For several months, not a single merchant ship from the English colony of Virginia had entered the port of Gangneung. There is only one reason, from the end of last year to June this year, Jamestown has fallen into a semi-paralyzed state due to the ongoing civil unrest in the colony, and more than 300 Virginia colonial indentured slaves and freedmen have fled through the James River waterway.

Correspondingly, those gorgeous small merchants who were stationed in Jamestown from time to time, as well as some Chinese merchant ships that departed from Gangneung City or Bermuda's Shuangwan City, started to think carefully about "committing crimes against the wind" in Jamestown, and actually began to sell "ferry tickets" privately. Whether it was tobacco or silver coins, as long as they could afford it, the Chinese merchants tried to take out these indentured slaves who wanted to escape.

After several successive "successes", Governor Harvey had to organize an army to severely suppress all kinds of local residents who were dissatisfied with the colonial governor's palace, and while forcibly dissolving the Virginia Colonial Council, he strengthened the inspection of Chinese merchant ships entering and leaving the port.

On the other hand, the number of indentured slaves fleeing from Jamestown and nearby colonial strongholds and plantations is also increasing month by month. These European indentured slaves with their families chose the more frantic and daring route of absconding northward to the interior. Ahead of them lies at least 100 miles of treacherous overland, and less than 30 people have been lucky enough to make it to Gangneung alive, and it is said that at least half of them have died in half of them.

……

Monday, June 11, 1635, Binju, Gangneung City.

For the city of Gangneung further south, this summer seems to be hotter than Manchester City. Even early in the morning. The temperature in the urban area of Gangneung City exceeded 30 degrees, and the streets were roasted by the heat, and many cleaners in charge of urban sanitation suffered from heat stroke.

In front of the municipal notice board at each street intersection. The city government's summer health and epidemic prevention reminder notices began to be posted, but dozens of citizens standing in front of the notices did not pay attention to these announcements, but surrounded the government workers who posted the notices to desperately inquire about the whereabouts of their families.

“…… Sir, it's been over a month since my husband went to Jamestown and hasn't come back yet! The police said they couldn't handle it. A European woman anxiously tugged at the arm of a Chinese government worker, her eyes shining with a hint of despair. Please, think of a way! ”

"This eldest sister, I'm just in charge of posting notices......" The government worker grimaced. Rolling up a few other notices and carrying a bucket, he was about to leave.

"But aren't you from the city government?" A stout European man grabbed the collar of a government worker and glared at the young Chinese in front of him with a fierce look, "All the goods in our workshop are on that ship." If they sneak away with money. We're going to go broke! ”

"My husband will never run away with the money! It must be the conspiracy of those Englishmen! Another chubby European housewife roared from the side, seemingly a member of a small businessman's family.

The noise spread at the street corner in the early morning, and even the citizens who had been "unanimous" were divided into two groups, pulling and shouting at each other, while the poor government worker was pushed around, like a rat in a bellows.

The two policemen happened to walk to the corner of the street, and when they saw that the situation was not right, they hurriedly blew the police whistle and ran up......

……

In the mayor's residence. Lin Chaoen is still the last in the family to get up. Wearing a sweat towel and foaming toothpaste in his mouth. He shouted at the top of the stairs.

"Meigu, the temperature has risen again today, so I want the children to pay attention to safety." Lin Chaoen pushed open the window, and was forced to close the sunshade curtains helplessly, and explained quite "wisely".

"Hey, I have to wait for you to remind you, the child has already suffered from heat stroke! I packed them all with Huoxiang Zhengqi Water. Footsteps were heard upstairs, and a beautiful young woman walked downstairs one after another with her three children in student uniforms.

As soon as the family sat down at the dining table and prepared to eat, they heard a sharp knock on the door in the direction of the living room.

"Mr. Mayor, no! The citizens are in trouble! "The Chinese police chief was sweating profusely and was still panting when he walked into the room.

"For the sake of the 'Guangfu'?" Lin Chaoen frowned, and then put down his chopsticks, "Didn't you say that you don't tell your family for the time being?" The matter has already been reported to the Cabinet, and it is up to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to resolve it. ”

At the beginning of last month, a merchant ship belonging to a small chamber of commerce in Gangneung, the Guangfu, after trading in Jamestown, was routinely inspected by the English, only to be pulled out of an inconspicuous corner in the depths of the cargo hold by the other party to find a dozen unkempt indentured indentures.

