Chapter 248
Almost most of the warships in Zheng's fleet were relieved and rushed to the front. With lightning speed, they hoisted white flags, fearing that Ning Haijun would go back on his word and not accept their surrender.
In fact, this cannot be blamed on them not being brave enough. War on the sea can rarely be changed with courage. Ning Haijun's warships are faster than them, which means that escaping is not a good idea. This battle is impossible. If you can't even escape, why continue to carry him to death and let others slaughter him?
After receiving Cheng Shijie's order, the Ning Navy Navy stopped the attack. Some of the warships escorted the surrendered warships to Yecheng Port, while others put down their boats and began to rescue the sailors who fell into the sea. Seeing that they did not intend to kill them all, , Zheng Daxuan, Song Fuguo and others secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and gave up their last thoughts. Just be prisoners honestly. This is a good thing for him and his subordinates!
The number of surrendered warships was actually not that many, only one hundred and sixty-four. In other words, in the short battle, nearly two hundred warships were sunk by the Ning Navy. Such efficiency was chilling.
At best, the number of warships that followed Zheng Zhilong to escape would not exceed two or forty. It can be said that Zheng Zhilong has lost the opportunity to make a comeback.
With the launch of Ning Haijun's operation to rescue the drowned sailors, this sea battle that attracted national attention came to an end.
In this great sea battle, Zheng Zhilong staked most of his fortune. None of the 604 warships with the strongest firepower and strongest defense capabilities were left behind, and all went into battle. Ning Haijun's navy was also an elite one. After all, the sixty-eight warships that could continue to fight all went into battle, killing blood and flesh everywhere.
This is a naval battle that seems to have a huge disparity in strength, but is actually even more disparate. It can be regarded as a showdown between the classical navy and the modern navy in East Asia. The result of the battle also proves that even if the classical navy has ten times the advantage, it cannot defeat the modern navy. In the fierce battle, 15 warships of the Ning Navy were severely damaged and had to be abandoned. More than 1,600 sailors were killed or injured, which really made Cheng Shijie heartbroken.
But compared with Zheng Zhilong, his losses were nothing. One hundred and sixty of Zheng Zhilong's six hundred and four warships surrendered to the navy in despair, and only thirty-eight of them had the chance to escape with him. Only one ship, that is to say, more than 320 warships were destroyed by the Ning Navy in one battle, 15,000 sailors were buried in the belly of the fish, and more than 20,000 people became prisoners. It can be said that the seemingly powerful Zheng Zheng The group has now had its backbone broken.
"What? Zheng Zhilong was defeated again?"
In the Governor's Palace of the Dutch East India in Batavia, Brewer's eyes were rounded, and he stared in disbelief at the spy who came back to report the news. He looked like he wanted to eat someone!
"Yes! Zheng Zhilong disappeared after the defeat. Zheng's fleet had more than a hundred main battleships, and nearly 20,000 people were captured by Ning Haijun. In this battle, Ning Haijun won..."
"No!"
Brewer let out an angry roar and kicked over the tea table made of rosewood. The exquisite set of tea sets placed on the coffee table, which even the royal nobles in Europe would not be lucky enough to enjoy, rolled to the floor and fell. A smash.
Brewer had no time to feel sorry for the heavy losses he had inadvertently caused. His whole body was filled with frightening anger. He roared and threw several precious tableware.
"Damn Zheng Zhilong, why did he lose so quickly?"
Brewer never thought about it. He ordered the Dutch Combined Fleet to avoid fighting and relied entirely on the Zheng fleet to fight the Ning Navy. Although the Zheng Group fought several battles with the Ning Navy, they all failed. Although the Zheng Group Although he had abundant capital, he lost the confidence to order the war.
After Zheng Zhilong was defeated and fled, Brewer quickly calmed down. He issued two orders, using Putmans and Sidney as the negotiators of the Dutch East India Company to prepare to restart negotiations.
Secondly, go down and mobilize all the Dutch in all the colonies in East India, arm the indigenous tribes of the East Indian colonists, and prepare to kill them all.
The Chinese in Batavia first felt the difference between the Ming army's rule of Batavia's Westport area and the Dutch's rule of Batavia.
