Trade, the Sea Prohibition and the “Folangji” 113
by sending a βleet to Guangzhou. It consisted of four ships and two junks,
laden with pepper and other merchandise. Despite Captain-Major Martim
Afonso de Melo Coutinho‘s peace overtures, and his formulaic assertion
that he came to bring necessities to the envoy and his suite, the Chinese
refused his ships permission to enter. Hostilities broke out and both sides
suffered heavy casualties.^65 It is mentioned in Court records dated April
6, 1523 that the Chinese killed 35 of the invaders and captured 42 others,
including their leader captain Pedro Homen. The Court later endorsed
death sentences imposed on the captives.^66
Beyond the Imperial Legal Net
The China coast in the early 1520s became more turbulent than it had
been earlier, the unrest fueled by increased smuggling activities and
piracy. But the most calamitous event of the early Jiajing era was the
eruption of a bloody and alarming conβlict in 1523 between two rival
Japanese tribute missions that arrived at Ningbo. The two missions
represented different Japanese trading houses and each claimed to be the
legitimate embassy from Japan. Heavily bribed by a Chinese named Song
Shuqing, who was in the service of one of the delegations, the eunuch
in charge of the Supervisorate of Maritime Trade and Shipping sided
with Song’s party. This partiality led to violence involving both groups
and the tribute-bearers turned to piracy. In retaliation, the Ming Court
suspended entry permits for all Japanese missions, and temporarily
abolished the Supervisorates of Maritime Trade and Shipping at Ningbo,
Fuzhou, and Guangzhou.
The Japanese, whether ofβicials or private citizens, had always been
dissatisβied with the restrictive tribute trade. Those who failed to obtain
trading permits often turned to illicit transactions or piracy, and raiding
the Chinese coast had become a favorite occupation of many from
southwest Japan, who behaved as pirates or as traders as the occasion
demanded. Cutting off the legal outlet for overseas trade only aggravated
the situation and, as Higgins observes, “let the trade fall into the hands of
smugglers and inβluential persons who connived with the Japanese and
other foreign traders”.^67
The Portuguese were undeterred. The China trade was too valuable
for them to abandon, and they continued to visit the China coast despite
- Ibid., pp. 56‒8.
- MSL: SZ, 24: 8a‒b. This record is generally consistent with the Portuguese
sources as cited in Chang T’ien-tse, Sino-Portuguese Trade, p. 59. - Higgins, “Piracy”, p. 58.