"General, about three or four years ago, there was a prince named Duruno on the island of Madura, a small island next to Java under the rule of the Mataram Sultanate, a large country that cooperated with the Dutch in the Java area. Zoyo's sudden revolt launched a large-scale rebellion in the name of opposing the oppression of the Dutch and the Sultan of Madaram.
Although this Duruno Zoyo was an indigenous prince who lost his country, he was courageous and resolute, proficient in the art of war, and deeply loved by the people. Although there were only a few soldiers when it first started, in just two years it became overwhelming. Last year, he sent troops from his base of Madura Island to cross the sea and invade Java. He defeated the new army trained by the Dutch to help Madura Sultan in one fell swoop, and then besieged Surabaya, the second largest port on Java Island.
Because this Duruno Zoyo was against the Netherlands, and the Dutch reconciled and became allies after defeating Madaram decades ago. Therefore, the Governor of Batavia, Spearman, personally led his troops to support the Sultan of Matalan in fighting this Duruno Zoyo since last spring. The war has continued to this day, and the outcome is still undecided. The Dutch's military strength in Southeast Asia is actually very limited. Now it is largely contained in Java, so it is impossible to take any major actions in the Malacca area. "
In the capital room of the general's palace, the one who was explaining in detail the current situation of Java Island under the rule of the Batavia Governor's Palace was Li Jizhen's brother-in-law, Jia Liujia Guozhu, the youngest son of Jia Hanfu. He played a great role in Wu Guogui's campaign to enter Guangdong last time, and was promoted to the post of co-organizer of Nanyang Trade Minister stationed in Macau.
The Guangdong Company founded by Cai Yurong and the East India Company consul Thor Brouwer in a private name is now under the supervision of Jia Guozhu, the co-organizing minister. The main business of the Guangdong Company is Xiangshan Island and Bintan near Malacca. There is also a shopping mall at the island's port. This is not an ordinary business. Ordinary businessmen cannot operate it at all, so it must be managed by officials at the level of the Co-organizer of Nanyang Minister.
In addition, this Jia Liu is not an ordinary co-organizing minister. His brother-in-law is Li Jizhen, the governor of Guangdong and the eldest son of the Southern King. His father, Jia Hanfu, is now the governor of Guangxi. His family still has territory in Guiyang and Chenzhou in Hunan! The "Hunan Army" came out there.
As the co-organizer of Nanyang Minister, he can get the full support of Li Fuchen, Li Jizhen, and Jia Hanfu! Therefore, Jia Liu, the co-organizer of the Nanyang Minister, has much more real power than Cai Yurong, the official Nanyang Minister!
Cai Yurong, the Minister of Nanyang, is actually the Minister of Foreign Affairs, which is actually quite important. However, Jia Liu's co-chairman of the Minister of Nanyang is actually the Secretary of Colonial Affairs under the guise of being in charge of foreign affairs.
Now Li Zhongshan also plans to let him lead a group of mercenaries recruited from Chenzhou and Guiyangzhou in Guangxi and Hunan to station in Bintan Island and become the de facto governor of the Ming Dynasty's Nanyang Colony.
"How is the situation on Bintan Island?" Li Zhongshan asked about the situation on Bintan Island after learning that the mobile forces of the Batavia Governor's Palace were trapped on Java Island.
"General, in the past two years, Nanyang Company's Southern Fleet has dispatched fifty-three voyages of Big Bird Ship and Old Lock Ship to transport building materials, food, labor, equipment, sundries, etc. to Bintan Island. Mercenaries and weapons and equipment. Moreover, the Nanyang Company also helped the Guangdong Company recruit thousands of Chinese merchants, pirates and fishermen to settle on the island. It also built ports, towns, forts, fortresses, and opened Chinese language schools on the island."
The person who took over this question was He You, the chief officer of the southern fleet of the Nanyang Trading Company. This Nanyang Trading Company is a "chartered trading company" controlled by Zheng Jing, which is a replica of the Dutch East India Company.
When Zheng Jing "handed over" Fujian Province, he played a trick and recorded all his fleet, towns and properties on Taiyuan Island in the accounts of the Nanyang Trading Company.
Therefore, in today's world's ranking of maritime power in terms of tonnage, Zheng Jing's Nanyang Trading Company can probably be ranked fourth in the world after the Dutch Navy, the English Navy, and the Dutch East India Trading Company!
As for the Ming Dynasty Navy, it is not worth mentioning. It is probably similar to the Qing Dynasty Navy controlled by Yang Qilong and Shi Lang.
Nanyang Trading Company not only owns the size of the fleet, but also firmly controls the network of Fujian and Chaozhou merchants all over Nanyang. Zheng Jing and Li Jizhen control the hometowns of Fujian and Chaozhou merchants together, which is equivalent to controlling their "roots". ". The clan concept of the Hokkien and Chaozhou people is still quite strong in the 21st century, let alone in the 17th century? In addition, Zheng Jing, Li Zhongshan, and Chen Yonghua also control the three largest banks in East Asia, which also controls the financing channels and remittance channels for Fujian and Chaozhou merchants.
