Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 958 The Deepening Gap ([-])

The Yakui River in early autumn is bathed in milky white moonlight.

The south bank is covered with tall reeds and dense forests, while the north bank is scattered with many houses—most of them are made of brick and stone—Second Lieutenant Fu Lei stood at the bow, facing the cool river wind at night, enjoying the With all this: the local Indians have basically disappeared under the efforts of the East Coast Army and the Sao Paulo Banner (in fact, it is mainly due to the credit of the Brazilian slave catchers).

Either they lost a large number of people under the attack of slave catchers, or they lost more people a second time under the ensuing attack of disease and hunger. No tribe can persist under this double blow. , So, they chose to retreat—some retreated to the dense forests where the people on the east coast did not have the energy to set foot, but most of them started a long journey westward, preparing to move to the Spanish-controlled area that was relatively friendly to them.

The upper echelons of the East Bank government actually appreciated these St. Paul slave trapping flag teams very much, because they helped the East Coast people clean up a large area of ​​territory and greatly expanded the actual control area, and they made great contributions.In order to reward these Sao Paulo flag teams, the Government Affairs Council not only decided to give them a certain amount of financial and material subsidies (the total amount should not exceed 5 yuan), but also planned to renew an employment contract with them with more favorable treatment, so that they could work harder for them. East coast service.

Unfortunately, this dream of the Executive Committee was soon shattered.Perhaps it was extremely dissatisfied with the fact that the East Bank government sold a large amount of arms to the Dutch West India Company on credit two months ago-although the people on the East Bank have exported various military materials to Dutch Brazil more than once in these years, but this time the Portuguese’s reaction Obviously the biggest one—the many slave-catching flag teams that are currently active at the junction of the East and Portugal have received tremendous pressure from above, and began to refuse to continue to cooperate with the people on the east coast.

As of today (March 1653, 3), two Sao Paulo slave-catching flag teams have returned to Brazil without notifying the people on the east coast, and the other three teams have clearly stated that they will no longer serve after the contract expires in the middle of this year. Renew the contract; those who are still continuing to suppress the Guarani people in the east bank and have not yet made a clear statement are the Consicao's troops temporarily stationed on the outskirts of Jiaohebao.A while ago, this flag team had just finished clearing the hilly area around the Taiping Fort in the south, and then was transferred to the west by people from the east bank, and continued to clean up the indigenous people along the Yakui River to fill the gap left by the flag team after they left. vacancy.

It's just that a few days ago, an official from Jiaohe's State Development Bureau sent word that Captain Concicao also planned not to renew his contract and returned to Brazil—their contract expired at the end of April.Captain Consicao's statement undoubtedly disappointed the officials of the Government Affairs Council, because it meant that they had lost more than two thousand slave hunters, which was not conducive to expanding the actual control area of ​​​​the people on the east coast.Therefore, at the request of the Government Affairs Council, the Executive Committee quickly entrusted the gendarmerie to send people to contact Captain Consicao and make a last effort to persuade these people to stay in the east bank to eliminate the aborigines.

The gendarmerie received the order from above, and Commander Putinpu did not dare to neglect, and immediately ordered the gendarmerie branch in the Beiyazihu ​​area to send people to contact.After receiving the order, the branch appointed Second Lieutenant Fu Lei, who had been serving as the liaison of the Slave Banner Squad, to go out and rush to Jiaohe Fort by boat to see what was going on. The steamboat is now very close to the wharf of Jiaohebao.

By the way, Jiaohe Fort is a new settlement established by the people of the East Bank last month, and it has been developed on the basis of an original military outpost.The reason why it is called "Jiaohebao" is mainly because this settlement is located on the bank of the Jiaohe River, and the origin of the Jiaohe River (that is, the Yakui River) comes from the fact that immigrants on the east bank discovered a river in the nearby river at the beginning of the year. The huge boa constrictor was named by those foolish men and women from Ming Dynasty who mistook it for a dragon.After the National Development Bureau took over the pioneering work here, due to the convenient transportation, the Development Bureau sent a large amount of construction materials here, and at the same time used the Guarani captives to dig ditches, level the land, and build the wall. It's changed a lot here.

After more than [-] young people from the east coast of the new generation were sent here in the primary election this month, another [-] Ming immigrants and [-] Livonians were sent here half a month ago, which made this new settlement more popular. The son flourished.And after [-] graduates from Bingtuanbao and more than a dozen veterans were selected as grassroots cadres, everything in this settlement is now on the right track. They even took the time to clean up the stones and bushes on the ground , intending to plant a crop of overwintering wheat in a while—no matter how low the yield is, at least there will be some income next summer.In addition, they also plan to grow some winter vegetables such as cabbage, radish, and Chinese cabbage to ensure the local vegetable supply.

