Global colonization began with Ming Dynasty pirates.

From August to October of the first year of the Tianqi reign, Lin Gang led the Dongning Kingdom's soldiers and Green Standard Army troops to begin clearing out the Daduxi tribal alliance one by one.

Originally, Dongning Kingdom intended to delay purging this alliance and even use advanced production technology to slowly win them over and divide them, but they unexpectedly attacked the workers building the city of Lugang first.

There's not much to say then. Just then, news came from Liaodong that the number of people collected had far exceeded expectations.

In Liaonan alone, 3 people were gathered together. Subsequently, due to the two attacks on the Later Jin by Dongning State and Mao Wenlong, the Later Jin's prestige plummeted, and the frequent wars made internal oppression even heavier, causing people to flee in droves.

According to the message Lin San sent back last month, there are already 5 refugees waiting to be transferred to Jeju Island, while Gwangrok Island is still receiving a steady stream of refugees.

At this point, the original resettlement area for these people was insufficient, and giving them all wasteland would put too much pressure on the logistics of Dongning Kingdom. Therefore, they had no choice but to endure the hardship of being local people.

Although their houses were simple, they could always provide shelter from the wind and rain; although their farming techniques were backward, fields that had been planted with grain were always more useful than wasteland.

At first, the alliance leaders tried to gather troops to resist, but their bamboo bows could not even break through the defenses of the Dongning soldiers, and their proud jungle warfare was completely ineffective against the Luzon natives in the Green Standard Army.

Everyone was from the jungle, and no one was more powerful than anyone else, but the equipment gap between the two sides was too big. Under the armed forces of the Dongning Kingdom, the native Luzon soldiers of the Green Standard Army also got a limited-time trial card for the God of War.

After fifteen of the 27 tribes in the alliance were wiped out, the remaining tribes could no longer hold out and began to surrender.

However, the conditions imposed on them by the Dongning Kingdom were extremely harsh. They had to give up all tribal rights, and their land and population were to be subject to the unified management of the Dongning Kingdom. All children were to attend the Dongning Kingdom's schools for unified education.

Many tribes, especially their leaders, were unwilling to accept this outcome and continued to resist. But Lin Gang didn't care about that. While negotiating, he destroyed three tribes.

Ultimately, only five tribes were forced to accept the terms, while the rest fled to the mountains and forests behind the mountains after being unable to resist.

Lin Gang didn't care about this; he simply gathered up the people and land they had left behind.

As for these absconded natives, they provide a good training ground for the immigrant militia who come here.

Meanwhile, the same thing was happening in Luzon, where soldiers from the Eastern Ning Kingdom, along with the Green Standard Army mainly composed of Taiwanese natives, began a crackdown on the Luzon natives.

Those Luzon natives who had previously outwardly complied but inwardly defied the law, evaded taxes, concealed the number of children in their families, and refused to allow them to receive education from the Eastern Ning Kingdom have suffered a devastating blow.

The best-developed Pampanga area in northern Manila was a major target of attack.

These Pampanga were previously the most important supporters of the Spanish. After Spain's defeat, they were not entirely convinced and always secretly resisted. This time, however, they were ruthlessly wiped out by the army.

By mid-October, the typhoon season had completely passed, the monsoon had shifted to northeasterly winds, and both Luzon and Taiwan had been thoroughly cleared, freeing up enough living space for immigrants.

Immigrant ships from the north began to continuously transfer immigrants from Liaodong to the two islands.

These first immigrants were settled in Jeju Island for three months, and they all became plump and healthy. At the same time, the three months of collective living also ingrained the hygiene regulations of Dongning Kingdom into their bones, especially the rule that they were not allowed to drink raw water, which resulted in almost everyone being whipped.

The effect was very obvious. It proved that as long as hygiene regulations were strictly followed, untreated water was not consumed, personal hygiene was maintained, feces were disposed of properly, and mosquito prevention measures were taken, the so-called miasma simply did not exist.

