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Free Web Novel,Novel online - All in hlnovel.com -> Historic -> Xiao Ge Lao Chapter 1715 Malacca Conference
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- After the king¡¯s speech, the Portuguese in Malacca began to pack their bags and prepare to go home to fight.
In fact, there are many people who are reluctant.
Since the great conqueror Albuquerque conquered this chokepoint city at the intersection of the two oceans seventy years ago, countless Portuguese have settled in Malacca with different purposes.
¡°Among them are officials, priests, soldiers, sailors and other public servants who serve the king and the church, as well as businessmen, adventurers, mercenaries and craftsmen who come to the Far East to make a living.
There are also many public officials who did not want to return to Portugal after their term of service expired and chose to stay in Malacca, engaging in collusion between government and businessmen and blatant smuggling.
And a large number of Portuguese descendants born locally Because there is a saying that it is unlucky for a woman to board a ship, few Portuguese women come to Asia, so these people are all mixed-race children born by Portuguese fathers and local Nanyang women.
Although the population-hungry Kingdom of Portugal recognizes their national identity and they receive education in Portuguese, 90% of them have never been to Europe and have no concept of the royal family in their minds. Now, because of the words of this king who suddenly appeared, they had to leave their homes and go to Portugal, tens of thousands of miles away, and go to fight. How could they be willing to do so?
Many people wanted to take advantage of the chaos to escape secretly, but they soon discovered to their horror that the city of Malacca had been quietly taken over by the Ming Dynasty
All roads leaving the city are fenced with barbed wire. Heck, it's such a luxury to use precious brushed wire for such a thing.
The Ming army soldiers, armed with live ammunition, lined up behind the barbed wire fence. They had been authorized by the King of Portugal to kill all deserters on the spot.
"I have to leave now" On the watchtower of the castle, several Malacca senior officials looked at the Ming army soldiers and shot and killed the Portuguese who tried to cross the blockade. They all felt sad. Governor Bernardo slumpedly took off his black hexagonal hat trimmed with gold, revealing his bald head.
He originally wanted to persuade His Majesty not to give up Malacca, which has been the culmination of generations of people's efforts, and to let himself stay. But looking at the posture of the Ming people, it is obvious that Malacca is bound to win. I'm afraid that those who refuse to leave when the time comes will not be able to escape their vicious hands.
"Whoever dares to say that he will stay at this time is a Portuguese traitor, a traitor, and a weakling." The royal property manager stationed in Malacca sighed: "In fact, His Majesty must have used Malacca as a bargaining chip to make exchanges with the Ming Dynasty. Let's not seek death. ¡±
To him, as long as His Majesty does not check the accounts, everything is easy to discuss.
The Bishop of Malacca also said depressedly: "Yes, even our clergy have to evacuate. Because His Majesty said that we cannot do without us to boost morale during the long voyage."
They are the ones who are least willing to leave Malacca. There are huge benefits here. Not only do all ships entering the port have to pay taxes, but merchant ships must have a license issued by the governor before they can sail in the waters controlled by the Portuguese.
The Governor of Malacca has the power to issue licenses for 17 routes, and the revenue from this alone exceeds 3 million Cruzado each year. The Cruzado is a Portuguese gold coin, one is equivalent to 0.6 taels of silver, which is 1.8 million taels.
They also smuggled spices and pepper on a large scale, and embezzled the income from the Perak tin mine These gray incomes were not recorded by the royal property administrator, so naturally they had no share of the king. You only need to honor the deputy king 30%, and the people below will share 20% of the profit, and the remaining half will be divided among them.
Where can I make so much money when I return to my country? I wouldn't change it if I gave it to a count.
If it weren¡¯t for the three hundred Ming warships approaching the city, they would definitely have found an excuse to stay
But at this point, everything is in vain. The Portuguese could only leave no one, and they all left.
The most unfortunate thing is that those people who were expelled from Macau ten years ago have just settled down in Malacca, bought houses, and started over. Okay, we have to do it again
??~~
After the Marine Corps took control of the fortress and bridge on the Malacca River, the Portuguese fleet was allowed to sail into the inner harbor and seize the time to load ships with supplies.
The huge coast guard fleet was anchored in the calm strait, closely monitoring Portugal's movements.
Although the sea is full of its own warships, a frigate detachment is still vigilantly cruising around the Sea Power to prevent any uninvited guests from approaching.
On the upper floor of the stern of the Haiquan, in the spacious and solemn conference room, Zhao Hao was holding a joint meeting of high-level military and political officials.
The Coast Guard is particularly well-equipped. From Deputy Commander-in-Chief and Commander of the Luzon Theater Jin Ke, Chief of General Staff and Police Commissioner of the Luzon Theater Ma Yinglong, to Acting Commander of the Strategic Fleet Xiang Xuehai, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Luzon Theater and Commander of the Standing Fleet Lin Feng, Commander of the Marine Corps vuda, policeCommittee member Pan Jinlian, Luzon Governor-General's Minister of Human Resources and Military Affairs Ximen Qing and others were all absent.
Even generals from outside the theater such as Zhu Jue, Commander of the Tamluo Garrison District and Police Commissioner, Haerdi, Commander of the Taiwan Garrison District, and Police Commissioner Rong Sheng appeared in the conference room.
Pinto was also ordered to attend the meeting. He sat in the corner and felt uneasy. Because not only was he the only one with red hair in the conference room, but everyone else had gold stars on their chests, and he was the only one with three silver stars.
