Chapter 432: Three Bottom Lines

The solemn and imposing soldiers made Lord Rod feel a bit uneasy.

The young Prince of Qi’s first words sent a cold sweat down Rhodes’s back. He did not know much about the Great Yu Empire and did not understand the prince’s purpose—was he preparing for revenge? Or was it just a test?

After a moment of silence, Rhodes spoke cautiously, “Your Highness, the war with the King of Chu was not started by us. It was the King of Chu who has long planned to monopolize maritime trade.”

At this moment, everyone was standing outside the prefecture office in Dengzhou. Xiao Ming sneered and said, “Ambassador, let’s talk inside. I know your Dutch people very well.”

Rhodes was startled but followed Xiao Ming into the prefecture office.

Everyone took their seats. The guards served tea. Xiao Ming took a small sip and said, “You have twelve warships in East Asia. Ryukyu and Nagasaki are your two supply points in this region. On Ryukyu Island, you built two castles—one at the southern end and one at the northern end. Among the ten thousand troops stationed there, only about three thousand are real Dutch soldiers; the rest are native Ryukyuans and, of course, the hired Japanese pirates, right?”

Xiao Ming said nothing more, but Rhodes cold sweat kept increasing. He looked at Xiao Ming in disbelief and asked, “Are you spying on us?”

“Yes, Your Highness. I am spying on you just as you spy on me,” Xiao Ming said calmly.

Rhodes was shocked and speechless. His thoughts were confused. Facing this young vassal prince, he could not remain as calm as when he faced the King of Chu. It seemed this young prince had seen through him completely.

“Tell me, what is the purpose of your visit?” Xiao Ming said.

Seeing Rhodes shocked expression, Xiao Ming changed the subject. His goal was to intimidate him.

Swallowing hard, Rhodes said, “Your Highness, we came here with the intention to establish a long-term foreign trade relationship and to seek cooperation partners.”

“Foreign trade relationship? Cooperation partners?” Xiao Ming sneered. “You bombard our Great Yu Empire’s merchant ships and monopolize our coastal shipping routes. Is this your idea of foreign trade?”

Rhodes did not know how to explain. Originally, they viewed the Great Yu Empire like the indigenous peoples of the Americas—seemingly strong but actually weak.

But things had changed unexpectedly. There was clearly a strong force in the north of this country.

If this place was close to America, he would not be so worried because the continuous support from the mainland army would back them up. But now, they were thousands of miles away. Their armed forces with the same weapons had become a real threat.

“Your Highness, I believe this is a misunderstanding. We only attacked the King of Chu’s merchant ships, not others…”

“I know you colonizers very well!” Xiao Ming cut him off because Rhodes was clearly lying.

Staring sharply at Rhodes, Xiao Ming continued, “You slaughter natives in North America, trade black slaves in Africa, plunder spices and raw materials in South Asia. Your hands are stained with blood. Now, you point your slaughter knives at my country. You know my country is weak and divided, yet you want to force your trade hegemony on us.”

“You… you… how do you know about America and Africa?”

He was beyond shocked. The flintlock gun had overturned their understanding of this Prince of Qi, and now his knowledge shocked Rhodes even more.

He had talked with many Great Yu officials, and no one knew much outside their country. To him, Great Yu was a closed nation, but this prince shattered his perception completely.

“I not only know America and Africa, but I also know where your Netherlands is—between France and England. You Dutch must be living an unhappy life,” Xiao Ming said with a trace of mockery.

No matter how the Dutch were in Europe, now to him they were just colonizers.

Rhodes psychological defense completely collapsed. The unknown always brings fear, and now he faced the unknown.

“Your Highness, please believe in our sincerity. We really came with the intention of establishing trade relations,” Rod said with difficulty.

In the Age of Discovery, no war was truly just. At this time, power spoke louder than words. Just like the Dutch colonizing Ryukyu and dominating trade routes, it was all backed by force.

The truth was only valid within the range of cannon fire. Only the victors had the right to set the rules. For Xiao Ming, it was time for him to set the trade rules in East Asia. So he said, “You can establish trade, but first, you must hand over Ryukyu Island to me. Second, the trade routes in East Asia belong to me. Third, Dengzhou will be your only trading port. If you agree to these three points, then I will agree to trade with you.”

“Impossible!”

Rhodes stood up angrily. The indigenous countries had always followed rules made by the Dutch. When had the natives ever made the rules?

Moreover, these rules would reduce the Dutch from trade leaders to mere vassals. That was unacceptable.

“Nothing is impossible, East Asia is our territory so the rules here should be set by us. You Dutch are just outsiders and obeying the rules is your duty. Ryukyu also belongs to the Great Yu Empire. You have occupied our land, which is an act of aggression and I have the right to demand you return Ryukyu.”

“Your Highness, your demands are too much. We will not agree to any of these three points, especially Ryukyu. It is not your land; it now belongs to the Dutch,” Rhodes said angrily.

“Ryukyu belongs to Great Yu!” Xiao Ming’s expression turned cold. He had lost patience with these bandits. The Dutch still did not realize what they would face.

“I think we have nothing more to discuss,” Rhodes stood up.

“As you wish,” Xiao Ming replied firmly. These were his bottom lines. Ryukyu must be taken back. The trade routes must be regained.

Rhodes snorted coldly, stood, and walked out. His followers left with him.

“Your Highness, these barbarians fear power but have no virtue. Talking won’t help; war is the only answer. Also, the Dutch have made peace with the Japanese, which is very disadvantageous to us. The Japanese outside the city walls all carry firearms,” Niu Ben said seriously.

Xiao Ming nodded. In the sixteenth century, Japan was a world-class gun manufacturing center. Data showed that at one time, Japan produced 300,000 firearms.

Though subjectively Xiao Ming did not favor Japan, objectively he had to admit Japan was a powerful opponent not to be underestimated. That was why he wanted to cut off contact between the Dutch and Japan, to prevent more Western technology from flooding into Japan.