"Governor Si, Baoshan County and the mouth of the Yangtze River are not easy to fight! I heard that Baoshan is half a fortress and half a business, and there are two major river defense fortresses in Wusongkou and Gaoqiao, all of which are made of huge stones, with heavy artillery and heavy troops!

In addition to the two fortresses of Wusong and Gaoqiao at the mouth of the Yangtze River, there is also a Chongming fortress, which is built on Chongming Island, this fortress not only has a large number of soldiers, but also the location of the naval academy of Chongming Island in the Ming Dynasty, and one or two thousand military students are in school all year round. Those are all in the academy to work hard to learn artillery skills, and there is also a fast crab fleet of the Ming Navy stationed on the island.

This kind of fast crab boat is not very easy to use in the sea and ocean, but it is said to be particularly easy to use in places like the Yangtze River estuary, where the wind is small and the water is shallow. Can your Dutch and Spanish galleons deal with them? ”

Speaking of the situation in the coastal defense of the Yangtze River Estuary in the Ming Dynasty, Kangxi actually had a head on the road, it seems that he has also done his homework these days, and the sticky pole that has gone through wind and rain has finally started to do business.

Spearman, on the other hand, was confident, he didn't even care about the spice islands in the East Indies during this time, and spent all his energy on how to contain the Ming Dynasty, and of course he also studied how to destroy the rich land on the southeast coast of the Ming Dynasty - there is a successful precedent in history!

"Your Majesty, it's all to blame for the minister's failure to explain it just now, the minister's plan is not to attack Baoshan County from the beginning, but to first use the Japanese Kou tactics to destroy the rich coastal areas of the Ming Dynasty, force the Ming Dynasty to disperse their forces, and then concentrate about 20,000 elites, land directly on the coast of Songjiang Prefecture, avoid the strong Wusong Fortress and Gaoqiao Fortress, and go straight to Baoshan County! As far as I know, Baoshan County is not protected by a city wall, and it can't stop the attack of 20,000 elites at all.

If we can capture Baoshan County, then the richest southeast coastal plain of the Ming Dynasty will be completely exposed to the powerful coalition forces! If Li Zhongshan does not withdraw his troops immediately, then the coalition forces will sack the entire Jiangnan Plain! ”

When it comes to sacking the Jiangnan Plain, Spearman is a little frowning. When he was in Japan, he had heard more than once how the Japanese raided the southeast coast of China, as if it was easy! Even if the military strength of the Ming Dynasty is not what it used to be, the coastline of the Ming Dynasty is too long, and it is impossible to have enough troops to deploy defense.

And the Ming navy is not the opponent of the Spanish Armada at all, so the Spanish Armada can completely protect the Japanese fleet, wait for land at any point along the coast of the Ming Dynasty, and then burn and loot, do all kinds of evil, forcing the Ming Navy to come out and send them to death, forcing the Ming Army to disperse its forces everywhere.

When the time comes, the Spanish Armada will transport a group of Qing soldiers and pirates to Songjiang Province to land, won't this be a sure win?

Seeing that Spearman's beard and eyebrows were about to fly, Emperor Kangxi turned his head to look at Zheng Xi, who was the translator. Zheng Xun immediately smiled and said to Emperor Kangxi: "Your Majesty, it turns out that this second master Si is holding back, and wants to learn from other people's widows to do not do human affairs, go to the southeast coast to burn and loot, and hire widows from Japan to do this, they have already hired twenty or thirty thousand, and they are practicing every day in Japan, just waiting to go abroad to rob!" Si Er also said that as long as their Japanese robbers did all the bad things, the Ming army defending the mouth of the Yangtze River would definitely be exhausted and deal with it everywhere, and at this time there would be an opportunity to raid Baoshan. ”

This thing is a bit detrimental to yin morality!

Yang Xiaomi's eyebrows frowned slightly, and she wanted to persuade Kangxi to learn to be a man, but before she could speak, Kangxi had already opened her mouth to applaud.

