Chapter 598: Loyal Ministers in Goa City

Conseda Aveiro de León, a Portuguese naval officer and former deputy governor and military commander in Malacca, paced anxiously around the room.

He led more than 2,000 Portuguese expelled by the Ming Dynasty and staggered away from Malacca Port in six dilapidated ships. Some of the six dilapidated ships were leaking, and people had to be arranged to drain the water every day to ensure that they would not sink.

Some masts were broken into two pieces, and they were tied together with ropes to make do. But when the wind was strong, the masts would tilt from side to side, and Leon had to ask people to keep reinforcing them with ropes.

Some of the steering gears were broken, so they were simply connected together with a piece of wood to make do with steering.

Every time the rudder was turned, more than a dozen people were needed to hold the wood and use all their strength to adjust the direction.

As they walked, everyone cursed the Ming people for their lack of virtue.

There were pirates, wind and waves, and reefs along the way. It was all thanks to Leon’s proper command that the six ships stumbled across the Bagan Sea and after untold hardships rushed to the Colombo Port, where the ships were thoroughly repaired and finally returned to Goa successfully.

As soon as he landed in Goa, Calderon ordered León to be arrested and prepared for trial on the spot.

However, many of the more than 2,000 Portuguese people who were brought back safely by Leon were grateful for his kindness.

Without him, there would be no way we could return to Goa safely.

These people included military officers, businessmen, administrative officials, missionaries, and a large number of relatives and friends, and they had considerable influence in the Indian colonies.

Everyone helped to intercede, and Calderon made a concession, dismissed Leon from his post and placed him under house arrest. When he returned victorious, he would send Leon back to his country and hand him over to His Majesty the King for disposal.

But now, Calderon didn’t know when he would be able to return victoriously from the glory of God.

dong dong.

There was a knock on the door.

“Come in!”

The person who walked in was Leon’s loyal subordinate, Condorcet.

Completely different from Jose, Condorcet, a French Marseille sailor, had followed Leon for many years and was promoted by him to be a Portuguese naval officer. He was truly loyal to him.

“Sir, I’m back from getting some news.”

“Condorcet, was Governor Calderon’s fleet really defeated?” Leon asked anxiously.

“Sir, two Arab merchant ships came into the port yesterday, coming from the east.

I asked their sailors, and they learned that their ships had been in Matuba, Pegu of the Toungoo people, and Mrauk-U of the Arakan people. There, they heard from local sailors that a fierce battle had taken place in the Malacca Strait more than two months ago.

Our Portuguese fleet was defeated by the Ming fleet.”

Leon’s expression darkened, and he asked, “Did they see it with their own eyes?”

Condorcet shook his head: “No. The Malacca Strait is blocked and all ships can only enter but not leave. They also heard it from others, and the source is unknown.

Because no one has confirmed it, no one in Goa is willing to believe that a fleet as large as Calderon’s would be defeated by the Ming people.”

Leon said worriedly: “The Malacca Strait is blocked. Ships can only go in but not out. This is enough to explain the problem. If Governor Calderon won a great victory, how could he block the Malacca Strait?
He is a man who loves to show off, so he will naturally send the Clippers back as soon as possible to publicize his great achievements to everyone. “

Condorcet held his hat in his hand, and was also distressed. “Sir, the people in Goa still hold illusions. They believe that the fleet led by Governor Calderon can be defeated by no one in the world except the Spanish native fleet.

I have said many times that the Ming Dynasty has the strength, but they ignored it. The Portuguese who came back from the trench mirror helped us at first, which shows that the strength of the Chinese people should not be underestimated.

But as they were talking, they changed their tune, took their side, and accused us of exaggerating the facts and making alarmist statements as eyewitnesses.

Leon walked to the window and through the open window he could see the Goa Port in the distance.

There were less than ten ships sparsely parked in the wide port area, including two small carrick-shaped sailboats, which were the only two water forces of the Portuguese in the port of Goa.

The rest are Arab dhows.

Calderon took almost all of the Portuguese warships in India to Malacca. If they were defeated, the Portuguese’s decades of operations in India would collapse.

“They have all been assimilated. There is a saying in Ming China that a man who knows the times is a hero. They have seen clearly the direction of the wind in Goa, so they will naturally not risk standing on our side.”

