The Dutch rose in the 17th century with a population of only one million, and the East India Company under it once monopolized half of the world's trade, which was not only due to the highly developed series of financial, shipping and shipbuilding industries led by the Netherlands at that time, but also closely related to the adventurous and aggressive spirit behind its active business activities, which was several times more ferocious than any other European country.

In order to protect the huge merchant fleet, control the shipping of the world's oceans, and carry out monopolistic world trade to achieve commercial hegemony, the Dutch navy almost played with fire and walked a tightrope like a plug-in, attacking from all sides, and frequently succeeding.

On the one hand, the Dutch used economic and military means to crowd out Portugal, a traditional colonial empire that was declining. In Asia, Portugal's colonial strongholds were nearly uprooted by the Dutch, and England was a killer against another rival, England; In southern Africa and the east coast of South America, the Netherlands also fought with Portugal, frequently attacking Portuguese colonies, and even directly occupying them militarily, so that Portugal almost lost all of Brazil.

On the other hand, the Dutch were like a cunning and exuberant bulldog, stalking the Kingdom of Spain, which was far more powerful than their own, and putting aside the sense of national independence, the Netherlands was the most committed to the Kingdom of Spain in terms of the eyes of European countries at that time. Grabbed talks, talked about fighting, and then talked again, using the Kingdom of Spain as a naval sparring sparring to upgrade monsters, tossing the opponent to exhaustion. In this process, one by one Dutch admirals who were more pirates than pirates stood out, adding fuel to the Dutch maritime momentum and sending the Dutch navy to the pinnacle of the once rampant across Europe.

But the prosperity of the country brought about by this behavior lasted only more than half a century, and the unbridled expansion and provocation of the Netherlands continued to approach the bottom of the European powers. After all, the Netherlands is a small country with a small territory and a sparsely populated population. After the Thirty Years' War, Europe had a land area of only 40,000 square kilometers and a population that did not increase to 2 million until the early 19th century. It is almost impossible for such a small country to hold global maritime hegemony for a long time.

With the continuous suppression of several major European maritime powers. In just over a decade at the end of the 17th century, the Netherlands lost its power to dominate the world's oceans. The plug-in was blocked, and the number of jù files was deleted, and since then it has rapidly declined, becoming a history textbook for the rise of modern powers, which makes people reflect.

……

A thunderstorm has just passed. Amsterdam is surprisingly cool this summer, and although it is already evening, Amsterdam, with a population of more than 100,000, is as busy as ever. The fishy smell of salted herring permeates every street, and Dutch merchants fill the streets. The porters of the port are busy, drunken sailors are drunk under the eaves, and bankrupt beggars are curled up in the garbage heap with cats and dogs.

At the consulate of the Chinese and American Republic in the western suburbs of Amsterdam, Fan Li, who was officially transferred to the post of consul of the United States in the Netherlands at the beginning of the year, is inviting one of the powerful figures of the Dutch Governors' Association, the governor of South Holland, Niddlesen, a balding dignate in the Netherlands, who has had the closest contact with the United States since Su Zining visited the Netherlands for the first time seven years ago.

On the brass record player, the vinyl turntable slowly turns, and a shortened "Waves of the Danube" is playing in less than four minutes, and the melodious and undulating music fills the reception hall with elegant style.

"Oh! Thank you ma'am! ”

When a beautiful woman in a dignified dress brings herself coffee with a sweet smile. Nidelson quickly stood up and saluted. Nidelson, who has been a guest of Fan Li's house for a long time, is very familiar with the deaf and mute woman in front of him, and now the other party is Fan Li's wife. A woman who is said to have been "picked up" by Fan Li from a refugee camp and is privately disdained or jealous in Amsterdam's circle of high-class ladies.

"Serena, I want a cup of green tea. By the way, the restaurant and the chefs are ready. Fan Li's face was filled with a happy smile, and the scar seemed to be part of this relaxed mood, forming a curved curve.