A new row of brick houses was built on the Jiaohebao Wharf. The orange light shines through the glass windows, forming a blurred halo on the water surface—it’s a pity that the moonlight is too bright tonight. It seemed so pale and weak at the moment.The small flat-bottomed steamer that Second Lieutenant Fu Lei was riding on split the silver-white mirror-like water surface and drove into a berth facing the bungalow. A sleepy-eyed dock official in clothes came over with a lamp. Following the four militiamen armed with rifles, after checking the letter handed over by Second Lieutenant Fu Lei, they stopped asking questions and went back to the duty room to rest.

"Don't delay, go to the city immediately to find the village head." Second Lieutenant Fu Lei ordered to his subordinates, and then walked out with a lamp in his hand.Several armed gendarmes followed closely behind, and without saying a word, they walked through the rammed-earth streets mottled with trees and headed towards the township government.

The mayor was quickly roused from the bed. The forty-year-old veteran with a tired face looked at the military police looking for him, dressed slowly, and then sat on a chair against the wall. Going up, he yawned and asked, "Come to find Consicao?" As a veteran veteran who has participated in almost every war in the East Coast Republic, these black-skinned gendarmes are still not in his eyes. The unique pride that belongs to the older generation, Qiu Ba, cannot be learned by ordinary people, and they do not have the confidence.

"Yes, Consicao released the rumor that he intends to return to Brazil after the contract is over. Commander Pu is entrusted by the Executive Committee to prepare for the last persuasion to Consicao. If necessary, the employment fee can be greatly increased." Fu Lei The lieutenant replied succinctly.The township head in front of him is very old and knows many bigwigs in the army system. He is not something that a mere second lieutenant can offend, so his attitude is quite polite.

"It's no use, Consicao is determined to return to Brazil. I heard that the Portuguese officials over there were very angry and exerted a lot of pressure. Although these Sao Paulo slave traps are usually a little rebellious, but at this moment I can't stand it anymore, and I plan to return to Brazil one after another. I also know that Concicao has done a good job, and the area he has cleared is also the largest. He is also the one who caused the most damage to the Guaraní people, but he has decided to return. , This is what he told me personally a few days ago, and the time will be at the end of next month, when the contract ends." The township head picked up the teapot on the table and poured everyone a cup of barley tea, then took a piece of dried fruit and threw it Chewed in his mouth and said: "Although we have sold arms to the Dutch West India Company several times before, this time is different. The Portuguese felt that victory was in sight, but we made such a show behind our backs. It can be said that it is beyond words. Therefore, they decided to recall the St. Paul slave-catching flag team and cut off the border trade in the Gerard Mountains as a protest. To be honest, Consicao and other flag teams are already considered polite, and they all intend to contract Returning to Brazil after the end, the flag team in front of them who left without saying a word is the real fuck..."

The middle-aged mayor spoke eloquently, meaning that the Portuguese were annoyed by the east bank government's obvious attitude towards the Netherlands this time, and decided to completely sever all ties with the east bank.These members of the Sao Paulo flag team also have family members, relatives and friends in Brazil. Naturally, they could not withstand the recall order of the Brazilian colonial authorities at this time, so they were ordered to return one after another.At this time, persuading others to change their minds is tantamount to playing the piano against a cow.And in the end, the mayor seemed to keep saying nothing surprising and vaguely hinting that the Ministry of the Army should think of a way to mobilize locally in the North Yazihu ​​area to prevent these St. Sex is not big.

Lieutenant Fu Lei and others were a little shocked by the words of the township chief.The scale of these St. Paul's slave-catching flag teams is not large or small. There are a few hundred people at least, and two to 3000 people at most.They also have certain combat abilities who capture Indian slaves all the year round. Although their weapons are poor (most of them are cold weapons) and their fighting will is suspicious (most of the slave catchers are Indians), they are more or less troublesome.

You must know that the East Coast Republic does not have many troops stationed in the Beiyazihu ​​area. There is only one regular company in Bao'an Township, Ping'an County. There was originally a company in Ping'an Township, but it was abolished in the disarmament operation a few years ago. , so now there is only one regular infantry company left-such a small army of troops is naturally powerless to face the St. Mobilize and strengthen the military training of the militia to deal with possible crises.

But the consequences of doing so are also very serious. The Portuguese are not deaf and blind. The east bank has carried out military mobilization in the North Duck Lake area, and they will be more or less aware of it just across the mountain. This will obviously aggravate the relationship between the two countries. crisis in between.Regarding this point, the Executive Committee cannot ignore it when making decisions.

(End of this chapter)