In the second year of the Tianqi reign, the Governor of Batavia, Kun, decided to attack Macau, displace the Portuguese, and open the door to trade with China. To this end, he planned to gather sixteen warships and over a thousand soldiers.
There were actually four British ships in the fleet, which shows that although the colonists had conflicts, they were essentially the same in nature and interests.
Just as the Dutch were planning and preparing, news kept coming in, causing the original plan to be modified or even interrupted.
It was first reported by Dutch merchants in Japan that the Ming Dynasty lifted its maritime ban and reached a direct trade agreement with Japan, recognizing each other's letters, flags, and red seals.
Chinese merchants in Japan have been granted amnesty by the Ming Dynasty court. "Chinese Captain" Li Dan and Yan Siqi were the first to return to the Ming Dynasty. Japan's role as a relay for obtaining Chinese commercial goods has been greatly weakened and may eventually be lost.
Wakoku strengthened its control over the red seal ship trade, prohibiting western daimyo from owning large ships with a carrying capacity of more than 500 koku. Red seal certificates were only issued to some wealthy merchants in Kyoto who had close relations with the shogun.
At the same time, the Wa shogunate also issued a ban and severely punished western daimyo who did business privately with Western merchants to prevent them from expanding their economic power and obtaining advanced weapons.
These sudden changes forced Governor Kuhn to suspend his military offensive plans and re-examine the channels and methods of obtaining trade with China.
Obviously, if they continued with the previous trade method of selling foreign goods to Japan, exchanging the silver for Ming Dynasty goods in Japan, they would not only have to pay more silver, but also risk not being able to sustain the business for a long time.
The policy changes of the Japanese shogunate showed that it would continue to strengthen control over the trading activities of foreign ships, which was not a good thing for Dutch merchants.
Of course, the Ming Dynasty lifted the ban on maritime trade, which suddenly increased the number of trading ports such as Qingdao, Shanghai, Xiamen, Ningbo, and Guangzhou. This meant that Dutch merchants had the opportunity to trade directly with the Ming Dynasty and engage in mutual commerce.
Dutch merchants in Japan saw this opportunity and had already used Chinese merchants as intermediaries to explore the possibility of trade and the specific conditions in the Ming Dynasty.
It is obviously inappropriate to use force at this time as it risks angering the Ming court.
Kuhn was sitting in the Governor's Mansion at this time, playing with a mirror in his hand, reflecting light and shadow on the wall, constantly moving them.
Deputy Governor White shrugged and said, "This is truly amazing, many times better than anything the Venetians have made. It will surely be extremely popular among the ladies of Europe."
Kuhn paused, and said thoughtfully, "According to the information we received, the Portuguese obtained a batch of mirrors from the Ming Dynasty in exchange for muskets, cannons, and ships."
Wei Te nodded and said, "That's not surprising. If we were in Macau, we wouldn't miss this opportunity to make a fortune."
After a pause, Waite emphasized, "Or building a fortress and maintaining a garrison in other suitable places, such as Zhangzhou or Guangzhou, would also be a good option."
Colonists are colonists, no different from bandits.
In their eyes, other countries' places are places where they can establish military bases at will, unless they cannot defeat them.
"The British have secretly sent people aboard merchant ships with 'Chinese captains' to negotiate trade with the Ming Dynasty," Kuhn said with a suggestive sneer. "They think they're keeping it secret and don't want us to know."
Waite frowned and said, "In other words, they will most likely not participate in our military operations?"
"That depends on how their negotiations with the Ming Dynasty go." Kuhn put the mirror down and said, "In Japan, the British can't compete with us and have already withdrawn. The Ming Dynasty's lifting of the maritime ban has given them another opportunity."
Waite touched his chin and thought for a while, then suddenly looked up and said, "Monopoly! We must monopolize Ming's foreign trade."
Kuhn smiled and said, "Monopoly is our goal, but not right now. If Ming's trade terms are acceptable to us, then we can get involved first and then see how the situation develops."
Waite nodded in agreement and said, "Of course, now is not the time. We should first obtain the right to trade, rather than anger the Ming Dynasty, so that we can compete with the Portuguese or the British. Otherwise, wouldn't it be an advantage for them?"
"That's right, that's the point." Kuhn nodded, then asked doubtfully, "Do you believe the records in those travelogues that claim the Ming Dynasty possessed an army of hundreds of thousands or even millions?"
The Dutch simply did not believe the figures of the Chinese army mentioned in various travelogues. Therefore, when negotiating with the Ming Dynasty, they often put forward arrogant and presumptuous conditions.
Waite didn't know either. He scratched his head and said, "It's impossible to have millions, but it must be hundreds of thousands."
Kuhn waved his hand, no longer dwelling on the matter, and said, "Let's wait for news from Proven and the others. In Ming Country, they should be able to see a more realistic situation than the travelogue."
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Palace of Heavenly Purity.
The sea merchant Huang Cheng bowed deeply and said, "Long live the emperor! Long live the emperor! Long live the emperor!"
"No need to be so polite, just stand up." Zhu Youxiao just glanced at Huang Cheng and then turned his attention to the young man kneeling next to him.
Zheng Zhilong, also known as Nicholas, was the historical maritime overlord of East Asia.
At this time, Zheng Zhilong knelt on the ground, feeling the combined royal majesty brought by the architecture, decoration, atmosphere, etc., and he didn't even dare to breathe.
Huang Cheng stood up and bowed, tapping the ground lightly with his foot, signaling his nephew who was still kneeling on the ground to stand up.
Zhu Youxiao pursed his lips, then put away the hint of a smile and said loudly, "Huang Cheng has done a great job on this mission. Firearms and artillery are exactly what the Ming Dynasty urgently needs. Being able to exchange them for the precious mirror will save the Ming Dynasty a huge amount of money."
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