1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 2404
Qian Tiandun was silent for a long time after listening to Shang Qing's words, and Shang Qing was not in a hurry to urge him to respond when he saw this.When he came to Jinzhou to negotiate this time, what he was most worried about was that the conditions he proposed would be rejected by the other party without any room for discussion. But now Qian Tiandun did not respond to him immediately, which on the contrary shows that the other party should be considering his own proposal. conditions of.

As Shang Qing said, everyone knows that Haihan attaches great importance to the development of trade. If there are really huge benefits to be reaped, then some things are not without the possibility of compromise.Although Haihan's military deployment and combat operations in the north in the past few years have also achieved some benefits, such as the population plundered from the Manchu-occupied areas, and industrial cooperation in North Korea, but these benefits are compared to Haihan's military expenditures in the north , is still in a serious state of making ends meet.When to balance the income and expenditure of the northern ruling area, or even make a profit, has always been one of Haihan's development goals in this area.

Haihan has three control areas in the north: Jinzhou in Liaodong, Fushan County in Shandong, and Datongjiang Base in North Korea. At present, only Fushan County is in a relatively satisfactory operating situation. It has both stable output of Fushan Copper Mine and growing trade Scale, already has sustained profitability.However, the war in Shandong has caused the local trade activities to almost completely stagnate, and it will take at least a year and a half to return to the pre-war level.

Although the prospects for many industries jointly operated by the two countries in the lower reaches of the Datong River are promising, only some projects have been put into production, and many projects are still in the early stage of construction. It will take time to recover the investment, and it will not be possible to use profits to subsidize it in the short term. The cost of the long-term stationing of the Haihan army in the local area.Of course, if North Korea had not borne part of the garrison expenses, I am afraid that Haihan would have withdrawn the main force such as the Special Operations Regiment to Jinzhou for stationing due to economic pressure.

The situation in the Jinzhou area is relatively more difficult, because this place is in a state of war all year round, and almost all the local population and resources are arranged for war preparations, and the related industries are also directly or indirectly serving the garrison, so there is no connection with the outside world. Without many normal trade activities, naturally there is no way to talk about much revenue.Chen Yixin also thought of various methods when he was in charge of Jinzhou, but the local situation is not so easy to change, unless one day it gets rid of the positioning of a war zone, it is possible for the local area to truly settle down and operate some decent industries.

But even if Jinzhou entered into a state of truce, it would be difficult to reach an ideal level in terms of trade with the Daming Bohai Bay region and North Korea under local conditions.Because Jinzhou is small, its resources are limited, and its industrial scale also limits the local high-value goods that can be sold, and the limited population cannot provide high purchasing power.If you really want to turn Jinzhou into a trading port, there is only one way to do it, and that is to open a commercial channel to the north.

There are too many resources in the Liaodong area that Haihan is interested in, and the Manchu Qing also has sufficient funds to purchase various products of Haihan after years of looting.Compared with the impoverished North Korea and the northern border area of ​​Ming Dynasty, the economic situation of Manchu Qing is more suitable to be the trading partner of Haihan.Even if Qian Tiandun didn't like Man Qing, he had to admit it.

However, before that, due to various considerations, Haihan did not regard the Manchu Qing as a candidate for trade, and did not even have the idea of ​​trading through middlemen. Go south to invade Ming Dynasty and North Korea.Neither the Executive Committee nor the military believed that the Manchu Qing would let go of the grievances of the past few years and take the initiative to bow their heads to seek reconciliation.

But the solution proposed by Shang Qing this time does provide Haihan with a new direction to deal with the situation in Northeast Asia.If Haihan established a trade relationship with the Qing Dynasty based on Jinzhou, it means that Haihan has completely opened up the sea trade route from the South China Sea to Liaodong, and the east coast of the Asian continent is basically included in Haihan's trade. within range.

This is of great significance to Haihan, which has always used maritime trade as its main means of expansion. As the only force that has opened up this entire trade route, in the future, whether it is a mainland country like Daming or Annan, or a country that is also good at managing maritime trade Western counterparts can only enjoy the dividends brought about by the development of maritime trade only by actively or passively becoming a member of Haihan's transnational trading system.

