Lu Guangzhai and Xu Erjue's leisure time was completely gone.
"There is still no news about the merchant ship that was originally scheduled to arrive five days ago. I'm afraid there was an accident."
The representative of Songjiang Cotton Spinning came over with a solemn look on his face.
Upon hearing the news, both Lu Guangzhai and Xu Erjue felt the seriousness of the situation.
Because the sea is vast and the journey is long, sufficient time is reserved for merchant ships.
But no matter what, if the merchant ship has not arrived at the port after more than five days, it means that it may never arrive.
I have traveled the route between Xia Kingdom and Batavia many times, so I already know how long it will take.
Excluding the impact of sea storms, five days of relief time is definitely enough.
Besides, we don’t run boats during stormy times of the year.
Although they were informed of the situation, they were overseas, alone, and had no clues for a moment.
Anthony Van Diemen actually came to visit.
"One of our merchant ships bound for Japan was supposed to return within this month, but there has been no news. We very much suspect that they encountered pirates."
pirate?
Lu Guangzhai and Xu Erjue looked at each other.
In terms of experience on the sea, the Dutch are definitely above them.
Since the Dutch judged it this way, I'm afraid it's true.
"Is it Spanish?"
If you want to say who is least likely to deal with the Dutch on the waters of the East, then it must be the Spaniards who occupy Luzon.
The Bashi Strait is right between Taiwan and Luzon.
Perhaps the Spanish learned about the situation here, so they sent their navy to pretend to be pirates and carry out the robbery.
Anthony van Diemen didn't see it that way.
"After the last battle, the Spaniards have been severely damaged by us and do not dare to come to provoke us. Moreover, the Spaniards have been driven away from Taiwan, and this route is not within their control."
Lu Guangzhai and Xu Erjue vaguely guessed something, but did not dare to define it randomly.
This is no small matter.
It can set off huge waves.
One look at their expressions told Anthony Van Diemen that he could not act rashly.
He gave the Dutch way.
“I wonder when Xia’s merchant ships will set sail?”
Lu Guangzhai informed happily.
"Three days later."
Anthony van Diemen stated the intention.
"Batavia has decided to send a naval warship over to check what's going on, but when the pirates see it's a warship, they will definitely run away. So I would like to ask your merchant ships to cooperate. This will be beneficial to both of us.
"
Lu Guangzhai and Xu Erjue understood immediately.
An unexpected situation occurred on the route, which would definitely be a huge loss to Xia Guo. It is also in Xia Guo's interest to be able to find out the truth.
"Then let's do it."
Three days later, three Xia merchant ships set sail from Batavia and embarked on their return journey.
Before the fleet even left the port, the news had already been sent out by someone who was interested.
But those who were interested could not see that on another island, two Dutch warships also quietly left the harbor.
At the same time, discussions were also taking place on Xia's side.
"It stands to reason that the new route is not within any sphere of influence, and there should be no problems. But so far, we have lost seven merchant ships, and many people have died. The Dutch's losses are also similar to ours. Staff
It is my guess that someone must have intervened in this sea area and not other factors."
Liu Yiyuan read out the prediction on behalf of the General Staff Headquarters.
"Mr. Zheng."
Because it was an internal meeting, Zuo Yong spoke without any worries.
"evidence."
Zuo Mengeng's words may seem like a refutation, but they are actually confirmation.
If there was an accident to just one or two merchant ships, no one would suspect that they had encountered some kind of storm.
But it is definitely not an accident that so many merchant ships have disappeared without a trace.
All things considered, the biggest suspect is definitely Zheng.
This has actually reached a consensus within the Xia Kingdom.
But Zuo Mengeng said it very clearly.
Even if they knew this was done by Zheng, Xia Guo needed evidence.
With evidence, Xia Guo can show off his skills without any scruples.
Will there be evidence...?
Off the coast of Shimabara.
Xia's transport ship once again entered here in the early morning.
The situation of the Daoyuan Rebels is now becoming increasingly dire.
Yuan Shengsheng and Amakusa Tokisada have decided to retreat to Kurume, shortening their own front and not giving Matsudaira Nobutsuna a chance to make a detour.
Their weapons and ammunition have been exhausted and are in urgent need of replenishment.
Under such circumstances, Xia Guo had to increase the frequency of transportation.
Even if there are many dangers involved, we can't care about it.
The sailboat sailed quietly on the water, and everyone on the boat opened their eyes wide, alert to unexpected situations around them.
But the hazy night still makes it difficult for people's eyes to see very far.
Suddenly, a tall shadow rushed towards me in the darkness.
It wasn't until thirty meters away that wild and wanton shouting came from the opposite side.
Immediately afterwards, the overwhelming rain of arrows covered this area.
Fortunately, the people on the boat were well prepared. Seeing the two boats collide, they quickly turned around and ran towards the cabin.
The pirates had already rushed over, and when they saw the actions of the crew, they couldn't help but laugh sarcastically.
On the vast sea, what's the use of running into the cabin?
The leading pirate drew his sword, shouted something, and rushed towards the cabin to kill.
But when he opened the cabin door with a knife, he was immediately stunned.
First of all, there were no weapons in the cabin, but instead it was filled with people.
Even more terrifying than the darkness of the people is the darkness of the muzzles of the guns.
The pirate leader understood immediately and turned around in fear to escape.
But with the gunfire like exploding beads, his left leg was shot and he fell heavily to the deck.
The pirates behind him were even worse, dying in the hail of bullets.
The pirate leader didn't care about the wound on his leg and tried hard to get up and escape.
Two claw hooks flew from behind, clasped tightly on his shoulders, and dragged him back alive.
People in the cabin swarmed out and gunshots were fired.
The unprepared pirates were unable to resist and were slaughtered like wheat blown by the wind.
And seeing that these people who ran out were all wearing Xia Army uniforms, the pirates lost the will to resist.
Escape became their only thought.
The surviving pirates jumped back to their own ship, just to get away.
But since Xia Jun made such a move, how could he not be prepared?
One of the Xia soldiers raised his arm high and fired a shot into the sky.
The bullet flew high into the sky, exploded violently, and then transformed into a bright firework.
At this time of dawn, and on the sea that is as flat as a mirror, these fireworks are so eye-catching.
Soon, Xia's warships were approaching from all directions.
When the pirates saw this scene, they were already dying.
They want to run.
Where can I run to?
The artillery on a Xia ** ship roared, making a big hole in the pirate ship, and immediately began to spin in circles.
On the transport ship, a Xia officer walked up to the captured pirate leader and knocked off his hat with the knife in his hand.
When he saw the pirate leader's hairstyle, his expression changed.