In addition to the Coast Guard, there are Jiang Xueying, President of Jiangnan Group; Hua Bozhen, Vice Chairman of Jiangnan Group; Wang Mengxiang, Director of Jiangnan Group and Chairman of Nanhai Group; Tang Youde, Director of Jiangnan Group and Chairman of the Taiwan Management Committee; Director of Jiangnan Group, Royal Shipping Company Chairman Chen Huaixiu; Vice Chairman of Nanhai Group Lin Zhennan; Nanhai Group Director and Luzon Management Committee Director Tang Baolu; Group Plenipotentiary Representative in Goa Liang Qin, etc.
Even Liu Zhengqi rushed back from Cairo, thousands of miles away, just to attend this crucial meeting.
The meeting was personally chaired by Zhao Hao, who first announced the members of the Volunteer Fleet Front Committee.
"Fleet Commander Xiang Xuehai, Fleet Police Commissioner Xin Fei, Marine Corps Commander Wu Da, Marine Corps Police Commissioner Pan Jinlian, Chief Liaison Officer Pintuo. Xin Fei is the secretary!"
The senior police officer whose name was called immediately stood up and loudly accepted the order.
President Jiang, who had never been involved in Coast Guard affairs, glanced at Lin Feng in surprise and wondered why there was no such person in the front committee.
"Sit down." Zhao Hao waved his hand, and the five of them immediately sat down.
"I have talked to you separately before, and I have told you everything I can think of." Mr. Zhao glanced at the five people with concern, and said slowly: "But if we go fifty thousand miles, we will definitely encounter many unexpected things. Difficulties and dangers can only be dealt with by your discretion."
"Yes!" The five people responded in a deep voice.
"In short, the first priority is to protect yourself. If you see an opportunity, run away quickly. Don't fight. The most important thing is to maintain a military presence in Europe. Winning or losing is not important. We have no place to inquire anyway" Zhao Hao smiled road.
"Haha" Everyone chuckled.
"You don't have to laugh. I know that up to now, many people are still muttering in their hearts, wouldn't it be enough to take Malacca? At most, we can also take Ceylon. The current territory is enough for us to digest for more than ten or twenty years. "Zhao Hao said again:
"Why are you so greedy that you have to eat India, Africa and Brazil? Can you digest it? Aren't you afraid of dying? What's the point of tens of thousands of brothers working hard to survive tens of thousands of miles away?"
Everyone hurriedly shook their heads. Tang Youde said with a smile: "How could it be? You are no wiser than the Young Master. We trust the Young Master's judgment."
"Look, it's because you believe in my judgment, not the matter itself." Zhao Hao said with a half-smile but not a smile: "Okay, I admit, the steps taken this time are a bit big. But the historical opportunity is a little bit big. If you pass away, God cannot take it, so you must suffer the consequences!"
"I can tell you responsibly that there will never be a second chance like this to completely take over a maritime empire. At present, it is inevitable for the Portuguese to shrink and retreat. The ports they vacated, Fortresses, cities, and routes are all of great strategic value. How many pairs of eyes are watching them!" As he spoke, he emphasized his tone and said in a deep voice to the senior officials:
"If we don't accept it, it means we will be taken advantage of. If we want to snatch it back in the future, we will have to pay ten times the price, and we will also make enemies with local snakes, which will greatly increase our future maintenance costs. So even if we can't digest it for a while, we must take it first. , just keep it and digest it slowly in the future!¡±
"Understood!" The senior executives responded loudly.
"Actually, we originally wanted to settle accounts with the Spaniards. They have knocked on our door twice. We can't just be beaten passively." Zhao Hao smiled again and said, "It's rude to come and not reciprocate. We can't molest them."
Due to the presence of the two ladies, no one dared to follow the nonsense, so they could only eat and hold back their laughter.
"Since we want to help Portugal or not, we have to fight at their doorstep. Of course, we must form an alliance with Portugal. Only in this way can we offset the disadvantages of away games." Zhao Hao's expression gradually became more serious, and everyone hurriedly immersed themselves in their notebooks. Start recording.
"When we go to fight on the Iberian Peninsula 50,000 miles away, obviously the most important thing is to ensure that the Asia-Africa routes are in our own hands, and we must not let others cut off our retreat." Zhao Hao continued: "So we originally need to occupy some key points along the way. node to ensure smooth navigation, so that supplies can be sent up and the volunteer fleet can be returned."
"The Portuguese have been operating along the coasts of Africa, West Asia, and India for hundreds of years, and their ports are at the best nodes on this Asia-Europe route. Their fortresses can also provide enough protection for our garrison, so that we don't need too many manpower. Hold these port fortresses."
"How many troops are needed specifically?" Hua Boxhen asked.
"Compare Portugal's military strength. They have set up more than 30 important port fortresses on this route, and there are countless colonial strongholds, but they only have a total of 12,000 Portuguese soldiers." Zhao Hao said calmly. road:
"It makes no sense that the Portuguese can get away with it with just a few people, but we can't. We really don't have enough manpower, so we have to pay for mercenaries. Try to have a good relationship with the local emperors and just hold on to the place where you eat. There is no need to be aggressive. . It should be possible, right?" (Remember the website address: www.hlnovel.com)It would take too many men to defend these port fortresses. "
"How many troops are needed specifically?" Hua Boxhen asked.
"Compare Portugal's military strength. They have set up more than 30 important port fortresses on this route, and there are countless colonial strongholds, but they only have a total of 12,000 Portuguese soldiers." Zhao Hao said calmly. road:
"It makes no sense that the Portuguese can get away with it with just a few people, but we can't. We really don't have enough manpower, so we have to pay for mercenaries. Try to have a good relationship with the local emperors and just hold on to the place where you eat. There is no need to be aggressive. . It should be possible, right?" (Remember the website address: www.hlnovel.com - Didn't finish reading? Add this book to your favoritesI'm a member and bookmarked this chapterCopy the address of this book and recommend it to your friends for pointsChapter error? Click here to report
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