Late Ming sea owl

Chapter 230 Apocalypse collapses
Sumingang lives in the middle of Batavia City, not far from the city hall, because he is both a Chinese Kapitan in Batavia and a member of the city council.

The first contributor to the city's prosperity and growth must be Cohen, and the second contributor may be Su Minggang's turn.

Su Minggang is from Tong'an County, Quanzhou Prefecture. He is forty-seven years old this year. He attended private schools for several years when he was young, but his favorite thing since he was a child was practicing gun and stick exercises and building strength. He can barely be said to be good at both civil and military skills.

In the 32nd year of Wanli, the 24-year-old Su Minggang led dozens of athletes of his own race to Nanyang. In the following more than ten years, he gradually became one of the overseas Chinese leaders in Wanden. He was highly valued by the Sultan of Wandan and also worked closely with the Sultan of Wanden. We have close friendship with Li Dan, Xu Xinsu and others who are fellow merchants from the same hometown.

Later, Cohen led his VOC fleet to occupy Batavia, which was only more than 160 miles away from Banten City. During the war with the Banten Sultanate, Cohen realized that the prosperity of Banten City was largely due to the large number of overseas Chinese doing business here, and among these overseas Chinese there were many craftsmen who were skilled in construction.

For the dual purpose of developing trade and building a city, Cohen decided to introduce preferential policies to attract Chinese businessmen from Banten.

However, the initial effect of this policy was not very good. The main reasons were nothing more than two points: First, Banten was one of the international trade centers at that time, and there was money to be made; second, the overseas Chinese in Banten did not trust these ghosts like VOC. , after all, the ghost guys in Luzon massacred overseas Chinese more than ten years ago.

In view of this, Cohen began to resort to drastic measures, sending a fleet to continue blockading Banten Port. The Banten Sultan was unable to break the VOC blockade, and the once prosperous Banten Port fell into decline.

Now Su Minggang couldn't sit still. He was the most dependent on overseas trade among the overseas Chinese leaders in Banten. He owned a large pepper plantation on the island of Java, and also cooperated with Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, etc. Doing business in the country, he has hundreds of brothers to support.

So Su Minggang became the first overseas Chinese leader in Banten to immigrate to Batavia. The first batch of overseas Chinese he brought was 400 overseas Chinese. Later, he recruited 2,000 Chinese workers from Fujian, Guangdong and other places, and also came forward to persuade Yang Kun , Lin Liuge, Chen Jimao and several other Banten overseas Chinese leaders immigrated to Batavia.

Today, there are five thousand overseas Chinese in Batavia. If you include the Nanyang slaves in overseas Chinese families, this number easily exceeds 10,000, accounting for more than half of the total population of Batavia.

These overseas Chinese made vital contributions to Batavia's urban construction and commercial prosperity. In just eight years, Batavia grew from a ruin to a new Asian trade center. Cohen's policy of absorbing and utilizing the Chinese also It is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, both on and off the VOC.

Cohen did fulfill his promise of preferential treatment to overseas Chinese. He contracted out urban construction projects, the minting rights of copper and lead coins, and the taxation of most industries to overseas Chinese leaders. At the same time, he imposed light taxes on Chinese businessmen and allowed Chinese businessmen to participate in political discussions. , and gave the Chinese community a considerable degree of autonomy.

Considering that Su Minggang was the first overseas Chinese leader to come to Batavia, he has held the position of Chinese Kapitan for eight years and is in charge of the judicial power of the Chinese community, including criminal cases and economic cases. Except for the death penalty, which needs to be passed by the Dutch, Su Minggang has the final say on all other sentences.

Of course, Cohen did not do this out of kindness. He also introduced harsh policies against overseas Chinese, such as prohibiting Chinese from building houses on the coast, and unconditionally demolishing those that have already been built, just to prevent these overseas Chinese from fleeing from Batavia. , which is why the Chinese communities in Batavia City are far south of the coastline.

On the night when Cohen returned to Batavia, Su Minggang drank with several overseas Chinese leaders such as Yang Kun, Lin Liuge, and Chen Jimao in his mansion. They discussed gathering together to hold a grand banquet to welcome Cohen.

They have this qualification. Everyone here is a guest of the members of the East India Panchayat. Especially Sumingang, regardless of whether Cohen or Carpentier was in office, he basically had to meet with him every week, because a large part of the city's internal affairs could not avoid the Chinese Kapitan.

