(Today's third watch, maybe there will be four watches)

Viceroyalty of the Dutch East India Company in Batavia

Such mornings are extremely impetusive. Gurlitt had begun to miss the warm quilt and the bewitching Siamese beauty in the quilt, but he couldn't be late today, because this opportunity was not so easy to get today.

Gurlitt strode to the entrance of the fortress, stopped in front of two heavily armed Dutch guards with cold expressions, took out the papers that Erlang had given him yesterday from his pocket, and handed them over.

One of the guards, with a beautiful beard, put down the flintlock rifle he was carrying on his shoulder, took the file and opened it to look at it. Another guard stood on the other side of the gate 1 meter away, carrying a gun and looking at Gurlitt with suspicion, and it was clear that he didn't think that Gurlit's old clothes and rags should be in a high-class place like the Doge's Palace.

Gurlitt was nervous, he was also a mercenary soldier of the East India Company before he retired, the Governor, he had seen a lot, but it was the first time he actually walked into the Governor's Palace to pay a visit to the new Governor.

Looking around, nearly 40 well-dressed businessmen from the United Nations stood in front of the billboard, arguing loudly and passionately. This morning, the East India Company of Batavia demanded that all merchants from the provinces who came to trade with the Far East must carry out transit trade in Bacheng, and the trade route to Guangzhou of the Qing Kingdom would be completely completed by the merchant ships of the East India Company, and even the local Chinese merchants of the Qing Kingdom and Bacheng could only transport goods to Bacheng for trading, which was enough for the East India Company to grab a lot of profits and taxes, but it obviously caused the dissatisfaction of many merchants.

"Our new Governor is an idiot who doesn't understand business!"

"He knows how to take money out of our pockets!"

The merchants expressed their dissatisfaction and protest against the trade policies of the colonial authorities of the East India Company, some of which could already be described as "excessive". But the Governor's Palace's Guard, however, did not take any precautions.

The bearded man quickly handed back the papers, and with a very respectful attitude, greeted: "Welcome! Mr. Van Rude Gurlitt! You can pass through this gate. ”

Gurlitt didn't have time to pay attention to the guard's overtures, he was busy tidying up his appearance, which he had done hundreds of times, to maintain the best demeanor he could. Led by a bearded man, he went to the door of a room on the third floor of the Governor's Palace. The door was open, Governor Adrien Wargenier was busy with official documents, a young clerk and several Governor advisors gathered around his desk, nervously awaiting the Governor's instructions, while on a wooden chair in the corner, Erlang sipped French gin and traced his fingers to his two handful of signature mustaches.

"Draft a letter for me to reply to Captain Bob Hobson, and reply to him like this." Governor Walgenier shook his hand lightly and instructed the clerk to take up the notes, "Dear Captain Hobson, I am very grateful for your constant offer to deliver ordnance to the East India Company free of charge!" But as the new Governor of the East India Company in Batavia, I still insisted that all the ordnance shipped for the East India Company should be done by valiant naval employees, and that this was my final decision and would not be changed. With regard to the accusations made by Mr. Judson, a businessman from the province of Zeeland, about the robbery of you and your 'Bohemia' in Kalimantan, I have decided to refer the case to Captain Cole Collins for investigation, and I myself refuse to express any opinion on this. The most serious charge against you now is that your 'Bohemia' looted the spoils of the ship, which had belonged to an honest Dutch merchant, even though he had learned that the 'Baker' was in the possession of Mr. Judson, a merchant from the province of Zeeland. If the investigation is confirmed, then your actions are not commensurate with the national glory of a certified captain of the Republic. Your behaviour has aroused suspicion among other law-abiding businessmen in Batavia, for whom you are especially reprehensible, and for which you should return all ill-gotten gains on board the 'Baker'. However, until the results of the investigation are announced, you can still get my pardon if you are willing to return all the loot and compensate Mr. Judson for his losses. Your friend, Governor General of the Dutch East India Company, Walgenier. What a rascal with enough bastards. At the last words of the Governor, the clerk did not react, but waved his quill quickly and took note of it.

Wallennier squinted at the clerk's transcript and quickly interrupted the other party's account angrily, "Don't record this last sentence, what a scoundrel with enough bastards!" Only then did the clerk realize that this was the mantra of the new governor. Next to the desk, several of the advisers left behind by the former governor burst into laughter, making Wallennier's face turn very bad.

