The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 95 Cape Town
September 1724, 9, Cape Town.

When the two whaling ships slowly sailed into the port of Cape Town, in addition to more than [-] merchant ships docked for supplies, what caught everyone's eyes was four mighty Qi warships stationed on the west side of the pier. A Qi national red rising sun and yellow dragon flag was also raised on the port building of the pier, fluttering in the sea breeze.

Yes, starting from July 7, with the completion of the transfer of power between the first Governor-General of Qi and the last Governor-General of the Dutch East India Company, Cape Town has officially become part of Qi’s Qianzhou Overseas Territory. The Dutch have been in this area for more than 20 years. The colonial affairs of China came to an end, and the Qi people finally took over the strategically important land of South Africa.

Negotiations between the two parties continued for more than a year. During this period, they talked and talked and argued countless times. Finally, an agreement was reached that both parties could reluctantly accept. The Dutch East The Indian Company transferred Cape Town and its associated territories (six or seven towns and their associated lands including Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Milnerton, Durbanville, and Robben Island) to Qi State, and For this reason, Qi paid a transfer fee of 80 guilders to the East India Company.

Although Cape Town had not been officially handed over to Qi a few months ago, Qi's Qianzhou Governor-General could not wait to dispatch an army mixed battalion and two battalions of rural soldiers, escorted by two warships, to land directly and start the journey. The territory of Cape Town exercises garrison and defense rights in advance.This move shocked the local governor and many colonial officials.

Is it so urgent?Are you still worried that our East India Company will not leave?

Perhaps in the eyes of the people of Qi, the so-called negotiation was just a formal episode. Regardless of whether the Dutch agreed or not, in their view, Cape Town had long been an existing territory of the Qi Empire.The negotiation is just a formality to make the people of Qi more legitimate. After all, everyone is a member of the civilized world, and the legal right to rule a certain land is sometimes quite important.

After the 17-member committee in Amsterdam confirmed the transfer contract drawn up by both parties with the Qi Minister in the United Provinces, they quickly signed and sealed it, quickly clarified the status of the Dutch Cape Town colony, and took care of everything here.

Now, the final result has finally settled. The Qi people purchased the Cape Town Colony at a high price, and the Dutch East India Company obtained the Qi people's promise that the port will be like Batavia and Malacca. It was permanently open to East Indian ships free of charge, that is, the Qi people opened Cape Town as a free port, allowing the East India Company's merchant ships to enter and exit freely and obtain necessary supplies.

In addition, the two sides have also made appropriate arrangements for tens of thousands of immigrants in the Cape Town area. They can choose within three years whether to join Qi's overseas territories as nationals, or they can choose to leave freely, and Qi cannot forcefully stop them.

In addition, the Dutch also obtained another major advantage. The new Dutch churches in the former Dutch South African colony could continue to be preserved, and pastors could continue to conduct religious activities and develop believers.But the prerequisite is that they must accept the guidance and management of the Qi Civil Affairs and Religious Affairs Office.

To be honest, in order to obtain this right for tens of thousands of immigrants, the Dutch paid a lot of other costs in exchange.Because in their view, even if Cape Town becomes a free port, if there are no new churches and pastors in the city, there will be no spiritual sustenance. This is still an extremely failed and unimaginable thing for them.Therefore, we obtained this right after repeated struggles, which once made the people of Qi very confused. Don't you Dutch believe in money and wealth?For a moment, I felt that these people were really religious lunatics and a bit unreasonable.

However, although the Dutch East India Company lost the Dutch South Africa colony it had operated for many years, they still had many strongholds on their routes to and from the East where they could supply and stop.Moreover, these strongholds can freely enter and exit Qi's ports without them having to spend additional construction costs and armed defense costs. In essence, there is not much loss, but a lot of fixed costs are saved.

At the same time, the "transfer" of the East Indies and South African territories to Qi also gained Qi's friendship and trust, further strengthening trade between the two sides.Therefore, they will continue to do business as usual, and the market will not be lost - it will even expand, so what is there to regret?