Of course, the other participants can at most follow behind to eat soup and chew their bones. The one who really eats meat must be Haihan who established this international trading system.Even though Qian Tiandun is not an expert in economics, he can basically confirm that the trade potential of Manchu Qing is at least higher than that of North Korea, and the benefits it can bring to the entire trading system far exceed that of North Korea. It's still a bit difficult to ignore directly.

The decision-making power in the general direction is naturally controlled by the Executive Committee. Although Qian Tiandun is a senior general of the Haihan Army, he also feels that this matter cannot be decided by himself.However, there are some things that he must confirm right now, otherwise there is no need to consider the subsequent development.

"I want to know, is this part about trade your own idea, or your prince's idea? Say it well, if there is even half a lie, there is no need to talk about negotiations!" Qian Tiandun thought After a long time, he finally asked Shang Qing a question.

Shang Qing didn't dare to be negligent, and quickly responded cautiously: "General Qian, it's not a villain's nonsense at this time, nor is it my prince's idea, but the emperor's."

Shang Qing brought Huang Taiji out, so Qian Tiandun naturally no longer doubted the reliability of his proposal.If it was Shang Qing's personal idea, then Qian Tiandun would not have to waste time with him anymore. If it was Shang Kexi's intention, Qian Tiandun would not let it go either. Even if Huang Taiji was crowned king, it was impossible for him to have too much influence in the Manchu court. No matter how good the terms were negotiated, it was very likely that the talks would be in vain in the end.

But if this is what the Manchu Emperor Huang Taiji meant, Qian Tiandun can't take it lightly. If it is done properly, this may be a deal that is extremely beneficial to Haihan.

Qian Tiandun continued to ask: "Then what is the request of the emperor of your country?"

Shang Qing came here twice, bumping against big and small nails many times, and finally heard the other party asking about his own request, and immediately responded: "General, the villain has said it from the beginning, our country's request is true. It is very simple, that is, a complete truce with your country. Of course, the truce agreement is not only in Jinzhou, but also includes other countries.”

The frequency of battles between Haihan and the Manchus in Jinzhou has actually been much lower than in the past few years, and now there have been few large-scale armed conflicts in a year.The armies of the two countries have built extremely strong defense lines near the Jinzhou Isthmus, and both sides are also very clear that it is possible to advance the front line only after paying a very heavy price.However, it is not cost-effective for the two countries to continue to use military means to repeatedly compete for control of this area, so they have also tacitly maintained restraint.

The heavy damage caused by Haihan's sending troops to North Korea the year before last also made Huang Taiji and other high-level officials of the Qing Dynasty realize that Haihan might send troops to help their crusade targets. It bumped into the evil star of Haihan Army in its territory.So much so that after the Qing army went south to Jinan Prefecture in Shandong this year, although there was still room to launch an offensive in the direction of the Shandong Peninsula, in order to avoid crashing into the range of activities of the Haihan Army, the Qing army rushed to the west side of Laizhou Prefecture, a distance away from Fushan. The county was still hundreds of miles away, so the troops were withdrawn early.

Therefore, in Huang Taiji's plan, the truce with Haihan cannot be limited to Jinzhou, but must include the surrounding countries of the Manchu and Qing Dynasties, so as to avoid a situation similar to what happened on the Korean battlefield.

When Qian Tiandun heard it, he naturally understood what the other party was up to, and couldn't help laughing at the moment: "In this way, a comprehensive truce and opening of trade are actually more beneficial to your country. Let your country take it!"

Shang Qing argued: "General, this is a move that is beneficial to both of our two countries. How can you say so much! Your country can save a lot of military expenses, reduce casualties, and at the same time open up business routes and increase revenue. It’s all about the benefits you can see!”

However, Qian Tiandun shook his head and said: "I think the conditions you raised are not fair. If we cease fire with your country, we will have to give up two allies for this. Your Excellency believes that the benefits your country can bring to our country can surpass that of Ming Dynasty. Peace with North Korea?"

Qian Tiandun was speaking directly and clearly, not wanting to let the other party's wishful thinking succeed.Shang Qing's statement is completely playing tricks. The Manchu Qing only ceased war with Haihan, but did not mention the truce with Daming and North Korea. It is clear that they want Haihan to give up providing military assistance to these two countries.When the time comes when the Manchu and Qing forces attack these two countries, there will be no need to worry about Haihan sending troops to interfere.

