Chapter 123: A Resplendent Covenant

After the agreement was reached, the Transmigrators immediately released nearly all the Dutch captives — except for two Dutch carpenters who were already serving as squad leaders in the Kiln District. These two had been declared dead and would never appear in public again.

Because the Sloten had a deep draft, it was towed into Taijiang at high tide by the Yuan Dou, which had deliberately lowered its sails and consumed its diesel reserves. This was also part of the Transmigrators' show of force, and the message it conveyed... the Red Hairs were clever enough to understand it for certain. This was reflected in their pale faces at the time and the way they kept crossing themselves before their chests.

The Dutch captives, who had first been sent as arsonists and then to dredge the river, suffering considerable death and injury, were finally reunited with their relatives in the Japanese village! The Japanese village had now been reduced to a temporary inn; all the Dutch crew would be living here for the next few days. The previous permanent residents had all moved to the Chikan New District, including the Banda slaves.

That evening, several high-ranking Dutchmen once again enjoyed a simple yet richly varied dinner. During this time, CEO Xia made another brief appearance, toasted a glass of wine, and vanished once more.

The Dutchmen were utterly captivated by the antique-style solar lanterns placed on the dining table. However, these items were not for sale, so no matter how the Red Hairs inquired, lamented, or tried to entice him, Cai Feiming only shook his head, smiled, and said nothing.

After the dinner, the main event arrived.

The Red Hairs were led into a room. Inside, a fair-skinned, portly man was sitting upright at a large black ebony table, waiting for them. Van der Hagen recognized this fat man: it was the official in charge of financial affairs, Wang.

Seeing the group enter, Wang Liguo chuckled and stood up, stepping aside.

The white light of two solar lamps illuminated the large black ebony table. On blue-and-white, doucai, Ming yellow, and bright red... multicolored official-kiln porcelain plates lay strings of white pearls, pink pearls, purple pearls, black pearls...

Resplendent with pearls and jewels, a dazzling array of colors, a flow of brilliance shifted across the black ebony table, the halo of light changing every moment, making the onlookers dizzy and entranced, their breath stopping.

After a long while, Cai Feiming finally explained to the Dutchmen, whose eyes were filled with stars: the silver coins and goods in the Shang Hall back then, well, we confiscated them all in one go. Hmm, we know that you gentlemen have all suffered losses to some degree.

We'll still do things by the old rules now: private, interest-free credit loans. You'll select pearl ornaments on the spot. Nuytz goes first, Van der Hagen follows, and the rest last. You old fellows don't need to leave an oil portrait as collateral; just press your thumbprint with Old Wang after you've chosen, and remember to pay off the principal and interest when you come next time...

Although Nuytz had also raised the issue of the VOC employees' personal property during the negotiations, everyone knew the hope was slim. These yellow-skinned nobles seemed extremely sensitive to words like compensation and restitution; they had brusquely refused any possibility of continuing the discussion on this matter at the time.

Well, none of that mattered now.

For Nuytz and his men, these exquisite pearl ornaments could without a doubt be sold at high prices in Europe. Just look at the portraits of those queens, empresses, and consorts of France, Britain, and Russia, along with kings, dukes, and prince-electors, their upper bodies draped in pearls, and one would know how much the European nobility adored pearls.

After 1530, many European countries began to legislate on pearls, stipulating that people must wear pearls according to their social status and rank. In 1612, the British royal family legislated in detail: except for the Imperial Household, ordinary nobles, scholars, doctors, and their wives were not allowed to wear garments adorned with pearls, nor use them in other decorations. From such regulations, the status of pearls is clearly evident.

Europe's so-called Pearl Age began precisely in this period. Members of the imperial household, noblewomen, and other high-society figures all used pearls as ornaments to flaunt their status.

Elizabeth I's favorite jewels were pearls. She bought pearls by the bushel. Those below followed the example of those above, causing the price of pearls to skyrocket at the time.

Under the fiery glares of his subordinates, Nuytz stretched out his trembling hands and selected the largest piece on the table: a wide necklace with an arched crystal base, composed of two strings of black pearls. The delicate pearl-setting craftsmanship of later generations and the exceedingly exquisite crystal base made this necklace stand out uniquely, a thing of breathtaking beauty... "I swear, it will one day grace the fair bosom of some queen!" Mr. Nuytz murmured, his eyes misty as he gently caressed his beloved object.

In a corner of this room were piled some Japanese Dayuan lacquerware. Wang Liguo selected a few pieces, then placed the necklace into a wax seal box stuffed with cotton, put that box into a medium box filled with reed fluff, then placed that into a larger box... sealing the edges with wax... locking it, affixing a seal...

Do not mock this matryoshka-style packaging. In the Age of Discovery, without vacuum-sealed packaging, jewelry and archives were all packed this way in the harsh marine environment. This was also the reason why Japanese lacquerware was so well-received among Europeans. Precious goods like silk were also packed in large boxes within wrappings, with frames placed at the bottom; otherwise, the often-leaking ship holds would easily ruin the cargo.

The final step was signing the contract and pressing a thumbprint.

Of course, as a gift exchanged between the leaders of both sides, there would be a gold pearl ornament presented in Xia Xianze's name to Governor-General Coen in Batavia. The ornament and a letter of greeting would both be delivered by Mr. Nuytz. This was the one item for which the Dutch did not need to repay the principal and interest.

After everything was over, the Nuytz team, who had proactively requested to upgrade themselves to "Old Friends of the Transmigrators," cradled their wax seal boxes, their mustaches all perked up, and went back to rest, fully content.

Early the next morning, the Nuytz team arrived at the enclosing wall of the Dayuan Trading Post, waiting for the legendary firepower demonstration.

What is a friend? A friend is someone willing to consider things from your standpoint. The Dutch friends could now understand the meaning of this kind of border exercise, so common in later generations. Thus, their emotions today were relatively stable.

The M2 Heavy Machine Gun was set up on the northwest corner fort not far away. The Dutch were only allowed to watch from outside the fort. Some idlers, including Cai Feiming, were all on the enclosing wall at this time, smoking and chatting. They stood on the wall on the side of the trading post's main gate. Not long ago, Van der Hagen had stood in the same spot and witnessed the terrifying rampage of the M2 and RPG.

Five hundred meters away, a group of laborers were hammering wooden dummies into the sandy ground of Dayuan Island. This distance already exceeded the length of the earlier M2 shot from the sand dune at the trading post.

The wooden dummies were very crude, barely carved with a square head and a trapezoidal upper body. The legs were sharpened to a point for easy insertion into the earth.