1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 325 Development of Dawanshan Island

Although limited by objective conditions at the time, the high-level military officials did not agree to the plan proposed by the Guangzhou Office, but in the long run, whether it is out of the need to control the waterway at the Pearl River Estuary or to lay the foundation for future marches into the Taiwan Strait, the Pearl River The establishment of military strongholds in the mouth waters is a necessary step for the future mainland strategy.However, in order to establish a long-term stronghold in the local area, it is not possible to implement it with the preparation of materials and personnel. The military must also consider how to face the complex local environment.

In terms of geographical environment, of course Hong Kong is the best choice, but there is a Daming Navy stationed there, and the military is unlikely to openly build some military facilities under the noses of the other party, so the candidate area can only be temporarily delineated as a nearby area. Wanshan Islands.The Ming army is not alone in the waters of the Pearl River Estuary. According to the current military situation, there are at least two pirate forces nearby. to threaten.

In terms of military strength alone, the Haihan Militia naturally does not have to fear the East Asian pirates in the seventeenth century, but the problem is that the development of the Haihan Militia's current navy and army is extremely unbalanced, and the level of the army is enough to beat any East Asian army of the same size. The army, but the navy has just started, and there is only one warship officially listed. In terms of fleet tonnage, it is not even as good as Yazhou Shuizhai, and it can bully and bully opponents like Nanyue who have negative combat power.If you really want to go out and fight against people at sea, you don't need to talk about it. The military still knows that they don't have such strength at present. After all, most of the people in the navy are still rookies with no experience in water combat.

If you want to establish a stronghold in the Wanshan Islands at the Pearl River Estuary, you must consider that the voyage between the local area and Shengli Harbor exceeds 300 nautical miles. If you cannot station a powerful water force in the local area, then the practical significance of setting up this stronghold is not great. up.No matter how adventurous the members of the Executive Committee were, they would not dare to casually drop the hard-trained troops on an isolated island hundreds of nautical miles away.

"The launching and outfitting of the No. [-] and No. [-] ships will be completed this month. By then, we will have three warships available. If we remodel a few more armed merchant ships, it will actually be enough to protect a small island. "As the supreme commander of the navy, Wang Tom still hopes to send his surface troops to perform combat missions as soon as possible.

"Fee, in the final analysis, is still a question of cost!" Yan Chujie shook his head and said: "It is both the navy and the army. If such a troop is stationed in other places for a long time, where does the military expenditure come from? The executive committee is not an ATM. You can raise as much as you want. How much, just taking an action plan will not pass.”

"In my opinion, it won't work if you do it alone. You have to find a way to attract other units." Gu Wei lit a cigarette and muttered with it in his mouth: "In fact, risks and so on Secondary, is it risky to go to Annan to fight a war? It is more risky than building a stronghold in the Wanshan Islands, right? But why did the Executive Committee agree to send troops in the end? You should be the clearest about the way, tell me."

Yan Chujie nodded: "Old Gu, what you said is also reasonable. Regarding the dispatch of troops to Annan, the balance point considered by the Executive Committee is risk and benefit. There are indeed risks, but compared to the war dividends we can obtain, The Executive Committee believes that it is worth taking this risk. We want to build a stronghold in the Wanshan Islands, and the Executive Committee will also consider this balance. If we only invest in military expenditures without reasonable output, plus Given the objective risks, it is hard to expect the executive committee to pass the plan.”

"Old Gu, I heard what you mean. If you have any ideas, tell us and let's work together!" Wang Tom urged, patting Gu Wei on the shoulder.

"To put it simply, it is to make this plan produce money." Seeing that neither of them expressed any objection to his previous statement, Gu Wei boldly proposed: "We can use the money from the Guangzhou Office or the 'Qiong Lianfa' In the name of building commercial warehouses and warehouses in the Wanshan Islands, and building a cargo transfer station locally, the money will come soon."

Yan Chujie hesitated and said: "It's easy to say, but it's hard to say whether this thing can make a profit!"

"You don't have to worry about this. Take a good look at the terrain of the Pearl River Estuary!" Gu Wei walked to the table, pointed to the map on the table and explained: "Now a lot of goods shipped from Chaozhou, Huizhou and Fujian, They must be transported to Guangzhou first, and then transshipped from Guangzhou to Shengli Port after doing business with the Guangzhou Office. Foreign merchants must first go to Guangzhou to load goods from the Pearl River Wharf and then return by the same route. It can save the round-trip voyage from the Pearl River Estuary to Guangzhou, and deliver goods directly at the Pearl River Estuary.”

Gu Wei was excited, picked up a ruler and drew on the map: "Look, from the Wanshan Islands to the Pearl River Wharf outside Guangzhou City, the voyage is more than 80 nautical miles. With the speed of a Chinese sailboat, it is impossible to go back and forth. It will take several days. If there is a convenient transshipment port at the Pearl River Estuary, merchants will definitely be willing to transfer the place of delivery of goods from Guangzhou to a more convenient place. Taking a step back, even those from the place of origin Merchant ships sailing directly to Shengli Port can also choose the Wanshan Islands as their last supply point and safe haven before leaving the mainland. As long as there is a certain amount of passenger flow, there is a reasonable need for a transfer station in this place."

