1635 Han style rises again

Chapter 763 The Visit of the Indian Task Force ([-])
October 1659, 10, India, Anfeng Fort.

In order to obtain a security guarantee for the Qi State, the King of Cochin Sultan proposed to grant the following privileges to the Indian Trading Company of the Qi State:
[-]. The Qi State Indian Trading Company can build a fortress in the place it thinks is most suitable;
[-]. The cost of building the fortress can be borne by the Kingdom of Cochin at first, and the corresponding construction costs will be paid by the Qi State Indian Trading Company after they settle in;
[-]. All port tariffs in Cochin, including Fort Anfeng, are collected by the Qiguo Indian Trading Company, and the Kingdom of Cochin and the Qiguo Indian Trading Company are divided in half;

[-]. Permanently exempt the import and export duties of Indian trading companies in Qi State, but only pay half of the duties that other merchants have to pay for goods passing through the territory of the Kingdom of Cochin;
[-]. The currency used by the Kingdom of Cochin can be minted by the Qi State Indian Trading Company;
[-]. The Indian Trading Company of the State of Qi has absolute governance within the range of the fortress it occupies, and the Kingdom of Cochin will not interfere.

When several senior shopkeepers of Indian trading companies in Anfengbao heard of the generous conditions offered by the King of Cochin Sultan, they couldn't help being overjoyed.The actions of King Kochin Sultan almost sent the kingdom to Qi.In order not to be annexed by the surrounding Tubang kingdoms and end up dying, he insisted on deeply binding with Qi State in order to obtain real security guarantees.Especially after seeing a powerful Qi fleet arriving in Cochin, they were even more impatient to rush over and sign a formal mutual aid contract.

Several shopkeepers of the Indian trading company strongly urged the commander of the task force, General Guangwei (Major Admiral) Mir, to sign a mutual aid contract with the Kingdom of Cochin on behalf of the Qi government, and said that the Indian trading company is sufficient to protect the kingdom of Cochin with its own capabilities. There is no need for the government to worry about safety.

Since Anfeng Fort was purchased from the Portuguese more than ten years ago, the Indian Trading Company has expanded some parts of the fort.At first, there were only about 60 Qi people, plus some Portuguese who stayed here and the mixed-race children of Portuguese and local people, and the population was only more than 400.

However, after several years of development, another 200 to 1658 local Cochin merchants, hawkers, artisans and craftsmen moved in one after another, and Indian trading companies hired more than 960 men and armed guards from Annan and Japan.After that, with these people as the core, the city of Anfengbao developed rapidly. By the end of 600, there were more than 7000 Qi people and their family members (including children born in intermarriage with local women), more than [-] Portuguese and mixed-race children born to Portuguese and local people, and more than [-] people in Anfengbao and its surrounding areas. Cochin native.

The management scope of Anfeng Fort has expanded from a small fort with a circumference of less than 500 meters to a large area with a length of 3 kilometers from north to south and a width of 1.6 kilometers from east to west.There are dotted buildings related to Indian business houses in and around the city. This area is called the Han Chinese neighborhood, where employees and family members of Indian business houses, Portuguese and sporadic wealthy businessmen from the Kingdom of Cochin live. This block is surrounded by city walls, and most of the buildings are east. In addition, there are still some European-style stone and brick buildings (left by the Portuguese), and the road names are also quite Han Chinese.In this urban area, the Indian business company is also planning to build a Taoist temple with an oriental mysterious atmosphere to comfort the helpless souls living overseas.

In contrast, the larger Indian urban area is distributed on the south side of Anfengbao.European merchants such as Portugal and the Netherlands live here, as well as a large number of handicraftsmen and various merchants, mainly hawkers, craftsmen, weavers, barbers, shoemakers, tailors, blacksmiths, etc., who immigrated from surrounding areas.Most of the buildings use building materials such as soil foundation, mud, coconut leaves and straw. The houses are small and simple, with a local style.The Indian urban area is in stark contrast to the Han Chinese urban area.There are Hindu temples, shrines and Catholic churches in this area.

Roughly speaking, it can be concluded that the urban area of ​​the Han people is the urban area inhabited by the Qi people, and the Indian urban area is the urban area where other ethnic groups and foreign merchants live mixedly.