Under the rule of the Dutch colonial government, the Port of Batavia was a busy port. Many ships would dock at the Port of Medan every day. Most of the ships passed through Batavia directly to the Lion City, or further afield. Medan, there are also direct trips to Europe.
In fact, Batavia's trade has almost nothing to do with the Chinese. They should be poor or rich. At most, they are the laborers who carry bags at the port. They have more opportunities to make money. Of course, those who work as laborers to carry bags The Chinese will also be deducted from their wages by the Dutch in various ways.
Originally, there were less than 2,000 Chinese laborers without residency rights in the West Port area of Batavia. However, after the Ning navy occupied the West Port of Batavia, in less than a month, Yecheng Port changed from the initial three There were more than a thousand Chinese, and now the number has increased to more than 50,000.
In addition to the increase in residents, the biggest change is that the appearance of the port has undergone earth-shaking changes. The port becoming cleaner and tidier is only one aspect.
The biggest change is that more and more wooden houses with carved beams and paintings have been built throughout the port, which are very characteristic of the Ming Dynasty. The expansion work of Yecheng Port is getting bigger and bigger, the income of residents is also increasing, and the living conditions are also getting better and better. Well, in the past, most Chinese in Batavia Westport made a living by carrying bags, and a small number relied on fishing. There were no other jobs to choose from. But it is different now. There are more and more jobs and more opportunities. Come more and more.
Although Ning Haijun had to collect taxes like the Dutch East India Company, they were very different in terms of tax types. In the past, the Chinese people in East India went out to sea to fish. Fishing boats had to collect taxes when entering and leaving the port. Taxes were also collected on the fish they caught when they were brought back to the port. They also had to collect taxes when they brought the fish to the market for sale. In a circle, the fishermen caught a little fish. , in the end it may not be enough to pay taxes.
In Yecheng Port under the management of Ning Haijun, fishermen do not need to pay taxes when they go fishing. The tax they have to pay when sending fish to the market for sale will not exceed 5% of the total price. Even so, fishermen who go out to fish have to pay more. There are fewer and fewer people coming, and most people apply for jobs at the newly established Port Authority, either as construction workers or freight workers. Anyway, there are many jobs in this area.
There are many benefits to becoming a worker. Although compared with fishermen, workers have less free working hours and the work is harder, but the risk of the work is not great. It is very different from fishing at sea, and the Ning Naval Port Authority pays The salary is relatively high, and you can still make a little profit to support your family, which is a dream for the residents of Yecheng Port.
Ning Haijun is already very experienced in managing ports, from Jinzhou Port, Lushun Port, Gaizhou Port, Haizhou Port, Pidao Port, Jeju Port, Luzon Port, Zhenghe Port, and now because of Yecheng There are already dozens of ports under the jurisdiction of the Ning Navy.
It is almost a replica of Jinzhou Port. The ordinary Chinese laborers who originally lived in the port, that is, the baggage workers, originally lived in the shantytowns of the port. Of course, the living environment in these shantytowns was very harsh. Ning Haijun adopted the method of replacement, demolishing their shantytowns and opening up new residential areas further away from the port.
As a result, Lifu, who carries the bags, has to travel further from home to get off work. The trip is almost ten kilometers, which is very inconvenient for the bag carriers.
Ning Haijun explained to them that if the shanty towns were too close to the port, they would definitely suffer heavy losses if a war broke out. However, in the newly built residential areas, there are smooth streets, complete sewers, and garbage storage areas. Not only is the environment good, but Moreover, these Chinese laborers immediately had their own fixed assets.
Ning Haijun's strategic business purpose has always been very clear and precise. Even in Luzon, despite the fact that Wu Shangzhi, Li Guoqun and other wealthy Chinese people gave Ning Haijun gifts and money, Cheng Shijie knew very well that the wealthy Chinese businessmen in Luzon had too much. , they are only allies, but cannot become the backbone of the force.
The backbone of the Ning Navy, that is, the basic strength, comes from the common people. After regaining the Ming Dynasty nationality, the biggest change for the Batavia Chinese is the poor civilian class. They were originally proletarians, but now they have become The asset of the propertied class is their house.
