readx; Only then did I leave the tiger's den and enter the dragon pond!

Through stammering and mixed Chinese and British exchanges with the English Charles, Zhu Youzhen learned that the Spanish galleon did not belong to the Spaniards in the sense of righteousness, but a Dutch armed merchant ship. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info and the Netherlands was now at war with England, and the two countries were in a state of hostility, so it is no wonder that the Dutch sailors were on the verge of a great enemy when they saw that they spoke English.

And the captain's name is Pete? Hine was the right-hand man of Cohen, the current governor of the Dutch East India Company. This time, they set out from Chichiseong, a base in southern Taiwan, to plunder the population in the Ryukyus, but on their return voyage, they accidentally bumped into Zhu Youzhen and Li Zhenyan and captured them.

Through Charlie's translation, Hine asked Zhu Youzhen who he was and why he spoke English. Of course, Zhu Youzhen will not tell him the truth, only that he is a fisherman from Fujian, and he has been to India with a sea boat for a generation, so he can speak a few words of English.

Hine did not doubt it, because in this era, a large number of Chinese had already traveled from the sea to the South and the West, either to do business, or to move to some wild places, through their own hard work to settle in the local area, and slowly integrated with the local natives. Since I've been out on the sea, it's not surprising that I know a few words of English.

In fact, he was worried that there was an English fleet nearby to ambush him. After understanding that Zhu Youzhen and the others were just victims, and seeing that they were not English, Hine relieved himself and with a wave of his hand, he imprisoned Zhu Youzhen and Li Zhenyan and the Englishman Charlie in an airtight cabin.

It took a long time for Zhu Youzhen's eyes to adjust to the darkness in the room. He looked at Charlie, and saw that the man was no more than twenty years old, tall and thin, fair-skinned, full of brown curly hair, deep-set eye sockets, deep eyes, and two beautiful mustaches under the high bridge of the nose. If it weren't for the rags, it would have the demeanor of an English gentleman.

However, this Charlie seems to have a restrained personality, he especially avoids Li Zhenyan, seems to be surprised by her beauty, and pretends to be reserved, he must maintain a calm demeanor, even if he pretends to the end.

Zhu Youzhen didn't think about it, thinking that the British are generally conservative, and there is a joke that if two strange Englishmen are locked up together and don't introduce them, they can go to prison for the rest of their lives without saying a word to each other. It's an exaggeration, but it's really vivid. In fact, it can be seen that Charlie has a stomach full of things to say to himself, and he also has a lot of questions, hoping to get answers from him.

So he first broke the silence and introduced Li Zhenyan to Charlie and said: "This is my wife." ”

Li Zhenyan was both happy and ashamed when she heard this, and lowered her head deeply. Charlie immediately became enthusiastic and bowed deeply to Li Zhenyan: "Madame is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, it is such an honor to meet you!" As he spoke, he stretched out his right hand to Li Zhenyan.

After listening to Zhu Youzhen's translation, Li Zhenyan was even more ashamed and didn't dare to say a word, and she didn't pay attention to Charlie's outstretched hand. Zhu Youzhen understood that Charlie was going to give Li Zhenyan a "kiss gift", which is a common etiquette to show respect to women in Western high society.

But Zhu Youjian was willing to let this foreigner touch his wife's hand, and quickly said with a straight face: "Charlie, we Chinese don't have such courtesy, so you don't want so much courtesy." Can you tell us how you were captured by the Dutch? How can you speak Chinese? ”

Charlie smiled stiffly when he heard this: "My full name is Charlie?" Stuart, a clerk of the British East India Company, worked for half a year in the port of Surat, India. There are people from various countries, and naturally there are also Chinese, and it is there that I learned my sinicization. Now there was a war between England and the Netherlands, and the armed merchant ships of the British East India Company and the Dutch East India Company attacked each other at sea, and I was captured by the Dutch in one battle. ”

Zhu Youzhen listened carefully, and he found that Charlie's eyes flashed when he spoke, and he seemed to have something else hidden. But when I think about it, didn't I tell the truth to others, and it is normal to have some reservations in the face of strange foreigners.

Although neither England nor the Netherlands were good birds, and had come from Western Europe to Southeast Asia in order to establish colonies, monopolize the lucrative trade, and enslave the local people; But now Charlie is in the same disease as himself, both of whom are prisoners of the Dutch, and he still has to have a good relationship, and maybe he will have a chance to escape when he can.

Therefore, Zhu Youzhen did not delve into what Charlie said, and continued to ask: "Why did the Netherlands and England go to war?" Where are they going? ”

After listening to Charlie's introduction, Zhu Youzhen learned that the Netherlands and England were both emerging European countries, and they had accumulated deep contradictions in maritime trade and the development of colonies. Since the annihilation of the Spanish Armada at the Battle of Griffland, the previously unknown English Navy has become one of the most powerful navies in Europe.

And the Netherlands, which had just gained the best from Spanish rule, just did not buy England's account. With a well-developed shipbuilding industry and a centuries-old commercial base, the Netherlands quickly succeeded Portugal and Spain, which had gone on a downward spiral, as the new hegemon monopolizing global trade. At that time, three of the four European merchant ships were Dutch, hence the nickname "Coachman of the Sea".

In the competition for overseas colonies, the Netherlands also caught up, not only encroaching on the traditional Spanish spheres of influence such as the New World and Africa, but also establishing the Dutch East India Company, headquartered in Batavia (present-day Jakarta) on the island of Java. and gained the upper hand in the battle for the Strait of Malacca with Spain, Portugal and England, completely monopolizing the lucrative spice trade and making the English salivate.

Not only that, but the Netherlands also went north from Batavia to the island of Taiwan and occupied some areas in the southern part of the island. Spain, on the other hand, occupies some fortresses in the north, and as for Zheng Zhilong, he only has a place to settle in the harbor.

The ambitious Dutch were planning to secure their presence in Taiwan and gradually drive out the Spaniards, eventually monopolizing the island of Taiwan and forming a north-south encirclement of the Spaniards in Luzon. Once successful, the Dutch could further monopolize the maritime trade in East Asia and become a true world hegemon.

Seeing that they had fought hard to defeat Spain, but most of the fruits of victory were taken away by the Netherlands, the arrogant Englishmen of course refused. With a casual excuse, England went to war with the Netherlands, and the fierce battle quickly spread from Europe to the whole world, especially the two major East India companies of Britain and the Netherlands.

And coincidentally, the destination of this ship is exactly Taiwan where Zhu Youzhen is going!