Bill did not show an ecstatic expression, he said with a regretful expression: "Your Majesty the Emperor, I am here this time on behalf of the glorious East India Company, if His Majesty the Emperor cannot give the East India Company the right to trade, then I have no right to accept the personal reward that Your Majesty the Emperor has given me. ”

Although Bill was open-minded about money, he knew very well that he had already committed a taboo by negotiating with Ming Guo in the name of the company without the consent of the company this time.

If the outcome of the negotiations is not satisfactory, and the company does not receive the right to trade in the Ming Kingdom, but he personally receives benefits, then both the governor of Taiwan, Peternat, and the governor of Batavia must wonder whether he has betrayed the interests of the company.

As a mere retired naval officer, Bill could not resist the punishment of the glorious East India Company.

Moreover, for these merchants on the sea, having only one trade route is similar to owning a river of gold flowing with gold, and there is really no need to covet the rewards of these foreign monarchs.

"Obviously a man with a great desire for wealth, but Bill was able to resist his temptation to put the interests of the East India Company before his own, which is really an interesting man."

Zhu Youzhen looked at Bill and couldn't help but think so, but he knew that today's conversation was over.

The continuation of the conversation would only make the Dutchman realize that he was only asking for him, which would obviously be very detrimental to his future plans.

Zhu Youzhen took off a piece of jade pendant from his waist and handed it to Lu Jiude, motioned for him to hand it to Bill, and said, "Since you don't know what you want to ask me for now, then I will give you this jade pendant, which can be regarded as my reward for listening to you for an afternoon." ”

Bill touched the jade pendant sent by Lu Jiude, and he was still very happy in his heart. Although the emperor of the Ming Kingdom did not immediately give him the most desired one, the East India Company's monopoly on the Ming Kingdom's overseas trade.

But from the words of the Ming Emperor, there was still hope for the trade power of the East India Company and the Ming Dynasty, so Bill was not lost.

After all, he never thought that Mingguo's monopoly on overseas trade would fall into his hands so simply. The regions that were able to be acquired by the East India Company to have exclusive rights to overseas trade were all subjugated by the threat of the East India Company's strong force, but the East India Company's force in Asia was inferior to that of the Ming Kingdom.

The jade pendant given to him by the Emperor of the Ming Kingdom was warm and greasy, and he was reluctant to put it down when he held it in his hand. He thought that this jade pendant from the side of the monarch of the Ming Kingdom might be used as an heirloom for the Dodge family in the future.

Just when Bill was in a good mood, Zhu Youzhen added again, "If you encounter any trouble, you can also use this jade pendant to make a request to me." As long as it's not a crime like murder, I'll help you mitigate it. ”

After Bill got up and bowed to Chongzhen, he said respectfully, "Thank you for your kindness, but I believe that I will not commit crimes in the Ming Kingdom." ”

Zhu Youzhen smiled, changed the topic and said, "Lu Jiude, you take Mr. Bill out for a walk, I want to chat with Zheng Cai for a few words." ”

When the door was closed, Zhu Youzhen retracted his gaze and said to Zheng Cai: "I heard that you and Zheng Zhilong are relatives?" ”

Zheng Cai carefully glanced at Chongzhen, and found that Chongzhen had no joy or anger on his face, and seemed to be just asking casually.

If it was in the past, Zheng Cai would definitely think that he and Zheng Zhilong's family were in a relationship of both prosperity and loss.

After all, the Ming Dynasty is not friendly to the precedent of pirate recruitment, even after recruiting security, you must be careful to be counted by the imperial court, and the pirates can only make the imperial court fearful.

But Zheng is only 22 years old now, and he is a talented man, and his years of study career make him still full of awe of imperial power.

He thinks that officials in the Ming Dynasty except for the emperor may lie, but the Ming Emperor will not deceive his people, after all, the king has no jokes.

And what is the matter with Xi Wen and martial arts, isn't it just sold to the emperor's family. Although he went to the sea as a thief, he seemed to have abandoned his talent status.

But Zheng Cai didn't plan to be a pirate on the sea for a lifetime, first make a name for himself on the sea, and then find an opportunity to recruit and become a member of the Ming court, which is much easier than studying hard in the cold window and going to Beijing to take the Jinshi exam.

It can be said that Zheng Zhilong's plan to plunder the coast of Fujian and Guangdong, and then force the imperial court to settle down with himself, was mostly from Zheng Cai's hands.

Unlike Zheng Zhilong's quest for Zhao'an, the focus was on monopolizing overseas trade in the name of the imperial court. Zheng Cai hopes that he can use Zhao'an to enter the officialdom of Fujian, clear his identity as a pirate and change his court, and make his family a member of the Fujian gentry.

Before Lu Jiude and others arrived in Taiwan, as Zheng Cai, who had just taken refuge in Zheng Zhilong, he basically had no ideas, and he didn't dare to have ideas, after all, he had just taken refuge in Zheng Zhilong, and his power was still very weak. Without Zheng Zhilong's protection, he is just a small leader in a pirate gang.

But the arrival of Lu Jiude and others made Zheng Cai see another way, as long as he could get the favor of the emperor, he could not enter the ranks of the imperial court and be on an equal footing with Zheng Zhilong.

When Chongzhen asked about the kinship relationship between him and Zheng Zhilong, Zheng Cai only weighed it for a while and flatly denied it.