"Good!" Kangxi smiled and said to Spearman, "The plan to use Japanese soldiers to attack the coast of the Ming Dynasty to divide its troops, when I was in Taiping Valley, I talked to the Spanish, Dutch, and Portuguese missions that came directly from Europe. That time was with the Spanish ambassador, what was called Papol. Spinola Doria talked about. His plan is similar to yours, and you're really here. Heroes see the same thing! By the way, I also signed an alliance treaty with them. Do you know this, Governor? ”

Spearman shook his head: "Your Majesty, the foreign minister doesn't know about this yet, but since the Spanish Armada with the participation of our Dutch Navy has arrived in Japan, then there will be a battle between the Netherlands, Spain and the Ming Dynasty!" ”

Then he said to Kangxi with a sincere face: "The foreign minister will definitely contribute all his energy to the common cause of the emperor, the Netherlands, and Spain - to fight against the Ming Dynasty and France, the biggest enemies of world peace and order, and to ask His Majesty the Emperor to believe in the foreign minister!" ”

There is already a meaning in these words that he is willing to work for Kangxi, but he just doesn't say it explicitly.

However, Zheng Xi, who was the translator for him, was too much, and said to Kangxi with a smile: "Your Majesty, this Si Er has had a bad deal recently, the East India Company of which he is the governor has seized one of the three small islands in the South Seas rich in nutmeg and cloves, and he has not paid attention to it, and the French have robbed it, and the losses have been heavy. I just want to have a future here with the emperor! ”

Kangxi understood, nodded with a smile, and said to Spearman: "Governor of Sz, the treaties I signed with the Netherlands, Spain, and Portugal stipulate that they should send wise ministers to help me with advice. However, the Qing Dynasty was too far away from Europe, and the advisers sent by the Netherlands, Spain, and Portugal could not come for a while. Why don't you serve as an advisor to me for the time being!

Would you like to, Governor? ”

Then Zheng Xi hurriedly turned around and asked Spearman: "Second Master Si, the emperor wants to appoint you as an adviser minister, ask if you are willing?" ”

"Yes, the minister is willing to serve the Qing Dynasty and the emperor!" As soon as Spearman heard this, he quickly knelt down for Kangxi.

He was originally unwilling, but now he has been forced by the "despicable and shameless Sun King" to have no choice, and if he wants not to become the first and second, he has to hug the thick legs of the Qing Emperor.

When Kangxi saw Spearman's attitude, he pondered in his heart: It's really wicked people who have their own wicked people, you Dutch are bad enough, but you are still bullied by the French, it can be seen how bad that Louis XIV has become!

"Ahh

France, Fontainebleau Palace, King Louis XIV of France sneezed again, he didn't know what was going on during this time, he was a strong sneezer, and he invited the court doctor to come and see it, and the diagnosis was that His Majesty's delicate big nose was allergic to perfume, and it was recommended to stop using it!

It's a bit tricky!

Everyone knows that Louis XIV doesn't like to take a bath, usually the hand towel is half dry and rubbed a few times, so his body is always dirty and smelly, if there is no perfume to cover it, won't he, the sun king, stink?

So Louis XIV can only endure it first, sneeze and sneeze, he is a sun king, why can't he stink and see people, right?

The problem of sneezing can be tolerated, but the Dutch consul William III and the Spanish Prime Minister Juan. Jose was busy piecing together an anti-French and anti-Ming alliance, and openly demanded that French merchant ships not trade with the Ming without the permission of the Dutch Indian Company and the Spanish Armada, but it was difficult for the Sun King to accept.

According to a note jointly submitted by the ambassadors of the Netherlands and Spain, the French fleet that went to Daming last year will be the last French fleet to freely enter Southeast Asian waters through the Strait of Malacca, Sunda Strait, Lombok Strait, and other waterways.

Beginning in 1681, ships of any country that traded through the waters of Southeast Asia and the Ming Dynasty were to be placed under the supervision of the Dutch and Spanish.

