There was no welcoming ceremony at the pier, and not even a Ming Dynasty official came to greet them. There was just a car and a military truck carrying guards parked.
Feinberg was taken to a Chinese hotel and settled down. He had a feeling that the Ming side was not very interested in this negotiation. From the navy captain on the destroyer to the junior army officer who came to pick him up, everyone's attitude
They are all very cold.
However, considering that these people are all young officers and are easily controlled by emotions, after witnessing the Chinese Massacre riot in Batavia, it is inevitable that they will treat me, a Dutch official, with a cold shoulder.
"Mr. Feinberg, then you can rest," the junior officer nodded. "We will pick you up at eight o'clock tomorrow morning and go to the Governor's Mansion for negotiations."
Bang, the room door closed.
Feinberg looked at the smashed window glass, mosquitoes flying in and out, and the stifling heat in the room. He felt even more depressed. He had already vomited all his lunch on the boat, and now he was unbearably hungry.
Alas, after all, he was a negotiating envoy of a country. When he came here, let alone a welcome dinner, he didn't even bother with a dinner. He shook his head, put on his hat and went out, thinking of finding a place to eat down below.
The restaurant of the hotel downstairs was full, and there was no empty seat. Feinberg stopped a waiter and ordered dinner to be delivered to the room above. The waiter was a Chinese, looked him up and down, shook his head coldly and said
:
"Dutch? Sorry, we don't have this service. If you want to eat, just wait here for a vacant table."
Feinberg was so angry that he almost broke out on the spot, but the waiter had already gone to work. The hall was noisy and no one paid attention to him. Feinberg was in a terrible mood and strode out to find another restaurant.
.
I found three restaurants along this street, two of which were full. One of them made it clear that it would not accept Dutch people and put a sign at the door: Dutch people and natives are not allowed to enter.
He did not expect that the anti-Dutch sentiment in Batavia had reached such an extent that even ordinary Chinese restaurants would no longer accept Dutch and local people. That meant that they would lose nearly half of their customer base. These always make money.
Chinese people, in order to vent their inner emotions, are willing to endure nearly half of the loss?
In addition, he didn't understand that the business of these restaurants was so good just after the war. However, when he saw the two full restaurants, there were many soldiers of the Ming Army inside. It seemed that the Ming Army was having a holiday today and the soldiers were all out to hang out.
It's like a street.
However, this area is still full of Chinese districts, restaurants, shops, etc., and all the businesses are Chinese. It is really not easy to find a high-end restaurant that accepts Dutch people. Fortunately, I met a Dutch major, who seemed to have surrendered.
Yes, he was allowed to wander around Batavia. Following his instructions, Feinberg walked to the end of the street and had already seen the beach of Batavia Bay before finding the fourth restaurant. This restaurant looked
It looks very luxurious, with two large black cars parked at the entrance. According to experience, in colonial places, slightly higher-end places are generally very clean.
As he climbed the steps, two Chinese waiters in luxurious uniforms opened the door for him respectfully and said in Dutch:
"Good evening, sir, welcome."
Feinberg suddenly felt comfortable in his heart, nodded like a gentleman, and went in with his head held high.
But unexpectedly... every table inside was full. A Chinese waiter came over quickly and said with a smile in Dutch:
"Sir, there are seats upstairs. You can also see the sea."
Feinberg's heart was relieved again. He nodded and smiled, and followed the waiter to the second floor. The environment on the second floor was more elegant than the first floor. As expected, there were not many people, and they seemed to be well-dressed Westerners. Maybe they were
Dutch.
The waiter guided him to a table near the window and sat down. Feinberg ordered the dishes happily.
Sure enough, you can see the sea from here. This is obviously a high-end leisure area in Batavia. It has not been disturbed by anti-Chinese riots and wars at all, and it is still peaceful and elegant. There is a street downstairs, and the beach is directly on the other side of the street, and then there is
The sea water constantly washes up on the beach. Outside the large floor-to-ceiling windows, mercury lamps and neon lights illuminate the coastal style in a colorful way. Many well-dressed upper-class people, including Europeans and Chinese, come in pairs, with their wives or female companions, and enjoy themselves.
Enjoy a tropical beachfront evening.
The food Feinberg ordered was delivered to him. He was in a good mood, and all the original unhappiness disappeared. He gave the waiter another tip, and while eating, he observed several guests in the restaurant on the second floor.
There was a Western couple and two single Western guests. In addition, sitting on a table in front of me was a Chinese young couple. They looked very happy, drinking frequently while admiring the sea view outside the window.
The young man's back was facing him, and the young lady was facing him. The two of them lowered their voices and chatted with smiles. From time to time, their voices would get louder, and then the young man would remind:
"Qiu Qiu, keep your voice down! Be careful not to be overheard!"
