent years, many of the affairs between the Ming Dynasty and the shogunate were also undertaken by Masato Inoue. It can be said that who is the most suitable person in the shogunate to communicate with the Ming Dynasty, so there is no other person in Masato Inoue.

Half a month ago, the shogunate received a message from the Ming Dynasty, saying that it was a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy, left minister of the Ministry of Rites, Minister of Propaganda of the Ming Dynasty, and second-class earl Wang Jingqi was on his way to Japan. After learning the news, the Tokugawa shogunate discussed it internally, feeling that without understanding why Wang Jingqi was on his way to Japan, and why the Ming Dynasty sent him here, he decided to still let Masato Inoue on behalf of the shogunate to greet him.

Therefore, although Masato Inoue is already taller this year and his health is not as good as before, he still rushed from Edo to Nagasaki and went to the dock to greet Wang Jingqi in person.

"Old Master Inoue has heard of Daemon for a long time. I'm so sorry for you to pick him up in person." With Wang Jingqi's identity, even facing the Tokugawa family's successor status is enough, but who would have thought that Wang Jingqi was extremely intimate when he saw Masato Inoue. Not only that, he seemed to be a little inconvenient to see Masato Inoue, but he also took the initiative to step forward and hold the other party's hand, as if he had seen a friend he had not seen for many years.

"Lord Wang is the envoy of the Heavenly Kingdom. He is so rude, and he is a foreign minister..." Inoue Masato hurriedly gave in. After all, the identities of both sides were different, and the Japanese were the most etiquette.

"It's okay, it's okay..." Wang Jingqi smiled and said, "My elder has made a lot of efforts in the interactions between the two countries over the years. Before I crossed the east, I once went to the palace to meet you. When Your Majesty talked to me about Japan, he also specifically mentioned the elder, praising him as a pure minister and capable minister of the country. When I saw him today, I was very happy, not to mention that the elder is old, and I should be like this as a junior."

This immediately made Masato Inoue feel warm in his heart. He never expected that his name would be remembered by the Emperor Daming, and he even gave him such a high evaluation.

Although Masato Inoue is an old master of the shogunate, it can be said to be an important figure in the Tokugawa shogunate, and now the shogun Tokugawa Ietsugu also has great trust in Masato Inoue. Unfortunately, he, the old master, has never been able to become a big master, which is the only regret in Masato Inoue's heart.

Now, I am in my twilight years, and I am afraid I will not have many days in this world. For people like Masato Inoue, status and power are no longer as passionate as they were more than ten years ago. Instead, I care about gaining my reputation and my funeral afterwards.

Now, what Wang Jingqi said simply came to his heart. He could be praised by the Emperor of Ming Dynasty, and even the envoys of the Supreme Kingdom of Ming Dynasty respected and treated him well. This life was without regrets.

He said he didn't dare, and at the same time he gave in a few words. However, Wang Jingqi still respected himself as if he were an elder and an old friend. This made Inoue Masato had a very good first impression of Wang Jingqi. In addition, Wang Jingqi was different from the generals who came to Japan before. You should know that Wang Jingqi is a real civil servant, and he is also a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy. Not to mention anything else, this title alone can make all walks of life in Japan look up to him.

When we first met, the two sides were very harmonious. Then Masato Inoue invited Wang Jingqi to move into the house carefully prepared for him. When we arrived at the place, Wang Jingqi was even more satisfied. He pointed to this residence full of Tang style and sighed. His words were full of praise and appreciation, which made Masato Inoue even more happy.

Next, whether it was kneeling, serving tea, or other knowledgeable Wang Jingqi could comment on it, and every sentence was about it. As an old man, Masato Inoue was also a gentleman, so he was even closer to the heavenly emperor and used even more effort to receive it.

In the evening of that day, Masato Inoue held a banquet as a representative of the shogunate to entertain guests, and specially prepared dancers carefully selected from Edo and Kyoto.

Originally, he was worried that Wang Jingqi was a little uncomfortable with the styles of these dancers. After all, the styles of Japanese dancers were very different from those of the Central Plains, especially the dresses, with white faces and black teeth. Many Ming people did not like this outfit that was common to Japanese people, but as the highest reception etiquette, this arrangement is necessary.

Who would have thought that after seeing this, Wang Jingqi applauded and praised, saying that these dancers not only retained the style of the ancient Tang Dynasty, but also had the charm of the pre-Song Dynasty. Even with this, Wang Jingqi also talked enthusiastically about the changes in clothing and makeup from the Former Qin Dynasty to the present, and spoke endlessly. Many examples came at once, which made Inoue Masato, who was accompanying him, admired him very much.
Chapter completed!