Chapter 3022

Just when Lopez was at a loss, the lookout on the mast gave him good news. There was a majesty-class warship ahead that had obviously slowed down and was approaching the route of Lopez's ship.

It seemed that the other party was finally willing to respond in some way to their presence.

The two ships gradually approached and walked side by side on the sea. Upon seeing this, Lopez also ordered to slow down the speed and cooperate with the other ship to see if the ship would give a clear signal.

"General, hoist a flag on the other side and ask for someone to board the ship to communicate with us."

Haihan and Portugal have cooperated in the military field for more than 20 years, and the two sides have already established a mature operating system for communication under various circumstances. Lanterns, semaphores, and pyrotechnic signals are commonly used at sea.

Wait, both sides have common solutions.

Lopez had previously tried to use these means to contact the Haihan warship he encountered on the way, but he never received a response from the other party. It was not until this time that Haihan took the initiative to use semaphores to give signals, and finally a communication channel was established.

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Of course, the amount of information that semaphore can convey across the air is extremely limited. For the current situation, face-to-face communication must be more reliable.

Lopez immediately ordered a reply to the other party, stopped the ship and waited for the other party to send an envoy.

Soon after, a manned small boat was lowered from the side of the Majestic-class battleship, and then slowly rowed towards the Portuguese sailing ship. Lopez ordered the gangway to be lowered and allowed Envoy Haihan to board the ship.

After informing each other of their identities, Lopez learned that the young officer in front of him was Roger's adjutant Tan Tianlei, and he frankly revealed the reason for his pursuit.

"Our country and Mr. Roger have always had a good cooperative relationship. For a military operation of this scale, Mr. Roger should notify our country in advance and take joint action. There should not be deception between allies, right?

"

Lopez expressed his dissatisfaction unabashedly, but Tan Tianlei showed no shame in his accusation.

"As far as I know, we have notified your country's embassy in Star Island a few days ago to explain the reasons and purposes of our action. As for the fact that we did not leave time for your country to send people to participate in the operation this time, that is because of the military

You need speed, but if you delay it too long and let the pirates get wind of it, they will inevitably miss the target if they rush over again, and the purpose of the operation will not be achieved."

Tan Tianlei paused and continued: "Considering that this operation may not be able to rely on the power of allies, we will dispatch a large army and strive to complete the victory in one battle."

After listening to the translation, Lopez couldn't help but shake his head slightly. The other party's words were sharp. This was certainly not the reply he expected, nor was it the way of communication he wanted.

"I want to know where Lord Roger is. I need to talk to him face to face." Lopez didn't want to waste any more time arguing with Tan Tianlei, so he simply bypassed him and talked to Roger directly.

It's just that his reaction was probably expected by Tan Tianlei. Hearing this, he just smiled and said: "Lord Roger will personally direct this operation. As for his current location, that is a military secret. Forgive me."

It cannot be disclosed to you."

Lopez pointed to the majesty-class battleship where Tan Tianlei came from and said: "So he is not on this ship either, right?"

Tan Tianlei smiled and said nothing, but nodded to express his agreement with his guess.

What a joke, if Roger wanted to meet the Portuguese, why would he use these methods? If he hadn't considered that the next governor of Malacca might be on board this ship, and he needed to give some face, Roger might not even have sent Tan Tianlei to communicate.

But Lopez chased so far, and obviously he would not give up just because of Tan Tianlei’s few words. He immediately said: “Then, as the special envoy of the Malacca Governor’s Palace, I request to be your country’s military observer for this operation, and obtain relevant

information, this should be reasonable, right?"

Tan Tianlei said: "According to the agreement between our two countries, of course you can do this. But I must remind you that this operation may cause a fierce battle. For safety reasons, you and your ships can stay in the area designated by us.

, cannot participate in front-line battles. As for the information you want to know, we will release it to your country at the appropriate time at our discretion."

Lopez suppressed his anger and protested to Tan Tianlei: "Such an arrangement is inconsistent with the way the two countries have cooperated in military operations in the past. In order to protect our country's interests, I need to supervise the process of this operation in a more intuitive way!"

"

Tan Tianlei said: "As for your request, I will relay it to Mr. Roger. However, before receiving new instructions, I advise you to abide by our arrangements to avoid unnecessary trouble."

Lopez said: "You are threatening me!"

Tan Tianlei waved his hand and said: "I am just thinking about your safety. I believe you have also noticed that the surrounding waters are full of Chinese warships. If your ship does not stay in the designated area, it can easily be mistaken for an enemy ship intruding.

It would not be good if a dangerous situation occurs then.”

Tan Tianlei's tone was calm, but the attitude he expressed was still very tough. The implication is that if you refuse to comply with the arrangement, it may lead to a "misjudgment" and treat you as an enemy ship.

Of course, Lopez didn't want to get into trouble. Not to mention such a huge armed fleet, even the majesty-class battleship that was so close at hand was enough to easily sink the ship he was on.

Lopez has no doubt that Hai Han can do such a thing, not to mention that his opponent has already thought of an excuse. When the time comes, he will make a false apology and pay some money. It is impossible for the Malacca authorities to fall out with Hai Han.

of.

Maybe Governor Costa will be happy to see the result. After all, after the country gets the news and appoints the next governor, it will take another year and a half just to confirm the candidate. Such a long time is enough for him to earn a few more pensions.

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Lopez had thousands of thoughts running through his mind in an instant, but in the end his reason prevailed over his impulse. He knew that he could not take risks at this juncture, otherwise he might miss the promotion opportunity that he had been waiting for.

After the brief meeting, Tan Tianlei did not stay on the Portuguese ship in person, but only left a translator who was proficient in Portuguese as the liaison between both parties. This liaison person would instruct the Portuguese ship to where it should stay.

position.

Naturally, Lopez was not satisfied with this arrangement, but when he saw the Haihan fleet with its flags fluttering on the nearby sea, he could only swallow his complaints silently.

In any case, I am following the Haihan fleet, which is much better than staying in Malacca City and waiting for outdated news that has been delayed for who knows how long.

What Lopez could not have imagined was that less than a hundred miles north of his current location was Haihan's first target on his trip, Penang Island.
Chapter completed!