The crew members knew that the Congo River had been sailed by sailors from the far west, and they were full of confidence in the way forward.【】
After another long journey and ninety-nine and eighty-one difficulties, they finally arrived in the Western Heaven. This may not be the Paradise, but for people who have been wandering on the sea for so long, it is like a paradise.
"There are many small kingdoms here that are constantly fighting. I don't think your Excellency should stop there. Further on, there is the Frankish Kingdom. However, the Frankish Kingdom is also at war with the English Kingdom. They have been fighting for a hundred years, and they don't know.
When will it be the boss?
So, I thought maybe we could change course and sail directly to Venice, where I know the route well."
On the bow of the boat, Fei Yinglun explained diligently to Xia Xun.
They had just left Morocco, a country founded by the Arabs.
They rested in Morocco for ten days. During these ten days, the hungry and wealthy sailors of the Ming Dynasty almost took over all the prostitutes in Morocco. After ten days, when they finally let go of their anger, calmed down and boarded the battleship full of energy
When they were ready to continue their journey, some women were already unable to get out of bed, but they felt very happy when they saw the beautiful jewelry piled beside the bed.
The wealth and generosity of these oriental people, especially the virility in bed, left a deep impression on them. Later, when the merchant ships of the Ming Dynasty came here along the Xia Xun route, they immediately fell in love with those oriental faces when they saw them.
The price will increase.
Of course, there are also women who are obsessed with sex in bed, including some noble ladies. After hearing about this incident, they began to actively seduce those Easterners who came from afar, just for the legendary madness.
After Xia Xun's fleet left Morocco, they continued along the Strait of Gibraltar and sailed into the Sea of Earth. On their left was Spain, which was the Franconian who traveled to the Ming Dynasty a hundred years later. At this time, there was no one here.
In a unified kingdom, various small principalities competed for each other in this small land, and they fought hard.
Beyond Spain is France. France and Britain are also at war over land and throne succession issues. Fei Yinglun, who is eager to go home, suggested that Xia Xun sail the fleet directly to Venice. Of course, he wanted to do this, and he also
Because he thought of an extremely serious problem, but he didn't want to tell Xia Xun this worry.
Xu Hu objected: "Because the countries here are all very close to each other, we don't carry much food and water. Can we reach the place you mentioned directly? What if there is any storm..."
Fei Yinglun said quickly: "No, no, no, there are few strong winds and waves here. This is an inland sea, as docile as a cat."
Xia Xun interrupted him and said, "No! We have to go all the way. After going through thousands of mountains and rivers, we finally arrived here. Isn't it a pity that we passed through the door without entering?"
"this……"
Fei Yinglun looked uneasy, but after Xia Xun finished speaking, he turned around and walked to the upper deck, and Fei Yinglun quickly followed.
Fei Yinglun thought of a very serious problem when he left the mouth of the Congo River and continued sailing not far north. This problem was about the new shipping route.
The discovery of the new sea route will definitely be a golden road, and the efficiency of all shipping will definitely be higher than the old route. However, for many countries on the Earth and Sea, it will also be a nightmare that cuts off their road to prosperity.
Once the new route is formed, it will bring disaster to countries that rely on the old route and land commercial transportation, unless they can actively become one of the masters of the new route.
Spain, Portugal, France, and the United Kingdom are all close to the open sea, while the Federation of Venice is completely in the inland sea. When the news comes that the Eastern Fleet bypasses the African continent and sails directly to the Earth Sea, these countries will be the first to occupy this sea before Venice is close to the water.
route.
As long as Spain and Portugal control the Strait of Gibraltar based on their geographical advantages, they can be locked up in the Mediterranean Sea. If they want to get through, they will have to let them impose exorbitant taxes. Important anchorage points and ports along the shallow water will be occupied by these countries first.
Their maritime trade will be controlled by others.
Although the Venetian fleet is still the most powerful fleet at present, this fleet dominates the Earth Sea. Their ships and naval training are adapted to the stormy Earth Sea and cannot withstand the violent winds and waves of the ocean.
In this regard, countries close to the open sea have richer navigation experience than they do. At the same time, the ships of these countries are not as large as theirs, and the costs required for transformation are also less.
Although Fei Yinglun is a pirate, he is a Venetian after all, and he has now received a lot of treasure and is a person with personal experience of the new route. He wants to use this advantage to form a huge ocean trade fleet.
Making money by specializing in new routes is safer and more profitable than being a pure pirate.
However, once the news of the new route spread to other countries, his plan went bankrupt. Therefore, when he was in Morocco, he firmly attached himself to the interpreter on the ship and enthusiastically took the interpreter out for fun. All expenses were borne by
He went out to prevent the interpreter from leaking the news.
But when he went to other countries one after another, it was difficult to guarantee that other countries would not learn the news. All he needed was to get the upper hand. Fei Yinglun was thinking in his mind, pulled the interpreter, and followed Xia Xun to the top deck.
, mustered up the courage to make his request to him.
Xia Xun was greatly surprised. He thought about it carefully and said generously: "Okay, I agree to your request. I will send a ship to Venice for trade now. You will take it there. My people can call them there."
Wait for me, and you can get in touch with your relatives who are officials in the Venetian Federation as soon as possible and take action first!"
Xia Xun patted him on the shoulder and said sincerely: "Without your rich ocean knowledge along the way, maybe we wouldn't be able to get to where we are now. This is my reward for you!"
