Yingtian Mansion, Laoshan Palace.
A collegial meeting between the two governments was being held in the Huangji Hall. All the civil and military officials of the Ming Dynasty were gathered together, and all of them were a little sad.
What worries them, the loyal ministers of the Ming Dynasty who will be remembered forever, is the more than a thousand benevolent and righteous men selected by their Emperor, Zhu Cixiang, a rare benevolent and filial emperor since ancient times. ...So many benevolent and righteous people, and many times more of their followers and subordinates, are now wandering around Laoshan Town and Pukou City. Don't let people worry about this. What's the matter? It makes people worry!
Laoshan Town and Pukou City were the places where the courtiers of the Ming Dynasty settled down. For more than ten years, they have been the best areas in the world! Not only are the best educational resources concentrated, but the public security is also surprisingly good. Not to mention the outside thieves, even the local dandies in Laoshan and Pukou would not dare to do evil under the emperor's feet, otherwise they would be arrested by the Jiangbei Police Patrol and they would be severely punished!
Even if my father is a pavilion elder, a governor, or a duke, it will not be very easy unless my father is the Supreme Emperor...
But in the past few months, people have been fighting every day in Laoshan Town and Pukou City. Instead of using sticks and bricks, they used long and thin samurai swords... to kill people in the street!
Many of the important ministers attending the court meeting today have witnessed the stabbing incident. It is really lawless!
Although swords are popular in Laoshan Town and Pukou City, there are very few cases of armed injuries and murders. On average, there are only one hundred cases a year (mostly private duels), and most of them are injuries, and there are very few cases. Killings rarely happen on the streets.
Of course, the Jiangbei Police Patrol Court was under pressure from the Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Criminal Justice to immediately rectify public security.
However, after a thorough investigation, it was discovered that most of those arrested by the Police Patrol Court were Emperor Zhu's "benevolent and righteous people." The matter soon reached Zhu Cixiang, but the usually stern emperor suddenly became lenient. As long as these people killed people within their circle, they would all be sent to serve in the Nanyang Army.
These people were originally going to Nanyang. Doesn't this kind of punishment mean no punishment?
In addition, didn’t the Twelve Principalities have to be benevolent and righteous when they went to Nanyang? They were already like this before they left Yingtian Mansion. How could they still be benevolent and righteous after going to Nanyang?
Also, why are these people pinching themselves so hard! Most of the fights and murders occurred between these "humane and righteous people"...
If you let them create the Twelve Principalities, will there be a "Twelve Kingdoms Rebellion" in the future?
Thinking of these problems, the important ministers of the Ming Dynasty felt bad.
"My lords," Zhu Cixi still smiled as always. He picked up the memorial, opened it and spread it on the table, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs handed over a memorial this morning and attached a letter of challenge. The memorial was sent by the Chinese Embassy in Badawi It was written by the consul of Asia, saying that the Dutch want to have a gentleman-versus-gentleman showdown with us... They want to invite us to a fleet showdown on the waters of the South China Sea. The time will be this autumn, and the location will be decided by us. .”
Emperor Zhu glanced at everyone with a smile, and then asked: "What do you think?"
"Your Majesty, the Dutch East India Company is a profiteer and not a gentleman at all. We cannot trust them!" Zheng Zhilong, who once worked for the Dutch East India Company, was the first to express his disbelief in the Dutch profiteers.
Sure enough, profiteers still understand profiteers! Zhu Cixiang asked after careful consideration: "Mr. Quan Guo, what do you think the Dutch's purpose is for the war?"
"This..." Zheng Zhilong glanced at his son, Zheng Jiangong, Minister of the Navy, and then said, "Your Majesty, I think the Dutch must be setting a trap to severely damage our fleet! But the specifics will be like this I can’t guess the layout.”
"Your Majesty," Zheng Jiangong immediately took over the topic, "My father is right. As far as I know, the Dutch navy is particularly good at sneak attacks on anchorages. In the past, when it was at war with Spain and England in Europe, it had done many sneak attacks on anchorages.
Now that the main force of our fleet is far away at the Guangzhou Bay anchorage, the Dutch and Italian fleets cannot make a sneak attack at all, so they came up with such an unscrupulous trick to trick us into going south to the vicinity of the Strait of Malacca so that they can make a sneak attack. "
Guangzhou Bay Anchorage is located between Gaozhou Prefecture and Leizhou Prefecture in Guangdong Province. It was originally under the jurisdiction of Shendian Guard (the name of the guard station), and there is a water village in the bay.
