Chapter 470: East India Company, Governor-General's Decision
In the magnificent Governor's Palace of Batavia, Governor Antonio stood in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window, holding a glass of blood-red grape wine and taking a sip slowly, his eyes looking deep in the direction of the large dock outside.
As the governor of Batavia, he was a businessman and was in charge of the East India Company. He was in a high position and had great power. He was also a nobleman who was personally received and rewarded by Her Majesty the Queen of the Dutch dynasty. He was the most successful businessman in the country, no doubt about it.
After the former Governor Hendrick stepped down last year, Antonio, who succeeded him as the Governor of Batavia, was ruthless and skillful. In just one year, he suppressed the Spanish and Portuguese to the point of suffocation.
At this time, the Kingdom of the Netherlands was at its peak in history. It successfully replaced the Kingdom of Spain and became the only hegemonic power on the sea.
There were also the Anglo-Saxon pirates who had just begun to emerge and acted as bootlickers, full of high spirits.
In the established history, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which was once in its heyday, greatly underestimated the ambitions of the Anglo-Saxons who were of pirate origin. After a hundred years of glory, it was replaced by its younger brother England and has declined ever since.
But no matter what, the East India Company during Antonio's time was undoubtedly the brightest jewel in the crown of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
"Whoosh!"
A figure flashed into the hall of the Governor's Mansion, came behind Antonio, and bowed to report, "Your Excellency Governor, the latest news just received is that the Portuguese occupying the trenches have been destroyed by the fleet of the Ming Dynasty's new and powerful Renaissance Army."
"This mysterious fleet of the Restoration Army has more than 2,000 large and small treasure ships. It is extremely powerful and ruthless. It killed all the Portuguese in the trenches without leaving a single one alive!"
The person who came was Adjutant Nicholas. The aura he exuded showed that he had reached the peak level of a great knight.
The great knights and great magicians among the Western white forces are equivalent to the fifth-level warriors in the Eastern world.
Governor Antonio is a great magician at the pinnacle of his cultivation, and his light magic has reached a superb level.
"Oh?"
Antonio raised his eyebrows, played with the Wannian Wenyu goblet in his hand, looked at his adjutant Nicholas and asked, "When did this happen?"
These white barbarians who had traveled across the ocean, after seeing the vast territory and rich resources of the Ming Dynasty, felt deep awe for this great Eastern empire with a population as large as that of Europe.
This is also the main reason why, despite their powerful strength, they dare not rashly provoke the Ming Dynasty.
Although they have already figured out that the Ming Dynasty's naval strength is not strong, its population of nearly 200 billion is really terrifying!
The Han Chinese heritage of the Ming Dynasty has a long history and an extremely complete cultivation system. There are many powerful people in the country, and the foundation is unfathomable.
"Your Excellency Governor, the Ming forces that raided the trenches were too ruthless. The Fuxing Army slaughtered all the foreign soldiers and civilians in the trenches, and the spies of all forces were also lost, so we were unable to obtain intelligence in time."
Nicholas's face was solemn, and he continued, "According to the intelligence we just received, this happened three months ago."
“I never expected that the Fuxing Army, a rapidly rising resistance force in the north of the Ming Dynasty, would grow so fast.”
"According to the intelligence reports sent back by our missionaries stationed in the Ming Dynasty, the Fuxing Army led by Li Dingguo has recently captured nearly half of the Ming Dynasty's territory, occupying the vast territory north of the Yellow River."
"According to reliable news, the vast grasslands outside the Great Wall have also been captured by the Renaissance Army, a huge area that is no less large than that inside the Great Wall."
“This sounds incredible!”
"If the Restoration Army continues to expand, it won't be long before our Fort Zeelandia is targeted by them and is in danger of falling."
"According to reliable information, the two fleets of the Restoration Army alone now have a million warriors, far more than the total number of our Batavia and Fort Zeelandia soldiers!"
Nicholas was worried and suggested, "Our East India Company has always been responsible for the mission of the Church of Light to preach in the East."
"Now, within the rapidly weakening Ming Dynasty, a powerful resistance army has suddenly emerged. Moreover, their ideas are very radical, and they want to kill all foreign races. This is very detrimental to our expansion plan in the East."
