"Weren't the Tatars defeated?" Van Diemen asked.

"It's just a small setback," Bruce said thoughtfully. "In the past few months, there have been two battles involving tens of thousands of people between the Ming Dynasty and the Tatars. One took place in Shandong Province.

It ended with the victory of the Tatars. After this battle, the Ming Dynasty lost several wealthy cities and turned into a full-scale defensive on the Shandong battlefield.

Another battle was personally commanded by the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty. It took place in Fengyang Mansion northwest of Nanjing, which was also the second capital of the Ming Dynasty. In this battle, the Ming army achieved a decisive victory and killed

One of the Tatar princes probably killed several thousand people, which was a major victory considering the number of Tatars.

But after the victory, the crown prince did not take advantage of the victory to march forward, but stopped in Fengyang Mansion."

"Why is this?" Van Diemen asked.

"Because the Tatar regent led his army southward to Henan Province, north of Fengyang Mansion." Bruce said, "And north of the Huaihe River is a large plain. Fighting there requires powerful cavalry. The Ming army is at a disadvantage in this regard.

Obvious disadvantage."

"What is their advantage?" Van Diemen asked again.

"The infantry and artillery," Bruce said, "adopted Western tactics and equipment for the infantry and artillery!"

"Oh." Van Diemen nodded, "Bruce, how many years do you think it will take for the Ming Dynasty to drive the Tatars out of their land?"

Bruce Van Diemen replied: "If we are willing to provide enough muskets, artillery and mercenaries to the Ming Dynasty, we should be able to start the Northern Expedition with the goal of recovering Beijing within three years, and win in another two years."

"Are you sure?" Fan Diwen looked at his brother, "You just said they didn't have horses."

Bruce smiled and said: "But you don't need many horses to attack Beijing. Beijing is not very far from Haikou, and there are navigable rivers from Tianjin Port to the areas near Beijing. The Ming army can land in Tianjin and then follow the river

Build bastions while advancing. In two years, we will be able to push the front line to the vicinity of Beijing.

Of course, the premise is that they can defeat the Tatars in wild encounters, and they also need to have powerful artillery to capture the castles controlled by the Tatars.

In addition, they also need to build enough forts along the Huaihe River and Shandong, and deploy enough European-style troops to ensure that their own home base will not be breached by the Tatars during the Northern Expedition."

This Bruce's military skills are still good! It didn't take long after arriving in China, and he discovered the only Northern Expedition route that could ensure victory.

It's only three hundred miles from Dagu Port in Tianjin to Beijing. There is also the Wei River and the canal that can transport troops and food. Building a bastion every ten miles only means thirty bastions.

To guard the Wei River and the canal, no matter how fierce the Qing cavalry was, there was nothing they could do. To stop the Ming army from advancing, there was only fortress versus fortress.

This is a combination of artillery, engineers, and mathematics. The shooting angle of the bastion and the shooting angle of the curved artillery are all mathematical problems. There is no need for a military consultant to do this, Zhu Cihong can calculate it himself!

Therefore, taking the sea route north to Tianmen, then advancing from the fortress, and slowly pushing into Beijing is undoubtedly the best way to win the Northern Expedition.

"What if we are unwilling to help the Ming Dynasty?" Van Diemen asked.

"Unwilling" Bruce was stunned, "Anthony, you don't want to make money for the shareholders of Amsterdam?"

"Of course you have to make money!" Van Diemen thought, "but I value the long-term interests more. If the Ming Dynasty defeats the Tatars and becomes the ruler of the East Asian continent, it will then turn its main energy to the ocean.

.Can we Dutch continue to dominate the eastern seas?

Moreover, once the Ming Dynasty defeats the Tatars, can we continue to get arms orders?"

"Are we going to refuse to provide arms to the Ming Dynasty?" Bruce asked.

"How is that possible?" Van Diemen smiled, "Am I the kind of sinner who is so depraved that I can refuse money?"

"Of course not," Bruce said. "All Amsterdam knows that you are a noble businessman who loves money more than life."

Fan Diemen nodded: "Yes, of course I will not refuse the crown prince's money." He paused, "But while doing business with the Ming Dynasty, I am also willing to make friends with the Tatars!"

"Making friends with the Tatars?" Bruce was a little puzzled. "We are selling weapons capable of killing Tatars to the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty, and at the same time we have to make friends with the Tatars?"

"Yes!" Van Diemen said, "The Tatars will like us! Because we can also provide them with weapons and military advisors and we only charge concessional remuneration that they can afford."

He looked at Bruce and said, "When our mission in Nanjing is over, you will go to Korea as an envoy of the East India Company to pay tribute to the Tatars."

"What tribute?" Bruce asked.

Van Diemen smiled: "Pay tribute to light artillery that can be used by the cavalry! I think this is what the Tatars need most!"

Bruce thought for a moment and then asked: "What should we say to the Crown Prince?"

Van Diemen shrugged and said with a wry smile: "What else can I say? Of course I agree in principle with the Crown Prince's request for Formosa. You have also seen the situation in Shanghai. It has a very good port and the climate is relatively comfortable.

There are no nasty poisonous insects and tropical diseases, and the products are very abundant. Europeans will live and operate happily in this city, just like their hometowns in Europe, without having to worry about being tortured by the harsh climate or being killed by terrible tropical diseases.

Go to life.

I can guarantee that within five years this will become the most prosperous trading port east of Malacca. Not even Batavia can compare with this, let alone Formosa. Our East India Company will make very rich profits in Shanghai.

profit, and Formosa will become a bottomless pit of money loss due to the development of Shanghai.

Even if I were willing to hold on there, the directors in Amsterdam would make the decision to give up!”

Bruce frowned, "But will our relationship with the Tatars affect the East India Company's operations in the Ming Dynasty?"

"Maybe." Van Diemen smiled, "Then don't say you are Dutch!"

"Then I am"

"Just be an Englishman! We Dutch support the Ming Dynasty. Only despicable Englishmen will support the Tatars!" Van Diemen said, "Just go to Korea as the special envoy of the East India Company of the Republic of England and bring you

I will send you twelve three-pound regimental guns and twenty military advisers from Formosa!"

"Governor Dimen, I am also very willing to make friends with the United Provincial Republic of the Netherlands! Since you are willing to transfer the four strongholds on Taiwan Island to General Zheng, then I am willing to rent a road in the Shanghai Commercial Port at a low price.

The street is leased to the East India Company for fifty years, and you only need to pay a rent of one thousand taels of silver per year. In the future, your income from this street will definitely be ten times or a hundred times that of Taiwan!"

In the Palace of Wenhua in the Forbidden City in Nanjing, Zhu Cixiang, who met Van Diemen again, had no idea that the insidious Dutch colonists had already laid a big trap for him. So after he learned that the Dutch were willing to transfer four strongholds on Taiwan Island,

And after completely withdrawing from Taiwan, they began to attract investment for a street of land (not the existing Eighth Street, but an additional street). The annual rent of only one thousand taels of silver was indeed a bargain.

However, in order to attract a large businessman like the Dutch East India Company, this profit concession is still necessary!

In addition to the Dutch East India Company and Portuguese merchants from Hao'ao, Zhu Cihong also plans to attract merchants from Spain, England, France, Sweden and other countries to operate in Shanghai. If possible, he also wants to invite the embassies of these countries to Shanghai. Of course,

Correspondingly, the Ming Empire will also open embassies in Western countries.
Chapter completed!