1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 794 Difficult Choices
"So no matter what, I can't go back to El Salvador, can I?" Jose's brain is not stupid, he immediately understood Jin Ming's meaning.

"That's right, you have only two options, cooperate with us and survive, or sacrifice your humble life for Lord Alcarazor in El Salvador." After Qian Tiandun expressed his attitude, Jin Ming spoke more bluntly White.He knew that a big man like Qian Tiandun would probably not be able to spend several hours watching him slowly interrogate Jose. If he wanted to show himself in front of him, he had to get something useful out of Jose's mouth as soon as possible.

Jose didn't need to look in the mirror to know how ugly his face was at this moment. Even in his dreams, he never thought that his life would face such a sudden turning point.I just went to a tavern for a drink, why was I suddenly forced to make such an important decision?

Jose's hesitation is not because of how patriotic he is, and he is not a pure Spaniard—of course, the Spaniard is originally a mixture of multiple races. After the Arabs invaded the Iberian Peninsula in the 7th century AD, there was no pure Spanish. Kind of like a Spaniard.After eight centuries of Arab rule, the Visigoths who originally inhabited the land had very few bloodlines left.

Whether it was Ferdinand I who marked the integration of the Kingdom of Castile and the Kingdom of Aragon in 1412, or Carlos I who was crowned Charles V in 1519 and became the Holy Roman Emperor, this country belongs to a few nobles after all. Not ordinary people like Jose.As for the identity of this citizen, it will only be remembered by dignitaries and dignitaries when a large number of young people are required to be requisitioned to go to the battlefield when taxes are imposed and foreign wars are launched.

Compared with his Spanish national status, Jose actually cared more about his blacksmith shop in Salvador City, Jilong Port, which was the result of his six years of hard work in the Far East!Now these Orientals want him to completely give up these properties in a word, but Jose doesn't have such a big heart to say no to it.Although the shop is full of broken copper and rotten iron, but if you really want to convert the assets, it is at least several hundred silver coins, how can you say that if you don't have it, it will be gone.If I can't go back, then it's not all cheap, Lord Alcarazor in the city.

Taking a ten thousand step back, if Jose chooses to save his life, where can he live in the future?He knew that Mingren didn't like outsiders like himself at all, even though they would come to El Salvador to do business with a smile on their faces, they scorned the Europeans as "Xifan" in private.If these people resettled themselves in Daming, it would be difficult for them to live for a long time.After thinking for a while, Jose found it difficult to make a decision.Although he wanted to live, he was unwilling to give up his previous living environment.

Seeing the hesitant expression on his face, Jin Ming could roughly guess what he was worried about, and immediately urged: "Jose, if you have any concerns, you might as well say it."

Jose responded: "Leaving El Salvador, what will I rely on for food in the future? Could it be that I am going to the Ming Kingdom? I don't think I can adapt to the environment of the Ming Kingdom."

After listening to Jin Ming's translation, Qian Tiandun said with a smile: "It turns out that he is worried about his future... You tell him that if he is willing to cooperate, he can also work for us in the future. For a craftsman like him, the Ministry of Industry will definitely I'm happy to accept it."

Jin Ming nodded, and persuaded Jose: "If you want to continue to work in your old profession, we can take you in and pay you to do things. You must know that you can work for Haihan, but it is a blessing that many people can't ask for." Minute!"

After Jose heard this, he still had to think about it, and Qian Tiandun was impatient to talk to him slowly: "Jin Ming, tell him that if he can't make a decision right away, then the meal just now will be his break." Dinner is ready."

Jin Ming translated it to Jose according to what Qian Tiandun said, and the little blacksmith's face turned blue and white with fright.This time he didn't hesitate for too long, nodded and said: "Well, no matter what you want to ask, I will tell you everything I know."

After Jose's attitude softened, it was much easier to continue the questioning.According to the list he made, Jin Ming asked Jose one after another questions.The situation of the Spaniards on the island of Taiwan also became complete little by little in Jose's narration.

