Against the alliance of the White Coats, the Dutch would definitely join. Originally, they were the ones who led the organization, and they were the ones who hated the White Army the most. Having lost the interests of the Far East, the Dutch were like madmen who had lost their minds, bent on seeking revenge on the White Army. Blinded by hatred, they once again overestimated their abilities.

In fact, this time the losses of the Dutch in the Far East were very huge. They lost an admiral, a vice admiral, several rear admirals, more than a hundred large warships, more than 10,000 skilled sailors, and more than 10,000 armed musketeers. The loss of manpower, for the Dutch, was definitely the deadliest. Because, the population of the whole Netherlands is only more than two million people.

It was because of the huge losses that the Dutch, in any case, could not swallow this breath. They are still fantasizing about a chance to take revenge. Due to the aggressiveness of the white army, the British also sensed the danger, and finally ordered that British pirates should not be allowed to attack the merchant ships of other countries. A large number of merchant ships from North America are finally completely safe.

In order to build more warships, the Western powers all intensified their plundering of North American lands. They plundered the riches, the timber, and all the resources. Europe itself did not have enough timber for the construction of battleships, only from North America. For some time, more than 30 percent of the merchant ships that sailed to and from the Atlantic were loaded with heavy timber. This timber was converted into warships in the shipyards.

The shipbuilding capabilities of the Dutch are indeed very outstanding. After losing hundreds of warships, they built hundreds more, not only making up for the original number, but also surpassing it a little bit more than before. At the same time, in the displacement of the battleship, it was even more enormous. The recent warships built by the Dutch are basically battleships with a displacement of about 1,500 tons. Such battleships are generally loaded with at least 90 guns or more.

In 1633, the Dutch still had eight large fleets. The number of warships in each fleet is more than fifty. The total tonnage of warships in each fleet is more than 60,000 tons. The number of cannons of various calibers, more than four thousand. In other words, the total tonnage of warships in the entire Netherlands exceeded 400,000 tons. On average, the displacement of each battleship is more than 1200 tons, and the guns of various calibers are more than 80.

Such a maritime military force is still the most powerful among the Western powers. In second place are the United Kingdom and Spain. If you want to talk about the total tonnage of the battleships, it should be that the Spaniards are slightly superior, and the total tonnage is about 350,000 tons. The total tonnage of the British warships should be about 300,000 tons. However, the British sailors were slightly higher in quality. Therefore, the combat effectiveness of the British and the Spaniards was basically comparable.

At this Amsterdam Conference, the British tried to muddy the waters and wash away the image of British pirates that had been left on people before. At the same time, the British tried to replace the Dutch at this meeting as the world leader. Therefore, the British were quite enthusiastic about participating in this meeting. The British Admiralty was personally present.

If the Dutch and the British were proactive and unhesitant to participate in this joint meeting against the White Coats, Spain seemed to be much more entangled. After receiving the invitation of the Dutch, the top of the Spaniards was indeed quite contradictory. Some people are in favor of attending the conference, while others are not. The reason, naturally, is to say everything.

To be honest, this time the sudden rise of the navy of the white-coated army, sweeping across the Pacific and Indian oceans, the interests of the Spaniards, did suffer a lot. Suffice it to say that the interests of the Spaniards in the Far East are already negligible. Although Manila is still in the hands of the Spaniards, and the port is still hoisted with the Spanish flag, the merchant ships that come and go are all from the Ming Empire. The Spaniards' own merchant ships are rarely seen for more than ten days.

In a fair trade environment, without the protection of warships, the merchant ships of the Spaniards could not compete with the merchant ships of the Ming Empire. The Ming Empire had the advantage of time, place and people in world trade, and other countries could not compete at all. Don't look at it politically and militarily, Manila still belongs to the Spaniards, in fact, this port, economically, has been completely controlled by the commercial and trade groups of the Ming Empire.

It turned out that the Kuroshio route, the most profitable route for the Spaniards, had been completely crippled with the addition of a large number of Ming Empire merchant ships. Later generations of people all over the world know that if there are Chinese in a certain field, and the system can give Chinese a relatively fair opportunity to compete, there are no trade barriers or anything. This field will definitely be occupied by the crazy Chinese in the end. Others simply can't survive. The same goes for the Kuroshio route.