Governor Harvey, who had seized the handle of a Chinese merchant for the first time, and already knew that the country was currently in a diplomatic conflict with China and the United States over the Irish question, seized the Guangfu on the spot, and then declared that he would have to pay a heavy fine and be pardoned by the King of England before he could return.

The honest captain of the merchant ship did not know why these English indentured slaves who tried to smuggle in the country suddenly appeared on his ship, but the facts were irrefutable and irrefutable, so he had to entrust other merchant ships to return to Gangneung City for help.

But I don't know what happened this time, Gangneung City just sent the news to the Cabinet and Foreign Affairs slowly, and it looked like it couldn't help, and even didn't give a specific solution time for the crew and businessmen of the Guangfu.

"Paper can't hold the fire, those citizens have caught the people who went out to post notices, my mayor!" As soon as the Chinese police chief was in a hurry, the old habit came, and he almost kowtowed to the mayor in front of him, "Everyone has to find an explanation!" You see, am I blocking or not stopping? ”

"Stop! Why don't you stop? Otherwise, the notice will not be posted today. By the way, be careful not to make trouble in the neighborhood. Lin Chaoen grabbed the steamed bun and didn't even look at his subordinates, "Tell them, we are actively negotiating with England." You can handle the rest yourself, and if something goes wrong, I'll remove you! ”

"Ouch hey! This is so sad to me! The Chinese police chief kicked hard and hurried out of Lin Chaoen's house.

"Xianggong, these things on weekdays. You're always the most anxious, why ...... now" The wife, who hadn't interjected before, finally spoke.

"It's okay, it's just a good show." Lin Chaoen, who had known the inside story for a long time and had even made some preparations, waved his hand indifferently. As if I had never been worried.

……

A few days later, the southern Virginia colony of Jamestown.

The captain of the Guangfu paid tens of thousands of dollars in fines, finally obtained permission to return to the sea, and then regained the merchant ship in despair, and set sail for the mouth of the James River. Behind them, the frigate Jasmine of the Caribbean Fleet of the Chinese American Navy, arriving from Bermuda, was docked at the docks, and the Chinese diplomats who had completed their diplomatic negotiations were bidding farewell to Governor Harvey.

“…… We will tighten the discipline of merchants. I apologize for the distress caused to His Excellency Governor Harvey and His Majesty the King of England by this immoral act. ”

Konstantin, who immigrated from the Netherlands to Huamei for almost five years. The Huygens family, son Christian. Huygens's health improved under the treatment of Huamei Hospital. Elson, a Chinese and American diplomat, fulfilled his promise to ensure the child's health. On the occasion of happy events, Konstantin gladly accepted the invitation of the Chinese and American Foreign Ministries, and this time he did his old job again as a special envoy of the Chinese and American Foreign Ministries. Come to Jamestown to solve the troubles of the Guangfu.

"Haha. Meeting Mr. Huygens in Virginia was unbelievable in itself. So, I can understand what happens again. Governor Harvey pinched his beard and looked at the former Dutch diplomat in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, with a smile, as if he was a little surprised that the other party was now naturalized in China and the United States.

"I take my leave, then, Your Excellency Governor Harvey." Konstantin politely bowed to his chest and turned towards the board of the Jasmine frigate.

"The Yankees are smart. This time a Dutch was sent over......" Squinting at the back of the American diplomat onto the board, Governor Harvey finally felt that he had earned face for England this time.

Suddenly. Nearly a nautical mile to the east, the hull of the merchant ship Huamei Guangfu, which was sailing in the James River, suddenly shook, and the inside of the stern seemed to be ignited with a powder keg, and a huge hole was blown out in an instant, and puffs of smoke and flames rushed out of the damage inexorably. A few seconds later, a huge explosion like thunder was heard.

"Oh God...... What did you do with it? As soon as Konstantin stepped onto the deck with one foot, he froze. At the end of the line of sight, half of the stern of the Guangfu was gone, the fire was still spreading, and the passengers on board were jumping into the river with lifebuoys.

Not only Konstantin was stunned, but even the governor Harvey, who had not yet left the shore, and the English soldiers were dumbfounded. The battle-ready deck bell rang on the Jasmine frigate, and then began to move towards the sinking Guangfu......

