1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 1794 Unsatisfactory
If you want to measure North Korea's war preparations by Haihan's standards, it is naturally far from the passing line. According to the requirements of Haihan's Ministry of Defense, the North Koreans should have done the most basic work before the fleet arrived. Preparatory work, such as providing complete port facilities so that the fleet can berth and get supplies smoothly, come up with a decent logistics support plan to discuss with the fleet command, and provide a certain number of local armed forces to cooperate with Haihan, but it seems that these None of the work has been done well enough to satisfy Tom Wang.

Jin Shangxian had already felt Wang Tom's dissatisfaction very clearly, so after going ashore, he proposed to arrange a dinner for Wang Tom and other generals to clean up the dust.Of course, Wang Tom was very clear about the importance of eating, drinking, and military affairs, and he would not be fooled by this North Korean veteran. He was noncommittal about the dinner arrangement, but he still insisted on checking the local war preparations first.

In desperation, Jin Shangxian could only lead Wang Tom to visit the granary on the island first.There are thousands of hectares of fertile land on Jianghua Island, and the grain produced locally is used as a war reserve, directly transported to the state-owned grain depot on the island, and will not be circulated in the market, so the grain reserves are relatively sufficient.However, other military supplies, such as medicinal materials, quilts, canvas, etc., have already been put in place, which is far from meeting Haihan's requirements.

As for the logistics support plan, Kim Sang-heon could not come up with any specific plan, but only claimed that he would call [-] to [-] civilians to be responsible for the logistics during the war, so that Haihan would not be held back.But for such a promise, Tom Wang will not easily accept it. After all, it seems that even half of the preparatory work promised by the North Koreans has not been realized so far. God knows what level of logistical support they can provide during the war.

Wang Tom secretly sighed in his heart. With North Korea's attitude towards war, it's no wonder that it was pushed down by the Qing army in a wave of history. In the end, the king and ministers chose to surrender together and made Qing the suzerain.The so-called loyalty to Daming has no real strength to guarantee it, and in the end it can only stay in words.

But at the same time, he couldn't help feeling worried. It was fine to let North Korea provide logistical support to Liaodong. After all, Haihan's military operations in Liaodong would not be completely dependent on North Korea.But if we want to cooperate with North Korea to fight against the invasion of the peninsula by the Qing army, then given the current state of war preparations shown by the North Koreans, Tom Wang really dare not rest assured and boldly let his own troops stand at the forefront and work for these North Koreans.

When things got to this point, Wang Tom couldn't help but start to wonder whether the Executive Committee agreed to the North Koreans' request to send troops to aid North Korea. Whether this decision was right or wrong.The Qing army's attack on North Korea still has a high probability of happening in this time and space with Haihan, but whether North Korea will only make a symbolic resistance as in history, or fight to the death with the Haihan army, the result may be It's quite different.

According to the plan of the Ministry of National Defense, the best strategy is of course to mobilize the whole of North Korea to pile up elite troops on the northern border, and cooperate with the Haihan army to defend against the enemy outside the border.If this method does not work, then several lines of defense will be deployed between the northern border of North Korea and Seoul, and the tactics of strengthening the wall and clearing the field will be implemented, and then the North Korean army will intercept the Qing army, while the Haihan army will detour to the enemy's rear to cut off the enemy. Supply transportation lines, and strive to make it impossible for the Qing army to retreat on its own.

As for the worst strategy, that was Haihan's original plan when he received Li Xi's request for help, to sit back and watch the changes, and when the North Korean side couldn't stand it anymore, he tried to pick up his politicians and resettle them to other safe places to set up an overseas government-in-exile. Prepare for military intervention in North Korea in the future.However, since North Korea paid Haihan to garrison troops with money and food, of course they would not accept this last option, and would definitely require Haihan to take action on the frontal battlefield to attack the invading Qing army.

"Lord Jin, with all due respect, with your country's current progress in preparing for war, once the Qing army invades south, let alone pulling the troops out to fight, even if they just hide and defend, they may not be able to resist for long." Tom Wang decided to tell the truth. To be honest, it is to prevent the North Koreans from continuing to feel good about themselves and lack accurate judgment on the prospect of war.

