My British Empire

  Chapter 483 Chaos

  Madrid, in the new royal palace, the King of Spain is discussing the expedition with his Prime Minister, the Minister of Finance and the Duke of Avar.

  After half a year of preparation, the 20,000 Spanish army has been prepared and ready to move out, and what is currently being discussed is the aftermath of the Netherlands.

  Including His Majesty the king, no one will doubt the army's suppression of the Netherlands, and the discussion is only about the aftermath.

   "Your Majesty, the prosperous Netherlands is Spain's dairy cows, not the usual beef cattle!"

  Minister of Finance Roy Gomez De Hill opened his eyes wide, looked at Philip II sincerely, and said sincerely.

   "Huh—" Duke Avar sneered, and said dismissively:

   "My lord, you have to be clear that only the Netherlands in the kingdom's hands is the Netherlands, and the Netherlands that does not exist in the kingdom's hands, no matter how prosperous it is, it is just a landscape!"

   Philip II watched the two trusted ministers argue again, and couldn't help feeling a headache again.

   "Okay, the Duke of Avar who is going on this expedition, then the governor of the Netherlands is also him, and the affairs of the Netherlands should be handed over to him!"

  Hearing this, the Minister of Finance glared at Duke Avar unwillingly, and then reluctantly agreed.

  His Excellency the Prime Minister, on the other hand, looked at himself at ease, as if all this had nothing to do with him.

   "Your Majesty—" the young guard knocked on the door.

   "Come in~" the king made a sound.

   "Meet the Ambassador of the Government of the United Kingdom in Madrid!"

   Anyone with a discerning eye can see that Madrid has become the political center of the entire Kingdom of Spain, so most of the ambassadors have also been transferred here for convenience.

   "Why do the English see me?" Philip II was a little puzzled.

   "Your Majesty, since the Ambassador of England is asking to see him, there must be something important, so it's better to meet him!" The Minister of Finance suddenly spoke out, persuading him.

   "Then let's meet!" Philip II glanced at the Minister of Finance and said with a smile.

   Soon, a gentleman with a short beard and light yellow wavy hair came in. He first saluted Philip II, and after a few greetings, he explained his purpose.

   "Your Majesty, Europe has been exploited by Portugal for a long time! My king wants to work with your country to break Portugal's monopoly on Eastern trade, and create a fair business environment to benefit the people of the two countries!"

  Mr. Ambassador faced Philip II and said solemnly, claiming that it was for the benefit of both countries.

  As soon as this remark came out, Philip II and the ministers were directly surprised.

   Join forces to challenge Portugal's authority in eastern trade. It is surprising that the English have such courage.

  Philip II immediately began to think about the benefits of breaking through the Portuguese blockade, and large sums of gold coins entered the treasury.

  Especially when I am about to send troops to the Netherlands, it is so important to have a source of cash on the basis of not being able to get the tax from the Netherlands for the time being.

  However, Eastern trade is far from quenching thirst, and the Portuguese have monopolized Eastern trade for many years, and it is very difficult to break it, especially when he has to invest in the navy to fight the Ottoman Empire, let alone push Portugal over.

   "Sorry, Your Excellency the Ambassador!" Philip II shook his head and said with a little apology.

   While gold is tempting, it's still not worth it compared to fighting the Ottoman Pagans.

   "At present, it is more beneficial for our country to continue to maintain the Zaragoza Treaty. We have no possibility of changing it at present!"

   "Since this is the case, then I will resign, and hope to have the possibility of cooperation with your country in the future!"

  Your Excellency the Ambassador felt a little discouraged. It is indeed a pity that a good opportunity to make contributions has passed away.

   But he still kept a faint smile on his face, and retreated politely.

  The chancellor of the exchequer watched the ambassador of England retreat, as if he saw a large sum of gold coins leaving his pocket, feeling inexplicably heartbroken.

  As an important minister of the kingdom, he understands His Majesty's mind, upholding Catholicism, and becoming a defender of the faith is the king's highest thought, and interests are irrelevant.

  So, he could only watch the wealth leave, but could not speak.

  The same is true for the Duke of Avar on the side. Although he is against the Minister of Finance, he still understands what the huge Eastern trade will bring to the kingdom.

  ...

  Hampshire (Hampshire), a county in southeastern England, is bordered by the Solent to the south, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, and opposite to the Isle of Wight by the Solent.

  The largest city, Southampton, is the capital of Hampshire and a famous port in England. The tax on ships docked every day brings a lot of income to the city hall, making other cities in the county extremely eye-catching.

  In front of the entrance to the city gate, according to the usual practice, there was a long queue, and they slowly entered Southampton. Everyone felt that they were maintaining order, and everything was so harmonious.

   "Boom, boom, boom!" Suddenly, a sound of horseshoes disrupted the harmony. A group of people with short swords and blood-red cloaks rippling behind them rode straight past, ignoring the gatekeeper.

  The people in front of the city gate were not at all annoyed by being cut in line, but instead started discussing enthusiastically.

   "Depending on the situation, someone else is unlucky again. I don't know which high-ranking official it is!"

   "Yes! There is a good show to watch, which is much more interesting than watching that play!"

  People looked at the back of the knight riding away with great interest.

   Sure enough, this group of knights lived up to expectations, rode their horses, and rushed directly to the Sheriff's Mansion.

   "Star Chamber Court handles the case, please cooperate!"

   Just as the guards in front of the government were about to intercept, the leader of this group of blood-red cloaked knights directly showed an iron plate with the English word "Star Chamber Court" written on it.

  The Palace Intelligence Department is under the banner of the Star Room Court, so all will have the power to enforce the law.

   "Yes, please come in—" the guard looked at the sign, his thighs trembling, said tremblingly, and made a gesture of please.

  These palace intelligence staff, under the shocking eyes of the guards, walked directly into the office of the sheriff.

   In less than a minute, the majestic Sheriff was now like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered, with his head downcast, like a mourning concubine, and his face was gray.

  Then, the chairman of the traffic management committee was also arrested and escorted out together with the county chief.

  The entire Sheriff's Mansion felt like an earthquake at this time, flustered and full of discussions.

   But at this moment, news came that His Excellency the supervisor, one of the three giants in Hampshire, was directly handed over to the county court by Blood Blade.

   That is to say, the county chief, supervisor, and county lieutenant, except for the county lieutenant who controls the military power, the other two were arrested.

   What followed were batches of accountants who carried out rigorous calculations and audits of every expenditure in the entire county government.

  (end of this chapter)