Daming pirates

Recently, Yu Xiaotian heard that from last winter to now, pirates have repeatedly robbed passing merchant ships in the Taiwan Strait. However, he did not pay too much attention to this news before because it did not violate the

His actual interests are that the Taiwan Strait is very long and covers a large area. These people do not step on the territory he controls, so he does not pay too much attention to this matter.

After meeting Zheng Yiguan today, and corroborating what he said with these things, Yu Xiaotian can basically confirm that the purpose of Zheng Yiguan's trip is not necessarily to return to Kyushu Island, but their actual purpose is to ensure that

Maybe they were just hunting in this area, intercepting Chinese merchants who were trying to go to Manila to trade with the Spaniards.

According to Yu Xiaotian's knowledge, under the pressure of the Ming Dynasty, the Dutch had no choice but to take over the fortress they built in Penghu.

, their stay in the Penghu Islands has no practical effect.

Under the blockade of the Ming Navy, it was impossible for any maritime merchant to go to Penghu to trade with the Dutch. This was probably the reason why the Dutch finally gave up on Penghu, not that the Ming Army actually defeated Penghu.

battle.

Li Dan and other pirates who cooperated with the Dutch had only one purpose in operating in this area, which was to intercept Chinese merchant ships heading to Manila for the Dutch and force them to trade with the Dutch.

However, the Dutch expedition with partial divisions in this battle would definitely not be able to achieve the final victory. Therefore, they accepted the suggestion of Li Dan and others and evacuated Penghu, a land of disputes, and moved to Dajuan, that is, Tainan, where they built a

The cities of Jelanje and Chican eventually allowed the Dutch to completely control the entire Taiwan for many years.

In fact, if this kind of thing is left to future generations, some people will definitely accuse Li Dan of being a traitor and betraying national interests. But in this era, people like him are engaged in business that is both stealing and business. Not only him, but also Zheng

Including officials, people like them will only take profit as the starting point. As for national justice, people like them will not care!

As for people like Li Dan, who traveled between the Dutch and the Ming Dynasty officials, acting as such mediators, it can be said that they curry favor with both parties at the same time. On the one hand, they sold Taiwan Island, which is still an enclave, to

Giving it to the Dutch, on the one hand, allowed the Dutch to give up Penghu, a territory under the jurisdiction of the Ming Dynasty, and saved the face of today's government officials, and even the face of the imperial court.

Both parties will eventually express their gratitude to them, so that they can profit from both sides in the future. This transaction can be said to be quite cost-effective. While they can still help the Dutch, they can hijack some passing merchant ships in this area, and then obtain

An extra income!

But what is a little funny about Yu Xiaotian is that even if he killed Zheng Yiguan, he himself would not have thought that his son would inherit his mantle decades later and, under the pressure of the situation, lead troops to drive out the Dutch.

After leaving Taiwan Island, he became the King of Taiwan!

Therefore, it is not necessarily true that what Zheng Yiguan said is true. You must know that their activities in this area have already stepped on the edge of Yu Xiaotian's territory. Zheng Yiguan must not be willing to tell Yu Xiaotian that he is in this area for

He intercepted merchant ships passing through the Taiwan Strait, so he used the excuse that he was taking the ship back to Kyushu Island.

However, after Yu Xiaotian listened to Zheng Yiguan's words, he saw through it and refused to say anything. He did not want to cause a direct conflict with Li Dan at the moment. Since he did not want to kill Zheng Yiguan now, he could only temporarily buy one for Li Dan.

To save face, make friends with Zheng Yiguan. If anything happens in the future, at least Li Dan and Zheng Yiguan will owe him a favor.

So Yu Xiaotian nodded and said: "I see, it seems that we are really destined today! It's a pity that Yu has no friendship with those red-haired people, so they naturally won't ask me for help! According to what Brother Zheng said, your relationship

Life is going well with this red-haired man!"

Zheng Yiguan nodded and said: "I don't dare to say that we have a good relationship, but at least I have worked for those red-haired people, and I am a bit mean-spirited in front of them! What? Does Master Yu want to get to know these red-haired people?"

If necessary, Mr. Zheng would be willing to introduce Mr. Yu to the family!"

Yu Xiaotian had an idea. Although he is also coveting Taiwan Island, so far, he does not have enough strength to compete with the Dutch and prevent the Dutch from getting involved in Taiwan Island. So in this case, the Dutch are currently unable to open the island.

The situation of trading with Chinese businessmen was a bit troubled by the Ming Dynasty's officers and soldiers. Now he has a lot of resources on hand, and he can take advantage of this opportunity to make a fortune from the Dutch.

Anyway, if you have more money, it won't bite you. Whoever makes money will earn it. And after earning the money, he can develop his own strength and one day gain the ability to confront the Dutch. Why not?

Moreover, there is a lot of unpleasantness between the Dutch and the Spaniards right now. Since people like Li Dan can take advantage of this opportunity, why can't he, Yu Xiaotian, benefit from it?

