The intention of the Western powers was, of course, to tie the Portuguese to the European chariot. Aren¡¯t you Portuguese unwilling to send your fleet to join the war? We will start a war on your territory, making it impossible for you to avoid it. However, the Portuguese are not stupid either. They immediately "leased" the Madeira Islands to the White Army through secret channels for a period of nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine years. After expiration, there will be a priority opportunity to renew the contract.
For this gift to the door, the Baiyi Army is naturally cynical. Xu Xingxia agreed readily. At the outlet of the Mediterranean Sea, the White Army Navy needs a good forward base to serve as a bridgehead for operations in Europe. In every aspect, Madeira is a good choice. To be precise, it is the best choice.
The hairtail fish produced in Madeira Islands is very famous. The locals didn't know what they were thinking, but they actually came up with the idea of ??grilling hairtail fish and bananas together, and they didn't know what the grilled taste was like. The wine produced in Madeira Islands is also quite famous. In addition, the kebabs produced in Madeira Islands can be up to one meter long. The meat skewers are hung with laurel branches that are abundant in the area, and the barbecue taste is very unique.
The staple food of the people of Madeira Islands is the famous Madeira cake. This is a very old pastry that doesn¡¯t look good on the outside, isn¡¯t very delicate on the inside, and doesn¡¯t taste very good. This is understandable. How could the local indigenous people make exquisite cakes? The only good thing about Madeira cake is probably that it makes you hungry. As long as you eat a small piece, you can last for most of the day. If paired with Madeira wine, the taste is barely acceptable.
If history had not changed much, the last emperor of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Karl I, the famous Austrian Queen Sissi, and British Prime Minister Churchill would all come to the Madeira Islands to experience life. They will leave behind a variety of touching legends on the Madeira Islands, leaving unlimited space for imagination for future generations.
However, in 1634 AD, the senior officials of the combined fleets of the Western powers had no intention of tasting delicious food, let alone experiencing life in the local area. They must seriously consider what they need to do to defeat the White Army Navy.
Finally, they decided to hold a negotiation with the White Army Navy.
Of course, negotiation is not the ultimate goal. Negotiation is the means. The Western powers hope to use this method to delay the White Army Navy's attack on Europe. They were expecting that during the negotiation process, the White Army and Navy might have some surprises or something.
For example, Xu Xingxia suddenly fell ill and died. When the Mongol army marched towards Europe in a mighty manner, the Europeans had almost no way to resist it. However, at the most critical moment, Wokuotai suddenly died. Other Mongolian dignitaries, in order to fight for power and gain, withdrew their troops one after another. Europe thus avoided a catastrophe. The previous Xiongnu expedition to the west, killing countless people and covering thousands of miles of land, ended with the death of Attila.
As long as Xu Xingxia dies, everything will return to the way it was. Although, this possibility is very low, so low that it is difficult to give people confidence. However, it does not exist. After all, Xu Xingxia was also a mortal and mortal. As long as someone quietly shoots him within the effective range, he is finished and Europe will be saved.
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"Xu Canxu, go negotiate with the other party!" Zhou Jian said.
"Me?" Xu Canxu felt very strange. The negotiator is actually myself? I really don¡¯t know where to start. The White Army and Navy have never had dedicated diplomatic personnel. Subconsciously, the white army and navy never negotiate with the enemy. War of words is a matter for the Foreign Affairs Department. The navy only knows how to solve problems with cannonballs and steel.
Zhou Jian explained: "This is an order personally given by the fleet commander."
Xu Canxu vaguely understood. In the Fourth Fleet, only Chen Zhan knows his true identity. According to Xu Xingxia's explanation, Chen Zhan will not give Xu Canxu any privileges. Everything depends on his own efforts. However, as Xu Canxu's direct boss, Chen Zhan will take care of Xu Canxu's growth to a certain extent no matter what. Let Xu Canxu come forward to negotiate with Western powers in order to hone his negotiation skills.