"I agree with what General Wang said." To Wang Tom's surprise, Kim Sang-heon admitted frankly to this unkind criticism: "Our country's military strength is limited and we are not good at fighting. The reason why my lord asked your country for help in Sanya. With your help, maybe our country can avoid this catastrophe!"

Wang Tom said: "But judging from your country's preparations for the war, I really can't see that your country has a sense of urgency for the upcoming war. Mr. Jin, if you want to win this war, you must give your all Don't think about leaving yourself a way out, because that will make you lose the courage to fight!"

Kim Sang-heon said: "I am ready to die for the country, but to tell you the truth, General Wang, North Korea has not yet unified its position, and there are still disputes over whether to fight or reconcile, so various preparations for war will inevitably be affected."

Wang Tom asked puzzledly: "Hasn't the king of your country already decided to fight?"

Kim Sang-heon explained: "His Majesty the King has indeed made a decision, but there are still some officials who believe that peace talks are the best solution to the crisis and oppose all preparations for war. They believe that doing so will further anger the Qing Dynasty and speed up the dispatch of troops. "

Wang Tom sighed and said, "If peace talks can solve the problem, why do you need the army? You are not qualified to bargain on the battlefield, but you want to be on an equal footing with your opponents at the negotiating table. What a ridiculous idea! Qing If the army asks your country to sever diplomatic relations with Daming and our country, will your country agree? The result is still the same. The differences will be resolved through force. When the Qing army approaches the city, what can you give them in exchange for peace? Take yourself head?"

Wang Tom's words are quite blunt. If North Korea still treats the upcoming war with such an attitude, then he must re-examine Haihan's position and evaluate whether it should be military intervention in the crisis on the Korean Peninsula at this time.A country without a strong willingness to fight is certainly not worth sacrificing the lives of Haihan soldiers to aid, and there is no natural harbor on the west coast of North Korea. It is difficult to build a large naval base like other overseas colonies, which is actually useless to the navy. .

Even though Jin Shangxian was mature and prudent, he was still blushed by Wang Tom's words, so he could only explain: "General Wang, our country is not unwilling to fight against the Qing army. His Majesty the King has also ordered to gather troops from the south to the north. , in order to resist the threat of the Qing army. However, our army lacks combat experience, so we hope that your country can provide assistance. Your Majesty the King has actually approved all the requirements put forward by your country, but it will take time to implement them one by one. "

Wang Tom said: "It's useless to say more. I will definitely decide whether to station troops in your country based on the actual effect. I will stay in Jianghua Island for another three days. If the combat readiness here does not improve significantly, I'm sorry. I will give an order to leave here. Also, Li Xi, the diplomatic ambassador of your country, has promised us 2000 taels of gold for sending troops. I believe your country has received the news. Please pay the fee within three days. If the money is not in place , then there is no need to talk about the following things.”

Wang Tom has now begun to feel that the promises made by the North Koreans may not be credible, so no matter whether they will station troops in North Korea in the future, they must first pocket the bills that should be collected. 2000 taels of gold is really not a small amount. Since the North Koreans have already promised this money, it must be taken back no matter what.If a war is really going to happen later, then the military expenses must be calculated separately.

Jin Shangxian said with a wry smile: "The gold is already on the way to Jianghua Island. General Wang, don't worry, it will arrive the day after tomorrow at the latest. As for other preparations for the war, I will definitely step up and urge you to do my best to satisfy General Wang as soon as possible. "

Wang Tom said: "Master Jin is wrong. Whether I am satisfied or not is a secondary issue. Now it is your country that needs to cheer up and save itself. If you don't even have the desire to save yourself, how can you expect others to save you? That's all for now. , I hope that your country will work hard, give our army, and give you a little more confidence!"

Tom Wang was not in the mood to attend the reception banquet held by Kim Sang-heon at this time, so he declined his invitation and returned to the temporary residence on the coast by himself.At this time, many small and medium-sized warships have already docked one after another, and large ships like the Majestic class that do not have suitable berths can only anchor on the periphery and rely on springboards to connect with other warships, so that the ships The sailors can more easily disembark and land to rest.

