To the disappointment of the pirates, as they moved farther away from Puerto Rico, there were fewer Spanish ships. Along the way, they only managed to rob a Danish ship near the Virgin Islands and barely managed to divert some of the cargo.

Further on, this situation is becoming more and more obvious, it is not that there are no boats, Chen Shouxu now looks around, there are no less than ten boats within visual distance. Unfortunately, the flagpole is not the Dutch tricolor or the English St. George's flag. This situation gave the pirates the feeling that it was like a lion killing a flock and not being able to keep its mouth shut.

The resentment of the sailors was accumulating, but William on the Mary made a rare indication. Chen Shouxu thought he would rush into the Banshee's stern to vent his displeasure.

After sailing out of the Virgin Islands, Grover ordered a voyage to St. Maarten. Sint Maarten was originally a Dutch colony, along with the surrounding islands of Sint Eustatius and Saba, and was located on the route relay points of Recife, Curacao and New Amsterdam in New Netherland. The Spaniards, who were home to the most prosperous and wealthy part of the New World, had nothing to look down on this desolate island. But a few years ago, the French and Dutch West India Companies fought a small battle on Sint Maarten to draw the attention of the Spaniards to the existence of such an island in the Leeward Islands. Since Sint Maarten caused the Netherlands to compete with France, it must have played a good role. So the Spanish sent warships to capture the whole island in one fell swoop, driving away all the Dutch and French.

There are no boats to grab, and it would be nice to grab an island like St. Martin!

Sint Maarten is 37 square miles and the island is full of lakes and mountains. During the occupation by the Dutch, some salt mines were operated in the south of the island to subsidize the economy. The salt mines were of no use to the Spaniards, and they did not need such a rudimentary naval base in the Caribbean, where the best islands in the entire Caribbean were theirs.

Sint Maarten was important to the Dutch, as the bays in the southern part of the island could anchor large ships, the lakes could provide sufficient fresh water for the Dutch fleet sailing from South America to North America, and the small area could provide food and vegetables for the fleet. However, compared with Spain, the Dutch West India Company was weak, and its main strength was to compete with Portugal for Brazil in Recife, and although it launched several counterattacks, it was never able to drive the Spaniards away.

The pirate fleet sailed into the bay, and the officers watched with binoculars.

The Spanish stronghold was Fort Amsterdam, built during the Dutch colonization. It was not a fortress, but a three-storey circular fort, flanked by a regular brick house, supposed to be a barracks and warehouse, surrounded by a thin enclosure outside which some black slaves could be seen at work. Roughly counted, there were about 20 large and small cannons. A very common colonial stronghold, at a normal level, the fort should have an army of more than 100 men.

Grover hesitated. If you drag 10 of the 8-pounder and 4-pounder guns on board ashore and detour back behind the battery, it is not impossible to fight. In the robbery of the Leeward Islands along the way, the pirates replenished quite a few people, and the 3 ships now have more than 200 people, which has a certain numerical advantage.

The Mary approached, and William hurriedly boarded the Banshee, "Captain Grover, why don't you retreat yet, what are you hesitating about." ”

Grover was now dissatisfied with William, but still said patiently, "Captain William, Fort Amsterdam is not a complete fortress after all, and there are no buildings on high cliffs to climb, we have a numerical advantage. As long as a few cannons are dragged behind the fortress, there is a good chance to take it. ”

"Captain Grover, we are not the English Navy, maybe you can take this fort by giving you 200 soldiers and four ships while you are in the navy. But we're pirates, pirates! ”

The sailors on the ship looked concerned, but the one-eyed lesson was ahead, and no one dared to speak out.

Grover tightened his grip on his pipe, and he felt that things were out of his control, "William, take Amsterdam Castle, we can sell it to the Dutch, and the price will never be low." ”

William sneered and did not back down, "Dear Mr. Grover, I know that you are an employee of the Dutch West India Company, but my crew and I are not, and I will not participate if you insist on going your own way." ”

Grover's lips moved, and a few words of the scattered man swirled and swirled, still unspoken. Willem was not involved, and he could not have taken Amsterdam Castle. If the retreat is carried out again, the morale of the ship will be dealt a terrible blow.

Grover held back his anger, "Well, Captain William, your cowardice has denied me a chance to take the Spaniards' islands, losing the honor of capturing the castle and the Dutch's ransom. We retreated. ”

The pirates turned around and sailed away from the bay, and Chen Shouxu looked at the sailors on the ship, feeling that something had collapsed in their hearts.

It was getting dark, and Grover locked himself in the captain's cabin, and he didn't come out for hours, and it was the first mate Wilkinson on duty in the stern.

Chen Shouxu walked to the bow of the boat and calmed his irritable mood with tobacco.

The other officers on the ship were still unaware, but Chen Shouxu, who had just left his status as a sailor, had a gut feeling that a crisis was brewing. He didn't know what to do. It is contrary to the principle of the common practice to react the sailors' arguments to the captain, and there is no need to think about it. Since becoming a member of the privateer, Chen Shouxu has not had the time or ability to consider the problem clearly before making a decision. Since coming to this era, his only principle is to do things according to his heart and intuition, and maybe some things will suffer, and he can't take care of them.

The wavebreaker hit the waves, and the sound from the bottom of the boat became Chen Shouxu's only companion in this silent night.

Until Maiden and the chief came together, the Germans and the Indians, what a strange combination.

The two didn't expect to meet Chen Shouxu, looking at Chen Shouxu's puzzled gaze, Maiden said, "I have mutual friends with the chief, and we are both shareholders of this ship, let's talk about business cooperation." ”

Chen Shouxu smiled reluctantly, "Then don't bother the two of you, I'll go back to sleep, and you guys will talk slowly." ”

There was an undercurrent on the ship, and as an outsider, Chen Shouxu finally decided to do nothing, say nothing, and have neither a position nor a credential, and still be a good business officer.

To the east, they had penetrated deep into the place where England had the upper hand. The dreary voyage continues, and the voyage for nothing. Until one day they came across the England Royal Fleet cruiser HMS Determination, flying the St. George flag.

News of the pirate fleet should have spread throughout the West Indies during this time, and the Resolve knew what it was up against.

It fired its bow cannon at the Banshee, a distance that naturally wouldn't have hit.

"The Resolve has sent a flag, and in the name of the king, orders our ship to get out of the way and fight if it is not granted." The signalman at the bow reported to the captain.

I can't imagine that the predecessor of the Royal Navy, which dominated the seas in later generations, is so horizontal at this time.

The USS Resolve is a 36-gun cruiser with fully equipped sails. The English captain stood at the bow of the ship and watched with satisfaction as the small fleet of pirates in front of him turned left and turned off course. He had every reason to be proud that his ship, the Determination, was the most powerful warship of the English Navy in the West Indies at this time, and had few rivals on the entire American continent except for the Great Galen, which was escorted by the Spanish treasure fleet. He thought for a moment and commanded, "Tell them, Saint Barthélemy." ”

Looking at the Departing Determination, it was unclear what its last message, St. Barthélemy, meant, meant, Grover decided to check it out.