1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 947 Bargaining
Schneider visited representatives of various countries for private consultations one by one, and the content he talked about was very specific.For countries with doubts, Schneider must also analyze their specific conditions in conjunction with the implementation draft of the trade alliance, and imagine how they can use the environment and international relations of the trade alliance to seek benefits in the future.After all, it is impossible for other countries to achieve an advanced level ahead of the times in almost every field like Haihan. How to adapt to local conditions, learn from each other's strengths, and develop international trade according to the actual situation in the country, Schneider has to help. Coming up with an idea is really not an easy job.

In particular, there are countries such as Johor and the Netherlands that are not on the right track with Haihan, and it is even more difficult to persuade them to join the trade alliance.For example, Ajisa, the representative of the Johor State, directly pointed out that Haihan must respond to the illegal intrusion into the territory of Johor. This means that even if the territory of Sing Tao cannot be taken back, Haihan must compensate Johor from other aspects. just work.

The Dutch are more difficult to deal with than other countries. As a major maritime trading nation in this era, the experience accumulated by the Dutch in international trade is beyond the reach of these countries in the Far East.Schneider's speeches may be able to easily fool other participants, but the situation in the Netherlands and Haihan is very similar, both rely on maritime trade as the foundation of their country. They not only understand but also have a long history of what Schneider said. In practice, it's just that he hasn't researched the relevant theories so deeply like Haihan.Van Diemen's understanding of Haihan's plan was far better than that of other participants, so he also knew better what content in it needed to fight for better conditions with Haihan.

The current situation of the Dutch East India Company in the Far East can be described as "very difficult". Not only have the colonies and routes expanded to Northeast Asia in recent years been taken away or suppressed by Haihan, but even its own basic territory in South Asia has been lost. It's almost impossible to keep it.A Matalan country has almost caused Batavia to fall. If you add Haihan who is already ready to move, the consequences will be unimaginable.The Haihan people didn't even need to go ashore to fight, as long as they sent a fleet to cover the rear of the Mata blue army at sea, it was enough to cut off the Dutch's hope of defending Batavia.

However, Van Diemen also realized that Haihan did not seem to intend to directly expel the East India Company from the Far East, but left a way out. After that, I roughly guessed [-]% to [-]%—the Haihan people wanted to keep the Maritime Silk Road between the Far East and Europe unobstructed, but the Portuguese had limited transportation capacity and obviously couldn’t undertake [-]% of the transportation tasks, so Haihan People will need the East India Company to join the game.

As a self-respecting maritime power, Fan Diemen is also very unwilling to be reduced to such a field today, but he will try his best to try whenever there is a chance to make a comeback.However, negotiating with the Haihan people is very delicate. For the disadvantaged East India Company, it must not only stick to its own principles, but also try to get Haihan to make concessions on the existing conditions. A very difficult task.

On the seventh day of the talks, Schneider and Van Diemen finally entered the stage of face-to-face individual consultations.Although Schneider doesn't speak Dutch very well, Van Diemen stayed in England for a period of time in his early years, and he can speak fluent English. Therefore, the two sides even saved the trouble of translation. Worry about misinterpretation in the translation process.

"I would like to remind your Excellency that the trade alliance must retain the East India Company's right to trade directly with other countries, otherwise our joining this alliance will not have much practical significance." Van Diemen's attitude was very tough, and he proposed Our own conditions: "In addition, the existing colonies of the East India Company must be guaranteed security, and we will also reserve the right to continue to open up new colonies!"

After Schneider patiently listened to his request, he replied unhurriedly: "I think your company has misunderstood the solution we proposed. What we want is not to restrict your trade rights, but to optimize resources. , to improve the operational efficiency of the entire trade alliance. Your company specializes in the route between the Far East and Europe, and we hope that your company can concentrate its limited shipping capacity on this voyage as much as possible, and It’s not about wasting time traveling back and forth across the Far East, using a lot of resources but only earning a small profit.”

Schneider's statement was much more tactful than when Yan Chujie was negotiating in Batavia. At that time, Yan Chujie did not link Haihan's request with the trade union plan, and directly threw out restrictions on the East India Company in a strong tone. condition.Of course, Yan Chujie's approach was not because he lacked consideration, but it was because of the consideration of the subsequent talks and consultations that he consciously raised the conditions a bit higher, leaving room for bargaining with the Dutch.

After Van Diemen heard this, he didn't feel that the other party had made any concessions. Schneider just explained the intention of Haihan's proposed conditions, but did not show any intention to make changes and adjustments.So Fan Dimen emphasized again: "How to arrange the company's maritime capacity is an internal matter of the company. Even if we decide to join the South China Sea Trade Alliance, we will not allow outsiders to interfere in our internal affairs."

Schneider said in his heart that his mouth was still quite stubborn, and he really wanted to toast without eating and drinking, so he immediately responded: "Then let me be more blunt, if your company is unwilling to accept the arrangement made by the trade union, then we are not prepared to accept it." Your company has joined the alliance. In addition, your company’s security issues in the Far East, especially in the coastal areas of Daming, please forgive us for not being able to provide protection.”

Schneider's words fell into Van Diemen's ears more than being straightforward, they were simply a naked threat.The East India Company is now a phoenix that is not as good as a chicken. The colonies outside Batavia basically have little self-protection ability, especially Taiwan's Dayuan Port, which is far away in the Daming Sea, is basically a piece of meat in Haihan's mouth. When to eat and what posture to eat basically depends on Haihan's mood.If the place of Dayuan Port is lost, then the Northeast Asian trade route that the East India Company has painstakingly managed for many years will completely collapse, and the area north of the equator will not even have a decent foothold.

