open sea

Chapter 1020 Revenge
Autumn goes to winter, and soon Spain will celebrate the New Year.

When the chants of the midnight mass sounded, bagpipers walked through the narrow and crowded streets, and people burned towering trees in the suburbs, jumping and jumping hand in hand, and bards sat in the middle singing or praising or singing loudly. Obscene chants, everything related to fighting was banned, and the court of Bilbao also called a grand banquet.

Of course, the priest at the door of the church complained loudly to the carnival crowd, condemning them for singing and dancing songs that they made up like heretics, and wantonly drinking and feasting day and night.

In fact they have complained for centuries, that in the past few hundred years, every year Christmas has been a carnival day for believers, and the priests have to endure this custom passed down by the Romans.

However, the Ming army camp on the outskirts of Bilbao was incompatible with the atmosphere of universal celebration in Spain.

The six mercenaries of the Xiyong Battalion were all on vacation, and they were allowed to go to the city to have a carnival, while the soldiers of the Baishan Battalion fell asleep after their daily drills.

After the second batch of silks and satins from Seville arrived in Hong Kong this year, Chen Jiujing used them to hire local people to renovate the camp, and almost built a small city near Bilbao.

It is called China Town by the local people.

Pomegranate trees are planted on the edge of the four large campuses outside the camp and the two grazing grasslands in the east and west. Since the design and construction were done by the Spaniards, the land called Xiyong Camp has many Spanish architectural styles. The bloodline is almost a replica of the overseas colonies of the Western countries, such as the very conspicuous Armed Square in the middle of the camp.

Around the square, there are two-story barracks with courtyards in Baishanying, and small wooden buildings in Xiyongying.

The Xiyong Camp is more and more like Chen Jiujing's private soldiers. Their residence plan is not based on the mercenary regiment, but according to the type of arms. The infantry are all eleven people crowded into one room, and the cavalry is the same as the Baishan Camp. , 23 people live in a small courtyard, each cavalry has a named retinue, and there are two squad leaders, and the lower stables live in the upper.

The only three-story building on Armed Forces Square and the courtyard next to it are the residences of the generals of Baishan Camp and Xiyong Camp.

Regardless of the Baishan Battalion or the Xiyong Battalion, they have been stationed in Bilbao for nearly a year. The attack on Bordeaux is the latest time they have sent troops. After a long period of non-fighting, they are like the Beiyang Banner Army of Changsheng and Jincheng. Both officers and soldiers are local. Marrying a wife or finding a lover, the soldiers frequented the brothels of Bilbao on their holidays, which is inevitable in human nature.

In the past, many generals, like Chen Jiujing, either bought or rented in the outskirts of Bilbao, and often did not stay in camp, which was not safe for the army.

It was at that time that Chen Jiujing wanted to build a bright city here. Now, like the local garrison, they have their own barracks, military warehouses, granaries, horse farms, school yards, and independent yards. Officers can take their family members to live in the camp.

The only thing is, no entry, no exit.

In the middle of the night, the lights on the third floor were still brightly lit, and the accompanying soldiers stood outside the door. Chen Jiujing frowned and looked at the letter in his hand, and finally raised his head and said to the dusty soldiers: "You have worked hard, go down and rest first."

After the entourage left, Chen Jiujing, who was sitting on a horsehair-stuffed, scarlet velvet-covered soft chair, put down the letter casually, and smiled at Margaret, who was lying on the bench with a wine bottle opposite her: "It seems that the dinner party has been interrupted." It made the governor very unhappy, he actually wanted to ask me for 1 and a half taels for [-] mu of land."

What's more, the 6000 mu of land is not fertile land. The most people in the Bacchus area are herdsmen. In the past, more than half of the land here was used for grazing or useless woodland. There are also two hills, which are not worth [-] in Chen Jiujing's eyes. two silver.

Margaret on the bench was indifferent to Chen Jiujing's words, and her mind was full of annoyance.

