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Chapter 1426 Fate Brings Us Together (Part 2)
In the European Allied fleet, even with access to the officers' mess, the only difference each day was a pint of light beer and a couple more pieces of bacon. The morale was even worse than the material conditions; with both naval and amphibious operations progressing poorly, the officers and men were demoralized and in a state of depression.

In contrast, the Ming army stationed at Enbird Port, despite losing Enbird City and being trapped in the port by hundreds of warships, was in much better physical and mental condition.

When the small boat was pulled ashore, several naval soldiers recognized him, but none of them showed any obvious complaints or hatred. They all greeted him with smiles and even joked around, just like before.

“Worried? Governor Cohen, when have you ever seen us worried? To tell you the truth, we’ve been hoping for the battle to come to the port these days, but the Europeans can’t even break through the Xhosa warriors’ defenses. Commander Zhu and I can only drown our sorrows in alcohol.”

Logically, Cohen's question implied espionage and shouldn't have elicited a direct answer. However, Xiao Si showed no suspicion and bluntly told the truth.

"Don't take it to heart, he didn't do it on purpose. But as an old friend, I still have to remind you to try to persuade your prince and consul to find an excuse to withdraw their troops as soon as possible. Once reinforcements arrive, it won't be easy to leave. Shells don't discriminate; if they hit your flagship, you'll lose your life here for nothing!"

Seeing Cohen's unpleasant expression, Zhu felt it necessary to defend Xiao Si, explaining that it wasn't meant as sarcasm but rather well-intentioned. Even if they served different masters, it was best to avoid killing each other if possible.

As for whether it constitutes a leak of military secrets, that's far from the truth. We can inform the Europeans in writing right now about when and how many rescue fleets will arrive. If that deters them, both the Naval Staff and the General Staff will award us a certificate.

The garrison at Enbird Port has only one duty: to guard the port. Killing more enemies or finding ways to annihilate them are not within their duties, so they don't need to worry about them.

"Sigh... Based on my guess, you have a large naval base somewhere in the southern Indian Ocean, a one-way distance of no more than half a month. Unfortunately, I can't provide any evidence, and they are unwilling to believe me."

Being told to his face by the enemy that the attack was insufficient and that reinforcements would arrive soon was even more humiliating than being verbally abused. Cohen wanted to believe that the two officers hadn't meant to embarrass him, but the embarrassment was still there, no less.

"Hehehe, that's a military secret, you'll have to guess for yourself. Let's talk about something lighter, Cohen. You certainly can't come back as governor after the war, but your company might still be able to continue doing business. If you do come, could you find an artist from Europe?"
We've all seen Setter's portrait; it's excellent, you can even see the fine hairs. I'll be rotating to a different post next year, so I'll take advantage of the holiday to get married. I'm thinking of finding an artist to paint a portrait of us; wouldn't it be impressive to hang it in our new house?

The approximate arrival time of reinforcements wasn't a military secret, but the location of the Seychelles naval base was crucial and couldn't be revealed. To lighten the mood, Xiao Si changed the subject and started talking about personal matters.

Although he also came from a military family, he had rather progressive ideas. Not only did he marry a native girl from Colombo, but he also planned to have his and his wife's faces painted like the oil paintings hanging in churches, so that future generations could see them clearly.

"...I can introduce highly skilled painters to Asia, but I probably won't go back to work in Asia. To be precise, the company no longer employs me; they consider my opposition to the war a sign of disloyalty."

Faced with such a lighthearted topic, Cohen still found it a bit difficult to speak, and after thinking it over, decided to tell the truth. It wasn't his fault, so why carry such a mental burden?

"Damn it! Your prince's got a screw loose, can't he tell good from bad? No problem, it's fine if they don't hire you anymore. How about you become the second manager of my family's trading company? We probably don't have as many ships as the East India Company, but the work is easy and the pay is good. You just need to arrange the ports and cargo in Europe; others will handle the shipping." The two had never heard of Cohen losing his job because of the war before, and they immediately felt indignant on his behalf. Xiao Si went even further, actually intending to recruit him, and not just casually, but with specific job arrangements.

"Does your family own a trading company that sells goods in Europe?"

Cohen naturally wouldn't agree; if he wanted to stay in Asia, he should have accepted Emperor Jingyang's conditions in the first place. However, he was quite interested in the trading company Xiao Si mentioned, because he had never heard of Ming Dynasty merchants having merchant ships that sailed directly to Europe.

"Not yet, but we will have them after the war ends. The ships and the manpower are readily available, and most of them have naval and maritime service backgrounds, so long voyages will not be a problem!"

Speaking of this, Xiao Si had to feel a little proud. The Xiao family was originally a military family on the border, with a considerable fortune, but none of his ancestors had ever gone to sea, making him the first person to deviate from the norm.

But children from wealthy families are quick-witted and have the resources to take risks. After serving in the navy for a few years, he discovered that making a living at sea was more profitable than the family's factory. Although it was difficult to survive if something went wrong, with the advancement of navigation technology, it wasn't too risky to risk one's life, so he could give it a try.

So he took some money from home, along with a few trustworthy people, and invested in a reliable business in Luzon Port. Over the years, he not only recouped his initial investment but also built a network of connections among maritime merchants and gained the trust of his family.

As this Eurasian war began, his family's large-scale investments also commenced. The elders of the Xiao family were not very knowledgeable about navigation technology, but they had a great strategic vision. In addition, they had some old acquaintances in the court who provided information, and they sensed a strong smell of money in the emperor's series of actions.

Then he sent family members south with funds to take back the businesses they had previously invested in. He also used Xiao Si's connections to recruit more than a dozen retired naval officers with extensive experience in long-distance voyages, preparing for a major undertaking.

What are we doing? Long-distance trade, or more precisely, returning goods to Europe. Due to the war, the shipping capacity of European merchant ships in Asia will definitely decrease significantly, and the emperor has been encouraging Ming Dynasty merchants to engage in long-distance trade. Isn't this an opportunity? Whoever can quickly fill the gap left by the departure of the East India Company will make a fortune!

“But Ming ships have never docked in any European port! You must understand that European waters are different from Asian waters, and the orders of the government and the king cannot completely guarantee the safety of navigation.”

Cohen was unaware of Xiao Si's family's plans and assumed they intended to force their way into Europe using their superior navigation skills, so he quickly intervened to stop them.

This is no joke. European waters are not only infested with pirates, but also with privateers from various countries. Even if governments outwardly agree to allow Ming merchant ships to dock, they can't guarantee their safety once they leave port.

(End of this chapter)