The Spaniards only had a dozen merchant ships a year between Mexico and Manila. However, the merchant ships of the Ming Empire came and went with dozens of ships a month. Almost the entire Kuroshio route was the world of merchant ships of the Ming Empire. The volume of merchant ships transported by the Spaniards is estimated to be less than one-tenth of that of the merchant ships of the Ming Empire. However, the merchant ships of the Spaniards could not use force to protect themselves, how could they be the opponents of the merchant ships of the Ming Empire?

With the influx of merchant ships from the Ariake Empire, which was frenzied by the Kuroshio Route, the Spanish colonies in North America were also greatly affected. The area of the Inca Empire, which the Spaniards used to control, was known for its gold. The Spaniards had to seize large quantities of gold and silver from Mexico every year. According to later research, almost more than 30% of the world's silver at that time was produced in the Inca Empire.

And the Ming Empire's covetousness for gold was definitely not below the Spaniards. The so-called wealth touches people's hearts. As long as there is enough wealth, people can take risks. There is a 300% profit, even if it is guillotined. What's more, there is simply more than three hundred percent profit. Thus, armed caravans appeared one by one. They roamed around North America in search of the remaining gold of the Inca Empire.

Faced with the appearance of armed caravans of the Ming Empire, the Spaniards, of course, were unwilling. However, they also did not have the ability to stop the crazy infiltration of the Ming Empire. Whether it was a private conflict or an open challenge, the Spaniards were no match for the Ming Empire. A few years have passed, and the areas originally controlled by the Inca Empire have been interfered by the Ming Empire everywhere.

In this way, of course, the Spaniards did not do it. Their interests in the East are gone, and now, with the interests of North America being violated again, they are certainly not happy. No matter who you are, once your core interests are damaged, it is impossible to give up. Suffering the loss of the Spaniards, the clamor for war gradually thickened. Many of the top echelons of the Spaniards ran with each other, calling on the people to unite and fight the white army.

For the Spaniards, there is also a huge threat. The white-coat navy appeared in Europe, and the Spaniards bore the brunt of it. It is important to know that the Las Parmas Islands and Madeira Islands have a lot to do with the Spaniards. The entrance to the sea in the Mediterranean Sea was also controlled by the Spaniards. If the White Navy were to attack Europe, Spain was undoubtedly the best bridgehead. If the Spaniards didn't want to disappear forever, they had to fight back. Otherwise, they are likely to perish at the hands of the White Coats Navy.

Finally, the Spaniards finally made their choice. They were determined to go to war with the white-coated navy. As a result, as soon as they said that they would participate in the joint meeting in Amsterdam, the white-coat army and navy were already under the city of Manila. The Spanish governor in Manila had long known that this would be the result, so he obediently raised his hands and surrendered unconditionally.

With the fall of Manila, the interests of the Spaniards in the Far East were finally completely lost. But that's not all. The most important thing is that after the two sides tore their faces, the Marines of the White Army officially landed on the coast of Mexico. With the intervention of the regular army of the White Army, the interests of the Spaniards in North America were already in jeopardy.

At this time, the Spaniards realized how much mistake they had made. Knowing that there would be such a result, they should have followed the example of the Portuguese and tried their best to improve their relationship with the White Army. It's a pity that it's too late to say anything now. The White Army would not give Spain a chance to repent and reform itself, and the Spaniards, who were difficult to ride the tiger, had to go to the end of a dead end.

The French and Italians, in fact, are indifferent characters. The French are in the Far East and do not have much interest. They participated in this conference purely to protect Europe. All along, the French considered themselves the boss of Europe, the hegemon of Europe. Now, with the arrival of foreign enemies, as the boss, of course, we must take the initiative to prepare for everything.

After the Roman era, the Italians behaved in the war a bit badly. With the fall of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire), the Italians had little sharpness. They participated in this meeting purely in a dream. Dreaming of being able to return to the glory of Roman times. Of course, their interests have indeed suffered great losses. Especially on the issue of glass, the losses of Italy were large, and the complaints about the whitecoats were deep.

