Thursday, October 7, 1632, fine.

Today is the second anniversary of the crossing of the congregation. The port of Tatantan was built from scratch and is now getting busier and busier.

Several galleons are moored in the harbor, and busy dock workers are using pulley cranes to lift one-tonne-ton cargo from the hold to the dock yard. The yard is stacked with goods, which are expertly sorted by workers and then pulled away by the Port Authority's transport team in horse-drawn carts.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the pier, large groups of refugees from the Baltic region are waiting for medical examinations, and police officers in black uniforms carry sabers around to maintain order.

Busy but orderly. After a few months, when Blanco set foot on the docks of the port of Tartan again, he saw such a scene. This time, his entourage was only one businessman, Carlos.

Blanco brought three large ships with him this time. Two of the ships were loaded with a full 500 tons of coal, and the other was laden with sugar, cotton, indigo and leather. The voyage from São Vicente to the port of Tartan was not an easy one for the Portuguese, whose ships were almost in trouble with the Spaniards and the Portuguese. Therefore, Blanco also took a big risk this time.

To be honest, Blanco didn't want to come here. This group of Orientals left a very bad impression on him: insidious and cunning, greedy, and dangerous.

Yes, Blanco considers these Orientals very dangerous. He could feel their intense self-confidence, aggressiveness, and unabashed ambition for expansion. It was perhaps no easier to be neighbors with such a group of people than to go to war with the Dutch. He gave frank information to General São Paulo and to the Governor temporarily stationed in Rio de Janeiro about his views and opinions, but neither of them paid enough attention.

As the fighting in Bahia became increasingly unfavorable, the governor and generals tried their best to reverse the defeat, and they were also tormented. Just last month, the Dutch West India Company organized troops to achieve a major victory in northern El Salvador, in which the Portuguese army, with 1,000 soldiers and mercenaries, suffered heavy losses. More than 500 dead and wounded, and more than 500 prisoners, dealt a heavy blow to their morale, and the Doge's plan to recapture El Salvador and Recife suffered a great setback.

Not only that, but the defeated army also discarded more than 20 cannons, and many muskets were also discarded or damaged. General Marannon, who participated in the campaign, asked the Governor of Bahia to quickly replenish his men and weapons, otherwise he would not be able to continue his hold in the Bahia and Pernambuco areas.

This request is a source of helplessness for gentlemen. The Spaniards, who were in power in the Indian and Overseas Territories Council at home, were also helpless in the war in northeastern Brazil, and Dutch, French, and British warships were now attacking Spain's coastline in the Caribbean, and they were powerless to rescue Brazil.

To make matters worse, the empty rear towns and estates were frequently attacked by the Palmares Black Alliance, hidden in the palm jungle, as large numbers of colonial troops were drawn to the front. These black fugitives received assistance from the Indians, who, armed with rudimentary weapons, went around the countryside to meet the escape of the black slaves on the plantations. These fugitive slaves killed all the whites they saw, destroyed the tools in the plantations, burned down the warehouses, and dealt an irreparable blow to the colonial economy. And the governor and the kingdom still have no good solution to this.

You still have to solve the problem on your own!

Blanco sighed, for now he could only find a way from these Orientals. However, the thought of the greed and cunning of these people gave Blanco a little headache, and he hoped that they would not make any excessive conditions. Expecting them to send mercenaries into Brazil to fight was slim in Blanco's eyes, but at least get them to agree to sell some weapons to make up for General Marannon's huge losses in the previous fiasco. Before leaving, Blanco rushed to Rio de Janeiro to meet His Excellency the Governor, who authorized him to agree to the terms that the Tatars had last proposed if necessary.

Blanco had already been to Tartan Harbour once, so this time he rode into the city along the Shugang Highway with ease. The city of Tartan Harbour is bustling with activity, with many old wooden buildings being demolished and replaced by a large number of red brick houses.

The whole city seems to be expanding as well. The original urban area was small, confined to the perimeter of only 1,500 meters, and after two years of development, it was no longer sufficient. Many new buildings have been built along the periphery of the western and northern walls, including residential houses, shops, craftsmen's workshops, foreign merchants' houses, and so on. Blanco could see that the Tatars were preparing to expand the city walls, and the direction of expansion should be to the west and north. The scale of this expansion is likely to be large, and the size of the new city may be several times the size of the old city in the future.

What a majestic city! It's only been two years, and it's incredible. Blanco shook his head and continued down the street towards the city center.

The flow of people on the streets is not as exaggerated as it was the last time I arrived, but it is clear that the Tatar business has flourished in recent months, with cowhides, blankets, cured meats, cottage cheeses from La Plata, and sugar, tobacco, feathers, and dried fruits from Brazil everywhere in the shops. This illustrates, on the one hand, the prosperity of the smuggling trade, and on the other hand, the increasing purchasing power of the inhabitants of the port of Tatantan.

Crossing the cross street, the Blanco duo came to the administration building again. His request for an audience was quickly answered, and an Oriental who claimed to be the foreign secretary ushered them into the office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the building.

