Although Colombo is the ruling center of the Dutch East India Company on Ceylon, it is far from enough in terms of the size of the city. Its population is only more than 10,000, and it also includes many Dutch officials, merchants, mercenaries and their families.

The local economy is mainly planting, and grain planting is not worth mentioning because it cannot be sold at all, and it has never been valued by the Dutch. What the Dutch East India Company values ​​are actually specialty products such as pepper, cinnamon, ash, ivory, etc., just like what they value in the East Indies.

Because the Dutch only controlled a circle of land along the coast (of course not all of them were enclosed), connected with military cities such as Galle, Colombo, and Jaffna as the core. According to their estimates, the population in the jurisdiction is only about 500,000, and the remaining people still live in the territory of the indigenous kings in the mainland.

In order to alleviate the lack of plantation labor, the Dutch have been vigorously introducing Tamils ​​on the Indian continent across the sea to work in recent years. However, even so, near the dock where Molie and Bert are located, barren rice fields are still everywhere. He even saw a few wild elephants swimming in the distance with sharp eyes, and he was speechless.

How poor is the development ability of this Dutch? I heard that it has been occupied for 17 or 8 years, but it looks like a bird near Colombo. You can imagine what the situation is like in other places. These guys are really only good at doing business and are only concerned about doing business. They are not good operators. They are also unlucky to fall into their hands. They have not obtained any modern civilization, nor any advanced agricultural or industrial technology brought by the colonists. They only need to produce pepper, cinnamon, ash, ivory, gems, etc. day after day. It is indeed unlucky.

"...General Bert, do you plan to reopen the Galle Port to provide our ships with supplies and maintenance? This is very important and is also the main purpose of our trip. I ask your company to give us a reasonable reply as soon as possible, not only Galle Port, but also Malacca Port. Will our merchant ships be used in the future, when can they be used, and what conditions are needed? Of course, if your company does not intend to open the above port, then I don't think we need to continue negotiations." After the two sat down, they talked a few words in a vague way, and then Mo Liei asked the question directly.

Mo Lie's words were a bit irritating. Barsazer Bert was also a decisive person on weekdays. It should have been a long time ago that he should have been angry. However, he was a little rational after all, because the deployment of the East Coast people in South Africa and New China Island put great pressure on the Dutch East India Company, and it can even be said to be a shackle on the neck. The peace and the year is good, and once the feud is evil, it is a death talisman. Think about it, the East Coast people had sent troops to capture the Dutch South African colonies before. After seeking support from the joint provincial government, the East India Company actually swallowed this breath and did not dare to break up with the East Coast people. It just kept making small moves that were not allowed to come to the table. From this we can see that their harshness is on the inside!

To put it bluntly, the essence of the East India Company is just a group of merchants. Merchants will naturally calculate the gains and losses of interests. Starting a war may not necessarily lead to the revenge of Cape Town, but it is very likely that East India trade will be greatly affected, which is something they cannot accept, so they have to endure it until now and have not retaliated back. Well, maybe it is not true that they have no revenge at all. They have increased their trade with the Qing Dynasty and technical assistance, and at the same time cut off Ningbo's grain export trade (this seems only temporary, because no one will be unable to get along with money for a long time), and finally closed the Malacca and Galle Port, and did not allow East Coast ships to be replenished, repaired and avoided the wind and waves.

Now Mo Liei is coming to provoke the offense. In fact, the Dutch people want to reopen these two ports to immigrant ships on the East Coast (currently there are about 7-8 ships that need to take this route every year). Otherwise, many plans will be disrupted, and the replenishment of immigrants in New China, Yicheng and other places will also be reduced, which is unacceptable to people on the East Coast.

"General Mo, what you mean is that opening the above two ports is the basis of negotiations, otherwise nothing will continue?" Bert asked after a short while of silence.

"So that's it." Mo Liei answered bluntly.

"From my more than 40 years of life experience, it is unusual and unreasonable to negotiate with international nature, and simply accept the proposal of one party as the only basis for negotiation." At this time, Balsazer Bert also became a little angry and annoyed by Molie's aggressiveness. Therefore, his tone was also a little sarcastic. He continued: "Of course we respect the agreement reached with your country before, allowing your ships to supply, repair and trade through Malacca and Galle, but considering the series of security troubles caused by foreign ships and the troubles of epidemics, we temporarily closed these two ports. Now, they not only prohibit your ships from entering, but also do not allow any third country ships to enter, so we did not deliberately target anyone."

"Public security troubles? The trouble of the epidemic? So when will your company reopen these two ports?" Mo Liei was not moved by the other party's ridiculous defense, but pointed to the core issue.

"I can't answer you about Malacca's questions, but as the highest commander of Ceylon, I can tell you clearly that unless something is restored to its original state, it will probably be difficult to drive in the short term." Bert looked at Mo Lie's eel and said in a more arrogant and beating tone.

However, the expression on Mo Liei's face was not at all angry. He even wanted to laugh in his heart. These Dutch people were probably used to bullying the natives and felt that they were very powerful. They dared to talk to him in such a deadly tone. Isn't it clear that as long as the Second Fleet operates near South Africa, the merchant ships between Amsterdam and Batavia will face a considerable threat?

"General Bert, please be honest, your sloppy tone will not help solve anything, it will often make things worse. In fact, the English and Portuguese have recently looked for us and asked us to work with our country to deal with your country's forces in India, Ceylon, and East Indies. However, our government has rejected it considering the good relations with the United Provinces and your country. But what is in this world that is eternal? No, no, in fact, the British once promised one-third of the cinnamon trade in Ceylon to our government. Now it may be time to consider the rationality of this suggestion. Anyway, the British and Portuguese have always been open to our participation." Mo Lie's speech became increasingly rude at this time, and the threat was very strong, which made Balsazze Bert's face look even more ugly, and it seemed to hit his sore spot.