In fact, Qiguo Indian Trading Company began to control the governance of the entire Anfengbao area more than ten years ago.In 1648, not long after the Indian trading company took over Fort Anfeng, a local woman was killed by a man of the same clan.Local Cochin officials ruled on the matter and quickly reported the results to senior officials above.However, senior officials in Cochin ordered the criminals to be adjudicated according to the laws of Qi on the grounds that the Qi State Indian Trading Company had the right to rule the Anfengbao area.As a result, the criminal was sentenced to death by the steward in charge of civil affairs in Anfengbao.

On the contrary, in the same year, in Fort Anfeng, the Portuguese killed the Japanese guards employed by the Qiguo Indian Trading Company.The Qiguo Indian Chamber of Commerce sentenced the Portuguese to death without the ruling of the Cochin officials, and he was executed quickly.Officials in Cochin, on the other hand, took it for granted and did not ask any questions at all.Since then, the judicial power and civil affairs management power of the entire Anfengbao have all fallen into the hands of the Indian trading company.

As for the transfer of the customs management rights, coinage rights, and trade access rights of the Kingdom of Cochin to the Qi State Indian Trading Company, this is simply to take the initiative to hand over the economic lifeline of the entire kingdom to Qi State to control.Once Indian trading companies obtain the above-mentioned conditions promised by the Kingdom of Cochin, they will gain unprecedented privileges and influence in this kingdom.If Nanyang Trading Company, the largest competitor in the country, were to learn about this, they would definitely be mad with jealousy.

After two days of comprehensive consideration, in order to prevent himself from being criticized for signing the contract hastily, Mir used the excuse that he did not have the authorization of the government and the military, so he could not make a security commitment to the Kochin Sultan Kingdom now.However, he suggested that King Sultan himself or entrust a plenipotentiary representative to go to the Hanzhou mainland and submit a request to the Qi cabinet and military to sign a security mutual assistance contract.

Moreover, he privately expressed to the Sultan King that in view of Qi's significant economic interests in India, he believed that Qi would make a correct and reasonable choice based on this.

On October 10, the task force left Fort Anfeng, continued northward, and headed for Goa, the next destination of its visit.

On November 11, the task force arrived at Goa, the ruling center of Portuguese India.

The Governor of Portuguese India, Antonio Tris Menez, led a group of colonial officials and many businessmen to stand on the pier, watching the Qi task force entering the port one by one under the leadership of a pilot boat. Mixed feelings.

This country in the southern New World has become stronger and stronger as time goes by.In the Second Han-Dutch War, they quickly defeated the Dutch with an almost devastating offensive, forced them to the negotiating table, and signed an armistice agreement.Compared with the first Sino-Dutch war, both sides claimed to have won the war, but had to cease fighting due to the situation, which was full of controversy.Then in this second war, the Hanzhou people gained a comprehensive advantage on the battlefield in an unquestionable way, and beat the Dutch into a mess.

However, to the Portuguese's regret, the Hanzhou people knew how to measure it, and they accepted it as soon as it was good, and soon shook hands with the Dutch again.The Portuguese, who wanted to take the opportunity to make trouble and launch a full-scale counterattack against the Dutch, were caught off guard.

In other words, you two are too disrespectful to fight a war. Our Portuguese war preparations have not yet been completed, and you suddenly stopped and signed a peace treaty.This is so depressing. I thought, if the Hanzhou people can maim the Dutch, or fight for both sides, we Portuguese can take advantage of it, even if we can’t completely drive the Dutch out of India, Ceylon, and Malacca, at least it can severely weaken it.

The result turned out to be good, Hanzhou and the Dutch had a fight, and the relationship became closer and closer.In recent years, the trade cooperation between the two countries has deepened. One can produce a large amount of industrial products, and the other has the largest sea transportation resources and network in the region. They have hooked up with each other in the East Indies, Japan, Southeast Asia, and India. ..., earning a lot of money, it makes people... jealous!
Seven years ago, the Anglo-Dutch War broke out. In order to combat the overseas trade of the British, the Dutch East India Company even persuaded the Han Chinese to build a joint fleet to cruise between the Strait of Malacca and India.This move frightened the Portuguese for a while, fearing that the Dutch would pull the Han Chinese to attack the Portuguese trading strongholds in Ceylon and India, and even expel the Portuguese completely.

