Chapter 105 Approaching Lisbon Zheng Zhi Longyu Fights the Ministers

To say that the current King João IV of Portugal is really a great king, and later generations call him the "Restoration".

In the Liberian Peninsula, there has been a long-term rivalry between the Arab and Christian powers. First of all, the Liberian Peninsula was occupied by the Arabs, and later the Christian forces drove the *** forces out of the Liberian Peninsula, and in the process two countries were formed, Portugal and Spain.

In 1580, Portugal's once glorious Aviz dynasty lost power, and King Philip II of Spain insisted that he had half Portuguese royal blood, so that the rule of the Iberian Peninsula returned to the hands of a country, and during the 60 years of the Habsburg dynasty, Portugal was dragged into several wars, the worst of which was the defeat of the Spanish Portuguese Armada to England in 1588 AD, and the Portuguese Empire gradually disappeared after these years. In 1640, João IV, who rebelled against Spain against the Bragonça dynasty of Portugal, declared independence, and in order to resist Spain's maintenance of national independence, he once again traveled long distances to reconcile with England. Spain, of course, was unwilling to let Portugal become independent like this, and launched several wars against Portugal, but they were defeated by the army commanded by João IV. This is also one of the reasons why the colonies of Macao and Ceylon were recaptured by the Ming Dynasty, and he did not make up his mind to send troops.

He also needs to set aside a lot of strength to deal with the Spaniards.

Mu Yi and Zheng Zhilong are also clear about these situations, and they know that when they attack Portugal, Spain will not send troops to interfere. At least initially, Spain will still see jokes.

When the expeditionary fleet of Yaogang was close to the mouth of the Tejo River, Mu Yi, Zheng Zhilong, and all the people who could leave the boat came to the deck, and those who were looking forward to the telescope were looking at the coast. At this time, there were more ships around the Yaogang fleet. At dawn, many passing ships realized that there were so many huge ships emitting black smoke next to their ship. I have long heard that in the Ming Dynasty far away in the east, there were many very powerful ships powered by steam emitting black smoke, and many of their armed merchant ships were sunk by them. The first reaction of these passing ships when they found the ship in Yaogang was to flee immediately, and the farther they fled, the safer they felt. However, the two fast dhows that came out of the Tejo estuary to patrol found the Yaogang warship, they could not run, but turned around and went back to deliver the letter, they saw that their ship could not fight against the Yaogang warship, and it was too late to report the news.

Since Portugal and Spain were still at war, the army reacted quickly, and the sound of artillery was heard on the pier, which quickly reported to the palace, and at the same time, more than a dozen warships of more than 1,000 tons on combat duty sailed out of the port. They thought they were going to fight the Spanish ships!

Originally, Mu Yi had ordered the fleet to stop near the mouth of the Tagus River, and wanted to send a ship ashore to send a letter to the King of Portugal, requesting to go ashore for business.

But he didn't have time to put down the boat. The lookout reported that there were many large ships coming from the direction of the estuary, and it was estimated that they were large warships.

Zheng Zhilong smiled and said to Mu Yi: "Little Francois saw that we were working hard from afar, so he sent someone to pick us up, right?" ”

"Think beautifully!" Mu Yi said, "But starting a war without saying anything doesn't seem to be in line with our habits!" ”

"Come on! How many ships we sank, can you remember? People remember it! Zheng Zhilong said, "We also order, let our ships get ready!" ”

"Give the order! Inform everyone that you are not allowed to fire first without our orders! Mu Yi said, "Let's set up a horizontal line to meet the enemy!" ”

Several warships in Yaogang quickly lined up against the Portuguese fleet.

The Portuguese fleet was also very experienced, and they set up a goose-shaped team and rushed over.

Zheng Zhilong said: "Damn, these people are desperate when they come up!" ”

At this time, the Portuguese also found that the situation was wrong, the big ships in front were simply too big, and they were all emitting black smoke, not the Spanish warships, this was the legendary Ming Dynasty fleet. But they don't understand how the fleet of the Ming Dynasty in the Far East came here, they occupied Macao, many imperial colonies in Ceylon, and sank many of our ships, how dare they come here, do they still dare to attack our Portugal.

At this time, the commander of the Portuguese flotilla did not know whether to advance or retreat. He vaguely felt in his heart that it would be difficult for his fleet to deal with such a large ship as large as a mountain, but if he retreated, the door of Lisbon would be wide open.

The flagship commander of the flotilla, gave the order to fire warning shots into the air!

Two cannons rang out on the warship in front, and the cannonballs shot into the distance, Mu Yi said to Zheng Zhilong, "Fortunately, they don't want to fight, the cannons are fired in the distance!" Kind of warning shot! ”

Zheng Zhilong said: "Hang the flag and inform them that we are not here to fight, but to do business!" ”

After a while, the Portuguese lowered a dinghy and rowed over.

Zheng Zhilong went over and asked people to lower the gangway, and several Portuguese officers climbed up the gangway lightly, obviously they were strictly trained.