It's not just about money, it's about the dignity of the Sun King and France!

In the eyes of the Sun King Louis XIV, France was the most powerful country in the world, Spain with the crown of two continents, the Netherlands as a coachman at sea, the Holy Roman Empire, England and Sweden as the world. France is the big brother of Europe!

The dignified European boss, even to carry out free trade with the Ming Dynasty, has to look at the faces of the Netherlands and Spain, can this work? Is this still the boss? What's the matter, have all the years of the Legacy War and the Franco-Dutch War been fought in vain?

The thought of the smug expression on the handsome and lowly face of William III made Louis XIV feel the urge to declare war!

But it was only impulsive, and the just-concluded Franco-Dutch war greatly drained France's financial resources, although Colbert, a financial expert, helped him to fish sustainably and make a lot of livre. But Colbert is not a magician who turns stones into gold, and he can't make money.

His method of raising military funds is nothing more than "suffering the people", of course, the people must not be too bitter, otherwise they may rebel - the French people like to rebel, especially the Parisians.

Therefore, although Louis XIV was very hard-mouthed and resolutely opposed the demands of the Netherlands and Spain, he still ordered the suspension of the approval of the permission to trade in the Ming Dynasty for the next year.

At the same time, he does not plan to send a fleet to visit Daming again, and this also means that the quasi-alliance between France and Daming can only be temporarily stopped who makes the French navy too weak. Although it can still confront Britain and the Netherlands in European waters, it is completely inadequate in the Indian and Pacific waters.

Thinking of this, Louis XIV could only sigh and focus his attention on the latest plan submitted by the Marquis de Vauban to build a fortress - he planned to use the fortress to protect the land of France first, so that the enemy could not enter first, and then launch a new expansion war!

At this moment, he suddenly heard a palace guard guarding outside his office shouting: "Colbert, little Kirbel begging to see!" ”

Little Kirbel is little Baptiste. Colbel, this Kolbble father and son have a very good relationship, and even share the same name, so others can only use "big" and "small" to distinguish them.

Louis XIV was stunned when he heard "Little Colbert begging to see him", and then he hurriedly shouted: "Come in!" Little Colbert, when did you get to France? Did this trip to China go well? ”

With the sound of hurried footsteps, two big men dressed in fancy clothes had appeared in front of the French sun, and among the two Colberts, the older one was still as expressionless as ever. And the little one was happy, as if he had picked up a hundred thousand miles of folles on the way to the Palace of Fontainebleau!

"My Majesty, you have made a fortune!"

In the face of Louis XIV's question, the answer of little Coleble was indeed inspiring!

Really picked up the money?

Louis didn't understand for a moment, just looked at little Colbert in a daze.

"Your Majesty," said Kirbel Jr., "you know what? We got amazing results from this voyage. It could be as high as 200 million livres, or even more! ”

"2.2 billion?" Louis couldn't believe it, and just turned his gaze to old Colble.

Old Kirble nodded: "My Majesty, the harvest of this trip to China is indeed unexpectedly rich. But it's hard to say whether there will be a profit of 200 million livres, after all, silk, porcelain, sugar, tea, nutmeg, cloves, pepper, and other things shipped back to France have not yet been sold, and are now being unloaded at the port."

"Wait." Louis XIV hastened to stop Old Colbert, "You just said. We bought nutmeg, cloves, pepper from China? China also produces these? ”

"This." "It is not produced at present, but in a few years, I am afraid it will be produced." ”

"What do you mean?" The more Louis XIV listened, the more confused he became, "Since nutmeg, cloves, and pepper are not produced in China at present, where do we buy these things?" Aren't all these things monopolized by the Dutch? Did they allow our ships to buy from the East Indies? ”

"Well, in fact they still don't allow it," said old Colbert, "so Admiral Cotentin and his fellow Chinese admirals, along with 3,000 Qing generals loyal to Fuquan, decided to loot the Dutch-controlled Spice Islands!" ”

