1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 344 The Sword Guide
Of course, the production line of matchlock guns would not be shut down. Even if they were not sold to North Vietnam, it would still be a good deal to sell this kind of weapon to Ming Dynasty.The matchlock guns of the Ministry of War of the Ming Dynasty cost 20 taels a piece. Xu Xinsu, who needs to raise his own military expenses to purchase equipment, is of course more willing to buy high-quality and low-priced Haihan goods-in fact, when the second batch of students from Fujian arrived at Shengli Port, He brought a new order from Xu Xinsu, one thousand [-]-style matchlock guns.

Xu Xinsu, who is rich and powerful, has always traded in cash, and even had several times of local tyrants' moves to bring in the silver before negotiating the order. Naturally, he placed this order in the hope that Haihan's side would deliver the goods as soon as possible.If you want to pinch the goods from North Vietnam, you can quickly complete the order from Fujian.As far as the so-called shutdown is concerned, it is just an excuse for the military industry department to North Vietnam.

So the North Vietnamese side soon received new news from Haihan. This time it had nothing to do with the invitation to send troops. It was the "Haihan Military Industry" who informed them that due to the need for technological upgrades, the production of matchlock guns would be suspended for a period of time. Whether it is a month or two or a year or so, it depends on the work progress of the "relevant departments".In other words, until the end of this so-called "technical upgrade", North Vietnam will temporarily be unable to purchase rifles from Haihan.

As for the sales of artillery, there are also small "adjustments". In the short term, there will be no small-caliber army artillery for sale. The only thing that can be bought is the long-body anti-city artillery. Although this thing is very powerful, its mobility is basically Zero, far less flexible and practical than Army artillery on the battlefield.

These two adjustments made the North Vietnamese court fully feel the "maliciousness" from Victory Port. Of course, they also understood what the Haihan people's statement meant. After all, they had just rejected the invitation to cooperate with Haihan to send troops not long ago. The reply was rather dissatisfying.

North Vietnam now has a new army of about 2000 people, but it is impossible to say that these 2000 people can defeat the rebels in the south.As soon as Haihan cut off the export of weapons, the expansion plan of the new North Vietnamese army would immediately come to a standstill.

Are you going to protest with the Haihan people?But the reasons given by the Haihan people are also reasonable, and there is no way to criticize them.The most terrible thing is that North Vietnam still buys weapons in the form of rice plus population for transactions. It really has no confidence at all.Moreover, these dignitaries have more or less benefited from the deal with Haihan in private, and no one wants to come forward to negotiate with the Haihan people-this time the supply of weapons is interrupted, and next time even refined salt And other good things have also stopped trading, so who will bear the blame?
So for this matter, the dignitaries of Shenglong Mansion quarreled for several days, and the topic of the debate was not to accuse Hai Han of being unkind, but to consider how to solve this opinion from a practical point of view. Disagreement.

In the end, the Thang Long Mansion's attitude softened somewhat, expressing its willingness to cooperate with the military operations led by Haihan to a certain extent, but the Thang Long Mansion was unwilling to let go of the specific military expenditure ratio - this is no longer a political attitude and integrity The problem is that I really can't afford the money.Of course, after they made such a soft statement, the Haihan Executive Committee also reciprocated, saying that they would resume the supply of weapons to the North Vietnamese court in the near future.

After weighing various pros and cons, the Haihan military finally came up with a more compromised action plan: the North Vietnamese side assembled troops on the front lines of Hengshan and Zhengjiang, and made a gesture of raising troops to the south, trying their best to attract South Vietnam to send troops to the war zone mobilize.The Haihan side will seize the right opportunity to go south from Shengli Port to the rear coastal ports of South Vietnam directly to attack its maritime trade.

In this plan, the North Vietnamese army mainly played the role of attracting firepower, but in fact they did not need to launch a large-scale offensive, as long as the tricks were performed realistically, so that the South Vietnamese army could focus on that side.Of course, if the North Vietnamese military thinks it has the spare power to deal with South Vietnam alone, then it is a big try.

