On a manor house outside Brussels, the current governor of the Spanish Netherlands, Juan Brown. Gonzalez. Morality. The Marquis Filippo Spinola is meeting with the Speaker of the Dutch Parliament, who has traveled from afar.

The Marquis of Spinola was the one who had previously recommended Garcia to Don. Huang. José's predecessor, the governor of New Spain, had no governor because New Spain had become a kingdom, so he took the throne of Don. Huang. José became governor of the Spanish Netherlands.

And after he took over the Spanish Netherlands, he found that the Dutch Republic, the enemy he had fought with for most of his life, had become the only friend Spain could rely on in the Netherlands!

Because in the Spanish Netherlands is a buffer between the Netherlands and France, if France takes away the Spanish Netherlands, then the Dutch Republic will have to be a neighbor of France, the land overlord...... That's not a good thing!

In addition, after the fall of Manila, the Netherlands and Spain also had a common enemy - the world empire of the East, the Ming Dynasty.

Now the Ming could seize the Dutch-controlled Spice Islands, Batavia, and the Strait of Malacca. To the east, they could compete with Spain for the west coast of the New World.

Therefore, curbing the expansion momentum of the Ming Empire became the common goal of Spain and the Netherlands.

But unlike Spain, the land of heaven, the Dutch Republic is a nation of profiteers.

And profiteers are reluctant to fight a war that is doomed to loss...... So John who came to visit Brussels. Morality. Witte came up with a very "smart" solution.

First, the Grand Council of the Dutch Republic will convince the banks of Amsterdam to make a huge loan to the Kingdom of New Spain – note that, not the Kingdom of Spain, whose credit has long been bankrupt!

Although the Kingdom of New Spain pays the Kingdom of Spain a huge amount of "protection money" every year, the Kingdom of New Spain itself has no debts. So the possibility of bad debts on the loans that the Netherlands lends to New Spain is not too high...... Even if it is not enough, the Netherlands will still be able to cut a piece of land in the Kingdom of New Spain, and it will not be for nothing.

Secondly, the Kingdom of New Spain should open the port of Acapulco to the Dutch East India Company! Now due to the fall of Manila, the galleon trade has been completely suspended. But the demand for trade remains, and this is a huge deal of more than a million pesos a year – not counting the amount of the smuggling trade!

In addition, the Dutch East India Company had the right to trade with Japan, and Dutch East India Company ships had access to the Gulf of America...... The Gulf of America, controlled by the Ming Dynasty, did not lock up the harbor, but opened its arms to welcome trade ships from all over the world.

Therefore, as long as the Dutch East India Company obtained the right to enter the port of Acapulco, it would be able to establish a large-cycle trade route from Manila to Shanghai to Japan to the Gulf of the Americas to the port of Acapulco to Manila.

Thirdly, the Kingdom of New Spain should also provide collateral for the loan! The collateral that the Dutch Republic wanted was Saipan, which was to be transferred to the Dutch East India Company. The Dutch East India Company wanted to make it a naval base to be used for privateers if necessary......

Fourthly, the Dutch Republic also demanded an arms order from the Kingdom of New Spain in the amount of more than 50 per cent of the amount of the loan provided by the Netherlands.

"Your Excellency, you Dutch people love God so much! On behalf of the Catholics of the Kingdom of Spain and the Philippines, I express my sincerest gratitude to you for your generosity......" The Marquis of Spinola said words of thanks, but the contempt in his eyes could not be concealed.

When is it? You profiteers are still trying to make money! Are you really not afraid of your souls going to hell after death?

Now I don't even sell such good things as indulgences!

John. Morality. Witt nodded with a smile and said, "You're right, we Dutch people also believe in God!" In defense of God's faith, we are willing to lend money to the Kingdom of New Spain. ”

"What if," said the Marquis of Spinola, tentatively, "what if the country that borrowed money was replaced by the Kingdom of Spain?" ”

"Marquis," said John. Morality. Witt looked at the Marquis, "I think you can tell the difference between lending and giving, right?" If...... If King Philip really needed it, the Great Council could give him 500,000 eci of silver to pay off the dowry of Her Royal Highness. ”

This is not sarcastic about the Spaniards, but a genuine desire to help!

As an honest and trustworthy businessman, he could certainly see the loopholes in the "prenuptial agreement" reached between France and Spain. Theresa's relinquished inheritance rights were linked to the compensation she received. If Philip IV could not pay compensation, then the "prenuptial agreement" was null and void.

"Speaker!" The Marquis of Spinola glanced at John. Morality. "Do you think the dignified Kingdom of Spain will not be able to take out even 500,000 ecu?" ”

John. Morality. Witt breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good...... Well, may God bless the couple. ”

......

"Good news, Mr. Ambassador! The Spaniards agreed to the East India Company's sailing ships entering the port of Acapulco! ”

On the outskirts of Paris, in the Ming Embassy in Versailles Town, Li Shaoyou, the Ming ambassador to France, the Netherlands, and England, immediately received a message from the director of the Dutch East India Company. From there, Dimen received news that the Netherlands had opened up the Pacific route.

For the past two or three years, the Ming side has been trying to get Dutch profiteers involved in Pacific shipping.

Although Daming has its own Pacific Shipping Company and Pacific Passenger Shipping Company, there are also some small shipowners engaged in Pacific Shipping.

However, the capacity in the Pacific Ocean is still not enough, and the bottleneck of the capacity is two, one is the lack of escort force - Daming's Pacific shipping cannot be without escort, because the return from the Gulf of America has to take the equatorial warm current belt, which has to pass through the waters near New Spain, and it is too unsafe without escort.

The second is the lack of captains and senior seafarers who can run the Pacific Ocean - running offshore is one thing, running the Pacific Ocean is another! To run the Pacific Ocean, you must master dimensional navigation, be able to use a variety of nautical instruments for measurement and navigation, and have experience in dealing with all kinds of bad weather.

And excellent captains and seafarers are not just available if they are available, even if Emperor Zhu runs a naval martial arts hall, it will not be able to meet the huge demand.

Therefore, Zhu Cihong could only invite the British and Dutch to join in the big deal of Pacific Shipping.

Now there are small British shipowners in the Pacific Ocean, but the Dutch shipping business in the East is monopolized by the East India Company, and the Dutch East India Company is reluctant to engage in Pacific shipping before Spain opens the port of Acapulco, because it is unprofitable for them - the current Dutch East India Company has long been replaced by the "big company disease", bloated, expensive, accustomed to monopolizing profits, and unwilling to compete with small ship owners......

"Mr. Dimon, I heard you right, did I?" Li Shaoyou has already realized what is wrong, "Why are the Spaniards willing to develop the port of Acapulco?" They have been locked up for a hundred years, how can they be open now? ”

"Isn't that because Manila is occupied by you?" Bruce. "They don't have a big stronghold in the Far East for galleon trade, so they have to open up." ”

"Really?" Li Shaoyou didn't smile, "The Spaniards care so much about those little money? ”

"It's not just about the money." Bruce. "They also want our ship to evacuate Catholic Filipinos, Japanese, Koreans to the New World."

I don't think the Celestial Empire will object to us doing this, right? ”

"Of course not," Li Shaoyou was skeptical, "Although the Ming Dynasty forbade Catholicism, it was not convicted of believing in religion." ”

The reason for the ban on Catholicism was the "dispute over the right to defend the church", and due to the obstruction of Spain, the negotiations between the Ming Dynasty and the Roman Church could not reach a breakthrough. However, Zhu Cihong did not strictly prohibit it, but banned it.