"I see!"
This secret was indeed so powerful that even Ruit was extremely surprised. It was like the British Navy was equipped with ironclads. Fortunately, this metaphor did not hold true for a short time.
"How's it going? Have you lost your appetite again?"
Putmans looked at the future Dutch Navy Commander meaningfully. If nothing else happened, the talented Ruyter would definitely be Tromp's successor, so Putmans would reveal this secret to other side.
"You can stop talking about these things when I have a big meal in the future!"
Ruyter showed a wry smile and admitted the problem in disguise. Although his views were not consistent with those of the other party, Ruyter believed that this was caused by information asymmetry.
If I knew as many secrets as Putmans, or even more, I might be even more pessimistic and even desperate than his view.
"The company purchases tens of millions of silver coins from the emperor of the Ming Empire every year. Naturally, I can find out some unknown news."
Putmans didn't know whether knowing these secrets was a blessing or a curse, but knowing more would not do much harm, unless he couldn't control his mouth.
But Putmans is still clear about Ruit's character. At least he will not betray himself, not to mention that he can also help the other party to a certain extent.
"So there are still many secrets?"
Ruyter was now more interested in Putmans than in the roast duck and spirits on the table, although both did taste very good.
"Actually, it's not a secret. The emperor said that if Spain gives up the fight for European hegemony and focuses on North America, or even moves there, in less than two hundred years, Spain will return to the strength it had during the Armada period, and even In the next few hundred years, it will become a world-class power because there is no impact of local wars. The same is true for Portugal. Unfortunately, the top leaders of these two countries are short-sighted and do not realize this at all. The British realize it, but not enough They have the strength to achieve this goal but they are struggling and that is the scariest thing for the Netherlands."
"They want to take our New Amsterdam?"
"It's possible! But if we can be defeated in a naval battle, then there is no need to capture it. We will voluntarily give up somewhere!"
"...Alas~!"
Hearing this, Luit couldn't help but sigh. Neither he nor the Dutch people expected that fighting close to the mainland would not be able to defeat the British in a naval battle.
Once upon a time, the Dutch Navy was the world's largest and most powerful maritime presence, but today, it seems that it can no longer defeat the Ming Empire's navy in the Eastern world, and is overtaken by the British Navy in the Western world.
"You mean we can become stronger by giving up our homeland and traveling to North America?"
"To be precise, perhaps it is more practical to avoid being destroyed! Every Dutchman knows that we have no strategic depth at all. Once the homeland falls, destruction will be waiting for us! The French are not Spanish, they can live without them all year round. If we retreat, we can also join forces with the British to blockade our coastline. Merchant ships will then be unable to return to their home ports and local crops will not be harvested. The result will be surrender, which is worse than Ferdinand’s fate! If Britain and France join forces, they can completely support a long-term war. We need it, but we can’t. Unless the Parliament can agree to spend tens of millions of silver coins every year to appease Mazarin, but is that possible? The French Navy has ironclads, the French Army has airships, tanks, and mortars, and the French territory is still different from We share a border. In fact, France poses a greater threat to us than Britain, but many people fail to see this and think that by defeating Britain, the Netherlands can continue to maintain maritime superiority. The British cannot defeat us, but they can also win over the French. Come and fight us, we can’t fight the British, have you ever thought about recruiting the French to fight the British?”
"..."
Ruit still had to digest Putmans's words for a while, and he was speechless because, at least within the Navy, no one had made similar suggestions.
"Why don't you say this in Parliament? Or ask a member of Parliament to repeat it?"
"I'm not a general, and I don't know many parliamentarians. Even if I speak at length in parliament, I'm afraid I won't have much influence. For you, or even for Tromp, it might be better, but it's not the same as the most ideal There is also a certain distance between the results. Even if the target is you and I, knowing these contents, we have not made up our minds to settle down in North America, right? This is human nature and cannot be changed!"
"In your opinion, what changes do we need to make if we want to win the war?"
