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Xianxia Pass was closed, and all the soldiers stared at Zheng Fei intently. Many of them were so nervous that their hearts were pounding. Will Zheng Fei agree to surrender to Qin after reading the letter
Do you still want to fight the Qin army to the death
There were only a few Zheng troops at Xianxia Pass who were willing to continue fighting the Qin army. Although Xianxia Pass was easy to defend and difficult to attack, their defenses had long been broken.
Even Zheng Zhilong has surrendered to Qin, who would be willing to continue fighting against the Qin army
After reading Zheng Zhilong's letter, Zheng Fei looked up and saw the anxious eyes of the soldiers around him. He sighed sadly. The Zheng family navy was defeated, Zheng Zhilong surrendered to the Qin Dynasty, and the Qin army could enter Fujian by sea. It was meaningless to fight to the death at Xianxia Pass. It would be better to do it. He said to his brother Zheng Hong: "Let everyone lay down their weapons and open the gates."
As soon as these words were spoken, the Zheng army soldiers at Xianxia Pass could not help cheering. Everyone felt relieved, and their comrades hugged each other and celebrated. The scene was like a festival.
No one expected such a scene to happen.
The Qin army was also in high spirits, including Liu Fangliang, who all breathed a sigh of relief. Xianxia Pass was too dangerous. If Zheng Fei insisted on resisting, even if the morale of the Zheng army was low, it would not be easy to capture Xianxia Pass. In the end, the Qin army would suffer heavy casualties.
It would be best if it could be resolved peacefully.
After Liu Fangliang's army successfully passed Xianxia Pass, with Hong Xu and Zheng Fei as the vanguard, they quickly advanced into the hinterland of Fujian, from Pucheng to Jiancheng, Jian'an, Ouning, and Yanping, and encountered no resistance wherever they passed.
Zheng Cai was sent to Fenshui Pass south of Wenzhou to persuade the enemy to surrender. Fenshui Pass was located on the coast and had received the news of the defeat of the Zheng navy in advance. After Zheng Cai's persuasion, the Zheng army guarding the pass also gave up resistance.
Gu Jun'en was appointed as the governor, and together with the 10,000-man army led by General Yuan Zongdi, they also quickly advanced towards Fuzhou.
When the news of the two passes being taken reached Ningbo, Qin Mu was overjoyed. Now was the spring ploughing season. If the war continued and the people of Fujian missed the farming season, there would be many more victims this year. It was a great blessing for the Qin court and the people of Fujian to be able to take over Fujian peacefully.
On the other hand, the cabinet and six ministers in the capital drew lessons from the experience of the Song Dynasty's Maritime Customs and, referring to the clauses listed by Qin Mu, quickly worked out the management details of the Qin Maritime Customs.
On the first day of March in the second year of the Qin Dynasty, the Ningbo Maritime Customs was officially established.
Unlike the Song Dynasty, the Maritime Customs Office was no longer under local management, but was directly under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Revenue.
The first ambassador of Ningbo Maritime Customs was Cao Weijun, appointed by Qin Mu.
On the day when the Maritime Customs was established, a Portuguese merchant ship sailed into Sanjiangkou. In addition to bringing overseas goods, an envoy and a Portuguese officer also left the ship. Their names were Mashidu and Federer.
The two men walked into the Maritime Customs Office, claiming that they were sent by the Governor of Macau, Vahiki, to meet the King of Daqin.
Cao Weijun reported the matter to Qin Mu, but Qin Mu did not meet them immediately. Instead, he asked someone to find out about the situation in Portugal. He met the two in the main hall of Qiulu Garden the next day.
Mashidu was in a black suit and looked about 40 years old, while Feidier was in a neat officer's uniform and long boots. He had a sword at his waist, but Li Shi took it off when he entered the door.
"Mashidu and Feidier pay their respects to the great King Qin."
The two bowed deeply and added the word "great" before the title to show respect. Although their accents were strange, they were still understandable.
Qin Mu raised his black sleeves and said calmly, "No need to be polite. What is the reason you want to see me?"
Qin Mu's youth surprised Mashidu and Feidier. His black royal robe embroidered with golden dragons was solemn and majestic, deep and majestic, giving people a strong sense of oppression.
Ma Shidu bowed again and said, "Your Majesty, we are sent by the Governor of Macau, Mr. Vahiki, mainly to congratulate your Majesty's navy for defeating Zheng Yiguan. Secondly, we hope to trade with Daqin. Your Majesty, this is a gift that our governor asked me to give to your Majesty as a token of Governor Vahiki's regards."
