Ming Zuo

What song to sing on what mountain, what to say to whom to meet.

When facing William II, Liao Zhongjian's most important job was to improve the diplomatic relations between China and the Netherlands, talking about the friendship between the two sides, and trying to make the empire gain a firm foothold in Europe as soon as possible.

Facing a famous player like Marton Tropp, Liao Zhongjian's entry point is the situation and future of Europe.

France became the best topic.

In the ongoing war, the French army showed amazing combat effectiveness, which also gave France the loudest voice on the European continent.

As a neighbor of France, it is impossible for the Netherlands not to feel the pressure.

Liao Zhongjian believes that, as a famous player, Marton Tropp must have been thinking about how to face the pressure of France in the future.

According to the current situation in Europe, finding allies, keeping France at bay, and giving the Netherlands enough space for activities must be the only way for the upper class in the Netherlands.

The Netherlands was able to find such an ally even without an empire.

But how could he allow Holland to fall into the arms of others?

When facing the 17-member board of directors of the Dutch East India Company, Xu Erjue was about to talk about money.

Not about how much money the Empire could make for the Dutch East India Company, but about their future losses.

"I heard that you gentlemen have a very good relationship with the nobles of the British Parliament?"

"Of course. We have a common topic, and we have the same views on business and trade. Only the greedy and conservative king is the source of all evil."

Merrill van Linschoten is the current rotating chairman of the East India Company's board of directors. His voice is very steady and elegant, and he always smiles when talking about his friends in England.

His father, Jan Heigan van Linschoten, is a legend in the Netherlands.

He had been undercover in Spain for 14 years, collected intelligence from the East, and finally helped the Netherlands open the channel to the East.

His book "Route" had a profound impact and directly promoted the birth of the East India Company.

Britain was also influenced by him, and gradually began to join in the activities of colonizing the world.

Therefore, many people in the Netherlands have a close relationship with British capitalists.

"Dear Chairman Linschoten, please forgive my presumptuousness. Perhaps in the near future, the friendship between you will be wiped out."

Xu Erjue also has a refreshing demeanor, words and deeds.

He was originally from a scholarly family, and now he is a relative of the emperor.He moved his energy and raised his body, so that he could lobby the Dutch single-handedly.

Sure enough, his words displeased the directors of the East India Company.

"Mr. Xu, I think you just came to Europe, and you are still confused about the situation here. Not only do we share common business interests, but we also share common beliefs. This is an unbreakable relationship."

Xu Erjue always has a smile on his face, which makes people feel good.

He patiently waited for the other party to finish his explanation before hanging up the map of Europe calmly.

As a newcomer, the map of the mission is not very detailed, and it cannot achieve the effect of a blockbuster.

But it doesn't matter, Xu Erjue's purpose is not this.

"At present, it looks like this. But in the future, it's hard to say."

This time, he didn't wait for someone to question it, but directly threw out his theory.

"At present, in the UK, the king and his army are retreating steadily. I am afraid that it will not be long before they will fail completely. At that time, the parliament with strong commercial and trade capabilities will control the UK, and its national policy will undergo more radical changes."

His eyes scanned everyone.

"Perhaps all gentlemen think that if people who like business control Britain, it can be a business opportunity for the Netherlands. But, in my opinion, that will be the end of the Netherlands."

After all, Xu Erjue raised his pen and drew on the map the route from the Netherlands to the New World, the New Netherland, and the route from the Netherlands to the East along the Atlantic Ocean.

Then, he drew two big crosses at the position where these two routes were close to the UK.

Need to say anything more?

It is no longer needed.

The directors of the East India Company present all changed their faces when they saw this scene.

Almost all Europeans believed that the purpose of the arrival of the imperial mission was to establish diplomatic relations with the Netherlands and consolidate the alliance.

Even within the imperial mission, many people think so.

Only Liao Zhongjian, Xu Erjue, Kong Zhiguang, and the imperial ambassador to the Netherlands knew that the biggest target of the imperial visit this time was actually Britain.

In Europe during this period, Britain was not very impressive.

People's focus is on the mainland, and the 30-year war caused countries to invest a lot of manpower and material resources.Almost everyone agreed that this long war would determine the hegemony of Europe.

When the civil war started in Britain at the same time, I don’t know how many people were secretly happy, thinking that Britain would not be able to stand on the stage and missed an important opportunity.

No one has noticed how this English Civil War will affect the world situation in the next 300 years.

Of course, Liao Zhongjian and others couldn't see it either.

But Zuo Menggeng is behind them!
When the extremely detailed analysis and deduction were read by them, the only thing they could do was to pay the most thorough respect to His Majesty the Emperor, and then carry out their work in Europe according to the Emperor's will.

Intervene in the English Civil War, interrupting the British process and eliminating a potential enemy.

Of course, this plan cannot be achieved by the mission alone.

Although they have seven third-tier battleships and [-] marine soldiers, this force is nothing in Europe.

What Liao Zhongjian and others have to do is to find suitable targets in Europe and encourage them to interfere in British affairs.

The best choice, without a doubt, is the Netherlands.

Regardless of the fact that both the Dutch and British parliaments believe in Protestantism, and have close ties with each other and frequent business transactions, Zuo Menggeng deeply knows that in a short time, the two sides will become life-and-death rivals.

Not even until the end of the English bourgeois revolution.

He expected that the signs of the Anglo-Dutch dispute had already appeared, even if it was not obvious, but with the instigation of the mission, the Dutch would definitely be able to realize this.

The way to make the Dutch fully aware of the crisis is the two crosses that Xu Erjue drew on the map.

The Netherlands has a small land area and lack of resources, so it is very dependent on maritime trade to establish a country.

But in fact, geographically speaking, it is very unfavorable to the Netherlands.

The Netherlands is slightly closer to northern Europe, which makes their external routes easily cut off.

Whether it is the route to New Netherland, the New World, or the route to Asia, without exception, they all pass through the vicinity of the British Isles.

In other words, once there is a conflict between Britain and the Netherlands, the UK can easily cut off the Dutch sea trade.

There is no need for a heavy hammer to beat the drum. Xu Erjue believes that once these two crosses are drawn, the situation in Europe cannot fail to change.