"Lord General Soldier, we have already thought about the alliance, and we agree to form an alliance with Jiaozhou! However, we have a request, as long as the chief soldier agrees, then we can now make a blood alliance! Zheng Zhibao said to Liu Fan without hesitation

Looking at the solemn look on Zheng Zhibao's face, Liu Fan restrained his heart and asked seriously: "Brother Zheng, it doesn't matter, as long as the conditions allow, this governor will satisfy you as much as possible!" ”

"In fact, this matter should be very simple for the chief soldier, our request is that the fleet in Jiaozhou should fly the Zheng family's flag as little as possible when going to sea. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 infoOf course, we will also send someone to inform the Zheng family and its subordinate forces, and when we see the banner of Jiaozhou, it will be square! The more Zheng Zhibao spoke, the quieter his voice became, and in the end, he looked at Liu Fan almost with a look of shame.

Liu Fan's face instantly became ugly when he heard this, if Liu Fan agreed to their request, it would mean that the Jiaozhou side would not be able to develop and grow through the reputation of the Zheng family. Without the protection of the Zheng family, it is really dangerous for the nascent Jiaozhou fleet to develop along the coast where pirates are rampant. But since Zheng Zhibao clearly put it forward, it means that this is the result of their negotiation, and if you want to cooperate, you must agree to their request.

After being silent for a while, Liu Fan said, "I can agree to this request, but we also have a request, you must agree, otherwise, this alliance will not be concluded!" ”

Zheng Zhibao knew that he was at a loss, and hurriedly said, "Lord Commander, please say, as long as you can do it, Zhibao will do his best!" ”

"Good!" Liu Fan nodded and said, "My request is that the route to Japan must allow the Jiaozhou fleet to come and go, and the Zheng family's fleet cannot be stopped, not only that, but the Zheng family is also responsible for connecting us and using the Zheng family's influence in Japan to promote cooperation between us and the shogunate." At the worst, we must provide a supply point for my Jiaozhou in Nagasaki and other ports! ”

Zheng Zhibao lowered his head and thought for a while, and then replied, "Yes, since it is an alliance, then this requirement is nothing!" ”

Liu Fan smiled and said happily, "Since the preliminary cooperation intention has been reached, let's talk about specific cooperation projects!" Learning from each other's strengths is the right way! ”

After more than half an hour of consultation, the two parties finally reached a specific cooperation agreement. On the surface, the main content of this agreement is to take action against the huge civilian bureaucracy. According to the agreement, the Zheng family and Jiaozhou formed an alliance that must work together to deal with the squeeze and persecution from the civilian clique, and if one side is in trouble, the other must unconditionally provide the necessary support.

In addition, the main thing is military cooperation, and the general project is that Jiaozhou will provide the Zheng family with some firearms and equipment for the army, and at the same time send some instructors to help the Zheng family train the army. The Zheng family had to help Jiaozhou build some civilian cargo ships, as well as a small number of warships.

There is also the commercial exchanges between the two places, Qingdao Port and Anping Port are open to each other, and the fleets of the two sides will enjoy the most favored treatment when they come to each other's ports, and the two sides will give each other a large amount of tax relief, or tax exemption. Compared with the Zheng family's huge fleet, Jiaozhou's newborn, which has just started, is the one who suffers anyway. This condition seems to be very unfavorable to Jiaozhou, but in the long run, Jiaozhou must have a foothold in the south if it wants to develop, and Anping Port is undoubtedly a good choice. The Zheng family values huge interests, while Liu Fan values the future, and the two sides just take what they need.

Although the cooperation between the two sides does not involve the core interests of dealing with the two sides, Liu Fan believes that with the deepening of cooperation, the two sides will reach a more weighty agreement sooner or later.

"Lord Commander-in-Chief, since the matter of cooperation has been negotiated, it is time for us to return to Fuzhou. It has been more than a month since I arrived in Jiaozhou this time, and everyone is a little homesick. So we are going to leave for Fuzhou in the next few days! In the living room, Zheng Zhibao stood up and said goodbye

"Are you going back so soon?" Liu Fan asked with a surprised face, "Why don't you stay for a few more days, it just so happens that I am not too busy during this time, I can accompany you to have a good time in Jiaozhou!" ”

"No, not necessarily!" Zheng Zhibao hurriedly refused, "We have been in Jiaozhou for a long time, and we have already learned a lot about what we should know." Besides, we are all rough people, and we don't like to pinch the tone of the literati and moan without illness. The kindness of the chief soldier is understood. ”

The reason why Zheng Zhibao was in a hurry to go back was that on the one hand, he wanted to report the cooperation to Zheng Zhilong as soon as possible, and on the other hand, he was worried about the safety of Fuzhou. Zheng Zhilong's great enemy Liu Laoxiang has always been unwilling to fail, and this time he defected to the Dutch, he must have fought back. As Zheng Zhilong's closest brother, Zheng Zhibao has to go back to help his eldest brother no matter what. But Zheng Zhibao is not easy to talk to Liu Fanming about these things, so he can only find an excuse to talk about it.

seemed to see Zheng Zhibao's thoughts, Liu Fan didn't stop him when he saw this, but nodded solemnly and said, "Okay, since Brother Zheng insists on doing this, then the governor will not keep you." The firearms you have purchased, as well as the money for our purchase of the ship, will be sent to Qingdao by the Governor as soon as possible. ”

"Then thank you, Lord Chief!" Zheng Zhibao said gratefully, "If you are free, you can come to Anping to have a look, and my brother and I will definitely wait for you!" ”

"Hmm," Liu Fan thought for a while and replied, "I will definitely go when I have time, but the specific time is uncertain, maybe this year, maybe next year." But no matter what, a trip to peace is imperative. ”

Zheng Zhibao said excitedly, "That's really good, my brother will be happy when he knows the news." Lord Commander-in-Chief, the door of Anping is open for you at any time, and you are welcome at any time! ”

After staying in Shihe City for three days, the uncle and nephew of the Zheng family once again asked Liu Fan to resign. Knowing that the Zheng family's people were really leaving, Liu Fan also came to Qingdao Wharf with the Broken Army to see them off.

The docks were crowded with workers and soldiers busily loading goods. Zheng Zhibao and the others came to the dock step by step, turned to Liu Fan and said, "Sending you a thousand miles must be goodbye in the end!" Commander-in-Chief, please stay! ”

"Hmm!" Liu Fan nodded, reluctantly glanced at the huge fleet docked on the sea in the distance, waved his sleeves and said, "Come on, bring up our gifts!" ”

Pointing to the three big boxes, Liu Fan said, "This is my return gift for you and my brother, some special products from Shandong and the north, bring it back and make your brother happy!" After a pause, Liu Fan continued: "Bring a word to your brother, if it is not my race, his heart will be different!" Tell him that where we are Ming, we must have the final say! The Daming coast can be the Zheng family, but it must not become a playground for Westerners! ”

Zheng Zhibao was stunned when he heard this, and then looked at Liu Fan with a slight shock: "Lord General Soldier, I will definitely bring your words to the original!" (To be continued.) )