During his last trip to the Natuna Islands, Van Longen was extremely impressed by the defense of the island's town. The town was surrounded by waterways on the left and right, and there was no hiding place on the avenue facing the port, so it was extremely difficult to attack the town directly after landing from the port. The back of the town was not weak, but the strongest defense, and after the East India Company occupied it, considering that there was no depth of defense on the island, a fortress was built on the west side of the town on the hill as the last line of defense on Natuna Island. However, last time, Van Longen and the others didn't even attack the town, let alone the last fortress.

The occupation of Natuna Island by a mere group of pirates had caused the East India Company to suffer greatly, and if it had been replaced by the Haihans, who were capable of building according to the project, and given a few months to slowly build the fortifications, Van Longen could hardly imagine that there would be a chance to reclaim the island from them in the future. In fact, even if the Haihan people did not intervene in this matter, Van Longen still thought that he would pay a price for the next battle to seize the island. How did these pampered gentlemen in Batavia know how powerful the pirate army on the island was, thinking that they could take it by sending more troops over, but no one believed it anyway, they all thought that it was the defeat caused by the improper command of a few of them, and Van Longen was too lazy to break it, so let the people behind him touch this hard nail.

Cohen couldn't guess Van Longen's thoughts, and frowned, "If we really give them a few months to buffer, it will indeed make it more difficult for us to retake Natuna." Therefore, I ask that when you deal with the Haihan, whether they have already taken action or not, do not agree with their occupation of the area, and do not accept the no-go zones and time limits they have demarcated. Remember, that's our bottom line!"

"Yes Governor, I will take it to heart. Van Longen replied respectfully. He originally thought that the company might send a high-level figure to lead the team, but judging from the current lineup, there is no doubt that he is the real core and person in charge of this mission.

Cohen said in a deep voice: "Remember, our goal is not necessarily to reach some kind of peace agreement with them, if we can do it, of course, it is the best, if it can't be done, don't force it, the most important thing is to understand their situation from all levels and find out their strength." I want to know why they can defeat our armed fleet, I don't want ※ ⊙ ※ ⊙ ※ ⊙ ※ ⊙, m.≡.co≯mstyle_tt; I hope that Fujian's unexplained defeat will happen again!"

Without waiting for Van Longen to reply, Cohen turned to Van der Wegen and said, "When you arrive in Sanya, you must find an opportunity to see their warships and shipyards." You're an insider, and I think you should know what details are worth noting. If possible, keep in touch with their military personnel, figure out their military structure, command structure, weaponry, troop size, and gather information that can be used, understand?"

"Understood, Lord Governor!" Vanderwegen replied in a loud voice.

"You two didn't have a good time before that, and the company's top brass had a lot of complaints about you, but I suppressed these opinions. I hope you will seize this opportunity to show yourself well and not let me down again. Cohen slowly leaned back in his chair, and couldn't hide the tired expression on his face: "If it doesn't work well this time, you guys should pack up and go back to your hometown." ”

Vanderwegen and Van Longen looked at each other, stood up silently, and bowed to Cohen in farewell. Seeing this, Su Keyi also got up and prepared to leave, but Cohen, who had already closed his eyes and seemed to be recuperating, spoke at this time: "Su Keyi stays, I still have something to say to you." ”

After the two Dutchmen left, Cohen opened his eyes and said, "Do you know why I chose you to join the mission?"

"Because the Haihan people we are going to contact on this trip are actually Chinese, and they can be interpreters to help both sides communicate with each other. Su Keyi replied.

Cohen said, "That's just one of the reasons, think about it." ”

Su Keyi thought for a while and added: "The appearance and behavior of people should be no different from that of local Chinese, and there may be opportunities to blend in with the people and hear more news." ”

"Yes, but not quite yet. Cohen didn't continue to go around in circles, and directly revealed the answer: "I hope that after you arrive in the local area, you will carefully observe their social formation and immigration policies, and see what we can learn from and what can be exploited." After coming back, he organized some reliable people and managed to immigrate to Sanya to settle down. ”

The surprised expression on Su Keyi's face couldn't be concealed at all: "What does Lord Governor mean...... Send someone to lurk in the area?"

"That's right. "At the meeting two days ago, Mr. Henk mentioned something that we have all overlooked in the past, and that is intelligence channels. The Haihan people can infiltrate Batavia through various channels, and we know nothing about their condition. In the future, it will be difficult for us in the Far East to avoid competition with the Haihan, and if we still do not know anything about their movements, we will suffer a great loss sooner or later. ”

"But Mr. Henk never seems to have allowed Chinese into his department...... Su Keyi also apparently knew something about the "quirks" of the East India Company's intelligence department, and a hesitant look appeared on his face.

"Perhaps, after you come back, I will form a new independent department, a department for the Haihan people. In view of the Chinese identity of the Haihan people, this department will also be dominated by Chinese accordingly, do you understand what I mean?" Cohen interrupted Su Keyi.

"Understood, understood!" Su Keyi was not stupid, he certainly understood that this was Cohen promising him an official position. If such a new department can be established, then as the only Chinese executive who has ever been to Sanya, he will definitely become the head of this new department.

"In addition to what I just said, I also want to know the relationship between Haihan and Daming, and how they coexist on Qiongzhou Island. Cohen explained, "I don't believe that the Ming Empire would allow such a group of people to openly create another set of ruling institutions within their own borders, I want to know how they did it!"

In mid-August, the East India Company mission, consisting of one or two galleons, slowly sailed out of the port of Batavia and began its journey north. Ten days after their departure, they arrived in the waters of the Natuna Islands, but for the sake of caution they did not approach the islands, but chose to detour about fifty nautical miles to the west.