"The company gave up the East Indies to purchase more ironclads. Diplomatically appease France, at least not to prevent France from being involved in the war against us. It began to move to North America. If the worst happens, it will Give up the mainland and move everything to North America. It seems simple, but it is actually very difficult! It is so difficult that even if you know it, you can't change it! Judging from the current situation, the company does not want to give up the islands, and the Parliament cannot appease France, so the matter of moving to Japan is even more difficult. Stop talking. It seems like we are working hard for victory, but in fact we are just struggling in quicksand and eventually sinking deeper and deeper, that’s all!”
"Other than that?"
"Join France and defeat Britain. Or let the emperor of the Ming Empire send Zheng Yiguan's fleet to Europe, but this possibility is slim. It will take us four years to obtain four ironclads. If the trade contract is renewed, that will be eight We can only obtain eight ships per year. If I can still be in charge of this matter by then, I may be able to obtain more ironclad ships, but this is impossible. Before obtaining ironclad ships, we must at least ensure that we will not be defeated by the British militarily. Otherwise, the expensive ironclad ship will become our burial object!"
"Do you know how much the ironclads cost France?"
"As far as I know, this number was used!"
"Fifty million silver coins?"
Ruyter looked at Putmans' open palm and instinctively reported the amount he thought he had.
"Five million a boat!"
"real?"
"Zheng Yiguan bought it cheaper, no more than three million!"
"……incredible!"
Hearing this amount, Ruyter was so depressed that he almost shut up. The Netherlands was like being taken advantage of.
"As early as the Richelieu period, France decided to have good relations with the Ming Empire and directly sent troops to help the emperor fight against the enemies of the Ming Empire - the Tatars! Now in the Mazarin period, France can receive the previous dividends , and the two sides also concluded an agreement, which is more in-depth than what we signed, and is almost only one step away from a military alliance."
"Why don't we sign a similar agreement with the Ming Empire?"
"The conditions were not mature at that time, and we had a war with the Ming Empire before. The East Indies now controlled by the company is the place that the Ming Empire emperor wants. It can be said that there were conflicts between the two parties before, and they still exist now, but they are not as big as before. That’s all.”
"If we have a war with France, will the Ming Empire side with France and give up our annual trade volume of tens of millions of silver coins?"
"Of course, but we don't have strategic depth. The war will end soon and the losses will not be too great. After the war, the Netherlands will still trade with the Ming Empire, and France will also eat part of the share that originally belonged to us."
"So, the situation is becoming increasingly unfavorable to us? France can almost become the winner directly?"
"Some people are winners in life from birth. Although this is unfair, it is the fact, and others have to accept it!"
As time went on, Putmans's views on the situation in Europe became clearer and clearer, and the Netherlands was almost squeezed into a corner by other countries.
"We really can't turn defeat into victory?"
"Even if we can win the naval battle, it will be temporary. The British will continue to counterattack, and we still have to worry about the French attacking from the land. If we want to enjoy a permanent victory, it is better to sell our country to the French. Let's go The founding of North America will never come back! Now the European War is basically over, and it has turned into a battle for maritime hegemony. Not only the British, but also the French and Spanish are our enemies. It is difficult for us to defeat even the British. Not to mention that they have joined forces to deal with us. If Sweden is added to this list, it means that we have single-handedly challenged most of Europe! But we only have a population of a few million, but we have to fight a war with huge disparity in strength. Isn't this ridiculous and ridiculous? But this is what we are doing! For example, one of us has to beat three or four other people at the gambling table. We can only win one silver coin when we win a game, and we can only win one silver coin when we lose one. We have to lose all the money in our pocket, but we are having fun!"
Putmans believes that this is an unwinnable dead end for the Netherlands.
The only way to avoid losing all your money is to quit the game.
"I hope I can hear your opinions again next time I eat!"
Ruit felt very depressed after eating this meal. Even though there were many European-looking people in the restaurant, their expressions during the meal were completely different from his own.
"I'm afraid this kind of high opinion will make you and I lose our appetite!"
"I think you're the only strategist we have!"
"A strategist who fights for roast duck? Hahahaha..."
