There is a wooden fence in front of the gate of Geranza, and Chinese entering and leaving the castle line up in front of the gate. Perhaps the biggest difference between Taiwan and the Southeast Asian colonies is that the ethnic identity of the residents is very simple, and most of them are Chinese.

Chen Shouxu, Maiden, and Munda walked past the Chinese queue and met Ramel in front of the castle gate. After introducing each other and exchanging pleasantries, Lamel led the way into the castle of Gerancha. The first floor of the fortress is the largest, including the annexed city, and this level is mainly used for prisons and warehouses.

The Dutch used a lot of iron in the storehouse, and if you add the syrup used to mix the building materials, the Dutch would have spent a lot of money in the castle of Geranza. The cost of the earthwork unit of the Fort of Geranza is more than 20 times that of the fortress of the Ming Dynasty. Chen Shouxu's point of view is very simple, fighting a war is fighting for money, and cheap must not be good. So don't look at the area of the castle is not as large as the Ming Dynasty's guards, and the defenders are only a thousand people, but the energy contained in it is far more than the ordinary Ming Dynasty fortress.

On the second floor of the castle, the Orange flag flutters in front of the Taiwan Governor's Office. Seeing that there were still some buildings on this floor that were not completed, Shou Xu asked about Rumier beside him.

"That's the hospital, which started construction last year." ”

Shou Xun nodded secretly, in a region close to the tropics like Taiwan, the number of sick people in the army must not be small. Hospitals, as the most important departments, have not yet been built. And it seems that there are not many workers on the construction site. This is interesting, is Taiwan's finances not optimistic?

When I entered the Governor's Office, I met Paulus, the number one leader in Taiwan. Trodenius. To Chen Shouxu's surprise, Trodenius was fluent in Chinese and could switch between Mandarin and Hokkien at will, which is rare among high-level Dutchmen.

Munda introduced to Chen Shouxu, "Chief Trodenius has been in Taiwan for many years and is very popular with Chinese businessmen. ”

Trodenius stretched out his hand to Chen Shouxu and shook it: "I am honored to have many Chinese friends, Your Excellency Shouxu, and I hope we can also become friends." ”

Order: "That's what I'm here for. ”

Maiden listened to Trodenius and asked about his hometown, "Mr. Trodenius is a Gouda?" ”

Trodenius: "Yes, I'm proud. Has Mr. Maiden been to my hometown? ”

"I can't forget the taste of Gouda cheese." ”

Trodenius is proud that "Gouda's cheese is the best in Europe. ”

After a few more pleasantries, Ramel led the group to the conference room.

The negotiations began with the smell of gunpowder, and Ramel spoke first, "Your Excellency, the Jincheng under your control is frequently engaged in huge trade activities with China, which is in direct competition with our senior officers. ”

Maiden calmly replied to him, "Mr. Lamayr, as far as I know, the board of directors of your company has issued an order to Batavia prohibiting you from using force to intercept Chinese merchant ships trading at sea. Except for those ships that sailed to Manila. ”

The Dutch did not do a good job of secrecy in the East Indies, and the scattered trading stations and the employees of the money-eyed companies leaked out all sorts of information like a big colander. Soon after the construction of the castle of Geranza, the Portuguese in Macao obtained the complete drawings of the fortifications and the firepower system. The Dutch inadvertently intercepted a Portuguese merchant ship transporting Geranza drawings to Manila, which made the officials nervous.

Trade intelligence is much easier to obtain than military secrets. Batavia had a permit system in which it sought to intercept all Chinese merchant ships going to sea and detain cargo without the permission of the Dutch. Amsterdam did not support Batavia's actions.