Gurlitt stood awkwardly outside the door, not knowing whether he should enter the door or not. It just so happened that Erlang saw Gullit at the door, "Ah...... Dear Mr. Van Rode Gurlit, you have arrived on time! ”

As soon as Walgenier looked up and saw Gullit, he glanced at Erlang and immediately changed to a friendly smile, "Gentlemen! Except for my old friend Mr. Erlang, please leave my office, and we will ...... with Gully What's going on with Gully? Walgeniel frowned and asked,

"My name is Van Rud Gurlit, hello! My Excellency the Governor...... "Gurlit, thinking that he had made a good impression of the Governor, hurried in, and stretched out his hand to kiss Walgenier's ring.

"Whatever! Call it anything! Wallennier pouted, turned back to his desk, and sat down. The adviser and clerk quickly sorted through the papers, nodded to the visitors, exited the office, and closed the door with their backhands.

A fierce glint flashed in Gurlit's eyes, and he withdrew his right hand in embarrassment, Erlang put down his glass and smiled at Gurlit, "Sit down, dear Mr. Gurlit. I was just complimenting you to the Governor, and we agreed that there are some jobs that you do! Sit down and let's have a drink together, dear. ”

Gullitt sat down beside Erlang with difficulty, but at the thought of his little wrecked ship and those glittering gold coins, Gurlit's expression stretched a lot, and he turned to Walgenir: "I am so glad to see you! Your Excellency, my dear Governor, you don't know that I used to serve in the company and I was a brilliant mercenary! Mr! Mercenary! ”

Walgeniel pursed his lips, shook his head, and said, "Yes! Mercenary? Oh, my God! Your name is ...... What's going on? As soon as Gurlitt raised his buttocks, and before he could give his name again, the Governor waved his hand and said, "Whatever! Whatever you call it! My dear friend, Mr. Erlang recommended you to me, and he said that you are ...... Forehead...... What the? ”

Erlang had no choice but to remind, "'A loyal member of the East India Company'." Excellency. ”

Gullitt felt that he was not taken seriously, but in order to catch the line of the governor and make a lot of money, he got up and continued to flatter: "Thank you for your trust! And you! Recommendation from my esteemed Mr. Erlang! My dead father often taught me: ...... The soul of the deceased has returned to heaven, and the living will continue to live. I will serve your strategy in the East as the fiercest hound under your seat, and I think that from this day forward I should call you 'sir', Your Excellency. ”

Walgeniel shook his head noncommittally, and the atmosphere suddenly became awkward again, and Erlang clearly saw that Gullit's Adam's apple shook several times, and his fingers also slid down a short distance, and the direction of his finger was the boot barrel where the pirates hid their daggers.

Erlang hurriedly raised his glass again, and said in the middle: "Your Excellency the Governor has been busy with official business recently, and he is very ...... Fatigue...... Hearing has been affected. Walgenier also sensed the tension in the atmosphere, and was very cooperative with the stalls, saying that it was true.

Gullitt hurriedly pretended to be in a state of realization, and Walgenier got up and walked to the center of the office, looked up and said slightly apologetically, "It was my decision to invite you to me from the warm bed so early. I have some difficult things here, and I don't know who I can give them to. Can I trust you? ”

Gullit, baring his yellow teeth, stood up again and showed his loyalty: "Command, Your Excellency! No matter where you are, I will serve you loyally. ”

"Very good! I'm glad you're so loyal. Seeming pleased, he went around to the wine cabinet, took out a bottle of wine, and asked, "Before we get down to business, I would like to invite you to taste this rare bottle of wine as a personal thank you for your loyalty." ”

Gurlitt is usually very greedy for glasses, and he is even more nervous when he encounters rare wine. He watched apprehensively as the Governor poured himself a glass, and then another for Erron, and at last poured himself a small half glass, and took a small sip in his hand, and was surprised to find that the red wine in the glass had a peculiar aroma, a little sweet, mellow and refreshing in his mouth.

"Port wine from the banks of the Douro River in Portugal, the greatest contribution of the priests of the Abbey of La Mego to Europe! Thank God that His servants, in addition to purifying people's souls, are able to provide this rare wine! It is said that a little locally made brandy is added to this wine during fermentation, which is the biggest secret to the sweetness of the grapes. Walgenier and Erlang looked at each other and said, the Governor was a treasure trove of good wine, "May you solve those little problems for me." ”

"To our governor!" Erlang duly raised his glass and drank with the governor.

"Everything I have to tell you will concern the future survival and development of the republic, so our conversation today has never happened! If anyone else were to know what we were talking about, I wouldn't admit it. I hope you understand! "Walgenier gets straight to the point.