“But sir, we must face reality and not indulge in fantasy.”

“Reality?
The reality is that we Portuguese have won for too long and too much.

Since Sir Vasco da Gama opened up the route to India, we Portuguese have traveled from West Africa to East Africa, and then to Arabia and India. We defeated the indigenous princes in various places and defeated the combined fleets of the Ottomans and Venice.

These realities made us believe that the Portuguese had no rivals other than the Spanish. If we had not been on a diplomatic mission to the Ming Dynasty and witnessed the strength of their navy and their formidable war mobilization capabilities, we would probably still be indulging in this fantasy.

Condorcet said anxiously: “Sir, it is very dangerous to go on like this.

Now people in Goa are having fun and dancing as they should. Some people are even discussing preparing a grand welcome party for Calderon’s triumphant return.

If Calderon’s fleet is defeated, other forces in India will get wind of the situation and we will be in danger.”

Leon put his hands on the edge of the windowsill.

“It’s very dangerous. Now there are only two small warships left in Goa to prevent pirates, and more than 3,000 army soldiers. The remaining more than 10,000 people are merchants, officials, craftsmen, missionaries and their families.

The situation in Cochin, Diu and other cities was similar, with only a small number of soldiers and a considerable number of non-combatants.

But I am not worried about the Indian native forces. Our soldiers have muskets and there are cannons in the castle. If they attack by land, we don’t have to be afraid.

Condorcet, I am now worried that the Ming navy will seize the opportunity to pursue us, sail from Malacca, and attack us from the sea, which would be a disaster.”

Condorcet said quickly: “Sir, this is impossible. Calderon’s fleet may be defeated, but it is impossible for it to be completely annihilated.

I guess that Governor Calderon might be staying somewhere to recover from his injuries. Given his proud personality, he will definitely wait for some time before showing up again.”

Leon shook his head: “No, no, the Ming people may be learning from us in sailing ships and artillery. But their understanding of war is beyond our imagination.

When our ancestors were still barbarians under the Romans, they wrote “The Art of War”, which clearly explained the nature of war.

The tactics and strategies that we cannot imagine are as easy for them as drinking water. The results of the battles that we cannot imagine are as common for them as the sun rising from the east.

Condorcet was anxious. “Sir, are you saying that Governor Calderon can’t come back? What should we do? If Governor Calderon returns after being defeated, he will remember your good advice and will definitely release you without charge.

If he doesn’t come back, you will still be sent back to your homeland. Those gentlemen in the country will definitely find ways to humiliate you. “Leon shook his head, “Condorcet, you are wrong. If Governor Calderon returns defeated, I will be dead. There is no need to send me back to my homeland. He will find a way to execute me.”

Condorcet was stunned. “Sir, why is this?”

Leon said quietly, “Calderon is ambitious, vain and cares about his reputation. He ignored my advice and insisted on sending troops, but ended up returning in defeat. He will be jealous of me, and my existence is a huge humiliation to him.

So when he came back from the battle defeated, the first thing he did was to kill me.”

Condorcet said in surprise: “Then it would be a good thing for you if Governor Calderon’s entire army was annihilated and he can’t come back.”

Leon looked at the Goa Harbor in the distance and the Goa city nearby, sighed and said: “Calderon’s defeat and return is not a good thing for me personally.

But it is a good thing for the city of Goa and Portugal’s colonies in India. At least he can bring back some naval warships and have the ability to protect himself. “

Condorcet thought for a moment and said, “Sir, no matter what, I still hope that Calderon will not come back.”

Leon turned around and said to him: “For me, I still hope Calderon will come back.”

“Sir, you are the most loyal subject of Portugal.”

Suddenly, the sound of cannon fire was heard from the distant port, interrupting Condorcet’s words. He and Leon quickly turned their heads and looked towards the port area. They saw a cloud of black smoke filling the fortress battery on the left cape of the port, which had just fired a shot.

There is a situation!
“Condorcet, let’s go! To the port!” Leon shouted.

The two rushed downstairs, jumped into a carriage, and headed straight for the port area.

The sound of horse hooves clattering and the rumbling of wheels as horse-drawn carriages travel through the city of Goa.

From the Governor’s Mansion not far away, there were sounds of music and laughter from men and women; the Governor’s wife was holding another dance party.

