Following Ofirstrate's understanding of the Great Ming, if the monkeys on Batavia were to launch an attack on the Lanfang Protectorate, or if another Red Creek Massacre were to occur in Batavia, the most likely outcome would be that the entire Netherlands would be dragged down by the monkeys, ending up in an even worse state than Portugal.
It was precisely for this reason that Ofirstrate had ordered the suppression of the Indian monkeys when he detected something amiss.
However, Ofirstrate also did not expect these Indian monkeys to be so foolish as to openly engage with the East India Company.
After some thought, Ofirstrate said, "How about this, let's first issue a notification to the Ming to request that they withdraw their people to avoid accidental casualties—although the monkeys' current target is us, who can guarantee they won't target Ming merchants?"
Johannes Silberberg, however, shook his head and said, "No, we must not notify the Ming to send ships to pick up their merchants. The best approach is to send troops to protect the Ming merchants and then directly send ships to escort them to Lanfang."
Ofirstrate was stunned and asked, "Instead of letting the Ming send ships to pick up their people, we are to dispatch more manpower and warships to escort them at this time?"
Silberberg nodded and said, "Yes, we must not give the Ming any opportunity—do you want to know the final decision of the Council of Seventeen Gentlemen on this matter?"
Ofirstrate nodded with curiosity, saying, "Of course, I want to know."
Silberberg chuckled, took two hard puffs from his pipe, and then said, "Then I'll tell you directly. The final decision of the Council of Seventeen Gentlemen is that if you can deal with those monkeys and ensure stability in Batavia, you will be included in the candidate list for the next Council of Seventeen Gentlemen."
"If you fail to deal with those monkeys, or if those monkeys provoke the Ming and drag the East India Company or the entire Netherlands down with them, then you can forget about being a candidate for the Seventeen Gentlemen."
Ofirstrate let out a laugh, his face full of self-mockery, "If such a situation were to occur, the Ming would definitely send troops to Batavia. I might not even have a chance to return to the Netherlands alive, and naturally, I wouldn't have to think about the Seventeen Gentlemen candidacy."
Silberberg nodded, but his smile looked more like a grimace than a smile.
As one of the Seventeen Gentlemen of the East India Company, Silberberg was not ignorant of the Great Ming. He knew more about the history of the Central Plains establishments than Ofirstrate—even when at a disadvantage in warships and firearms, that country called the Great Ming had still chosen to attack with a tough attitude. Now, that country held almost all the advantages…
At this thought, Silberberg couldn't help but rub his forehead and said, "Hurry up and do it. Send those Ming merchants to Lanfang, or even to Jiaozhi. Their presence in Batavia is the greatest danger to us."
Ofirstrate also knew that Silberberg's suggestion was correct, but the thought of those Ming people made Ofirstrate's head ache.
In the past, especially when the people of the Central Plains still had queues behind their heads, they were actually very afraid of the Batavia Governor-General's office. They only wanted to make money and never thought of anything else. Even if the Batavia Governor-General's office wanted to take their money, they would only try their best to keep even a small portion, never thinking of resistance.
But ever since they cut off the queues behind their heads, these usually docile sheep had transformed into wolves in sheep's clothing—they always dealt with others with a smile, but when others bared their teeth at them, they no longer retreated as they used to, but chose to glare back with equally fierce expressions.
Ofirstrate couldn't quite understand, did those queues behind their heads have some kind of magic that could restrain them?
Ofirstrate was very worried. In the past, the relationship between the Batavia Governor-General's office and these Ming people was quite poor. Now that the Batavia Governor-General's office was changing its tune and saying it wanted to send them away, would they believe the Batavia Governor-General's office? Would they obediently follow the arrangements of the Batavia Governor-General's office?
Especially after the Great Qing had sung its dirge, the Great Ming's actions in the South China Sea had become more and more significant. The sea merchants who came to do business in Batavia also brought this news to Batavia. The surviving people of the Central Plains and their descendants after the Red Creek Massacre also knew that the Central Plains establishments had undergone a major change.
These people almost immediately got involved with those merchants from the Great Ming.
Of course, these were not what Ofirstrate was most worried about.
Because those people from the Central Plains and their descendants after the Red Creek Massacre were easier to handle. Although they had become less docile and obedient, compared to those merchants from the Great Ming, they were still considered well-behaved and obedient.
Those merchants from the Great Ming feared no one. Although they could accept normal taxation from the Batavia Governor-General's office, when faced with threats, they often counter-threatened more fiercely—do you know how far the nearest fleet of the Great Ming is from here? Try to move something.
But what Ofirstrate also did not expect was that the Ming merchants in Batavia had no intention of retreating at all.
After learning that the Indian monkeys in Batavia were dissatisfied with the Lanfang Protectorate and themselves, the Ming merchants in Batavia, and wanted to create another Red Creek Massacre, the thoughts of these Ming merchants gradually became more dangerous.
First, the Red Creek Massacre had occurred in Batavia before. These Indian monkeys were restless again, and they were also a threat to the Great Ming's Lanfang Protectorate.
Second, the Dutch barbarians here had fought several naval battles with the Great Ming before Emperor Chongzhen. These Dutch barbarians might not have changed their ways now.
Third, earning money was the purpose of doing business at sea, but in the Great Ming, the highest status was never held by the rich, nor by the powerful, but by those formidable individuals with military achievements.
