In Jinjiang, Quanzhou Prefecture, the spice ship laden with pepper carried the pungent scent of cloves, and Shen Xitang's black leather boots crushed the charred edges of the *Overall Survey of the Ocean's Shores*. Xiao Heng's Xiuchun Saber split open the sandalwood crate of a foreign vessel, and bags of ambergris burst forth in the sudden sea breeze—nestled within the resinous crevices were not coral fragments, but ten rolls of Portuguese-standard falconet casting blueprints. Alongside the Portuguese text reading "Chongzhen 14th Year" on the parchment, notes in Southern Min dialect read: "Lisbon Foundry barrel cooling parameters."
"Lord Thousand-Householder, look at this spice-pounding mortar." Her fingertip brushed the spiral grooves of the bronze mortar. "This processing technique for the 'Nine-Cycle Blended Incense' is a secret method brought back by Zheng He's fleet during the Yongle era. How could it be mixed with the Armillary Sphere etchings of the House of Braganza?"
A conch horn sounded suddenly from the dock. Thirty foreign merchants with floral scarves tied around their heads rushed out from the Maritime Trade Supervisorate. The fish-scale forged patterns on the incense sifters in their hands matched with absolute precision the ramrods used during Wang Hong's Battle of Tunmen in the Jiajing era. Shen Xitang's Silver Silk crushed a block of agarwood, and the falling pages of the *Goa Secret Account* were revealed—beside the official document reading "False report…
Chapter 206