The office was small in size, with whitewashed walls and crudely made tables and chairs, and a staff of only three or five people. Gao Mo, the foreign affairs commissioner with whom he had dealt last time, was waiting for him with a smile on his face.

Blanco and Carlos stepped forward to shake hands a little helplessly, and the atmosphere was a little silent for a while.

"Ha Lu Ha." Gaumo smiled, broke the silence, and said, "Thank you, Mr. Blanco Almeida, for bringing two ships of coal, this is the material we need, and you have contributed to our cause. Say, friend, what do you need us to do? Friends should help each other. ”

Blanco secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but he still automatically filtered out the part about "friends" that Gaumore said. He thought for a moment, then spoke: "Could your company consider sending a mercenary army into Bahia to fight the Pernambuco region?" All costs arising therefrom will be paid by the Governor of Bahia. ”

"No, it can't be." Gao Mo refused without thinking about it. What are you kidding, how can we fill such a big quagmire in Brazil with such a few guns. Moreover, it was still to fight across the sea to the northeast of Brazil without sea supremacy. To put it mildly, this person wants to come back as soon as he goes, when we are fools, just for that little money?

"What if we formally contract to recognize your company's claim to the area south of the Gérard Mountains, and at the same time migrate from the Ming Kingdom to the port of Tatar?" Blanco didn't give up and continued to increase his weight.

Gaumore was still shaking his head.

It seems that it is impossible to enter the war directly, and Blanco has long expected this outcome. Then settle for the next best thing and buy arms. "Can you sell us some ordnance such as muskets, plate armor, sabers, and cannons?"

Gao Mo was also authorized by the Executive Committee before. He was well aware of the policy of the Executive Committee, which was that it was okay to support covertly, to go directly to the war without negotiating, and that the Portuguese had to pay enough benefits.

"Then let's have a frank conversation." Gao Mo said to Blanco: "The steel cannon is impossible in the short term, our battery is being reequipped recently, and we don't have the energy to take care of the outside business for the time being." However, the bronze cannons and cast iron cannons that have been eliminated can be sold to you, ranging from 3 pounds to 24 pounds, and the number is close to 20, and the price is calculated with a certain amount of depreciation, so it will be converted according to the market price. Arquebuses can also be sold to you in batches, probably no more than 300 pieces; The production plan for the saber is now scheduled for the next year, but I will ask the Executive Committee to give you a part of the order from others, and the number will not exceed 300. As for plate armor, it's not that it can't be sold, but I want to know what you can give, and I mean something other than money, and I think you understand what I mean. ”

Blanco secretly calculated that there were 20 guns of various types, 300 arquebuses and sabers, and maybe even bulletproof plate armor that was hard to come by. At a time when the coastline was harassed by the Dutch and the transportation of supplies was becoming increasingly difficult, this munition was of great significance and should greatly improve the plight faced by the soldiers on the front line.

"Yes, I see what you mean." Blanco made up his mind and spoke, "As you would expect, the Governor of Bahia has authorized me to decide whether or not to send a letter to the Governor of Goa in the East Indies as the case may be, after the deal has been concluded, asking him to use his power in the East to recruit immigrants from the Ming to the port of Tartan in the New World to open up the land. ”

"How many immigrants can you immigrate each year?" Gaumo asked.

"I can't guarantee that." "It depends on the effectiveness of the Governor of Goa's work in Macau and in the country, as well as the conditions of the seas and the harassment of pirates, but there should be no less than two ships a year carrying migrants to the port of Tatan." ”

Two ships. It's acceptable, it's better than nothing. Gaumo thought for a moment and asked, "What about the plains west of Lake Patus and south of the Gérard Mountains?" Don't talk nonsense with me, you don't have a single colony in this place, there are only wastelands and Indians, and you have no reason to claim sovereignty over them. All we have to do now is to confirm with you the demarcation of the border, so that there will be no controversy in the future. ”

"It's up to you to be sincere." Blanco suddenly laughed, as long as the other party asked for something, he was afraid that he had no desire and no desire. "Actually, I'm curious, as you said, that place is indeed a wild place. And it's also very far away from the port of Tatartan, do you have the population and strength to colonize now? Maybe there's something there that appeals to you? ”

"You don't have to bother with this." Gao Mo replied without leaking, "Please sign an agreement with us as soon as possible." ”

"How much of your plate armor can you sell us?"

"You?! Why did it come to this again, we still have to discuss this. ”

……

After some verbal debate, the two sides finally reached an agreement. On behalf of the East Coast Company, Gaumo signed the Treaty of Secret Mutual Assistance in the Port of Tartan with Blanco, the representative of the Portuguese Governor of Bahia. The main contents of the treaty included: the East Coast Company secretly sold to the Portuguese 20 guns of various types, 300 arquebuses, 300 sabers, and 50 plates of armor per month; In return, the Governor of Bahia confirmed the area west of Lake Patus and south of the Gérard Mountains as the territory of the Company on the eastern coast, and also guaranteed that at least two galleons of no less than 300 tons from the East would arrive in the port of Tartan every year. Of course, the Portuguese also had an obligation to keep this secret transaction secret. ”