Now it was the turn of Luo Dongni and Luo Afang from the Australian and New Zealand Company to go upstairs to meet the Ming Emperor. Both of them had the title of the Ming Dynasty. They were Zhu Cixiang's ministers and of course were Zhu Cixiang's old acquaintances. Among them, Luo Dongni also served as a foreign general in the new army to overcome the difficulties, and Luo Afang has been a supplier to the Ming army since more than 20 years ago. His arsenal and shipyard in Shanghai still provide weapons and equipment to the Ming Dynasty.
After bowing to each other, Zhu Cixiang also gave the two of them a seat, and asked the serving maid to pour wine for them. Everyone drank and talked, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious.
Emperor Zhu did not discuss the sale of Australia and New Zealand Company to explore the southern continent with the two Portuguese nobles - there was nothing to discuss, because Zhu Cixi himself was the major shareholder of Australia and New Zealand Company, and his transactions with Australia and New Zealand Company were related transactions. However, the Emperor Tomorrow still has something very important to discuss with Luo Dongni and Luo Afang.
"I heard that Alfonso of Portugal has a good brother who cares about his sister-in-law?" Zhu Cixiang asked about the household affairs of the Portuguese royal family.
In 1667, a very bloody thing happened in Portugal. The newlywed wife of King Alfonso VI of Portugal and a distant niece of Louis XIV, a French girl named Maria Francesca de Saboa suddenly left the palace, ran to the monastery for refuge, and asked the Archbishop of Lisbon The reason for the dissolution of her marriage to the king was that the king had a physical defect... At first glance, this matter seemed to be a royal scandal. It was not very pleasant to hear, but it was not a particularly big deal. A European king who could not give birth to a son There are many!
But what happened next was surprising.
Because the nobles of the Kingdom of Portugal feel that Queen Saboa is a good queen, and she is also the niece of the Sun King Louis and cannot be replaced.
Since the queen cannot be changed, the only choice is to change the king!
So the Portuguese nobles put their king under house arrest, and then forced him to give up power. Later, they asked the king's good brother Pedro to step forward, marry Queen Saboa, and become Portugal's regent prince... ..King Alfonso was under house arrest in the Azores Islands in the Atlantic Ocean.
With such a good brother who is brave enough to take responsibility, King Alfonso should be able to die in peace!
"Your Majesty," Rodoni didn't understand what Zhu Cixiang wanted to do, so he frowned slightly and asked, "You don't want to interfere with the succession of the throne of the Kingdom of Portugal, do you?"
Loafang added: "Your Majesty, although this matter is filled with the atmosphere of a palace coup, the Portuguese nobles and the Catholic Church support Prince Pedro... and Prince Pedro also received the support of King Louis of France. support."
Zhu Cixi smiled and said: "I don't want to interfere with the Portuguese throne succession, I just want to help Alfonso leave Portugal and go to India for treatment... I heard that there is a kind of sacred oil in India that may cure his disease. . In addition, Indian yoga is also good for Alfonso’s health. Maybe after staying in India for a few years, he can become a father.”
Indian medicine is very advanced! King Alfonso went to Goa to be a father...
"Go to India..." Rodoni understood a little bit, "Your Majesty, do you want King Alfonso to go into exile in Goa?"
Loafang was also surprised: "Your Majesty, do you want Goa to break away from the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Portugal?"
Zhu Cixiang showed a surprised expression: "How can we say that Goa is separated from the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Portugal? The king of Portugal is still Alfonso, right? If the king personally manages Goa, doesn't it strengthen the presence of the Kingdom of Portugal in Goa? "
Yes, Alfonso is still the king! Pedro, a good brother, is not very good at doing things, so why can't he let his brother die of poison? He hasn't heard about the incident of seizing the door?
"Anthony," Zhu Cixiang asked with a smile, "You have served as the leader of the Portuguese soldiers in Macau. Do you think it is possible to succeed?"
