Xinshun 1730

Chapter 586 Transit Port

This is the case for one day, two days, seven or eight days in a row.

So nervous that the Dutch soldiers were a little tired.

They must gather near the Governor's Mansion every day to strengthen the security of each city gate. The fort is full of people every day, and all vacations are cancelled.

The warship was at sea, playing stalking with the Dashun fleet running around on the sea, neither daring to get too close, nor daring to let down their vigilance, the gunners had to be on standby in the cabin all the time, so much so that they had to shit. Report to the gunnery commander.

But on Dashun's side, nothing unexpected happened.On the contrary, the Marine Corps soldiers near the manor took turns to rest; the young people who went out to inquire every day also went out on time.

People in the Council inevitably said behind their backs that the governor was nervous, but Valkner would rather that he was really nervous.

Until Dashun's fleet entered the port again, Liu Yu's illness was miraculously cured.

The commander of the Dutch Fleet, who followed the Dashun Fleet with armed "guards", reported the itinerary of the Dashun Navy to the Governor.

"After they set sail from Batavia, they sailed north, docked at Palembang, and presented gifts to the local sultan. They sent a few people off the ship, saying that they were looking for the stele left by Zheng He. Their The emperor seems to have a hobby of collecting stone inscriptions."

"However, other than that, there doesn't seem to be any special behavior."

Valknir said angrily: "Idiot! This in itself is a peculiar move. The attitude of the sultan there towards us will change with the arrival of the Dashun fleet. If he wants to continue eastward, even go to Sula Weixi and other places comfort the local Chinese, and these fleets will follow."

"Tell your sailors to take time to rest. This game of companionship will continue until they leave Southeast Asia completely and embark on a journey to Europe. During this period, there must be no slack."

"To ensure that where the Chinese warships arrive, our fleet must also arrive there."

"When those chiefs see the masts of Chinese warships, they can also see that our Dutch masts are no less than theirs."

"Send someone to ask, what did the Chinese on those warships say to the local chiefs? Besides presenting gifts, are there any other conversations?"

"What is he going to do?"

…………

In the manor, the core staff of the fleet were sitting there, and Mantou, who had returned from the fleet, was distributing a simple map to everyone.

The thing drawn on the map was immediately recognized by the staff officers present as a standard bastion.

The scale is marked in writing on it, as well as the name of the fort.

Bengkulu, Fort Marlboro.

For the time being, Britain is not the enemy yet, but the high-level spies from the Privy Council Staff Headquarters have always been thieves.

This time I went to Bengkulu to buy goods, and with the trust of the East India Company, it was easy to enter Fort Marlboro.

Relying on his memory and the excellent drawing skills he learned in Weihai, he drew a map of the British fortress on the other side of the Sunda Strait.

Including the depth of the trench, the configuration of the fort, and the situation of the port, there are very detailed introductions.

If you don't fight now, you may not fight in the future.

The role of the staff department already has one thing, to prepare various plans for wars in any possible direction in the future.

Directly in front of the table, it is said that Liu Yu, who was ill before, was sipping tea with a red face and a good complexion.

Mantou's news from the Xuanwei Department of Jiugang put him in a good mood.

Bengkulu's goods have already been dispatched, and the Dutch have not encountered any interception on the way.

The Dutch warships were all attracted to Batavia by Liu Yu, and the munitions ships sailing from Bengkulu were unimpeded, sending British cannons and muskets to the Chinese insurgents active in the Bandung Volcanic Area, and also sent a The batch is called "Heroes recruited from Macau".

As long as I toss in Nanyang until the wind direction changes in January, and there are enough munitions and enough officer corps in the south, it is impossible for Batavia to take advantage of it.

Managing Southeast Asia is a technical job. In the "four towns of Anxi", Ceylon will have tens of thousands of immigrants in the future, Malacca will be the governor's office and trading port, and Bangka Borneo will have miners. Batavia still lacks a stable foundation. .

These insurgents wanted to lay a solid foundation for future military towns in the Bandung area.Otherwise, once the transit port status disappears, Batavia will be an empty shell, unable to stand at all.

Those who finished delivering the goods went directly from Bengkulu to the Xuanwei Division of the Old Port by land, joined the fleet, and quietly sent back the news and the defense map of Fort Marlboro.

The staff officers present were all affiliated to the Privy Council, and they were a group of people in Dashun who had access to the core military secrets, not to mention their loyalty.