After the Spaniards established a colony in Manila, Luzon in 1571, they took the place as the trading center of the Kingdom of Spain in the Far East and gradually conquered the nearby islands.Although Taiwan is not far from Luzon, the Spanish decision makers at that time chose the areas rich in spices such as Mindanao and the Maluku Islands south of Luzon as their preferred expansion direction.Later, when the ambitious Toyotomi Hideyoshi planned to use Taiwan Island as a springboard to attack Luzon Island, the Spaniards realized the strategic value of Taiwan Island.

However, Toyotomi Hideyoshi launched the Battle of Wenlu Qingcho at the end of the 16th century (that is, the "Imchen Japanese Invasion" in Korean history, and the "Wanli Aid Korea" called by Ming Dynasty) was finally defeated. Died of illness in Fushimi City, Kyoto, this plan to go south naturally came to naught.When the Manila authorities saw that the threat from the north had eased, they gave up the idea of ​​going north again, and continued to keep Taiwan out of the expansion target.

But by the beginning of the 17th century, the threat facing the Spaniards changed from the Japanese to the Dutch, and the hostile relationship between the two sides in the European battlefield because of the Dutch War of Independence inevitably spread to the Far East.The Dutch East India Company noticed that the prosperity of Manila mainly came from the silk trade of Ming Dynasty and the silver trade of America, so they decided to attack the ships entering and leaving Manila from these two places.However, due to the limited level of navigation in this era, the Dutch found it difficult to completely block Manila with their limited number of armed merchant ships, and soon realized that the effect of this strategy was limited.So they decided to change their strategy and follow the example of the Portuguese to establish a stronghold near Daming.

However, the plans of the Dutch to seize Macau and Penghu by force failed one after another. In the end, they had no choice but to settle down in Dayuan Port in the south of Taiwan Island.It was not until this time that the dull Manila authorities realized the seriousness of the problem. In order to be able to confront the Dutch, they finally made up their minds to establish their own stronghold on Taiwan Island.

Since the Dutch took the first step to occupy Dayuan Port on the west coast of Taiwan Island in 1624, the backward Spaniards could only land in Jilong Port at the northern end of Taiwan Island far away from Dayuan Port in 1626 in order to gain a foothold with peace of mind, and exit at the harbor. Settlements began to be built on Jilong Island, which was later named Heping Island.Of course, according to the usual practice of Western colonists, the island was also renamed San Salvador Island, and the settlement was also designed in the shape of a bastion that was easy to defend.

It was Antonio Carrenode Valdes, the first governor of Jilong Port, who designed and supervised the construction of this castle.The fortress named San Salvador City by Valdes is about 400 meters in circumference, wide at the bottom and narrow at the top. Four small circular bastions are built around the castle as a means of external protection.However, the Spanish colonial activities did not go smoothly. After they landed, they armed and plundered the nearby aboriginal villages such as Jinbaolishe and Dajilongshe. Due to the typhoon season, assistance could not be provided in time, and many Spaniards experienced a very depressing period of time in the local area.Jose, the blacksmith who was sent to the local area as the first group of immigrants, even had to rely on eating rats to satisfy his hunger for a period of time. One can imagine the tragedy.

By 1627, the food shortage in El Salvador had not been alleviated, and Valdes had to send a team of soldiers to the Tamsui River area to negotiate with the locals of the nearby Guirou Society to purchase food.However, the local tribes united to drive out the Spaniards. Seven Spaniards were killed in the conflict, and the rest fled back to Jilonggang.Valdez sent more troops to Danshui the following year, defeated the natives and looted food.In the end, the natives negotiated peace with the Spaniards on the condition of ceding the land, and the Guirou Society moved away from the local area, so Valdes ordered to build a new stronghold in the local area, which was later named Santo Domingo (SantoDomingo).

In 1630, Valdez resigned and returned to Manila. Juande Alcarazo became the second governor of the chicken coop. In the same year, Luis de Guzman became the first freshwater governor.

