Lu Ming

Chapter 221 Hostage
Riding on the first southwest monsoon in May, the Dutch fleet set out from Batavia came prepared this time.

旗舰米德尔堡号排水量550吨，船上光是24磅的长身管舰炮就有4门，另外，舰队里还有4艘400吨级左右的盖伦船。其余那些快艇虽说排水量都是100—200吨的小船, 但是10艘的数量加起来也相当可观。

The huge temptation thrown before the crossing forces has never been encountered by the Dutch in history.On this plane: The superimposed effect of the two crown trades of slaves and raw silk made the Dutch send a fleet far exceeding the historical scale to Dayuan Island this time.

Adhering to the common practice in the era of great voyages, after Commander Putmans came to the sea today, he naturally divided the expected goals of the fleet into three levels: normal trade, trade under the muzzle, and trade under occupation.

Male lions will only divide territory with male lions of equal strength, and the weak are not eligible to participate in the banquet.Therefore, Putmans' top priority today is not trade, but to test the opponent's strength.

Seeing the small boat carrying businessman Mao Zheer return to the entrance of the main channel, Putmans, who was standing on the flagship cockpit, began to order at this moment: the fleet moved out to one league.The next moment, with the passing of the flag, the ships of the Dutch fleet began to hang up part of their sails, and began to move the ships that had not anchored to the periphery.

One league is usually taken as 3 nautical miles in the ocean, which is equivalent to 5.556 kilometers.

Originally, the Dutch fleet came from the south, and their mooring position was more than 2 kilometers south of the channel mouth.Now, following Putmans' order, the 15 Dutch ships have traveled another 3 kilometers to the sea, and they have reached the level of Dayuan's channel entrance, and there is a faint meaning of blockade.

However, the two destroyers that had been cruising north of the channel mouth did not react violently: they were still slowly circling there, monitoring the Dutch fleet.

Soon, shortly after Maozier entered the channel, a small boat with a triangular sail rushed out of the channel like a sharp arrow. The Middelburg had just adjusted its position, and the small boat had stopped on the ship. side.

Climbing up from the ladder, in addition to Majer, there is no doubt that there is also a "big noble" in the perception of the Dutch.

These ancient nobles who were said to be from the hinterland of the Ming Dynasty were usually tall and tall, and their unique temperament made them distinguishable from others at a glance.

Putmans is no exception.Although he only knew some unique features of the travelers from the reports and the narrations of some people in advance, as soon as this person boarded the ship today, he immediately distinguished the travelers from the two short, black and thin native followers behind him .

The smiling man approaching him was tall and had a peculiar manner.This person has short hair, wearing a weird short jacket, trousers and black leather shoes, a colorful cloth strip hanging around his neck, and black and white ornaments on the neckline and one ear. Compared with the nobles that Mance had seen before, the decorations of these Ming nobles were not complicated.

The two sides quickly had a simple handshake ceremony, and then the guests were invited into the cabin.

After being seated in the cabin, the person who came quickly announced his identity: Tang Xiaoqiao, negotiator of the senior staff.It is worth noting that this handsome-looking negotiator with a somewhat familiar style speaks fluent Dutch at the moment.

Although some grammatical aspects were different from the red-haired ones, it was enough for the two sides to communicate, so the atmosphere in the cabin became more active.

"Sorry, it's a short voyage, but after more than a month of drifting, as you know, there is only rum left on board." After introducing his entourage to Tang Xiaoqiao, Commander Putmans passed a wooden cup pushed in front of the visitor.

"Oh, please forgive me, this is the worst rum I've ever had." Tang Xiaoqiao couldn't help but complain after politely tasting the sour so-called rum in the glass.

"No way, this is sailing."

"I'm sure you'll be drinking high-quality rum soon."

At this time, Tang Xiaoqiao pointed in the direction of the senior staff with a smile on his face: "In order to welcome the trade season, we not only imported sugarcane from Fujian, but also raised the land on Weidao on the northern line, and built beautiful hotels and bars on it. Believe me, you will be able to drink the most authentic rum there."

Before the Dutch people in front of him could react, Tang Xiaoqiao, who was a bit talkative, said quickly: "Also, the name of the bar is 'Pirate Bar'. How about it? It feels very good, right? We need a few beautiful Dutch girls to serve us now." With a dwarf who can dance on the table. Of course, the Spanish chick will do too."

"Don't you think there's something more important to discuss before the bar and the chicks, dear Don."

Looking at this yellow-skinned negotiator who was talking too much and didn't seem to feel that the atmosphere in the cabin was getting colder, Putmans had to open his mouth to interrupt the other party's conversation.

"Okay, what do you want to talk about?" Tang Xiaoqiao, who put away his joking form, leaned on the back of the chair at this moment, raised his legs, and showed a smile of "I knew you wanted to do this" on his face.

Putmans said slowly with a cold face: "Negotiations on the trade agreement and the sovereignty of Dayuan Island."