In fact, the British and the Portuguese have always been very coveting of Ceylon. Especially the Portuguese, the interests of Ceylon were originally dominated by them, but the native kingdom on the island attracted the Dutch in order to get rid of their control (now it seems that they drove away wolves and tigers, and they hated the Dutch very much and were always instigating the English to attack Ceylon and regain their lost interests.

However, the British may feel that it is inappropriate to turn against the East India Company, so they never agreed to the Portuguese's suggestions. Even though the conditions they gave were extremely generous to drive away the Dutch, Britain and Portugal shared Ceylon Island, Colombo belonged to the Portuguese, Galle Fort belonged to the British, and the cinnamon trade were divided equally. However, the British finally established a small trading station in Trincomali, northeast of the island, as a trade base, which made the Dutch who had already painted the entire Ceylon Island on its own ruling map look very annoying, but it was intimidated by the fact that the British, Portugal and the Kingdom of Jaffna could not be eliminated for a while, but they were also actively hoarding their power, intending to take the opportunity to eliminate it with a thunderous momentum and take it as their own.

But if the East India Company, as Mo Liei said just now, had once intervened in the situation in Ceylon Island, had already gained a great advantage and was sure to push the British and Portuguese into the sea for a period of time in the future, it would probably face an unpredictable variable. Think about it, the East India Company has a large number of people in New China Island and a large number of warships. Once it is fully mobilized, the Portuguese and the English will definitely be overjoyed, and then increase investment in Ceylon Island and launch a comprehensive confrontation with the Dutch. In that case, the situation will be complicated and not in the interests of the East India Company.

So, Mo Lie's words were actually a naked threat, and a threat that Barsazer Bert could not avoid, so the expression on his face began to change drastically. He was not sure whether the East Coast people were just verbal threats or were they really interested in intervening in the situation in Ceylon Island. If it was the former, then the matter would be discussed. If it was the latter, then the situation in Ceylon Island would be bad, and Batavia needed to quickly evaluate this.

Bert had no doubt that with the integrity of the English and Portuguese, he would definitely be able to divide Ceylon with the East Coast. After all, if the three parties join forces, they might not be able to compete with the Dutch East India Company. Once successful, everyone will divide the fruits. Trincomari, Jaffna and others will be from the UK, Colombo will be from Portugal, and Galle Fort will be from the East Coast. We will share the pepper, cinnamon, ash, ivory, and gem trade on the island. Isn’t it fun to be happy?

The more Barsazer Bert thought about it, the more he felt that the possibility was possible, the more he felt that there was a reason for the East Coast people to do this. It was obviously much more convenient to master a port on Ceylon Island than to rely on others. Therefore, he gradually became a little nervous, and the calmness that had been hanging on his face also dissipated a lot. He looked up at Mo Lie's eyes and found nothing special. It seemed that it was very "sincere", "sincere" to tell you that I thought so, and it was very likely that I would do it!

This perception made Bert even more nervous, and he began to quickly think in his heart: Judging from the various information he has at present, the business focus of the East Coast people should be in the West Indian Ocean, that is, the focus on New China Island, South Africa and the Swasili coast. This can be seen from their daily actions. Moreover, the power they have at hand should not be enough to allow them to extend their claws to the East Indian Ocean. That would be too exaggerated and their foundation would not be stable. Once the development is not smooth, the losses will be huge.

However, as Moliee said just now, if the Dutch East India Company insists not to open the port of Malacca and Galle Fort to pass by ships on the east coast, it will be difficult to guarantee that they will not be anxious and join forces with the British and Portuguese to cause trouble on Ceylon Island and personally control a fortress or port.

So, to dispel the idea of ​​East Coast people moving eastward, the crux of the problem of opening the port! Thinking of this, Balsazer Bert suddenly wanted to curse. Which foolish guy was there in the ear of Governor Van Goins, not allowing Malacca and Galle to receive East Coast merchant ships? Now, I think about it, I am simply pushing the East India Company into the fire pit! Is that guy a British spy?

At this time, Balsazer Bert didn't care about the question of whether he was face or not. After talking softly with his confidants, Bert turned to Molie's eel and said that the matter of formal opening of the port was quite important and he could not make such a decision, so he still had to communicate with Batavia and Governor Van Goens made the final decision.

In addition, Bert also said that it may take some time to ask for instructions, which is often several months. Therefore, during this period, he may consider issuing temporary licenses or permits to some East Coast ships, allowing them to replenish and repair them twice a year in Galle Fort, but it is best not to stay for more than one month at a time. As for whether the Port of Malacca will be treated as the same, I am sorry that he does not have the power to govern there, so I can only say that I can't help.

Molie Ying agreed with the reason that Bert needed to ask his superiors for instructions, but he also emphasized that he and his fleet had no intention of staying in Colombo Port for too long. If the Dutch East India Company could not formally give him a reply within half a year and meet his request, he would leave Ceylon and return to the West Indian Ocean. At that time, things might develop in an uncontrollable direction. Molie Ying emphasized that perhaps "an expedition team" would set off from Xinhua Port, arrive in Goa or Trincomali, and then build a supply terminal "with his own hands" on Ceylon Island. I believe this is not what the Dutch East India Company is willing to see.

The words were as sharp as ever, and now it depends on how Governor Van Goens of Batavia took it.
Chapter completed!