With the above mentioned items, the Fujian and Chaozhou merchants in Nanyang became the eyes, ears and business partners of the Nanyang Trading Company.
That's why He You was able to recruit so many maritime merchants and pirates for Bintan Island Commercial City, and his Nanyang Company became the general contractor for the development and construction of Bintan Island Commercial City.
In addition, according to the plan, the home port of Nanyang Company's southern fleet will also be moved to Bintan Island after the construction of Bintan Island begins to take shape.
In this way, Ming Dynasty can take over the shell of the commercial company and the Minghe joint venture and turn Bintan Island, an island blocked at the entrance of the Strait of Malacca, into Ming Dynasty's forward stronghold in Southeast Asia.
As long as this stronghold is not removed by the Dutch East India Company, the Dutch will not dare to break up with the Ming Dynasty!
Thinking of this, Li Zhongshan ordered: "Okay! Brother Jia Liu, Mr. He (although he works in the Nanyang Company, he still has the rank of Ming Dynasty Navy), without further ado, you can stationed in Bintan Island as soon as possible. Right! Now the Dutch East India Company is trapped in the war on Java Island, and the Dutch mother country is still at war with France. We are stationed in Bintan Island at this time. Even if they know that something is wrong, they can only swallow this loss first.
But you also have to seize the time to set up defenses and stockpile supplies on Bintan Island. Because Geng Juyi has made things too big in the New World, they will definitely be very wary of us. Therefore, once the Dutch free their hands, they will definitely attack Bintan Island! "
"General, do you think the Dutch will definitely break up with us?" He You couldn't believe it. "If they break up with us, how can we do business?"
Li Zhongshan shook his head and said: "General He, the Dutch have never been well-behaved businessmen. They have always used strong ships and cannons to do business. If they did business honestly, could they have established a foothold in Nanyang long ago? Our people have been squeezed out. When dealing with this kind of people, we can't have any illusions about not starting a war. We must be ready for war at any time! And we must win! Only if we win, the Dutch will swallow their anger and become our agents. .”
"General, the Dutch East India Company has more than a hundred galenic ships and gunboats." He You said, "If we want to fight a naval battle, we don't have much confidence."
There were many real battles between the Zheng family and the Dutch East India Company! Although the Zheng family's probability of winning is not low, the cost of winning is also not low!
"General He, don't worry. Their ships have many guns and powerful guns. It may be difficult for us to gain the upper hand at sea. But we still have a trump card in our hand, which the Dutch don't have!"
"General, the trump card you are talking about is..."
Li Zhongshan smiled: "It's the Mongolian East India Company!"
"Mongolian East India Company?" He You was stunned. "General, what threat does this company pose to the Dutch?"
Li Zhongshan smiled and said: "The Mongolian East India Company can open up the trade routes of the Western Regions and transport Europeans' favorite spices and silk to the Rakshasa and Ottoman countries by land!
In addition, a re-emerging great Mongolian country can also help the Mongolian East India Company obtain trade privileges in India. After all, the Timurid State in India was also established by the Mongols.
This Indian market is not as important as the Ming Dynasty to those Europeans! "
From an economic perspective, this 17th century was an Indian century!
As the Ming Dynasty in East Asia fell into a devastating war, the population decreased by two-thirds or more, and industrial and commercial production also shrank significantly. If GDP were to be counted, it would definitely not be ranked first in the world.
And the one with the largest GDP in the world today must be the Timurid Empire that ruled most of India!
At the same time, Indian spices, cotton cloth, gems and saltpeter are also high value-added commodities no less than Chinese silk, porcelain, sugar and tea! Moreover, Bangladesh in India also produces silk. Although it is not as good as Chinese silk, it is still sold well in Europe.
Therefore, the competition among the great powers such as the Netherlands, France, and Britain in India is also quite fierce!
And Aurangzeb of the Timurid dynasty who now rules India is the last great emperor of India! Although this emperor was a bit powerful on the outside but capable on the inside, the European powers of the 17th century could not deal with him across the ocean.
Therefore, it was a bit difficult for European powers to obtain trade privileges from Aurangzeb. Without privileges, this European would not be able to do business. What they like is monopoly free trade!
Therefore, the Mongolian trading company that entered India with the power of the Great Mongolia will definitely put great pressure on the Dutch, French, British, Portuguese and other Western colonists who came over the Indian Ocean.
And once they are expelled from India, the trade lines in Southeast Asia will be difficult to maintain. Coupled with the reopening of the overland Silk Road, perhaps the dominance of East-West trade will fall to the Ottoman Empire, the Great Mongolia, and the Rakshasa In the hands of land powers such as China - the trade routes controlled by land powers do not necessarily have to go over land, they can also go by sea, but maritime trade must rely on land powers near the routes.
In addition, the route around Africa will most likely be replaced by the "sea and land trade route" from the Red Sea through the Sinai Peninsula and then into the Mediterranean. By then, the entire European pattern will undergo drastic changes!
Moscow, Kremlin.
