Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 511 The war begins!

On April 1, 1642, the port of Acapulco was languishing in the warm winds of the Gulf of Mexico.

The morning sun shone through the gaps in the palm trees, casting dappled light and shadow on the cobblestone path of the dock. As soon as the Spanish galleon "Aldamar," carrying cocoa beans and grains, docked, the sailors couldn't wait to rush into the city, ready to enjoy a delicious drink during the brief lull in the loading and unloading of cargo, and then embrace an Italian woman for a moment of tenderness.

Spending so much time at sea, who knows when God will call them away, bidding farewell to this wonderful world.

The white stone walls of the city hall are covered with deep red bougainvillea, and the petals fall onto the wicker chairs on the terrace, damp with morning dew.

Acapulco municipal official Diego Fernández sat in a wicker chair, slowly stirring the chocolate in his porcelain cup with a silver spoon—it was top-quality cocoa imported from Venezuela, with cinnamon and white sugar from Xinhua, his regular morning pastime.

His secretary, Pedro, stood to the side, holding today's official documents, a somewhat distressed expression on his face.

Oh God, the official correspondence from Mexico City has piled up half the table, and the Viceroyalty is pressing for taxes that are impossible to collect in order to fill the huge fiscal black hole in Spain.

“Your Excellency, this document from Mexico needs your signature.” Pedro handed over the top document. “Well, to be precise, this is a letter from the Governor’s Office forwarded from Cuba. His Excellency Viscount Quevedo, the Inspector General, has sent an order from Cuba, instructing our Viceroyalty of New Spain to recruit another three hundred experienced sailors to supplement the treasure fleet that is about to set sail.”

Diego took the letter, glanced at the signature—"Viscount Quevedo," and couldn't help but scoff, throwing the document on the table: "Treasure Fleet? Didn't that Inspector General say last March that he wanted our Governorate to form an expeditionary fleet to conquer the new Chinese in the north? If he conscripts the sailors here to Havana, where will our 'soon-to-be-formed' expeditionary fleet recruit sailors?"

Pedro couldn't help but laugh when he heard this.

"Should we put this transfer request on hold?" he asked tentatively.

"Ignore it! There aren't many ships along the Pacific coast to begin with, and sailors are in dire need of manpower. Where would we find any extra people to send to Cuba?"

Diego picked up the chocolate cup, took a sip, and felt the warm liquid slide down his throat, but it couldn't suppress the irritation in his heart.

Two years ago, when the Inspector General, Viscount Quevo, came from the Spanish Peninsula, he carried the King's instructions and the chief minister's important mission to raise more war funds for the homeland.

When he learned that the new Chinese had "invaded" California and discovered gold in St. Francis Bay, he immediately instructed the Governor General's District to "expel the invading new Chinese and reclaim the King's gold mines," causing a great uproar among the colonial authorities.

Diego wasn't entirely clear on how the bigwigs in the Governorate considered and responded to the Inspector General's orders, but he knew better than anyone that the Chinese were not to be trifled with.

Ten years ago, the Mexican authorities assembled an expeditionary fleet to the far north to suppress the new Chinese immigrants there.

As a result, the fleet suffered a major defeat—no, it should be called a complete and utter disaster.

More than four armed ships were sunk, and over a thousand landing troops were completely wiped out. A large number of officers were taken prisoner, and they were eventually brought back with a huge ransom.

"Didn't that Inspector General say that we, the Viceroyalty of New Spain, should join forces with the Viceroyalty of Peru to send troops?" Pedro said with no small amount of sarcasm. "But it's been a year, and we haven't seen Lima transfer all its warships and troops to Mexico!"

“United?” Diego put down his cup and pointed to the map on the table—a map of California drawn by a Chinese immigrant, with “San Diego Bay” and “San Francis Bay” circled in red. “From the Viceroyalty of Peru to Acapulco, it takes more than a month by sea. And from here to California, it takes another month.”

"By the time our army arrives, the New Chinese will have already built a castle and deployed artillery in St. Francis Bay. Besides, the New Chinese have more than 200,000 citizens, all of whom are young and strong immigrants from Ming China. They can mobilize at least 10,000 troops. The colonial armies of our two governorates combined might not even be able to muster 8,000 expeditionary troops. With such a small force and such a long distance, how can we possibly fight the New Chinese?"

“The mayor is right,” Pedro agreed. “I’ve also heard that there are more than 200,000 Chinese in the new country, but as many as 300,000! If you include the Indians they control, the population would be even greater. If war breaks out with them, our port of Acapulco will inevitably be the first to be attacked. Moreover, if war breaks out, trade will be cut off, and we will all suffer heavy losses.”

“Indeed.” Diego sighed upon hearing this. “Since last September, when the governor ordered the port closed, prohibiting New Zealanders and goods from entering Acapulco, the entire city has become desolate. If war breaks out again, then…”

Before he could finish speaking, a rapid sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from outside.

A colonial officer stationed at the port fort rode a brown horse swiftly across the cobblestone road, the pebbles kicked up by the horse's hooves striking the stone walls of the town hall with a crisp sound.

The Spanish officer dismounted in front of the city hall and rushed over, his face full of panic: "Your Excellency! Envoys from New Zealand have arrived at the port! They say... they want to deliver a declaration of war!"