When everyone was getting drunk, Su Minggang's son-in-law Menda suddenly came to report: "Father-in-law, someone is here from the Governor's Mansion. Governor Cohen asked you to go to his place."

"Why are you asking me to come so late?" Su Minggang felt a little strange, but he didn't think much about it. He immediately offered his hands to Yang Kun and others and said, "Brothers, please forgive me. I will leave the table first. Let's continue drinking. Have a good meal. OK."

"Brother, just go." Yang Kun and others also returned greetings to Su Minggang. They were old acquaintances in Bandan and knew each other very well. Brother Lin Liu's status in Bandan was slightly higher than that of Su Minggang, but now in Ba Queen Davia also respected Su Minggang.

Sumingang then got into his luxurious four-wheeled carriage and went straight to Fort Batavia. When he arrived at the door of the Governor's Palace, the staff asked him to wait in the lobby on the first floor, saying that Cohen was receiving guests.

As a result, the wait lasted only half an hour. Su Minggang cursed in his heart, but he could only wait honestly. Although he enjoys a very lofty status in Batavia, in the final analysis this is still Dutch territory.

After finally waiting for a staff member to call him, Su Minggang hurried upstairs. After meeting Batavia Harbormaster William Jansen on the stairs, Su Minggang greeted him with a smile: "Hi, Mr. Jansen."

"Captain Bencon, hello." William Jansen and Su Minggang were also very familiar with each other. "We may have to meet every day. Come up quickly, Mr. Cohen and Mr. Van Diemen are waiting. you."

Su Minggang didn't quite understand this sentence. He was proficient in Portuguese and Sundanese, but his Dutch proficiency was not very good. The main reason was that he was already older when he came to Batavia. In addition, there is someone to act as a translator for him, so he doesn't need to learn foreign languages ​​like he did when he was young.

After arriving at the governor's office on the top floor, Su Minggang saw that both Cohen and Van Diemen were there, as well as a Chinese general secretary. This man's father was named Li Jin, who was originally a Dani maritime merchant. It was he who encouraged the VOC to use force to open the Ming Dynasty more than 20 years ago. This led to the invasion of Fujian by the red-haired Yi Wei Malang in the 32nd year of Wanli. thing.

Li Jin was the first Chinese to join the VOC, and also the first Chinese to have visited Western Europe. He arrived in the Netherlands on a merchant ship of the Middelburg Company in 1600 and was baptized as a Protestant there. At that time, the VOC had not yet been established.

Li Jin died on Ambon Island under VOC control in 1614. As a result, his wife, who had converted to Christianity, left her young son while his body was still cold, and ran away with Hester Jackson, an employee of the EIC Banten Merchant Store. , and also took away Li Jin’s inheritance of six thousand rials.

Li Jin's son was finally adopted by the VOC orphanage and attended a Dutch school in Batavia. Although he was of Chinese descent, he completely regarded himself as Dutch.

Of course, Su Minggang also knew Li Jin's son, but he somewhat looked down on this boy's father. At least he himself has not been baptized yet and has no plans to become a Christian in the future, although that would make the Dutch trust him more.

"Hello, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Van Diemen." Su Minggang ignored Li Jin's son and stepped forward to salute the two ghost guys with clasped fists. He spoke in Dutch, but used Chinese etiquette.

"Ming Gang, my old friend, we meet again." Cohen stood up from his seat and hugged him enthusiastically.

"Hello, Kapitan Minggang." Van Diemen also stood up to greet Su Minggang. The two ghost guys gave the overseas Chinese leader enough face on the scene, but the Chinese-faced Li Jin's son was stuck there. like a statue.

After the greetings were finished, Su Minggang switched to Chinese and asked: "Governor Cohen, why are you calling me here so late?" After Li Jin's son translated this sentence expressionlessly, Cohen said to Su Minggang: "Sit down. Say it, Ming Gang.”

He himself returned to sit down behind the desk, and continued: "I heard that a Ming country trading company appeared in the north of Formosa. Ming Gang, do you know anything about this?"

"I have never heard of it." Su Minggang shook his head after hearing this. He had indeed never heard of it. Xu Xinsu did not mention Lin Hai in her letter to him.

"Is that so? Aren't you always well-informed?" Cohen asked with a smile.

"I've only heard that the chicken coop was once occupied by a group of Tang people, but I've never heard of a trading company from the Ming Dynasty."