There is no doubt that Van Longen's decision was quite wise, because at this time the fleet led by Roger was also close to the port on the east side of the main island of Natuna, and if they did not choose to detour, they might have run into this "Haihan Expeditionary Force". And in order not to reveal the truth about the island, Roger will definitely order the capture or sinking of these two ships, and the hundreds of crew members will all be counted in the list of missing persons, just like those captured on the island.

As Cohen had predicted, the Hayhans had no intention of waiting for the Dutch to react. Within days of sending the diplomatic letter, Roger's fleet had already set off from Port Victory and headed south. By the time the letter arrived in Batavia, the fleet had already arrived at Cam Ranh Bay, south of Annam, for a final refreshment. When the East India Company's mission headed north, the two sides happened to miss out on the Natuna Islands.

This time, the Haihan fleet went south with nearly 2,000 people, of which the military and civilians accounted for roughly half of them. In addition, a large number of weapons, building materials, supplies, agricultural supplies, etc. were transported by ship, which was completely a huge and large-scale migration. In order to ensure safety, the navy even used a "Majesty-class" capital ship to go south with the fleet as an escort. Of course, due to the limited port conditions, this large ship could not stay there for a long time, so after the newly arrived troops changed guards with the local garrison of Mushabai, it had to return to the Cam Ranh Bay base in Annam along with the fleet loaded with Mushabai's troops.

While the Dutch fleet was anxiously searching the nearby waters for suspicious targets, Roger and Mushaber were handing over the defense at the port of Ambuna. The two men had fought together before, but it dates back to the time of the Annam Civil War. In the past two years, Mu Xiabai has been stationed in Annan, while Roger was mostly in the Tiandu Industrial Zone, and the two sides basically had little contact.

In order to avoid leaking information as much as possible, the island has been under complete martial law since last night, and all civilians are not allowed to step out of their homes without being notified, and the entire port area is completely cordoned off, and non-military personnel are strictly prohibited from entering. After Roger's fleet arrived at the port, the first landed infantry took over the defense of the island town as soon as possible, and then the commanders of the two sides met in the port to begin the handover of command and supplies.

"Here's a list of what's left on the island, all piled up in the camp's storeroom, you can send someone to clear it. After a few brief greetings between the two sides, Mu Shabai began to get to the point, taking out the list of supplies and handing it to Roger.

Roger took it and looked at it, then handed it to the adjutant next to him and asked him to handle it. After being stationed on the island for four months, there were actually very few military supplies left, and the main thing that remained was unconsumed military rations and more than 1,000 catties of gunpowder. As for the weapons, since the standard weapons installed by the Annan militia are different from those in the base camp, there is no need to stay on the island, and they will all be loaded and transported away.

"When I was leaving, I heard that the Military Commission had already drawn up a reward for you, so you should have received the news at this time, right?" asked Roger with a grin.

"Well, I was notified by telegram, and I was given a long paid vacation, and as for the promotion, I will have to wait until I go back to Shengli Port to report on my work. Although Mu Xiabai has a relatively calm personality, he can't hide the joy on his face. The capture of the Ambuna Islands, and the repulsion of an opponent's counterattack, was undoubtedly a great achievement. However, at this time, he did not know that in the other party's list of the dead, there was also a high-ranking officer who would have served as the governor of the East India Company in the original history, otherwise the commendation order sent by the Military Commission would probably be longer.

"How's the situation on the island?" Roger thought for a moment and added, "I'm a folk condition. ”

"The current civilians on the island are basically in a stable mood, after all, we haven't done anything angry in the past few months. Really, we're probably the most moral pirates we've ever had. Mu Shabai laughed at himself: "Although I don't go up and don't take a stitch from the masses, I really haven't done anything that violates discipline." The people of the island have nothing but complaining about the curfew we have been imposing. ”

"How's the island's food stockpile?" Roger continued.

"With your 2,000 people, it should be able to support you for two or three months. Mushaber raised his hand and pointed to the Dutch galleons docked on the shore in the harbor area: "There are a lot of supplies on these self-imposed ships, and we have unloaded them for our own use." By the way, there are still dozens of captives on the island, so you can ask the fleet to free up a ship to transport the captives. ”

"Don't worry, this is prepared. Roger replied with a smile: "The shipyard specially modified a ship, added an iron fence to the deck hatch, and added a whole row of shackles to the cabin, so as to ensure that these prisoners can only squat in the cabin honestly all the way." ”

"That's good. I don't want any more trouble on the way back. "Mushabai is not afraid of war, but transporting prisoners long distances is a real problem.

"These batteries ...... It's a shame. Roger looked around at the wreckage of the battery on the dock and couldn't help but sigh.

After the Dutch landed and captured the port that day, the militia army blew up the artillery and batteries that could not be retreated. From the ruins of the remaining forts, it is not difficult to imagine the fierceness of the battle that day.

"How are the new fortifications going to be repaired?" Mushaber did not want to talk about the battle of the day, so he simply changed the topic.

"Three-dimensional defense is not only against the sea, but also against land. Roger explained: "The biggest problem with the fortifications last time was that there were only shore defense guns against the ships, and there were no means of defense to stop the infantry from assaulting. So the new fortifications will start from this aspect, adding trenches, barbed wire, etc., and will increase the number of musketeers deployed. Personally, though, I'd rather build a fortress like Fort Victory, but the island's conditions are limited, so I probably can't build it. ”

"It can be repaired, but the construction period will take a long, long time, and it may not be completed by the time you leave office. Mushaber patted Roger on the shoulder and said, "After I leave, this place will be handed over to you, the Dutch will definitely come again, don't let them down, beat them hard!"

Roger grinned, "Don't worry, I'll make them give up the fight for this place completely." ”