When he came to the ship, he greeted them and introduced them: "This is General Mu Yi and this is General Zheng Zhilong, they are the chief and deputy commanders of our fleet. ”

An officer said: "I am Captain Juan, and I have been ordered to warn you that you have entered the territorial waters of the Portuguese Empire!" Please exit here, you cannot enter here without the permission of our Empire! Also, what are you doing here from the far east? ”

"We are just as good as your ships when they arrived in our Ming Dynasty, and we are all engaged in trade. It's a trade that's good for both of us! Zheng Zhilong said, "We don't know, you still have rules that require your permission to come in." As far as I know, your ship didn't apply to us to enter the Ming Dynasty! ”

"The rules are set by our mighty Portuguese Empire, and you only have to obey them!" This Juan is still very imposing.

After listening to his words, Mu Yi looked at Zheng Zhilong and said, "You are not qualified to tell us this, we have a letter to your king here, please bring it to your king." Go back! ”

As he spoke, an officer handed a letter to Juan. Captain Juan, who was domineering, immediately turned the color of pig liver when he heard this, and muttered, "You will regret it!" "I went down the gangway and rowed down to the boat.

The captain Juan returned to their flagship and told the captain how he had been humiliated by the Ming Dynasty, but he did not dare not take out the letter that the Ming Dynasty was going to send to the king.

As soon as the captain heard it, he understood that the Ming Dynasty didn't want to fight, if they wanted to fight, and these big ships suddenly rushed into the port to attack them, then the defenders on the bank of the Portuguese navy would have unimaginable losses.

The captain immediately sent the clipper ashore to deliver the letter to the king. Their fleet still didn't dare to leave here, and they confronted the Yaogang fleet.

Knowing what to do next, he needed to wait for the reply from King Franco (Portugal), Mu Yi said to Zheng Zhilong: "The climate here is really good, if only I could go ashore and watch their bullfights!" ”

"Commander Mu is in a good mood! However, there are not daily bullfights in the small Francos (Portugal). Zheng Zhilong said jokingly, "Does Commander Mu know the difference between the little Francophone (Portugal) and the Francophone (Spain) bullfighting?" ”

"Oh! It's not the same, Lao Zheng said let's talk about it! ”

"The Francois (Spain) people have to kill the bull, but the little Francois (Portuguese) bullfighting is more civilized, they just need to knock the bull down!" Zheng Zhilong said.

"Hey! Did you learn your Franco guitar from Franco? Mu Yi asked with great interest.

"Yes! When you were a pirate, you didn't have to learn anything from them! They have the advantage of not forgetting to sing and dance no matter what time it is! Zheng Zhilong said.

King João IV of Portugal, who faintly heard the sound of cannons from the sea in the palace, sent someone out to ask, saying that more than a dozen warships on combat duty had gone out to meet the battle, and many sailors were gathering on the dock, and a large number of warships would soon go out to fight. It is estimated that our patrol ship spotted the Spanish warship, and they opened fire to warn them.

"Damn it!" Joao IV scolded, "Send someone to check if there is any change in the Spaniards on the other side of the border!" ”

"Yes!" Come and go.

After waiting anxiously for a while, the expected sound of cannon fire at sea had not come, and Joao IV sent someone out to ask if there was any news on the sea.

But after a while, someone came to the palace to report that the fleet that went out to meet met the fleet of the Ming Dynasty from the east. At the same time, he presented a letter written to him by the Ming Dynasty.

When Joao IV heard this, he was startled, and said in his heart, "I haven't sent anyone to look for you, but you dare to come to Portugal, and you are really looking for death!" ”

João IV opened the letter and saw that it was written in Portuguese and Chinese characters.

Dear His Majesty,

We are a fleet of naval forces and merchant ships of the Ming Dynasty. I have come here with the will of peace and friendship to engage in trade with your country that is beneficial to both of us. Please allow our fleet to dock for fair trade. Our fleet in your country fully respects the implementation of your country's laws. We hope that your port will be open to us as a commercial port, allowing us to set up our own trading shops and ticket numbers to serve the merchants of our two countries.

In fact, there is no big problem with this letter, but the problem is that the Portuguese concession in Macao was taken back by the Ming Dynasty by force, and many of their armed merchant ships were sunk. Could it be that the people of the Ming Dynasty thought that we would forget about it, or that they had forgotten about it? Besides, if the Ming Dynasty had built shops here, they would have earned the high profits from the goods shipped from the East, and they would not have been allowed to build shops in Portugal in any way. He still didn't understand what the ticket number of the kiln gang man meant. However, the Ming Dynasty armed them with warships and drove them here, did they really think that they could rely on the threat of force to achieve their goals.

"Humph!" Thinking of this, Joao IV sneered, "Someone! ”

The servant came, and Joao IV said, "Ladies and gentlemen, please take matters into account!" ”

After a while, the ladies came to the palace.

Joao IV showed the letter sent by the Ming Dynasty to everyone, and asked, "Look, how do we answer them?" ”

One of the adults said, "No matter how you answer, they can't be allowed to build any shops here!" That would ruin our seafaring trade! ”

"Also, since they dare to come here, we must first ask the barbarian Orientals to compensate us for the sunken merchant ships, as well as the loss of the colony!"