The principle of homestead allocation for the common people in Yechenggang is the same as that of Liaodong, and because there are fewer Chinese people, the distribution standard is larger. Even an ordinary bachelor with only one person in the family is allocated two acres of homestead land, and for one to five people, it is Three acres of land, five to nine people, then five acres of land.
Whether the soil other than houses is used to grow vegetables, fruit trees, or raise cattle and sheep, it is the people's voluntary choice. The houses built are mainly made of wood.
In this way, the Chinese civilians in Batavia are naturally willing to follow Ning Haijun all the way, because only Ning Haijun can ensure that they live a decent life, and it is definitely impossible for the Dutch to let them live like a human being.
Residential areas also have corresponding supporting facilities, schools and hospitals. Of course, now the schools and hospitals have not been built, and even the roads have not been completely repaired.
These Chinese people working in the port area, after getting off work every day, return to their new homes and actively ask to work overtime to build roads and drainage channels as soon as possible.
At Yecheng Port, under the escort of more than a dozen Haisha-class warships, the Zhili Giant Shark-class "North Zhili" warship began to slowly enter the port. The port was immediately filled with gongs and drums and firecrackers.
When Cheng Shijie arrived at Yecheng Port, tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians came to greet him. However, tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians could not hide the fact that Yecheng Port looked like it had been rebuilt after the chaos.
At this time, Cheng Shijie was not wearing an official uniform, but a military uniform. He was wearing a bright silver armor given by Emperor Chongzhen. In fact, it was just a pair of paper armor made of silver paint. It looked very gorgeous and eye-catching. In fact, the defense capability is not strong. Not to mention muskets, even bows and arrows can easily shoot a hole.
The main purpose of Cheng Shijie's military uniform was also to inspire the martial spirit of the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty really needed the martial spirit. Influenced by the policy of using civil society to control military affairs and the guard system, the concept of "a good man should not be a soldier, and a good iron should not be hammered" has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. .
In fact, Cheng Shijie did not wear military uniforms unless he was meeting in private. Generally speaking, Cheng Shijie had to wear military uniforms when attending solemn occasions. He used this method to revive the martial spirit of the Ming Dynasty.
Of course, there is also the policy of Liaodong. Soldiers and military dependents have great tax incentives. In the past, as long as they were qualified, they wanted to marry their daughters to scholars. Now in Liaodong, the first choice for marriage is definitely a soldier from Ning Haijun.
"Greetings to Duke Hai and the commander-in-chief!"
At this time, Cheng Shijie's reputation in Nanyang, including East India, could be said to be as great as thunder. Of course, different perspectives had different views on Cheng Shijie. In the eyes of the Dutch, Cheng Shijie is an out-and-out devil, but in the eyes of the Nanyang Chinese, Cheng Shijie is simply a Buddha.
The Luzon Incident has spread throughout Southeast Asia, and of course the Batavia Incident. Among these rumors, Cheng Shi and Li Weiluan are also very famous. They say everything. Some people say that Cheng Shi is Cheng Shijie's son. The adopted son is the number one general under Cheng Shijie, and Li Weiluan is even more incredible...
Of course, the Chinese in Batavia now want to see what kind of person their great savior is. There are also many young people who are not willing to become militia soldiers, but want to join Cheng Shijie directly and become Ning Haijun soldiers.
"Greetings to the commander-in-chief, and to the Duke of Haiguo!"
The Chinese in Batavia were very enthusiastic. If Cheng Shijie's personal guards had not formed a human wall, they would have been afraid that they would rush to Cheng Shijie's side.
Cheng Shijie took the lead in arriving at the location of the more than 1,600 soldiers of the Yecheng Militia. The current training time of the militia was too short, and their energy was far inferior to that of the soldiers in Tiaodang Camp.
"Welcome everyone to join Ning Haijun!"
Cheng Shijie looked at the soldiers of the militia and said: "You are all rare good soldiers. Welcome to join the big family of Ning Haijun. I am here, and the people here are here. I know the issues they are concerned about. We are here." , we won’t leave, at least until all the Ning Navy officers are dead, we won’t leave again.”
Cheng Shijie's words also touched everyone's hearts. Especially the Chinese in Batavia, what they fear most is to be abandoned by Ning Haijun. Once Ning Haijun retreats, with the character of the Dutch, it will not be easy for them even if they want to die.
