Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 141: Fu ships can also cross the Pacific Ocean!
March 1630, 3, Baisha Island.

Captain Barreto de Noronha of the "Oriental Hope" lay lazily on a white sand beach, enjoying the warm sunshine and feeling the long-lost sense of relaxation.

It has been more than ten days since we arrived on this small island. The Chinese people who accompanied us did not seem to be in a hurry to leave. Instead, they were busy with construction.

After unloading a lot of construction materials, they began to build houses on the island, construct docks, dig reservoirs, and quickly build camp fences.

It was obvious that they were planning to build a fixed base on this small island for them to make short stops and replenish fresh water when traveling to and from the Pacific Ocean.

I have to admit that these Chinese people are really far-sighted and decisive in doing things.

In the depths of the ocean, there is such an uninhabited island, which serves as a key supply point during the voyage. It can somewhat relieve the fatigue of the crew members and enable all personnel to continue to maintain strong energy and physical strength in the subsequent journey.

In addition, the island is located in a remote area, on the edge of the ocean current belt, and is difficult for the Spaniards to discover.

Oh, and by the way, they also built a base on that huge island north of Japan.

This provided them with a good midway supply point whether they were traveling from America to Ming or returning from Ming to America.

It is really hard to imagine that in order to immigrate and increase the population, they would go to such great lengths to spend a lot of manpower and material resources to build a fixed supply base on two deserted islands.

Looking at the situation, these Chinese people are really going to colonize and develop the American continent.

I don’t know what expression the Spaniards will have when they discover them.

I think it must be extremely shocking.

Then, in order to maintain their face, they will have a fierce fight with these Chinese people.

Haha, the Spanish are in trouble.

“…The Wavebreaker is back!”

Captain Nolonya, who was in a daze, was awakened by a loud shout. He rubbed his eyes, sat up and looked at the sea.

Two three-masted sailing ships appeared faintly in the southeast, one was like a giant shark in the sea, and the other was like a nimble flying fish, heading quickly towards the island.

Oh, that big ship should be the "Wavebreaker" that separated from them at the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula. I don't know what it did but it only arrived at this time.

As for the other three-masted sailing ship, no one knew where it came from.

Could it be that they have another unknown partner?

"They must have completed their smuggling trade with the Spanish," said the first mate, Vares. "I bet the ship is loaded with gold and silver. ... Oh, it's unbelievable that the Spanish would trade with them."

"That's not surprising at all," Captain Nolonha scoffed. "In Spanish America, not everyone is considered a true Spaniard, and not all colonial subjects are united with the Spanish. Those native whites, aside from the immediate profits, never prioritize the overall interests of the Spanish Kingdom."

"Otherwise, there wouldn't be so much smuggling in the Caribbean, Mexico, Panama, and Venezuela, which would embezzle the profits that should belong to the Spanish royal family. The Spanish's largest trading partner in Europe is actually the Dutch, whom they regard as rebellious. Do you find this all magical?"

"In fact, this isn't just the case in Spanish America. Even in Brazil, there are quite a few Creoles secretly colluding with the Dutch."

"..." First Mate Vares just smiled and didn't respond.

When operating overseas, enemies and friends are not precisely defined.

Perhaps, today you are close partners, but the next day you may be mortal enemies fighting each other.

Everything is for profit.
-
"Is that the ship that Pedro got for us?" She Zhiliang looked up at the sailboat next to the "Breaking Waves" with a look of surprise on his face.

"Well, a 500-ton galleon," Wei Yingbin said with a smile. "It's not very old, only five years old. It was built at the Havana shipyard, using only the finest cedar wood." "It looks quite good," She Zhiliang breathed a sigh of relief. "Then we'll have three large ships. Whether it's transporting immigrants or fighting the Spanish in the future, we'll have something to rely on. We won't be so strapped for cash as before. Hey, how much did that Pedro guy extort from us for this ship?"

"Forty-two thousand pesos!"

"Oh my god, this price is a bit of a rip-off!"

"It's a bit of a rip-off!" Han Jian said with a wry smile, "This price is enough to buy two large Fu ships in Guangzhou."

"Can Fuzhou ships sail across the Pacific?"

"Why not?" Han Jian's eyes widened. "I heard Zhou Yong mention it. I think it was around 2007 or 2008. A Taiwanese businessman copied a Ming and Qing dynasty Fujian ship called the 'Princess Taiping'. It was powered purely by sails and had a displacement of only over 180 tons. Yet, it independently completed a round-trip voyage across the Pacific. It set sail from Wuyuan Bay in Xiamen, passed through Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan, crossed the North Pacific, and arrived in San Francisco in days."

"Hmm?" Wei Yingbin and She Zhiliang were immediately interested. "Is what you said true? Why haven't we heard Zhou Yong tell us this information?"

"...I guess this guy doesn't like the traditional Fuzhou ships built by our ancestors. All he has in mind are Western warships."

"How foolish!" She Zhiliang sighed. "If we had known earlier that the Fuzhou ships could also cross the Pacific, we would have had Meng Shengxin and his team purchase a few directly in Guangzhou, and then hired some local boatmen to transport the immigrants and supplies directly back to Qiming Island."

"Instructors, you didn't know earlier that the Fuzhou ship could cross the Pacific Ocean?"

"..." Wei Yingbin and She Zhiliang looked embarrassed when they heard this.

After so many years of naval career, my mind has been instilled with how to adapt to naval warfare under the new situation and how to operate more advanced warships.

As for the traditional ships from hundreds of years ago, to be honest, they really look down on them in their hearts.

Aren’t these all “junk” in the pile of historical documents?

More than a few hundred years ago, since the disappearance of Zheng He's treasure ship, neither the Ming Dynasty nor the Qing Dynasty seemed to be a match for the "strong ships" of the European colonists in naval battles, and suffered repeated defeats.

It is unimaginable that some of the ships designed and built by our ancestors could travel across the oceans and cross the vast Pacific Ocean.

Instead, in some people's impression, you can only stick to the coastline, travel around Southeast Asia, and visit Japan.

So, when I arrive in Guangzhou again this time, I must ask Meng Shengxin to purchase a Fujian ship and try to sail the Pacific route.

"Do we need to tell you in advance about the Portuguese raiding and killing Spanish ships in the waters near Guam?"

After they had agreed on the next itinerary and were about to disperse, Han Jian suddenly turned around and asked.

"There's no need to tell them now." Wei Yingbin thought for a moment and said, "We'll tell them everything after we get near Guam."

“Will they refuse to participate?”

"Faced with the temptation of hundreds of thousands of taels of silver, I don't believe they can resist!"

"What if?" Han Jian said worriedly, "If we drag them along to rob the Spanish treasure ship, it's obvious that we're forcing them to join us and form a common interest group. If they don't dare to completely offend the Spanish, they may not be willing to participate in this matter."

"In fact, by helping us transport immigrants, they've already offended the Spanish," Wei Yingbin said with a sneer. "This time, we're forcing them to rob and kill the Spanish treasure ship just to deepen the conflict between them and the Spanish, widen the rift, and strengthen our cooperation with them."

"Otherwise, one day they might sell us out to the Spanish for the slightest profit. Therefore, we need to make them pledge their loyalty and hesitate for a moment before selling us out. In short, our goal is to delay the Spanish discovering our existence as much as possible so that we have more time to develop."

"The European colonists of that era had no integrity or moral principles. All they cared about was money. Just wait and see. If we hijack a Spanish treasure ship and seize a pile of silver, those Portuguese will surely go berserk with envy."

(End of this chapter)