flstandardbreds Chapter 318 Manila's Compromise
Chapter 318 Manila's Compromise
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Gao Jie's "hitting the cow from across the mountain" strategy yielded immediate results.
In an era when the power of cannons could not even shake a fortified castle, the panic caused by launching explosive shells into the city was far greater than the effect of a siege—a dozen or so 52-jin explosive shells, each costing ten taels of silver, were thrown into the city, resulting in the governor's office's compromise and a military allowance of ten thousand taels.
Governor Salamanca ultimately compromised under pressure from colonial elites, wealthy merchants, and other social classes. Following Mayor Isabella's advice, he drafted an agreement and sent it out of the city along with 10,000 taels of silver from the Chinese Chamber of Commerce.
As the proposer of the draft agreement, Mayor Isabella naturally became the plenipotentiary representative of the Governor's Office, responsible for negotiating a ceasefire agreement with the other side. Li Yifan, president of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, also accompanied her.
Before boarding the "Guangdong," Isabella closely observed these beautiful sailing ships and concluded that these new galleons were more maneuverable than the British galleons, while their thick hulls provided sturdiness comparable to the improved Spanish galleons. Although the Invincible Armada abandoned the old carrack type after its defeat by the Royal Navy, modifying it according to the characteristics of galleons—the Spanish galleons used today—maneuverability and flexibility remained inherent weaknesses. No wonder the enemy claimed to have defeated Zheng Yiguan of the Far East and was even going to set new rules; they had every reason to be confident. Although news of Zheng Yiguan's defeat hadn't yet reached Manila, lying about it was pointless and would soon be exposed; it was probably all true. With such galleons and the enemy's formidable naval guns, even if a fleet from the New World arrived in Manila, they might not be able to defeat this fleet.
With this understanding, Isabella abandoned her unrealistic fantasies after boarding the ship and honestly negotiated the relevant terms with the opposing fleet commander.
"...Abandon the strongholds of Keelung and Tamsui, withdraw all soldiers...Provide porcelain, tea, and silk worth at least 300,000 pesos annually..." Gao Jie scratched his head as he read the draft agreement. The general's mission before his departure was to "persuade" Batavia with the fleet and artillery, and also to pressure Manila to voluntarily withdraw their soldiers from Keelung and Tamsui, thus avoiding a costly expedition for the Qiongzhou Battalion. However, this draft agreement was beyond his authorized scope, and Gao Jie had no say in the matter.
He spread out the agreement and said to Isabella, "Mayor, right? I am the fleet commander, and the commercial sector is not my responsibility. I can only take your agreement back and let my general decide. But before that, you must abandon the stronghold of Tainan, otherwise next time it won't just be a port blockade, our army will also come and deal with you!"
Isabella thought for a moment and asked, "Since you cannot make the decision yourself, and the round trip would take too long, could Manila send a negotiating team to your territory to conduct business negotiations?"
“That’s fine,” Gao Jie agreed to his request.
Seeing that negotiations were stalled, Li Yifan stepped forward at the opportune moment and said respectfully, "Your Excellency Commander, I am Li Yifan, the president of the Luzon Chinese Chamber of Commerce. I have come to offer ten thousand taels of silver as a reward for the royal army. May I ask if your superior is a general of the Ming Dynasty? Is he a Han Chinese?"
Gao Jie nodded: "He is a general of the Ming Dynasty, holding the official position of Qiongzhou Assistant General. He commands the entire island, and the entire Far East Ocean is under his sphere of influence. He is also a Han Chinese with yellow skin and black eyes, just like us."
Li Yifan was thrilled. As a Ming Dynasty merchant living in seclusion overseas, although he was in Luzon, he constantly hoped that the influence of the Celestial Empire would expand to Luzon and support them, the Chinese community. Although the Chinese in Luzon were shrewd businessmen and wealthy, their social status was disproportionate to their wealth, and they were always worried about being exploited. Now, a Ming Dynasty general had replaced Zheng Yiguan, whose influence extended as far as Manila, and who possessed a powerful fleet that even the Spanish and Dutch could not match. This was truly a blessing for overseas Chinese.
He said excitedly, “The Chinese merchants of Luzon are all subjects of the Ming Dynasty, and share the same Han blood as Your Excellency. Please convey to the Vice General that the Han people of Luzon are devoted to the Ming Dynasty and have long awaited the arrival of the royal army. If Your Excellency sends merchant ships to Manila, the Chinese Merchants Association will definitely provide strong support. At the same time, we are also willing to go to Hainan to do business and contribute our modest efforts to promote the prosperity of Hainan.”
Although Gao Jie was a Chinese citizen with yellow skin and black eyes, he had been working overseas for a long time and could understand Li Yifan's mentality. Moreover, based on his understanding of Liu Ye, he would definitely agree to such a request. So he nodded and said, "Don't worry, I will pass on your message."
Isabella watched coldly from the sidelines, inwardly sneering. What an ungrateful wretch! Earning Manila pesos while his heart is set on Ming China. Judging from his words, he seems to be planning to transfer assets. It seems necessary to inform the governor and take some strong measures to avoid losses from a potential northward migration of Chinese—it's better to keep the enormous wealth in Manila than to let it flow to Ming China. Li Yifan was unaware that his enthusiasm for the Ming army would bring a bloodbath upon himself and the entire Chinese community in the Philippines.
After reaching a verbal agreement with Manila and stipulating that the Spanish colonial government would send representatives to Qiongzhou for negotiations, Gao Jie ordered the fleet to lift the blockade of the port. After the Governor-General's Office provided the necessary supplies, the fleet withdrew from Manila and headed to its next destination—Batavia.
Putmans witnessed the entire process of blockading the port, bombarding Manila, and the colonial government's compromise. Although he despised the incompetence of the Spanish colonial government, he could not hide his concern for the East India Company—what if the same thing happened in Batavia? Although the East India Company maintained a sizable fleet in the South Seas, which was stronger than the almost undefended Manila, it seemed that it could not withstand the fleet that could destroy Zheng Yiguan within 24 hours.
With these concerns in mind, Putmans remained silent throughout the journey from Manila to Batavia, paying no heed to mock the Ming people's navigational skills. A few days later, the fleet rounded the Philippines, crossed the South China Sea, and reached the waters off Batavia, with Java Island in the distance.
Batavia is present-day Jakarta. Also known as the Coconut City, it is the largest city and capital of Indonesia, located on the northwest coast of Java Island. It is the largest city in Southeast Asia and a world-renowned seaport.