In the port of Colombo, a group of Westerners are standing on the pier, one of whom is Pitt, the head of the British Merchant House in Manila. As soon as the ocean exploration fleet left the port of Manila, Pete boarded the sailboat of the British Merchant House and chased Song Tao and their fleet at full speed.

At the same time, the Dutch and Portuguese trade halls in Manila sent fleets to chase after them. But what they didn't expect was that Song Tao did not choose to resupply in the ports of Java and Sumatra.

They learned from the Dutch patrol fleet that the flotilla from the Far East had rushed straight out of the Strait of Malacca. Dutch, British, and Portuguese merchant ships and warships also rushed out of Malacca one after another and went straight to India to catch up.

Before the Far Eastern Fleet entered the Indian Ocean, it was necessary to replenish it, and the place of replenishment would most likely be India. So the fleets of several countries sailed to India in a murderous spirit, hoping to catch the fleets of the Far East off the coast of India. Britain and Portugal had a greater sphere of influence in India, especially with Portugal occupying Ceylon, and the most likely place for supplies in the Far East was Colombo in Ceylon.

However, when the fleets of the countries rushed out of the Strait of Malacca at full speed and reached Colombo in Ceylon, they found that the Far Eastern Fleet had not anchored here at all. The fleets of several countries rushed to other ports in India, but did not find the whereabouts of the Far Eastern Fleet. The strange disappearance of the Far Eastern Fleet made them all puzzled. Does the Far East want to cross the Indian Ocean directly and sail directly to the coast of East Africa for supplies?

Not to stop the fleet in the Far East, so that they are all very sorry. As a result, the heads of the East India Company from several countries gathered together to discuss countermeasures.

Burris, the head of the Portuguese East India Company, who was in charge of pursuing the Far East Fleet, said with regret on his face: "Gentlemen, it seems that we have lost our goal, and I estimate that they are now on their way to the coast of East Africa. It will be difficult to catch them in the future. ”

A strong Western man with a fierce face next to him sneered: "They can't run." We will at once send ships to the New World and Europe, which are our territory, and I do not believe that we will not be able to catch them. If it doesn't work, we'll increase the patrols of ships around the Strait of Malacca and the MaZulu Islands, and they'll have to come back. ”

The person who spoke was Byron, an admiral of the British East India Company, who had previously been a privateer and pirate. That's why he's very strong. After he finished speaking, he turned to Pete behind him and asked, "Pete, you have been in Manila and are familiar with the Far Eastern Company. What do you think is the purpose of this voyage to the Far East? ”

Pete thought for a moment and said, "Sir, I think there can only be one reason, that is, the Far East wants to directly open a trade route to Europe or the New World. They are very good at running a business, as you can see from the prosperity of Manila in recent years. They certainly would not be willing to let the huge profits of ocean trade fall into the hands of our European merchants. ”

An old man also nodded and said, "It seems that the ambitions of the Far East are by no means limited to Manila, and they will definitely go south in the future." They covet the interests of the Spice Islands not for a day or two. Gentlemen, if we lose the interests of Southeast Asia, we should all know what the consequences will be. And the warships of the Far East will never stop at Southeast Asia. Next, I am afraid that India, and even the east coast of Africa, will face the threat of Far Eastern naval artillery. ”

Although the words of the head of the Dutch East India Company, De Guzman, were somewhat agitated. After all, the interests of the Dutch East India Company were basically in the vast sea area of Java, Sumatra, and the Maguru Islands in Southeast Asia, and the Far East would directly pose a serious threat to the Dutch East India Company.

But the people of Britain and Portugal were still bitter by De Guzman's words. The domineering of the Far East Company, they have heard of it for a long time, once they took control of the Strait of Malacca and the Maguru Islands. They wanted to get spices from Southeast Asia, as well as silk fabrics and porcelain from the Ming Dynasty. Just look at the color of the Far East and let them slaughter at will. If the warships of the Far East broke out of the Strait of Malacca, they would face India and Ceylon, and the interests of Britain and Portugal in the East would also be destroyed.

Burris said with a heavy face: "I have decided, I will return to Europe with the fleet, and explain the trade crisis in Southeast Asia to the company in detail." The Far East can no longer be allowed to expand. If we continue to allow the Far East to expand unbridled, within ten years, none of our interests in the East will exist. ”

The East India Company of Britain, France, and the Netherlands was in fact a typical commercial monopoly that relied on bloody colonial plunder. In the 16th century alone, gold in Europe increased from 550,000 kilograms to 1,190,000 kilograms, and Spain stole 100 million kilograms of silver from the Americas in three hundred years! From this we know that the primitive capital accumulation in Europe was based on brutal exploitation and plundering of overseas colonies!

They monopolized all the lucrative trade, and Manila in the Far East had actually harmed their interests. In recent years, the profits of the Daming silk fabrics and porcelain they have obtained from the Far East have been declining year by year. If the Spice Islands and India were to be lost, these Western East India Companies would lose their interests in the East.

Byron's face was gloomy, and he also realized the severity of the situation.

"Pete, I will write a handwritten letter to be taken to Europe by you and hand-delivered to Mr. Herbert. And you also have to report the company's predicament in the east to the company in detail, and you must make the company pay attention to it. ”

Pete nodded heavily, and then said solemnly: "Don't worry, sir, I will definitely hand over the letter to His Excellency Herbert." It will also report truthfully to the company and let the company know about the threat from the East. ”

De Guzman also breathed a sigh of relief in his heart when he heard that the responsible persons of the British and Portuguese had already expressed their positions. The Dutch East India Company was currently in a difficult position in Southeast Asia, facing not only the threat of Sultan Agung, Madala, Java, but also its neighbor in the north, the Far East.

Now the Dutch are constantly courting the British and Portuguese, hoping to form an alliance with them to deal with the threat of the Far Eastern Company. They know the strength of the Far East best, so the company's European headquarters is also trying to draw alliances with other countries, preferring to sacrifice its interests in Southeast Asia.

The heads of the East India Companies of several countries in the East have returned to Europe with ships this year, and have personally made presentations to the European headquarters, and even if they cannot return, they have to arrange for a confidant to return to Europe with his own letter.

Strive to make the company pay attention to the trade difficulties in the East and form a strong military alliance to jointly deal with the expansion and aggression of the Far East. They all know in their hearts that there may still be a chance to fight now, but if they wait until the Far Eastern Company takes the initiative to attack, it will really be too late. (To be continued......)

ps: Thank you for the monthly pass support of Huadian Nanacai. Today, I hurried out a chapter.,It's late.,Please forgive me.,These days, the tea head will do its best to strive for two chapters a day R1292.