Late Ming Dynasty: The Counterattack Begins with Sea Pirates

The Dutch ships, guided by people on the shore, docked at the south bank. Dozens of people stood on the deck, but after the planks were laid, only one person wearing a top hat decorated with ostrich feathers came down from the ship.

The man, holding a piece of parchment bound with a blue ribbon, walked up to the crowd and asked them in somewhat understandable Chinese who was the official here.

Guided by the crowd, he walked up to Chi Honghai, bowed, and said, "Sir, Governor Hans of Fort Zeelandia has important matters to discuss with you." He then handed over the scroll of parchment.

"Friend, there's no need to speak Chinese; I understand Dutch." Chi Honghai took the parchment scroll and untied the blue ribbon knot in the middle.

He didn't quite understand what was written inside, because according to their original agreement, everything that needed to be said and agreed upon had been settled, and there were no other matters to be added. Could it be that they were asking him to provide goods halfway through the journey by handing over the sheepskin rolls? Where was he supposed to find such a thing?

"My lord, the governor's instructions are all here. We hope that you, as our friend, can lend us a hand."

Upon hearing this, Chi Honghai knew it was definitely not a good thing. He slowly opened the parchment, glanced at its contents, and then frowned.

He looked at the messenger before him: "Are you sure this is what the Governor-General instructed?"

The messenger nodded: "I'm sure I didn't take the wrong letter, sir."

Chi Honghai rolled up the parchment and extended his right hand: "Let's talk on your deck."

After saying that, Chi Honghai led the Dutchman directly to the deck of their ship, as if the ship were his own, without showing the slightest bit of politeness.

Once on deck, Chi Honghai spoke first: "Does the Governor-General know that we are soldiers of the Ming Dynasty? This matter concerns the relations between our two countries; how can we just do it on a whim?"

The messenger remained calm, as if he had Hans's permission and authorization to negotiate, and simply repeated his previous tone: "But after the General reached an agreement with us, strictly speaking, he is no longer a citizen of the Ming Dynasty, but one of ours, isn't he?"

"But at least for now, on the surface, the General is still wearing the official hat of the Ming Dynasty! We're talking about a few years from now. If you want the General to stop acting in accordance with the court now, aren't you throwing us into a fire pit? Will you still want Guangzhou Prefecture then?"

The envoy hesitated for a moment, then softened his tone: "The English are fond of plundering at sea; we all call them the land of pirates. Your Excellency, what if we were to become like these barbarians?"

"You mean, we're also going to rob those English ships under the guise of piracy?" Chi Honghai looked at the envoy and muttered to himself that these Westerners were truly addicted to robbery; no matter what they did, it all boiled down to one core point—robbery.

The messenger's reply was brief, merely a nod and an "uh-huh," as if they too realized this was not a respectable act.

"We really hope that General Chen can help us. For the sake of friendship and the contract, if General Chen cannot help, the Governor may think that the General is not sincere enough and recall the craftsmen he sent."

Chi Honghai sighed and shook his head: "Friend, it's not that this is impossible, but if we're trying to mobilize people behind the court's back, firstly, we can't mobilize too many people, and secondly, in a naval battle, ships will be damaged and people will die. These two things can't be hidden, and we'll have to cover them up with something."

Chi Honghai's meaning was clear: I originally didn't want to help, but now we're bound by a contract, and I don't want to let go of the craftsmen on this island, but if I don't let them go, I can't afford to offend them for the time being.

If you want me to provide manpower and ships to help, fine, but how can I do it without some benefits?

The Dutchman understood the meaning behind Chi Honghai's words: "Please rest assured, General. Since we have asked for your help, we will naturally receive our share of the benefits."

"Benefits? The Governor didn't explain it clearly on this parchment. Please make it clear, so I can explain it to the Governor later."

The envoy looked at Chi Honghai, waved his hand to signal everyone around to step aside, and leaned close to Chi Honghai, saying softly, "Everything on the English ship belongs to General Chen."

This was hardly enough to fool the big businessman Chi. They were all seasoned businessmen. What if the Englishmen didn't have anything on their ship? Wouldn't they be at a huge loss?

So even when the Dutch told him that there was definitely something on the ship, he quickly shook his head: "Friend, the risk and reward are not proportional. You know, the English just fought a fierce battle at Humen, causing us considerable casualties. If there isn't enough stuff on this ship, then this will be a losing proposition."

"Then tell me, what do you want?" The envoy asked, his voice tinged with impatience. He had thought that as a Dutchman, he had already endured enough of this kind of tediousness.

"Look, the compensation for fallen soldiers can't be reported to the imperial court, otherwise it will be hard to explain when they investigate. Consider the cargo on this ship as the brothers' compensation and credit."

As Chi Honghai spoke, he patted the edge of the boat: "But, these warships are damaged, and this damage is not easy to hide. Money alone is not enough to repair the ship; we need people who know how to repair ships! To be honest, many of our shipbuilders died at Humen back then; otherwise, General Chen would not have specifically asked the General for more people."

Understood, everyone understands. General Chen wants both money and men.

However, what Chi Honghai said was reasonable, since it was something done in private behind the back of the court, so the envoy accepted his explanation.

What the Dutch didn't expect was that these kinds of things were commonplace in official circles, and were much more normal than killing innocent people and claiming credit for it, or massacring an entire village and calling it banditry.

"Hmm, sir, you mean we'll need a few more people?"

"Don't worry, it's not many, at most thirty people. As for the salaries of these thirty people, we will cover them."

Thirty people—not too many, not too few—the envoy gritted his teeth and agreed. After all, losing these thirty people would mean losing a significant number of skilled professionals for the port development of Zeelandia.

With the continuation of the cooperation agreed upon, the two chatted and joked on the deck about the different ways of life in the East and West, and rewrote the contents on a piece of parchment, stamping it with the seal of the Netherlands.

The contract was thus concluded. Before the Dutch left, Chi Honghai asked, "How many ships do these Englishmen have?"

"Don't worry, General, there are only three cargo ships, carrying just a few cannons."

"Two cargo ships? Why didn't the governor just seize them?"

"My lord, robbing a merchant ship is an act of war. This is a matter of relations between our two countries, and the governor does not have that authority. But rest assured, you will not be the only ones involved in this operation."

Chi Honghai was puzzled. Why could he become a pirate and steal ships himself, and the other party only had three merchant ships? Why did he have to go after someone else?

The envoy told Chi Honghai that there were pirates in the west, but the pirates in the east were not all Westerners.