The Haihan Army's assault in the hinterland of South Vietnam is the center of this operation. Considering the economic situation of the allies is relatively difficult, the Military Commission finally "magnanimously" stated that the Haihan military expenditure this time only needs to bear [-]% of the North Vietnamese side. .Of course, for the remaining [-]%, the Military Commission didn't plan to keep it all on its own head - there is no reason to come back empty-handed after fighting so far across the sea.According to past experience, such attacks on trading ports are often rewarding.

Although the two sides have reached a preliminary agreement on this plan, it is not something that can be accomplished overnight for practical application.In this era, it usually takes a year, a half, or even several years to prepare for a major war. After the North Vietnamese battle at the beginning of the year, they did not recover for half a year. This is thanks to the victory. The situation is even more dire.Although this time only the North Vietnamese army was required to cooperate with the show, large-scale troop mobilization still required a considerable amount of materials, and the recruitment and transportation of these troops and materials could not be completed in a short period of time.In the current era, there are few armies that can complete expeditionary combat preparations in a few days like the Haihan Militia, even in the world.

According to the estimates of the North Vietnamese military, to show enough momentum to deceive South Vietnam, at least 3 to 5000 troops must be mobilized on the front line.At present, there are about [-] permanent troops stationed on the Zhengjiang Hengshan defense line, which means that at least [-] troops have to be transferred from the north.Although with the several cargo ships provided by the Black Earth Port Shipyard, the North Vietnamese army's supplies to the front line have been significantly improved, but the mobilization of a large number of troops will still bring a great burden to the supply line.Fortunately, the Black Earth Port Management Committee has stated that several ships can be dispatched to help North Vietnam transport troops and supplies during military operations, which can basically solve their shortcomings in transportation.

And Haihan's preparations can't be completed in a short period of time. The army is fine. Because it maintains a relatively high level of training, it only needs to prepare and assemble before the war, and it can go out after a week of special training.What is more troublesome is the newly established navy. Since the existing warships are all newly delivered, the crew and ships are basically still in the running-in period. As the flagship of the navy, the "Explorer" has not even completed outfitting. It is indeed a bit inappropriate to pull out to fight.Therefore, after deliberation on the Military Commission side, the combat plan will be implemented at the end of July, so that the navy can make more adequate preparations.

As for the cooperation of other materials and personnel, due to the experience of the previous expeditions, various relevant units have already explored a more efficient working method, and there is no need for the executive committee to coordinate.

Of course, in the month before this, the military will not be idle. In addition to strengthening training, there is also a corresponding on-site reconnaissance plan.Since the opening of the Black Soil Port colonization point in North Vietnam last year, the population of North Vietnam transported to Victory Port has exceeded [-]. Most of these immigrants already have naturalized citizenship, and the rest are South Vietnamese captives who used military expenses to pay off their debts. , or new immigrants who have not passed the quarantine observation period.

Among the North Vietnamese immigrants who obtained the native place of Haihan naturalized people, a considerable number of young men have chosen to join the Haihan militia to serve in the army. Many new recruits in the army, navy and police force are from North Vietnam.It is not difficult for the military to pick out a special operations team of Annan nationality.

As for the officer leading the team, after careful consideration, the military decided to hand over this important task to Qian Tiandun, who had been stationed in Annan and was most familiar with Annan's situation.Compared with other competitors, Qian Tiandun's advantages are too obvious: he was born as a scout, his professional quality is beyond doubt, he has been stationed there for a long time, and his reputation in the Haihan Army is also very high-but all militiamen from Annan Even if you have never met him, you know that the "Chief Qian" of the Haihan Militia stationed in Annan is a remarkable figure. All the troops deployed by the Haihan Militia in Annan are under the command of this Chief Qian.

