Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1313 Bull Demon and Snake God
The following day, resistance in Batavia ended completely, and the entire city fell into the hands of the Ming army. Zheng Hongkui's troops controlled every corner of the city and sent guards to patrol the streets, posting notices to reassure the people, informing them of the reasons for the Ming Dynasty's war, and assuring them that the Ming army would ensure order in Batavia. The city was temporarily under military control and a curfew; no one was allowed to act without the Ming army's permission, and any violations would be directly suppressed.

Zheng Hongkui and Wang Fuzhi entered the city on the morning of the second day. Because the battle to capture Batavia had only lasted one day, the entire city's buildings remained intact. Apart from the city walls and some areas affected by the war, Batavia could be said to have fallen completely into the hands of the Ming Dynasty.

Zheng Hongkui and his companions had long heard of this city, after all, it was not only the headquarters of the Dutch East India Company in the Far East, but also a city that the Dutch had spent fifty years building.

Batavia is not only a large city, but its tall and sturdy city walls also provide a great sense of security. Furthermore, the city is filled with European-style architecture, and many Dutch people live there, living alongside locals and Chinese from Southeast Asia. Walking the streets of Batavia gives you a strong sense of exoticism.

There are three places in Batavia that are most suitable for Zheng Hongkui to be stationed after entering the city. The first is naturally the Governor's Mansion of Batavia, the second is the temporary residence of the Director of Batavia, and the third is the Batavia Cathedral.

However, due to the internal strife, the temporary headquarters of the Batavia Board of Directors was no longer habitable. Colonel Cohen's troops launched multiple attacks, and with the eventual use of artillery, the headquarters was left in ruins.

Although Batavia Cathedral was large enough and had an excellent location in the city, Zheng Hongkui did not choose it because it was a place of worship and the local people had different beliefs. Instead, he chose the former governor's mansion.

The Governor's Palace, located on one side of the central square in Batavia, is a red and white building. After the Ming army entered Batavia, it did not take much effort to capture the Governor's Palace, because the fall of Batavia was only a matter of time. The people of the Governor's Palace had already fled with Reinnis, so the Governor's Palace had not experienced the ravages of war and everything remained as it was.

"This place is nice." Zheng Hongkui stood outside the gate of the Governor's Mansion, looking up at the building, and nodded with satisfaction.

“Of course, this used to be the Dutch governor’s mansion, but now it’s Brother Rijian’s headquarters,” Wang Fuzhi joked with a smile.

"Hahaha, come on, let's go in and take a look." Zheng Hongkui laughed and beckoned Wang Fuzhi to go in together. They took a quick look around the interior of the governor's mansion, taking a keen look at the layout. Finally, they arrived at the governor's bedroom, pushed open the door and entered. The bedroom was quite large, and the interior was decorated in a magnificent and luxurious style.

“This Reinius is really like a local tyrant. Just this bedroom alone is no less impressive than the palaces of the kings of the countries we visited when we were on our mission to Europe,” Wang Fuzhi remarked.

“Yes! The Governor-General of the East India Company, the highest-ranking official of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Far East, such a high-ranking figure naturally deserves to enjoy himself.” Zheng Hongkui nodded, then shook his head slightly: “It’s a pity. I originally thought that after taking Batavia, I would be able to meet this Governor-General. I didn’t expect him to make such a choice.”

They learned of Governor Reinius's suicide last night. Following Reinius's death, Colonel Cohen faithfully carried out his orders, surrendering to the Ming army with his remaining troops. His surrender also signified the complete end of the resistance in Batavia. After clearing out the remaining small groups of Dutch soldiers in the city, the war in Batavia was over.

The reason why the Ming Dynasty sent troops this time was because Reinice instructed his subordinates to plunder Ming Dynasty merchant ships. At the moment of attacking Batavia, Zheng Hongkui had long wanted to meet the governor in person and asked him what he was thinking back then and whether he regretted it now.

Unfortunately, all of this became impossible, because Reinius had already committed suicide, leaving behind only his corpse.

Reines' death surprised Zheng Hongkui, but upon reflection, it was understandable. As governor, he knew all too well what would happen if he fell into Ming hands; a proud man like Reines would never tolerate the humiliation of being a prisoner. Furthermore, the loss of Batavia was largely due to his conflict with the board; without that conflict, the Ming army would never have been able to capture Batavia so easily.

In this situation, a disheartened Reinius knew that even if he were to survive the Ming Dynasty, he would not be able to face the guilt of losing Batavia. He, who had always been proud, had completely failed. Rather than prolonging his life, he would rather end it all quickly. This choice might also prevent his family members on his homeland from being blamed.

"What do you plan to do with Colonel Cohen?" Wang Fuzhi asked.