Even immigrants from places like Liaodong can survive well in Taiwan. The only problem is that they need a strict organizational management mechanism and a constant supply of free fuel.

At the end of the first year of the Tianqi reign, the Kingdom of Dongning officially held a ceremony for the King of Dongning and conferred titles upon two concubines.

One was Princess Shang Shuyao of Ryukyu, and the other was Li Xue, daughter of Li Dan.

After that, Li Dan merged his entire force into the newly established Sihai Trading Company in Dongning Kingdom, and took a marquis title to retire in Dongning.

As for Ryukyu, it had by this time completely replanted grain and had become a sugarcane production base for the Dongning Kingdom. While the upper-class nobles made a fortune, they were also completely unable to break free from the control of the Dongning Kingdom.

The 20th day of the fourth month of the summer calendar in the second year of the Tianqi reign (which is the 29th day of the fifth month in the Gregorian calendar).

Cohen dispatched Leyelzer van Dezden, who led two advance warships to Macau.

They then began to blockade the port of Macau, bombarded Macau, and ambushed nearby islands, plundering Chinese and Portuguese ships entering and leaving Macau.

On May 13, the main Dutch fleet arrived in Macau. The Dutch assembled 15 warships and more than 1,000 combatants to begin their formal attack on Macau.

It was the peak of the trade season, and most of the Portuguese were in Guangzhou purchasing goods to be shipped to Japan. In addition, about 300 Portuguese and Chinese soldiers from Macau, at the request of the Ming government, had set off for Beijing at the end of the previous year with four cannons and had only just reached the banks of the Yangtze River.

At that time, Macau had only about 80 professional musketeers, more than 100 Europeans and Macanese who could carry weapons, plus thousands of African slaves, and the rest were the elderly, women and children.

For Fleet Commander Lyell at this time, capturing Macau would be a piece of cake.

Two British warships were also accompanying them, but Cohen did not want them to get involved in Macau, so he sent them away.

The two British warships then sailed north to Tamsui, where they successfully exchanged the flint and cargo in their ballast for raw silk.

The British were overjoyed and immediately abandoned their fragile friendship with the Dutch, offering to help Dongning fight the Dutch if needed.

Lin Hao politely declined, but asked them to bring more high-quality flint next time.

Last September, She Chongming, a chieftain in Sichuan, rebelled in Chongqing. This February, An Bangyan also rebelled, plunging the entire southwest of the Ming Dynasty into chaos and greatly impacting the supply of flint to the Dongning Kingdom.

Fortunately, ordinary flint is sufficient for training, and with the high-quality flint sent by the British, the delivery rate of flintlock muskets is estimated to increase by another 50%.

On May 23, the entire Dutch force mobilized and opened fire continuously around the harbor.

Led by Leyers, 800 elite troops landed in 37 small boats amidst heavy gunfire near Danggou Ring. The Dutch carried a barrel of wet gunpowder, which they ignited to create a large smokescreen as cover as they stormed the beach.

The Dutch had a wonderful plan, but the process was brutal.

The Portuguese fired wildly into the smoke, but unexpectedly hit their captain, Leierze.

The battle was then taken over by Colonel Luffin, but Luffin lacked the decisiveness expected of a competent commander, making repeated misjudgments that gave the Portuguese time to stabilize their defenses.

The Dutch had no end to their misfortune; a shell struck a powder magazine that the Dutch had temporarily set up in the middle of the beach.

Commander Colonel Luffin was injured as a result, which greatly demoralized the Dutch and left them in a state of disarray.

Then, seeing that the situation was not good, the troublemakers from Southeast Asia—Japanese ronin—appeared. A Japanese ronin who originally belonged to the Dutch camp ran to the Portuguese side in Macau and informed them that the Dutch had run out of ammunition and were about to retreat to the beach to wait for reinforcements.

The moment the Dutch retreated, the Portuguese immediately counterattacked, and the Dutch quickly lost their order, turning the retreat into a one-sided massacre.