"From now on, you are all glorious soldiers of the Ning Navy. Your real designation is the Ning Navy Yecheng Garrison Regiment!"
Cheng Shijie is actually also considering a problem now, that is, Ning Haijun's adoption of the Ming Dynasty's military system is a bit confusing, especially for Ning Haijun's naval forces, like Li Zhixiang and Shen Shikui. Their rank is the general soldier, but the problem is that under the general soldier, if Some of the strike squadron commanders who commanded twelve battleships had the rank of staff general, while others had the rank of deputy general, which caused great confusion.
Cheng Shijie had been thinking about this issue during the decisive battle with Zheng Zhilong.
Ning Haijun's military system needs to be changed. Especially for giant shark-class battleships, each battleship has a full crew of 385 people, while the Sea Shark-class has a total crew of 300 people. The establishment is different, and the number of soldiers under command is also different.
Moreover, warships need to be organized flexibly, so according to the tradition of the military, whoever has the higher rank will naturally listen to whoever has the highest rank. However, Ning Haijun's Navy's Chief Hundred, Chief General, and Chief Qian have different establishments, and there is serious confusion. .
Cheng Shijie decided to carry out comprehensive military reforms for Ning Haijun. Of course, the army cannot yet adopt the battalion, company, platoon, and squad levels like later generations. Cheng Shijie decided to change the original garrison bureaus into garrison regiments.
The Yecheng Garrison Regiment can be regarded as the first local garrison unit established by Ning Haijun to form a regiment-level unit.
"I am willing to die for the commander-in-chief!"
"You are not going to die for me, you are going to die for..."
Cheng Shijie pointed to the densely packed Chinese people on the port and said: "When the indigenous army or the Dutch army raise their butcher knives at us Chinese, and when their cannonballs cover the sky, you can rush forward without hesitation, for this land, for this The people on this land who have supported us with their blood and sweat must die without hesitation!"
"For this land, for the people on this land who support us with their blood and sweat, die without hesitation!"
The passionate roar was like thunder, shaking the eardrums of every soldier and shaking their hearts.
Li Sixi and Lin Bufan looked at each other, both showing expressions of ecstasy.
In fact, most of the Chinese today could not survive in the Ming Dynasty. In order to avoid taxes and make a fortune, they traveled across the ocean to Southeast Asia. In their hearts, no one in the court or the government ever cared about them. Only Cheng Shijie ordered his troops to die for them.
After a brief speech, Xie Jinglin brought Lin Bufan, Li Sixi, Li Shiji, Guo Bingren and others to greet Cheng Shijie: "Commander, please allow me to introduce you to Lin Bufan, who serves as the deputy director of the Coconut City Executive Committee!"
"Nice to meet you!"
Cheng Shijie shook hands cordially with Chinese representatives such as Li Sixi, Li Shiji and Guo Bingren.
Cheng Shijie's principle is always to read reports in the office. After arriving at a certain place, he definitely wants to go around first. When Xie Jinglin presided over the construction of Yecheng Port, he considered that Ning Haijun would not be able to station a large number of warships here all the time. In order to avoid The control of the sea has disappeared, so the port area, living area, and warehouses of Yecheng are more than ten kilometers away from the coastline in a straight line.
Just when Cheng Shijie went to the temporary cabin to rest in the port area, the negotiators sent by Brewer came to Yecheng Port. Li Weiluan randomly found a small warehouse in the port and placed it here.
This is a small warehouse with an area of no more than fifty square meters, and it is a dilapidated warehouse. Although it has been renovated, there is a musty smell in the room.
Xie Jinglin and Cheng Shijie sat in a carriage and headed to the port area. Cheng Shijie was preparing to carry out reforms for Ning Haijun's army. Sitting on the huge carriage were Li Zhixiang, Shen Shikui and others.
"Zhixiang, our navy needs reform!"
"I wonder how the commander-in-chief can reform!"
"Currently we have six strike squadrons. These six strike squadrons are unified and integrated according to different construction times. Now they are all new ships. It is not a big problem, but as time goes by, the problems exposed by the old ships will become more and more serious. Come more and more!”
Cheng Shijie mused: "I feel that I need to disrupt and reorganize all the battleships!"