Fei Yinglun did not expect Xia Xun to agree so quickly. He gratefully said to Xia Xun: "Mr. Xia, you... are so generous! I swear to God, you will be my friend forever!"
Xia Xun smiled and said: "I am afraid that other countries will not be so willing when it comes to conflicts of interests. You should get on your way as soon as possible. There is an old saying in our country, which is to strike first to gain strength! How powerful is the force of our fleet? If you have arrived,
You are at a disadvantage when competing with other countries for ports, maybe you can ask us for help!"
Fei Yinglun was ecstatic and immediately hugged Xia Xun tightly using Western etiquette.
Tang Sai'er, who had just ran onto the deck excitedly, couldn't help pouting when he saw this scene and thought sourly: "This Western gorilla is really annoying!"
Fei Yinglun raised his head with tears in his eyes and kissed Xia Xun again on the cheek. Tang Saier's little mouth pouted even higher: "I hate it so much!"
Fei Yinglun said incoherently: "Thank you, Mr. Xia, I... I will go back to the cabin to prepare. Thank you! Thank you!"
Fei Yinglun nodded and bowed and retreated to the entrance of the gangway. Tang Saier rolled his eyes, stretched out his toes and stumbled lightly, and Fei Yinglun rolled down the gangway screaming "Ouch".
"snort!"
Tang Saier puffed up her chest, put her hands behind her back, and walked away like a proud peacock...
※※
Xia Xun smiled, not because of Tang Saier's little move, but because of Fei Yinglun's request.
Since he was sure that he had indeed discovered a new route, he had been considering the benefits of the route.
He wanted to keep this route in his hands, and he also thought about finding key points like the Cape of Good Hope on his way back, building ports and castles, and stationing a force of troops. He would use 1,800 people and dozens of ships to block key points.
It is not impossible to control the entire route in this era, but it is really a bit ridiculous.
This place is too far away from the Ming Dynasty. It takes more than a year to sail there. The replenishment of soldiers, weapons and equipment and other supplies is a problem.
Of course, the Ming Dynasty could build many ports and fortresses of its own along the coast, but it would be impossible to start construction on this long coastline all at once. Expanding too fast would inevitably lead to rapid collapse.
If they fight steadily, by the time their power reaches here, it will probably be in the hands of the Westerners.
Xia Xun also thought about finding a local ally, and letting the Ming Dynasty build harbors and castles at important key points, and use their armed forces to control this necessary route. At the same time, they would make a local ally and jointly suppress other countries.
Pulling one side to fight another, this method is not only used by Easterners, Westerners are also used to this method. But if you want it, others also want it. If he can eat you, why should he be your ally, controlled by you, and yours?
cannon fodder?
The mother countries are too far apart, and it will take several years or even more than ten years for frequent maritime trade to be fully formed. Before that, it is not only a matter of supplies and replenishment of soldiers, but also because of the Chinese people's consistent thinking about their homeland. If you want to arrange a team to be alone
Thousands of miles away, that is very, very difficult.
The most difficult thing in the world is to change a person's mind. It takes a long time to change one's mind. Before that, even the emperor might not agree with his idea. Unexpectedly, when he was about to take a nap, Fei Yinglun brought it to him.
Pillow, why didn't he agree?
Xia Xun knew that the Venetian Federation had gradually declined, and the emergence of new ocean routes had given it a fatal blow, causing it to gradually withdraw from the stage of history during the Age of Discovery. Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom, the three countries along the Atlantic Ocean,
will gradually replace it and become the maritime overlord.
So, we might as well give this opportunity to the Venetians. Venice has the opportunity, and Portugal and Spain have the advantage. When Britain and France resolve the century-long war, they will also join in, and then there will be fun.
Lo and behold. They each have their own advantages and are evenly matched, and the right to control the new route will be extended indefinitely.
In the original history, the Ming Dynasty did not participate in the competition for ocean routes, so one of them successfully became the controller of the entire golden route connecting Europe and Asia. Now that the Ming Dynasty has also participated, will it still sit back and watch them dominate the sky with one hand?
The controller of the old route must occupy Horumus, the controller of the new route must possess the Cape of Good Hope, and the controller of the Eastern Route must possess Malacca.
But now, not only Malacca, but also Mount Ceylon is under the control of the Ming court. The power of the Ming Dynasty is gradually penetrating into Xiao Gelan, Kochi, and Guli. The Ming Dynasty is already far ahead of them and is devouring them.
Seize the territory that the Ala people have managed for hundreds of years.
So, just throw out the Cape of Good Hope and let the Europeans grab it first. When they fight to the death, the Ming Dynasty's fleet will become stronger and stronger, the routes will become farther and farther, and their power will continue to spread along the Indian Ocean to Africa.
, even if the Cape of Good Hope had fallen into the hands of a certain European country at that time, the Ming Dynasty could still snatch it away if it wanted to.
Even if there is no robbery, more than half of the entire route is already in the hands of the Ming Dynasty. The controllers of the Cape of Good Hope must cooperate with the Ming Dynasty and provide convenience to each other in order to make their occupation of the Cape of Good Hope meaningful, otherwise their fleet will bypass the Cape of Good Hope.
So what?
Of course, if they were still fighting for each other at that time, they would not need Ming to take the initiative. They would invite Ming to join, offer preferential conditions, and win Ming's support to jointly control the Cape of Good Hope.
, making friends at a distance and attacking at home, Westerners are not stupid either.
There are many variables in the future that even God cannot control. Xia Xun's plan is undoubtedly the best choice under the current conditions. How could he be unhappy?