"He's just a nobody. Although he was directly involved in the previous events, frankly, he was merely a tool. And now that Reinice is dead, he's surrendered instead. If I'm not mistaken, Reinice protected him in this way. Why did he make this choice? I think Brother Nong should know better than I do." Wang Fuzhi nodded in agreement. Zheng Hongkui was right. Colonel Cohen was just a tool in Reinice's hands. After Reinice's suicide, Colonel Cohen led his troops to surrender, fulfilling his duty as a soldier. Moreover, with their abilities, they could naturally guess Reinice's thoughts before his death. For the Ming Dynasty, killing Colonel Cohen was an easy matter, and even bringing him back to the mainland for execution was not difficult. But in the long run, keeping Colonel Cohen might be more useful.

Zheng Hongkui and Wang Fuzhi did not stay in Reinice's bedroom for long. They left quickly and went to the study not far away.

Compared to the council chamber, the layout and decoration of the study made people feel much more relaxed. They sat down on the large sofa and were about to discuss the next steps in the resettlement of Batavia when there was a knock on the door.

"General! Sir!" It was Zheng Hongkui's personal guard who entered and said, "There are some people outside who want to see you, General. I dare not make the decision on my own, so I have come to report this."

"Some people? Who?" Zheng Hongkui asked, frowning.

The guards told Zheng Hongkui that there were quite a few people requesting to see him, including Jacob, a board member of the East India Company who had surrendered. Shortly after the Ming army entered the city, Jacob saw that the situation was not good and that he did not have many people with him at the time. Moreover, as a board member, he was not a soldier, so he decisively surrendered.

After surrendering, he was temporarily placed under guard. This morning, he insisted on seeing Zheng Hongkui, claiming that as a director of the East India Company, Zheng was responsible for negotiating peace with the Ming Dynasty. The negotiations had been progressing smoothly, and if it weren't for Governor Reines' sudden clash with the board of directors, the negotiations might have already succeeded. Now, the Ming army's sudden attack on Batavia during the peace negotiations was an immoral and untrustworthy act. He demanded to see the Ming army's supreme commander and request an explanation from the Ming Dynasty.

In addition, there was a request from the Batavian Chamber of Commerce to the Ming army. Batavia was an important city for the Dutch in the Far East. In addition to the East India Company, many Dutch merchants lived there. Although these people had business dealings with the East India Company, they were not actually employees of the East India Company. After Batavia fell into the hands of the Ming army, it was normal for them to ask to see the Ming army commander for their own safety and interests.

Besides the Chamber of Commerce, there were also clergy from Batavia, specifically the priests of the Batavia Cathedral, who were representing the Vatican in requesting a meeting with the Ming army commander. As for their purpose, Zheng Hongkui could easily guess.

That was one thing, but two other forces also requested a meeting. One of them consisted of local aristocrats and powerful figures. Although the Dutch had been operating in Batavia for many years, they had seized the land from the local aborigines, who originally belonged to small South Sea kingdoms. Some of these aborigines were nobles and officials of those kingdoms, while others were tribal chiefs.

Because Batavia was not part of their native territory, the Dutch needed to subjugate the indigenous people and utilize their resources to consolidate their rule. Therefore, the Dutch consistently employed a strategy of divide and conquer towards the local inhabitants, allowing some high-ranking individuals to reside in Batavia in order to control their tribes.

The last group to request an audience were actually Chinese from Southeast Asia. Besides Europeans and local natives, there were quite a few Chinese in Batavia. Some of these Chinese were descendants of those who fled overseas during the Southern Song Dynasty due to the Mongol invasion and later settled in Southeast Asia. Others were Ming Dynasty people who sailed to Southeast Asia from Fujian and Guangdong and stayed there.

For generations, even more, people have lived here. Although they intermarry with the locals, they still retain their Chinese customs. In addition, the Chinese are more hardworking and diligent than the local natives, and they often live well thanks to their ancestors and themselves. Some have even become wealthy. There are quite a few of these people in Batavia. Now that they are taking the initiative to meet Zheng Hongkui, they probably want to use their Chinese identity to play the emotional card. Anyone with a brain can see that the Ming Dynasty has now taken Batavia, and the East India Company's rule in the Far East has been shaken. With the rise of the Ming Dynasty, they, as Chinese, may be able to seize this opportunity to replace the Dutch and become the future masters of Batavia.

Listening to his subordinates' explanation, Zheng Hongkui frowned slightly. To be honest, he didn't want to see any of these people, at least not now.

Having just arrived in the city, he had many things to do and no time to meet with these nobodys. Moreover, in his view, apart from Director Jacob who had some influence, the others—whether so-called clergy, local chamber of commerce, native representatives, or Chinese in Batavia—were simply trying to gauge the political climate here and secure some benefits through the meeting.

If it were an ordinary general, he might have such thoughts, but don't forget that Zheng Hongkui was a member of Zheng Zhilong's Eighteen Brothers, a famous pirate leader. He knew the situation in the South China Sea very well. In his opinion, these guys were no good. They didn't dare to utter a word when the East India Company controlled Batavia, but now they've all come out. He had no interest in seeing such monsters.

(End of this chapter)