"Translate!" Wang Rulong glared at the interpreter with his demon-slaying eyes and shouted, "If you dare to say a single word of nonsense, I'll kill you!"

"Yes, yes." The interpreter was so frightened that his legs were trembling and he began to translate stutteringly.

After he finished translating, the leading Portuguese said with a look of dissatisfaction: "You have already had a grudge with the Japanese, do you want to have a grudge with our Portuguese navy?!"

"There is an old saying in the Ming Dynasty that it is better to resolve a feud than to create one. Believe me, maintaining friendship with us is vital to the safety of your sea routes!" Another Portuguese threatened: "You should know that we have a hundred large sailing ships like the Governor of Goa in Asia! If necessary, we can sail into Dagukou!"

Obviously, these Portuguese people have been looking for something to eat for a long time.

It would have been better if they didn't say this. As soon as they opened their mouths, it immediately brought back very bad memories for Mr. Zhao.

“Then come on!” Zhao Hao stood up suddenly, stepped on the armchair, and said angrily: “Decades ago, you invaded our Tuen Mun and Sai Tso Wan but returned empty-handed. This time, we will also make you fail and drive you out of Macau!”

Then he pointed at the Portuguese who was threatening to march to Dagukou and shouted, "Capture him!"

Two burly guards stepped forward, pinned him to the ground in an instant, and quickly tied his hands behind his back with cowhide ropes.

"In the name of the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Tamra Garrison of the Ming Dynasty, I hereby declare that you have insulted the emperor of the Ming Dynasty and threatened the safety of the Ming Dynasty. You are guilty of treason and treason. I sentence you to lifelong hard labor without the possibility of parole!"

Master Zhao pronounced the sentence on the spot. In fact, he still wanted to beat the red-haired devil severely to vent his resentment... but he had already announced the abolition of corporal punishment. If he went back on his word, would that be spanking someone else's butt? That would be spanking his own mouth.

"Ah..." The interpreter was shocked, thinking that he would have to serve hard labor for the rest of his life. He stammered, "Eunuch, Master, even when two countries are at war, they still don't kill envoys."

"How dare you insult me?" Young Master Zhao sneered and said, "I sentence you to three... no, seven years of hard labor! I sentenced you to four more years because you forgot what country you are from!"

"I am a citizen of the world..." The interpreter collapsed to the ground.

~~

Because Master Zhao needed someone to report the news, the remaining Portuguese leader luckily escaped.

As if worried that this frightened idiot might not be able to convey his message completely, Zhao Hao wrote another letter of challenge and asked him to take it back.

On the Duke of Goa, Father Torres could speak Chinese and recognize Chinese characters. How could Jesuit missionaries come to East Asia without mastering the common Chinese language?

He translated the letter of war to Colonel Pinto:

"You Portuguese are indeed famous for your strong ships and powerful guns, but you have never faced an attack from so many cannons. My warships have 500 of the latest bronze heavy cannons, and their firing rate is twice that of yours. Although you have two huge warships, in my eyes, your warships are worthless. Our Ming Dynasty's ten thousand hu Wuwei ships are the most excellent! What's more, my number is more than ten times yours. Once my cannons fire, your warships will be shattered and collapsed, and I don't even have to lose a single soldier."

After a pause, the old priest turned the page and continued:

"But since you are willing to negotiate, I will generously grant you a chance - as long as you surrender before dawn tomorrow and leave Japan immediately, I will guarantee the safety of your life and property. Otherwise, after sunrise, thousands of cannons will roar and destroy you, and you will become skeletons in the sinking ship. I will write it in black and white as proof... Zhao, Chairman of the Ming Royal Shipping Corporation."

"Arrogant!" Captain Pinto sneered and said, "If you despise us so much, why don't the Ming warships attack us directly? Why are they just anchored at the mouth of the bay?"

"Of course they are afraid." Although he has boarded this caravel countless times, Father Torres always feels that it is a miracle. It is the most powerful missionary weapon given to these loyal shepherds by the Lord.

"Who wouldn't be intimidated by such a great ship as the Duke of Goa?"

"Yes, praise God." Pinto smiled and nodded. Maybe it was because of his dominance that he regained a lot of confidence and said, "In the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea, we have won countless victories with a small number of people against a large number of people. This time will definitely be no exception!"

"Then Colonel, should we reject him?" the adjutant asked, "and issue a knight's challenge?"

"No, no, no, my little Lucas." Pinto shook his head. He straightened his diaper... Oh no, it was 'Cordopes'. He just realized that he had tilted it when he was climbing the pole. "This is not in Europe. No one asks us to be chivalrous, and no one knows what chivalry is."

"A grandson who is highly respected by the Ming people said that all is fair in war." He smiled slyly and said, "Please ask the priest to help write a reply letter, saying that we will seriously consider their suggestions and hope that they can abide by the credit of the Celestial Empire and not attack us at night."

Father Torres readily agreed and went into the captain's room to start writing the letter.

