"Young men, the above has issued an order that we will return to the capital after the cold winter is over and end our global voyage."

Zheng Zhihu came to inspect various ships in winter. When he arrived at the Zheng He station, he saw a group of "old students" from the Navy's martial arts hall. They had actually graduated for a while, but they had not been converted to formal officers and soldiers of the Navy abroad for a long time.

"The war in Europe is over?"

The crew of the Zheng He had an unreal feeling when they learned that their combat in Europe was about to end.

In a short period of time, they participated in the battle of the Mediterranean to capture Constantinople, the decisive battle between Dunkirk and the Continental Fleet, and later participated in the Battle of Jutland, and made many military achievements as naval interns.

"The war in Europe is not over yet, and we have not conquered them yet, but a large-scale war will not break out and it has nothing to do with you. If you are assigned to the Fourth Fleet when you return to the capital, you may still have the chance to participate in the next battle." Zheng Zhihu said.

The Fourth Fleet is the main fleet stationed in Portsmouth, England. Naval cadets may be assigned to four main fleets, the East India Company armed fleet, and the coastal defense sampanship unit. Except for the Fourth Fleet often fighting here, other troops do not have much opportunity to fight, just because they have no opponents, or the opponents are their own people.

"This time I did a good job, your father and I will be proud of you." Zheng Zhihu held up a beer glass privately and drank with Zheng Chenggong.

The three Zheng family have served for the Navy for more than ten years, and they also hope that Zheng Chenggong, a junior, can serve for the Navy rather than the Army.

The Army and the Navy were independent from the six departments and had great power. The military positions were no worse than civilian positions, and the treatment of the Navy was still very good.

"I will try my best to catch up with your backs." Zheng Chenggong said.

"There are also major marriage matters that need to be resolved as soon as possible. The boss is not young, especially after determining which fleet to serve. It is best to serve in your father's Beiyang Fleet or the Zhili Fleet, which is the direct line. The Zhili Fleet is located in the waters near Weihaiwei and Lushun Wei, and it is more convenient to take care of the family. The Beiyang Fleet's range of activities is in Japan and Goryeo, and it is not far away." Zheng Zhihu was a little worried about his nephew's family and career.

Twenty years old in this era is not a young age.

Due to the progress of agricultural technology and the occupation of a large number of new territories, China currently does not have much population pressure, and there is no need to tighten population policies.

Zheng Chenggong just smiled helplessly and did not answer.

In the cold winter, everyone was preparing to return to the local area. The Zhili Fleet and the Imperial Guards Brigade will protect Chu Yun back, while the Fourth Fleet and the Far West Expeditionary Force will continue to stay in Portsmouth.

As Zheng Zhihu said, the war has not ended yet. Spain and the Netherlands have a large amount of commercial interests in the ocean. They cannot lose control of the ocean, otherwise the domestic economy may collapse, especially the "sea coachman" of the Netherlands. If the sea coachman loses the sea, he will inevitably become a small country.

In fact, in the original history, the Netherlands, that is, the Netherlands, lost several naval battles with England, and later was invaded by France on land and gradually declined.

When all countries had their own troubles, Castella, the chief of the Knights' Order in the Mediterranean Hospital, found the city of London and met Chu Yun.

Chu Yun helped the Knights of the Hospital restore the Rhode Island station and respected Chu Yun naturally. Before leaving Malta, Chu Yun mentioned the idea of ​​establishing a shared port to him.

But Castella did not directly agree with this practice of possible annexation. Big fish eat small fish, and small countries survive in the cracks, and it is easy to be annexed by big countries with a large population, not to mention the autonomous organization of the Knights of the Hospital, which is not even a principality. However, after Chu Yun left, he heard that the army under Chu Yun defeated the French Army and the Swedish Army in the continental region. He was always a little uneasy. After discussing with the core backbone of the Knights of the Hospital, he still chased after him with shameless face.

"We can open the island of Malta, Rhode Island, and Chios to moor your Chinese merchant ships and warships, and give your ships special discounts. When our members of the Knights and residents under their rule accept employment outside the island, they will give priority to accepting the employment request from China. In return for our efforts, I hope that we can also be treated in Athens or other places you occupied, and that the people we are employed can also accept the treatment of free citizens." Castella made a special trip to London City to determine a treaty with Chu Yun.

"No problem. If both parties cooperate, I will send people to establish hospitals and nurse schools on the island of Malta to provide medical services to our officers, soldiers, merchants and travelers in the Mediterranean."

Chu Yun thought to himself, aren’t you called the Knights of the Hospital? Then return to your duties and become the real Knights of the Hospital to save lives and help the wounded, and provide medical personnel for his future Mediterranean Fleet and Athens.

The Knights of the Hospital became a logistics officer to provide them with services on site in the Mediterranean, while also losing their military capabilities.

"Are we going to sign any treaty to clarify each other's rights and obligations?" Castella asked cautiously.

"That's a matter of course. The Knights of the Hospital are not kingdoms or principalities, so I cannot let you enter the Holy Alliance, but determine this relationship in the form of a permanent vow. With our economic size, you can completely rely on us to survive, not other kingdoms." Chu Yun wanted to turn the Knights of the Hospital into a vassal in the Mediterranean, and did not want the Knights of the Hospitals to enter the Holy Alliance as a country, and then he would not be able to annex the Knights of the Hospitals to a legitimate annexation of the Hospitals.

As long as the Knights' economy depends entirely on China, annexation and assimilation will be a matter of time sooner or later.

It is very difficult to assimilate a great power like France, and the core members of the Knights of the Hospital are estimated to be less than a thousand, so it is not difficult to annex.

Before leaving London City, Chu Yun did not expect to win over the Knights of the Hospital. After signing a cooperation pledge with the Grand Head Castella, he said: "We have a great project in progress. At this time, we have arrived in Egypt and will soon enter the Mediterranean. We plan to set up a transit station on the island of Malta and then transfer to London City. I hope you can cooperate and give us a piece of land. We will pay rent every year."

“What project?”

“The laying of Asia-Europe subsea cables.”

"Cable? What is that?" Castella was confused.
Chapter completed!