Kangxi: Here, here, all of it!

When the eunuch approached Kangxi, he took out a folded document, bowed respectfully, and held it above his head.

"Your Majesty, news has just come from the Ministry of Rites that Dutch merchants who purchased porcelain and silk say they can help our Great Qing resist the Han army."

Emperor Kangxi frowned upon hearing this. Merchants from these small overseas countries had always been one of the sources of revenue for the Qing Dynasty.

This was originally a good thing, but what made Kangxi uncomfortable was that these foreign merchants always demanded that the bottom of the porcelain be stamped with "Made in the Kangxi Reign of the Ming Dynasty" instead of "Made in the Kangxi Reign of the Qing Dynasty".

Doesn't this mean the Qing Dynasty was inferior to the Ming Dynasty?

This is absolutely outrageous!

As for these foreign countries' talk of resisting the Han army, Kangxi scoffed at it, thinking that with the strength of these small countries, what use could a mere few hundred people be?

Just as Kangxi was about to refuse, the Manchu nobleman who had spoken earlier quickly stepped forward to interrupt him.

"Your Majesty, I have been guarding Nanjing for many years and have discovered that the strength of these foreign powers lies not in land warfare, but in their extraordinary navy. Their large ships are all five or six hundred catties each, and each large ship has fifty cannons weighing a thousand catties each."

"If we can assist in the defense of the Yangtze River, His Majesty can dispatch an additional 10,000 Green Standard Army naval troops and dozens of cannons northward!"

Upon hearing that there were large ships of five or six hundred liang (a unit of weight) and that an additional ten thousand troops could be dispatched north, Kangxi showed a look of delight.

He knew about this matter. Ten years ago, when he was still young, he had seen the relevant commemorative document. It was true that they had joined forces with the Dutch to attack Taiwan, but it ended in failure. So he waved to the eunuch.

"Bring the Dutchman into the temple!"

"I'd like to see just how formidable they are!"

After receiving the imperial decree, the eunuch immediately left the hall to summon someone. Soon after, a man around seventy years old, but in good health, wearing a black velvet official robe, entered the hall with a man wearing a triangular hat.

Upon seeing Emperor Kangxi, the man did not bow, but instead bowed as Western nobles would when addressing a king.

"Metsuiko, Governor-General of the Far East of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, greets the esteemed Emperor of the Qing Dynasty!"

Metsuiko's bowing and fluent Ningbo accent were seen as heinous crimes by the Manchu nobles.

After all, these lackeys have to kneel before the Emperor every time they see him, while you, the Governor of the Netherlands, don't kneel. Doesn't that mean you are more noble than us lackeys?

No, absolutely not!

If we kneel down, you must kneel down too!

Soon after, a commander of the Eight Banners emerged from the crowd, limping.

"How dare you! Why do you not perform the three kneelings and nine kowtows before my Emperor? Do you know that this is a capital offense!"

Then he knelt down and bowed to Emperor Kangxi.

"Your Majesty, please punish this man for his disrespect!"

Kangxi was in a terrible predicament. What bothered him most was Liu Mu's southward expedition, but since his servant had brought it up, he couldn't ignore it. Just as he was in a dilemma, Metsuy shook his head.

"Your Majesty the Emperor of Qing, according to the laws of the Kingdom of Holland, the act of kneeling and bowing is only permitted when officials of a vassal state pay homage to the Emperor of a great power!"

"I, Metsuiko, as the highest-ranking official in the Far East, am here to represent my country in an alliance with the Qing Dynasty, not to become a vassal state of the Qing Dynasty."

"If you insist that I kneel and worship, then this matter is off!"

Metsuyi had served as governor for over twenty years, controlling so many islands and indigenous peoples in Southeast Asia. He spoke with great authority, causing the Manchu nobleman who had just spoken to lower his head and remain silent.

Although Emperor Kangxi was only in his early twenties, he had become very patient after being repeatedly attacked by Liu Mu.

Even knowing that Metsuiko was mocking his Qing Dynasty as a small, isolated country, he simply waved his hand and gave an indifferent smile.

"It's alright, it's alright, you may leave!"

"May I ask, Governor-General of the Netherlands, if your country wishes to form an alliance with our Great Qing, how many troops and ships do you intend to send, and what are your conditions?"

What Kangxi cared about was the number of troops and ships the Dutch would send, and the corresponding conditions. If they sent too few, it wouldn't be too late to kill them.

When Metsuyi heard Kangxi's words, the corners of his mouth curled up. As an old fox who was nearly seventy years old, he knew exactly what Kangxi was thinking, so he loosened his collar.

"I, Metsuyi, representing the Dutch Far East Governor-General, will provide ten large ships, twenty medium-sized warships, and thirty small fast boats. In addition, I can dispatch five thousand troops to guard the Yangtze River for the Qing Dynasty!"

"But our country has one requirement!"

Kangxi was initially quite pleased to hear about so many warships and soldiers, as he knew the Dutch had a high rate of firearm use and their fighting power was comparable to that of the Rakshasa.

"explain!"

Seeing that Kangxi had compromised, Metsuyi immediately produced a contract written in Dutch, Manchu and Chinese.

"In order to better assist the Qing Dynasty in resisting the Han Dynasty, the Kingdom of the Netherlands needs the Qing Dynasty to cede the Zhoushan Islands and Taiwan as our military bases."

Upon hearing this, the entire Qianqing Palace erupted in cheers.

Some people believe this is a loss of sovereignty and a humiliation for the country.

Some people thought it was a good deal, since Zhoushan and Taiwan were both barren lands, especially since Taiwan was still under the control of the Ming Dynasty. At present, preserving wealth and status was the most important thing.

Kangxi sat on the dragon throne, his face terribly gloomy, yet there was a hint of hesitation, though his expression was obscured from below.

Nalan Mingzhu, who was closest to Kangxi, seemed to know what Kangxi was thinking. He coughed twice and then stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, Zhoushan and Taiwan can be given, but the Kingdom of the Netherlands must pay an annual tribute of 300,000 taels of silver. The two places will be leased in perpetual succession!"

Hearing Nalan Mingzhu's words, Kangxi breathed a sigh of relief. He had the face, the money, and the troops; that was excellent.

Anyway, this empire was acquired by chance.

As long as he can keep his throne and continue to enjoy wealth and honor above all others, then everything is worthwhile.

"Granted!"

Metsuiko below was completely dumbfounded upon hearing this. He had only asked for an exorbitant price and was waiting for the Qing people to bargain. All he wanted from the beginning was Taiwan.

And just like the Portuguese, the contract was signed in the form of a lease, simply to facilitate future business dealings.

I never expected that they would offer a buy-one-get-one-free deal with no lease term. Isn't this just a concession?

The Zhoushan Islands have a unique geographical location; to the north, they can block the Yangtze River estuary. If they were to secretly rob some merchant ships, they could recoup their investment of 300,000 taels of silver.

This deal is a great value.

The officials of the Qing Dynasty were truly magnanimous!

Even after getting such a bargain, Metsuiko still had a stern face, as if she had lost out big time.

"In that case, we'll proceed according to your country's wishes!"

"After this contract is signed, I will immediately return to deploy troops to Zhoushan, and then begin blocking the Yangtze River, ensuring that not a single Han soldier is allowed to cross!"

Upon hearing Metsuiko's confident words, Kangxi's gloom vanished, and he immediately issued an order.

"Issue the order to mobilize 10,000 Green Standard Army troops along the Yangtze River and 10,000 Green Standard Army troops in the capital to march north!"

"I want to meet Galdan!"