"Mr. Executive, I think we should face this issue with frankness. Your company's sea dominance in Asia has never been strong enough to monopolize trade in the Asian seas. With the exception of the East Indies, you did not have much control over the Chinese merchant ships bound for Japan, Siam, and Quang Nam, and even Manila could not stop the flourishing trade in large sails. ”

The facts are obvious, and there is no need for Trodenius to deny that "we really can't intercept all Chinese merchant ships, but we can deter them." Every Chinese merchant ship that goes to sea should understand that there is a risk before setting off, and if it is not for Dayuan and Batavia, their cargo will be confiscated by us at any time. ”

Maiden sneered, "Sir Trodenius, like you, we have a dual identity, a merchant and a warrior. Jincheng believes in free trade and is determined to defend our goals by force. ”

Ramel said proudly: "We are 100 times stronger than you. ”

"I climbed the towering Galen building of the Spaniards in a dinghy in the Caribbean, and the Spaniards are a hundred times stronger than us in the Americas. ”

Seeing that the atmosphere was a little stiff, Munda made a round, "Ladies and gentlemen, on this issue, Jincheng and Mr. Van Dimen have reached an agreement. Jincheng's largest sales target now is the United East India Company. And they brought a lot of silver, and they also purchased a lot of supplies from Batavia. ”

Ramel said explicitly, "Batavia has Batavia's position, and Taiwan has Taiwan's." ”

Facing the senior merchant of the East India Company, Maiden's tone was still very calm, "Mr. Ramel, have you been to Lüzen?" ”

Ramel shook his head, "I haven't been to Germany. ”

Trodenius turned to look at Maiden, "Where Gustav and Wallenstein will show?" ”

"Hundreds of cannons roared across the battlefield, shells flew in the air, and it was the Grim Reaper wielding a scythe. A peasant from the countryside or a hereditary aristocracy, there is no difference between a rookie who has just entered the battlefield and a warrior who is skilled in martial arts. With each swing of the Scythe of Death, the sound of cannons, shouts, and swords play a complex requiem. On that afternoon of blood and fire, thousands of young soldiers fell to the battlefield, they were so young. Blood flowed in the earth and mixed with the soil. The cold quickly froze the body, whether he came from the Protestant or Catholic side. "My comrades and I have survived from Lützen, Mr. Lamail, and if you have been to Lützen, you should understand that there is no war in this world that we are afraid of. ”

Chen Shouxu praised Maiden in his heart, and saw that the two Dutch hillbillies of Trodenius and Rumel were a little stupid when they heard it, so he said, "Mr. Administrator, Mr. Merchant, war is always a costly act, and many times there is no real winner, and both sides will lose more than they gain. China has huge production capacity and a bottomless consumer market. Business is inexhaustible, and we hope to become a real trading partner with your company. ”

Trodenius clenched his fist at his lips and coughed lightly, "Your Excellency, I appreciate your attitude towards free trade. But we'll have to define freedom a little bit. ”

Shou Xuan nodded, "I understand your position, freedom needs to be bound by law. At present, we are mainly exploring the Guangzhou market. ”

Ramel also came to his senses, "You can't meddle in the business between Fujian and Japan. If you get something that the company is interested in, you must sell it to us at a reasonable price. ”

"We'll make a reasonable profit, Mr. Merchant, I'm just worried that you don't have enough money to procure our goods." "To have a stable family, Chen Shouxuan actually can't ask for it, Jincheng's manpower in Taiwan will be very limited in the early stage, and the energy will not be all focused on trade, and the Dutch are willing to buy all of him, which just saves the sales work.

The existence of the port of Jincheng may regulate Chinese merchant ships in the South Seas, and at the same time deal a heavy blow to the local Malay maritime merchants. The latter was the enemy that the Dutch were most desperate to destroy. Van Diemon was thinking about how he could get more cheap goods from China to ship to Japan and Europe, and there were some differences between his position and that of the big guys. The work of the order was to dispel this surprise, and he began a tirade of flickering.

