Chapter 2395: The Dragon Sets Foot in Europe

While the Eastern Expeditionary Forces of the Great Ming were annexing Spanish territories in the Americas, Europe was also in turmoil.
Although Felipe successfully ascended to the throne of Portugal, the outcome was different from what the Portuguese nobility had anticipated.
Felipe not only failed to bring them benefits, but also lost their territories in Asia and America one after another, and even interrupted the trade between Europe and the Ming Dynasty.
Especially because Felipe actively antagonized the Ming Dynasty, Portugal not only lost the agency rights of spices in the Nanyang, but also lost the most important trading partner, the Ming Dynasty.
People are all the same, often they only understand the value after losing.
Even though these years, as agents of Great Ming in Europe, they have earned a fortune, but who would complain about having too much money, at this moment they are undoubtedly bleeding in their hearts.
After suffering huge losses in trade and losing overseas territory, not only the common people of Spain harbored hostile feelings towards the new king, Felipe, but many nobles who originally supported him also changed their minds.
In this atmosphere, two Portuguese people influenced the direction of the situation.
Originally condemned to death, Antonio miraculously escaped with the help of certain forces, and then reappeared as the King of Spain, carrying the flag of anti-Philip.
Simon, who comes from a noble family, was one of the earliest traders to venture to the Ming Dynasty in search of wealth. Over the years, thanks to his good relationship with Lin Xiaoran and the United Merchant Consortium, he decisively became the biggest beneficiary of trade with the Ming Dynasty.
Even when the war broke out between the two countries, the Simon family's merchant convoy, which was still staying at Xiangshan Port, did not encounter any trouble from the Ming Dynasty. Instead, they were allowed to return safely.
只是费利佩夺得葡萄牙王位，费利佩更是派遣军队远征大明王朝，葡萄牙跟大明王朝已经成为了敌人，而西蒙的舰队直接无法再度前往大明贸易了。
Simon understands the Emperor's decision to suspend trade with Portugal, but he is extremely frustrated with Filipe, the main culprit behind this incident.
Whether it is for personal interests or the overall interests of Portugal, he needs to pressure Filipe to step down and restore relations with the Ming Dynasty.
As Felipe was preparing to invade England, with the support of Simon's finances, Antonio led the reorganized Portuguese army in an attack on the capital city of Lisbon.
Thanks to the support of the Portuguese people for António, coupled with the waning resolve of the Portuguese nobility, António quickly captured the capital of Lisbon.
Subsequently, Antonio crowned himself as the new king of Portugal once again in the church, while regions such as Santarém and Setúbal expressed their support for him.
"Damn Antonio, I must see you being hanged with my own eyes!"
After learning of Antonio's coronation, King Felipe of Spain was undoubtedly furious, and he immediately dispatched the Marquess of Santa Cruz to lead the Spanish army to "suppress the rebellion."
Although the two countries are located on the Iberian Peninsula and share a border, Marquis of Santa Cruz does not plan to attack from the border.
With the help of the Spanish navy, they successfully transported twenty thousand troops to the northern coast of the Tagus River estuary, which is only thirty kilometers away from Lisbon.
A few days later, Marquis de Santa Cruz led the army to advance into the valley of Alcantara, west of Lisbon, where the war began.
"Brave Portuguese warriors, please follow me to kill the enemy and protect our homeland!" After a trip to the gate of hell, Antonio became even more brave and fearless, leading his loyal army to shout loudly.
The Spanish have a large population, but they do not have a significant advantage in terms of equipment. Additionally, Antonio is on the defensive side, so the battle is fiercely contested.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Gunshots can be heard constantly, with members from both sides falling to the ground with gunshot wounds.
Poof! Poof! Poof!
The battle was relentless, with soldiers from both sides splattering blood.
The enmity between Portugal and Spain has a long history. Despite being the weaker party, Antonio knew that there was no turning back and led his men to withstand Spain's repeated attacks.
Both sides are not the least bit merciful. Although there are unwritten rules in Europe that nobles should not be killed but rather exchanged for ransom, nowadays they are simply being killed directly.
Antonio, who grew up in the working-class neighborhood, nearly died at the hands of Felipe. Now he just wants to repel the Spanish, so he naturally doesn't care about these bullshit hidden rules.