"Given that we are short of troops in the east, I suggest sending a message to the Great Light Church as soon as possible to invite a group of Knights of Light to come and station there to resist the possible great crisis."
Batavia, the headquarters of their East India Company, was far away from the territory of the Ming Dynasty, but that was only relatively speaking.
With the speed of the high-quality and top-quality treasure ships, it only took about three months to reach Batavia from the trench.
If the Restoration Navy chooses to attack Fort Zeelandia, it will be even easier and they can reach the city in less than half a month.
Fort Zeelandia was a colony built by the Dutch at the cost of a huge amount of manpower and material resources. The profits gained from the East India Island each year accounted for about 10% of the East India Company's annual revenue, and it was a colony that could not be lost.
The Fusion Army mentioned in the intelligence is so radical. God knows whether they will turn their attention to Dongfan Island after capturing the trenches?
With the enemy's military strength, Fort Zeelandia, located in the southern part of Dongfan Island, could not withstand the enemy's attack at all.
Unless the Spaniards who occupied Tamsui and Keelung in the north joined forces with us, we would have enough strength to fight against the Fuxing Navy.
But the Spaniards, who had just been overthrown from their position as maritime hegemony by the Dutch, were mortal enemies of the Dutch, and it was impossible for the two sides to unite to deal with the revived navy.
"Your Excellency Governor, the severity of the situation is far more serious than this!"
Nicholas's face became more and more solemn, and he reported, "Before the Fuxing Army captured the trenches, they had already destroyed the Zheng family army, the dominant force on the southeast coast of the Ming Dynasty."
"The Zheng family army led by Zheng Zhilong is no weakling. They have caused great trouble to our East India Company and the Spaniards in the past."
"The dominant position of the southeastern coast of the Ming Dynasty has been replaced by the Fuxing Army, a powerful force that is as powerful as our East India Company!"
Nicholas is Antonio's most capable assistant. His talent in military affairs is commendable and he easily analyzed the severe situation that his side is facing.
"Yes, Your Excellency the Governor."
Nicholas looked at Antonio, who was frowning, and continued, "According to uncertain news, the Fuxing Army led by Li Dingguo is currently attacking Liaodong and is launching a full-scale attack on the Tatars entrenched in the Liaodong area."
"Once Li Dingguo defeats the Tatars and has no more worries, he will turn his attention to us and the Southern Ming Dynasty. I think we will soon face a powerful opponent."
"This will be a huge obstacle for us to complete the mission of the Great Light Church and build a Far East colony."
As a high-ranking noble in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Nicholas was well aware of the horror of the Great Church of Light.
To the Great Church of Light, the now prosperous Kingdom of the Netherlands is nothing but an ordinary force.
Any of the three knightly orders of the Great Church of Light could easily destroy the Kingdom of the Netherlands if deployed.
Therefore, they dare not take lightly the Eastern colonization plan formulated by His Majesty the Pope and the Presbyterian Church, and they need to treat it with caution.
For the Great Light Church, replacing a governor of the East India Company was just a matter of a word, and they could even send heavyweights like Antonio and Nicholas to the gallows.
The Great Light Church has always regarded the cultivation and cultural system of the Eastern Han people as the greatest heresy. The Han people, who have a long history, crush the Westerners in every aspect, which is absolutely unacceptable to the Great Light Church.
Nicholas and Antonio even knew that the Great Light Church had already formulated a plan to attack the Eastern Han Empire from the north and the south, and the missionaries who were now preaching in the Ming Dynasty were their vanguards.
Its mission is to find out the details of the Eastern Han people as quickly as possible in order to formulate a corresponding colonization plan and ultimately completely destroy the Han people's cultural and martial arts heritage.
"Request the Great Church of Light to send a group of Knights of Light to reinforce us?"
Hearing Nicholas's suggestion, Antonio frowned and thought, "We don't need to go that far for now."
"If we trouble the Great Light Church before the Restoration Army poses a real threat to our East India Company, wouldn't it make us look incompetent?"
Ambitious Antonio does not intend to adopt Nicholas's advice.