Trodenius expressed cautious optimism, "If you can get more Chinese goods, I will personally welcome you." ”

Shou Xu smiled, "Mr. Chief Executive, you have to admit a reality. Your company can't eat all the cakes, you need collaborators everywhere. I am a Chinese, and you are a China expert. China is huge. China's internal trade logistics rely heavily on their vast inland river system, the Yangtze River and the Pearl River. Fujian, on the other hand, is actually a closed province within them. Fujian has no inland rivers to connect with their richest and most expensive provinces, which makes it impossible to ship many products or is very expensive to transship by land and sea. ”

Trodenius: "Indeed, I have to admit that you have an advantage over us in terms of opening the door to trade with China and getting more goods. Mr. Van Dimen may have seen this and worked with you. ”

Orderly: "We can work together to make the cake bigger." I use Guangzhou as an example, Guangzhou's policy is the opposite of Fujian, which does not welcome outsiders into Hong Kong, and only allows us to buy from agents in a centralized manner. Guangdong, on the other hand, is open to the country and welcomes door-to-door trade. But we all know that Canton's foreign trade was actually dominated by the Portuguese and Spaniards. Macau instigated Canton to go to war with the British East India Company, and even your company did not have a stable trading channel in Guangdong. We have the strength and the connection, and we are standardizing Guangzhou's trade. ”

Trodenius shook his head, "The trade in Canton is a matter of concern to Mr. Van Dimen, and I, as the chief executive of Taiwan, only care about whether the senior officials can get more raw silk, cotton, gold, and porcelain than before. ”

Chen Shouxu thought for a moment and asked, "Do you have a map of China?" ”

Trodenius nodded, and pulled out a large map of China from the cabinet. At the level of the 17th century, the map is relatively accurate, and the extent is generally correct. Europeans are very serious about doing things, and they have seen Hu Zongxian's compilation of "Preparing for the Sea Chart", and the relative positions on the map are correct, but the style is very freehand. It is estimated that even the court of the Ming Emperor would not have a more accurate map of China's coastline than the Dutch.

"Qiantang River Estuary, Yangtze River Estuary." "These two estuaries are the center of gravity of China's trade, and in contrast, Zhangzhou Yuegang doesn't have the ability to radiate inland. ”

"We know the Qiantang River and the Yangtze River, and if you can open the door to China's real country, I am very much looking forward to it." ”

Shou Xiang flickered about the future prospects, and then said: "Our country is far away in the South Seas, and in order to open China's door, we need to have a foothold in Taiwan as a route relay." And you need us to expel the Spaniards from Taipei, and that's what we're here for. ”

Ramiel's attitude was slightly better at this time, "Your Excellency, as my commander said. If you can get more Chinese raw silk, we have no objection to you occupying Taipei. ”

Shou Xuan smiled, "Things always come step by step. For your company, the Spaniards, now entrenched in Taipei, are enemies, and we are trading partners. That's progress. A little bit of progress every day and things get better. ”

"I wish you success," Ramel said. After you occupy Taipei, I need to set up a merchant house in Tamsui. ”

Orderly: "If it's an ordinary merchant house, there's no problem with that. "The Dutch East India Company was an unarmed merchant house in most parts of Asia, and they had a total army of 7,8000 men in Asia, and it was impossible to send troops everywhere. If possible, Shou Zhi wished that the British would also set up a business hall in Taipei, thinking about the huge demand for tea in Europe, Shou Zhi would leave his saliva behind. Tea is simply a cheat in the Celestial Empire's sea trade. There were substitutes for raw silk and porcelain and other producing countries, and the Celestial Empire was invincible in the tea trade. It's just that it's not possible for the time being. Perhaps the Westphalian Pact will be signed and Europe will be able to establish a long-term diplomatic system.

Ramel and Trodenius looked at each other, "Then I don't have a problem." ”

There was not much dispute between the two sides over the division of spheres of influence after the war, although the island of Taiwan was not large, there was no reliable ring road system at this time, and Tainan and Taipei had to rely on sea routes for transportation, which were actually two isolated islands cut off by forests and rivers. The actual control of the Dutch in Tainan was only 15 miles north and south of the city of Geranza, plus the Beinan community in Taitung. Trodenius expanded a little to the south, but only extended his influence to Langjiao.