The Dutch abandoned almost all their cannons, guns, flags and other weapons and equipment. The commander-in-chief was seriously wounded, and seven colonels were killed in action. One hundred Dutchmen and more than three hundred servants died in the battle, in addition to a large number of wounded.

On the Portuguese side, only four Portuguese and some black slaves died.

To commemorate this unprecedented victory, this day was designated as a city day in Macau.

However, the Dutch were in a bad mood after this battle. What seemed like a sure thing had slipped away, and the entire fleet was in a state of confusion.

Cohen's orders to them were that they must establish a foothold on the Chinese coast no matter what.

After much deliberation, they chose the Ming Dynasty over Dongning.

The Dutch then moved north to Fujian and arrived in Penghu in July, beginning their plan to occupy the area.

In August, the city of Fengguiwei in Penghu was officially established.

In September, Fujian Governor Shang Zhouzuo sent people to the island to demand that the Dutch withdraw.

In October, the fleet dispatched Nyerrod with eight ships to blockade the coast of Zhangzhou, but after encountering a storm, only five ships arrived. They then bombarded the mainland in protest, demanding trade.

On October 26, the Dutch attacked Xiamen, but were repelled by the Ming army. However, before leaving, they destroyed nearly eighty warships and merchant ships.

Unable to capture the cities, the Dutch blockaded the coast and plundered merchant ships.

On October 30th, they robbed more than three merchant ships, all of which carried the flag of the Dongning Kingdom.

Upon receiving the news, Shang Zhouzuo was overjoyed and immediately sent people to Nanri Island.

On November 10th, the Dongning fleet, which had been waiting on Nanri Island for a long time, immediately set off.

On November 11, the naval battle officially broke out. At the beginning of the battle, the two sides were evenly matched. Dongning Kingdom only sent one large sailing ship and eight Jiaolong-class warships. The firepower of both sides was basically at the same level.

Although the Dongning Kingdom's artillery had an advantage in accuracy and the Dutch fleet was at a disadvantage, Nijerod was confident that he could achieve final victory with his more durable ships. He believed that as long as he sank just one of the enemy's warships, the balance of victory would be reversed.

However, an hour later, a large number of sails began to appear to the south and east, and judging from the flags on them, they were also warships of the Dongning Kingdom.

"Damn it, this is a trap!" Nyarlathotep was furious and immediately ordered a retreat.

But the fleet, already deeply entangled with the Dongning Kingdom, was not so easy to escape, and was blocked from all sides by ships several times larger than the Dutch.

Ultimately, the Dutch ship Orange was sunk, the Middleburg was captured, and the remaining ships managed to break through the enemy lines despite the gunfire.

On November 15th, the Dongning Kingdom's fleet officially arrived in Penghu. At this time, the Dongning Kingdom's number of warships was already ten times that of the Dutch.

The battle was a foregone conclusion; the Dutch were forced to abandon their comrades on shore and retreat with the rest of their fleet.

The bastion built on Fengguiwei Island had just completed the rammed earth stage, without even a single brick, and soon collapsed under the bombardment of naval artillery, after which the guards in the city had no choice but to surrender.

On November 20th, the Dutch prisoners were sent to the Ming Dynasty, and Governor Shang Zhouzuo immediately issued a report of victory to celebrate this major victory.

On November 25th, the Dongning Kingdom pursued the Dutch fleet all the way to Guangdong, and then took the opportunity to begin clearing out the pirate forces along the Guangdong coast.

On December 15th, the numerous pirates whose location had long been discovered by the Dongning Kingdom were wiped out, and the remaining ones, terrified, subsequently surrendered to the Dongning Kingdom.

By this time, there were no longer any large-scale pirate forces on the Chinese seas. Only a few small gangs that secretly joined the pirates were preserved to spur on any disgruntled merchants.

On December 29th, just before Lunar New Year's Eve, a group of pirates near Lingao County were defeated.

With tears in his eyes, leader Zhang Biao led his men on their third escape.

"Damn the Four Seas Gang! I've only had a few days of good life, and they're back again!"

