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Chapter 999: Hey! Leave some money for passage!
Listening to the two people's questions and answers, and seeing Cohen's increasingly unnatural expression, Hong Tao stopped Zhu Neng from asking further questions. But it did not stop his curiosity, and the answers did not necessarily have to come from Europeans.

The border troops of the Ming Dynasty thirty years ago were also of the same character. They served as soldiers and were almost like beggars. The only motivation for killing the enemy was the reward. Talking about the country and the nation was all nonsense. They would fight for whoever paid more.

"Wait... Your Majesty, there is another question that this brave general needs to answer. Does the prisoner know who the commanders of the English and Spanish fleets are?"

Zhu Neng bowed and was about to get off the ship when Cohen suddenly asked another question. After learning that the mysterious fleet was indeed composed of England and Spain, he was a little nervous.

Although he had served as governor of Batavia for nearly 20 years and was deeply aware of the invincible reputation of the Ming Empire Navy in the South China Sea, he had never seen a formal naval battle.

On the contrary, he had seen large Spanish and English warships since he was a child in Dutch ports such as Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Compared with the warships of the Ming Empire Navy, they were not only larger in size and had more artillery, but also had more combat experience.

Now the Anglo-Spanish Combined Fleet has more than 40 ships, while the Ming Empire Navy has only 16 ships. It is at an absolute disadvantage in terms of tonnage, artillery and number of sailors.

The failure of the landing battle should be attributed to the fact that the defense measures of Port Entorio were very complete, but it did not mean that the Anglo-Spanish Fleet would also fail in the naval battle. If the two fleets met on the sea, Port Entorio would not be able to help, and the result of the naval battle would be disastrous.

From his own and the company's perspective, he did not want the Ming Empire Navy to be defeated, forcing the East India Company to face direct encirclement and suppression by the British and Spanish, nor did he want the Anglo-Spanish combined fleet to be defeated, forcing the Ming Empire to become the maritime overlord of Asia.

It would be best to maintain the status quo and not take sides. For this reason, he planned to take a risk. If he could hear a familiar name, he would try to be a neutral third party and mediate to see if he could make peace between the two sides.

"Did you ask?"

It's not that Hong Tao didn't think about this question, but he didn't pay attention to it at all. Even if the Anglo-Spanish Combined Fleet was led by the most powerful naval commanders of the two countries, he didn't know them, let alone have any friendship with them, so it didn't matter whether he knew them or not.

"Uh... the English commander is Lieutenant Colonel Robert Blake, and the Spanish commander is Count Juan Superro."

Zhu Neng really asked, but like his emperor, he didn't know any of the European soldiers, so he didn't take it seriously and didn't think of reporting it. It was only at this time that he took out his notebook and found the relevant records.

"...Juan Supero is the commander of the fleet sent by Spain to the New World. He is from a naval family and a very powerful figure. If your Majesty allows, I am willing to serve as an envoy to talk to him first.

The Anglo-Spanish fleet suffered a great loss at Enniao Harbor and should have realized the strength of the Imperial Navy. Now that they have retreated several hundred kilometers to build a port, it is a good opportunity for peace talks. "

Sure enough, Cohen heard a familiar name among the two commanders. Although he didn't know him or had never seen him before, someone in the company's senior management knew him. Anyway, as long as they could connect a little and have a conversation, there would be something to talk about.

As for the construction of ports by England and Spain at the Cape of Good Hope, that was not the company's responsibility. This place did not belong to any country. In principle, anyone who wanted to build it could do so. As long as the company could firmly hold on to Batavia and the Spice Islands, it would not lose its base.

Exclusive agent for all of Asia's maritime trade... To be honest, everyone wants it, but no one would actually try it. Doing so would be too crazy. It would make too many enemies, and a hero cannot defeat four hands. "Negotiation? Governor Cohen, we are old acquaintances, and you should know my rules very well. For people and countries that have offended the empire, I have always negotiated with war. If you don't distinguish between winners and losers and don't get hurt, you will never learn your lesson in the future."

Hong Tao didn't want to listen to a word of Cohen's suggestion and rejected it decisively on the spot. He was calculating too much. He felt the power of the Ming Empire and wanted to add a few more Europeans to play a round-robin battle to consume them together.

However, Hong Tao did not blame him for being cunning. Whoever sat in the position of Governor of Batavia had to consider the interests of the Dutch East India Company first. An overly powerful Asian country did not meet their needs at all and was even more dangerous than their competitors.

"But they are building a dock hundreds of kilometers away. Your Majesty, what reason and method are you going to use to attack them?"

Cohen did not give up and continued to argue. What he said was not without reason. The rescue fleet was full of Qin-class warships, with a displacement of only more than 200 tons and a large amount of shells and propellants. They could not carry Marines at all. It was impossible to let the precious sailors and gunners land and fight.

"Whatever reason they used to attack Enniao Port, I will use the same reason to retaliate. You'd better remember this point. I am very, very vindictive and have no virtue of tolerance.

Building a dock... This is indeed a small problem... Zhu Neng, I remember that the navy seemed to have helped the Xhosa people train cavalry. Was it successful? " Hong Tao could solve one of these two problems immediately, but he was a little unsure about the other.

"Your Majesty, the Kosa cavalry has been in existence for more than two years, with more than 1300 soldiers. They have participated in many tribal wars and have good combat effectiveness and discipline. However, they have not received any sea training, so I'm afraid they will not be able to board the ship to help in the battle."

When Zhu Neng heard this question, he immediately realized what the emperor wanted to do, but he did not think it was a good idea and had to advise him.

"Gather the Kosa cavalry, the more the better. If they need compensation, you can provide them with some steel crossbows. There is no need to board the ship. Find someone to lead them overland and launch the attack after the fleet leaves.

It's best to bring a few field guns. If the enemy's resistance is not fierce, kill less and capture more. I will take all the prisoners back." Unfortunately, I guessed wrong. Hong Tao didn't want to let the Kosa cavalry board the ship to serve as land guards, but planned to advance by water.

What? This place doesn't belong to any country! That's right, so there are no rules, you can fight however you want. You said you arrived first, I said I went ashore last year to take a shit and declared my sovereignty. If you can't agree, then fight, whoever wins is right.

No country's ports will be allowed to appear on the Cape of Good Hope or even the southern tip of Africa. In the future, this place will become an overseas territory of the Ming Empire, firmly stuck on the only route between Asia and Europe, and tightly controlling the maritime trade between the two continents.

I built this road and planted this tree. If you want to pass through here, leave money for the road! Although the Ming Empire was not a highwayman, the role of the Cape of Good Hope was similar to that of a mountain stronghold.

Merchant ships of those who have good relations with the Ming Dynasty can travel safely. Otherwise, being denied entry into the port and intercepted for inspection will become the norm. Even if a rat is found in the ballast tank, it is considered intercontinental smuggling, and those who detain ships and people must be severely punished!
At this time, trade was no longer just about making money, but had become a strategic weapon. Through this means, some European countries could be won over and others suppressed, so that Europe would be divided internally and unable to unite and face the outside world, thus ensuring the Ming Empire's hegemonic position in Asia.

Yes, this is called hegemony, or imperialism, and in the business world it is also called monopoly. Anyway, no matter how it is denigrated, the ones who are hurt are always outsiders, and it is a good thing for the people of imperialist countries and the employees of monopoly enterprises.

(End of this chapter)