Although this is a safer approach and would give them enough strength to deal with the invasion of the Restoration Army, it is not in the interests of the Antonio family and the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The East India Company was currently at its peak and making a fortune. How could it be willing to give up the massive wealth and benefits of the Eastern trade?
"Nicholas, your idea is rather radical, please calm down for now!"
He scolded his adjutant Nicholas, "Others may not know, but you and I are not aware of the greed of the Great Light Church, are we not aware of it?"
"Once the Knights of Light arrive, we will have to give up at least 60% of the interests of the Kingdom of the Netherlands!"
"That's a huge amount of gold coins and countless natural treasures. I won't agree to it."
Born into a wealthy family, he only has interests and golden coins in his eyes, which are the most attractive source of motivation for him.
"No matter how powerful the resistance forces in the north of the Ming Dynasty are, they will not target us for the time being."
"Don't forget that there is a powerful Southern Ming Dynasty south of the Yellow River!"
"The extremely wealthy Southern Ming Dynasty cannot be easily defeated by a new rebel army."
"At least during my term, Li Dingguo's Fuxing Army has neither the time nor the energy to threaten our East India Company."
"Just ask Fort Zeelandia to do a good job of vigilance and defense. No matter how powerful the Restoration Army's navy is, it cannot be compared with our East India Company."
"The interests in America are our focus."
As the governor-general of the East India Company, he was well aware that more than 70% of the wealth of both the Spanish and the Dutch came from America.
There is no other reason, because the vast Americas, which is still a wild area, contains too many top-notch natural treasures and cultivation resources.
Over the past few hundred years, the rise of the Spanish and then the Dutch was mainly due to their reliance on the endless supply of American resources and wealth.
As for the luxury goods in the Ming Dynasty, such as silk, porcelain, tea, etc., they were just rare materials traded for the enjoyment of Western nobles and had nothing to do with the growth of national strength.
Even if this trade route is cut off by the Renaissance Navy, it will not have much impact on the Western world.
Of course, Antonio could not give up the opportunity to earn huge amounts of money through trade with the Han people in the East.
These governors who are sent to other places have a short term of office, so they will try to make as much money as possible, which is also the source of their work enthusiasm.
After discussing with his adjutant Nicholas for a while, Antonio waved his hand and sent him away.
He held up a glass of century-old grape wine again with a slightly irritated look, stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window in the hall, looked at the busy dock in the distance, frowned and thought.
In any case, the rise of the new overlord of the southeast coast of the Ming Dynasty and the revival of the navy also brought him considerable pressure.
In particular, their extremely hostile attitude towards Western forces cast a shadow on Antonio's heart.
……
The big wharf in Haojing was bustling with people.
The Third Fleet of the Restoration Navy stationed in the trenches has just been formed under the latest order issued by the military.
Wu Xilin, the first commander of the Navy's Third Fleet, and his deputy Li Chang, led the military generals and stood on the big dock.
They mobilized such a large force to welcome the arrival of the Navy Commander-in-Chief Wan'er.
This coastal port fortress, once occupied by white barbarians for many years, has been transformed and expanded beyond recognition.
Under the strict order of the military, all white and foreign buildings in this coastal fortress have been demolished and rebuilt into a fortress complex with oriental characteristics.
The Western-style buildings that were once seen everywhere here have been completely destroyed, without any trace left.
Li Dingguo was well aware of the harm of colonial culture and the ambitions of the white barbarians in the West, and certainly would not let their cultural and religious invasion plans succeed.
In the area under the jurisdiction of the Fuxing Army north of the Yellow River, the signs of cultural invasion that had begun to spread were also suppressed by his order, and all Western missionaries were killed.
This includes many bootlickers who have been successfully brainwashed.
Li Dingguo will show no mercy to these scums.
In his previous life, he was of little influence and could only turn a blind eye.
Now that he has traveled through time and space and been reborn, he has the ability to stop all of this, and certainly will not sit idly by and watch this happen.
Li Dingguo has always regarded all Western forces, big and small, as his sworn enemies.
This is also the reason why he worked so hard to develop and revive the navy.
The ultimate goal is to seize the historical opportunity and completely eliminate this hidden danger so that future generations can live under clean and refreshing blue skies and white clouds.
(End of this chapter)
