Putmans cleared his throat, straightened his collar, and said in not too fluent English: "Although we were defeated in the naval battle, I believe that Your Excellency, as a cultivated gentleman, will not treat us like those barbarians." Pen, Fun, Pavilion www.biquge.info If you can let us go, the East India Company will be grateful. ”

Van Bommel also said: "The company or family members will pay the ransom according to the position. If you are not satisfied with the number, you can also talk about ......"

Xia Nan smiled dumbly, he pointed to his nose and replied: "Although I don't think I'm a barbarian in your mouth, I don't think I'm the so-called gentleman you imagined to be. First of all, let me introduce myself, my name is Xia Nan, I am the actual owner of this island, the official title is the general of the Qiongzhou battalion, and the establishment given to me by the imperial court is 1,000 army, and the actual number of our army has exceeded nearly three times the establishment limit, and the navy has been established. My most urgent need at the moment is to expand the size of the navy, but the sailors on a warship are not like the army, and it is enough to find a few farmers to train them for a month or two, and then issue them a spear or musket, so I am in need of experienced sailors, even pirates, and a professional, properly trained soldier like you is the best choice. ”

Putmans was expressionless and did not answer immediately. The contempt for the yellow race in his bones cannot be eliminated in a short time, let him work for the people of the Ming Kingdom, and the hurdles in his heart can't be passed, but as a prisoner, he can't say this, so as not to stimulate the other party, so he simply doesn't speak.

Van Bommel was thoughtful, and he asked: "The Emperor of the Ming Kingdom only gave you a land quota of 1,000 men, but you not only broke through this limit, but you are also desperately developing the navy. I would venture to ask, with a fleet of your size, more than enough to protect this island, and continue to expand, who do you want to deal with? ”

Xia Nan smiled: "Who said I just wanted to protect this island? My goal is to become the hegemon of the entire Chinese seas, and to remove any obstacles that stand in my way. ”

Hegemon of the entire Chinese seas? Putmans and Van Bommel glanced at each other and immediately understood the relationship between this general and Zheng Yiguan. The so-called alliance was probably to deal with them and Liu Xiang, and the naval battle in Luowan was over, and the honeymoon period between the two sides was also over.

Puttmans couldn't help but ask: "But you are just an ordinary general of the Ming Kingdom, will your emperor allow you to dominate this sea area alone?" ”

Xia Nan sneered: "You can also ask Zheng Yiguan about this, his position is lower than mine, he is just a guerrilla general, but what he has done, how can he only see himself as a guerrilla?" The goal I pursued was also his goal, and the position in the army was just a layer of legal status, and the East India Company in front of us was our common enemy, so there was this great battle in Liaoluo Bay on Kinmen Island. ”

Van Bommel sighed: "This is the law of the jungle, you join forces to kill us, and then turn around and divide the superior, the strong is king, and the last laugh is the overlord of this ocean." ”

"You're right, this is my established strategy, to expel the East India Company's forces from the coast of China, and then divide with Zheng Yiguan without distraction."

Putmans couldn't help but ask, "Do you know what kind of existence the United Dutch East India Company is?" It was authorized by the national parliament to have a monopoly on trade from the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa in the east to the Strait of Magellan at the southern tip of South America in the west, with more than 50,000 employees, more than 10,000 professional mercenaries, more than 200 armed merchant ships and gunboats, and even issued its own currency...... Do you think a small conflict can drive the East India Company out of China? ”

"I know more about your company than anyone in the entire Ming Dynasty, and I know what you said." Xia Nan interrupted him leisurely, "I also know that there is not only this one in the world called the East India Company, but also the British East India Company, the scope of strength is mainly in India, headquartered in Calcutta, the port of the Ganges, although the current strength is not as good as the Dutch East India Company, but the future development will far surpass you." ”

Both Putmans and Van Bommel were surprised that the Ming general knew more about the situation of the British than they did. Although they knew that their British counterparts were doing a good job in India, they did not know anything about what the main trade commodities of the other side were, how large the mercenaries were, and how many warships they had.

"One thing is certain, however, that both the United Dutch East India Company and the British East India Company have in common one thing: they are essentially commercial companies with the aim of making high profits. Even if they have the right to issue money, they are not states after all, and all actions are motivated by profits. ”

Putmans frowned, "What exactly are you trying to express?" ”

"What I want to say is this: even if the Dutch East India Company had the strength to go to war at the same time as me and Zheng Yiguan, the decision-makers in Batavia would not rush to order the war, they would have to weigh the proportion of the war losses and gains, as well as the profits that might be gained after victory, and the losses and risks to be borne after defeat." Xia Nan said unhurriedly, "In the vernacular, it is simpler, I will make Batavia feel that it is not cost-effective to continue to fight along the coast of China, and can only choose to back down or cooperate." As long as the East India Company still has the slightest idea of using force to gain a monopoly on trade, my cooperation with Zheng Yiguan will continue until the company succumbs. ”

Putmans was silent, he was powerless to refute Xia Nan's words, the old men of the council are exactly this kind of urine, everything is viewed from a commercial point of view, and they lack enough courage and persistence. Far from it, let's just say that this naval battle of Liuluo Bay, when the news of the defeat reaches Batavia, you can guess with your eyes closed that the next thing the council will do is to remove him from his post as the chief officer, dismiss the personnel of the Dayuan Merchant Pavilion, and withdraw all armed merchant ships to Batavia to avoid greater losses.

Van Bommel coughed a few times, avoiding the topic that embarrassed them: "We are just employees of the company, and the company's decisions are not something we can control, so let's talk about the things in front of us first." If you want these soldiers to serve you, it's hard for you to do it personally - they are paid well every year, and their families are in the Netherlands, and these are obstacles that cannot be bypassed......"

"None of this is a problem." Xia Nan explained, "In terms of salary, I can promise to be the same or even slightly higher than the original; As for the soldiers whose families are in the Netherlands, I can make an agreement with him to be a mercenary for me, and after a certain period of time he is free to leave and return to the mainland to be with his family, and the agreement can be for a year, two years, three years, or even longer, until he feels that he has earned enough money. ”