Fourth, the Great Ming's South China Sea Fleet was not too far from here. Even if they couldn't defeat those Indian monkeys, they could still escape. As long as they found the Great Ming army, they would be safe.
Based on these four reasons, these Ming merchants, whose courage had grown, first secretly united, then held a banquet to entertain Shi Chengzu, the highly respected leader of the Shi family among the people of the Central Plains in Batavia.
The explanation from these Ming merchants was simple: "The Shi family was the Pacification Commissioner of Old Port during the Yongle period, and during the Red Creek Massacre, your grandfather, Shi Banrang, also led the local people of the Central Plains to fight fiercely against the Dutch and Indian monkeys. From the fifth year of Qianlong to the eighth year of Qianlong, the Shi family has always been the leader. Now these Indian monkeys are restless, shouldn't you, the current leader of the Shi family, stand up?"
These Ming merchants patted their chests and guaranteed Shi Chengzu: "As long as you, Shi Chengzu, are willing to stand up, we will find ways to solve the logistics and weapon problems for you. We definitely cannot get the latest firearms and cannons from the court, but it is too easy to get some flintlock guns and cannons that are one or two generations behind."
"Then we will recruit some brave young men. We will all work together to defeat the Indian monkeys. You, Shi Chengzu, will announce the restoration of Old Port in the capacity of the Great Ming's Pacification Commissioner of Old Port and request incorporation into the empire. You, Shi Chengzu, can gain a hereditary Pacification Commissioner position, and we will also gain some military merits."
"As for those Dutch barbarians, you, Commissioner Shi, need not worry. Anyway, there is a naval port of the Great Ming South China Sea Fleet nearby, and there are also Great Ming garrisons in the Lanfang Protectorate. Defeating them will be easy and pleasant!"
Then Shi Chengzu considered that this matter was feasible. After carefully studying the details of the operation with these daring Ming merchants, he went back and summoned all the elders of the Shi family.
"This place was originally called the Pacification Commissioner of Old Port, and our Shi family is also the hereditary Pacification Commissioner of Old Port."
"It is detestable that the Jian barbarian invaded from the north, causing rivers and mountains to be in distress. After the Red Creek Massacre, our Shi family has become weaker day by day. Now that those Indian monkeys are causing trouble again, if we do not take the initiative, where will our Shi family go?"
Shi Chengzu looked at all the elders and said solemnly, "I have decided, in the capacity of the Great Ming's Pacification Commissioner of Old Port, to call upon all the people of the Central Plains in Old Port to gather and counterattack those Indian monkeys and reclaim Old Port!"
Shi Chengzu's uncle, Shi Jiye, tapped his dry pipe and asked with narrowed eyes, "If this matter succeeds, our Shi family will naturally soar to the heavens, and at least for a hundred generations, we can guarantee wealth and status. But if it fails, I fear our Shi family will be annihilated immediately. Have you thought it through?"
Shi Chengzu nodded and said, "That's right, my mind is made up. Uncle, please do not dissupple me!"
Shi Jiye let out a laugh and said, "Dissuade? I never thought of dissuading you—your grandfather was my father, and your father was my elder brother. Do you think I don't hate those Indian monkeys? Do you think I don't hate those Dutch barbarians?"
Speaking of this, Shi Jiye turned to his son Shi Chengxian, who was standing behind him, and instructed, "Go to my room and fetch the uppermost small box from those five small boxes."
After Shi Chengxian brought the small box, Shi Jiye took out a key from his person and opened the small box.
Inside the small box was a helmet, and beneath the helmet was a somewhat worn Ming-style military armor.
Shi Jiye stroked the helmet and after a moment of silence, said, "Your paternal granduncle had no heir, so this official uniform of the Left Army Thousand-Household of the Pacification Commissioner of Old Port of the Great Ming has been passed down to our branch. Your father should have inherited the position of Pacification Commissioner, so I inherited the position of Left Army Thousand-Household."
At this point, Shi Jiye suddenly said solemnly, "The Left Army Thousand-Household should have one thousand one hundred and twenty people, but only two are present. The Central Army Thousand-Household, the Right Army Thousand-Household, the Front Army Thousand-Household, and the Rear Army Thousand-Household have all been lost."
"If you truly wish to raise an army in the capacity of the Pacification Commissioner of Old Port, then scatter your family wealth, find ways to purchase a batch of weapons, and recruit soldiers to fill the five thousand-household units and carry the banner of the Pacification Commissioner of Old Port!"
Shi Chengzu fell silent.
Before his father passed away, he had indeed passed down the banner, official uniform, great seal, hereditary document, and iron certificate of the Pacification Commissioner of Old Port to himself. These items were also kept in his room.
Shi Chengzu had always thought that these items would be passed down from generation to generation as heirlooms, but he had never imagined that he would actually rely on these things to start an uprising one day.
After a long silence, Shi Chengzu finally stood up, let out a sigh, and said, "We, dignified people of the Central Plains, how can we languish for long under the rule of barbarians?"
"If we allow these Indian monkeys to be so arrogant, it will be another Red Creek Massacre. We will die anyway. Even if we escape, what face will we have to see our ancestors?"
"It is said that whether we rise or not, we will die. Why not rise and fight to the death, and not disgrace the reputation of our ancestors!"