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Chapter 1262: Straight to the Point 4
"Mr. René, as a shareholder of the East India Company and a representative of the Seventeen, I should have a greater say in the relationship between the Netherlands and the Ming Dynasty.

Over the past 20 years, the East India Company had indeed established a very close business relationship with the Ming Empire. Eighty percent of the goods shipped from Asia to Europe passed through Dutch merchant ships, and the company made huge profits from this.

But this was not enough to make the Dutch Republic deviate from its European attributes. Moreover, the cooperation between the two sides was not equal. The Ming Empire indirectly monopolized the Asian market by controlling the origin of goods and the Port of Enniao.

The East India Company and all Dutch merchant ships had to comply with the requirements of the Ming Customs to buy and sell goods, and most of the profits were earned by Ming merchants. For this reason, we had to increase the sales price in Europe. In a sense, the East India Company was helping the Ming Empire to rob Europeans with goods.

If we don’t find a way to change it, and allow the Ming Empire to get involved in the New World, the West India Company will inevitably become an accomplice in the future, which is something that all honest businessmen do not want to see.”

But Descartes obviously underestimated the intelligence of the Prince of Orange and his party, and Cornelis immediately refuted this view. In his words, he portrayed the Netherlands as the oppressed, and the Ming Empire as the initiator and the biggest beneficiary of unfair trade. It does sound reasonable and in line with reality.

"Mayor Cornelis, you seem to have forgotten an important point. Before discussing the status of the Dutch East India Company, it would be best to ask the Portuguese merchants in Macau how they feel. What do you think, Governor Coen?"

Unfortunately, Descartes was not an ordinary person. As a scholar specializing in philosophical theory, his logical thinking was clearer and it was difficult for him to be deceived by superficial phenomena. After listening to Cornelis's point of view, he smiled slightly and turned his head to Governor Cohen.

"..." At this moment, Cohen was cursing in his heart, cursing the Prince of Orange, Cornelis, Speaker Peter, and the East India Company's committee. But he was very frugal with his words, holding his hot cocoa tea and staring blankly.

He finally understood why the prince suddenly came to Batavia. It was not to inspect the overseas territories of the Republic, nor to evaluate his own work, but to destroy the bridge after crossing it.

But no matter how unwilling he was, he could not reveal his true feelings in such an occasion because of his status and position. Descartes could say that because it was not under the jurisdiction of the Republic and the East India Company, it had the support of the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

If I tell the truth, I will become a prisoner the moment I leave the capital. I will not even have to go through the interrogation process. I will be taken back to Amsterdam and hanged directly. I may even be executed in Batavia.

"Since Governor Cohen is not in a position to comment, I will do it for you. If there is anything wrong with what I said, please point it out in time.

If you ask who was the biggest business partner of the Ming Empire thirty years ago, there is only one answer: the Portuguese merchants in Macau. Their merchant ships were filled with specialties from the east coast of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, the Indian Peninsula and Southeast Asia.

As long as the goods were safely transported to Guangzhou Port, they could be exchanged for raw silk, porcelain, satin, and tea. These goods could be shipped to various parts of Asia, making a lot of profit. Some of them were also shipped to Europe, where they were favored by royal families and nobles of various countries.

But after the Spaniards in Manila were expelled, the Ming Emperor decided to choose new business partners, and the main competitors were the Portuguese and the Dutch.

After many negotiations and communications, the Ming Empire finally gave up the Portuguese. There must be many reasons, but the most important one was that the King of Spain was also the King of Portugal at that time. No matter how the Portuguese merchants guaranteed, it was difficult to win the full trust of the Ming Emperor. It had nothing to do with trust to allow them to continue living in Macau and obtain some quotas of goods, but only out of affection. At the beginning of the Ming Emperor's accession to the throne, the Portuguese merchants in Macau had given some support.

To put it another way, the Dutch East India Company's promise was recognized by His Majesty the Emperor, and the types of goods and their prices provided by the Ming Empire were also recognized by the East India Company.

Mutual needs and mutual profits are the standard business model, which has nothing to do with the unfairness mentioned by the mayor. The Ming Empire did not bully the market, and the East India Company was not humiliated.

If there is any injustice, it is that the Ming Empire gave the East India Company's merchant ships sufficient security guarantees in Asian waters. In turn, the East India Company did not receive similar returns in Europe. "

Seeing Governor Cohen's embarrassment, Descartes knew that he would not get an answer, so he simply continued. After arriving in the Ming Empire, in addition to continuing his research in a very superior scientific research environment, he also conducted a relatively systematic exploration of the country's history and culture, especially the decades after Emperor Jingyang ascended the throne.

In other words, he also took Emperor Jingyang as a research subject, wanting to analyze the fundamental reasons for the rapid development of the Ming Empire from a human level.

Although this research work had only been going on for more than two years and was far from successful, in some respects he understood the current situation and part of the history of the country better than most Ming people.

“Let me add one more thing. When the Ming emperor personally led the expedition to conquer the Ottoman Empire, it was not the Dutch East India Company but the Danish East India Company that provided assistance to the Ming army.

Whether there was any inside story, I certainly don’t know. But with this cooperation, the Danish East India Company was able to gain a stable foothold and commercial share in the port of Hormuz.

This scene reminds me of the competitive relationship between the Dutch East India Company and the Portuguese in Macau. I have no way of judging whether the Ming Emperor did this intentionally.

But the reality was obvious that if the Dutch East India Company was no longer trusted, His Majesty the Emperor would not be in great trouble, because the Danish East India Company would most likely become its successor and take on the task of transporting goods from Asia to Europe.

I have reason to believe that the Danes do not care about the attitudes of the King of Spain, the King of France, and the Holy Roman Emperor. Even if they do, the profits generated by this route will make them forget it temporarily. "

Mersenne was also inspired by seeing Descartes single-handedly silence the two Dutch officials, Cornelis and Peter. However, he focused his main energy on mathematical research and teaching, and paid little attention to such issues, so he could not provide more convincing arguments.

However, inspired by Descartes' words, I suddenly remembered that there is another East India Company in Asia, and it is open and not a secret. I might as well throw it out together, which may have some deterrent effect.

(End of this chapter)