On the morning of February 10, in the 26th year of Yongli, a large Western-style armed sailboat flying the United Jack flag was slowly sailing into the narrow Haojiangkou and heading to the West Pier of Dahao Commercial Port.

This armed merchant ship belonging to the British East India Company has a very oriental name, the Great Oriental. It is an old armed merchant ship launched in 1652 and can no longer adapt to the naval battles in Europe. However, in the east of the world, with its load-bearing tonnage of more than 500 British tons and as many as 36 artillery numbers, this "giant ship" is still a maritime overlord!

Only the flagship of the Dutch East India Company can compete with this "giant ship"!

After obtaining this big ship, the British East India Company put it on the "Mumbai" route, continuously transporting porcelain, silk and sugar produced from China to India, and then transporting some silver, tinea produced in India, as well as some miscellaneous things to Macau.

Almost left Macau with a full load and then returned with a light load. Although this unbalanced trade has made the British East India Company, which operates the Great Oriental, make a lot of money, who would think it would be too much? If the Great Oriental can be fully loaded and traveled, wouldn’t it be possible to get more benefits?

So the captains of the Big East, Smith and Grand Ban Jones, received the same instructions every year to find Indian or European goods that could open the Chinese market.

But where did they go to find such good things?

China has a vast land and abundant resources, and there is nothing short of anything! If it weren't for the fact that there were a small force in southern China that resisted the Tatar dynasty and needed Indian fire and British arms, the Great Oriental would have almost been empty to Macau!

And this time, when the Great Oriental was parked in Macau, Smith and Jones got another good news and bad news.

The good news is that the East India Company's store in Dahao has discovered two more products that can make a lot of money for the company, a Chinese rum with a very good taste and a white sugar that is said to be particularly white!

The bad news is that the Chinese partners of East India Company have mastered the process of collecting nitrogen and manufacturing granular black gunpowder!

Moreover, their craftsmanship is surprisingly high, and the stinky and black gunpowder produced can even be compared with British goods.

So in the future, there is no need to transport Indian tin and gunpowder to Macau. Even tin and gunpowder are not shipped. What else can you transport in the future? Just transport some spices and gum arabic? Then you can't even fill half of the warehouse! Will the British East India Company be able to exchange Chinese goods in the future?

Just when Smith and Jones didn't know how to report to the company headquarters in London, Charlie Goff, a senior at the company's shopping mall in Taiwan, suddenly rushed to Macau, and brought Smith and Jones a shocking news. Zhu San, the leader of the former Ming Resistance Army entrenched on the eastern coast of Guangdong, China, had gathered thousands of troops and prepared to take advantage of the opportunity of the Guangdong Qing army's main expedition to sneak attack Guangzhou City by sea. He also wanted to ask the East India Company's armed merchant ships to escort to avoid being attacked by the Macau Portuguese fleet that supported the Qing Dynasty.

There is no doubt that this is a huge opportunity!

It is the opportunity for the British East India Company to acquire a colonial stronghold in China!

Although British merchant ships and warships can freely enter and exit Macau ports according to the treaty concluded between Britain and Portugal, Macau belongs to Portugal after all!

British ships can only enter and exit freely, and there is no way to turn Macau into its own money tree.

It would be ideal if Britain East India Company could also get its own "Macao" along the coast of China!

Now, the opportunity given by the heaven is in front of the British East India Company. The East India Company can provide Prince Zhu San, which is not just a simple escort mission.

The East India Company can also recruit a powerful Western mercenary for Zhu San Taisun, provide Zhu San Taisun with cannons, artillery and engineers that can break through the strong Guangzhou city walls, and even lobby Macau Portuguese soldiers to provide support to Zhu San Taisun's army!

So Smith and Jones, who received the news, immediately led the Big Oriental to leave Macau and came to Chaozhou like flying.

On the way to Chaozhou, the two of them surrounded the map with Charlie Goff and studied it carefully to see which place is more suitable for colonization!

It is of course the best to build a piece of land at the estuary of the Yangtze River, but Zhu San Taisun's army will not be able to overcome it for a while, and they can at most conquer Guangzhou.

So the three of them thought they could build an island outside the Lingdingyangkou where they could establish a port. As the British East India Company's stronghold in China, the three imperialist robbers chose for a long time, and finally picked an island called Hong Kong Island.

This island was once a distribution center for imported spices during the Ming Dynasty, so it was named Hong Kong. However, after the Qing Dynasty implemented the sea ban on moving the border, it was completely abandoned and became an uninhabited deserted island.

I believe that Prince Zhu San and Grandson Zhu San wouldn’t care too much about such an uninhabited island, right?

In addition to the colonies, these three foreigners also want to obtain "monopolized free trade rights", that is, the British East India Company's ships can go anywhere they want to trade. All ports under the control of Prince Zhu San and Grandson Zhu San must be open to the British East India Company!

In addition, extraterritorial legal power is also necessary!

The Chinese criminal law is too strict and does not conform to Christian doctrines. The subjects of the King of England violated the law on the land ruled by Prince Zhu San, and cannot be tried by the Chinese court, but must be tried by the consul of the British Company.

Finally, it is the issue of the British East India Company renting land on the land ruled by Prince Zhu San. This store should also have extraterritorial legal power. Chinese officials cannot enter at will, and they must obtain the consent of the consul to enter.

The above requirements have been compiled into a draft treaty by Smith, Jones and Goff, and they are waiting for Prince Zhu to sign and seal it.

As long as Prince Zhu San agreed, the British East India Company would assist him in seizing Guangzhou City as much as possible.

If he disagrees, he will be sorry. Britain East India Trading Company is just a commercial company engaged in peaceful trading. How can it do the escort business?

Moreover, the Governor of Macau was appointed by the King of Portugal and represented the Kingdom of Portugal. How could a commercial company have a conflict with the Governor of the Kingdom of Portugal and the army?

Standing on the stern deck of the Great Oriental, looking at a group of people wearing "Confucian clothes" gathered on the Dahaoxi Pier. The three foreigners were full of confidence and felt that these Chinese must need the help of the British East India Company.

Without the help of the British East India Company, it would be impossible for them to enter the Humen gate, which was heavily guarded by the Qing army, with their weak firepower.
Chapter completed!