This battle was exceptionally fierce, with heavy casualties on both sides.
Marquis Santa Cruz thought this would be an easy war, but seeing the casualties on his side, he decided to request reinforcements from home.
Felipe ultimately failed to secure his position in Portugal, and his identity as the king of Spain further fueled the resentment of the Portuguese people, resulting in an increase in anti-Felipe sentiment within the country.
During the stalemate of the war, more and more Portuguese people voluntarily joined in this defense battle, choosing to help Antonio resist the "invaders".
Simon was determined to help Antonio ascend to power, and continuously provided assistance to Antonio, resulting in his army receiving sufficient supplies.
The war is actually fought for money, and the reason why Spain is so powerful is mainly because they have been obtaining a continuous supply of gold and silver from the Americas. However, now the supply of gold and silver from the Americas has been cut off by the Ming Dynasty, which has put Spain in a very passive position.
在欧洲的政治生态中，国王的权力其实受到极大的限制。
一方面他们一定程度地受制于教会，另一方面下面有着诸多拥有领土和军队的封臣，这些封臣压根可以不听从于国王的号令。
Like the national treasury running out of money, during the reign of Emperor Jiajing, he could continue to sustain massive expenditures on infrastructure through levying additional taxes and imposing additional quotas, whereas European kings had to resort to issuing national debt by mortgaging local tax revenues.
Felipe has been living a luxurious life for years and already owes a large sum of money to the bank. Now, facing such a protracted war, he has no choice but to continue borrowing from the bank, even though it is difficult for him.
Just fighting like this, even if he wins in the end, it is impossible to fill the royal family's financial gap, so he hopes to solve the battle in one fell swoop.
Therefore, when facing the Marquis of Santa Cruz's request for help, he immediately borrowed from the bank and dispatched a army of ten thousand soldiers to support, intending to end this war in one go.
At this particular time, under the constant persuasion of Simon, Antonio resolutely gained the support of all the Portuguese nobles.
The Portuguese nobles were originally hesitant, but once they learned that if Portugal were to break free from the control of Felipe, the Ming Dynasty would re-establish friendly relations with Portugal, and the spice trade in the South Sea would still be entrusted to Portugal for distribution.
Faced with such immense benefits, the Portuguese nobles no longer hesitate and seem to be infused with energy, dedicating more manpower and financial resources to support Antonio.
Gu Feng
With the full participation of the Portuguese nobility, despite receiving reinforcements of 10,000 from Spain, the conflict between the two sides has returned to a stalemate.
As a result, there is still no victory or defeat in this war, but the number of casualties on both sides continues to increase daily.
"Damn Simon, bunch of ungrateful guys!" Felipe couldn't help but curse when he learned that the Portuguese nobles had joined the war.
Originally planning for a swift victory, Felipe realized that his plan to annex Portugal had failed when he saw both the Portuguese nobles and civilians siding with Antonio.
In order to avoid increasing losses, although it is very painful, it is necessary to choose to terminate this money-burning war.
This war lasted for a month and a half, and the number of casualties on both sides exceeded five figures, and a large amount of money was paid for it.
Felipe was undoubtedly the biggest loser, not only losing the Portuguese throne, but also suffering heavy casualties in this war, which further increased his own debts.
As Antonio had already won the support of the people of Portugal and gained the recognition of the Pope, he became the rightful new king of Portugal.
From a prisoner to the king of Portugal, Antonio undoubtedly staged a legend.
However, deep down he knew that without Simon's full support in this war, coupled with the enticing promises given by the Ming Dynasty, he would never have been able to sit on the throne.
在坐上王位后，安东尼奥任命西蒙为外交大臣，却是派遣使者跟大明王朝重新修复关系，以藩王的身份向大明王朝纳贡。
Essentially, at the start of the conflict, the Portuguese had already declared their stance, even proactively seeking assistance from the nearest Ming naval base in Goa, India.
Fortunately, they encountered a Ming envoy leading a naval fleet, not only securing a promise to restore trade but also gaining support in the form of ten matchlock guns.