After all, the psychological advantages Xu Canxu possesses cannot be matched by others. His father was the founder and supreme leader of the White Army. It is estimated that except for Xu Xingxia who took action personally, it would be difficult for anyone else to put psychological pressure on Xu Canxu. It would be best for him to come forward and mess with the negotiators of the Western powers.
After thinking about this, Xu Canxu nodded in agreement. He immediately asked: "Okay. Adjutant Zhou, what is our bottom line?"
Zhou Jian said: "TheyIt's just stalling for time, waiting for the situation to change. We just don't give them a chance. Just tell him that if they are sincere, hand over Madeira Islands! Withdraw all the battleships! "
Xu Canxu nodded and said in a deep voice: "Okay. I understand."
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A small boat rowed over, and the envoys of the Western powers arrived. The envoy of the Western powers was a very tall colonel. He was wearing a crisp navy uniform, and he looked really stylish. He came to Xu Canxu, stood at attention, saluted, and said loudly: "I am Epad, a colonel of the French Navy. May I ask who you are"
Xu Canxu stood at attention and returned the salute, and said calmly: "I am Xu Canxu, a second lieutenant of the Ming Empire Navy. By the order of the fleet commander, I will be fully responsible for this negotiation."
Epad¡¯s face looked a little ugly. After all, he is also a colonel-level officer. According to the basic principle of reciprocity, the White Army Navy should send at least one colonel to receive him. However, the one sent by the navy in white clothes was actually the lowest-ranking officer: an ensign! I have to say that this does look down upon his identity.
Epad said angrily: "Second Lieutenant, this is unfair, very unfair!"
Xu Canxu didn't speak, but looked at him coldly, as if he didn't hear what Epad was saying at all. The other white-coated army officers around him didn't say a word, as if Epad was transparent, and the scene was very quiet for a time.
Epad had no choice but to say: "I request a meeting with your senior management."
Xu Canxu shook his head and said bluntly: "I'm sorry, you don't have such power."
Epad said dissatisfied: "You should respect me. I am the representative of the negotiation, and the negotiation should be based on fairness."
Xu Canxu said slowly: "In this case, we'd better agree to compete on the sea. Only the winner will win respect."
Of course, it is impossible for Epad to agree to Xu Canxu's request. If the problem could be solved through naval battle, he wouldn't be here. Isn¡¯t it because we lost the naval battle that we need to hold negotiations to delay it? These damn white army and navy, they seem to know their purpose! It seems that this negotiation must be quite unpleasant.
The French navy at that time was actually not very powerful. At least, in front of the British, Dutch, and Spanish, the French did not dare to say that their navy was powerful. Moreover, the relationship between the French and the British has never been good. The French navy had always been restrained by the British navy and had almost no place to stand out. They had to wait until Napoleon was born before they had a chance to express themselves. Therefore, Epad has no confidence at all for naval battles.
In desperation, Epad had no choice but to agree to hold talks with Xu Canxu. The place where the two met was on the deck. Everyone is standing. According to Xu Canxu, when everyone stands and speaks, it is relatively brief and does not require so much nonsense.
Epad is a typical French character, a bit too romantic and ignorant of the importance of things. Even though he knew that the navy in white was unfriendly to him, he couldn't help but said: "As guests, should you treat us to a cup of coffee?"
Xu Canxu said: "Sorry, we don't drink coffee."
Epad did not give up, rolled his eyes, and changed his words: "If you don't have coffee, tea will do. Your Eastern tea is my favorite."
Xu Canxu shook his head and said, "I'm sorry, we don't drink tea either."
Epad could only roll his eyes helplessly, looked around blankly, and groaned: "As a negotiator, I feel very disappointed"
Xu Canxu sneered and said bluntly: "Mr. Epad, are you really here to negotiate? Do you really have the sincerity to negotiate?"
Epad couldn't help but suffocated. He wanted to say something, but didn't say it.