"What? Rob? Louis XIV was stunned, "Cotentin robbed the Dutch of the Spice Islands?" Who agreed with him to do that? Our Kingdom of France is not a pirate nation like England! And we are still at peace with the Netherlands. What about Cotentan? Let him come to me right away! ”

"Your Majesty, I'm afraid he won't be able to come. He was invited by the Great Ming to be the chief adviser of the navy. "Besides, can Your Majesty forgive him for his mistakes?" Although he did something inconsistent with the honor of the knight and disgraced His Majesty, the harvest of this voyage was really extraordinarily rich, and it is estimated that there will be a huge profit of up to 200 million livres after selling all the goods."

"200 million. Are there really that many? Louis XIV still couldn't believe it, and asked through gritted back molars. He looked at old Colbert, as if he wanted his confirmation.

"There should be, conservatively estimated that there can be so many! If the sales are good, there may be more. "But a considerable part of it is the value of the spices that Major General Cotentin has stolen. If Your Majesty thinks that glorious France should not rob the Spice Island, then you will not have so much profit after returning this part of the spices. ”

"Return?" The Sun King laughed, "How is it possible to return it?" That's 200 million livres! This is equivalent to 2 times the annual revenue of France! And who should I return these 200 million livres? Dutch East India Company? The spices did not belong to them, they were also robbers, who took possession of those islands.

So Rear Admiral Codontin just struck a group of vile and shameless pirates, seized some spices, and he was indeed the most outstanding admiral of our French country, and he fully embodied the chivalry of France in everything he did, and deserved the title of viscount and admiral! ”

It seems that Louis XIV was still a little misunderstood, and the spices stolen from the spice islands were not worth 200 million livres, which was the total net profit of the voyage.

"Your Majesty," said old Kolberti again, "we may have to give Prince Foquansky a portion of the profits, after all, the principal of the purchase of these goods is 10,000,000 taels of silver from Foquansky and 500,000 taels of silver from the sale of the Royal Sun."

"Sold the Royal Sun?" Louis XIV was a little reluctant again.

The Royal Sun is his big baby, he himself is reluctant to "play", why did he sell it in a blink of an eye? Although 500,000 taels of silver may be a lot, he is still reluctant.

"Your Majesty," said Kirbel Jr., "the construction of the Royal Sun is less than 12 months...... Now that you have the money, just build a few more. ”

Louis XIV then realized that he already had 200 million ...... It should be less than 200 million livres windfall. Isn't it possible to build a battleship like the Wangjia Sun?

You don't have to build a bigger one!

"Your Majesty," said old Colbert at this time, "Admiral Cotentin's sacking of the Spice Islands is likely to further deteriorate our relations with the Netherlands and Spain. I am afraid that we need to speed up the construction of battleships and expand the navy...... And to rapidly expand the navy, we should build more affordable ships of the third and fourth ranks.

In addition, there was a Ming mission and some merchants who followed our mission to Europe. They arrived with a number of armed ships belonging to the Daming Yuehai Trading Company and the Nanyang Trading Company. ”

"A Ming mission came? What do they want? Louis XIV asked.

"Your Majesty, they want an alliance...... A real, all-encompassing grand alliance that encompasses politics, economics, military, and diplomacy. It is used against the Eleven Nations Alliance that is trying to break us and the Ming Dynasty.

In addition, the Ming side also wants to establish a United Kingdom of North America...... And relied on this kingdom to open up the trade routes from the Pacific to North America to the Atlantic. ”

Little Kirbel said.

"A real alliance?" Louis XIV asked, "Does this mean that we will soon have a war with the Netherlands, Spain, and England?" ”

"Possibly," said Colbert, "unless you are willing to return the spices and pay for the damage."

Otherwise, the Dutch would have been even more active in opposing our great France. And the United Kingdom and Spain will probably be involved! ”

(End of chapter)