Although she can't hear her husband's voice, she has lived together for a long time, and Serena can already discern the other person's meaning from their expressions, gestures, and lip movements. Just smiled lightly, nodded and walked out of the living room.

"Mr. Consul, are we all enjoying music now? Or is your country ready to start looking for agents for the sale of this singing machine qì in the Netherlands? If you don't mind, I can introduce a few of my most honest friends. Nidelson touched his wig and smiled and pointed to the turntable in the living room, revealing a greedy look.

"No, there's no hurry, today is mainly an important message to convey to His Excellency the Governor."

Fan Li looked at the wall clock on the wall, and it was still 30 minutes before it was 18 o'clock in the evening, so he clapped his hands again and followed his old subordinate Elson into the living room. I saw that Elson was still holding a bag of text under his armpit, and it seemed that the content had already been prepared.

A former agent of the European Intelligence Division, a few years later, Elson has now been promoted to Fan Li's direct assistant, serving as the first clerk of the consulate.

Fan Li slowly sipped the green tea, and his eyes were still looking at the wall clock from time to time, as if the time was less than the prescribed scale, he could continue to be leisurely like this.

Looking suspiciously at the two gorgeous diplomats in front of him, Niddleson felt even more strange, and even a slight feeling rose in his heart. This feeling is an intuition that has long been immersed in the diplomatic circle of seeing people, talking about people, and talking about ghosts.

……

A few time zones away, in the distant Caribbean Sea, on the waters of Matanzas Bay in northern Cuba, a naval battle has entered the final cleaning stage.

The naval battle that began at noon ended in just one hour, and the nine Dutch warships had already been reduced to piles of floating and shaking wood dust on the sea, and the flames were still swaying in the charred wreckage of the ships, and then they were swept over and sunk by the waves. The charred or drowned corpses rose and fell under the action of the waves, and the blood stained large swaths of the sea, and the smell of blood was sending a signal of "dinner" in all directions at a rapid pace, and it was believed that in a maximum of an hour, a large number of sharks would surround and swallow the people torn apart by the shelling.

The Caribbean Fleet of the Republic of China and the United States of America, with the USS Constitution as its flagship, has a total of 6 light cruisers and 4 frigates. The scene of this naval battle. Only 2 light cruisers and 2 frigates were dispatched. In just one hour, nine Dutch warships were destroyed, and more than half of the thousands of Dutch sailors were killed and wounded.

In the distance, several galen ships with sails flying the flag of the Kingdom of Spain were fishing for the Dutch hapless who had fallen overboard, and in the depths of the bay. Several other Spanish big-bellied gallenic boats are carefully sailing out of the bay.

"Hats off to Admiral Freddy of the Spanish Kingdom Navy, a perfect joint anti-piracy battle. A report was sent to the command of the Navy to resolve the battle an hour ahead of schedule, and there were no casualties. ”

Lieutenant Commander Sun Yang, commander-in-chief of the Caribbean Fleet of the U.S. Navy in China, gave instructions to the adjutant with a grin. In a short time, a steam boat left the light cruiser Constitution and headed for the distant Spanish fleet, while a telegram was sent to Vice Admiral Wang Tiehammer, the commander of the navy, who was waiting for news in the country.

"Dear Admiral Pitthein, I was so surprised that I didn't know that my opponent was the Dutch Navy until I got you. You are brave, but your men are stupid and should have surrendered in the first place. Instead of resisting or running away. This act of piracy will be a stain on your life, so. You will not be eligible as a prisoner of war, but will be tried as a pirate leader in your country's courts. ”

Sun Yang turned his head and showed a peculiar smile at the Dutch admiral Piet Hein, who was like a chicken in the soup, as if he was looking at a loser who had lost all his belongings at this time.

"How did you know I was here...... It can't be, I've been paying attention to the Spaniards for months......" Pitchein closed his eyes in agony, the scene of the naval battle an hour earlier pricking his nerves.