Everyone knows why he was sent to negotiate. The White Army is not a fool, and of course they will not believe in the sincerity of the negotiations. Now that Bai Yijun had made it clear, he didn't feel embarrassed. He is thick-skinned enough that even if a meteor falls from the sky and hits his face, it will be bounced away. He said with a smile: "Misunderstanding, misunderstanding, I think your army must have misunderstood. We are indeed sincere in negotiating"
Xu Canxu said: "Then please ask your army to evacuate the Madeira Islands."
Epad shook his head and said: "This is impossible, Madeira Islands has always been"
Xu Canxu took out the prepared documents, unfolded them, and placed them in front of Epad. It was the agreement by which the Portuguese leased Madeira to the Los Blancos.
Epad¡¯s face suddenly turned ugly. ThisThe agreement document is really terrible. In normal times, no one would care about it. To be honest, the Portuguese have no status at all in Europe. Nothing good happens to him. However, now that the Portuguese agreement has fallen into the hands of the White Army, that is another matter.
Xu Canxu said meaningfully: "Dear Colonel, do you have anything else to say? If not, please come back!"
Epad had no choice but to say helplessly: "No more."
The meeting ended unhappy. Epad left in despair.
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In the following months, fighting continued in the sea near the Madeira Islands. The various fleets of the White Army Navy took turns to go into battle, constantly consuming the strength of the Western Combined Fleet through naval battles. In order to protect the Madeira Islands, the Mediterranean, and Europe, the Western Combined Fleet had to fight hard.
As the backing of the Western Combined Fleet, European countries had to mobilize, spend more military expenditures, and produce more warships to supplement the losses on the front line. The money in their treasury was like running water, turning into various warships. As a result, their treasury quickly became empty. We have no choice but to borrow money from other countries.
At the end of 1634 AD, the Western powers once again held a coordination meeting in Paris to discuss how to deal with the White Army. At this meeting, Sweden, Poland and other countries donated generously and supported the Netherlands, Britain, Spain and other countries with a large amount of money. Most of this money was eventually turned into warships and appeared near the Madeira Islands.
The Western powers were building warships like crazy and constantly increasing the number of warships near the Madeira Islands. However, the more battleships they add, the faster they are depleted. The fierce artillery fire from the white-coated navy turned the warships of the Western powers into living targets. Almost every day, several Western warships were destroyed.
As for the Navy of the White Army, after adjustments, a total of ten fleets were stationed near the Madeira Islands, and the number of warships in each fleet increased from the original thirty to thirty-five. All the additional warships are giant "Yellow River" class warships with a displacement of more than 2,000 tons. The emergence of Huanghe-class battleships immediately caused the Western powers to suffer.
The Huanghe-class battleship has a standard displacement of 2,000 tons and a full load displacement of 2,200 tons. It is equipped with twenty-four 75mm caliber howitzers. Due to the adoption of the latest anti-aircraft gun technology, the firing speed of the 75mm howitzer has been greatly accelerated. In one minute, more than twelve rounds can be fired. In other words, it takes about five seconds to fire a cannonball. Such a high rate of fire would be an absolute disaster for the warships of the Western powers.
Sure enough, in the face of the overwhelming shells of the Yellow River-class battleships, the battleships of the Western powers had no power to parry. Once their battleship encounters a Yellow River-class battleship, the ship will be destroyed and everyone will be killed. No matter what methods they take, they cannot change the consequences. For a time, Westerners' expressions changed when they talked about the Yellow River.
By the end of 1635 AD, the Western United Fleet was basically exhausted. At the beginning of 1636 AD, the Western United Fleet was forced to evacuate the Madeira Islands. Subsequently, the white-coated navy officially took control of the Madeira Islands, blocking the door to the Mediterranean Sea. Subsequently, under the leadership of the Yellow River-class battleship, the White Army Navy entered the Mediterranean Sea in a mighty manner.
However, in 1636 AD, what attracted the world¡¯s attention most was not the White Army¡¯s navy entering the Mediterranean, but the White Army¡¯s army conquering Damascus. In this battle, the Ottoman Empire lost more than one million people. Xu Xingxia's other son, Xu Canhuai, also set foot on a cruel battlefield for the first time.