"Although Chen and Zheng Zhilong are both Tong'an villagers, the minister is the Tong'an Gaopu Zheng family, and Zheng Zhilong is the Tong'an Shijing Zheng family. Although Zheng Zhilong is a fellow villager, he is not a relative. ”

Zhu Youzhen looked at Zheng Cai playfully for a while before continuing: "I see, I heard that Qing is also a scholar, and he also won the fame of Xiucai, right?" ”

Hearing Chongzhen change his name, Zheng Cai immediately knew that it was indeed correct for him and Zheng Zhilong to clear their relationship.

"The minister is indeed a scholar, and he has also gained fame, but because his family is weak, he has to go to the sea. However, Your Majesty, the ministers have always adhered to the way of saints on the sea, and dare not hurt innocent businessmen. ”

Zhu Youzhen smiled and said: "Good readers, I am the world of readers." In my eyes, Qing is still different from others. They are just reckless people, and they do not have access to the path of sages, and even if they have something to achieve in the future, they will be limited. Qing is different, Qing is just a pearl covered with dust, and there will be a bright day. ”

Although Chongzhen's words were vague, for Zheng Cai, they were like a reassuring pill.

He began to make friends with Lu Jiude on the island, in order to gain the emperor's trust, so that he could return to the right path.

Zheng Cai took a deep breath, got up and bowed to Chongzhen and fell to the ground and said: "Your Majesty treats the ministers so heartily, and the ministers will be crushed to pieces, in order to repay the kindness of the monarch's father." ”

Zhu Youzhen immediately got up and drove forward, helped Zheng Cai up with his own hands, and said: "Qing doesn't have to be like this, as long as Qing returns to the right path, he can ensure the peace of my southeast coast of the Ming Dynasty, which is the best reward for me." ”

Being so courteous to Chongzhen, Zheng Cai suddenly showed a grateful look on his face, and Zhu Youzhen seemed to be moved by his excitement.

After reassuring Zheng Cai and sitting down, Zhu Youzhen said casually: "I will not doubt Qing's loyalty to the imperial court. However, Zheng Zhilong and Liu Xiang are from reckless backgrounds, and they are not bound by the words of the saints in their hearts, so I am a little worried, will they rebel in the future? ”

Zheng Cai wiped the tears that had just gotten up in the corners of his eyes, then cleared his throat and said, "Your Majesty, from the point of view of the ministers, this group of sea thieves accepted Zhao'an, and some of them were sincere and some were insincere.

Although the Zheng Zhilong brothers are inclined to Zhao'an, they are not very loyal to the imperial court, and they just want to recruit An, and then follow the name of the imperial court, and order the sea bandits to dominate overseas trade.

And Liu Xiang has always been wild and untamable, and he is friendly with overseas people, and the minister thought that this person sent people north, not to be recruited by the imperial court, but to use this to find out the news of the imperial court, and he would rebel after a long time.

The ships in the Eighteen Zhi are more powerful than the four Fujian maritime merchants of Pan, Ye, Huang and Wu, and the ships controlled by these four are almost more than half of the number of ships in the Eighteen Zhi, and they are also the most supportive of Zhao'an, but their purpose in recruiting 'an is to hope that the imperial court can relax the sea ban.

And Li Kuiqi and Zhong Bin are the most powerful in the Eighteen Zhi, although they are named Zheng Zhilong's subordinates, they are only superficial obedience. Without the two nodding, Zheng Zhilong couldn't move the manpower of the ships under the two of them at all.

These two people also support Zhao'an, but their purpose is to get an official position, so that they can glorify their ancestors, repair their ancestral tombs, and return to their hometown..."

Zhu Youzhen asked about the internal situation of Eighteen Zhi, just to see if this Zheng Cai really wanted to join the imperial court.

And Zheng Cai was obviously more urgent than Chongzhen expected, in order to prove that he was indeed Chongzhen's mouth, and those words that were not reckless all the way, he carefully explained the internal situation of Eighteen Zhi for Chongzhen.

This made Zhu Youzhen have a deeper understanding of the loose alliance of Eighteen Zhi, and compared with the scattered information collected by Lu Jiude and Lian Shanxiang, what Zheng Cai said is very detailed, specific and comprehensive.

After listening to Zheng Cai's explanation, Zhu Youzhen applauded lightly before he spoke: "I really didn't misread Qing, Qing still remembers the words of the sage in his heart." In Yiqing's opinion, what should the imperial court do to prevent them from surrendering and rebelling? Or, when they rebelled, how to quell the Southeast Pirate Rebellion as soon as possible? ”

Zheng Cai just thought for a while, and then said: "In the opinion of the minister, His Majesty wants to ensure that everyone surrenders and does not rebel, but it may not be possible. But it is not difficult to eliminate the pirate rebellion on the southeast coast. ”

Zheng Cai boldly looked up into Chongzhen's eyes and said, "As long as Your Majesty can open up overseas trade, the poor people along the coast of Fujian and Guangdong will have a way to live." Without these poor coastal people, there would be no soldiers, no sailors to replenish, and no inland news to explore.

And if His Majesty can guarantee that the various recruitment terms discussed during the implementation of the Eighteen Zhi Zhao'an, even if one or two ambitious people betray, they will not be able to pull away the sailors below, so even if there are betrayers, they will not be able to set off any storms. ”