Knowing that Qian Tiandun saw through his tricks, Shang Qing said with an embarrassing smile: "Don't worry, General, these conditions can be discussed slowly! At least we have reached a preliminary consensus that the truce is beneficial to both parties, General. You won't object to that, will you?"

Seeing that Qian Tiandun didn't agree with his statement, Shang Qing quickly took a half-step back and brought the topic back to the place where Qian Tiandun's attitude had been loosened before, so as to preserve the possibility of continuing the conversation.

Qian Tiandun waved his hand and said: "It's still too early to reach a consensus, you don't need to be so excited. I have to think about what you said. You can stay in Jinzhou and wait for the news. If you are worried, you can go ahead Go back, and come back to Jinzhou to hear the answer after a while."

Now that Qian Tiandun has asked the other party's intentions clearly, and also knows that the other party's status is limited, he has no right to decide on the truce and peace talks, so he is in no mood to entangle with the other party any longer.

Of course, he himself has to report the matter to the executive committee in Sanya first. After all, this matter involves a lot. It will not only affect Haihan's long-term planning in Northeast Asia, but may also affect the development of the region. The international situation and Haihan's diplomatic relations had an impact, and Qian Tiandun did not dare to make decisions hastily. It would be safer to let the executive committee make the decision.

It was not easy for Shang Qing to come to Jinzhou, and worried that there were other variables on Qian Tiandun's side, so he chose to stay in Jinzhou to wait for Haihan's official reply, and only sent one entourage back to the north to report the progress.Qian Tiandun was not reluctant, so he asked Shang Qing to arrange board and lodging for him to temporarily live near the Nanguanling Daying Camp.

After sending Shang Qing away, Qian Tiandun calmed down and wrote a telegram, stating the conditions and requirements Shang Qing put forward this time, adding some of his own opinions, and then sent the telegram himself.

Because Wang Tom is now also a member of the executive committee, Qian Tiandun sent two copies of the telegram, one of which was sent to the Datongjiang base, so that if the executive committee needs to vote to decide whether to start armistice talks with the Qing Dynasty, That King Tom can also have plenty of time to think about it.

Judging from past experience, the executive committee will inevitably need to hold a meeting to discuss after receiving the telegram, and the discussion time required for such a major decision may last for several days, and it will take at least three to five days to receive a reply.Therefore, Qian Tiandun still has ample time to prepare for the subsequent negotiations. In his opinion, the executive committee will probably take this opportunity to contact the Manchu Qing and seek the possibility of obtaining more benefits.

The Qing Dynasty hoped to make Haihan give up Ming and North Korea through the truce and peace talks, so why couldn't Haihan use this opportunity to make some demands on Ming and North Korea in order to maintain the current ally relationship.Especially Daming, who has always had many restrictive measures against Haihan, if he is made to realize that Haihan may give up his military containment of the Manchu Qing, it may change his current attitude towards Haihan.

In fact, after Shang Qing came to Jinzhou to visit Chen Yixin last time, Chen Yixin had already let this rumor go to Yue Yongshou, Daming's envoy in Jinzhou, and made it clear that Daming should provide military subsidies to Haihan's garrison in Jinzhou.But at that time, Shang Qing left Jinzhou and went back after getting a bad nose, so it's hard to say how effective this warning was.Perhaps the Ming court would not regard this news as a substantive threat. After all, the Manchu Qing proposed an armistice and peace talks, which sounds a bit outrageous.

Of course, Qian Tiandun also knew that there was a Ming envoy stationed locally, and he didn't intend to keep the news of Shang Qing's visit to Jinzhou secret, so after only two hours after Shang Qing checked into the official hotel in Nanguanling, The envoy of Ming Dynasty, Yue Yongshou, got the news.

If there is anything more terrifying than the Qing army's invasion of Daming, it is probably only the Man Qing colluding with Haihan.Any use of force by these two countries would make Daming suffer a lot. If they join forces, the consequences will be unimaginable.Yue Yongshou couldn't sit still when he heard the news, so he hurriedly asked Qian Tiandun for more detailed information.

(End of this chapter)