Between Tainan and Taipei, there is also the strongest indigenous regime on the island, the Potbelly Kingdom, which happens to be a buffer zone between the two sides.

Trodenius called in a young man, "This is Mr. Witherling, the junior merchant of the company. ”

After Withering greeted everyone, Trodenius said: "Mr. Withering is a very good young man, he often goes deep into the indigenous areas to explore, and deals with those dangerous headhunters, he is the person who is most familiar with Taiwan in the company. Let him introduce to you the situation in Taiwan. ”

Maiden asked Withering curiously, "Mr. Witherling, what is the purpose of your communication with those headhunters?" He knew that Taiwan was a priority for the Dutch in terms of human resource allocation. Munda introduced that Batavia has sent many young cadres with pioneering spirit to Taiwan, and Van Dimen has specially reported to Amsterdam that the middle-level posts in Taiwan are all configured with one post and two people. At such a young age, it is rare for Weatherine to embark on the mainstream channel of promotion to the East India Company, which is a merchant.

Withering pulled out a piece of rough gold from his bag, "Mr. Maiden, for the gold." ”

It's human nature to chase gold.

"Mr. Wesseline explored possible gold mines all over the island, and he was almost killed by the natives of Lang Jiao not long ago. When the prefect of Trodenius heard this, he immediately sent an army to take revenge on the natives there. ”

Weatherine saluted Trodenius, "Thank you, sir, for your concern for me. ”

Trodenius waved his hand, "I heard the news of Witherling's killing, and I am saddened by the loss of such a good young man for the company. But to all of us, Mr. Witherling's ability to escape from the butcher's knife of the natives was truly a legendary adventure. ”

Shou Order's heart moved, could it be that the Dutch already knew about the Jinguashi mining area in Taipei? These Dutchmen are really good at surveying geography.

"I'm mainly exploring the Tainan and Taitung areas. Tamsui had only been there once, and had seen the natives mining gold there, and it was a dangerous experience that almost cost him his life. The local natives are so strong that they forbid outsiders from entering the mines. ”

Maiden asked, "Isn't freshwater the territory of the Spaniards?" ”

Weatherine pulled out a map, "Our company surveyed in detail the Spanish castle in Taipei in 1629. Their castle in Tamsui was called Santo Domingo, and there was originally a garrison of about 100 people, and there were 2 priests who were stationed in Tamsui to preach. ”

"The Spaniards never reached our control in Taiwan, and their colonies suffered heavy losses. They are in danger of being killed even if they leave the city in Tamsui. They had to rely on supplies such as used clothes to buy food from the natives. Six years ago, the natives attacked their food convoy out of the city, killing 12 soldiers. The Spaniards retaliated against the natives of Tamsui after the incident, but they were outnumbered and, after killing several natives, burned the city of Santo Domingo and withdrew their troops to the chicken coop. ”

Trodenius said: "Thanks to you. Your help to the Sulu people allowed the Sulu people to launch a massive counterattack against the enemy on the island of Mindanao (Mindanao). Manila was forced to pull more troops from Taiwan this year, and now they have just over 100 troops left in chicken coops. ”

"You can also get help from the natives of Freshwater, who have very poor relations with the Spaniards. ”

Trodenius sighed, "Originally, we only needed a little assistance from Batavia to take the chicken coop. It's all cheap for you now. ”

Orderly corrected his opinion, "It's a win-win, Mr. Trodenius." Since the Spaniards lost money in the colony of Taipei, and as far as I know, there was very heavy rainfall, and tropical diseases were prevalent. I don't think you're much better than the Spaniards, the army needs to be spended, and the castle needs to be maintained. To be honest, I don't think you can afford to invest in the development of gold mines. That requires a huge amount of manpower. We bear these costs, and the gold that is mined will also be used to buy supplies. You see, everybody has money to make. ”