With black smoke in the air of the retreating warship, the American warship was able to catch up with the fleeing Dutch ship at a speed of at least 8 knots. Dense artillery fire chased the slow-moving sail battleship, and no brave sailor could withstand the high-explosive shells that whizzed in. Killing the gunpowder inside the battleship was perhaps the happiest thing of its time, and most of the Dutch sailors were charred with the ship in the scorching flames and shockwaves, and the cries of misery still echoed in their minds.

"In the East, there is a famous saying: If you don't know, you can't do it unless you do." After Sun Yang finished smiling, a few sailors took the Dutch admiral Piet Hein out of the captain's room.

"Su Zi would rather be really poisonous, and he actually calculated that the Dutch would attack the Spanish gold fleet in the Bay of Matanzas this year, and let us play the role of passing by halfway. If you want me to say, you should have served both of them in one pot, the gold and silver of the whole three ships, tsk......"

Looking at the Spanish fleet in the Gulf of Matanzas in the distance, Sun Yang's eyes were full of stars, and he couldn't wait to raise the black pants he had just changed into today, and directly disarm these "allies".

Far away, on the flagship of the Spanish Caribbean Navy, the "St. François", General Freddy, who had transported immigrants from the East to Bermuda, was also secretly happy at this time. If the Dutch succeed in this sneak attack, several cargo ships loaded with gold and silver will definitely be swallowed by the Dutch, and their fate will be predictable.

Although the navies of Spain and the United States have held symbolic anti-piracy exercises off the coast of Cuba every year for the past few years, today is the first time that the Chinese and American navies have really seen the opportunity to engage in naval warfare. In less than an hour, the Dutch warships, which were usually more ferocious than jackals in the eyes of the Spanish Navy, exploded and sank one by one, which was simply the most surprising thing since Columbus discovered the New World, and the gorgeous black and white demons circulating on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean were indeed real.

"This group of Yankees...... Thank God, maybe they didn't know what was on our ship. Freddie wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and muttered to himself.

……

"The battle ended an hour ago, the Dutch fleet led by Pitthayne was completely annihilated, Pitthein was captured alive, the Spaniards avoided a catastrophe, and our casualties were zero."

The office door of the Ministry of Defense opened, and Vice Admiral Wang Tiezhu, the commander of the Navy, walked in with a smile and sat down as he threw out a telegram lightly.

"Xiao Su, is it appropriate for us to intervene in the war between the Netherlands and Spain?" Zheng Quan flipped through the telegrams of the war report, and his face was very stern.

This naval battle, which has mobilized most of Europe's intelligence bases for "positioning" since the beginning of the year, came from Su Zining's planning. Historically, the Dutch Admiral Pittheine's surprise attack on the Spanish gold fleet in Matanzas Bay in 1628 was one of several important milestones in the Dutch Navy's burial of Spanish maritime supremacy.

"Maintaining normal trade order in the Caribbean is our public position. In the absence of any official notice. Any attempt to undermine the security of Caribbean shipping lanes by force. All are equated with piracy. And as far as the 'daily rule' is concerned, the Spanish Caribbean fleet goes to Bermuda to resupply the island of Bermuda, so it is also subject to the protection of the routes of our navy, and I think the Dutch in Amsterdam should also know that their adventures are unpopular throughout the Atlantic......"

Su Zining smiled and said a diplomatic explanation. The people in the conference room of the Ministry of Defense were relieved.

"More importantly, we need to curb the unbridled maritime expansion of the Dutch and warn them that we are not just about business. The gold and silver on these Spanish ships were not so much the lifeblood of the Spanish kingdom. And why not our precious metals reserve bank? The day the Kingdom of Spain does not fall, the more secure our position will be on both sides of the Atlantic. ”

Su Zining said, took out a copy of the text from his arms, and saw that the rows and columns on it were full of numbers.