On Christmas Eve, because of the decree made by this man from the Ming Dynasty, hundreds of believers in the camp could not hold carnivals. Burning a bonfire in Armed Forces Square had become the biggest concession, and everyone was confined in the yard.

What's more, at this time, others are doing some favorite things in the yard, how about her?

Her lover actually sat upright with a serious face and didn't even drink wine, discussing with herself to buy land!
Who cares about buying land!

Chen Jiujing cares.

He wants to buy this piece of land, not only including Daying, but also the land around Daying. After all, others call this Chinatown, and their towns have been established. Will it be given away for nothing when the troops withdraw in the future? Spanish?

Of course I have to buy it.

But at the beginning, it was just whimsical, and I wrote a letter to Governor Bacchus with the mentality of trying, but I didn't expect to get a response, and it was not a straightforward rejection, but a price that Chen Jiujing was unwilling to give.

He thinks the price can be negotiated again.

"Eight thousand and a half taels, Margot, what do you think?" Knowing that Margaret was upset, Chen Jiujing asked again, "This price can already buy [-] mu of land in my hometown. .”

"Twelve thousand and a half taels is already a much cheaper price in terms of your status in Spain. It is not easy to buy such a large piece of land in Spain." Margaret smiled foolishly, looking slightly Drunk, she leaned on the chair for two interviews before sitting up, and asked calmly, "General, how long are you going to fool me?"

Chen Jiujing blinked. He was still thinking about whether it would be appropriate to exchange three hundred bolts of silk for this piece of land. When he heard Margaret's words, he asked in puzzlement, "A fool?"

"The war in France has long begun. The king has taken measures against the rebellion. He protects the threatened city and shelters the Protestants who have not joined the rebellion. There are not so many troops willing to answer the call of Navarre. The king sends three armies. .”

"Mayenne is on the way to Dauphine, and Billon is ordered to gather troops at Bordeaux in Guyenne. Marshal Matteon is going to command the army of Picardy, and the nobles of the court will join his army, which is near Paris. Extremely, the Protestant Prince Condé only acquired one fortress in Raphael, and he is still recruiting mercenaries in Germany. Once the three troops are assembled, the war will be over."

Speaking of this, Margaret changed the subject, looked at Chen Jiujing and said, "You left the camp the day before yesterday and went to the mansion outside the city. I guess you should have met my mother's emissary."

Margaret's mother was Catherine, Queen Mother of France.

"It doesn't seem to be a secret." Chen Jiujing leaned back, spread his hands and said, "Huang Xi and your maid will go with me. They are two interpreters. They didn't intend to hide the conversation from you, huh."

Chen Jiujing smiled. Judging from Catherine's secret letter, the Queen Mother did not like the daughter of the Queen of Navarra. He said: "The Queen Mother wants me not to participate in this war, and she can be forgiven I have robbed Bordeaux for crimes."

"I have the final say on the matter of war, so don't ask me. The weapons I want haven't arrived yet, and I'm still waiting for two people. One of them is your husband. He hasn't sent troops yet. Why should I send troops? Those who are allied with him It's you and not me." Chen Jiujing rolled his eyes and said with a smile, "I'm only forming an alliance with you."

Margaret got up eagerly, naturally raised her smooth neck slightly, and asked with clasped hands: "Then you promised her? I don't know what your reply is."

"She said forgive me for my crimes? French pirates plundered the New Spain of the Ming Empire many times. This is revenge from Ming Dynasty. Where do I have any crimes? Joke—if those shameless people can wantonly plunder the sanctuary of the Ming Dynasty coast with impunity, so can I."

Chen Jiujing laughed contemptuously and said, "It doesn't matter whether it's the Queen Mother of France or the King of France, as long as I don't compensate for the pirates harassing the coast, I will always be here to make everyone sleepless."

"As for my reply, I just asked the Queen Mother if she would like to hire me. As long as 50 taels of silver are brought in, I will immediately set up camp and lead an army across the Pyrenees to attack Navarre."

　Good morning!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)