Yan Chujie touched his chin, nodded again and again and said, "It makes sense. It seems that you are not idle, Gu Gu. You have thought it through very thoroughly!"

"During the meeting a few days ago, Schneider and Gu Kai sat in front of me, and I overheard them talking about some Ming businessmen's complaints about cargo transshipment, so I had this idea." Gu Wei didn't hide it, and said The source of this idea: "They also want to have a transshipment station in the Pearl River Estuary. I think that this matter can be done jointly with them. And if the Pearl River Estuary is developed in the name of 'Qiong Lianfa' It is also better to explain to the local government of Guangdong."

"Looks like it's time to talk to Schneider." After hearing this, Yan Chujie became more confident in the plan proposed by Gu Wei.As for Schneider's business vision, no one in the Time Travel Group would question it. As long as Schneider said that the plan had commercial development value, the executive committee would definitely agree.

"Building a transfer station is a good idea, but the place you chose is not suitable."

The next morning, Schneider was also invited to the office of the Military Commission to participate in the discussion of the plan, but after listening to Wang Tom's explanation, he immediately poured cold water on the military representatives: "The commercial trade transfer station A large amount of land is needed to build cargo docks and storage facilities, but Dawanshan Island, the place chosen by your military, has no advantages other than a good natural shelter. The entire island is almost mountainous, without too much There is a lot of land available for development, and almost no potential for commercial development. There are no special products on the island, and the only development prospect is probably the fishing industry. Of course, I personally agree with your idea. If this place is built A military stronghold is very good, the terrain is easy to defend but difficult to attack, and the commanding heights on the island can overlook a range of tens of nautical miles, which is very suitable for monitoring the waterway."

Yan Chujie shook his head and said: "Mr. Shi, our purpose of setting up this stronghold is not to build the locality into a business center of the size of Shengli Port. What we want is actually a transitional temporary organization. After two years, when the soldiers are strong and the horses are strong. , this transshipment point will definitely be moved to Hong Kong Island, maybe even the military base will be moved there too."

"So you just hope that I will vote in favor of your plan in the executive committee on behalf of the business department?" Schneider is so shrewd, as soon as he heard Yan Chujie speak, he immediately understood the meaning of the military.

"This is a mutually beneficial and win-win measure." Yan Chujie explained solemnly: "Your department can get a safe and convenient transfer station, and our military can also complete the task of monitoring the waterway of the Pearl River Estuary."

"It's risky to do this!" Schneider still refused to let go.

"Doing any business is risky, the key lies in the rate of return, isn't it?" Yan Chujie continued to persuade without any hesitation: "Boss Shi has taken a lot of risks in the business he did before, so why are you afraid this time?" ?”

Schneider smiled and said: "It's different today. You could go to other countries if you screwed up before. Now if you screw up, you have nowhere to hide!"

"Are you so unconfident in our military?" Tom Wang was a little anxious: "Whether it's a pirate or a Ming navy, it's a chicken and a dog for us in the end! Although we still have relatively few warships now, we always We can’t wait until there are more warships than the opponent before we start planning for expanding sea supply points!”

Schneider shrugged and said: "Then how are you going to deal with the pirates in the surrounding waters? If a transfer station is set up, the place will be more attractive to pirates. As far as I know, the navy doesn't have the strength to go to sea and fight the enemy head-on. Bar?"

"In the early stage, we mainly focused on defending the port. We plan to deploy at least one company locally. With our equipment advantages, small-scale pirate raids are basically delivering food to us." Yan Chujie patiently explained to Schneider: " Within this month, the navy will have three warships, and in the first half of the year there will be three small, one large, and four warships on board. By then, several ships will be stationed there as guards. We are now starting to build this stronghold. At least it will take more than half a month to start the implementation, and when the fortifications and warehouses are built locally, the warships on the Victory Port will almost be in place."

"That is to say, if a transfer station is to be built, it will probably be put into use in the second half of the year?" Schneider thought for a while and asked, "What is Mr. Tao's opinion on this matter?"

"President Tao said that he agrees with the Military Commission's plan in terms of military affairs, but commercial development requires your nod from President Shi." Yan Chujie immediately added after hearing the words.Yan Chujie had gone to Tao Donglai early this morning and explained the situation to him.Tao Donglai’s statement seemed to say nothing, but after careful consideration, he was actually on the side of the military—as long as Schneider was persuaded to nod, the plan would be approved by him.

Naturally, Schneider could understand the implication of these words, nodded and said: "I understand. I'll send someone over to get the information on the Wanshan Islands later, Mr. Yan, please prepare."

Regarding military affairs, Schneider naturally did not dare to listen to one side and believe it easily.The only person he can fully trust is Tao Donglai, the person in charge. Since Tao Donglai also approves of the military's plan, it would be a bit picky for Schneider to question its feasibility from a military point of view.