Liu Yu sipped his tea for a while, and said slowly: "This time, I asked you to follow me to Europa, saying that it was to watch Europa's military. In fact, there is nothing to see, so that's the case. It's useless to see it. Dashun, where can we find an opportunity for tens of thousands of people to line up and fight?"

"The real purpose is to take advantage of this opportunity to comfort Nanyang, let you come to the battlefield in advance to have a look, collect some information, and formulate a rigorous and detailed battle plan."

"The imperial court has made a decision to go to Nanyang, and this matter is top secret."

The staff immediately got up, their excitement was beyond words, but Liu Yu waved his hands and said, "Sit down, sit down."

"It's not a big deal, as long as the navy wins the battle, there's no problem. Before I sailed to the West, His Majesty had approved the shipbuilding plan. I used all the wood I had accumulated before. Two battleships a year; six cruisers, continued Three years."

"Even if the Dutch have rich experience in naval warfare, if we have a battleship with four cruisers and beat them with an armed merchant ship, if we still can't win, then the navy will commit suicide en masse."

A few people from the navy said in the Art of War that the enemy is expected to be lenient, but the enemy is also expected to be a little too lenient, right?

Liu Yu continued: "Even if the Dutch knew the news after the war started, even if the Dutch dispatched troops, it would take at least a year and a half for reinforcements to arrive."

After clapping his hands, the adjutant unfolded a simple map of Nanyang, and Liu Yu picked up the pointer, just like teaching them in Weihai before, and talked about the general situation of the Privy Council.

Including the timing of the war, the European war broke out, and the Netherlands was deeply involved in the European war against France and Prussia.

At the same time, the immigrants from Ceylon have passed the most difficult days. After reclaiming the wasteland and building houses, all the suffering is over and a good day is about to come.

The situation also includes the secrets of the Chinese rebel army in southern Batavia.

"Make good use of this opportunity to spread comfort in Nanyang, formulate attack tactics for strongholds and fortresses everywhere; draw up a complete logistics supply plan. Logistics supply ships, sailors, you don't have to think about these things-what does a trading company do? They don’t just pay that little money to monopolize, they have military obligations.”

"The overall campaign concept basically ensures three things."

"First, Ceylon is the first target. Tens of thousands of Chinese will be the backbone of the Nanyang Army Town in the future. They must occupy Ceylon before the Dutch realize it and choose to slaughter."

"Secondly, take Batavia as the boundary. For the stronghold east of Batavia, we have a year and a half to gnaw slowly, and we can consider siege tactics to reduce casualties. But from Batavia to the west, Malacca, etc. The land must be fast. Don’t formulate any siege tactics, and take it quickly with a strong attack.”

"Thirdly, logistics, logistics is still logistics. I don't want to see half of the logistical supply problems die first when few people die on the battlefield. The supply plan must be detailed and clear."

"Money is not a problem; I don't even talk about ships and sailors. This is what the military obligations of trading companies are for. Let them organize and monopolize it, so that they can quickly mobilize their fleet power during wartime and facilitate management."

"What you have to do is to formulate a transportation plan for stockpiling supplies for one to two years in various fortresses within one and a half years, in addition to the offensive supply plan."

"Do you have any other questions?"

The staff thought about it, and it seemed that there were indeed not many war problems.

Since the imperial court wanted to start a war, of course it was a lion fighting a rabbit. Although the sea was long and the land warfare could only rely on the marines, the Dutch had a meager marine force here, and the marines were enough.

In terms of navy, Dashun is in East Asia, and there is no threat to coastal defense at this time, and all capital ships can be dispatched to the south.

The only thing is... what about the Chinese citizens in the cities occupied by the Netherlands?
After hesitating for a moment, someone finally raised this question.

"This question...is simple. Warn the Dutch, if you dare to massacre, there will be no Dutch left after breaking the city. As long as you can capture Ceylon and take Malacca within a few days with what you have learned all your life, you will show your strength. The ability to siege the city, the Dutch will not be so stupid as to slaughter."

"If you can break the city, the people inside will be safe. If you can't break the city, the people inside will be in danger."

"So, the better your plan of attack, the safer they are; the more hesitant you are to consider their safety, the more dangerous they are."

"anymore question?"

The staff officers discussed in whispers among themselves and shook their heads, indicating that there was no problem.

