Daming: At the start of the showdown, Lao Zhu was stunned

Chapter 1164 Rebellious Nobles

The walls of La Coruña were immediately plunged into a fierce battle, with Portuguese knights in heavy armor fighting Castilian warriors holding broadswords. Even through the telescope, one could still smell the bloody smell coming from the meat grinder.

On the flagship treasure ship, Zhu Su lowered the lookout tube. Below, the Ming army generals, who were eager to fight, asked Zhu Su to fight.

"These red-haired barbarians are too slow in breaking the city... Your Highness, please give me three hundred men. Within a quarter of an hour, I will break this city for Your Highness!"

"Your Highness, I only need two hundred men! And it will also take a quarter of an hour! Please allow me to go into battle!"

"Your Highness, I will only need half a quarter of an hour!"

Seeing the Ming army's generals eager to fight, Zhu Su was relieved. But he still explained carefully to the generals: "I know you are eager to make achievements, but in this battle we are the guest army, and we are here to help Portugal."

"We have done our best to intimidate the enemy and open the city wall. We have already broken the hard bone for him. There is no reason for us to let Joao do the final battle for him."

"All the armies are the sharp blades of our Ming Dynasty. Don't forget that the fundamental purpose of our coming here is not just to make wedding clothes for others. Although the sword is hidden in the sheath, are you afraid that there will be no day when the cold light will shine on people?"

The generals calmed down a little. Li Jinglong, who was sitting at the head of the generals, asked, "Fifth Uncle, even so, if we don't take the initiative to attack, won't we lose the spoils?"

"It's okay." Zhu Su waved his hand.

"Joao has already decided to board our pirate ship, so he should have this foresight."

"If he doesn't even understand this, then there's no point in cooperating... Just kick him off the ship and support a sensible Portuguese leader to get on board."

Zhu Su said lightly.

Joao has now staked Portugal's fate on the help of the Ming Dynasty. If there is any change, as long as the Ming navy withdraws, Joao will naturally fall into an irretrievable situation. Helping Joao to attack Castile has proved Zhu Su's sincerity in cooperation. Next, it's time to see Joao's sincerity.

Fortunately, João was not really a brainless barbarian. Because of the appearance of the Ming army, the demoralized Castile defenders soon became unable to resist the attack of the Portuguese army. The battle line was pushed from the city wall to the port and residential areas. Finally, the commander of the defenders, Count Noah, could only retreat to a castle in a strategic location on the mountain with his remaining private soldiers.

And João also personally brought the spoils from the port to the Ming army's treasure ship.

"Your Highness, King Zhou of the Ming Dynasty, we are fortunate to have your generous help, which enabled our army to defeat the Castilians. Those are the spoils of this battle, and we sincerely hope that you can accept them." Joao said to Zhu Su respectfully, and he actually used Chinese.

Zhu Su looked at the deep-draft ships loaded with spoils on the sea, saw the blood stains on João's body that had not yet dried, and listened to João's Chinese, which was still poor but obviously much better than last time. Although he knew that this was João's little trick to win favor, he still couldn't help feeling satisfied with this kind of flattery.

"Your Majesty, you are thoughtful. However, your soldiers have fought bravely in the battles and now need rewards. We will only keep one of the captured ships and please give the rest to the soldiers... This is just the beginning. The treasures can keep the morale of your soldiers high. There is still a long way to go." Zhu Su said.

Westerners don't like to refuse, so since Zhu Su said so, João accepted it. However, he couldn't help but express his gratitude and praise for Zhu Su's generosity. The two sides enjoyed the exchange very much.

"There is one thing I need to tell you, Your Highness... We failed to intercept all the Castilian troops, and one army escaped from the south." Joao's tone was somewhat regretful. "I'm afraid they will expose the fact that you and we are working together."

"Next, I'm afraid Castile will have to be on guard."

The battle was so easy because the Ming fleet, which appeared as a surprise force, was a big factor. If this matter was exposed to Castile, it would also cause many more twists and turns for João.

Zhu Su, however, was very open-minded and said to Joao, "It is extremely difficult to use a surprise attack repeatedly. If you can seize the initiative, you have already taken the initiative in the war."

"The north of Castile is already in the midst of war, and it is difficult to look south. My Lord, now that you have captured this port, the country will have no chance to fight back... By the way, have you captured the defender in the city?"

"Not yet." Joao shook his head. "Count Noa is the most powerful noble in southern Castile. I want to subdue him and make him work for us."

As he spoke, he told Zhu Su the story of Count Noah.

This Count Noah was different from other traditional nobles. Some years ago, King Henry III of Castile suppressed a rebellion, and Count Noah was awarded the title of Count for his outstanding military exploits. He was a typical military meritorious person.

This earl did not have the bad habit of traditional aristocrats to be pretentious. He was famous for his bravery in battle and his cunningness. He had a tough style and was more like a rude mercenary leader than a count. He was the most powerful military noble in southern Castile.

But because of this style, Count Noah often offended nobles and contradicted the king, and was therefore ostracized and suspected by traditional nobles and even King Henry III, and was even given the title of "rebellious nobleman."

"Since there is an opportunity to win over the king, you can do it yourself." Zhu Su said indifferently. "However, it is time to put the matter of handing in the letter of credence and officially becoming a vassal of the Ming Dynasty on the agenda."

Now that the alliance between Ming Dynasty and Portugal is about to be exposed, it would be better to put pressure on them and make it a reality.

"Of course." João readily agreed and promised that as soon as the war was over, he would return to Lisbon and announce to the people that Portugal had become a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty.

The two sides had almost finished their talks, so Zhu Su personally sent Joao back. The Portuguese army was still besieging Count Noa, and there were occasional sporadic resistances in the city. Joao I naturally had to stay in the city and preside over the overall situation. The Ming army was responsible for protecting Portugal's supply routes at sea, waiting for Joao to surrender Count Noa, and then attack the next port together.

Unexpectedly, Count Noah was quite tough. After Joao tried to persuade him to surrender for several days, the "rebellious nobleman" was trapped in the castle on the rugged terrain and refused to surrender. Later, he sent people to risk their lives to break through and found the Ming fleet floating on the sea.

"What? He doesn't want to surrender to Joao, but wants to surrender directly to our Ming Dynasty?"

After receiving the report from the soldiers, Zhu Su said in surprise.

(End of this chapter)