"We must first send someone to take the royal family of King Lu and other families to Qiongzhou, and then wait for the opportunity to get along with Wu Sanguixu and wait for the time to move. Fortunately, we still have regulations to follow. As long as there is no ambition to cause trouble, the alliance will not collapse." Li Mingxun said.

The constitution mentioned by Li Mingxun is the mechanism set when the Zhongming alliance was formed. The Zhongming alliance was a national alliance. The United States recognized Emperor Yongli as the leader of this alliance and regarded the emperor as the patriarch of the nation. Since everyone is of the same clan, the clan power can be determined. After all, at that time, Zhu Ming's orthodox status was still unshakable.

In the alliance system, Yongli was the nominal national leader, while Li Mingxun was the commander-in-chief of all armed forces of the Chinese nation, that is, the commander-in-chief of the Allied Army. In the division of power, the emperor was the main and the head of state was the auxiliary, which complemented each other. However, in political status, Li Mingxun still had to rely on the latter, because at that time, Yongli had already established Zhu Cixuan as the crown prince. In the alliance treaty, the position of national leader was expressed in this way: the emperor was the leader of a clan, but the world was in chaos and the mountains and rivers were broken, and the power was not my own. If the emperor was unhappy, the prince would follow him. If the prince was unhappy, then the Li clan Mingxun handed him over, and the King of Jin and Shu were the continuation, and the world would be my only, and the destiny would be forever.

Simply put, the position of national leader belonged to the crown prince Zhu Cixuan after Yongli's death. Li Mingxun was the one who died. Now Yongli's family is captured. Although they are not dead, they are in danger. According to the treaty of the alliance, Li Mingxun, the head of the United States, and Li Dingguo, the king of Jin, should be assisted.

But there is a problem with this leader inheritance system that is very vague. In what capacity did Li Mingxun inherit the position of leader, or what did Li Mingxun and Li Dingguo inherit the position of sequential people, national leaders or thrones?

In fact, this issue was deliberately vague. The purpose was of course to replace the Ming Dynasty and unify the world, but the timing was still wrong. This was also the reason why Li Mingxun wanted to control all the royal families of Zhu Ming. He had to act as the head of state as a leader, and then wait for the time to act and betray Wu Sangui. During this period, he observed the attitudes of the generals, gentry and the people of Zhu Ming's various vassal states. As long as he did not object, he could become an emperor after the emperor's death. If there was a great obstacle, he would have to establish a new king and slowly plan.

"How can the Senate cooperate?" Lin Cheng asked.

Li Mingxun said: "No matter what, let Ah Hai come back first. The base camp cannot be without heavyweight veterans. He is here, so I can go to Dianjing. The Senate will continue to support the war in the southeast, but it mainly supports Simmons' naval fleet. Only when we win at sea can we not have any worries."

"I understand that the battle is quick to be decided at sea so that land can win as soon as possible. Although the throne is orthodox, it still depends on merit. Zhu Yuanzhang expelled the Meng Yuan and ascended the great treasure with the sound of grass. If you can also expel the Tartars and restore China, it would be indisputable." Lin Cheng said immediately.

Li Mingxun nodded. He knew that this was the most basic truth. He only had the merit of helping the danger now, but did not have the virtue of restoring Jiangnan and attacking the Central Plains, all the four vassals and orthodox are not important at that time.

Madras, India.

This is the capital of the East India Company of the United Kingdom. The tall Fort St. George represents the interests of the Kingdom of Britain in the East. Madras in April was already very hot, but this is for the local gentlemen. Norton, the Governor of Madras of the East India Company, is not such a person. He has a strong tolerance for harsh conditions.

In the East India Company, Sir Norton is a legend. Although he was a noble family, his family had long declined. When he was young, he struggled on the tobacco coast of America, fought rampant in the tropical rainforests of the Caribbean. He spent fifteen years in the harsh and dangerous colonies before entering the eyes of London merchants, heading to the east, and quickly becoming the governor. Norton, who was born in a military, was different from those nobles. He could survive countless wars because he had a natural intuition about danger. On this hot afternoon, he felt that there was a huge danger approaching Madras.

He didn't know where the danger came from, was it the siege of the nearby Sultans, or the fleets of pagans? Norton couldn't guess, so he could only carry out a surprise inspection of Madras' defense system under the sun. The castle had sufficient artillery and ammunition, and there were not many soldiers but they were in a state of preparation. The merchant ships in the port were separated from civilian ships. Among the armed ships belonging to the East India Company, in addition to nine armed merchant ships with a thousand-tonnage tonnage, there were also six main battleships purchased by the company from the local area. The local navy was following the trend and building a battle fleet, and the main battleships were no longer so popular.