The young girl would giggle and say:
"They don't understand anyway..."
"Then be careful of being recognized..."
"...It's okay... Hehe, this is so exciting..."
Feinberg smiled and ate, feeling envious of these carefree young people. They were young, well-dressed, and having so much fun... They were still at an age where they could enjoy life to the fullest, and the most important thing was
What's more, I don't need to bear any heavy responsibility on my shoulders... unlike myself, who will have to engage in a humiliating negotiation for the sake of the national interest tomorrow...
The young couple in front suddenly said a few words:
"Xiaoqiang, it's so beautiful here. I really can't bear to leave here..."
"So today I'll take you to have a last look at the sea... I'll finish the negotiations tomorrow, and I may leave East India in the next two days... When we get to Germany, the scenery there will be even more beautiful, and you will be so reluctant to leave...
"
"Hehe, you are so... I just like this tropical sea and beach..."
"Yes, yes, you naval officers are all naturally fascinated by the sea, I know..."
…
These few sentences were caught in Feinberg's ears and hit his heart. Feinberg almost held his breath to listen, but the next few sentences lowered his voice and could no longer be heard clearly.
.
The little girl called the young man "Xiaoqiang", and the young man seemed to have called the young girl "Qiuqiu"! And the young man also said, "After the negotiations are over tomorrow, we will leave East India and then go to Germany"! He also said that the little girl was
Naval officer!
Feinberg began to guess who was sitting at the table in front of him. He lowered his head calmly, but glanced up, secretly sizing up the young couple at the table in front of him.
The man's back was turned to him, so he couldn't see his face clearly. But the woman was facing him. Although the lights in the restaurant were dim, she could still clearly see her face.
That seems to be one of the two wives of Xiang Xiaoqiang, commander of the People's Guard of the Ming Dynasty: Qiu Qiu!
When Feinberg was ambassador in Nanjing, he often saw Xiang Xiaoqiang in newspapers and Qiu Qiu. He saw them both in public twice! There was no mistake, it was Xiang Xiaoqiang.
Madam!
The young man with his back turned to him is undoubtedly Xiang Xiaoqiang!
Unexpectedly, the opponent he was negotiating with tomorrow, the current young ruler of Batavia Island, would now sneak out of the Governor's Mansion with his young wife and go to a small restaurant on the beach to eat!
But think about it, as a young couple, what's the surprise in doing something like this? Besides, this must be because they may leave soon after the negotiation tomorrow, and Xiang Xiaoqiang's wife is reluctant to leave here and is clamoring to come out.
Just for fun. Xiang Xiaoqiang's character is the kind of person who does things on a whim. It is entirely possible that he and his wife sneak out to play. These days, he is either living in the German Consulate or in the Governor's Mansion. He doesn't come out much, so he must be holding back.
It's broken...the two luxury cars downstairs should be theirs.
Feinberg was extremely excited. As a professional diplomat, he immediately understood how valuable this God-given opportunity was. He immediately slowed down his eating speed and ate slowly while holding his breath and carefully capturing every word Xiang Xiaoqiang said.
I hope he can mention the topic of negotiations. Even if it is only a sentence, it will be of great help to tomorrow's negotiations.
However, this young couple was obviously just out for fun. Although they spoke loudly because others could not understand Chinese, they talked about romance and nothing related to negotiation.
Feinberg waited patiently. He made up his mind that Xiang Xiaoqiang and his wife would not leave, and he would never leave. He would listen to the whole story here. At the same time, he lowered his head as much as possible to prevent Xiang Xiaoqiang's wife from remembering his face.
While Qiu Qiu was fussing with Xiang Xiaoqiang, he always murmured and laughed:
"Xiaoqiang, I really can't bear to leave Batavia Island... How about we just stop leaving? Hehe, tell His Majesty, if we don't return Batavia Island to the Netherlands, His Majesty will give you a seal.
'Marquis of Batavia', let's just make our home here, okay..."
Feinberg couldn't help but chuckle when he heard this: This little girl really dares to joke... Ordinary wives act coquettishly with their husbands by asking for jewelry and furs. She is directly asking for Batavia Island... looking at Xiaoqiang
How to reprimand her.
Qiu Qiu kept saying "I can't bear to leave" over and over again. Xiang Xiaoqiang was probably a little annoyed by her and said:
"You really can't bear to leave Batavia?"
"Um."
Then Xiang Xiaoqiang looked around, and Feinberg quickly lowered his head to eat. Xiang Xiaoqiang turned his head and took one more look at Feinberg, then turned back to Qiu Qiu and lowered his voice:
"Don't worry, we probably won't hand over Batavia Island..."
Qiu Qiu was surprised: "Really? Why?"
