Therefore, when the Ming Dynasty fought naval battles with the Helans, they usually had to take advantage of their numerical superiority and light arsonist ships to gain an advantage.

Back then, Zheng Zhilong gathered a fleet nearly ten times that of the Helan people, pinned them down with large ships, and cooperated with a large number of arson ships to sneak attack, before defeating them.

It's just that at the moment, don't say that you want the Daming Navy Division to take out fifty big boats and hundreds of small boats, even if there is not a single warship of four or five hundred tons, and there will be no more than twenty or thirty arson clippers.

Without a strong fleet, there can be no maritime trade. Zhu Linmiao sighed again, in addition to the Helan people, the fleet that Zheng Zhilong brought to Shandong was also a big trouble.

Now they should be expanding the military port and dockyard in the area of Laizhou or Wendeng, and when these logistics facilities are completed, Dolgon will definitely send these warships to attack the coast of Fujing.

There is only one solution to these troubles - to form a strong sailor.

As soon as Zhu Linmiao entered the palace with his front foot, Zhu Jizuo arrived with Bertman on his back foot.

The Dutch envoy entered the main hall proudly, and just as he was about to bow and salute, he caught a glimpse of Shi Lin who was glaring angrily on the side, and had to bend his knees very reluctantly, "Meet His Royal Highness the Auxiliary King." ”

"Get up." Zhu Linmiao stared at him and said, "Do you know why I recruited you?" ”

Berthman pretended to smile, "Is Your Highness going to sign a trade agreement with Helan?" ”

Seeing that he was pretending to be confused, Zhu Linmiao said coldly: "You and the Lan people are too presumptuous, you dare to open artillery in Nanao Mountain to sink the merchant ship that transported grain for the Ming Dynasty, and also injured the officials of our Ministry of Rites." ”

Bertman put away his smile, "Your Highness, this time, it was the Eziba people who violated the agreement and appeared in the Daming Sea without authorization, and we just reminded them." As for the officials of the Ming Dynasty on the ship, we did not expect this. ”

"You also know that it is the Daming Sea?" Zhu Linmi's voice was still as cold as ice, "So how does the East India Company plan to end this matter?" ”

"Nothing good to end with." Berthman snorted arrogantly, "Your Highness, the trade agreement must be signed as soon as possible. I would like to remind you that our fleet is near the Golden Gate. ”

"Trade agreements?" Zhu Linmiao shook her head, "There is no trade agreement. I'll just say it bluntly, this time, the East India Company wants to compensate Lu Wang, the Ming official who was injured by your artillery, for 50,000 taels of medicine. At the same time, he submitted a document to the Ming court to apologize.

"Also, in the future, you are forbidden to attack merchant ships within eighty nautical miles of the Ming coast. As for you and Ezekba, you have a little bit of, and you deal with it yourselves. ”

Bertman almost thought that he had misheard, and it took him a long time to react, "It is impossible for the East India Company to agree to these conditions!" ”

He almost blurted out a sentence and said, "Is Your Highness in the wrong mind?" ”

Zhu Linmiao looked at him with a smile, "I also told you, what I just said, as long as He Lan disagrees with one of them, don't want to make a business in Daming in the future." ”

"Your Highness, I might as well say bluntly that the East India Company has actually monopolized the overseas trade of the Ming Dynasty, and we just don't agree, what can you do?"

Zhu Linmiao said word by word: "I, I will announce the sea ban." ”

"Sea forbidden?" Bertman was stunned, "You can't do this, it's going to cost you ...... too"

"It's okay," Zhu Linmiao shook his head and said, "Da Ming has been banned from the sea for two hundred years before the Longqing switch, and we have long been used to it."

"However, if the East India Company does not trade with the Ming Dynasty, I don't know how long it will be able to survive without going out of business?"

"You," Bertman said in a hurry, after only a moment's thought, "I remind you once again that our fleet ......"

"I'm out of the sea, what can happen to your fleet?" Zhu Linmiao leaned forward, "You only have 2,000 soldiers on Dongfan Island, dare to go ashore to attack and harass, the Japanese invaders back then were your precedent." ”

"No, but ......" Bertman's head dripped, they were unscrupulous at sea, but they really didn't have the courage to challenge Daming ashore.

"I might as well tell you that there are not a few officials in the court who agree with the sea ban at the moment. I will announce the ban on the sea tomorrow morning, and in the afternoon you will not want to buy an inch of silk or a tael of tea! ”

"You...... Don't you want to scare me! ”

Zhu Linmiao leaned back in the chair and said slowly: "Then you can try it." ”

Bertman was stunned for a moment, then changed his tone to a negotiation, "I have to go back and discuss with the Governor." ”

"Give you five days. After five days, there was no reply, and the Ming Dynasty immediately announced a ban on the sea. ”

"Five days, good ......"

When Zhu Linmiao saw him, he wanted to leave and return to Taiwan, and beckoned to him again: "Oh, by the way, tell you the governor, if this matter satisfies me, I still have a deal for him to do." "With the current situation of the Ming Dynasty, it is not appropriate to push the Dutch too hard.

Bertman remembered the last time the grain was exchanged for steel and fairy stone powder, and hurriedly turned back, "Please make it clear to Your Highness." ”

"I need copper, a lot of copper, which can be traded in silk, tea, steel, and so on."

Bertmann was overjoyed, although the Netherlands often trafficked copper ore from Dongfan or Japan to the Ming Dynasty, but it was a sporadic transaction, and if the Ming court could buy a large amount, it would indeed be a good deal.

"I will convey this to His Excellency the Governor."

After Bertman left, Zhu Linmiao also rubbed her forehead tiredly.

It was really a last resort for him to use the sea ban as a bargaining chip just now, but in fact, now the Ming Dynasty needs maritime trade more than the Netherlands. But he also knew that the Dutch did not dare to gamble. The Ming Dynasty was the economic lifeblood of the East India Company, and if the Far East trade was lost, it would have an extremely negative impact on the maritime hegemony between the Netherlands and Britain and France.

Before he could take a breath of relief, another official sent a list of expenses for the Ministry of Labor, as well as a note asking for money.

Zhu Linmiao looked at the number at the end of the list, and couldn't help but gasp, in the last half month alone, the Fujing Ordnance Bureau had spent more than 43,000 taels of silver.

Zheng Guangying specially sent the fans of Jinyi Wei to watch at the Weapons Bureau, so no one dared to do anything in it.

Zhu Linmiao carefully looked at the detailed items, most of which were expenses for repairing the technical school, renovating the workshop, purchasing tools, and purchasing raw materials. It seems that the cost of this process standardization transformation is not a few.

Looking at the silver invitation again, the corners of his eyes jumped - Xiang Feng and Xu Erlu budgeted a total of 8,000 Type 2 Hunter guns, eight 9-pound guns, and 12 6-pound guns in the early stage, and a total of 150,000 taels of silver were allocated.

There are still more than 2 million taels in the treasury of the household department, but at the moment, there are only items out and no items, and a little less is used.

This is only one of the Fujing Ordnance Bureau, and when the Ordnance Bureau in Longnan, Ganzhou and other places completes the process standardization transformation and begins to make weapons in large quantities, I am afraid that so much silver will have to be invested in it.

Zhu Linmiao shook his head with a wry smile, he originally wanted to build a number of steel mills and glass factories in the near future, but at this rate of spending, it is better to hold off for the time being.

He closed the concerto, and his heart became more and more determined to build a water division. With a strong sailor, there was overseas trade that was not controlled by the Dutch, and the treasury could be gradually filled.