Hearing this, Tang Xiaoqiao asked a little puzzled: "Trade agreement? Could it be that the agreement that Mr. Peter Nuiz brought to Batavia a few months ago was not signed by Governor Cohen in the end?"

Putmans was a little stuck at this time, but his tone quickly became tough again: "Governor Cohen has signed the agreement, but the new agreement also needs to be discussed."

"A new agreement representing your personal will?"

"Yes. The unreasonable agreement should be torn up, and we will sign a new one."

Hearing this, Tang Xiaoqiao showed the narrow smile of when he was full of gossip: "Hans, can I call you Hans?"

"Exactly, dear Don."

"Very well, then let me guess: Dear Hans, you must have the right to command every soldier in this fleet?"

"Don, I admire your aristocratic sensitivity. Yes, you have grasped the key to the problem. Now I can order this powerful fleet to attack Dayuan Island at any time and turn your new bar into an open air again. square."

"Understood." At this moment, Tang Xiaoqiao raised his hand and interrupted dear Comrade Hans' follow-up words: "Believe me, no one here knows more about the programs where the guns are mounted behind the gate than me."

When Tang Xiaoqiao said this, he put away his legs, and buttoned his suit while standing up: "The cabin is too stuffy, let's go out and talk?"

"Of course." A group of people immediately got up and followed Tang Xiaoqiao to the outside of the cabin.

"May I ask, why isn't Cai the one who came to negotiate today?" During this process, Mr. Johannes van der Hagen, an old friend of the Dayuan people, felt a little bit concerned that today's negotiator was not Cai Feiming, whom he was familiar with. Puzzled.

"Is there any need to ask? The latecomers have insufficient qualifications, and of course they have to take on more dangerous jobs!" Tang Xiaoqiao said here, with a sad expression on his face.

"The most dangerous job involves negotiation, and all participants must be prepared to be hostages." Putmans interrupted coldly at this moment.

Tang Xiaoqiao did not respond to Comrade Hans' aggressive statement.At this time, he had come to the stern of the Middelburg, and was blowing a cool sea breeze, observing the Dutch fleet.

"A very powerful fleet." After taking a few glances, Tang Xiaoqiao turned around and leaned against the side of the ship, then smiled and said to Putmans: "The source of your confidence."

"Yes, the fleet is power." Comrade Hans pushed back without hesitation.

Tang Xiaoqiao nodded casually, and then stretched out his finger to the side of the ship: "Before we discuss the issue of hostages, dear Hans, can you tell me, is there any valuable cargo on that ship?"

What Tang Xiaoqiao pointed at with his finger was the speedboat Cookken located at the right rear of the flagship.

The displacement of the Cookken is only 120 tons, which is the smallest tonnage in the Dutch fleet.

"There were only soldiers and artillery on that ship, and no cargo." The old driver Putmans, who had served as a court judge in Batavia and was also in charge of local Chinese affairs, saw through the other party's tricks immediately, so He clearly told Tang Xiaoqiao that there was no cargo on board, only brave warriors, even though the Cookken still contained some spices and animal skins.

"Fine, then that's it."

"Ok?"

"Dear Hans, have you ever heard of an Italian cannon? Oh yes, it should be called a Roman cannon these days?"

At the same time as Tang Xiaoqiao's voice fell, a red dot suddenly "floated" over from Dayuan Island 5.5 kilometers away.

The red dot plunged into the water 5 meters ahead of the left front of the Cookken at a speed that no one could see clearly, and then there was a violent explosion in the water, and a column of water as high as the bow of the ship was ejected on the ocean surface at the same time , A series of rumbling sounds in the sky were long overdue.

"What is this?" Before the Dutch could react, the second red dot arrived as promised.This time the shell accurately hit the ship's side of the Cookken. At this moment, the 40MM high-explosive warhead detonated instantly, and the high-pressure gas converted from the explosive burst the ship's side, forming a continuously spreading sphere.The Dutch soldiers within the range of the sphere were instantly blown out, and their bodies were covered with shrapnel and ship board fragments.

As the second red dot hit, in the next few seconds, another 6 shells scrambled into the sky, and the Cookken was blown to pieces and burst into flames.

However this is not the end. After the 5-second reloading time was over, another series of 7 red dots flew over—this time the Cookken was completely finished, and it began to slowly sink to the bottom of the sea after being torn apart, counting from the first shell. The whole process takes less than 1 minute
Comrade Putmans, who was stunned by the huge roar, explosion, and flames 200 meters away, finally came to his senses at this moment.Then, the panicked Dutchman drew his sword: "God, it's shelling! Look what you've done!"

Tang Xiaoqiao, who was always smiling, was still leaning against the side of the ship.After giving Comrade Hans 2 minutes to understand the situation, Tang Xiaoqiao stretched out his hand with a smile, and slowly pushed aside the blade in front of him: "Dear Hans, now, you and your fleet are my hostages. So, gentlemen, would you like to have a pint of rum at the Pirate's Bar?"

(End of this chapter)