Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 75 Return
"Commander Osch, are we just going to let this ship into the Oysterscope?" Major Jorrit Hund Ricks, the captain of the Rosendal, said rather unwillingly. "Although it's much larger in tonnage and size than any of our armed merchant ships, we have four ships and a numerical advantage. As long as we lay siege to it from several sides, we will definitely be able to capture it!"

"What if the Portuguese take advantage of the situation and suddenly appear while we're in the middle of a fierce battle? What should we do?" Lieutenant Colonel Marco van Osch sighed and said, "The Portuguese are definitely keeping an eye on our movements right now. If we get into trouble, how could they not launch a surprise attack on us?"

The Portuguese had beaten them badly on land, and they had suffered heavy casualties, which had already made them lose face. If they had another mishap at sea, it would be difficult for them to explain themselves when they returned.

"As long as we attack quickly and sink or capture this large ship before the Portuguese can react, we will be able to calmly deal with any counterattacks they may launch."

"How long do you think it will take us to sink that big ship?"

"Uh..." Major Ricks thought for a moment and said, "Sinking such a large ship might be difficult. But we can easily rely on the speed of our small and nimble ship to quickly approach it, then board it, attack their ship, and capture it. We have five or six hundred mercenaries on board, giving us an absolute numerical advantage in the process of seizing the ship."

"Lieutenant Clason said there appear to be hundreds of Ming nationals on that ship." Commander Osch looked at him calmly, "And most of them are young and strong men. If we forcibly board and seize the ship, we may pay a heavy price. Don't forget, our target is the Portuguese, the Oyster Mirror, not provoking a Ming warship whose identity is unknown."

“…” Major Ricks was suddenly speechless.

"So, is it possible that this warship will stay and help the Portuguese after entering Oysterglass Harbor?"

"Stay and help the Portuguese defend the city?"

"..."

Ugh, so embarrassing!
Without any help from any external forces, the Portuguese and our East India Company's 800 mercenaries were unable to attack Oyster Mirror and were instead driven into the sea.

In the end, they had no choice but to rely on these four armed merchant ships to blockade the Portuguese and trap them in Oyster Mirror Harbour.

So, whether this ship stayed in Oysterglass to help Portugal defend the city seemed to be of little significance.

Anyway, we are unable to launch a landing attack.

"If I'm not mistaken, this ship entered Oysterglass Harbor to purchase weapons from the Portuguese." Lieutenant Colonel Osch smiled slightly. "Do you think the Portuguese will sell them the weapons they desperately need when they're under siege and blockade? If the trade fails, won't it create some conflict and create an enemy for the Portuguese?"
-
Before the "Break the Wave" approached the port of Haojing, it was warned by the Portuguese artillery.

The two shells landed one after the other on the water surface hundreds of meters in front of the ship, stirring up two huge waves.

Although the "Break" did not fly the flag of the Dutch East India Company, such a huge three-masted sailing ship still made the Portuguese nervous.

To be on the safe side, we can only order the other party to stop moving forward and not to enter the port for anchorage.

What if this large ship was transferred by the Dutch from mainland Europe, disguised as a merchant ship, broke into the port, and then launched a surprise attack on the trench, which would definitely put the Portuguese in great danger.

Faced with the Portuguese warning, the "Break the Wave" wisely stopped, anchored, lowered half the sail, and prepared to negotiate with the other side.

More than an hour later, the two messengers rowed a small boat to the "Breaking Waves" and then climbed onto the ship with the help of ropes.

After hearing that the other party wanted to enter Haojing Port and purchase a batch of firearms, the Portuguese envoy directly declined.

They claimed that there were no extra cannons and muskets in Haojing City, and even gunpowder was running low.

Moreover, facing the massive siege of the Dutch East India Company, the Portuguese would not be willing to resell weapons currently used for military defense to others in order to survive.

After rejecting the "Breaking Waves"'s request to enter the port for trade, the Portuguese solemnly warned them not to linger in the waters, lest they be affected by the war and suffer unnecessary losses. Their words were filled with a strong sense of warning.

In fact, this made the Portuguese feel wary and show a hint of hostility.

Four armed merchant ships of the Dutch East India Company were loitering outside the port, blockading it for over a month.

During this period, no ship was allowed to enter the trench.

How come at this moment, a three-masted sailing ship of such a huge scale broke through the blockade of the armed merchant ships of the Dutch East India Company and approached the trench leisurely?

Could this be a conspiracy by the Dutch?
We still remember the story of the Trojan Horse very clearly.

Oh, by the way, there is also the "Crossing the River in White Clothes" in Eastern history, which is also a warning for us and we must be on guard against it.

At such a critical moment, it would be better for an unidentified large sailing ship not to enter Haojing Port.

Looking at the resolute expressions of the Portuguese, Luo Zhenhui sighed inwardly and said no more. After seeing off the two Portuguese envoys, he raised the sails, weighed anchor, and set sail towards the southeast.

"What a humiliation!" Looking back at the four armed merchant ships of the Dutch East India Company continuing to sail at the mouth of the Pearl River, Kuang Xu's face became extremely ugly.

"At that time, the Ming Dynasty was already beset by internal and external troubles, unable to take care of itself, so how could it have the energy to care about these European colonists?" Luo Zhenhui's expression was gloomy, and his tone was heavy. "It was from this time that Chinese civilization gradually abandoned the ocean, becoming increasingly conservative and closed, and from then on, it fell further and further behind the rest of the world."

“Can we change this?”

"We came into this world to try our best to change all this."

“I don’t know how long it will take.”

"As long as we work hard, things will gradually change."

"Suddenly, there was a sense that time was running out."

"Yes, time is of the essence. But we've made a good start."

"...Three hundred and forty-seven immigrants." Luo Zhenhui glanced at the deck. Over thirty immigrants were being arranged by the crew to get some fresh air and stretch their limbs. He felt a little relieved. "If we bring this many people back to Shixing Fort, it will definitely surprise all the people left behind."

"Haha...this many people, almost double the number of immigrants we originally anticipated, will certainly shock them." Kuang Xu said with a smile, "However, if we can settle these 340-plus immigrants smoothly and orderly, and get through this difficult adjustment period, then we'll have the initial confidence and strength to start immigration again next year."

"Do you think we can use two ships for immigration at the same time in two years?"

"It should be possible." Kuang Xu thought for a moment and said affirmatively, "This time, we have recruited more than 30 families of boat people. After a little training, they will be more than capable of being used. When they come to Daming again next year, they will follow us and become a group of experienced sailors. By then, we should be able to use that Spanish galleon."

"If we use two ships to transport people, they can carry over 600 to 700 people at a time. In three to five years, we'll have a population of 3,000 to 4,000 people," Luo Zhenhui said with some satisfaction. "Once the population grows, we can build some industrial and mining facilities. At the very least, we'll be able to produce our own steel, guns, and most basic daily necessities, thus achieving a certain degree of self-sufficiency."

“The road ahead is long and arduous!”

(End of this chapter)