Chapter 87: Negotiations (I)

Cai Feiming was momentarily stunned when he first heard Van der Hagen's blunt question. The next moment he chuckled: the Dutch must have misunderstood the information he'd just given them. "Van, is there any idiot in this world who would return a bride he's snatched? As far as you know."

"My dear Cai, you must understand — you attacked Dayuan at its weakest moment. You've taken things you had no right to take. You know the power of the East India Company, you certainly know it, don't you? Now is the best chance to correct this mistake!"

"Weak…" Cai Feiming first revealed a smile that was caught between tears and laughter, then said to him in the tone of a man who'd lost his wallet: "No hurry. Let's review: on June 24th this year, Dayuan's newly appointed third Governor, Mr. Pauw Nuyts, went to Japan immediately upon taking office to salvage the increasingly dire Dutch-Japanese trade relations, and has not returned to this day. Correct?"

Seeing Van der Hagen nod, Cai Feiming continued: "Which means, after that, Dayuan's Interim Governor was temporarily taken over by the already-retired second Governor, Mr. De With. And here lies the problem: when we came to occupy Dayuan half a month ago, you were the Interim Governor. Mr. De With had already answered the invitation of Fujian's Supreme Military Commander Yu and taken the fleet to eliminate Yiguan. Isn't that right?"

"What does that prove?" Van der Hagen believed he had found the crux of the matter. "You occupied this place. All the files and letters fell into your hands. You know everything."

"Ah, poor Van. You always trap yourself in your own ludicrous speculations. Let me tell you something that isn't recorded in any file." Cai Feiming said in a tone tinged with pity: "Mr. De With, whom you and those wretches still toiling out there miss so dearly, has already returned to Batavia. I regret to disappoint you — he will not be coming back."

"That's impossible! You're lying!" Van der Hagen cried out.

"Six days ago, Mr. De With led the Dutch fleet into battle against Yiguan's pirate army at Tongshan Island and came under fire-ship attack. Mr. De With fled the battle and sailed directly to Batavia. The speedboat Ovocq was burned; the Sicapelle and the remaining four ships were captured by Yiguan." Cai Feiming spread his hands. "You see, the Kunlun People's intelligence is far faster and broader than you imagine. Don't forget we are an ancient nobility, with vast, hidden channels throughout the Ming domain."

Van der Hagen pondered blankly for a long while, then said somewhat dejectedly: "Even so, Batavia's fury will descend sooner or later."

Cai Feiming slowly leaned in, face to face, staring at Van der Hagen: "You should now understand — we did not come to Dayuan on a whim. Am I right?"

Van der Hagen instinctively wanted to retort, but in the end he nodded: "Perhaps all Ming People would offer you aid because of your status. There are many Ming People in Dayuan."

"So, we waited specifically until Mr. De With had left with the main force, and only then came to Dayuan like thieves? Are you still clinging to that foolish notion, my dear Van?"

… Van der Hagen gaped, speechless. In that moment, the scene of Dayuan's fall suddenly burst into his mind — the half-pounder cannons belching terrifying flame, killing fifty soldiers in an instant; the shells that exploded with colossal force the moment they touched a wall; the short-barreled guns and long guns that the Kunlun People universally carried, capable of continuous fire…

Van der Hagen opened his mouth several times, but no words came out.

"You've finally seen the essence of the matter." Cai Feiming revealed that helpless expression of a man who'd lost his wallet again. "In the original plan, our target of battle was Mr. De With and his fleet. But due to some damned delays, the fleet arrived at Dayuan only after being postponed. The man who should have been sitting before me, Mr. De With, was replaced by you — and his fleet fell into Yiguan's hands!"

Cai Feiming grew angrier as he spoke: "You thought we came to steal a coin purse? You're wrong! We lost our own coin purse! De With's fleet — all lost! Seven ships, and all those crewmen!"

Cai Feiming pointed a finger at the Red Hair before him: "Now, you may go back, Mr. Van der Hagen. Today's exchange ends here. Furthermore, if you cannot face reality and insist on living in those ludicrous fantasies, unwilling to wake up, then we will find someone else — or simply halt all communication between both sides and wait until Nuyts returns next month."

And so the first exchange between both sides ended in discord.

Cai Feiming walked out of the Great Office looking thoroughly disgruntled, muttering under his breath as he climbed the wall steps and made his way to the fort at the northeast corner of Shang Hall. This fort tightly gripped the channel mouth of the Taijiang Inland Sea and the Shang Hall docks. Its view was wide open — the best vantage point for surveying the surroundings and the main island of Taiwan.

The old Dutch cannons inside the angular fort had long since vanished, replaced naturally by M2 Heavy Machine Gun teams. Because of the good view, certain Company high-ranking personnel could often be found here — CEO Xia, for instance.

"What's the matter? Didn't go well?" Hearing footsteps behind him, Xia Xianze, who had been gazing out at the Taijiang Inland Sea through binoculars, turned his head. Seeing the poor look on Cai Feiming's face, he guessed the talks had probably not gone smoothly.

"Ran into a brainless one. This fellow thinks we should return the captives and then pay reparations."

"Heh. All those people dropping dead in neat rows right in front of Shang Hall's gate — that still wasn't enough to make him see the situation clearly?" Xia Xianze was also quite puzzled after hearing this.

"Who knows?" Cai Feiming said irritably. "He's just a minion. Probably never had the chance to consider complex problems. If it really won't work, then forget it. We'll talk when Nuyts arrives."

Xia Xianze did not reply. Instead, he raised the binoculars and looked for a while longer, then handed them to Cai Feiming: "Take a look. The Navy's first Western-style training ship."

"Isn't that just the Dutch speedboat? Called something-deng." Cai Feiming said after raising the binoculars for a glance.

"The Welden. Renamed now — 'Chengfeng.'"

The Welden was a yacht ship — translated from Dutch, that means "speedboat." This type of vessel has a pointed bow and square stern, with no forecastle. Its characteristics are high speed and low construction cost.

Unlike those flute ships comically shaped with a narrow deck and bulging belly to reduce deck tax, the yacht ship has a shallow draft and high speed, making it suitable as a service vessel or exploration ship. The Mayflower was a typical three-masted yacht ship.

A group of Ming crewmen were now piloting the renamed Chengfeng as it staggered across the Taijiang Inland Sea. From the fort one could clearly see the crewmen nimbly climbing among the yardarms, though their movements handling the soft sails were still clumsy.