As for the Germans, they did not have a navy. Nor did they have any interests encroached upon by the White Coats. However, the invaders of the Germanic people are very strong, they are aggressive, they like war. They have considerable confidence in their land forces. Moreover, the Germans have always wanted to be the hegemon of Europe. In the eyes of the Germans, the arrival of the white-clothed army this time is like the previous Huns and Mongols, which is just an opportunity for the rise of the Germans.

On the European continent, only the Portuguese did not join the joint meeting. The Portuguese were already determined to follow in the footsteps of the White Army, and naturally they would not oppose the White Army. They have always behaved very low-key, low-key to the European countries, almost forgetting that it exists. Such an outcome is exactly what the Portuguese need. Otherwise, they will be in a dilemma.

Soon, the three-day meeting was over. The countries participating in the meeting unanimously reached an agreement to jointly deal with the white army. The coalition decided to deploy a powerful fleet in the ports of Madeira and Serbia to block the northward movement of the White Coats Navy.

As the orders of various countries were issued, a large number of naval warships and pirate warships began to assemble in the waters near the Madeira Islands, preparing for a decisive battle with the White Army and Navy here. For a time, near Madeira, battleships were overwhelming, and the atmosphere was tense. Battleships, large and small, gathered together, crowded like dumplings in a steaming pot.

At the same time, each country announced an increase in the number of standing armies so that in the event of a naval defeat, it would be possible to fight on land with the white-coat army. They all knew very well that if the White Army wanted to conquer Europe, it would not be enough to rely on the navy alone, they would also have to send out the army. Having fought against the Xiongnu and the Mongols, the Western powers were not very flustered.

The most active of the Germans announced that they would increase their standing army from 100,000 to 300,000 in one fell swoop. The French did not show weakness either, and also announced that they would increase the standing army from the original 200,000 to 350,000. King Gustav of Sweden even announced that the number of standing armies would be increased from 150,000 to 500,000, a full triple!

"What is Gustav going to do?"

"This madman? Where did he get so much military spending? ”

Faced with the Swedes' frantic expansion plans, the Europeans were all stunned.

It must be known that at that time, the population of Europe was not large, and the number of troops was even smaller. A country's standing army is basically between 100,000 and 200,000. Gustavus, a madman, expanded the number of troops to half a million people in one fell swoop, which is simply terrifying. Half a million troops, where did Gustav get the military money to feed them?

However, the Germans did not have time to think, and announced that they would increase the number of standing armies to 500,000 men. Obviously, the Germans did not want the Swedes to steal the limelight from them. In fact, the Swedes and the Germans have always been enemies. Gustav's coveting of the land of the Germans was not a matter of a day or two. If given the chance, Gustav didn't mind at all and ate Germany before the arrival of the White Army.

The undercurrent, between Sweden and Germany, flows quietly.

Of course, no one at this moment will realize that the contradictions between Sweden and Germany will seriously affect the course of the war in the future. Their eyes were focused on the white-clothed army, and on the top of the Golden Dragon Dancing Sword Flag.

…… When the Western powers were holding a meeting, a special figure came to the white-clothed army and navy. His name is Xu Canxu, and his name is Shao'an.

Except for the fleet commander Chen Zhan, no one knew Xu Canxu's true origin.

Xu Canxu, who is only 17 years old, came to the Fourth Fleet of the Navy as a second lieutenant for internship. The intern position is that of the Fourth Fleet's flagship "Zhanzhao", a key deck officer. The name of the flagship of the Fourth Fleet was given by Xu Xingxia himself. The origin of the name is, of course, the imperial guard Zhanzhao next to Bao Zheng of Kaifeng Mansion in the Northern Song Dynasty.

In the composition of a warship at sea, the deck dignitaries seem to be a soy sauce post. Usually, apart from being responsible for handling all kinds of supplies on the deck, there seems to be nothing else to do. In fact, this position is definitely the most important. Because this post is mobile, it may be transferred to other critical positions at any time. For example, in hand-to-hand combat, the deck dignitaries themselves are the forwards. If there is a shortage of people in a certain position, he has to reinforce a certain position. Therefore, he had to master some of the basic skills of each position on the battleship.

