Manila, Fort Santiago.
In the center of this "two-century project" (which took 150 years to build), in a Spanish-style official residence that has been completed, in a meeting room that can be extremely hot, a group of Spanish gentlemen in formal suits are sitting around a table. The long table was sulking.
What made the gentlemen angry was the "Evacuation Announcement" being distributed everywhere in the Ming Dynasty settlement in Manila - Zhu Cixiang's court was efficient! Not long after the imperial edict was issued, thousands of "Evacuation Notices" were printed and sent to the Chinese in Manila.
It is guaranteed that an average Chinese person can get two!
It doesn't matter if you are illiterate, because someone made a song about the evacuation announcement and sung it everywhere. How the song goes: "The taxes are heavy, the barbarians are fierce, and it is difficult for Luzon to survive these days. We sail to Jin'ou early in the morning, and we are happy to discipline everyone. Divide the fields and give each family 500 acres of land. Each family will not be able to pay for food for three years." .....
This is really a dig at the corner of the Spanish Empire!
And the effect is very significant. According to customs reports, six sailing ships full of Chinese expatriates have left Manila Port in the past few weeks. The price of hiring Chinese workers on the Santiago Fort construction site has also increased by 50%, and the progress of the fort has begun to fall behind schedule... If this continues, I am afraid that it will not be completed by the 19th century!
The most worrying thing is that Manila's agricultural supply will soon have problems - it is impossible for the Spanish masters to farm the land themselves, and the natives of the Philippine colonies are too lazy to satisfy the Spanish masters. Therefore, most of the land around Manila is cultivated hard by the Chinese, including vegetables, meat, dairy products, eggs and other non-staple foods, which are also provided by the Chinese.
At the same time, the Spanish restricted the Chinese from owning their own farms and only allowed them to lease land, and they also had to pay high taxes.
In this case, the farms provided for free by Ca Mau and Jinghai armies are really attractive - how good is the land in Ca Mau and Jinghai? How does the land in Manila compare? And it’s free and tax-free... You’d be a fool not to go!
Therefore, most of the Chinese who left Manila are farmers!
"Your Majesty the Governor," the official in charge of colonial agriculture was worried, "now there is abandoned land everywhere around Manila. The price of vegetables has increased three times in one week, meat has doubled, and eggs have increased by 100%. Eighty...If this continues, the colonial troops will have no food to eat!”
"The Chinese should be prohibited from leaving!" the engineer in charge of the Fort Santiago project shouted. "There are fewer and fewer workers, and there is no way to start construction... We will never be able to hold on to Fort Santiago if this continues!"
"Perhaps we can allow the Chinese to own land in Manila..." said the Archbishop of Manila, "as long as they are willing to convert into the embrace of the Lord!"
This seems to be the solution! During these years, some Chinese who settled in the Philippines became religious.
Governor Chacon looked at Justice Vaccariero.
"Your Majesty the Governor," Justice Vaccarero said, "the bishop's method is worth trying, but... we must not forget that in the past few decades, we have massacred the Chinese in Manila several times!"
"That's their attempt to seize our colony!" said the captain of the Manila garrison, a Spanish veteran who lost his left hand on the Dutch battlefield. "The Chinese pirates have always wanted to turn Manila into their property!"
Caballero shook his head: “But now they don’t want Manila right away… They have something better!
They can first capture Champa, Sui Chenla, Siam, and Burma, while banning foreigners from entering the Philippines and turning the Philippines into a loss-ridden asset of the empire. By the time they have digested Champa, Sui Chenla, Siam, and Myanmar, we will no longer be able to bear the losses and withdraw from the Philippines... At least that's what they think! "
"The Spanish Empire will not give up the Philippines!" the archbishop said, crossing himself on his chest. "Christ will not allow us to give up his bridgehead in East Asia!"
The Spanish Empire's thinking is different from that of the Netherlands... For God's sake, it doesn't matter if you lose money! Anyway, they have almost lost the empire!
"Yes, we will not give up..." Caballero said, "But we cannot fight the Ming Empire alone! In the east, its status is like the Roman Empire, and it is still a relatively powerful Roman Empire. So we need friends!"
"Who should we be friends with?" Governor Chacon asked, unable to help but frown.
Spain is not good at making friends!
I made two friends in Europe, the Holy Roman Empire and the Pope, and was tricked into bankruptcy three times... Who can I turn to in Asia?
"The Qing Dynasty and its tributary country North Korea!" Caballero said, "They are mortal enemies of the Ming Dynasty!"
"The enemy of my enemy is my friend!" Chacon nodded.
"Zhen La can also be friends!" Caballero added, "The destruction of Champa will definitely make Chen La feel in danger.
In addition, Siam can also be friends... Siam has as rich and vast land as Chenla, and sooner or later it will become the target of the Ming Dynasty! "
"Qing Kingdom, Siam, Chenla..." Governor Chacon thought for a while, "This will surround the Ming Kingdom! But what can we do for these friends?"
"Provide military advisors and arms!" Caballero said, "The Ming Dynasty is now an awakened dragon... It is growing at a speed we can't imagine. If it is not curbed, the Qing Dynasty and Siam will Luo, Chenla, North Korea, and perhaps Japan and Burma will all become the objects it devours.
And we, the Spanish Empire, have the responsibility to unite these countries that are threatened by the Ming Dynasty to jointly curb the evil dragon that is rapidly growing in the Ming Dynasty! "
He paused, "As long as these countries are willing to unite with us, we can find enough workers to replace the Ming people in Manila!"
"This is a way..." Chacon said, "We can report to New Spain and start taking action at the same time... Chancellor, where do you think we should start?"
"Starting from the Qing Dynasty!" Caballero said, "The Manila should be dispatched immediately to the port of Korea... In the name of the envoy of the Spanish Empire, ask to see His Majesty the Qing Regent!"
...
The regent of the Qing Dynasty was of course Emperor Amadorgun. When the Spanish foreign aid arrived in Beijing, he was angry in Chonghua Palace!
Angry with Obai!
"Trash! Bastard! Coward... He only knows how to make money, and he only knows how to be greedy. How many years have you been in the customs? You have forgotten your ability to fight! You are being beaten like this with a foreign gun made by London, England. , What a shame! By the way, Old Fifteen, where is Oboi? Why didn’t he catch him? Has he been killed? Where is his head? "
"Brother Fourteen, what are you talking about? Are you going to kill Obai now? Victory or defeat is a common thing for soldiers. Even a Manchu warrior cannot be invincible, right?" Duduo was actually speaking for Obai!
It's not that he regards Obai as one of his own, but that he carefully studied the fighting situation between Obai and the Cossacks and discovered a very serious problem!
The Cossacks' fighting style is just right to restrain the Eight Banners soldiers!
First of all, the Cossacks are much better at playing with firearms than the Eight Banners soldiers - they deal with firearms every day, so it is impossible for them to play badly.
Secondly, the Cossacks are better on horseback than the Eight Banners soldiers! If the Eight Banners soldiers met, so would the Cossacks. But what the Cossacks are proficient in, the Eight Banners Soldiers may not be able to do.
Furthermore, the Cossacks’ horses are better than the Eight Banners soldiers’ horses! They have great power and good endurance. Therefore, when fighting against the Eight Banners soldiers, they could escape on horseback, and when they had the upper hand, they could pursue them with the advantage of their horses.
In other words, the advantages that the Eight Banners soldiers had in restraining the Ming army were now restrained by the Cossacks!
"Brother Fourteen," Duduo said, "those Cossacks are so powerful, we can't take them lightly!"