Putmans just thought that Ruyter's compliment was a disguised sarcasm. The real strategist was the young emperor of the Ming Empire. He said these words to himself when he was a teenager.
Sure enough, Ambassador Berg's dinner was nothing special, or rather very Dutch. Compared to the roast duck, it was really different, but Ruyter still finished it politely.
Next, Ambassador Berg arranged for Ruyter to visit the scenic spots and historical sites here, and take a look at the industrial civilization of the Ming Empire. Both of them are regarded as miracles on earth.
Ruit took a lot of photos in front of the scenic spot as a souvenir, and his trip was not in vain. What attracted him even more were the many industrial masterpieces of the Ming Empire, such as trains.
Putmans took the time to accompany Ruyter on a train to the Great Wall. Ruyter also saw this massive engineering miracle for the first time in his life.
There are pyramids in the west and the Great Wall in the east. If they have not seen it with their own eyes, many people would not be able to imagine it, let alone believe that it really exists.
On the way to the Great Wall, Putmans also told Ruyter the general principle structure of railways and trains, but the Dutch mainland has not yet understood it.
Moreover, the local water network is so dense that it is almost impossible to build railways. Unless we really move to North America, we will have to spend the rest of our lives riding trains in the Ming Empire.
Back in Beidu New City, at night, the streets are not completely dark, because with the existence of electric street lights, everything becomes completely different.
Although only the first and second category streets have street lights installed for the time being, it is enough to shock foreign guests. The more prosperous the area, the brighter the lights.
The front doors of some entertainment venues are extremely lively, far more than during the day. Putmans also invited Ruit to come in and experience what it means to enjoy life!
The tickets were given as a gift by a certain new emperor, and he couldn't give more than that. This benefit could still be given away for free. Ruit didn't understand plain language at all, but Putmans was already considered a local speaker.
Four hours later, Ruyter ended his dreamlike viewing. His mind was still in confusion. Although he didn't understand the language, he still felt that this kind of performance was really exciting...
Later, with the permission of a certain new emperor, the two, accompanied by factory guards, visited Imperial Oil, Daming Communications, Guanghui Pharmaceutical, World Media Group, Thunder Electric Power, Qianqi Department Store Group and other companies.
After a visit, Ruit gained a more intuitive and three-dimensional understanding of the development of the Ming Empire, and also roughly understood the strength of the other party.
A strong military, a strong economy, and advanced science and technology are exactly what Ruyter and many compatriots want the Netherlands to achieve.
It is a pity that the Ming Empire had a population of 100 million, a land area of more than one million square miles, and extremely rich resources, which the Netherlands could not compare to.
Three days later, a certain new emperor entertained two guests in his small foreign-style building.
One is a money-making intermediary, the other is a historical celebrity, it's like brushing up the face...
"Your Majesty, I have a question that I have always wanted to mention in person!"
"But it doesn't matter!"
"Since you said that the North American continent has many advantages, why don't you send someone there?"
"I sent someone there a few years ago. Maybe Mr. Putmans forgot to tell you?"
Ruyter got the answer through a translator, then looked at Putmans with slight confusion.
The latter suddenly remembered that it seemed to be true and had been published in the newspaper, so he whispered a few words.
"We have occupied the northwestern part of the North American continent, and have fought several battles with Spanish armed forces, and we have won each time. I can responsibly say that the best part of the North American continent is along the east coast, followed by the southern region. Finally comes the northwest. The Spanish took the south, we took the northwest, and the east is now almost empty. Although you established a larger settlement, it is obvious that you did not realize the importance of North America. The British People have already passed, but after a few hundred Dutch in Europe, they will immigrate to North America on a large scale, eventually turning the UK into a world-class country!"
"Same as your country?"
"Da Ming is above the best!"
First-rateness is used to measure you, not Ming Dynasty.
They don't even have ironclads, so the British still want to compete with Ming's father?
If the British want to build the first ironclad ship of their own, it will probably take nearly two hundred years.
At that time, Dad Ming could realize manned spaceflight!
