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Chapter 1310 Troop Transport Ship

"As the Son of Heaven, you should be able to do more than ordinary people. I am also trying to see if there are any brave people. Normally, they cannot make any moves when the army is gathered. Now that the opportunity has come, they might take risks.

The ancients in Europe once said that a strong castle is often breached from the inside. You defend against foreign enemies, and I will deal with internal troubles. Doing two things with one cost is the way to govern a country! "

As for being a moral role model for all citizens, Hong Tao always believed that this was not the emperor's job. If you want to be a saint, you should not touch politics. It is a cesspool, and no one has been able to stay clean since it was created.

As for whether the capital would be in danger if the main force of Zhili Dusi was sent out, the answer is uncertain, but it is not a loss compared with the equally uncertain gains.

On the last day of July, a huge fleet, flying the flags of the Republic of Venice, the Republic of Genoa, and the Republic of the Netherlands, slowly sailed into the Bosphorus from south to north.

"It's still the same after all these years." Cohen stood behind the helm, looking at the houses, docks, and mosques passing by on both sides of the river, and was a little distracted.

"Have you been here?"

As Coen became the commander of the East India Company's fleet, the bald and bearded boatswain William also rose in rank, from boatswain to captain of the flagship Batavia. At this time, he was standing on Coen's right, holding a telescope to observe the situation on the channel.

"Yes, I was a young man at that time, and had just joined the company. My first voyage was to come here to install velvet and carpets. It was my first time seeing such a huge city, which made me a little dazzled, and I was also fascinated by the dancing girls in the Ottoman merchants' houses."

Talking about his youthful vigor and frivolity back then, Cohen, who is now over 50 years old, couldn't help but smile. That was such a carefree age, and it was easy to be satisfied.

"If we have to stop here on the way back, I want to go up and give it a try. Are the dancers here better than the girls in the brothels in Manila?" It was the first time that William was so close to Istanbul. After listening to Cohen's story, he couldn't help but feel a little yearning.

"Don't try. Among all the cities I know, there are no girls anywhere that can compare with those in Manila. It's a pity that you haven't been to Luzon House. It's a real paradise on earth and a den for spending money."

People who often travel on the sea, from cargo owners to ship owners, even captains and sailors, are all long-term VIP customers of brothels. No matter which port they sail to, as long as they have time to get off the ship, they have to go find girls first without eating or drinking.

Although Enko hasn't had to roam around with cargo ships for many years, he worked his way up from being a shipboard business representative. He still has the same blood as a sailor in his bones, and it's still so natural when he talks about these things.

"I heard that it costs two Ming Dynasty gold coins to have a drink with a girl. Are they all made of gold?"

William was not Dutch. He was born in Venice and became a sailor when he grew up. Later, he accidentally injured someone in a drunken fight and was forced to flee to Asia to be a mercenary. He eventually came to Batavia. He was spotted by Cohen and has been in charge of the governor's private sailing ship Batavia for 20 years.

His salary in Batavia was considered middle-to-high-end, but there were too few entertainment facilities in the city, so whenever he had free time, he would go to Manila with others to enjoy a few days.

He had visited most of the decent brothels in Manila, but never the Luzon brothel. The reason was that it was expensive! This brothel, opened by a wealthy Annan businessman, was high-end. It rented a fortress from the Spanish rule and spent a lot of money to renovate it. The east and west buildings could accommodate hundreds of people on three floors. It mainly operated restaurants, casinos, Turkish baths, young girls, shooting ranges and badminton courts.

As long as they bring enough money, anyone who enters can enjoy the treatment of an emperor and enjoy themselves for days. However, few people dare to go in and spend money wantonly. Most of them just taste a little and stop. Because it is expensive, ordinary businessmen cannot afford it, let alone sailors.

"Even if they're not made of gold, they're almost the same. The girls inside come from all over the world and start training when they're six or seven years old. Not only are they proficient in singing, dancing, and playing musical instruments, they also have to take Latin, accounting, and philosophy classes. They don't get allowed to accompany guests until they're eighteen.

If you are from the Ming Dynasty, you can choose someone who can write poetry and write with a brush; if you are from Europe, you can also choose a lady in a skirt. Or if you are from the southern coast of the Mediterranean, choose someone with skin like black velvet. Although they are all pretending, it is difficult to be seen through. "

Cohen had indeed been there, but only once, and he didn't pay for it himself, as the Ming Navy treated him to a meal. But even after so long, he still remembered the experience vividly, and he was full of longing when he talked about it.

"So where did you choose the girl from?" William was fascinated by what he heard. He tried hard to imagine a similar picture in his mind and blurted out the question.

"Japan, a girl named Eiko. She was very gentle and spoke softly, and even made me feel guilty!" When Cohen mentioned the details of that experience, he felt a little embarrassed again. While speaking, he made the sign of the cross on his chest, as if God could pay the bill for him.

"Hey... do you think we can still go to Manila?"

William licked his lips, mustered up his courage and calculated, it seemed that he could bear it if he gritted his teeth and went once. But after seeing the soldiers sitting or lying on the deck, his face became solemn again, and he deliberately lowered his voice.

"...Of course. No matter which side wins, as long as the war is over, maritime trade will definitely resume."

Cohen sailed on the Batavia not to Istanbul to load cargo, but as the commander of the Dutch East India Company's fleet, he led more than 50 sailing ships to transport 6,000 Allied soldiers across the Bosphorus and the Black Sea to the Crimean Khanate's port of Kaffa.

At this time, the Crimean Khanate had basically become a vassal of the Ottoman Empire, and the port of Kaffa was an overseas territory of the Republic of Genoa, but was actually controlled by the Ottoman Empire.

What were they going to do with so many Allied troops there? Were they going to launch a massive attack on Russia? The answer was definitely not. However, Cohen was not sure how the Allied troops were deployed, but he only knew that these troops were definitely deployed for the Eastern Expedition.

He had his own criteria for this war. It was not at all what European countries claimed that the Ming Empire was actively provoking, trying to control Asia, monopolize the supply of goods, and strangle the economies of European countries.

At the same time, it is not like what the Ming Empire said, that it was to protect its own security and defend against foreign invasion. Both sides are not good people and are lying. The actual purpose is exactly the same, all for the purpose of competing for interests.

(End of this chapter)