Zhang Biao gazed at the village receding into the distance, his heart aching with pain. It represented years of his hard work, and now it was being bought off for a mere tael of silver, just like the village of Jilong had been before.

"Brother, keep your voice down, it'll be terrible if they change their mind. Where do we go now?" Zhang Shun said dejectedly.

Zhang Biao was so angry that he almost ground his back teeth to powder. He turned around and roared, "South! South! I don't believe the Four Seas Gang can chase me to the ends of the earth. We're going to Annam. I heard they're recruiting experienced captains there. We'll get Annamite military status, and then the Four Seas Gang won't be able to do anything to us."

"Brother is wise." Zhang Shun's eyes lit up immediately.

In Lingao County, Dongning Kingdom handed over some of the pirate heads to the county magistrate and presented him with a generous gift. Subsequently, Dongning Kingdom obtained permission to open a "trading post" in the northern port.

The Kingdom of Dongning will once again permanently station a naval fleet there.

Thus, Hainan, Taiwan, and Luzon form a perfect equilateral triangle, firmly locking in the entire southeastern coast and Southeast Asia.

In April of the third year of the Tianqi reign, the Netherlands officially reached a treaty with the Kingdom of Dongning. The Netherlands permanently abandoned its attempt to move north, and agreed to conduct one-on-one trade only in Danshui City, and to pay 20 taels of silver as ransom for its personnel.

At the same time, the Netherlands promised that any matter involving Han Chinese in Southeast Asia must be handled with the cooperation of the Dongning Kingdom.

In response, Dongning Kingdom promised to trade no less than 3 dan of raw silk with the Dutch every year.

After the contract was signed, Cohen officially stepped down as governor of Batavia and then returned home with the three thousand dan of raw silk obtained from the transaction. These raw silks would generate a fivefold profit once they were shipped back to the country. Although the war was lost, the interests of the directors were not harmed. The only thing they needed to do was to relinquish the initiative in Southeast Asia.

Jacques Spex, who was on good terms with Dongning, became the new governor of Batavia.

Meanwhile, in the capital, Wei Zhongxian used a pretext to beat Wan Jing, a secretary in the Ministry of Works, to death. He then dismissed and removed dozens of officials, including Grand Secretary Ye Xianggao, Zhao Nanxing, Gao Panlong, Chen Yuting, Yang Lian, Zuo Guangdou, and Wei Dazhong, thus completely seizing control of the court and its people.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Lin Hao orchestrated a series of events, presenting a large number of rare and precious treasures to Emperor Tianqi and Wei Zhongxian. Finally, he obtained an imperial edict from Emperor Tianqi, allowing the Dongning Kingdom to manage the various foreign tribes in the South China Seas on behalf of the Ming Dynasty.

This is tantamount to Dongning Kingdom completely seizing the moral high ground in Southeast Asia. Although the Southeast Asian countries have almost stopped obeying the orders of the Ming Dynasty except for paying tribute, Dongning Kingdom has this legal basis. Who would dare to disobey? It is not something that the Ming Dynasty can just reprimand with a few words.

With this legal basis, Dongning Kingdom completely subdued the Southeast Asian countries. The Sihai Trading Company could freely conduct trade in any city in Southeast Asia, and Dongning Kingdom's fleet could resupply in any port.

Meanwhile, Dongning Kingdom's tireless propaganda efforts in the Ming Dynasty also yielded results, with a large number of young people harboring dreams of getting rich embarking on their journeys to Southeast Asia with a sense of courage.

Moreover, as those who profited earlier returned, the trend of going to Southeast Asia gradually took hold along the coast of the Ming Dynasty, and it even spread to the interior.

People in the Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan regions, suffering from the ravages of war, went to Southeast Asia in search of gold mines with the help of the Sihai Trading Company.

Going to Southeast Asia was becoming a trend throughout the Ming Dynasty.

By the seventh year of the Tianqi reign (1627), after nearly ten years of continuous migration, the Han Chinese population of the entire Dongning Kingdom had exceeded one million, half of whom came from Liaodong. At the same time, the number of native inhabitants who were naturalized was twice that number.