Master Mashidu brought in the gifts. In addition to some jewels and antiques, there was also a Western-style clock that was as tall as a person, which was very exquisitely and gorgeously made.
Qin Mu took a look, his expression did not change at all, and he said in a calm tone: "My Great Qin has already established the Maritime Customs Office. As long as he is friendly and sincere and abides by the laws of my Great Qin, no matter who he is, I will welcome him to trade."
Qin Mu was dismissive of the gift, which disappointed Jadiel of Mashidu. The two looked at each other, and it was Jadiel's turn to say, "Your Majesty, we hope you can allow us to specialize in your country's silk, porcelain, and tea. Your Majesty, we will offer the highest price so that your country can gain the greatest benefits."
Westerners are really direct when speaking. If it were a Chinese person, they wouldn't get to the point without spending a lot of time and effort on the subject.
Qin Mu smiled secretly. Portugal is just a small country, but its appetite is really big. He said without comment: "Captain Jiadier, do you know how much silk, porcelain and tea China produces every year?"
"Your Majesty, we just want to get the European distribution rights."
"When I was in southern Jiangxi, I sent people to Macau. Unfortunately, your so-called governor turned my envoy away. What a pity."
Qin Mu was not making this up. He had indeed sent people to Macau twice in the past, hoping to obtain some advanced firearms technology from the Portuguese, but was rejected both times.
Jiadiel knew about this matter. Seeing Qin Mu bringing up the old matter again, he quickly said, "Your Majesty, our previous governor was dismissed because he neglected you. The current Governor Vahiki attaches great importance to the relationship with Daqin. In order to make up for the previous governor's mistakes, we sent gifts to Your Majesty to express our apology."
Qin Mu suddenly changed the subject and said, "I heard that Portugal was annexed by Spain and became a vassal of Spain for sixty years. It was only a few years ago that it became independent.
Now your king, John IV, is actively seeking support from England, France, Switzerland and other European countries, but it seems that his efforts have not yielded any results, and few European countries support your country's independence."
Mashidu and Jiadier were stunned after hearing what Qin Mu said. How did Qin Mu know all this
“Your Majesty, we are very surprised by your knowledge. Portugal only expelled the Spanish rulers and became independent seven years ago.
However, the situation is not as bad as your Majesty says. Since the Spanish Armada was defeated by the English, the country has declined;
In the past few years, we have lost more than we have won in our battles with our army. Even without the support of European countries, the Spanish are no longer our opponents. "
"Oh, Captain Jadiel is really optimistic. However, if you still don't get the recognition from European countries, I think it will be disadvantageous to your country. Under such circumstances, your country still wants to seek trade monopoly. Captain Jadiel, aren't you afraid that European countries will unite to attack your country?"
After hearing this, Jiadi's expression changed slightly. They came in a hurry to seek trade privileges with Daqin, and they wanted to force European countries to recognize Portugal's independence by controlling this trade privilege.
But as Qin Mu said, this matter is a double-edged sword. Controlling the trade privileges in the Far East will certainly allow Portugal's status to rise rapidly;
However, this would easily make European countries jealous. At present, countries have not recognized Portugal's independence. If Portugal controls the trade privileges in the Far East, it is likely to anger European countries and become the target of public criticism. Then Portugal's situation will only get worse.
Jadir and Mashidu didn't know what to say for a moment.
Qin Mu smiled faintly and said, "Captain Jiadier, go back and tell your king that I am willing to cooperate with him in all aspects, not only in trade, but also in military and political cooperation."
Jiadiel asked with surprise and confusion: "Your Majesty, the two countries are far apart. How do you plan to cooperate?"
"I can send the navy to attack Luzon, draw the Spanish military to the Far East, and then destroy them in one fell swoop to relieve the pressure on your country. This is just the first step. If your country needs it in the future, I can also send a fleet to Europe to cooperate with you to defeat England, the Netherlands, and France. In short, by then, one of the two countries will be in the east and the other in the west, each dominating one side and controlling the maritime trade route together..."
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ps: Please vote for me, please recommend me, and I welcome you to talk about European countries, who to pull in and who to fight? This is a strategic issue. It would be fine if you can provide me with some information about each country.
I'm urgently asking for monthly tickets. Today the monthly tickets have shrunk significantly. My anus is tight. I'm urgently asking for monthly tickets to protect it. Please support me, brothers.
.(To be continued..)
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