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Chapter 758 Pretending to be confused while pretending to understand

As early as 1608, the Protestant German princes established the German Protestant League and elected Frederick V, Elector of the Palatinate, as their leader. Its members included Anhalt, Mecklenburg, Brandenburg, Saxony, the Palatinate, Baden-Württemberg, Hesse-Kassel and some free cities.

The Bohemian Parliament submitted an application for membership to the Protestant League, promising that if the Protestant League sent troops to help resist the empire, it would elect Frederick V as King of Bohemia.

Frederick V and Ferdinand II were both very pious, but the former was devout to Protestantism and the latter was devout to Catholicism. The two people disliked each other to begin with, and now there was the temptation of the throne of the King of Bohemia, so how could they not agree?

Ferdinand II was also busy. He gathered the Catholic German princes to form the Catholic League. Both sides mobilized their troops and were ready to fight. The civil war in the Holy Roman Empire was on the verge of breaking out.

Since it was a civil war, why did Spain and the Netherlands get involved? In fact, the reason is very simple. Just like a gang fight, everyone has a few relatives and friends. In order to increase their own strength, they just call as many as they can.

The mother of the current King of Spain, Philip III, is Archduchess Anna of Austria. Anna's father is Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II, and Maximilian II's father is Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I.

The father of King Ferdinand II of Bohemia was Archduke Charles II of Austria, the fourth son of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I and the younger brother of Maximilian II. Based on this relationship, King Philip III of Spain should call Ferdinand II his uncle.

But don't worry, the complexity of the blood relationship of European nobles can be fully demonstrated from the relationship between the two of them. Philip III's father is Philip II, Philip II's father is Charles V, and Charles V has a younger brother named Ferdinand I.

Judging from this relationship, Philip III is the great-nephew of Ferdinand I, and Ferdinand II is the grandson of Ferdinand I. Philip III should be the cousin of Ferdinand II.

All of these European nobles actually came from a very large family, the Habsburg family. This noble family from Austria dominated Europe for hundreds of years through marriage, until the Austro-Hungarian Empire was defeated in World War I and then disintegrated.

In addition to the Holy Roman Empire, there are also emperors or kings of Austria, Bohemia, Hungary, Spain, Portugal and other countries. It is no exaggeration to say that the royal families of various European countries have more or less some of the Habsburg family's genes flowing in their bodies.

Since Spain has gotten involved, the United Provinces and Britain, which also believe in Protestantism, will certainly not sit idly by. Although they did not join the war immediately, they have also made their positions clear.

So Spain took the initiative and tried to cut off the Dutch East India Company's route to the Spice Islands through Portugal's supply stations throughout Africa and India, dealing a heavy blow to the Dutch East India Company economically.

"Silva, make it clear to Mr. Cohen that my time is limited. Ask him to speak directly on the main points and not beat around the bush."

Seeing the short and fat Silva and the tall and thin Cohen walking into the hall, Hong Tao almost laughed out loud. It was too funny. However, his face was still very serious, and he deliberately put on an attitude of not being impatient and not taking it seriously.

After a brief exchange of words, Silva finally expressed the purpose of Cohen's visit in Chinese. He wanted to rent two black-sailed warships and a thousand soldiers from the Ming Dynasty to attack the port of Colombo occupied by the Portuguese.

"What good would it do to hire the Ming army to attack the Portuguese port, other than to give me at least one more enemy?" Although there was no sea chart, Hong Tao could still find the location of Colombo Port in his mind, and then he roughly understood why. The Dutch East India Company urgently needed a supply station in the Indian Ocean to supply merchant ships traveling between the Spice Islands and Europe.

Obviously, Ceylon Island, located at the southern tip of the Indian Peninsula, was the most suitable relay station between the Cape of Good Hope and Batavia. The Dutch East India Company was not sure that it could take it in one fell swoop and occupy it for a long time on its own, so it set its sights on the Ming Dynasty, hoping to accomplish great things with little money.

"Your Majesty, Mr. Cohen wants to become the exclusive agent of Ming Dynasty products in Europe by signing a trade contract, promising a fixed sales volume every year. This will be very beneficial to Ming Dynasty and can become a fixed annual tax revenue for the court. Even if the cargo ship is delayed in arriving at the port due to weather or other reasons, it will not affect the sales of the goods.

This is the contract and the list of goods drawn up by Mr. Cohen. The specific quantity and purchase price are not marked and need to be negotiated by both parties. He only needs His Majesty's agreement in principle to apply for authorization from the head office and then formally sign the contract. "

There was another round of mumbling. This time, Silva not only translated it, but also got a draft of the business contract written in Latin. However, he did not give it to Wang Chengen immediately, but opened it and looked down at it.

"Let's not worry about the contract for now. If I want to increase the export volume, I can also cooperate with Portuguese merchants, and it is easier. They live in Macau, why should they go far away?"

Hong Tao tapped the table lightly with his fingers, signaling Silva not to rush to translate the contract. He didn't want to look at it right away because the conditions were far from meeting the requirements for Ming Dynasty to send troops to attack Portuguese ports.

"The Jesuits! The Jesuits are an evil organization. They try to recruit believers in every place and make the locals convert to Catholicism. It should be foreseeable that if the Jesuits are allowed to expand in the Ming Dynasty, it will have very unpredictable consequences for your Majesty's rule.

The Tokugawa Shogun of Japan has realized this and has completely banned the activities of the Jesuits since a few years ago. But it does not include the Dutch East India Company. We have never attached any conditions to business. "

Cohen had obviously anticipated various issues that might arise in this negotiation. His answers were very fluent, without much ambiguity, and he tried his best to cater to the thinking patterns of those in power in the East.

"Well, I heard the Prime Minister of Sun Moon Bank mention your company's financial assistance, but it still cannot be used as a reason to send troops to attack other countries' ports. The people of Ming Dynasty are hardworking and frugal, willing to conduct equal trade activities with people of all countries, and also adhere to the principle of not offending others unless they offend me, and will not easily use force to resolve disputes.

If the Spanish Governor had not repeatedly created riots and taken the opportunity to massacre Chinese businessmen, I would not have sent troops to capture Luzon Island. This is completely different from accepting mercenary troops to attack Colombo.

Mr. Cohen, can you please stop bargaining and tell me frankly why your company wants to attack Colombo? As a business partner of Ming Dynasty, although we have not yet signed a formal contract, I am still willing to make more reasonable suggestions to your company in my personal capacity. "

Hong Tao fully affirmed this statement, then changed the subject and began to discuss the legality of the war, more or less describing himself and the Ming court as peace-loving people.

Whether the other party believes it or not is one thing, whether to say it or not is another. Bluffing and brainwashing are very important in diplomatic work. If you say it every day and every month, someone might believe it. Anyway, it doesn't cost anything except talking, and there are only benefits and no harm, so why not do it?

(End of this chapter)