“What? A declaration of war…” Diego suddenly stood up, his chocolate cup crashing to the ground, the brown coffee immediately splattering onto his blue trousers.

Pedro was stunned. The documents in his hand fell to the ground. He hurriedly bent down to pick them up, but his fingers began to tremble uncontrollably.

New Chinese?
Declaration of War?
How can this be?

Has war really broken out?!

"Where...where are they?" Diego's voice was somewhat flustered as he subconsciously looked up towards the dock.

Aside from a few vaguely visible masts, the exact condition of the docks was not clearly visible. "They're waiting in the port's tax building. There are two messengers, unarmed," the officer said, panting. "They said they're going to give the declaration of war to His Excellency the Municipal Official, and then you can forward it to Mexico City and deliver it to the Governor-General..."

Diego took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down: "Pedro, come with me to the port... Oh God, a war that none of us want to see is about to break out."

Pedro nodded quickly, dropped the documents in his hand, and followed Diego downstairs.

The city hall stairs were made of hardwood, making a "thump-thump" sound when you stepped on them, and Diego's heart was beating faster than the sound of his footsteps.

He had thought the conflict would drag on indefinitely, just like the Inspector General's order. After all, since the Chinese captured San Diego Bay last July, they had done nothing but reinforce the fortifications and stockpile supplies. The Mexican authorities had only closed the port and banned smuggling. The two sides remained deadlocked.

Everyone believed that after a few months, once the conflict cooled down, everything would return to normal.

Smuggling continued, profits continued to be made, and leisurely days remained as pleasant as before.

But now, Xinhua has actually taken the initiative to declare war, which has completely shattered everyone's expectations.

In the lobby of the tax building, sunlight streamed in through the tall arched windows, falling on two new Chinese people dressed in blue cotton robes.

When Moreno saw Diego enter, he nodded slightly and said in fluent Spanish, "Your Excellency, I am Moreno, the envoy from Xinhua to the Viceroyalty of New Spain, and I have been ordered to deliver a declaration of war to your colonial authorities."

Diego walked up to him and looked Moreno up and down.

This Xinhua envoy looked very young, but he exuded a calm and composed aura. Surrounded by many Spaniards, he remained neither arrogant nor humble, showing no sign of panic.

More importantly, the other person not only had a Hispanic appearance, but also spoke fluent Spanish.

He gestured to the chair beside him: “Please sit down. Pedro, pour a cup of tea for the two gentlemen.”

“No need.” Moreno waved his hand, took out a neatly folded document from his shoulder bag, and handed it over. “This is a declaration of war that our government is submitting to you. You can read it now or take it back to the city hall. But I must declare that from noon tomorrow, the Republic of New South Wales and the Kingdom of Spain are officially at war.”

Diego took the document, feeling his heart pounding.

The document was decorated with gold foil patterns along its edges, and the declaration of war was written in both Spanish and Chinese, with neat and powerful handwriting.

He first looked at the Spanish section, and the more he looked, the more alarmed he became.

"The Government of the Republic of New Continent to the Government of the Kingdom of Spain: By the Mandate of Heaven, and with benevolence and virtue shining forth, tyranny will be punished; the Way of Heaven is all-encompassing. It is now confirmed that since the 4337th year of the Yellow Emperor's reign (1640 AD), the Kingdom of Spain has repeatedly violated our territory, broken its promises, and committed numerous atrocities:"
I. On April 5th of last year, your country's troops stationed in San Diego attacked our geological exploration team, firing muskets at unarmed technicians, resulting in the deaths of 25 people, including technical officer Wang Wensheng.

Second, in March of last year, your country's Inspector General Francisco de Quevedo openly advocated "expelling all New Zealanders" and recruited expeditionary forces throughout the Americas, intending to invade our New Zealand territory;

Third, last September, your side illegally seized two of my merchant ships, confiscated goods worth over 100,000 pesos, and groundlessly banned bilateral trade.
Fourth, the Kingdom of Spain has repeatedly sent spies to spy on our Yongming Bay gold mine in Xinzhou and to draw up military maps, revealing its wolfish ambitions.

V. The colonial authorities of the Kingdom of Spain...

VI. Spain's...

seven,……

Fifteenth, ... is unacceptable.

All the aforementioned charges are supported by witness testimonies, physical evidence, and documentary evidence. Your country treats the Treaty of Acapulco as worthless, tramples on universal principles and laws, and violates the bottom line of human morality; you are truly a disgrace to the civilized world!
Today, our Xinzhou *** country, bearing the mark ****, solemnly declares, in accordance with the authorization of Article 9 of the "Palace * and Line Chapter":

From noon on April 2nd, 4339th year of the Yellow Emperor's reign (1642 AD), the Xinzhou Kingdom and the Kingdom of Spain entered into a state of war.

All Spanish ships are legitimate targets for attack by the New Continent Navy, all Spanish colonial ports can be blockaded, and all Spanish military and civilian targets are within the scope of military attack.

Out of consideration for the innocence of the civilians, this notice is hereby given.

This war is not what I seek, yet peace is no longer attainable.

Only guns and cannons can defend justice, and fire can wash away humiliation.

Leader of the New Zhou *** National Decision-Making Committee: Meng Shengxin.
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(End of this chapter)