As the title says-what if Zheng He's treasure fleet, or another Chinese expedition in the early 15th century, managed to sail to Europe, and get a good look at lets say, Spain, Portugal, and Italy? In particular:
-What sort of cultural effects would it likely have, on both on China and Europe?
-Once the Chinese find out how much Europeans like silk, would they be tempted to regularly journey around Africa to sell it to them directly?
-If yes to the last one, would this prompt China to invest in a navy on the scale of say, Spain or Portugal? If so, is it possible that they might use it to colonize say, Taiwan, the Phillipenes, and Indonesia?
-Could this scenario ultimately lead to a less isolationist, less stagnant China that maintains technological parity with Europe instead of falling behind?