"Yes...... Yes! Your Excellency, I will keep my mouth shut, and no one will try to knock a word out of my mouth, don't think about it! ”

"Good. I'm sure Mr. Erlang's recommendation must be correct, you must have sensed that the situation in Batavia is a bit tense by now! ”

"If you are talking about the merchants who are gathering outside the door, I will crush their bones one by one and feed them to the dogs! Your Excellency, just one of your orders! ”

"These free traders have been blocking me all day long with the matter of 'opening up trade to the Qing Dynasty', coming and going in order to get to Canton and get money out of the pockets of the East India Company! They never considered that it was the efforts of the East India Company that had brought about the prosperity of trade in Batavia, and that it was the East India Company that allowed them to return to Europe with a shipload full of tea and silk to make a fortune! Walgenier was obviously dissatisfied with Gurlit's vulgarity, but now that there was no one available, he could only complain helplessly.

Gurlitt smiled maliciously, "I'm the best at business!" Your Excellency, especially a business that does not have much capital! ”

Fearing that Gurlitt would misunderstand the Governor's meaning and do something that would make the situation worse, Erlang hurriedly explained to the Governor: "The turmoil caused by long-term dissatisfaction will bring great trouble to His Excellency the Governor!" News from the Parliament showed that even in the provinces themselves, there was a strong demand for free trade in the East, especially after the war of 1702-1714 in the Republic, when more merchants hoped to make up for the losses caused by the war in the East. ”

Gurlitt frowned, he had no opinion on politics, he didn't care about what was happening in Europe far away, he only cared about gold coins, and he didn't understand at all that Erran was talking about the war for the Spanish throne.

Closed intermarriage between European royal families caused a series of terminal illnesses inherited by some royal families, and Carlos II of the Habsburg dynasty of Spain was one of them, because his ancestors often intermarried with the Austrian Habsburg royal family, resulting in his death in 1700 without heirs. During his lifetime, he made a will to pass the throne to his sister Maria Theresa and his nephew, Philip, Duke of Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV, King of France of Bourbon.

France was already the hegemon of the European continent, while Spain had territories in the Spanish Netherlands, Italy, and a large number of overseas colonies in the Americas, Africa, and Asia. The fact that France and Spain would become countries with common monarchies would inevitably upset the balance of power in Europe, which would be a disaster for some countries, so most of Europe was drawn into this protracted war in order to compete for the throne of Spain and seize the interests of the colonies.

In order to prevent the Spanish Netherlands from falling into French hands and get rid of the French invasion, the Dutch spent a lot of national strength and became the most taxed country in all of Europe. However, after the signing of the Treaty of Utrecht, the gains outweighed the losses, the Dutch transportation industry and commerce suffered huge losses, the economy was in serious decline, and the powerful Dutch navy had to be cut and declined after the war due to insufficient military spending.

It was against this backdrop that the economic tensions in the country seriously affected the operations of the East India Company, and it was in this context that Wallgenir obtained an appointment to the board of directors of the East India Company under the pretext of gaining greater wealth and territory for the East India Company, and came to Batavia to implement a new commercial policy. However, due to the pursuit of profits from the direct shipping between Europe and Guangzhou, and the monopoly of the Chinese merchants in Batavia on the trade of Qing sailing ships, the Dutch East India Company in Batavia has not been able to achieve the expected profits, so Wallennier began to consider some less glamorous means to grab profits, and after secret discussions with Erlang, Erlang suggested hiring a group of pirates who could keep secrets to harass merchants who did not follow the new policy, forcing merchants to re-export to Batavia, and promoting Batavia to become a center of entrepot trade. That would inevitably bring huge taxes and profits, and the idea was to have Gurlit, who had a relationship with the pirates, act as an intermediary.

Erlang looked at Gurlitt and said hintly, "The East India Company needs a new source of money, Mr. Gurlit. Your Excellency the Governor's policy needs more adherents and a lot of taxes! ”

Gurlitt slyly calculated, he had understood Erron's subtext, but how much the intermediary could eat was entirely up to the will of the governor, and he was not guaranteed the benefits he had, which made him very dissatisfied. As a result, he began to quickly consider more efficient options.

Gullitt got up strangely and walked to the window and pushed it open. The location of the Dutch Governor's Palace is excellent, with an unobstructed view of the entire port through the folding windows.

"Your Excellency! Why would you want to make that little money! Aren't your taxes right under your window? Gurlitt smirked viciously, and the Governor and Erlang could even make out the chill in their words.

They all walked to the window and looked into the distance from the high governor's palace - in the harbor, dozens of merchant ships were busy loading and unloading goods, and seven or eight out of ten of the high-masted merchant ships belonged to Chinese merchants!

In an instant, the two gentlemen understood what Gullitt was going to say, and Walgenier filled his glass for Gurlitt with his own hands, and smiled meaningfully: "Mr. Van Luther Gurlit, you are truly a villain!" ”

In the majestic governor's palace, there was the laughter of three gentlemen......