Obviously, Xu Canxu was very curious about everything on the battleship. His studious eagerness surprised many people. Of course, it's just a surprise, and I don't pay much attention to it. In the white-clothed navy, there are many young people, and Xu Canxu is not the youngest one. There are many more seafarers younger than him. The youngest seaman of the Fourth Fleet of the White Army Navy is less than 16 years old. Therefore, Xu Canxu is not very eye-catching.

"Xu Canxu, I have something to do at night, help me top shift." A naval lieutenant named Zhang Daniu said to Xu Canxu with a smile, casually tossing him a bottle of rum. This is the rule of the Navy. In general, the reward for a shift is a flat bottle of rum.

"Did you follow along?" Xu Canxu nodded and said cautiously.

"That's it. Lao Gao said, as long as you agree, there is no problem with him. Zhang Daniu said.

"Okay, I promised." Xu Canxu had no opinion, unscrewed the bottle of rum casually, and skillfully poured it into his mouth. Don't look at his youth, he has been drinking for a long time. Almost from the age of three or four, he learned to drink. A flat bottle of rum goes down to the stomach, and there is basically no major reaction.

His mother, a woman from the prairie, would not take the general prohibition very seriously. And his identity is special, and others won't really embarrass him. By the time he joined the Navy, Prohibition was dead in name. Because, everyone knows that when you sail on the sea, you will be sad if you don't drink a little wine.

Zhang Daniu is a lookout post, mainly monitoring the surrounding movements at the top of the mast. When it was time for the shift change, Xu Canxu came to the bottom of the mast, and Navy Captain Gao Rusong was already supervising the handover. He really has no opinion on the transfer of the two. Of course, a few words of customary reminders are still very necessary. After all, this is the gateway to Europe, and war can come at any time. As the sounder of the alarm, the lookout post certainly cannot be taken lightly.

Soon, Xu Canxu quickly climbed up to the top of the mast and took over the telescope dedicated to the lookout post. The lookout post has a dedicated location and is made of rattan intertwined. You can also sit down when you have free time. Of course, now is definitely not the time to sit. The two armies face each other, and a big war will break out at any time, and the lookout post does not dare to slack off in the slightest. Otherwise, it is not only one person who will die, but also all the comrades of the entire fleet.

This is not the first time Xu Canxu has come up to the top of the mast. At the age of fifteen, he was already receiving basic training in the Navy. This was specially arranged by his father. In previous training, he had repeatedly come up to the top of the ship's mast to serve as a lookout post. The deck is a member of the soy sauce, and he has to know a little bit about everything. However, it is the first time for Xu Canxu to officially carry out the vigilance mission.

The sea was dark and dreary all around.

In this era, naval battles were largely not held at night.

In other words, at night, all the warships are basically safe.

Unless, God deliberately arranged for two fleets to meet in the dark and open fire.

However, such a thing basically does not exist. In the night battle, there is almost no result, and it is easy to hurt one's own people. Therefore, no matter how powerful the combat effectiveness of the fleet, it will avoid night battles as much as possible. For example, tonight, the Fourth Fleet of the White Army Navy is far away from the Madeira Islands, and it obviously has no intention of going to war.

Xu Canxu once heard his father say that in the future, the human eye will gradually lose its role in naval battles. In its place, it will be advanced instruments such as radar. This means that night battles will no longer be off-limits to naval battles. Xu Canxu didn't quite understand what radar and the like were, even if his father specifically explained it. However, to be honest, Xu Canxu feels that his brain is not particularly smart. It is indeed a bit difficult to understand my father's words at once.

"Ah Xu, are you homesick?"

Suddenly, the companion below suddenly asked.

His voice, in the silence of the night, seemed very lonely.

Performing the mission with Xu Canxu was another second lieutenant in the navy named Wang Yunfei.

In general, the lookout posts of the Navy are carried out alone, and only in times of war, two people are arranged. Now, it's a time of war.

"I want to, but I don't want to."

Xu Canxu nodded, shook his head again, and replied unconsciously.

It is estimated that when he heard this, he didn't know what he was thinking.

"Why do you say that?"

Wang Yunfei put down the binoculars and asked suspiciously.