The Portuguese nobility followed the Spanish royal family closely. Whatever became popular in the Madrid court would soon be followed by Lisbon, and then spread to India on ships.

This kind of court ball is said to be the latest trend in the Spanish court.

The Governor’s wife followed suit and the dance lasted all night. Now it was morning and the ball was not over yet.

Leon knew that this ball was a place where men and women played some exciting games together under the guise of dancing, so the Governor’s wife held it so frequently during Governor Calderon’s military campaign.

Outside the area where the nobles lived, the streets were deserted.

Native Indians pushed large wooden barrel carts through the streets and alleys, taking the dung buckets handed over by each household and pouring the manure into the large wooden barrels.

Originally, the city of Goa was like the cities of Europe.

Every morning, every household would pour their feces and urine buckets out of the windows onto the street.

However, the citizens of Goa are more civilized than those in Madrid, Lisbon and Paris. They will shout before pouring so that people passing by on the street can get out of the way in time to avoid being drenched.

This is the light of human civilization, the current state of European cities from the Middle Ages to the eighteenth century.

The streets were covered with a thick layer of muddy feces and urine, so the clever Europeans invented high heels; the whole city was like a big cesspool, stinking, so they invented perfume.
Even Indians can’t stand seeing Goa in such a shabby state.

Indians were originally “easy-going” people, but the waves of Islamic rulers that rushed in from the northwest all loved cleanliness and hygiene.

Their castle has bathrooms and public toilets.
Under the whipping of the sultans, Indians learned to relieve themselves in the wild and to bathe in the river regularly.
The living habits of the Portuguese in Goa were greatly despised by the Indians.

Feeling the contempt from the indigenous people, the self-important Governor Calderon could not stand it.

We come from civilized Europe and are the noble children of God. How could we be looked down upon by you?
So he made this rule that every morning Indian natives would pull wooden barrel carts to collect the residents’ feces and urine from house to house and transport them out of the castle.

The carriage passed through the rich smell, and occasionally a citizen who was too lazy to go downstairs would pour out a bucket of grain from the window with a clatter.

Leon frowned and said nothing.

Condorcet, who had also been to the Ming Dynasty with him, could not help but say, “Sir, compared with Shanghai and the capital of the Ming Dynasty, I feel that living in Goa is like living in a cesspool.

They always say how civilized we are, but in this respect, the Ming people are many times more civilized than us.”

“Well, there’s no point in saying this.” Leon interrupted Condorcet’s complaints. He was now more worried about the alarm from the port artillery, wondering if the enemy was coming.

The carriage drove to the commercial district, which was a row of taverns, restaurants, hotels and brothels.

From time to time on the street, you can see drunks lying in corners, snoring in various postures. You can see wild dogs licking their mouths and vomit, and you can also see sneaky people searching their pockets.

There were always sounds of heated arguments between men and women in the hotel. Those were prostitutes arguing with some clients who wanted to have sex for free.

The city gate was wide open and noisy sounds came from the gatehouse next door. The guards had been playing mahjong and card games all night and were arguing over who had won or lost.

Majiang and Zipai were introduced from the trench mirror and soon became popular in the colonies. The Portuguese officers and soldiers who had nothing to do used them to gamble and kill their spare time.

When the carriage drove out, no one came out to ask.

Speeding along the road leading to the port, the carriage soon arrived at the fortress.

This fortress battery was built on a hill on the left cape, and one has to climb more than a hundred steps to reach it.

As soon as the carriage stopped, an officer ran down from the battery. He knew Leon.

“My Lord, something terrible has happened.”

“what happened?”

“Yes, yes, there is something going on!” The officer took a breath and continued, “We fired the signal cannon, why is there no response from the city?”

“Don’t worry about them. What happened?”

The officer wanted to say something but didn’t know how to say it, so he simply dragged Leon to the fortress and said, “Please come with me, Viscount.”

Leon and Condorcet followed the officer, ran along the stairs, ran all the way to the fortress, then went along the spiral corridor from the blockhouse to the city wall, and finally saw the situation in the waters outside the port of Goa clearly.

Leon and Condorcet opened their eyes wide and their mouths open, unable to utter a word in horror.

(End of this chapter)