It is still a mild autumn day in Western Europe and East Asia, and it is even a hot summer in South Asia under the rule of Aurangzeb, but under the third generation of the Romanov dynasty, Feodor III Alexey The land of Rakshasa ruled by Vicky is already covered with snow and rain, and further north, it has long been covered by white snow.
Compared with the extremely cold winter, the muddy and cold autumn is more annoying. Because in winter, people can still brave the severe cold and travel on hard ice and snow. But in the cold and muddy autumn, the entire Rakshasa seemed to be stuck in mud, unable to move at all. Even the war between Ukraine and the Turks was suspended because of the damn weather - this was an out-and-out melee. If you want to trace it back further, the origin of this war can be traced back to 1667. The end of the 13-year Polish-Russian War. Through this war, the Rakshasa Kingdom took over Ukraine on the left bank east of the Dnieper River and Smolensk further north. However, the peace treaty concluded between Rakshasa and Poland did not Bring peace to Ukraine. The war between the Cossacks against Poland and the Rakshasa continues on Ukrainian soil (mainly west of the Dnieper River), and several of the Cossack leaders took the initiative to attract the Ottomans in order to defeat the two powerful enemies of Poland and Rakshasa. Empire and Crimean Khanate!
Of course the Ottomans and the Crimean Khanate want it - these two countries have a continuous and strong demand for Ukraine's "blond and blue-eyed long-legged horses"! So the Ottoman Sultan joined the war in 1672 and intervened in the melee in Ukraine. After four years of fighting, he finally helped the people of right-bank Ukraine get rid of Polish rule. They are now the slaves of the Ottoman Sultan!
The Rakshasa Kingdom joined the war in 1676 at the invitation of another faction of Ukrainian Cossacks who were unwilling to be slaves to the Ottomans.
In other words, the bad war in Ukraine has been going on for almost 20 years since the last Polish-Russian war, and we still don’t know when it will end?
Feodor III, who had been frail and sick since childhood, looked out the window at the gray city of Moscow and sighed softly. He almost wanted to give up - or let them be slaves of the Turks!
At the moment when Tsar Feodor was feeling shaken, his grandfather Ilya Danilovich Miloslavsky's somewhat horrified voice suddenly came from outside the door of the study room where the Tsar was sitting: "Your Majesty , My Majesty, no good, they are here again!"
"Who? Who is here again?" Tsar Feodor was stunned, "Ilya Danilovich, come in quickly."
Then there was a creaking sound, and the door of the Tsar's study was pushed open. Miloslavsky, a tall and fat nobleman who looked like a mold of the Tsar's dear sister Princess Sofia, walked out the door. He came in and bowed to the Tsar again.
"Who is coming? Isn't it the Poles?" the Tsar asked worriedly.
Poland and Rakshasa have a feud!
Before the last "Thirteen Years' War", Poland invaded Rakshasa many times and even captured Moscow. The Polish king almost became Rakshasa Tsar!
Although the Poles are relatively devout to their Heavenly Father, they are unlikely to join forces with the Turks. But who knows? Didn’t France, the “adopted father” of the Poles, maintain good relations with the Ottoman Empire?
Perhaps under the mediation of Louis XIV, Poland and Turkey will deal with the Rakshasa Kingdom together!
"It's not the Poles, it's the Mongols!" Miloslavsky's answer made the young tsar feel like he had been fooled.
"Grandfather!" the Tsar said in a reproachful tone, "Are you kidding me? Today is the Orthodox April Fool's Day? This is the 17th century, not the 13th century. The era of the Mongols has long passed.
What we need to worry about now is the alliance between the Ottoman Turkish Empire and the Kingdom of Poland. Louis XIV of France is likely to prompt them to unite, so that the Holy Roman Empire will feel tremendous pressure and may withdraw from the ongoing war. "
This brother of Peter the Great was quite good at guessing!
"No, no, there is no such possibility." Miloslawski shook his head repeatedly. "The Parliament of the Kingdom of Poland will veto all resolutions that may improve Poland's external environment. As long as there is an aristocratic member out of love for Heavenly Father and respect for the The emperor's loyalty will allow Poland to work for the Holy Roman Empire in vain."
Not only does Poland have a ridiculously powerful parliament of nobles, but the country also has many transnational nobles—many of whom are members of both the Polish parliament and the German Reichstag. Don’t know where you stand when voting?
"Your Majesty," Miloslavsky added, "Although it is not the 13th century, the Great Mongolia, which has been dormant for more than two hundred years, has definitely been revived. This summer, the Kazakhs encountered devastation from the Mongols from the east. As a result, the land of Sanyuzi is being ravaged, and Kazakh herders are fleeing in all directions.
The nomadic Turghut people in the lower reaches of the Volga River also began to move eastward this summer. It is said that they went to meet three great Mongol conquerors, including the Mongol Khan, the Golden Horde Khan and Chagatai Khan!
Your Majesty the Tsar, we cannot take the Mongols from the east lightly! In addition, I also suggest that you end the war with the Ottoman Empire on the grounds of joint defense of Mongolia! "
(End of chapter)