"Since that's the case, let's take action. I will have a holiday later, go to Batavia to have fun, and memorize the topography of the city. There are many reasons, such as drinking, whoring, watching theatre, gambling, and buying local specialties."

"I'm going to talk to the governor of Batavia in the Netherlands. The long sea journey is extremely boring. It's time to make a battle plan. There's no rush to plan, let's see first."

"Dismiss."

The adjutant put away the map, all the staff stood up and saw them off, and someone outside took them to eat, drink and have fun.

Liu Yu then ordered someone to inform Governor Batavia that he was in good health and that he would have a meeting today.

Soon, the carriage from the Governor's Mansion arrived at the manor and took Liu Yu to the Governor's Mansion.

Valknir smiled, and asked with concern: "Master Marquis's health has improved?"

"Well. I'm not used to the climate here."

Valkner didn't know the truth, and hurriedly said: "The climate here is indeed different from your country. It is true that you are easy to get sick when you are new. You may not know that when the city of Batavia was first established, the annual death rate in the city They're all around 30%."

"There are swamps and mosquitoes everywhere. Of course, this is thanks to the power of the Chinese. The first governor said that without the Chinese, there would be no Batavia."

"The first Kapitan Soh Ming Kong that year, the 17-member committee also specially presented a plaque of 'Founding Fathers'."

After being concerned, Valkner changed the subject and said, "The prosperity of Batavia depends on the power of the Chinese. But with the power of the Chinese alone, Batavia cannot be so prosperous."

"This is prosperity within the corporate system. Without the corporate system, Batavia would be very ordinary."

"Batavia itself does not have much value. Only within the company system can it be the pearl of Southeast Asia."

"More than 100 years ago, the Ming Dynasty of your country thought that Luzon was rich in gold and silver. But in fact, it was South American silver shipped to Luzon. Luzon is in the hands of the Spaniards, which means that it is rich in gold and silver; In the hands of the Ming Dynasty of your country, it is just a place where malaria and fever occur.”

"I think, Lord Marquis certainly understands this truth."

"The company has struggled for more than 100 years. The trading post in Surat, the trade license in Persia, the tea market in Europe, and the sales channels in the Americas are the roots of Batavia's prosperity. Without these, Batavia may not even Ezo is not comparable, at least there are fish and shrimp in Ezo, and there is no desperate malaria and fever."

What he said about the workhouse a few days ago made Valkenier decide not to go around in circles with Liu Yu, but to make it clear - Batavia is a part of the company system, leaving the system, it is just an ordinary port .

Without the system, it is not even tasteless to eat and a pity to discard. It is really not a big piece of fat.

Liu Yu nodded, agreeing to these words, but then directly cut the topic into business.

At least, pretending to look like a business is a business.

"I sent someone to inquire about the Tang people in Batavia. They generally miss the days when Batavia was used as a transit port. Your company has now opened direct trade in Guangzhou, Songjiang, and Zhangzhou, and from time to time, it will ban Tang ships from entering the port. ban."

"Once Tang boats are banned from entering the port, the lives of many Tang people in the city will be very difficult."

"I want to know, does the Governor have the right to suggest to the board of directors of your company to give up direct trade with China, but continue to adopt the Batavia transit situation?"

"If the governor can't decide, don't waste my time. I'm going to Europa this time, and I'll go directly to Amsterdam to talk with your company's board of directors."

"My attitude towards the poorhouse is very firm, and we must treat the symptoms and root causes. Then, as long as the status of Batavia's transit port can be resolved, the living conditions of the Tang people engaged in handicrafts, restaurants, hotels, and casinos in the city will be greatly improved."

"The imperial court ordered me to comfort Nanyang in order to relieve the people's difficulties and give them what they need. Can you be the master of this matter?"

Valknir was stunned for a moment.

And the members of the council next to them all felt like they were dreaming, pinched themselves secretly, and thought... What else is there such a good thing about?
Direct trade with China is of course beneficial to the company as a whole, but it should not be transferred. Batavia's "millions of waterworkers need food and clothing", what's the wind?

This is not Batavia asking the board of directors for power from the locality, but the Chinese side.

If this is the case, why don't you get an extra [-] a year?Now that we want to immigrate to Ceylon, the benefits of extorting poll tax, tacitly allowing slave labor to go ashore, and privately issuing residence permits are gone, and money is tight.

(End of this chapter)