But in addition to the officers leading the team, the military had to try to find a reasonable cover for the reconnaissance team - after all, the targets of this reconnaissance were the most prosperous port cities in South Vietnam, not deserted islands. Yedi, if his identity is found out, it will inevitably bring trouble to the follow-up military operations.

In the current situation, a reasonable and safe identity is a caravan. After all, Hoi An, south of Hue Province, is a very important sea trading port in South Vietnam at this time, and there are a large number of foreign sea merchants there. Frequent entry and exit, and reconnaissance under the cover of caravans are not easy to attract attention.But if you want to pretend to be a caravan, you'd better find an old driver in this industry to be the team leader.The military quickly determined the candidate, but this persuasion work is not convenient to come forward directly, so it can only be handed over to other departments.

The old driver selected by the military is one of the shareholders of "Qiong Lianfa", a maritime merchant Zhan Gui who has been traveling between Daming and Annan, Angkor, Siam and other places for a long time.Zhan Gui's maritime route is different from that of "Fu Ruifeng", Xu Xinsu and others. He almost focuses on pure sea transportation, not a combination of sea and land.Since getting online with the Haihan people last year, Zhan Gui quickly realized that this thigh was worth holding tight, and then took the lead in the salt business in the south of Hue Province, including the area of ​​Champa, which the Haihan people specifically named.

Zhan Gui often goes in and out of Shengli Port, so he can see the rapid development here every month.He has spent most of his life wandering on the sea, and has a relatively indifferent view of issues such as nationality and ethnicity. Therefore, he is not disgusted with the "outside the law" method of the Haihan people in Shengli Port. On the contrary, he feels that there is a lot to do. .Therefore, when Shengli Port first started attracting investment and establishing a business district, he was also one of the first batch of maritime merchants to enclose land and invest here, and he moved his concubine and children from Guangzhou to settle in Shengli Port.Later, when the Guangzhou Office organized the "Qiong Lianfa", Zhan Gui was also the first batch of businessmen who signed up to participate.Leaving aside the "Fu Ruifeng" who had a deep entanglement with Haihan, Zhan Gui can be regarded as the most famous "Haihan faction" among the merchants of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhan Gui has a residence with a front shop and a backyard in Shengli Port as his residence here.On weekdays, the concubine is in charge of the accounts, plus a shopkeeper and a few assistants who manage the business. Most of the goods sold are luxury goods such as rare wood, gemstones, rhino horns, and ivory from Champa and other places.

That day, Zhan Gui returned home after handling the affairs on the ship at the port. As soon as he entered the gate, he saw his concubine greet him, and said in a low voice: "Master, Mr. Ning and Mr. Shi from the executive committee, and a Haihan military master." Come together!"

Zhan Gui said: "Then why don't you let the servants go to the pier to inform me? How can you keep the distinguished guests waiting for a long time?"

"It's okay, we just have time to help your daughter with her homework." While speaking, Schneider also walked outside the house and answered the conversation from a distance.

"Mr. Shi is so polite!" Zhan Gui hurried forward to bow to him, and asked the concubine to prepare some food. By the way, he glanced at the room, and saw that besides Ning Qi, there was also the military lord that the concubine mentioned. ——The No.1 Yan Chujie of the Haihan Military is here.Zhan Gui's heart suddenly felt a little thumped. He knew all these big shots and occasionally got in touch with each other, but there had never been a situation where the three of them visited together.

Zhan Gui couldn't figure out what was going on for a while, so he had to enter the house with Schneider first, and then let his youngest daughter go back to the room quickly.The daughter born to Zhan Gui and his concubine is eight years old this year, and she is currently studying in Shengligang Primary School, so she can be regarded as a student of Ningqi.

"Is it because the little girl is not disciplined in the school? Mr. Ning, don't be shy about anything, and punish him as he should. How can this kid teach the rules if he doesn't punish him!" Zhan Gui didn't know the intention of the three people, so he could only You can find a topic to talk about first.

