Chapter 2914
Seeing the emotional Thomas exaggerating the Dutch threat, Yan Chujie just smiled and said nothing. In his view, although the Dutch are still ambitious, how can you, the Portuguese, be honest?
Portugal and the Netherlands have been competing for colonial hegemony in Asia for a hundred years. The two sides refused to give in to each other and built colonial settlements all over Asia. If they can defeat the Dutch with the help of Heihan, it will naturally be a major victory for the Portuguese.
Of course, the Portuguese did not just start similar attempts like this today. When they chose to cooperate with Haihan more than 20 years ago, they had the intention of joining forces with Haihan to deal with the Dutch.
It's just that this plan of killing people with a borrowed knife is too simple, and it doesn't have enough benefits, so it can't use Haihan's big knife. Portugal wanted to use Haihan to deal with the Dutch, and Haihan had the idea of letting the Dutch check and balance the Portuguese. Therefore, Haihan has always had a closer cooperative relationship with Portugal, but Haihan has always maintained a cautious attitude towards the various little thoughts of the Portuguese.
Thomas talked for a long time and found that Yan Chujie's attitude was as calm as ever, and he couldn't help feeling a little frustrated. He has served as the Portuguese ambassador to Haihan for many years, and now it is time to retire, but he still wants to fulfill his wish for many years before leaving office, which is to persuade Haihan to break up with the Dutch East India Company.
It's just that this is easier said than implemented. Whether it is economic or military strength, the Netherlands is not weaker than Portugal, and is even slightly stronger in many aspects. If it weren't for Haihan, a powerful ally, it's hard to say whether Portugal could be on par with the Netherlands in Asia.
The East India Company is also one of Haihan's trading partners. If it wants to completely replace it, Portugal must have corresponding strength. However, due to the actual situation, the conditions Portugal can offer are not enough to make Haihan give up cooperation with the Dutch.
Yan Chujie said: "Mr. Thomas, our country has no intention to intervene in the dispute between your country and the Netherlands. This has been reiterated many times, and I don't think there is any need to explain it to you in detail. If we think that the East India Company has a negative impact on our country's security, If there is a threat, we will naturally take necessary measures, but at the moment we do not think that such a situation will occur. ”
Thomas said: “But your country’s upcoming actions in the South China Sea will definitely touch the interests of the Dutch. I don’t think they will turn a blind eye to your country’s actions, and may even respond fiercely. Your country should have done it earlier. Prepare.”
Yan Chujie nodded and said: "Thank you for the reminder. But I still don't think the Dutch will give up their huge interests in the area north of Ambrosia Island and make some unwise attempts."
The traditional sphere of influence of the Dutch East India Company is the South China Sea area centered on the city of Batavia. Since Haihan captured Ambrosia Island, the Dutch's northward development channel has been blocked. In the entire Northeast Asia, the Netherlands only has one colonial port in Taiyuan Port, Taiwan, and the others are just trading centers deployed in Haihan, Daming, Annan, Japan, North Korea and other countries.
If the East India Company wanted to fall out with Haihan, it would immediately lose these precious trading points and the qualification to trade with Northeast Asian countries. This would definitely be an unacceptable loss for it.
Yan Chujie didn't believe Thomas couldn't understand this situation, but he was just continuing to pretend to be confused, hoping to use it to influence him.
Seeing that there was no hope of persuading Yan Chujie, Thomas had to play his last card: "During your country's military operations in the South China Sea, our country can also continue the previous cooperation method and send an armed fleet to assist. What do you think?"
Since the Haihan military was unwilling to take action against the Dutch, they had no choice but to do it themselves. Portugal has concluded a military alliance with Haihan and has sent troops to participate in military operations led by Haihan many times in the past. Thomas's proposal is not too abrupt. However, with the previous conversation as a foreshadowing, his intention was too obvious. How could Yan Chujie let him get his wish easily? He immediately responded with a smile: "Mr. Thomas, regarding our country's actions in the South China Sea, it is still in the demonstration stage. , there is no need to rush to send troops.”
Of course, Thomas understood that Yan Chujie's words were just an excuse. If Haihan had not had that intention, he would not have made a high-profile campaign in the newspaper. He might have already prepared for the war secretly and was waiting for the executive committee to issue a formal order. But if he doesn't take Portugal with him, how can Thomas give up?
Thomas immediately added: "It doesn't matter. As long as Mr. Yan tells you when and where to meet, our fleet will arrive on time."
Seeing that he still refused to give up, Yan Chujie could only speak more bluntly: "Currently, the Executive Committee has not made a clear conclusion on whether the operation requires the participation of foreign troops. If necessary, we will take the initiative to inform you, and your country will also There is no need to organize the fleet on standby in advance.”
Thomas said: "But according to the alliance signed between our two countries, our country has the right to know about your country's military operations in the South China Sea, right?"
Yan Chujie said: "Of course. According to the usual practice, your country can appoint some military representatives to act with our army as observers."
The implication is that you can only send people to observe, but you still haven't let go of Portugal's dispatch of an armed fleet to participate in the operation.
This promise can only be said to be better than nothing, but it can also be regarded as a reassurance for Thomas. Although there seems to be no hope of sending armed forces to participate in the operation, being able to send people to observe it at least shows that Haihan will not attack the Portuguese-controlled areas.
As for whether we can convince Heihan to move the Dutch, we can probably only follow the development of the situation and take it one step at a time.
Thomas said goodbye and came out, and saw a carriage passing by on the street outside the Ministry of Defense. The VOC flag of the East India Company on the front of the carriage was very conspicuous. Thomas didn't need to look closely to know that the car was the special car of Dutch Minister Su Keyi.
Seeing where he was going, it was not to the Ministry of National Defense Building. Thomas felt a little relieved, thinking that he was not here to lobby the military. In fact, he was somewhat worried about the extraordinary conditions offered by the East India Company to instigate Haihan to rebel. Then Portugal would be in danger.
What makes Thomas feel most uneasy is actually Su Keyi himself. After all, he is a Han Chinese and has no problem communicating with Haihan senior officials. Unlike the Chinese he learned as a monk, sometimes his expression and understanding are not very smooth. Thomas even thought about it more than once, whether he should also find a Han as his successor, but he also knew that this approach would not be recognized by his superiors, so he could only give up.
(End of chapter)