"Yes, we can't let them go! They thought that a few big ships would threaten us, and they didn't know how many warships we were waiting for them! ”

"We should send all our ships and besiege them and let them know how good we are!"

"Let's just take a few of their warships and see how they use steam to drive the big ships? Their ship is said to be able to sail against the wind? ”

"This is a great opportunity!"

“”

Everyone talked about it, and none of them took the Ming Dynasty fleet seriously, which made Joao IV feel a little uneasy, and he had already sent back from the east to know that the Ming Dynasty's Yaogang warships were very powerful, and the warships of all countries had suffered their losses, and they had nothing to do with them. Many of the Dutch's colonies of the Dutch, Xiaoliuqiu, Francian (Spaniards), were seized by them, and they did not come up with any way, nor did they dare to retaliate. Now that they have come here, it is likely that they are really not afraid of their own fleet. These adults can show heroism because they don't have to be responsible, they just have to talk about it, but they have to deal with the person in charge of the country. But you can't be unbrave, and in that case, the council won't agree.

Thinking of this, João IV said: "Your opinion is the same as mine. However, we can't act rashly, I think we should send someone to talk to them first! Here we are all out of our warships to surround them! Don't fire lightly, though! Let's see the results of the negotiations! ”

"I agree to talk to them first! However, I think I'm going to invite them here to talk! "Someone said.

"Yes, let them come here, with our coastal fortress batteries and rows of warships, let's beat their spirit first!"

"That's good! Just ask them to send someone over and talk! João IV agreed.

When the Portuguese sent a letter inviting them to go ashore for negotiations, Zheng Zhilong said to Mu Yi: "Okay! Commander Mu, I'll meet them! ”

"No, Lao Zheng! Send one! Anyway, it can't be discussed, and it's just a formality to talk about it. You see, are there more and more Portuguese ships? Mu Yi didn't agree with Zheng Zhilong to take the risk.

"Huh! Commander Mu, I am all too familiar with them. Ah, it's best for me to go. Don't worry, I've seen all the storms and waves, and I will definitely get out! We have to go into the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea together! Zheng Zhilong insisted on going. In fact, Mu Yi and Zheng Zhilong both knew that it was most appropriate for Zheng Zhilong to go, and he could make decisions on the spot on many things. In addition, Zheng Zhilong has done Portuguese communication, and he does not need to negotiate with them. Another point is that Zheng Zhilong is a Catholic, and he is easily accessible to the Portuguese.

In order to prevent accidents, Zheng Zhilong, who was full of martial arts, in addition to a sword, also hid a pistol, and took a few officials who followed Portugal to the dock on a small boat. He followed the Portuguese to the royal palace.

Ruo Ao IV heard the rumor that the person who came was the famous Zheng Yiguan of the Ming Dynasty, and he was shocked, but they knew that there was such a ** person in Fujian in the Ming Dynasty, no matter whose ship it was, they had to pay protection money, otherwise it would be difficult to ensure the safety of the ship, this is a rich and invincible figure. Ruo Ao IV was a little puzzled by how such a ** character could come here and be in danger alone?

Joao IV discussed with a few adults, and in any case, he still had to invite someone to come in.

Zheng Zhilong understood his weight in the eyes of these people, and when he came in, he saluted the king and said in fluent Portuguese: "Meet Your Majesty!" ”

"Excuse me, General Yihong! We've known you for a long time! When Joao IV saw Zheng Zhilong, he politely said, "However, we have heard that you Nikolai. Yiguan has been in the Fujian area of the Ming Dynasty, did he come to us this time to collect protection money? ”

In the previous words, what Joao IV said was polite, and what he said was a bit sarcastic.

Zheng Zhilong didn't give it in vain, and he didn't fight back on the spot, "Your Majesty, we came here this time with good wishes for peace and good intentions to trade with the Portuguese people. I think our trade will bring benefits to both peoples! ”

"Did you come with cannons to trade?" Before the king could reply, one of the ministers asked.

"Does this adult think it's strange? Excuse me, did the armed merchant ships of Portugal dare to go to sea without artillery? Zheng Zhilong asked politely, "I, Zheng Zhilong, have been at sea for so many years, and I haven't seen a merchant ship without cannons!" ”

Another minister asked: "We were occupied by your Ming Dynasty forces in Macao, and we sank many of our merchant ships. Have you forgotten this, or do you think we have forgotten? ”

"You won't forget it, and we won't forget it!" Zheng Zhilong said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Macao was originally the place of our Ming Dynasty, and you occupied it for a period of time, and I was baptized in Macao." However, you are not doing business well in Macao, and you have sent people everywhere to arrest our people and sell them as slaves, and our court should take it back. When it comes to sinking merchant ships, we have also sunk merchant ships by you. But we can't always remember the hatred and not look forward, then we don't get along with each other, and we all lose a lot. This time, we will abandon our previous suspicions and continue to do good business. I also want to tell you that as long as you don't carry weapons, we in the Ming Dynasty and all the ports in the South Seas welcome you to trade activities, and we guarantee your safety! ”

Joao IV couldn't stand it anymore, and slapped the table and shouted: "Did you sink so many of our merchant ships and take away so many of our colonies, so that's it?" ”