Although the distance between Chicken Coop and Danshui is not far, because the coastline between the two places is too rough, and the sea route is limited by the season of monsoons and ocean currents, the Spaniards began to look for another land passage. In 1632, Alcarazor sent 80 soldiers upstream along the Danshui River, found the water vein of the Keelung River, and finally found an inland channel connecting the two places in the Taipei Basin.The indigenous tribes along the two waterways were later conquered by the Spaniards.

In April 1632, another major incident occurred in the northern part of Taiwan Island. A Spanish ship drifted to the Lanyang Plain on the east coast of Taiwan Island due to weather, which is the area around Yilan County in later Taiwan.All the crew and passengers on board were killed by the local Kavalan tribe. This made Alcarazor, who had been coveting this place for a long time, finally find a reason to do it. He sent troops to destroy seven local villages and killed many Karmas. Orchids as revenge.Of course, this fertile coastal plain has been taken into the pocket of the Spaniards since then.

However, although the Spaniards expanded their territory in the north of Taiwan Island faster than the Dutch in the south, their business conditions did not get better because of this.Due to the strong involvement of the Haihan people in Fujian in recent years, the Fujian government and the people are more inclined to do business with the "pro-Ming" Haihan people. There are not many Ming merchants who are willing to trade in Jilonggang, and the prices of the goods they supply Compared with Manila, there is no advantage at all.However, Japan has been in a closed state in the past few years, and it is difficult to open the door to trade. There is not much oil and water to speak of just by squeezing the local indigenous tribes.

In order to maintain garrisons in chicken coops, fresh water and other places, the Spaniards had to rely on subsidies from Manila for their operations in northern Taiwan.However, on the one hand, Manila has to cope with the successive years of war with the countries of the Green Church in the South China Sea. On the other hand, it has to face the current situation of declining silver production in the Americas after 1630. It has become increasingly difficult to support daily operations.In the past, Jose led four apprentices to work together, and often had to work overtime, but now he has more time to spend in the tavern, because the overwhelmed Salvador city authorities have cut military expenditures.

If there is no intervention of the Haihan people in this time and space, then according to the original historical development, by 1637 the Spaniards were already struggling and had to abandon their stronghold of Danshui and retreat to the chicken coop.By 1642, the Dutch aggressively attacked the chicken coop, captured the area and completely expelled the Spaniards from Taiwan Island.

Of course, after the Haihan people came to this time and space, many things have changed.For example, the Dutch in southern Taiwan did not live as well as they did in the past. After Batavia was almost destroyed, Dayuan Port could obtain less and less supplies from the southern base camp, and had to face The Haihan Fleet, which may appear at its door to block the waterway at any time, is not much better off than its competitors in the north who have been short of food and clothing for a long time.

Being able to sort out the timeline so clearly is also due to the fact that Jose came to the chicken coop early enough and experienced almost all major events in the local area.Many of these are situations that Qian Tiandun has not grasped before. After all, everything Haihan knows comes from vague records in history, but the dictator in front of him is the person who has personally experienced these things. The situation is also far more detailed and credible than the records.While Jin Ming was translating, Du Rong beside him was taking notes. These important materials were not easy to come by, and they had to be sent back to the Sanya base camp for archiving in the future.

Jose is just a small person. He doesn't understand how the appearance of the Haihan people affects the situation in Taiwan, nor does he know what attitude Haihan has towards Spain, but he can feel that from Jin Ming's constant questions. To the other party's attention to the chicken coop area, and such attention is by no means well-intentioned.Even if Jin Ming didn't say it, Jose could feel that the oriental man who had been sitting in the middle and staring at him must be a high-ranking military officer, and the coercion and murderous aura that could not be concealed from him was definitely not something ordinary people could possess.

Why does Haihan officer pay so much attention to the condition of the chicken coop?Jose believes that there is only one possibility, that is, the Haihan people, like the Dutch, coveted the territory owned by the Kingdom of Spain in the Taipei area.However, Jose didn't think that the Haihan people would really do something about the chicken coop. After all, the Dutch had been planning for several years, but they didn't dare to do something about the chicken coop easily.Of course, if Jose really knew the record of Haihan Vigilante in the past five years, he might not be so optimistic.

(End of this chapter)