Pinto whispered to his adjutant, "Send the order down, tell them to hurry up and sleep, and have the chef prepare a delicious Portuguese stew to reward the whole ship. As long as the wind direction changes tonight, we will break out under the cover of night!"

"Always remember, little Lucas, there is no such thing as passive defense in the Navy's manual. There is only attack, attack, and attack again!"

"Thank you for your teaching, Colonel!" The adjutant looked at the captain gratefully, thinking that if ordinary students didn't like that, he would be a good teacher. Unfortunately...

"But Colonel, what if the wind direction remains the same or there is no wind tonight?" he asked again.

"Then wait until tomorrow, the wind will change." Captain Pinto shrugged nonchalantly. "Ming officials are greedy for money anyway, so send a few more bags of gold tomorrow morning and then find a random excuse to evade them."

Although he was unwilling to act rashly when the wind was against him, he was not afraid to teach a lesson to those Ming Dynasty people who were always arrogant and thought they were the chosen people of God.

Because his ship was as tall as a building, the Ming Dynasty people had no way to board it. The thick and solid oak hull could withstand most of the bombardment. Even if it was hit by heavy artillery at close range, it would not cause a large bullet hole when the shell penetrated the hull... Although the flying oak fragments might kill the crew, it would not damage the overall structure of the ship.

The Duke of Goa could only be destroyed if there was a fire, and the fire spread beyond control. But the well-trained "monkeys" would do a good job of damage control... This is the advantage of fighting at sea. If the ship sank, everyone would be dead, so you don't have to worry about the crew not fighting hard. If it were on land, I would have to be like a trainer, holding a banana in one hand and a whip in the other, staring at these stupid and greedy guys.

~~

The warships of both sides were less than one kilometer apart, but sending messages had to be done three times by small boats, which was very time-consuming and laborious.

By the time Zhao Hao received the reply from the Portuguese, it was already dark.

He was enjoying the dinner prepared by Qiaoqiao in the dining room of his bedroom with Wang Rulong, Ma Yinglong and his eldest nephew. Although cooking was not allowed on the ship, Qiaoqiao, who had become more and more skilled in cooking, still cooked delicious dishes for Zhao Hao in various ways, such as stewing, boiling and steaming, so that the growth and development of the young master, who had lost his appetite at sea, would not be delayed.

It is necessary to save food at sea, so Master Zhao often invites Wang Rulong and others to have lunch or dinner together and chat together... He is the chief police commissioner of the garrison area, and it is his job to understand the thoughts of his subordinates.

At first these guys thought it was a chore to accompany the young master for dinner, but they soon fell in love with Qiaoqiao's cooking skills...especially the fact that the chef on the ship could make a big pot of stew with even the best ingredients, which further demonstrated the skills of the pretty cook.

So these guys came to report their thoughts at mealtime, and even after finishing their work, they were reluctant to leave, hoping that the young master would keep their meal. In the boring voyage, being able to have a bite to eat was a great spiritual comfort.

While happily drinking Jinling-style old duck and carrot soup, Mr. Zhao read Pinto's reply and said in amazement, "This Portuguese's calligraphy is better than any of ours. Well, the choice of words and sentences is also exquisite, but it has a hint of the Japanese devils' style."

"They are probably Jesuit missionaries in Japan." Ma Yinglong swallowed the braised pork with rice in his mouth and said with a smile: "I heard that they are all well-educated people and are highly respected by the Japanese daimyo."

"Hmph, ulterior motives!" Wang Rulong snorted. He didn't believe that someone would travel thousands of miles to Japan just to do good deeds.

"That's true." Young Master Zhao said with a smile, "But their tricks are doomed to fail in our Ming Dynasty. Those Christian daimyo were beaten to a pulp..."

He wanted to say that if this thing spread to North Korea, many of the stubborn people of the Joseon Dynasty would probably believe it. But then he thought, the Joseon people now believe in Confucianism, how could they tolerate this thing? I'm afraid they would be killed if they showed their heads.

~~

After a moment of emotion, Zhao Hao handed the letter to Wang Rulong and asked, "What do you think?"

Wang Rulong glanced at them and sneered, "The red-haired devils are still trying to play tricks on us. When we were using the Thirty-Six Stratagems, they were still squatting on the tree."

"So, they might cause trouble tonight?" Young Master Zhao asked softly.

"Then we must be on high alert." Ma Yinglong asked hurriedly, "When will they launch the attack?"

"It's very simple, just look at the wind." Wang Rulong saw through Pinto's temper and lungs at a glance and said, "If the wind blows from the northeast tonight, this guy will definitely take risks. He emphasized that we should not attack at night, which shows that he is guilty and does not know it!"

"Well, that makes sense." Zhao Hao took a sip of the pumpkin soup and nodded in agreement, saying, "It seems that no matter how hard the little ghost jumps, he can't escape the clutches of the King of Hell. I'll leave it to Brother Wang tonight."

"Don't worry, sir!" Wang Rulong patted his chest and said, "If you let them escape from Futian Bay, I will bring my head to you!"

p.s. I have no reason to do it today, so I can’t deny it. I’ll write another chapter and you can read it tomorrow morning.