If someone else put forward such an arrogant statement, then Fan Diemen might have counterattacked a few words, but facing the Haihan people who have already controlled the Taiwan Strait, he really couldn't hold back, so he could only forcefully change the subject: "We The colonies established in the Far East are purely for the purpose of development and construction, and are not intended to be used for military means, and you should not use civilian and commercial facilities as a condition for threatening our submission!"

As soon as Schneider heard this tone, he knew that this guy had softened, and immediately pursued the victory and said: "Since it is not for military use, it may as well include the local area in the defense zone of the Haihan Navy, and we will be responsible for all external defense. Of course, There shouldn’t be too many Dutch immigrants settling in the area, otherwise it will be difficult for us to protect, so it’s better to set a population limit. In my opinion, it’s enough to leave the local people responsible for business negotiations, and the rest of the people settle there It's just a waste of resources."

Fan Diemen heard Schneider's request, and knew that he was the same as Nayan Chujie after all, and he wished to drive the East India Company to the edge of the cliff, so that after the East India Company's use value was squeezed out, it could be used at any time. Kick it down.But for Schneider's almost ridiculed statement, he really doesn't have enough confidence to refute it. The armed forces in Dayuan Port are only enough for basic self-defense. It has fallen from the beginning.

If you want to make a deal with the Haihan people, you have to come up with some dry goods. Fan Dimen gritted his teeth and said, "Then it's better to make an exchange, let us keep the colony of Dayuan Port, and set up a store in a place further north." power, we can open up to you residency rights in areas around the Sunda Strait."

Schneider smiled and said: "It seems that we don't need your cooperation to enter the Sunda Strait now?"

Fan Dimen said: "I know that you have local charts and have conducted field investigations, but don't forget that there are people from France and the United Kingdom to the west of the Sunda Strait. I can tell you that these two countries are near the Sunda Strait. stronghold."

Schneider did not expect that Van Diemen would decisively betray the Dutch allies in Europe at this time, and he couldn't help gaining a new understanding of Van Diemen's determination.Of course, he also knows that although these countries are allies in Europe, they are competitors in the Far East.Although Haihan is not particularly worried about the potential threats posed by these countries, if he can collect useful information in advance, it can save a lot of trouble.

However, what Schneider really cares about is not the actual value of the information given by Van Diemen, but his attitude means that the Dutch do not want to fight Hai Han to the end. As long as the conditions are right, they It is likely that some concessions will be made in order to join the South China Sea Trade Alliance. This is what Schneider wants to see.

As for whether to reserve the colonies north of the equator for the Dutch, and the degree of restrictions on the actions of the East India Company in Northeast Asia in the future, these are all items that can be discussed slowly, and Haihan does not really want to build a sea iron barrel The formation completely shut out the Netherlands.Both Haihan and the Netherlands are commercial entities that emphasize practical interests. As long as they join the trade alliance, many things can be negotiated on the basis of common interests.

"The Sunda Strait is not in a hurry, but we will open ports on the line between Belitung Island and Bangka Island. Is this request okay?" Schneider also took the initiative to back down a step, but this step was not because of Fan Dimen's The response he made was a plan that Hai Han had planned long ago.

There is no natural good harbor near the Sunda Strait for Haihan to build a large-scale comprehensive seaport, and SH Han currently does not intend to drive the Netherlands out of this area. China will only advance southward to the Bangka-Belitung line for the time being, instead of directly establishing a colonial point at the western tip of Java Island or the southern tip of Sumatra Island.The tin mines on Bangka Island and Belitung Island are far more meaningful to Haihan than building a colony near the Sunda Strait. After all, the development of mines requires little investment and the output is fast, and the cycle of recovering development costs is far longer than that of establishing Common colonies are much faster and more economical from an economic point of view.

Of course, the reason for making this decision was also influenced by Xing Tao.Before this cruising in the South China Sea, although Haihan also intends to take actions near the Strait of Malacca, he lacks a grasp of the actual local conditions, so he has not made a decision.However, after comparing the conditions of the Strait of Malacca and the Strait of Sunda, both the military and the Executive Committee undisputedly chose Xingdao at the eastern end of the Strait of Malacca as the next development target.With the current capacity and development plan of Haihan, it is impossible to launch large-scale projects in both Xingdao and Sunda Strait at the same time, so the control of Sunda Strait will be postponed.

Van Diemen didn't know that Haihan had information on the mineral deposits on Bangka Island and Belitung Island, so he was quite surprised by Schneider's step back.As far as he knows, there seems to be nothing good on these two islands except for growing pepper.In addition, there is no natural good harbor in the area, so Van Diemen doesn't have to worry too much about the Haihan people stationing an armed fleet there, so he didn't object to Schneider's proposal at the moment.However, after Haihan started large-scale tin mining in the local area, the news finally reached Batavia. Only then did Van Diemen know that this move by the Haihan people had been planned long ago, but it was too late to regret.

Negotiations are always accompanied by concessions and compromises, and this is no exception even for a powerful Haihan. After all, the purpose of this business alliance is to attract more countries to join, not to exclude a certain country.Even opponents like Haihan and the Netherlands, who have had several armed conflicts, will immediately return to their businessmen's nature as long as they realize that both sides have common interests that can be developed, and try to win more for themselves through talks. Benefit.

Fan Diemen found that the negotiation between himself and Schneider was also very difficult. This kind of difficulty was different from Yan Chujie's tough attitude, but a kind of shrewdness that he had never seen before. He felt that all his conditions and requirements were calculated by the other party. , and when he counted one step and two steps by himself, Schneider may have already counted five or six steps later, causing himself to be restrained every step of the way.It seems that Haihan has obtained a concession, which has taken some advantages, but the situation still seems to be under the control of the other party. The so-called concession is just a little sweetness that the other party deliberately throws out.

(End of this chapter)