Ning Qi said with a smile: "Boss Zhan, although your daughter's academic performance is not very good, she still does a good job in observing discipline. This should be the result of Boss Zhan's usual discipline. The squad leader."

Zhan Gui quickly responded: "Mr. Ning loves my little girl so much, this..."

"Boss Zhan, there is no need to refuse such trivial matters. The child behaves well, and our teacher will definitely give her more opportunities to perform." Ning Qi said with a smile.

Zhan Gui always felt that Ning Qi's words seemed to have some overtones, so Schneider beside him also said: "Boss Zhan, you can choose the name for the child! Zhan Zheying, stand up and win, tsk tsk, I don't think you should say it As a squad leader, it is not difficult to become a cadre in our Haihan organization when he grows up!"

What does "cadre" mean? Zhan Gui, who is resident in Shengli Port, knows very well that the three in front of him are big cadres among the Haihan people, and being a cadre in the Haihan system is almost equivalent to becoming an official and entering an official career. ——It’s just that there will be no official approval from Ming Dynasty.Among the female cadres among the Haihan people, Zhan Gui has also seen a few, such as the female cadre of the "Haihan Bank" surnamed Cai, who always has a fierce face. He walked quickly in front of him, lest he would be scolded by her if he caught something wrong.

Zhan Gui said with a smile: "Mr. Shi was joking, the next businessman, I dare not have such delusions."

"The child is still young, so let's talk about whether he will become a cadre in the future. However, Boss Zhan, you have always been very happy to cooperate with us. If you want to give your child a good future, I think it will be fine." Yan Chujie who sat silently finally spoke.

Hearing this, Zhan Gui seemed to understand something, and immediately asked: "Dare to ask the three of you, but is there anything that needs to be dispatched?"

"I can't tell you about dispatch, but there is something I really hope you can help us with." Yan Chujie saw that he took the initiative to ask, so he stopped going around in circles and started to return to the topic: "We are going to send a fleet to Hue, Going around Hoi An, you are familiar with the local environment, so I want you to lead the team, what do you think?"

Zhan Gui is also considered to be an extremely shrewd person. Yan Chujie already understood six or seven points of what Yan Chujie said.At the beginning of the year, the Haihan militia sent troops to help the North Vietnamese court fight. This has long been known in Victory Port, and the thousands of South Vietnamese prisoners sent over for several months in a row also proved the results of the war promoted by the Executive Committee.Since the Haihan militia fought a battle with South Vietnam, of course there is no reason to establish a trade relationship with South Vietnam so soon. The so-called sending a fleet to go around is more likely to send troops to go around—— Otherwise, these words probably wouldn't have come out of Yan Chujie's mouth.

As the largest maritime trading port in South Vietnam, Zhan Gui has been to Hoi An no less than [-] or [-] times. Normally, he would go there about twice a year on average—he even married a concubine in the local area, bought a real estate.Just after the war a few months ago, Zhan Guidu went to Hoi An once.But if Zhan Gui were to go there with an army instead of a caravan, there would indeed be a considerable psychological obstacle.

Rao Zhan Gui is usually a articulate person, but now he couldn't help but stammer: "I don't know... the executive committee... is... is... planning to..."

"It's just asking you to lead the team around the local area. There is no other meaning, and you don't know how to fight." Yan Chujie explained with a smile.

Before Zhan Gui breathed a sigh of relief, he heard Yan Chujie say again: "...the fight will be done after you bring our people back from that place."

Zhan Gui said in astonishment: "This...Your Excellency, you want me to take the people from the militia to investigate the situation, and then send a large army to attack Hoi An Port?"

"Roughly so." Yan Chujie did not deny Zhan Gui's guess.Anyway, it has been decided to drag Zhan Gui into the water, so there is no need to worry too much about him leaking the militia's combat plan-to take a step back, even if it is leaked, it will be difficult for South Vietnam to organize an army within a month. A decent surface force has come to resist.If they really plan to do this, it will simply add experience points to Wang Tom's navy for free.

(End of this chapter)