……

A few days later, on June 20, Elson, the Chinese consul in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, traveled to London in person and delivered a fiercely worded letter of protest to the English National Assembly and the royal family. At the same time, France began to mediate the war between Spain and England in Ireland in a slow manner.

"Protest against the hostility and violence against the American Republic of China in Jamestown, Virginia! The United States of America reserves the right to take the next steps in this matter and to trace those responsible. ”

The National Assembly of England, which received such a strong protest letter for the first time, was stunned, but on a hunch, almost all members of parliament felt that the matter was definitely not as simple as an explosion on a merchant ship.

At present, England and Huamei are at war over Ireland and the issue of the mortgage of the national debt, and the issue of China's involvement in the Irish rebels in Killarney's territory is nothing more than a conflict of interests between the two peoples, while the hardliners of the English National Assembly have resolutely refused to make any compensation for the Killarney incident.

At the public level, relations between the two countries have risen to the point of full-blown trade conflict, and many English businessmen have abandoned imports of luxury goods from the Azores under the heavy tax bill enacted by the National Assembly. The special goods tax imposed on England by the Chinese, Spanish, and Portuguese made many English merchant ships abandon trade with the ports of the three countries.

What's more, now that Cromwell's English army was besieging the Spanish invasion army in Kinsale Harbor, victory was only a matter of time before victory was in the present situation, and those Spaniards were either defeated and surrendered or starved to death in Kinsale. The negotiation process with the Scottish Presbyterian Church was also very smooth, and it was foreseeable that the end of the Scottish War would be very good in England, so they did not pay attention to the diplomatic provocation of China and the United States for the time being - anyway, both sides had been in trouble for so long.

The National Assembly of England, which did not understand the truth at all, could only hold the diplomatic document handed by Elson with a black face and close the door without saying a word, and could not express its position at all in this situation.

On June 22, the Manchester City Weekly published a temporary additional issue with a comprehensive report on the tragedy that took place in Jamestown. In particular, the oral accounts of the passengers of the Hirofu, who survived the disaster, and the preliminary analysis of the explosion by the gunners of the Jasmine frigate at the time, were published.

A surprising amount of black powder was placed on the tail of the Guangfu, but it was "well known" that this backward powder was basically not used in China and the United States, and was not found in previous commodity inspections. Given that the ships had been seized by the English until now, the suspicion of the English in Jamestown was the greatest.

Although no one died in the explosion and shipwreck, many crew members suffered limb fractures due to the huge shock collision, and the ship lost more than $120,000 in cargo.

When the Ministry of Defense MIA withdrew from Ireland, it brought back a small number of old and weak women and children from Killarney or Port Kenmare, Ireland, and this time they also jumped out one after another, tearfully expressing how brutal and unreasonable the English army was.

On 25 June, there were even larger riots in Jamestown. Under the organization of the Colonial Council of Jamestown, at least 300 free civilians or armed militia seized the weapons of the local English garrison, and then surrounded the Governor's Palace, blocking the Governor Harvey, who was only protected by a few dozen Governor's Guards.

The Colonial Council of Jamestown then issued a statement refusing to recognize any colonial decrees issued by Governor Harvey and intended to draft a petition to the King of England to replace the Governor, and the expulsion of Governor Harvey finally reached its climax at the summer harvest.

On 30 June, the frigate Jasmine of the Caribbean Fleet of the United States Navy at the Bermuda Naval Base began blockading the mouth of the James River, prohibiting any English ships from entering. A company of Chinese Foreign Legion infantry sent from Butterfly Island boarded Jamestown to the cheers of the colonists and took over the port docks in the name of protecting the local Chinese American Chamber of Commerce and the diaspora, while a batch of civilian goods that were in short supply due to the chaos in the early days arrived in Jamestown and distributed them to the local people for free, a move that was highly appreciated by the Virginia Colonial Council.

It is said that half a month later, the Military Intelligence Agency of the Ministry of Defense held a low-key commendation ceremony for several European officers returning from Jamestown, especially the second lieutenant who broke his arm and was awarded the Gold Medal of Distinguished Service. And the trading company of the merchant ship, which was unfortunate enough to explode and sunk, also received a promise from the state to recover its losses. (To be continued......)

PS: It's the Spring Festival, stay away from the Internet, spend time with your family, and suspend updates for a week. ^_^