Nurhaci's mad ruling strategy provided a continuous influx of people to the Dongning State. When the Dongning State took on the burden of population, Mao Wenlong, free from such constraints, created even more successful guerrilla warfare results in history, further weakening the Later Jin's strength.

However, whenever they were about to give up, the Ming army in Liaoxi always gave them hope. In the seventh year of the Tianqi reign, Liaodong suffered a severe drought, and a bushel of grain cost as much as 8 taels of silver. In desperation, the Later Jin had no choice but to attack the Ming army's fortresses again.

Then they were thwarted by Yuan Chonghuan's Ningyuan. Fortunately, Yuan was a kind man and forgot about Juehua Island, which was responsible for the transshipment of grain and supplies in Liaodong. After the Later Jin plundered Juehua Island, they returned home satisfied.

In the first month of the seventh year of the Tianqi reign, after pacifying the Mo clan in the north, the Annamese ruler Zheng Tao finally freed up his hands to prepare to pacify the Nguyen clan, who had been effectively separatist in the south for more than 20 years.

Trần Tháo sent envoys to Hue again, ordering Nguyễn Phúc Nguyễn to offer tribute of boats and trained elephants and to "send his son to serve as a servant," but Nguyễn Phúc Nguyễn refused to comply.

In February, Trần Tháo led his army to attack Nguyễn Phúc Nguyễn. Trần's army advanced by both land and sea, but encountered Nguyễn's army at Nhồng Lý.

The two sides clashed fiercely, and Zheng's army was ultimately defeated and retreated to the north. However, before retreating, they looted some merchants to make up for their losses, including employees of the Sihai Trading Company. The army's work was sloppy, resulting in the deaths and injuries of several employees.

Upon hearing the news, Dongning was furious and demanded that Zheng Tao provide compensation and hand over the murderer. The Dongning envoy also took an extremely firm stance, demanding that Zheng Tao apologize to the company's employees.

Having just experienced defeat, Zheng Tao was so enraged that she killed the envoy from Dongning Kingdom with a single stroke.

On the first day of the fifth month of the seventh year of the Tianqi reign, upon receiving news of the envoy's murder, tens of thousands of troops outside Lingao County began boarding ships.

Prior to this, the Dongning fleet had already set off for the Annamite navy's base.

At the same time, Mo Jingkuan, the remnant force of the Mo clan in northern Annam who received funding from the Dongning Kingdom, also marched south and captured Guishun Prefecture.

On May 5th, the Annamite navy, which had already suffered considerable losses in the south, was completely annihilated.

On the seventh day, the Dongning Kingdom's army officially landed in Annam and issued a proclamation of conquest, intervening in Annam in the name of the Zheng family's rebellion against their ruler and demanding that the Zheng family immediately return power.

In 1527, Mạc Đăng Dung established the Mạc Dynasty. In 1540, Mạc Đăng Dung surrendered to the Ming Dynasty and was appointed as the Military Governor of Annam by the Jiajing Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, a position that was hereditary for his descendants.

However, in 1592, Lê Duy Tham, the deputy governor of Annam, entered Tokyo and overthrew the Mạc dynasty, which then fell and the Lê dynasty was established. However, the Ming dynasty claimed that the Mạc dynasty was a "subject" of China and still installed its emperor in Cao Bảo Bảo, and even launched a campaign against Annam.

Li Weitan was terrified and had no choice but to follow Mo Dengyong's example, entering the pass and accepting the position of Commander-in-Chief, only then did the Ming Dynasty relent. Therefore, strictly speaking, Annam was a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty at this time.

At this time, the Zheng family controlled the court and even forced the newly enthroned King of Annam to commit suicide. At this time, the Dongning Kingdom intervened under the pretext of assisting in the administration of Southeast Asia given by the Ming Dynasty. As for whether Annam counts as Southeast Asia? Lin Hao said that if he does, then it does!