What?Might the Qi people close the Port of Cape Town while the two sides are at war?
Oh, the Dutch have never thought of such a thing. Since the end of the War of Spanish Succession, the Netherlands has been in a state of decline. After William III took over England, the army also completely began to fail. It has almost no combat effectiveness and is not as good as those of the German states. The country's army can fight.

navy?Not to mention, it was severely suppressed by England on the other side of the strait, and could only barely maintain the safety of the Caribbean routes.In this regard, because the Qi people vigorously maintained the security of the Indian Ocean on the Eastern Route, the Dutch significantly reduced their investment in armed forces on the Eastern Sea, so that they could devote limited resources to supporting the sugar trade and slave trade in the Caribbean, West Africa and other regions.

Nothing in this world is smooth sailing, so why should we go against the people of Qi?Everyone should assess the situation and follow them to make a fortune. Wouldn’t it be great?

Of course, the Dutch also gained the right to invest in Qi's territory in South Africa, just like they did in Hanzhou and the East Indies - it is reported that the Dutch East India Company has invested a total of 800 million guilders in Qi, involving In many industries such as finance, mining, railways, textiles, machinery and plantations, you can get huge returns every year. This right is extremely valued by the Dutch East India Company.

To be honest, people like the Dutch who love to pursue commercial interests do not particularly value land. In many cases, in their view, if the land is lost, it will be lost, but there must be business.Pursuing commercial interests has almost become a deep-rooted instinct for them, and they will not hesitate to give up some rights and interests in land for this purpose.

People in Qi cannot comment on whether this attitude or philosophy of life of the Dutch is good or bad. However, people in Qi, who have been striving to expand more living space for the Chinese nation and future generations, do not agree with the Dutch's approach. of.Because they obviously value land resources more and believe that every inch of conquered territory cannot be given up. Especially in South Africa, a region with a key geographical location and rich resources, there is absolutely no reason to give it up.

Although the Dutch established a colonial stronghold in Cape Town as early as 1652, they did not immediately launch a large-scale expansion like their European counterparts. In more than half a century, they only expanded the scope of their colony from the Cape Plain to the Cape. Tyronbosch (more than 20 kilometers from present-day Cape Town).

Gein, the number of fleets passing through the Cape of Good Hope was limited, and the demand for livestock was also limited. The Dutch could meet the demand as long as they raided the lands where the Khoi lived and did not need to work hard to expand the colony.

Another reason is that the number of immigrants from the Netherlands is insufficient. Dutch farmers are busy reclaiming land from the sea in their own country and have no intention of immigrating to South Africa. By the end of the last century, only about [-] Europeans had immigrated to South Africa. Such a small number of people could not live in South Africa. Colonization of the vast South African land.

Of course, the most important reason is that the Dutch East India Company was simply unwilling to spend too much cost on colonial expansion here.There is no sugar, no spices, and no gold or silver. Apart from serving as an important maritime supply point, the Dutch really can't think of any valuable output from Cape Town.

On the other hand, although the Qi people arrived more than ten years later than the Dutch, their development momentum in South Africa was extremely rapid. In less than 20 years, it extended from Changning (today's Durban, South Africa) to less than [-] kilometers away from Cape Town. The kilometer-long Sunningburgh (now the city of Mossel Bay, South Africa) covers most of the coastline of South Africa, and has also expanded to the inland areas. Its population is several times that of the Dutch colonists, crushing Cape Town. trend.

The Dutch are not only afraid of Qi's country-loving behavior, but also despise deep in their hearts.Because, in their opinion, South Africa does not seem to be a good place for colonization. The land here is not as fertile as the East Indies, and the minerals here are not as rich as India. Moreover, the indigenous people here are more primitive and savage, and have become domesticated. It's also very difficult.

Could it be that the people of Qi are just trying to seize this strategic location where the two oceans meet and complete what they call the key to the Indian Ocean?
However, when the Qi people discovered a huge gold mine in the inland Xingshan area (now Johannesburg) last year, the Dutch suddenly became uneasy.

Damn it, the people of Qi are really lucky! "Yes, the people of Qi have indeed been favored by God."