After the Battle of Zhoushan Anchorage, the Ming Navy began to look for a new anchorage for the naval fleet. After searching, they found the three best anchorages, one was Jiaoao (Jiaozhou Bay); the other was Guangzhou Bay; and the other was Guangzhou Bay. One place is Sasebo.
These three anchorages have become the home ports of the Beiyang Fleet, the Nanyang Fleet and the Eastern Fleet!
The three fleets of Beiyang, Nanyang, and Dongyang are now under the jurisdiction of the Navy Department and the Navy Department, and they are all "Central Military Forces."
However, the original "Old Beiyang" and "Old Nanyang" were not transformed into the "Central Army" as a whole, but were split and reorganized. The armed merchant ships used for transportation (commercial transportation) were transferred to the "Yiguandang" trading company and the "Shachuanbang" trading company at a low price (these ships were originally the assets of the Zheng and Shen families). At the same time, Beiyang, Nanyang’s “Right of Road Tolls”. Starting from the 15th year of Hongxing, merchant ships from various countries sailing along the coast of China need to pay relevant taxes and fees after entering the port, and do not have to pay protection fees to the Nanyang Fleet and Beiyang Fleet...
After the reorganization, the strength of the "Sanyo Fleet" has also been greatly expanded in recent years, each possessing 8 "Yingtianfu" class battleships!
The scale advantage of the Chinese Empire finally showed its power in this round of naval update competition.
Although the performance of the "Yingtianfu" class is still not as good as the British "Guoguogong" class and the Dutch "Seven Provincial Council" class, 12 ships can be started at the same time, and 24 "Xia Jiaozi" ships were built in two batches. "The model made the Ming Navy a maritime power that could keep pace with the British and Dutch navies!
Now, 16 of the 24 "dumpling ships" have been concentrated in the Nanyang Fleet, led by Admiral Chen Shangchuan, and are ready to go south to find the Dutch East India Company's fleet for a decisive battle - there is no need to win, a war of attrition is enough for the Netherlands People have suffered. Even if two "Yingtianfu" class ships are exchanged for one "Seven Provincial Parliament" class ship, these 16 dumpling ships of the Nanyang Fleet can exchange all the "Parliament" class ships of the Dutch Navy.
The Ming Dynasty, which lacks 16 dumpling ships, is still a Chinese empire, and the Dutch Navy, which has lost 8 "parliaments", is waiting to be severely repaired by the British "Guardians"!
Therefore, according to the elite staff officers of the Naval Department of the Grand Marshal's Mansion of the Ming Dynasty, there is only one possibility for the Nanyang Fleet with 16 "dumpling ships" to be defeated on the Nanyang sea, and that is to be caught off guard by the Dutch who are good at sneak attacks while anchoring. ...
"I know that the Dutch are full of tricks!" Zhu Cixi smiled proudly. The prince-in-law finally made a difference and could see through the tricks of the Dutch!
"Jiangong," Zhu Cihong asked, "What are your two strategies to defeat the enemy?"
Zheng Jiangong said: "It's better to use a trick and agree with the Dutch to have a decisive battle near the Makassar Strait...and then use the main force of the Nanyang Fleet to go south to the Makassar Strait to attract the attention of the Dutch.
At the same time, part of the Nanyang Fleet will be used together with the Zhengman Navy to transport the Zhengman Navy southward to the Strait of Malacca via water and land near Temasek Island in the Sultanate of Johor! "
"Will the Dutch be fooled?"
"Definitely!" Zheng Jiangong said, "The Makassar Strait is the only way to go south to the Spice Islands. Once under my control, the Spice Islands will no longer be owned by the Netherlands!
The Spice Islands are the lifeblood of the Dutch East India Company! "
"Okay!" Zhu Cixiang nodded with satisfaction, "My accompanying group of twelve principalities has now been formed. It's time for them to go south!"
Very good!
These benevolent people are finally leaving...
The ministers were filled with surprises!
Zhu Cixiang smiled and added: "It seems that in a short time, the people on the Malacca Peninsula and Sumatra Island will no longer be bullied by the Western barbarians. They will enjoy eternal peace under the protection of the benevolent and moral teachers of the Celestial Dynasty!"
In order to stabilize the hearts of the people of Nanyang, I plan to name the twelve countries of Malacca after the four characters of benevolence, righteousness and morality, namely: Ren'an, Renfu, Renzhi, Yiheng, Yiquan, Yiyong, Taoquan, Taosheng, Taolong and Dexian. , Deyou, Desheng..."
So much kindness and morality!