On the seventh day of the sixth lunar month, Zheng Tao assembled an army of 70,000 to meet the 50,000-strong army of Dongning Kingdom.

Of the 50,000 troops of Dongning Kingdom, only 20,000 were line infantry, while the remaining 30,000 were Green Standard Army soldiers. However, it was these 20,000 line infantry who directly broke through the Zheng army's formation. Faced with the dense flintlock muskets and cannons, Zheng Tao's proud army was no match for them.

Then came the chase, a favorite part for the Green Standard Army. Zheng Tao, the leader of the Zheng clan, was caught up by the cavalry and killed on the spot.

On the eighth day of the sixth month, the army entered Thang Long City, and the King of Annam, Le Duy Ki, surrendered.

Lin Hao comforted the other party and then asked Ruan Fuyuan from the South to come to Beijing in his name, but unsurprisingly, he was refused.

Nguyen Phuc Nguyen labeled Lin Hao an invader and called on everyone to rise up in resistance, and war broke out in Annam.

Subsequently, the Dongning Kingdom's navy landed in Hoi An. Annam's long and narrow territory was a disaster for enemies from the north, but a perfect opportunity for enemies at sea. A month later, Nguyen Phuc Nguyen was captured and taken to Thang Long City.

On July 11, Mo Jingquan, who had swept through the Cao Bang provinces in the northern mountainous region of Annam, arrived in Thang Long City to express his submission.

Although the leader of Annam was precisely removed, the resistance within the country had only just begun. Many clear-headed Vietnamese people realized that Lin Hao was not there to uphold justice, but to completely annex them.

So they rose up in rebellion. In their view, even the Ming Dynasty of that time could not withstand their constant attrition and was forced to give up this territory. How long could the mere Dongning Kingdom hold out?

Even if they fail, Dongning Kingdom must leave them enough rights if it wants to rule Annam.

However, they never imagined that Lin Hao from the future had no intention of wasting time with them.

The biggest advantage of being a time traveler is that you can find the most suitable things for you from a vast amount of history.

There are many well-established examples from both the East and the West of how to conquer a country.

Lin Hao drew upon William the Conqueror's experience in ruling Britain and the Manchu Qing dynasty's rule over the Han Chinese to formulate targeted policies.

All the rebellious taxi drivers were defeated and their families were eradicated, systematically purging Annam's upper echelons.

People in the unrest area had their right toes cut off and were forcibly relocated to Southeast Asia to work as laborers, filling the labor shortage by incorporating indigenous people into the region.

In all major cities, separate areas were designated as military camps for Han Chinese soldiers to reside in.

All land belonging to the gentry was confiscated, and a portion of it was given to landless peasants in Annam, who then formed the new Green Standard Army.

He lavishly bestowed titles and lands upon meritorious officials, granting permanent ranks and lands to the chariot soldiers and generals who had rendered outstanding service, thus ensuring their close control over Annam.

All books written in Annam were burned, leaving only Chinese inscriptions and texts. Everything written by the Annamite people themselves, from national documents to primers, was to be destroyed—"not a single word was to be preserved."

The use of Nôm script is prohibited in any situation, and anyone who uses it will be beheaded. Those who cannot speak Chinese or use Chinese characters will be subject to heavy taxes.

Everyone had to change their surname to a Han surname, and the government would compile family genealogies to trace back to the ancestors of the Chinese people.

All children were required to attend the Dongning National Modern School to receive patriotic education; if one child skipped school, the entire family would be exiled.

The policy encountered strong resistance in its early stages, with rebel armies everywhere in the country, but the Dongning Kingdom bloodily suppressed every uprising.

Once an uprising in a city is quelled, no native inhabitants remain; they are either dead or have migrated to Southeast Asia. The jungles of Southeast Asia welcome these people.

Two years later, the population structure of Annam underwent a radical change, but no one dared to rebel again, and Annam became history.

At this time, the emperor in Beijing had changed to Zhu Youjian, and the person on the throne of the Later Jin had become Huang Taiji.