Chiron left the Gravina office, and he didn't plan to spend the month at home. After returning home and spending a few days revising his thinking, he went to Seville, and even if the navy did not agree, he wanted to achieve his goal in a different way.

Aboard a sturdy Andalusian horse and sailing up the banks of the Guadalquivir, Chiron found the St. Augustine docked in the port of Seville, the badly damaged aft veranda easily distinguishable from a distance.

He was warmly received by the navigator Azonia, who was not very old, and took Chiron to his cabin on the top floor of the stern of the Saint-Ao. On the Great Galen, the captain's cabin was the best, occupying the compartment of the sub-upper stern. The navigator is the second-in-command of the ship, and the cabin is generally located on the captain's floor.

Azonia poured Chiiron a glass of tequila from New Spain, "Dear Chiron. Captain Serra, welcome to the St. Augustine. Thank you for helping us in the Florida Straits. ”

Chiron took a sip from his glass, "Mr. Navigator, don't be too polite, I'm just doing my duty as a royal navy in the Florida Strait. But you, have you calculated how much cargo was lost on board the Shengon after docking? ”

Azonia shook his glass slightly, and thought for a moment, "Actually, most of the pirates' attacks only caused some damage to the hull of the Holy Ao, which is nothing, but they had three shells into the stern and into the cargo hold along the luxurious and empty corridor of the captain's quarters. In addition to smashing some of the boss's favorite religious statues, some silk and porcelain were destroyed by the way......"

"Please describe it in rials."

"In terms of prices in the port of Seville, about 150,000 riyals."

"So, the damage is more than the cost of the Estelleya." Chiron stared at the golden liquor in the glass, "Mr. Navigator, can I call you Azonia?" Just call me Chiron. ”

"Absolutely." For Azonia, getting along with a naval captain is a hard thing to do.

"Azonia, now I have a business I want to talk to your boss. I have a plan here, please help me hand it to your boss. ”

Azonia's boss was part of an Andalusian merchant group, and it was a time when mercantilism was gaining momentum in Europe. This merchant group took de facto control of the Spanish India Trade Agency in Seville and had great influence over the Spanish Indies' House, which was directly under the king of Madrid.

Azonia was surprised, as a naval captain, Chiron's status in Spanish society was not low, but the gap between him and his boss was still a bit big as a transoceanic businessman, and he didn't know what business he could talk to his boss.

Puzzled, Azonia opened Chiron's plan, and the more she looked at it, the more surprised she became.

"You're going to set up a privateer company to deal with pirates?"

Chiron was confident, "We set up a company to fight piracy in the Bahamas, and for that I needed documents from the Indyyard and a port on the island of Cuba that belonged entirely to the company. It's not impossible, as far as I know, there are many sparsely populated ports on the island of Cuba. If your boss helps me clear up the relationship with the Indyna, I can share 20% of the loot with him. ”

"What do you have now, aside from the approval documents you need?"

"I'm going to invest all my family property, and I've contacted a few interested friends, although the amount of money is not large, but I can get a warship, it's not so new, but it's still enough to suppress the pirates."

Azonia pointed to a page in the plan, "Chiron, I don't doubt you can get a warship, but you and I both know how big the Bahamas are. One ship is far from enough, and you also wrote in the plan that at least two three-masted gunboats and three to four light schooners are needed, each with the firepower to overwhelm the pirate sloop. This requires at least 600 to 800 recruits, and the investment is too large for any businessman to agree to. ”

Chiron drank the tequila in the cup in one gulp, propped his hands on the table, and stood up, "Azonia, the kingdom is facing too much of the pressure of war right now, and it can't afford to take too much care of the situation in the Caribbean. Britain, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, whether they are at war with the kingdom or not, their goal is the same, to cut flesh and suck blood from the kingdom's no longer strong body! The pirates of the Bahamas, as you and I should be aware, were the vanguard of their invasion. We have to do something to change that. ”

Azonia, what I wrote in the plan is the ideal configuration, and I have to write it so that I can hope to get more support. In fact, I'm ready to do even if there are only two boats. ”

"Azonia, I'm doing this for the sake of His Majesty the Catholic Church and the Kingdom, but if we do things better, it's also a way to make a fortune, and I'm sure there will definitely be interested businessmen."

Azonia was shocked by Chiron's speech, "Chiron, I'll help you hand the plan to my boss." I don't know if I'll be able to take the port, but I don't think there's much of a problem with the privateering approval from the Indica. ”

Azonia held out his hand towards Chiron, "Besides, count me in." I've been to the West Indies a few times in recent years, and I have some savings. ”

"Welcome."

Azonia put forward his first suggestion, "As for the disposal of pirate captives, I think the plan can be added, and the Havana Prosecutor's Court should grant pardons to pirates who surrender voluntarily. This can not only psychologically disintegrate the pirate team, but also replenish our manpower with surrendered pirates, which can save part of the investment. ”

With the arrival of Azonia, Chiron's plan has become more viable. The two discussed going their separate ways, with Azonia taking charge of the Spanish Indian Institute's document approval, Chiron trying to get a naval warship, and both of them also had the task of attracting investment.

Chiron's side went relatively smoothly. He has a good brother in the Naval Ordnance Bureau of Cádiz, in fact, there are many sail warships in this era. After all, wood is a fragile material, and impact, maggot corrosion, and keel bending after launching all determine the short life of a wooden battleship, usually only a few years, and only a dozen years when properly maintained.

In England, in order to deceive parliament into appropriations, the Admiralty would often build new ships in the name of repairs under the name of old ships, giving many outsiders the impression that wooden warships had a long lifespan. And the reverse operation also abounds, overhauling a usable warship or simply selling it for scrap is also the only way for the navy to make money.

Gravina's proposal to send cruisers to form a privateer fleet was shelved by the Admiralty, which replied that it would be discussed after the decisive battle. Now when he saw that the Ordnance Bureau had reported that the Estleia had been badly damaged by maggots and could not be used, he smiled at the report recommending that it be scrapped. Signed his name.

The more difficult thing is Azonia's work, and his boss is also interested in Chiron's plan, and with the mood of giving it a try, he reported it to the Indyna, but he didn't deliberately find someone to coordinate. Originally, the Indy's Institute, as the highest government agency in the Spanish colonial empire to manage overseas lands, would not have paid attention to the report of a small captain.

Coincidentally, as the Bahamian pirates raged in the Windward Channel, the vice king of New Spain and the vice king of Peru reported bad news one after another, putting a lot of pressure on the Indyna. It was impossible to get the king to pay for this problem, and the lords of the Indy's House remembered Chiron's plan to deal with pirates by a private organization.

The Indic Institute prepared the documents that Chiron needed as quickly as possible, and appointed him as the supreme governor of the port of Samar in eastern Cuba and the commander of the local army and sea garrison.

After making their preparations, Chiron and Azonia quietly left the mouth of the Guadalquivir River by taking advantage of the offshore wind blowing from the mainland to the sea during the night. He now has three cruisers, two sloops.

The old men of the Indyne Institute said that since Chiron was preparing for a privateering operation, then the officials could give it, but the salary was not. Chiron got a public welfare position.