After becoming a Portuguese diplomat, Simão personally led a delegation to Ming Dynasty to express the sincerity of the Portuguese side and the intention to establish friendship between the two countries, carrying the letter from António.
When Portugal intended to strengthen its ties with the Ming Dynasty, Felipe launched another war.
Although losing control over Portugal, Spain was obsessed with maritime supremacy, which was the foundation of its domination at sea.
In the face of the constantly growing English Navy and the desire to restore Spain's reputation in Europe, Felipe dispatched Doña with more than 30,000 soldiers to launch an expedition against England as planned.
After the War of Roses, England has finally put an end to its internal conflicts. And now, England welcomes Queen Elizabeth, who is devoting every effort to develop maritime trade and has already extended her influence to Africa and other regions.
But unexpectedly, before they could find an ideal maritime trade model, they were attacked by the Spanish fleet.
This battle took place as scheduled in the English Channel, and although the Spanish cannons were fierce, England's soldiers, who had been through the Wars of the Roses, proved to be very tenacious.
Although England's warships cannot compare with Spain's, they excel in their maneuverability.
With Spain's underestimation and the excellent performance of England's commanding army, England successfully turned the tide and fought fiercely against the incoming Spanish.
Boom!
When the legitimate war situation reached a deadlock, a fleet of the Ming Dynasty suddenly broke in and launched a fierce bombardment on the Spanish fleet.
The once invincible galley ship, at this moment, caught fire and Spanish soldiers on board jumped into the sea to escape, causing chaos in the Spanish fleet.
Since the Ming navy captured Goa in India, the Ming Dynasty has adopted a more proactive foreign policy.
After appointing Jiang Ronghua as a European diplomat, Jiang Ronghua led a navy to visit Europe, intending to establish good relations with various European countries.
As the Suez Canal is not yet open, Asia and Europe cannot bypass Africa. Therefore, the fleet for the expedition needs to sail along the entire coastline of Africa.
Sailing from the latter half of the sixth year of the Baishi era, after more than half a year's time, the fleet finally arrived in the European region. After concluding the meeting with King António of Portugal, Jiang Ronghua's second stop was England.
After arriving in England, he met with Elizabeth of England, carrying a handwritten letter from Lin Haoran, and expressed the intention of the Ming Dynasty to establish friendly relations with England.
England is now nothing more than a small country in Europe. Faced with the olive branch extended by the Ming Dynasty, there is no reason not to accept it.
As luck would have it, news arrived that the Spanish fleet was attacking England.
At Elizabeth's plea, Jiang Ronghua decided to help England and therefore got involved in this battle.
On the one hand, Ming Dynasty and Spain have already been at odds with each other; on the other hand, Ming Dynasty wants to declare their naval strength to Europe through this battle.
Under the powerful firepower of Ming Dynasty's navy, coupled with the increasingly brave English navy, the Spanish fleet is completely defenseless. Commander Donia, seeing the dire situation, immediately leads the remnants to flee the battlefield.
Although Donia led the remnants to successfully escape back to Spain, more than half of the soldiers and warships were lost in this battle.
After these two battles, the Spanish king can be said to have a towering debt.
Unfortunately, news of his complete loss in the Americas came back to him, and the bank refused to provide Felipe with a loan.
Felipe, like a desperate gambler, tried to send his remaining forces to reclaim the Americas, but encountered a massive storm on the way, resulting in his meager military power hiding in the depths of the ocean.
"Lend me ten million gold coins, I want to build an invincible fleet and reclaim America!" Felipe shouted loudly in the face of continuous defeat.
According to the evaluation of the bank, Spain has no ability to repay the debts of these years after losing the gold from America, and the current Spanish royal family has gone bankrupt.
At this point, Spain not only lost its maritime hegemony, but also gradually faded from the world stage among European countries.
In contrast, Portugal and England established good trade relations with the Ming Dynasty, which enabled them to slowly rise in Europe.
Chinese products have gradually entered Europe through various agents in different countries. Even small nail clippers can become popular throughout Europe, while various clothing designs by Da Ming have become the fashion pursued by Europe.
So far, the footprint of China has reached Europe, and the Ming Dynasty is no longer a mysterious oriental country, but a desirable manufacturing country.