"I miss my mother. The last time I saw my mother was more than eight months ago. But I don't miss my dad too much. Home...... I have several homes, Ningxia Town, Xi'an, Leizhou, and I don't know which one I want. ”

Xu Canxu held the telescope and said slowly.

"What? You don't have a good relationship with your dad? ”

Wang Yunfei stood up on a beam and asked a little strangely.

"No, he's too busy to pay attention to us. The last time I saw him was when I was in Leizhou Mansion. We were afraid that he would be careful about our homework, and we didn't dare to appear in front of him easily. ”

Xu Canxu said slowly.

"Did your dad serve in the army too?"

Wang Yunfei asked curiously.

"Sort of."

Xu Canxu replied unconsciously.

"And where is your dad serving now?"

Wang Yunfei has a lot of topics. No way, on duty at night, it's actually quite boring, if you don't talk, don't chat, time flies really slowly. After the shift change, they had to hold on until dawn, and no one would come to take over. At this time, there are at least three hours before dawn. It's a long night!

"Tianzhu."

Xu Canxu replied briefly.

Wang Yunfei smiled and said, "My son is also serving in Tianzhu. He was the squadron leader of the Archery Corps. By the way, what rank is your dad now? In what troops? Army? Navy? Or the Marines? My dad is now a second lieutenant. ”

Xu Canxu said with a smile: "My father, there is no military rank, and there is no clear army. ”

Wang Yunfei nodded and said thoughtfully: "Oh, it's a civilian cadre who manages logistics?" That's not bad, you don't have to go directly to the battlefield, it's safe, it's leisurely. ”

Xu Canxu smiled, shook his head, thought about it, and said to himself: "By what you said, it seems that my father has really not been on the battlefield for a long time...... In the past, he was still very capable of fighting. His archery skills are very good. Of course, the same is true now. It's a pity that there is no chance to make a move. When his hands are itchy, the most he can do is find a place to practice. ”

Wang Yunfei said with a smile: "You don't have to go directly to the battlefield, that's a good thing." On the battlefield, no one can say when danger will come. However, the merits may be gone. ”

Xu Canxu said with a smile: "My father...... It seems that there is no one to promote him. ”

Wang Yunfei sighed and said with deep feelings: "Alas, my father used to be the same as your father, he didn't know how to be a man, and he offended too many people...... I forgot to mention that my father used to serve in the Nanming Army, and only later joined the White Army......"

Xu Can thought about it and said with a smile: "My father used to work for the imperial court. ”

His words obviously greatly deepened the relationship between him and Wang Yunfei. The two couldn't help but scold the original court fiercely on behalf of their fathers. Wang Yunfei knows a lot of things about his father, and Xu Canxu also knows a lot of things about his father.

The two of them talked without a match, and time passed not slowly.

Of course, from time to time, both of them will raise their binoculars and take a closer look around.

In fact, there is really no movement on the surrounding sea. The navy of the White Army was reluctant to fight at night, and the combined fleets of the Western powers were also reluctant to fight at night. If I am not mistaken, the enemy's fleet should also be recuperating and waiting for tomorrow's engagement. Therefore, the night, in general, was quite calm.

Suddenly, a voice came from below: "Salute! Commander! ”

Xu Canxu and Wang Yunfei looked down at the deck and found that it was Fleet Commander Chen Zhan who had come over.

Chen Zhan raised his head and asked, "Is there any movement?" ”

Wang Yunfei responded loudly: "Report! Nothing found! ”

Chen Zhan said: "Pay attention! Beware of pirate-like ships! ”

Wang Yunfei agreed loudly.

Xu Canxu didn't say anything, pretending not to see anything.

Chen Zhan didn't have anything else to do, and after asking, he quietly left with the guards.

However, the naval captain Gao Rusong, who was on duty under the mast, felt a little strange. Before, the commander of the fleet had never stood under the mast and asked anything, could it be that there would really be pirates tonight? Thinking of this, Gao Rusong didn't dare to slack off, hurriedly climbed the mast, leaned against Xu Canxu and Wang Yunfei, held the binoculars, and carefully observed the surroundings. However, one night passed, and there was not the slightest discovery.

(To be continued)