Li Zhixiang said: "Okay, the general will have no objection!"
"The formation of sixteen warships that usually patrols is a bit too big. The sea is too big for us to cover too many places!"
Cheng Shijie thought for a while and said: "With the strength of the Dutch, they will not fight us for the time being. At least for half a year, they will not have the strength. I thought that the battleships could be disrupted and divided. First, the two thousand material-level Sea Wolf-class battleships , it is enough for regular patrols and is more than enough to deal with pirates. Moreover, this Seawolf-class warship is more cost-effective. The Giant Shark-class and Sea Shark-class warships consume too much cannons, and the army generals have long had objections!"
After discussions with generals such as Li Zhixiang, Shen Shikui, Li Fang, Chen Shi, etc., the future reorganization plan of the Ninghai Navy is as follows. First, each Seawolf-class warship has the rank of lieutenant in the fleet, the Sea Shark-class fleet has the rank of captain, and the Jusha-class The captain has the rank of major, and the commander of each patrol squadron is concurrently served by the captain of the Jusha class battleship, commanding four Sea Wolf class, three Sea Shark class, plus one Jusha class warship.
Eight battleships form a patrol fleet, consisting of four patrol fleets, including sixteen Seawolf-class ships, twelve Giant Shark-class battleships, plus four Giant Shark-class battleships, forming a fleet of thirty-two battleships. .
The fleet commander is at the rank of colonel. The First Fleet is temporarily established and is stationed in Luzon. The Second Fleet is stationed in Batavia West Port, which is Coconut City Port.
The Third Fleet is permanently stationed at Daguan, and the Fourth Fleet is stationed at Lushun.
Once needed in wartime, the four major fleets can provide support.
In addition to the four major fleets, the main fleet of the Ning Navy has also been established. So far, each fleet is missing Sea Wolf-class battleships and some Jusha-class battleships. As for the Sea Shark-class battleships, the remaining parts have been assigned to the main fleet.
Just when the navy's reorganization plan was being drawn up, Xie Jinglin went to Cheng Shijie and reported: "Commander, the Dutch are here to negotiate again! Do we want to negotiate with them?"
"Let's talk!"
Cheng Shijie did not stop talking. He could not stay in Yecheng for a few days. After a short rest, he had to return to the capital immediately. This was the fourth imperial edict, and Cheng Shijie could not stay in Nanyang forever.
With Cheng Shijie's permission, Xie Jinglin returned to Yecheng Port to prepare for negotiations with Putmans.
"Hello, Mr. Xie!"
When Xie Jinglin just arrived at the port, Putmans and Sidney hurriedly greeted him.
"You, Mr. Messenger!"
Xie Jinglin smiled lightly and said, "What do you want? Are you sending us a letter of war?"
"Mr. Xie, this joke is not funny at all!"
Putmans bowed and said: "First of all, on behalf of His Excellency the Governor-General of Dutch East India, Sidney and I congratulate you on your extraordinary victory..."
"Thanks!"
Xie Jinglin looked at Putmans and Sidney. There was not even a teacup in front of them. He pretended to be angry and said: "Come here, serve tea. Our Ming Dynasty is a country of etiquette. When the two countries are at war, they still don't kill the envoys. You guys What are you doing?"
Soon, a waiter brought over two bowls of tea, which of course could barely be considered high-froth.
Putmans took a sip, his mouth full of bitterness.
"Mr. Xie, we would like to discuss with you the ownership of Batavia West Port Area. Batavia West Port Area belongs to the Dutch East Indies. Can you return the Netherlands to us..."
"sure!"
Xie Jinglin smiled lightly and said: "It is not impossible to return the Batavia West Port Area to you, but the previous losses of Ning Haijun's Luzon Immigration Bureau, the cost of Ning Haijun's troops, and Ning Haijun's expenditure during this period must be Argument? Right?"
"This is a very reasonable request!"
In Putmans' view, Xie Jinglin or Cheng Shijie is willing to negotiate, which is a very good start. Now the Dutch East Indies colonial authorities had no cards left to play.
In the European Netherlands, the war for independence from the Spanish Empire has entered a critical moment. Even the King of the Netherlands can issue a royal edict and launch nationwide mobilization.