Of course it is possible for this to succeed! How many Portuguese soldiers can there be on the Azores? Now is not war time. How many standing armies can the extremely poor Prince Pedro have on hand? How many more can be sent to the Azores?
But it cannot be said that there is no risk at all.
"Of course there is a possibility of success..." Rodoni frowned and said, "But the possibility of failure is not small. Once the rescue operation fails, the Kingdom of Portugal will completely lead to France!"
Although the queen loved by the Portuguese nobles was the distant niece of Louis XIV, the Kingdom of Portugal had fallen from the golden age into the quagmire due to the long war with the Spanish (the war ended in 1668) and the plundering of the British and Dutch countries. He was unwilling to provoke the Ming Empire in the East for King Louis.
But if the Ming Dynasty interferes in the household affairs of the Portuguese royal family, Prince Pedro may completely fall over to the Sun King of France.
"Your Majesty," Loafang said, "Although the era of Golden Goa has passed, the number of pure Portuguese settled in Goa is also continuing to decline. However, due to the existence of the slave trade and the existence of such bad practices as concubinage, Goa has There is a large mixed-race population, and there are also a large number of Indian natives who have converted to Christianity, as well as many Hindus and Devotees under the rule of the Portuguese-Indian Governor-General. The total population may be as high as 250,000...if they all fall to France , will greatly enhance France’s strength in India.”
The Portuguese occupied Goa in 1510, so it has been 159 years. During the so-called Golden Goa Era (mid-to-late 16th century), the Kingdom of Portugal once colonized Goa on a large scale. Although due to various reasons, the number of pure Portuguese living in Goa now is less than a fraction of the golden age, but because the vast majority of Portuguese arriving in Goa are men, and are keen on raising various responsible female slaves (Christian religion Consistent monogamy did not exist in Goa), so these "disappeared" Portuguese men left behind a large number of mixed descendants. Coupled with the efforts of the Portuguese and Indian authorities to promote the spread of Christianity in Goa, a large number of local people converted to Christianity.
So now the weakly guarded Portuguese India controls a large Christian population! If they fell into French hands, Louis the Sun King would be able to organize a huge army in India.
"Then don't fail! Plan it carefully, and you don't need to save money where you should spend money..." Zhu Cixiang looked at Luo Dongni and Luo Afang, his tone had become a bit gloomy, "Which of you is willing to leave?" Going to Portugal?”
"It's better for me to go!" Rodoni took a breath, "After all, I am a Portuguese nobleman and I once swore allegiance to King Alfonso."
Rodoni is a transnational nobleman, an earl of the Ming Dynasty, and a knight of Portugal.
Zhu Cixiang looked at Luo Afang again, and Luo Afang said: "There is a fast battleship in my shipyard that has just been outfitted... There is not a single battleship in active service in the Portuguese Navy that can fight it!"
The Kingdom of Portugal is now in poverty, and of course it is impossible to update its warships, so they only have some old Galen ships and few artillery guns that can fire explosive shells.
Rodoni said: "I can also hire a few pirate ships... There are many Portuguese pirates in the Indian Ocean, and there are also Portuguese pirates in the Caribbean. As long as you give enough money, there will always be someone who will work hard.
In addition, mercenaries can be hired in Goa. There are many mercenary captains there. As long as they pay a high price, they will be willing to be the heroes who save the king. "
Although the mother country of Portugal was in dire straits during this era, there were quite a few second- and third-generation Portuguese people wandering overseas, working as pirates, mercenaries, craftsmen, and merchants. And there are not many restraints. They are all masters who work hard for money, and some of them are desperadoes.
Zhu Cixiang waved his hand and said with a smile: "Just talk to Mary about the money... It's up to you how to hire a fugitive."
"But there is still a problem!" Rodoni said, "If I want to hire enough people, it's best to go to Goa... Although there are still some Portuguese people in the Ming Dynasty, they have all passed. Well done, it’s hard to find enough outlaws.”
"Okay!" Zhu Cixiang nodded, "I will arrange for you to go to Goa. There is a good opportunity now."