"Then, I might have to trouble you to go to the Ming Dynasty." Cohen continued, "Use your network in the Ming Dynasty to find out the origin of that company and the identity of the company's top leader. Life."

"I'm happy to oblige." Su Minggang thought that it must be urgent for Cohen to call him so late, so he added, "I have a lot of things on my hands. I don't know when the governor wants me to set off."

"It doesn't matter. I will temporarily appoint a Chinese Kapitan. When you return to Batavia, this position will still be yours." Cohen continued, "I have ordered William Jansen to go to Japan as ambassador. , it will set sail tomorrow, you can take his ship to the chief officer."

"So urgent?" Su Minggang was suddenly curious. He hesitated and asked, "I would like to ask, is this matter important to the company?"

"Yes, I heard that the leader of the company in the north of Formosa is a Ming Dynasty general. As you know, Ming Gang, the company has always wanted to directly enter the Ming Dynasty to carry out trade. I want to see this enlightened general. Can the general bring us good luck..."

Cohen continued: "For this, I need to understand the causes and consequences of the establishment of this company, as well as what kind of person the Ming Dynasty general is, and whether the establishment of an overseas trading company is the Ming Dynasty's national strategy or the general's. Personal business.”

"That's it. Don't worry, Governor Cohen. I will definitely complete the mission."

After Sumingang left, Van Diemen asked Li Jin's son to also leave the governor's office. He then said to Cohen: "Chief Commander, you don't seem to trust this Chinese Kapitan."

"Do you trust this person who can't even speak Dutch? Since he can betray the Sultan of Banten, he can also betray us." Cohen seems to have forgotten that he relied on a trade blockade to force the overseas Chinese in Banten to come to Pakistan. Davia's.

"Of course." Van Diemen nodded after hearing this, and then added, "I mean, do you really want to enter the Ming Dynasty through that Ming Kingdom general?"

"I think this possibility is almost non-existent. This company will definitely be our enemy, and it will probably be a life-and-death enemy." Cohen stood up from his seat and walked to the window to look at the dark sea.

"So, how do you plan to respond to this?" Van Diemen's eyes flashed with a gleam of light.

"It depends on the information Ming Gang brings back. If this is indeed a private company, we must extinguish it as soon as possible. At the same time, we must kill the Ming Dynasty general..."

Cohen looked at the sea with extremely profound eyes: "This man has introduced Europe's powerful ships and cannons, and he has a terrifyingly huge population behind him. Time will only become his friend, not ours."

"What if this is the national strategy of the Ming Dynasty?" Van Diemen said, "I mean, a continuous national strategy."

"Then our chances of winning will be very small." Cohen turned and looked at Van Diemen, "Anthony, let me tell you, if that is the case, the company will most likely end up retreating to the Indian Ocean."

Van Diemen was silent after hearing this, and only listened to Cohen continue: "Of course, I will definitely not make that kind of suggestion to the Seventeen Gentlemen. You know, my life motto is to never give up!"

"Then what will the president do?" Van Diemen asked calmly.

"Put down your hatred and join forces with our enemies!" Cohen's face was ashen as steel, "I mean the Spanish, the Portuguese and the British!"

"General! The United Provinces Republic and Spain are in a state of war!" Van Diemen, who has always been very sophisticated, couldn't help but change his face when he heard this. "Moreover, this war has been going on for sixty years. It’s been so long, and there’s still no hope of an end!”

"Anthony, of course I know what you said. But Europe is Europe and Asia is Asia. Have you forgotten who massacred the British in Ambon? The federal provincial government and the Seventeenth Gentlemen can issue the highest instructions in the motherland, but in the Here we make our own decisions based on the conditions in East India."

"With all due respect, even if Your Excellency thinks so, it is impossible for Sibank to join forces with us..."

"Nothing is impossible, Anthony, let me tell you, nothing is impossible in this world." Cohen interrupted Van Diemen, his hawk-like eyes scanning the junior who he had promoted, "You are an outstanding executive. But you are not a good strategist and your vision is not far-reaching enough.”

On the afternoon of the next day, Su Minggang left the port of Batavia and went to Dayuan with William Jansen.

It took a month with favorable wind to get from Batavia to Dayuan. Just ten days after Su Minggang left Batavia, Emperor Zhu Youxiao of the Apocalypse came to control Bintian in the Qianqing Palace.

A few days after he arrived in Dayuan, Lin Hai also came to Xiamen from Tamsui.

(End of this chapter)