Pierce tried hard to recall the hasty meeting, recalling the disdainful face of Crank Sid, the general manager of East India Company, who was with the Governor at that time, while reciting this secret message.

"The Council felt that it was far-sighted, but did not know that in the eyes of merchants, they were just a group of short-sighted idiots." Pierce said.

East India Company has its own insights into the upcoming chaos in the Netherlands.

In their eyes, business development takes time. Especially for the core planning of building a new center of a company like Southeast Asia, three years, five years or even ten years of preparation are what it should be done.

The decline of the Netherlands is a godsend. If we follow the opinions of the idiots in the parliament who know nothing about business, the East India Company will only be a waste of money.

The problem now is that because of the cues of parliament, the East India Company cannot take action in person. Considering the diplomatic desires after Great Britain, the shareholders in the company with a strong English stamp cannot act in their own capacity.

The casually selected agent may not be able to handle this complicated situation. Seeing the opportunity run away, the company is unwilling to accept it.

So they took a fancy to Drake.

Miami, Muscat, and even the war that just happened in the Mediterranean all showed the side of Drake's International Chamber of Commerce. Drake was good at forming alliances of pan-borders, and also had reliable and loyal allies from the world.

This means that the task of establishing a bridgehead can be hiding the East India Company behind it to the greatest extent. This is the best choice for Great Britain or the company, both politically and economically.

As for what reward Drake can get...

"Manager Crank Sid signed a memorandum with President Eddie Garman on behalf of the Board of Directors of East India Company, agreeing to grant us a purchase share of no more than 10% per year and up to no more than 400,000 pounds per year after the matter is completed."

The East India Company monopolizes the entire production and trade of Britain in the Indian subcontinent and surrounding islands.

According to their operating report in Parliament, in 1785, its annual sales were about 4 million pounds, and based on 100% gross profit, the company's annual output was about 2 million pounds.

A 10% purchase share is an order worth 200,000 pounds.

Giving this order to the Drake Chamber of Commerce is equivalent to East India Company ceding 200,000 pounds of gross profit. Even if the cost of ocean transportation is removed, the value of this promise will not be less than 150,000 pounds per year.

Speaking of this, everyone finally understood why Eddie was impatient to accept the commission from the East India Company.

Because once this commission is successful, Drake will guarantee two high-quality profit growth points, including 150,000 pounds per year in the subcontinent and the Southeast Asian Chamber of Commerce stronghold.

The former lacks room for growth and has huge short-term profits. The annual income of 150,000 pounds is temporarily lower than that of the American, Maritime and European branches in the General Chamber of Commerce, surpassing Africa and industrial and mining, and is enough to rank fourth.

The latter short term may not see much profit, but there are vast Southeast Asia, as well as Qing and Japan hidden behind the archipelago...

A chamber of commerce stronghold at the same level as Miami or slightly lower will allow Drake to gain ground in this vast ocean of unlimited business opportunities before the East India Company.

This means that the East India Company's franchise monopoly will lose its constraints on Drake. How much Drake can gain depends only on how much he can get before the East India Company enters.

Taking the initiative in your own hands is the most precious wealth Eddie has snatched for Drake.

As such, Eddie responded to the East India Company's commission, but Pierce did not rush to send troops this time, but did two things immediately after returning to the water warehouse.

First, Eddie was asked to take responsibility for his recklessness and ask the East India Company for information. As long as there is no category in the information related to Southeast Asia, the more the better.

Second, he secretly ordered Dylan to start the express channel and ask Lorraine, who was far away in Miami.

The so-called express channel is the intelligence linkage transmission plan prepared by Lorraine for special situations. It was thought that Dylan had used it in Muscat back then, so it was easy to be familiar with it.

The closest express channel node to Mumbai is in Zuwo Port. Considering the speed of Xiangyang Hua and the stable currents and strong winds in the Indian Ocean, Pierce calculated that the shortest theoretical time for this round trip was 74 days.

In fact, he actually saw Lorraine's reply after 89 days, that is, March 13, 1787.

He said: "I asked the President for advice and wanted to know which port is the best suitable for Drake's foothold in the vast Southeast Asia. The president's reply was only two words, Xingdao."

Xingdao is Singapore, known as Singapore in ancient times, which means lion in Sanskrit. It is located in the throat of the Strait of Malacca. It is both a gateway to the South China Sea and a major road to Southeast Asia.

With such unique conditions, Sing Tao is naturally the focus of the entire Southeast Asia's attention.

The Portuguese, the British, the Dutch, and the super pirates rampant in the South China Sea. In fact, except for the Tianbao Celestial Kingdom, every force living in this ocean wants to take Xingdao and take it for themselves.

But it is precisely because of this that Sing Tao has been lying peacefully in the arms of the Johor Kingdom, because the Johor Kingdom is weak enough to weigh the pros and cons, and is the "master home" that can be accepted by all forces and is the most suitable "master home" for maintaining free navigation in Malacca.

With a clear goal, Pierce began to formulate a plan for the occupation of Sing Tao.

Relying on the detailed and excessive information from the East India Company, this plan was formulated smoothly.

His goal is to make Sing Tao a private place for Drake like Miami. But unlike Miami, which people don’t like, Sing Tao is the key financial and taxation land of the Johor Kingdom. Although it is dilapidated, Johor will definitely not give up, and its protector, the Dutch East India Company, will not allow the business to be implemented.

But Pierce is no longer Pierce of the past.

The Barbary Pirate War allowed him to grow tangibly, and the respectful teachings of many brothers also gave him the vision and ability to plan a big action.

He carefully analyzed the situation in Malacca.

Sovereign: Kingdom of Johor.

Alliance: The Kingdom of Pili.

Protector: Dutch East India Company.

Hostile: Kingdom of Aceh, Kingdom of Kedah, Portuguese colonial government.

Pretenders: British East India Company, Kingdom of the Barbour.

Neutral: Pirates in the South China Sea.

Drake's mission is to make Sing Tao the private territory of Drake, and then become a stronghold for the Chamber of Commerce to enter Southeast Asia and the South China Sea, complete the commission to the East India Company, and receive high rewards.

However, the environment of Singdao is not suitable to become a clear colony. Its location is too sensitive. Apart from the weak master, the only way out is to have no master.

Eliminate Johor?

Not to mention whether the special service formation has the ability to destroy a kingdom, even if it is successful, Malacca is not a remote place. The gap in power will definitely be filled by others soon, and the East India Company will never wait for the East India Company to obtain the East Expansion Authorization.

So maintain the status quo?

Using Chennai as a base to expand trade to Southeast Asia and carefully maintaining the status quo of the Strait of Malacca is indeed a rational and responsible response, but doing so is equivalent to giving up Drake's own interests. Drake can't get it, whether it is Southeast Asia's wealth or the returns from the subcontinent.

As he was frowning, Pierce suddenly thought of Lorraine's attitude when dealing with Miami's sovereignty.

The control of private places by merchants is different from the government's requirements. As long as the primary and secondary are divided, they can coexist...

Pierce finally found the third future of Sing Island, not the weak master or the unowned master, but the co-lord with Drake's place.
Chapter completed!