"Sir, look, a fleet appeared outside the sea." The officer on the fort ran to Norton and reported.

Norton lifted his telescope and looked out the sea. Sure enough, a fleet appeared outside the sea. The elegant and thick hull, the wide sails and the two continuous artillery decks were known to be a battleship. Norton asked, "Is it the Indian Ocean Fleet of the United States?"

Norton was not a naval general, but he also had some research on battleships. This kind of ship with two and a half-story gun decks is not uncommon in the east, but such complex sailing ropes, tall masts and straight hulls, are seen as battleships. The battleships with two and a half-story gun decks, the United States' Avici Beast-class and Taiwan-class, but the sea evaporation caused by the heat made Norton unable to see clearly, and the fleet did not hang a flag.

"No, it's definitely not the United States fleet. Look at the stern, there is a small artillery deck on the artillery deck on the aft." The fort officer pointed out the rarest characteristics of these warships, and Norton murmured: "This is the style of the people of the Netherlands."

The officer nodded: "Maybe, you look at the sails of these ships, and it has obviously been sailing for a long time. You know, the Chinese are very particular and rich, and their sails cannot be so dirty."

Norton looked again, and sure enough, the sails were not only dirty but also had a lot of patches. This was definitely the result of trans-ocean sailing. As the officer said, the United States fleet was famously rich, with many nearby bases and more friendly ports. The image-oriented United States Navy always used snow-white sails to show the colonists the strength and prosperity of the country.

"No matter what, obviously the fleet can't be blocked in the port when going to sea," Norton said.

In the East, only he and Governor Surat knew that David had returned to the land, and forming a European Combined Fleet with the Dutch was an open secret. Madras's fleet soon left the port, with a total of four main battleships and six heavy armed merchant ships. Obviously, the British East India Company fleet was also in preparation for war.

Preparation for war is certain, because over the past year, the ocean atmosphere in the entire East was strange. First, the Dutch and Spanish fleets disappeared, and it was only later that they discovered that they appeared on the southern coast of Africa. Soon, the main fleet of the United States, the Indian Ocean fleet and the local large fleet also disappeared in the port. After Madras received the news that the Peach Blossom Stone Emperor (Emperor of the Ming Dynasty) was abducted, Norton soon received the news that the United States declared war on the Netherlands and Spain. Britain, which was between the European Union of Colonists and the United States, naturally had to be vigilant.

"Governor, they raised the flag." After the fleet left the port, changes soon occurred. The six battleships had already hung the flags of the Dutch East India Company, and behind the battleships were twelve armed merchant ships, with a rainbow of momentum.

The Dutch fleet sent envoys to enter Madras on a boat. Norton learned that Druittel had arrived in person. Facing the Dutch fleet, which was far stronger than his own, Norton was not panicked at all. After all, the two East India companies in the Netherlands and Britain are also part of the alliance. Madras is constantly in contact with Orangeburg, and Norton also passed many news about the United States fleet to Orangeburg.

According to the secret agreement between Norton and Lee Myung-hoon, after discovering the European colonists fleet, Norton should report its dynamics to Penang and try to hold it up and wait for the United States fleet to arrive. The weak British East India Company only needs to be an insider.

Norton also prepared this way. He invited the Dutch fleet to enter the port and provide supplies. At the same time, he sent envoys to go south and took a notice ship in the secret port to Penang.

But Norton soon encountered trouble, thinking that Druittel asked him to lead the fleet commander to the Golden Lion battleship to discuss the matter of co-organization of the fleet. Norton had to go because in this maritime alliance, the Dutch were the leader, and Norton had to obey Druitel's command. Of course, Norton also had his own little thoughts, and he was eager to know that the European fleet should include all countries with interests in the East except Portugal. Why did only the Dutch fleet appear in Madras?

It was already afternoon when Norton landed on the Golden Lion on a traffic boat. The sun was no longer so hot. Sir Norton was warmly welcomed by Druittel. Druittel also personally served as a guide to lead Norton to visit this battleship representing the highest level of shipbuilding in the Netherlands. He also showed the officers of the Dutch fleet new formation methods, signal systems and formation sequences, and required drills to be conducted that day.

"Jar, our time is very tight. His Excellency Raphael led other fleets to the Java Sea. An unprecedented war will break out in the offshore of Batavia. After receiving your company's fleet, we will go south immediately. It is inevitable that the Chinese will detect it. Therefore, the fleet will only stay in Madras for three days, then head south to Galle Port, and then head to Batavia." Druitel explained to the map.

"So the Netherlands have divided their troops!" Norton suppressed the excitement in his heart. If this is the case, he could notify Penang and let the Chinese fleet intercept the Dutch fleet on the east coast of Sumatra, and then he could first cut off its elite warships.
Chapter completed!