Fortunately, the Hanzhou people are more friendly and firmly opposed to any military offensive against the Portuguese. They abruptly prevented the Dutch East India Company from trying to beat the rabbits, and beat up the Portuguese and the English together.

With the asylum and care of the Hanzhou people, the Portuguese were able to continue their colonial activities in Ceylon and India, and it may be precisely because the Hanzhou people stood firmly behind the Portuguese that the Dutch East India Company Instead of using force to expel the Portuguese, economic means were used to encroach and squeeze out the Portuguese Indian colonial forces.

In short, the Portuguese have complicated feelings towards the Han Chinese.On the one hand, the business power of the Hanzhou people is rapidly expanding in India, and they have deep worries and fears in their hearts; The fierce Dutch and English, and that mighty Mughal Empire.

"Dear General Mir, in the face of the increasingly aggressive Mughal Empire, I think we should unite and resist this powerful empire together." Governor Antonio Tris Menez said with a smile: "The Mughal Empire The new emperor, in order to demonstrate his authority, and at the same time to make up for the emptiness in their treasury, has sent edicts to our various Portuguese business stations, demanding that the taxes and fees previously stipulated be more than doubled. Oh, God, you Do you know what this means? The emperor of this empire just forcibly collected one hundred thousand rupees from our pockets without doing anything!"

"Oh, is it?" Mir shrugged and said with a smile: "Then, our Qiguo Indian Trading Company may also receive such an order to increase taxes and fees. Well, double the share on the original basis, It is indeed a bit high. This will greatly frustrate traders from various countries and have a certain impact on the entire Indian market. After all, the extra cost will definitely be added to the traded goods more or less .It's unfair to the recipients of those goods."

"Yes, General Mir." Governor Menez nodded and said: "The emperor of the Mughal Empire's move is tantamount to killing the chicken and taking the eggs. He did not consider what kind of risks our businessmen had taken. It is hard work to come to the Indian mainland. The advanced and valuable commodities we brought have brought great convenience to this country and enriched the living standards of the people in this country. Therefore, we should not suffer unjustly for this. Fair treatment."

"Your Excellency, do you have any good suggestions?" Mill knew that he must have a deep meaning when he said these words.

"You Qi formed this powerful task force at the right time and dispatched it to the Indian region." Governor Menez said solemnly: "In order to show our strength and determination, I think that this task force The fleet should exert its due deterrence. For this reason, our colonial government will organize three armed merchant ships to join the fleet, and then stick to the coastline all the way, visiting the coastal cities of the Mughal Empire one by one. If possible, the last So that the emperor and officials of this empire can know the power of this powerful fleet."

When Governor Menez said the words "let the emperor and officials of this empire know the power of this powerful fleet", his face showed a trace of ferocity.

Mir understood the subtext of his words, and when necessary, he did not hesitate to attack the coastal cities of the Mughal Empire in order to demonstrate force against the empire.

The reason why the Portuguese wanted to use the Qi task force to deter the Mughal Empire was that Gein, after Aurangzeb ascended the throne, wanted to overthrow the policy of the former emperor Shah Jahan, that is, to break the status quo in Diu , expulsion of the Portuguese by force.The reason turned out to be that the Mughal Empire believed that Diu was too close to their northwest seaport city of Surat, and would pose a threat to their most important foreign trade port at any time.

In this regard, the Portuguese feel very depressed and very angry.You must know that the Portuguese occupied Diu in 1533, and it has been more than 120 years. Gujarat region.As a latecomer, why should the Mughal Empire expel the Portuguese who currently occupy Diu.

Therefore, when the frustrated Portuguese saw the arrival of the Qi task force in Goa, they immediately wanted to use the power of the Qi people to intimidate the Mughal Empire and not easily invade Diu.

On November 11, the Portuguese Indian colonial government organized three armed merchant ships to join the Qi State Task Force. They sailed away from Goa one by one, and sailed northward along the coast of India.

(End of this chapter)