"Last year, the total import and export volume of trade with Spain and Portugal in the Caribbean, South America and West Africa has reached 6 million US dollars, and we are the only region that maintains a trade deficit. And Cuba's cooperation has only just begun, and we need Spain and Portugal to make their American colonies better. ”

The texts are passed on one by one. Even Vice Admiral Wang Tiezhu, the commander of the navy, who did not understand overseas import and export trade, couldn't help but nod slightly.

"You little Su, you have the ability to calculate the Dutchman one after another." As he spoke. Premier Qi Jianjun appeared in front of the door of the conference room of the Ministry of National Defense with a smile on his face, "When these things are dealt with, you can come to my office." ”

"Oh, good ......" Seeing that the prime minister came to find him in person, Su Zining showed a flattered expression, and hurriedly cleaned up the table like a good baby.

Su Zining's expression and movements suddenly caused a burst of laughter in the conference room.

……

In Amsterdam, at 6 p.m., the wall clock in the living room of the American Consulate in China finally rang.

"I'm sorry, but I should have changed the music just now." Fan Li suddenly opened his eyes, as if he had accidentally had a dream just now, and his expression at this time was still very guilty.

"No, it was quiet just now, and it was very relaxing." Nidelson quickly sat up straight, and his gaze began to move to the bag that was caught under the armpit by the other party.

Elson received the signal, walked a few steps, opened the Wen Jiàn bag, took out a letter of Wen Jiàn, and respectfully handed it to Nidelson's hand.

Slowly skimming over the diplomatic letter, written in Latin, and only halfway through it, Niedelson stood up suddenly, his face pale.

"I've actually been hesitant to tell you in advance, but I'm not sure if this information is accurate, so I'll give you the results at the time specified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of our country in accordance with the rules." Fan Li politely walked up to Nidelson and pointed to the diplomatic text that the other party was holding in his hand and was still trembling slightly, "Our navy has long found a strange fleet roaming the Caribbean, we are not sure if it is the Dutch fleet, but judging from their behavior, they are infinitely close to pirates. Because they have been testing Cuban waters, which are on our trade routes. If there were no errors, there should have been a naval battle today, you know, no ship could withstand the artillery fire of the Navy of the Chinese American Republic. I will give you a more detailed answer in a few days. ”

These madmen, when did Spain's Caribbean route become your object of protection...... Nidelson hung down the text in his hand in frustration, not knowing what to say. Others may not know, but Dutch Admiral Pitthein's fleet sailing arrangements were personally inquired about by him.

At this moment, Serena, the wife of the consular officer, walked in, politely raised her skirt to the diplomats present, and then gestured to her husband.

"The dinner is ready, Mr. Governor, now let us put aside our suspicions and enjoy it. I have a few more documents from the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that I would like to share with you, and I can assure you that they are definitely the good news that you have been waiting for for a long time. ”

The Dutch governor, who had just suffered a heavy blow, suddenly lit up again in his cloudy and confused eyes at this time, knowing that this Chinese diplomat must be referring to the authorization of an American-style 21B flintlock rifle assembly line and the opening of a certain gorgeous port on the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. These "commercial cooperation" between the two countries have been tossed back and forth for a long time, and all kinds of game means have been exhausted, and almost all the owners of the Dutch Governors' Federation are eagerly awaiting.

"Oh, of course! If there is any problem, we can solve it at the banquet! Nidelson quickly stood up and saluted slightly against his abdomen, it seems that a bad news is exchanged for good news, today's luck is not so bad, and the result of the naval battle is not necessarily that the Netherlands loses, right?

"Serena, let's sit down together, and it's okay to have a small glass of wine with Mr. Governor Niddleson."

Fan Li grinned, and as he spoke, his eyes inadvertently wandered around his wife's lower abdomen. Serena seemed to feel her husband's gaze, and also shyly touched her abdomen gently, this is their child, who is almost three months pregnant. (To be continued.) )