Thinking of this, Yu Xiaotian nodded and said with a smile: "That's great, but it's a pity that the red-haired people are fighting with the army now. Even if I want to catch up with them, I'm afraid I won't have the chance. Since Brother Zheng has friendship with them,

Then when the situation stabilizes someday, Yu may really need Brother Zheng to recommend him!"

"Easy to talk about. As long as Master Yu needs Zheng, Zheng will definitely help! By the way, these days, Zheng has been traveling in this area, but I have never seen Master Yu and you in this area. Why Master Yu?"

Why did he suddenly bring his brothers to this area?" Zheng Yiguan nodded and agreed, but suddenly the conversation changed and he asked Yu Xiaotian about the purpose of coming to this area.

Yu Xiaotian smiled secretly in his heart, knowing that Zheng Yiguan wanted to inquire about his affairs, so he waved his hand and said: "It's nothing. Originally, there were no major events here recently, but I heard some time ago that there were some

My colleagues hijack ships from time to time in this area.

You must know that this is our Sea Wolf territory. If something like this happens, I will inevitably come over to see who did it here! Not long after I came here, I ran into Brother Zheng. Otherwise,

I’m afraid I don’t know when I will get to know you, Brother Zheng!”

Yu Xiaotian's explanation to Zheng Yiguan left Zheng Yiguan with nothing to say. After all, what they had done in this area during this period, although it would not be said that they were stepping on Sea Wolf's land, at least it was

He was already stepping on someone else's property, and it wasn't too much for him to bring someone over to check it out, so he was a little embarrassed and hurriedly covered it up with alcohol.

Yu Xiaotian didn't chat with Zheng Yiguan for too long. After asking about some things about Li Dan and Zheng Yiguan's experience, he compared it with the information in his memory. Although it was different from what he knew.

There is a slight deviation, but overall the deviation is not very large.

Moreover, he is now eager to go to Taiwan Island to handle his own affairs. He does not want Zheng Yiguan to know the purpose of his trip, so after the two of them had a drink, Yu Xiaotian generously transferred Zheng Yiguan's ship to the island.

All the goods taken off his ship were returned to him. He said goodbye to Zheng Yiguan at night and watched Zheng Yiguan lead the ship into the vast night.

Zheng Yiguan was also very satisfied with Xiaotian's favor for him. Before leaving, he repeatedly promised that he would take time to go to Nanri Island to express his gratitude, and then took the boat to leave.

Looking at the direction in which Zheng Yiguan's ship was leaving, Yu Xiaotian felt even more urgent, because there was not much time left for him. The Dutch would land in Tainan in the second half of the year at the latest and begin to attack the mainland.

After that, with the appetite of the Dutch, they would definitely try to control the entire island of Taiwan.

Moreover, Yu Xiaotian will also face a powerful opponent, that is, the Spanish. While the Dutch are interested in Taiwan Island, the Spanish are also aware of the threat that the Dutch control of Taiwan will pose to them, so the Spanish will also tighten their grip on Taiwan.

Then he came to Taiwan to grab territory.

And if he doesn't act quickly now, I'm afraid it won't be his turn at all. With his strength, trying to steal food from the Dutch and Spanish people is basically seeking the skin of a tiger.

Therefore, what he can do is to seize an opportunity first, control a foothold first, and hold on to this fruit strongly. Only then will he be able to gain a firm foothold in Taiwan in the future.

The reason why he chose northern Taiwan as his target instead of southern Taiwan is not that the conditions in southern Taiwan are not as good as those in northern Taiwan. On the contrary, southern Taiwan is more suitable for pioneering and reclamation. It will also be Taiwan's main agricultural production area in later generations and is more suitable for

his request.

But the reason why he did not go to Tainan was because he knew better than anyone else the Dutch's next choice. The Dutch, under Li Dan's guidance, chose to land in Tainan and establish their power.

If he goes to Tainan at this time, he will immediately have a head-on conflict with the Dutch, and he has no chance of winning at all.

There is another important figure in the history of Taiwan that I have to mention, and that is Yan Siqi, who is known as the founder of Taiwan. This Yan Siqi actually fled from Japan to Taiwan with his men in this year, and chose to live in Yunnan.

He landed in the Lin area and began to develop in that area, preparing to build his foundation there.

However, Yan Siqi was unlucky. He fell ill and died suddenly as soon as he established a foothold in Taiwan. His men were also recruited by Zheng Yiguan and took over his inheritance. However, Zheng Yiguan failed to hold on to the place left to him by Yan Siqi because the Dutch

They were not allowed to develop in Taiwan in an urgent need. Later, Zheng Yiguan was forced to abandon the island of Taiwan and return to the coastal areas of Quanzhou to develop his power.

Therefore, knowing these things in advance makes it easier for Yu Xiaotian to make the right choice. If he wants to occupy a place in Taiwan and gain a firm foothold, and not be squeezed out by the Dutch in the future, he must first choose northern Taiwan.

To gain a foothold, he should accelerate the development of his own strength first. Before the Dutch drive him away, he must gain the ability to fight against the Dutch in order to maintain his territory.