The Revolt of the Three Feudatories: All-in at the start in Beijing

Chapter 240 Metsuiko: I am the Great Han Noble

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In fact, this fire-breathing musket was just one of the many advanced technologies that the Ministry of Works of the Han Dynasty obtained while researching the military equipment of the Ming Dynasty.

For example, there are also oil pumps used on large Fujian-style ships.

Its basic structure was similar to a fire hose. It siphoned oil from the bottom of the ship and sprayed it onto the enemy ship before launching rockets. This was one of the weapons that defeated the Dutch in the late period.

By daybreak, the fire in the South Heavenly Gate sea area had been completely extinguished, but not by being put out; it had burned until there was nothing left to burn and extinguished itself.

Zhang Huai'an sat on the gunwale, wrapped in a tattered blanket he had picked up from somewhere. His left eye was covered in blood, his right eye was bloodshot, and his face was covered in soot.

Surrounding him were the other survivors—Old Zhao, Liu San, Wang Dazhu, and a young soldier named Sun Xiaoman. Of the twelve people on the ship, only five made it ashore.

The situation was similar for the other Fujian ships. Of the thirty-two Fujian ships that formed the iron chain formation, nine were sunk by the gunpowder ships, eleven were burned, and only twelve remained afloat, all of which were damaged.

But the cost to the coalition forces was far greater than theirs.

The sea was littered with broken planks, tattered canvas, and charred corpses. Of the eighty Allied ships, twenty had their gunpowder compartments burned through and were reduced to just a few keels sticking out of the water. The remaining fifty-six ships had all lost their sails and masts, and their hulls were charred black.

The ships were still smoking. Occasionally, a scream or two could be heard from inside the cabins, from people trapped in the lower decks who couldn't escape and were slowly burned to death by the embers.

Just then, the signal fireworks of Metsuiko went off again, this time yellow.

Hundreds of medium-sized Fujian-style ships emerged from both sides of the strait. They were all temporarily armed merchant ships, with only two 500-pound cannons mounted on their bows.

The manpower consisted of only a few regular soldiers, along with a large number of militia, but this was enough to deal with a group of remnants.

They slowly approached the powerless Allied ships, their cannons aimed at every one of the still-smoking vessels.

The largest flagship was sandwiched between the Fujian ships, with a huge "Mei" character embroidered on its flag. This was the flagship of Metsuiko.

He has changed his name now!

According to the translation, his surname will be Mei from now on!

The flagship charged toward the heart of the Allied fleet, eventually stopping between the two flagships of the Anglo-Dutch forces.

Both flagships were burned to empty shells, but the hulls were still intact, and living people could be seen walking on the decks.

Metsuiko stood at the bow, holding a tin megaphone. "Royal Oak, Seven Provinces," Metsuiko's voice came through the megaphone, aged but still strong, "The person in charge of the ship, come out and answer."

After a moment of silence, a man appeared at the side of the HMS Royal Oak. His uniform was burned to half its original size, his hat was gone, half his hair was singed, and his face was covered in soot, but the sash and medals on his chest were still intact.

"Edward Montagu, Royal Navy of Great Britain," the man announced his name in English, his voice hoarse, clearly having choked.

A man also stepped forward from the Dutch flagship: Dutch naval commander Cornelius Tromp.

His condition was better than Montagu's; at least his uniform was intact, but he had a long burn on his left arm, with the skin and flesh rolled back to reveal the red muscle underneath.

The two men, separated by dozens of meters of sea, looked at Metsuiko at the same time, and Montagu spoke first. He spoke in French—the common language of European nobility at that time.

"Your Excellency, on behalf of His Majesty King Charles II of Great Britain, I request that you grant me and my men the treatment due to prisoners of war, in accordance with the laws of war of civilized nations."

Tromp added, "The Dutch Republic Navy also demands prisoner-of-war treatment, and we can pay the ransom as a nobleman, as is customary."

Metsuiko stood at the bow of the ship and waited until they had all finished speaking before raising the tin megaphone to his mouth.

"General Tromp," Metsuiko's voice was flat and even, "I am Dutch too."

Metsuyi deliberately used Dutch because he was now a nobleman, a super nobleman of the Han Dynasty, and might inherit the title of Grand Duke of the Netherlands in the future.

The saying "Wealth and honor not returned home are like wearing fine clothes at night" applies not only to the Han people but to everyone.

Tromp was taken aback by what he heard.

Metzück continued, "I was born in Amsterdam, joined the Dutch East India Company as a young man, served as a sailor on the Helvet, and later became the governor of Bavaria. I served the Dutch East India Company for over thirty years. Now you know who I am?"

Trump's lips moved, his face flushed red. He took a step forward, pointed at Metsuiko, and roared, "Metsuiko, you're not dead after all! You traitor! You actually betrayed your own country and served those damned Easterners!"

"My homeland?" Metsuiko interrupted him, her voice trembling for the first time. "When I was a captain of the East India Company, what did the Netherlands give me? A meager salary and a position that could be replaced at any time."

"And what did the Great Han give me? The Governor of Malacca, a second-rank official; my eldest son became the Lord of Bavaria; my youngest son entered the Imperial Royal Academy for further studies; and my daughter will soon become the consort of the world conqueror!"

"The Great Han didn't treat me like a Dutchman, nor did they treat me like an outsider; they treated me like one of their own."

"Cough cough cough!"

Metsuiko spoke with such emotion that she coughed for a moment, then paused, but quickly regained her composure.

"As for you, General Tromp and General Montagu, you demand to pay a ransom as nobles in exchange for your freedom. Our Great Han is a Celestial Empire. The Celestial Empire does not recognize any of your barbarian customs."

Upon hearing that he wouldn't be let off, Tromp erupted.

"This is a common agreement in the civilized world!"

"How can you deny it?"

Faced with Tromp's questioning, Metzui revealed a hint of sarcasm, stroking his beard as he said:

"You sneakily sent merchant ships to scout the islands of Southeast Asia, learning that our main force had returned to the mainland to fight a unified war, and then organized this surprise attack. Did you really think I didn't know? I had already made arrangements and was waiting for you to arrive!"

"Civilization? What's so civilized about that?"

Upon hearing Metsuiko's words, Tromp's face instantly turned a deep shade of liver, and he was speechless.

"Pass down the order," Metsuiko's voice boomed across the sea through the tin loudspeaker. "Seize all allied ships, regardless of size. Take all crew members back to Malacca and prosecute them for piracy. The ringleaders, Montagu and Tromp, are to be arrested and brought to the capital for trial by the Ministry of Justice."

Upon hearing Metsuiko's order, all the Fujian ships began to approach these large ships, and soldiers led militiamen onto the decks to capture the Allied soldiers one by one.

Tromp did not order a resistance, because the morale of the Allied soldiers was completely shattered, including himself, their commander.