"Let me tell you..." Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled slightly and whispered, "The Ming Dynasty originally wanted Pazia Island, plus 180 million Mingyang compensation. Later, the cabinet considered that there was no Badawi on Pazia Island.
There are so many good ports in Asia, and it is difficult to build a naval base, so now I plan to acquire Batavia Island, plus the oil and rubber rights of Pazia Island, and 180 million Mingyang compensation..."
"Ah!" Qiu Qiu exclaimed in shock, "I really want Batavia Island! The Netherlands will definitely not give it to me!"
Xiang Xiaoqiang said quickly: "Shhh... keep your voice down... there is a spy here. If we hear about it, the negotiations will be passive tomorrow! Let me tell you, if you say this directly, the Netherlands will definitely not be able to accept it... So we will negotiate tomorrow and make a price.
It wants to be higher, and demands Batavia Island and Pazia Island at the same time, plus an indemnity of 180 million Mingyang... The Netherlands will definitely not be able to accept this, and their expectations will be lowered very low, so that we can negotiate...
…We can lower the price little by little during the negotiation process, and finally we can lower it to the point where we don’t need Pazia Island, as long as Batavia Island and Mingyang pay compensation of 180 million yuan. In this way, the Netherlands will feel that they have got a big bargain, and they will at least keep it.
Pazia Island...this will be much easier for them to accept..."
"Oh...I see," Qiu Qiu said with a hint of understanding, "This is just like bargaining when we buy clothes. For clothes worth ten mingyang, he will ask for forty mingyang... In this way, the buyer will cut off half of it.
There are still twenty mingyang, the seller will make a net profit of ten mingyang, and the buyer will feel that he has taken a big advantage and feel very comfortable..."
"Yes, you are so smart, that's it."
Qiu Qiu was confused and said:
"Then, what if the Netherlands is not even willing to give us Batavia Island?"
Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled evilly:
"That would be great. That's exactly what I and my brothers want."
"ah?"
"The secret message sent by His Majesty has stated that this is the final bottom line. If the Netherlands agrees, we will stop. If it does not agree, we will continue the war and capture Pazia Island and Batavia Island at the same time. The fight will be smooth.
If we do, we may have to take over Borneo... But the northern part of Borneo belongs to British Malaya. If we land on the island, Britain may feel uneasy... But we will talk about it then.
"Haha, Qiu Qiu, by then we have captured Batavia Island, Pazia Island, Borneo, and Sulawesi, and the entire East India will almost belong to the Ming Dynasty... How unparalleled is this?
Great achievement! I am definitely the leader of this South Sea war, your husband... I led the People's Guard and made great achievements. After taking the East Indies, I was almost enough to be made a marquis, right? Even if I can't be made a marquis, I can definitely be made a count.
Already...
"Qiu Qiu, think about it, I am so young and have already climbed to such a high position. It is unlikely that I will be able to climb higher in the short term. I can only move up the ranks. Then you will be the Marquise!...
…Don’t mention it, it’s really possible to have a fiefdom in Nanyang! It’s definitely not realistic to be a Marquis of Java, but it’s still very realistic to be a Marquis of Surabaya or Bandung. Then we’ll come to the fiefdom once a year, and it’ll be like this every time...
…”
"Okay, okay," Qiu Qiu lowered his voice excitedly, "That's it, hehe... Oh, I really hope that the Dutch representative tomorrow will be more stubborn. It is best not to agree to us on any terms, so that we can go to war, and you can too
It would be nice to be granted the title of Marquis or Earl..."
"Okay, okay," Xiang Xiaoqiang said with a smile, "You little girl, how can you not be as simple as you think... Besides, Dutch is not that stupid. Now he understands that he is not qualified to bargain, so how can he be like you?
They are so stubborn... We do want to fight, but they are not willing to give us an excuse... However, I will try to be tougher tomorrow, which is fine... I will try to make the Dutch representative angry, and it is best to throw up my sleeves and leave, so we can
There is an excuse to fight... If he is really smart and can accept our bottom line, then there is nothing we can do... Phew, it's almost nine o'clock, we have to go back, we have to negotiate tomorrow..."
Xiang Xiaoqiang then called the waiter, paid the bill, left with Qiu Qiu, and went downstairs.
Feinberg sat stunned in his seat, his whole body cold. In this tropical night, he seemed to have fallen into an ice hole.
...It's over... I know the bottom line of the Ming Dynasty... It's so high... Batavia Island can't be saved...
Feinberg sat in silence for several minutes, then stood up with almost staggering support on the table, paid the bill and left... A secret message must be sent to the country as soon as possible to inform the Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister that the bottom line of the Ming Dynasty is known... Now all
Efforts can no longer be focused on ensuring the integrity of the East India territory. Now we must try to preserve Batavia Island at all costs.