Ming Zuo

Chapter 638 Pirates join the war
Zheng Zhilong's preparation process made Zuo Hua eager to learn.

Zuo Menggeng didn't know much about how to fight naval battles in the era of sailing warships, so he couldn't teach the navy.

And Zheng Zhilong is the best teacher right now.

Zuo Hua sought Zheng Zhilong's consent, assigned the people he brought to all the warships, and studied all the steps carefully.

Even more so himself.

"General Hong, why is the gunpowder placed at the bottom of the boat? Isn't it very troublesome to carry it back and forth during the war?"

People in the Zheng family are very proud, and they don't think that anyone can surpass them in today's Daming Offshore.

So Hong Xu's precautions were not strong.

"When the ship is at sea, the bottom of the warehouse is underwater. Because of the unloading force of the water, it is not easy to be damaged by artillery. This way, there is no fear of the gunpowder being detonated and destroying the entire ship."

Zuo Hua was calm on the surface, and quickly kept this trick firmly in his heart.

This is the experience Zheng has gained through countless battles and bloody lessons, which is enough to help the new army avoid many detours.

"My little brother knows that the Westerners' warships have artillery on both sides, and a ship has dozens of artillery pieces. How does the Zheng family respond to the battle?"

Hong Xu squinted at Zuo Hua.

"Thank you, General Zuo, for your concern. The whole Zheng family is risking their lives to prevent the Dutch from being domineering."

If he didn't say anything, Zuo Hua couldn't ask further.

Anyway, when the time comes to fight together, everything will be bright.

While Zheng is actively preparing for the battle, games outside the battlefield are always going on.

As early as July 7, Zheng Zhilong had sent someone to deliver a letter to the Dutch fleet.

Ask the Dutch to release the detained Chinese businessmen and explain the reasons for the invasion of China's coast.

It can be said that during this period, Chinese and Westerners despised each other.

The Chinese feel that they are a kingdom of heaven, and the rest are barbarians.

How can the Dutch be allowed to be arrogant along the coast of China?

The Dutch, relying on the strength of their ships and guns, did not pay much attention to China's Fuchuan.

I don't think that these simple sea ships can pose a threat to the Dutch fleet.

Facing Zheng Zhilong's questioning, Hans Putmans didn't take it seriously at all, and still went his own way.

Not only that, Batavia also came with a fast boat.

Councilor Anthony van Diemen rushed over in person.

As the future governor of the Dutch East India Company in Batavia, Anthony is already very powerful today.

"Hans, please remember that our purpose is to do business no matter what. Don't offend Zheng and Daming too much, it's not in our interest."

Hans Putmans was very dissatisfied with Anthony's warning.

"In any case, I will give priority to ensuring the safety of our Dutch soldiers themselves. Mr. Congressman, please remember that once we fail, not only will we not be able to guarantee our own interests, we will also be buried in the sea."

Anthony did not dare to push too far, lest Hans Putmans blame himself for the defeat.

"I convey Batavia's resolution. Of course, I fully support your decision."

Since the Ming Dynasty had nothing to do with the Dutch aggression, the local merchants in Xiamen had no choice but to personally organize a batch of supplies to be sent to the Dutch ships in exchange for the Dutch not invading the coast.

On July 7, Zheng Zhilong sent people to the Dutch fleet again and put forward conditions.

As long as the Dutch stop the war and withdraw the officials, the Ming Dynasty will send ships to the officials to trade with the Dutch.

This condition did not satisfy the Dutch ambitions at all, so they refused.

During this period of time, Zou Weilian's eight-hundred-mile urgent memorial was sent to the capital and received a reply from the court.

Two days later, the two sides exchanged terms again.

The Dutch thought they had taken the initiative on the battlefield, so the conditions were very harsh.

They asked the Ming government to stop trade with Spain and Portugal, and only do business with the Netherlands, otherwise war would start again.

The Dutch didn't even look at what kind of muscles Daming was.

The answer of the Ming Dynasty was that the Dutch had to pay compensation for war losses and return the officials before they could negotiate business and other issues.

Obviously, the two sides are talking about chicken and duck, and it is impossible to negotiate a result.

Hans Putmans believed that the Ming Dynasty had not suffered enough losses, so he decided to attack Xiamen again.

But this time, the Ming Dynasty is ready.

The guerrilla Zhang Yongchan and Xiong Rulin, the magistrate of Tong'an County, led the army to meet the attack. The Dutch army was defeated and had to retreat after more than ten casualties.

Zhang Yongchan took advantage of the situation to pursue, but when they reached the open sea, due to the unfavorable wind direction, the speed of the Ming Dynasty's ship could not compare with the Dutch's ship, and he still failed to catch up.

The Dutch army, which was defeated and returned to the sea, cruised for more than [-] days, but never dared to attack Xiamen again.

After much deliberation, Hans Putmans decided to attack Jinmen and threaten Haicheng.

What the Dutch army did not expect was that Liang Zhaoyang, the magistrate of Haicheng County, took the initiative to attack.Smuggling across Wuyu Island at night, he touched the vanguard fleet of the Dutch army.

In this battle, three Dutch boats were burned and five were captured, scaring the Dutch and fleeing in panic.

Two consecutive defeats made the Dutch desperate, and they never dared to approach the coastal waters of Daming.

Hans Putmans deeply realized that his fleet was still too small, and the warships were expensive, and compared with the old warships of the Ming Dynasty, they could not afford to lose.

Under such circumstances, he and Anthony thought of Liu Xiang and Li Guozhu.

Taking advantage of the typhoon in August and September, when it was impossible to fight, Hans Putmans sent people to contact Liu Xiang and Li Guozhu, put forward conditions, and made a statement, hoping that the two pirates could join forces with the Dutch army.

In order to get the support of Liu Xiang and Li Guozhu, the Dutch offered very generous conditions.

They would allow Liu Xiang and Li Guozhu to trade freely in Dayuan, Batavia and other Dutch strongholds.

In other words, the Dutch opened up the whole Nanyang to Liu Xiang and Li Guozhu.

The conflict between Liu Xiang, Li Guozhu and Zheng Zhilong has a long history.

When Shibazhi was married, Liu Xiang always felt that she was the biggest.

But he didn't get any of the inheritance left by Yan Siqi.

This made him naturally envious of Zheng Zhilong.

For this reason, he turned to the Portuguese, helped Portugal compete for shipping routes, and robbed merchant ships from other countries.

This created a conflict of interest with the Dutch and Spaniards represented by Zheng Zhilong.

But the Portuguese have long since declined and cannot support Liu Xiang's ambitions.

After Zheng Zhilong broke with the Dutch, Liu Xiang took refuge in the Dutch.

Li Guozhu held a grudge against Zheng Zhilong even more.

He is the son of Li Dan.

He always believed that Li Dan's foundation should also be inherited by him.

It was Zheng Zhilong who took everything away and turned him into a lonely ghost.

He will not let go of any opportunity to snatch back the foundation from Zheng Zhilong.

Prompted by various conditions, Liu Xiang and Li Guozhu decided to send troops to fight Zheng Zhilong to the death.

The war to determine who is the hegemon in the Taiwan Strait is imminent.

(End of this chapter)