In a tavern in the dock area of ​​Cape Town, a group of gold prospectors from Europe were eagerly discussing the Xingshan gold mine. While they were drinking low-quality mead (sugar cane wine), their eyes were shining with gold, and they were looking forward to it. After you find gold, how should you arrange a better life in the future?

"I heard that a local man in Cape Town found no less than thirty pounds of gold in less than a week after running to Apricot Mountain. Oh, God, that lucky guy has probably returned by now. He went to Europe and lived a luxurious life like an aristocrat."

"Really? Since it's so easy to dig for gold, why doesn't he continue to dig more? If it were me, I would at least get fifty pounds of gold!"

"Come on! If you dig so much gold, how do you bring it back safely? I heard that robberies and murders happen there every day. Even when you sleep, you have to open one eye. Otherwise, it will be very difficult. Maybe one night, the gold you dug will be snatched away, and your head will be brutally cut off."

"Isn't that true? I heard that the Qi people sent more than 1000 troops to the Xingshan Gold Mine. Will they sit back and watch such violence happen?"

"An army of 1000 people? Haha, that's useless! Do you know that the entire gold mining area stretches for hundreds of miles? Let alone the people of Qi who sent a thousand troops there, even if they sent 1 people, they would not be able to control such an area. Huge goldfields!”

"Then when we get to the gold mining area, we must gather together as a group. Otherwise, I'm afraid none of us will be able to return to Europe alive."

"That's true. I heard that the Qi people in the gold mining area are carrying muskets. We must be careful about them!"

"..."

"Mr. Sassoon, what do you think?" After hearing the conversation of those Scotsmen, Enek Quinn's heart felt hot.

In less than a week, thirty pounds of gold can be dug. This is much less troublesome than chasing whales at sea, and the "return on investment" is also much higher.

"Digging for gold is indeed the best opportunity to achieve sudden wealth." Victor Sassoon took a sip of the slightly astringent low-grade wine and said softly: "But, as they say, gold mining is The process is also full of danger and misfortune. If you are not careful, you will lose your precious life in the wilderness. You may even encounter plunder and killing by the greedy Qi people. Can you imagine? A group of heavily armed When the soldiers of Qi State see that you have a lot of gold, can they resist the greed in their hearts?"

"That's not the case." Enek Quinn said: "It is said that the soldiers of Qi State abide by military discipline very much and will not commit acts of robbery and massacre for no reason. You have also heard that they are not the only ones who go to Xingshan to pan for gold. Chinese people, and many people from Europe. If the soldiers of Qi rob and kill gold diggers without any reason, they will definitely arouse resistance and condemnation from the civilized world, and then offend the entire European countries."

"Do you think the arrogant and arrogant people of Qi will care about this?" Victor Sassoon smiled contemptuously. "Under the temptation of gold, they will definitely expose the darkest side of human nature. Besides, When they kill someone, they will definitely cover it up to a certain extent and not let too many people in the civilized world know about it."

"So, Mr. Sassoon, do you think the wisest behavior in this gold rush is to make sarcastic remarks from the highest moral point like you?" Jerome Heine couldn't help but said sarcastically after hearing this. .

This Jew seemed to be full of deep hostility to Qi and had a vicious view of everything in this country.

"In this raging gold rush, if you want to get the most profits, you don't have to follow those greedy gold diggers and dig for gold with a few shovels and pickaxes, but you also have to be vigilant at all times. In the face of all kinds of plots and attacks, a life will be lost if you are not careful." Victor Sassoon shook his head and said: "We need to change our thinking and choose the safest and most lasting business opportunity."

"what is that?"

"What do you think those gold diggers need on a daily basis?"

"Food, drink, tents, and gold mining tools...well, maybe horses, vehicles, and swords for self-defense."

"How many people do you estimate will be engaged in gold mining?"

"Tens of thousands?...or more?"

"Think about it, if each gold digger only spends one gold coin on food, drink, housing and transportation, how much will tens of thousands of people spend? What about 10,000+ people?"

"..." After hearing this, Enek Quinn stared blankly at Victor Sassoon. After a while, a look of admiration appeared on his face, "Mr. Sassoon, I have to admit that your Jewish business vision is It is indeed very unique! So, would you like to invest with us?”

(End of this chapter)