"It seems that the food of the North Koreans is not to your liking!" Qian Tiandun saw that Wang Tom's expression was not good when he returned, so he teased: "Can't you eat kimchi?"

"What to eat! These North Koreans are really unreliable in doing things!" Tom Wang couldn't help getting angry when he thought of what he had just seen, and roughly told Qian Tian what he learned after landing Don knows.

After hearing this, Qian Tiandun was also quite surprised: "Why do I feel that the North Koreans are a bit broken, knowing that they can't beat the Qing army, and they don't even have the energy to prepare for the war? Since they don't feel at ease to fight, why spend money to hire us?" What are you doing?"

Wang Tom said: "I don't care what the North Koreans think, anyway, I have to take back the 2000 taels of gold first. If they don't feel at ease to fight, then we will withdraw early after collecting this deposit. It is better to draw troops here. Go to Liaodong and do some more big games!"

Qian Tiandun said: "Then how did Jin Shangxian say that he didn't mention the few alternative locations we requested?"

"How else can it be arranged?" Wang Tom said angrily: "They didn't arrange it at all! According to Kim Sang-heon, the main fighter and the two factions in North Korea have not yet agreed, so there will be some resistance to the preparations for the war. You said that the Qing army is about to attack, and the North Koreans are still arguing whether to fight or not. It would be hell if they could beat the Qing army!"

Wang Tom's emotions are mainly because the combat plan he made before is likely to fail. The military has been tossing back and forth for a month, and in the end I am afraid that all plans will have to be overthrown and re-made.

Qian Tiandun said: "Since the North Koreans are unreliable, then don't include them in the battle plan, just let them pay for food and money. We fight at our own pace and don't need to take the North Koreans' thoughts too seriously. When necessary, Let the North Korean army be used as cannon fodder to attract firepower."

When Qian Tiandun said these words, he was far calmer than Wang Tom. His expectations for North Korea were not high, and he had already had such views since dealing with North Koreans when he was stationed in Liaodong last year.The efficiency of the Koreans is far behind the combat requirements of Shanghai Han. The navy, which can come and go freely at sea, may not have that deep understanding, but the army has been greatly affected.

North Korea sent as many as 3000 or [-] civilian workers to Liaodong last year to assist in the war. These civilian workers actually received a certain amount of remuneration in addition to completing their labor, but the officials in charge of them withheld them so severely that these civilian workers were quite resentful. During the work period, it inevitably led to inefficiency. It is common for materials transported from Lushun to the front line of Jinzhou to be delayed for a day or two on the road.Apart from reprimanding Haihan, there was nothing he could do to punish the North Korean civilians and related officials. After all, this kind of aid operation was funded by the North Korean country. If there is any slack in the middle, Haihan can only endured.

At that time, Qian Tiandun, as the chief officer of the army in the Liaodong area, had a bad impression of North Korea. Although he did not openly oppose sending troops to aid North Korea when he was in Sanya, he was not optimistic about the prospect of such an operation.And North Korea's messy preparations for war have once again confirmed his view. From a military point of view, North Korea is not an ideal ally, but has the risk of becoming a pig teammate.

At this time, the generals of several other countries also returned to the temporary camp after inspecting the surrounding environment. Simao took the lead in expressing his disappointment with the environment here: "The North Koreans actually used a fishing village wharf that has not been completely remodeled as a military base." I don’t understand why they invited Haihan to send the fleet here, there is absolutely no way to provide our fleet with stationing conditions!”

"I noticed that some palaces seemed to be built on the island. I heard that they were specially used by the royal family of North Korea, but they seemed to have forgotten to build a decent port on the island." Zheng Ting also complained about the poor port conditions here. : "They must at least build a military port according to the standards of Dinghai Port?"

"The standard military port you mentioned will probably have to wait a few years before we can see it. If North Korea can build a port like Dinghai Port in Zhoushan so quickly, there would be no need for Ming Dynasty to send troops to help them resist the Japanese invasion." Xu Yuzhuo knew more about North Korea than the other two, but he didn't show mercy to him.

(End of this chapter)