Yan Chujie said happily: "Don't bother, I'll have someone send the materials to you later."

With Schneider's nod, the chances of the plan's approval at least doubled. With Tao Donglai's support, the military could basically start drafting a plan for submission to the Executive Committee.

Regarding the geographical situation of Dawanshan Island, in addition to the content in the database itself, Yu Yao and Xiao Liang of the Guangzhou Office have also taken boats to the local area for field investigations many times in the past six months, and took pictures A large amount of image data was sent back to the base camp together with their plan.Therefore, the military needs to draft a plan for building military strongholds in the local area, and there are quite a lot of field materials for reference.

Wanshan Archipelago is located in the south of the Pearl River Estuary, and is the only place where the Pearl River goes to sea. It includes more than 70 islands, large and small, and walks on the sea of ​​about 2600 square kilometers.The Wanshan Islands are the largest of the Wanshan Islands, and the Dawanshan Island selected by the military is the main island of the Wanshan Islands. It is located about 20 nautical miles south of Zhuhai City in later generations, with an area of ​​more than 8 square kilometers. The upper hills are undulating, and the highest point, Dawanding, is more than 400 meters above sea level.

This island is still in the state of an uninhabited island. According to historical records, the first batch of residents who moved to the island appeared in the 50th year of Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty. Until the time of crossing, the registered residents on Wanshan Island were only Just over a thousand people.The island has sufficient fresh water resources and forest resources, and the coast of the island is winding and steep, mostly rocky and steep. Only Wanshan Bay in the southwest is surrounded by mountains on three sides and has a natural safe haven.

According to the information of later generations and the pre-investigation results of the Guangzhou Office, the military believes that it is possible to build a permanent wharf facility for ships below 500 tons in this harbor.On the one hand, it can be used as a commercial cargo transshipment point, and on the other hand, it can be used as a naval supply port for the military in this area in the future.It is also worth mentioning that the Wanshan Islands are one of the seven largest fishing grounds in China, and the fishery resources are very rich. The sea area around Dawanshan Island is also China's first marine development test area. There are more than 200 species of economic fish in this area. In the future, the personnel stationed here will not have to worry about food at all.

For the development and utilization of this uninhabited island, the Transit Group actually has relevant experience before, that is Fushuizhou Island located between Halong Bay and Hainan Island.As a relay station of the coal transportation route, Fushuizhou Island has been playing a role silently since its development, but because the local area is not located on a popular route, and almost all the ships passing by pass through the group’s own merchant ships, so except for some basic In addition to the supply facilities, there has been no commercial or military special development. In terms of development prospects, it really cannot be compared with the Dawanshan Island selected by the military this time.However, there will not be much difference between the two in the relevant initial construction process, and there are many places that can be used for reference.

In the vicinity of Wanshan Island, there is also Xiaowanshan Island that is close at hand, and the three islands that can be developed in the north, Baili Island and Dongao Island, are currently uninhabited islands.Although these islands are not as large as Dawanshan Island, if they can control the surrounding waters and ensure the safety of the sea in the area, these islands can be used as fishery bases for large-scale development.

On April [-]th, the Military Commission and the Ministry of Commerce jointly submitted to the Executive Committee a plan for setting up commercial transfer stations and military strongholds in the Wanshan Islands.The plan proposes that under the current situation that the Crossing Group is increasingly relying on exporting industrial products and importing raw materials to the mainland through the window of Guangzhou, the waterway safety and commercial development of the Pearl River Estuary must also enter a new stage.The establishment of local cargo transfer stations, supplemented by military guards, has become a development need under the new situation, and this plan should be implemented in the near future to improve the efficiency of cargo transportation in the foreign trade department and increase access to the Pearl River Estuary. Channel monitoring.

Unsurprisingly, some people at the meeting questioned the safety of building military strongholds and cargo transshipment points locally, but the military expressed sufficient confidence in this.As a representative of the Ministry of Commerce, Schneider also expressed optimism about the prospect of building a cargo transshipment point locally, and believed that the profit income after the completion of this transshipment point could fully offset the cost of the long-term garrison there.Schneider's statement basically cut off other people's doubts about military expenditures, because at present, all units stationed abroad are gradually entering the state of independent accounting of operating expenses. It also makes sense to expand Hong Kong into a battalion in this way.

In the final vote by show of hands, Tao Donglai, Yan Chujie, Schneider, Ren Liang, and Bai Kesi immediately agreed, and then Mr. Yuan from the Ministry of Agriculture unexpectedly and decisively sided with the military. It has passed halfway and reached two-thirds, and the proposal to develop Dawanshan Island will be considered approved.

Afterwards, someone asked Mr. Yuan why he chose to side with the military, and whether he hadn’t noticed the military risks involved. The old man’s answer was also very thought-provoking. If you are sure, you have to take the risk you have to take! Everyone abandoned everything and traveled to this place, this matter itself is the biggest risk, what else can be more serious than this?"

　There are two updates today, the first chapter is to supplement yesterday's content.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)