But the problem is that the Netherlands only has more than five million people, but the Ming Empire has 20 million people, more than 400 times the number of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Even if the Ming Dynasty did not mobilize the whole country, it was just the Duke Cheng Shijie who fought in the territory under his rule. Mobilization can also mobilize hundreds of thousands of troops.
Population was the Achilles heel of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The current crisis can only be resolved through negotiation.
Xie Jinglin said calmly: "The Yecheng Port area where we are now has a total area of 25 kilometers long from east to west and about 45 kilometers wide from north to south. Even if it is 16.87 million acres, according to our land price in Ming Dynasty, Each mu of land requires eight to twelve taels of silver, so we’ll give you a 20% discount. Calculated at eight taels of silver per mu of land, that’s 135 million taels of silver!”
"One hundred and thirty-five million taels of silver? Oh God, are you crazy, or am I crazy!"
"Hans, don't worry, I haven't finished the calculation yet!"
Xie Jinglin said: "This is just the cost of the land in Yecheng Port. Our Ninghai Navy has built more than 500 houses in Yecheng Port, built two roads, and sorted out the waterways. This all requires money, no Consider it too much, three million taels of silver. You also detained our Chengfeng, causing it to be in port for two months. The loss of Chengfeng is calculated as one million taels of silver. You also massacred us Chinese, a total of four One hundred and twenty-one people, one hundred thousand taels of silver for each person is not excessive, right?"
"this……"
"There are also artillery shells. We fought with your Dutch East India Company's combined fleet. We fired a total of more than 380 cannons, and each shell was one thousand taels. If you erase the fraction, let's count it as 190 million taels of silver!"
"We, the Dutch East India Company, will not accept this result!"
"It doesn't matter if you disagree, our Ming Dynasty is peace-loving! We can adopt the second option!"
"What plan?"
"We will collect taxes at Yecheng Port. When we collect enough 190 million taels of silver, we will return Yecheng Port to you Dutch people!"
"This is impossible!"
"Then let's start the war directly!"
"God is merciful, thank you. This is not an attitude to solve the problem. Let's each take a step back!"
"Okay, what's your plan?"
"As war reparations, we can pay you gold. How about a ton of gold at one time?"
"Are you sending beggars away?"
One ton of gold sounds like a lot, but according to the current exchange rate of Ming Dynasty banks, the difference is no more than one to twelve. In other words, one ton of gold is equivalent to 320,000 taels of silver.
Although three hundred and twenty thousand taels of silver was a lot of money, it was obviously not enough to satisfy Cheng Shijie's appetite.
Xie Jinglin looked at Putmans and said, "If you don't wake up, I suggest you take a bath in the sea and wake up!"
"That's too much. Although our East India Company has a market value of more than 60 million guilders, our company's cash flow is far less than that. Even if we sell the Dutch East India Company, we can't afford to lose it!"
Xie Jinglin remembered that Cheng Shijie had said that he wanted Sumatra, and said: "Be realistic, if you can't meet our demands, then there will only be war. Zheng Zhilong has been defeated, and you have no chance of winning!"
"We can..."
Putmans' words were not spoken. War mobilization and threats of war against Ning Haijun played into Ning Haijun's plans. Now Batavia can face the threat of dozens of third-level battleships. Once the Ning Navy launches an attack on Batavia's east port area, they will not be able to hold on for long.
"We Ninghai will burn all our wealth, and you will get nothing!"
"Okay, feel free to do so. We need land, and we also need the mineral resources here. If you can burn them all, who are you trying to scare?"
"One hundred and ninety million taels of silver is too much!"
"Then take a step back, only 150 million taels of silver!"
"We still can't afford the compensation!"
"My friends, you can sell Sumatra to us!"
"How is this possible? This is our territory in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands!"
"I'm very sorry. It seems that this negotiation has no result. I suggest that we suspend the negotiation and let the war decide the ownership of Sumatra?"
“How much are you willing to pay for Sumatra?”
"Sumatra is full of land that is not suitable for farming. According to our preliminary estimates, there can barely be 100 million!"
Xie Jinglin's voice was full of deception: "Sell Sumatra to us for 100 million taels of silver, and then pay us 80 million taels of silver, and the matter will be over!"
(End of chapter)
