1627 Rise of the South China Sea

On the official road from Hangzhou City to Yuhang County, a convoy of envoys from various countries is slowly moving forward.

Su Yongshan kept staring out of the car window. What attracted his attention was not the beautiful scenery along the way, but the armed cavalry escorting the convoy.

These armed cavalry in gray military uniforms are not only uniformly dressed, even their saddles and bridles are standard equipment.They all carried slender sabers on their waists, and there was a specially designed saddle bag on the other side of the saddle, in which the short-barreled rifles used by cavalry were inserted.

Su Keyi noticed the envious expression on his son's face, and said with a smile: "It looks very majestic, right? But they are actually just honorary cavalry, not combat troops."

Su Yongshan said in astonishment: "How can this be seen?"

Su Keyi said: "The tall horses they ride are not native breeds, and it is extremely difficult to breed them. Generally, they are only provided as mounts for generals. However, the Donghai Region is rich and powerful, and can afford such a guard of honor cavalry. It really serves the combat function Most of the cavalry units in China are riding Mongolian horses. In contrast, Mongolian horses are small in size, good in endurance, strong in adaptability, and easier to breed.”

Su Yongshan said: "Didn't father do his homework?"

Su Keyi said: "For my father, I have visited several military horse farms in Haihan in the south. The military horses they raise are basically Mongolian horses. The high-quality horses are supplied to the cavalry troops, and the poor ones are used as draft horses."

"However, the cost of maintaining a cavalry is quite high, and the military horses need additional material support. Even if Haihan is as rich as Haihan, the size of the cavalry is still very limited. I think Haihan has not attacked Daming for a long time, which is one of the reasons. one of the reasons."

Su Yongshan nodded in agreement with his father's statement: "The territory of the Ming Dynasty is really vast, and it often takes hundreds of miles to travel across the state and government. If you rely entirely on the infantry's two legs to march, then this battle will indeed be very difficult."

"But having said that, Daming's assassination in Hangzhou this time really offended the Haihan people... I heard that the Daming embassy has been rushing to the north in the past few days. I guess it feels that the situation is irreversible and it is ready to go to war. Bar!"

Su Keyi wanted to test his son, so he asked him: "Yongshan, in your opinion, if Haihan goes to war with Ming Dynasty, will it be of great benefit or harm to us?"

Su Yongshan thought for a moment before answering: "My child thinks that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages."

Su Keyi said noncommittally: "Tell me what you think."

Su Yongshan said: "Haihan's war against Daming again will definitely not be a small fight. In this way, Haihan will have to concentrate its troops and supplies on the mainland, and the direction of the South China Sea may stop for a while because of this."

Su Keyi said: "But Haihan's strength is superior, and the probability of winning is even greater. If he gets more land and population from Ming Dynasty, it means that Haihan's strength will be further expanded. At that time, in the entire Far East region, I am afraid that no one can compete with Hai Han."

Su Yongshan said: "Father, you don't think that the Dutch still have a chance to come back? I think the company's board of directors should express their attitude as soon as possible and make up for the old grievances with Haihan as much as possible. It is best to replace Portugal. Become Haihan's ally and share the various resources that Haihan has. Only in this way can the East India Company's business conditions improve."

Su Keyi was silent for a long time before responding: "At the beginning, the Portuguese also thought that as long as they formed an alliance with Haihan, all problems could be solved. But when Haihan developed to a certain stage and began to form a competitive relationship with Portugal in certain areas, how did they do it?" made?"

Su Yongshan said: "You are talking about the Strait of Malacca? So the company's board of directors is also worried that Haihan may treat us in the same way?"

Su Keyi said: "This is not a possibility, but a certainty. Haihan will spare no effort to achieve their goal. Sooner or later, the East India Company will once again become an obstacle blocking their way. At that time, they will kick us out without hesitation. side."

Su Yongshan was thoughtful after hearing this, and continued to ask: "Father, what do you think is the most beneficial situation for us?"

Su Keyi said in a deep voice: "Naturally, both Haihan and Daming will lose out in the battle... It would be best if this battle can be fought for decades, dragging down Haihan's military power, so that they have no time to care about overseas."

Su Yongshan said in astonishment: "To achieve such an effect, don't we have to stand on Daming's side?"

Su Keyi sighed and said: "It's a pity that even if we are willing to provide support for Daming, we are still alone, and it will not change the balance of strength between the two sides."

Su Yongshan said: "Perhaps we can transfer some weapon manufacturing technology to Daming, which should allow them to narrow the gap with Haihan."

Su Keyi shook his head and said: "The Portuguese have tried a similar method decades ago. They not only sold weapons to Daming, but also sent craftsmen to teach him how to make guns, and sent officers and mercenaries to train new soldiers for Daming." Army, and even go to the battlefield to participate in combat."

"But what is the final result? Ming can neither deal with the Qing army in the north nor the peasant army in the country, let alone against Haihan. With the current situation, can we do more than the Portuguese?"

Su Yongshan said: "But it sounds more like Daming's incompetence, rather than a problem with the Portuguese method."

Su Keyi said: "You're right. Ming's problem lies internally and lies in the incompetence of the rulers. Even if we support Ming with the Portuguese, or even add Spain, it's unlikely to change anything. On the battlefield, the Ming army Still can't beat the Haihan army."

Although helpless, this is the reality before us.In the entire Far East, there is no army of any country that can fight against the fully equipped Haihan army on the frontal battlefield.

By interfering in the war between Haihan and Ming, to delay Haihan's overseas expansion, this can only be wishful thinking.

But fortunately, no one who had such an idea, whether it was Su Keyi or a Portuguese diplomat, did not act rashly.Because neither party can afford the consequences of being involved.

"Father, look, it's a cannon!"

Su Yongshan's eyes suddenly lit up, and there appeared a lot of gun carriages pulled by pack horses on the road.Judging from the direction of its advance, it is also Yuhang, which should be the troops that will participate in the military exercise today.

Although he only saw these equipments at the military parade and the subsequent armament exhibition a few days ago, Su Yongshan still couldn't hide his excitement.He has long heard of the great reputation of the Haihan Artillery, but has never had the chance to witness its combat performance, and now he finally has such a rare opportunity.