1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3679

The place chosen by Qian Tiandun was named Khasab by the local Hihu tribe. It is located in the northeast corner of the Arabian Peninsula, 200 miles south of Hormuz Island. It is a small plain sandwiched between the coastal mountains. Within a hundred miles to the south inland are barren mountains. Only Khasab is a rare oasis in this area.

There are many natural bays around Khasab, which can be used as shelters and temporary military ports when necessary. It is located at the throat of the Strait of Hormuz, and the space available for development is larger than that of Hormuz Island.

When the Portuguese first entered the region, they also listed Khasab as one of the alternative locations for their colony.

However, Hormuz Island had a foundation for development and construction by the Persians, and it had infrastructure such as ports, while Khasab was poor and had no foundation. In the end, the Portuguese chose to send troops to attack Hormuz Island, which was easier to develop and construct, as their main base in the Persian Gulf.

However, the Portuguese also had a clear understanding of the value of Khasab. As long as they built a base in Khasab, the two fortresses, 200 miles apart in the south and the north, could block the Strait of Hormuz at any time and control the entire Persian Gulf.

In fact, the Portuguese had already formulated a plan to develop Khasab as early as the last century. The reason why it has not been implemented until now is that, on the one hand, the preparations in terms of funds and materials have been slow and have not been in place; on the other hand, Hormuz Island, which is facing military pressure from Persia, has always been in an unsafe situation. Once Portugal allocates resources from Hormuz Island to develop Khasab in the south, it is possible that the Persians will take advantage of the situation.

Although Portugal has not yet developed the area, this does not prevent the successive governors of Hormuz Island from considering it as their sphere of influence. However, Rui did not quite understand how Qian Tiandun and his group could find the inconspicuous little place of Khasab so quickly when it was their first time to come to the Strait of Hormuz.

And from Qian Tiandun's tone, he didn't sound like he was joking, and it seemed that he was really planning to take action against Khasab.

As for the request for his consent, Rui knew that it was just a polite expression from the other party. In fact, it was just to inform him and he did not really intend to take action after obtaining consent.

Whether he agreed to this or not, it would be difficult to shake the Hai Han people's plan. But as part of his duty, he still had to do his best to persuade the Hai Han people to give up this plan.

"General Qian may not know that the local Xihu people in Khasaib are very difficult to deal with. They are extremely hostile to foreign ethnic groups and are very aggressive. In addition, there are no valuable products in the area. It is very likely that spending resources to build a port there will not be worth the cost!"

"After repeated considerations, our country chose to go to war with Persia for Hormuz Island rather than go to Khasab. It is conceivable that the local conditions were not suitable for opening a port."

"In my opinion, the wisest approach for your country would be to set up a trading post on Hormuz Island. You can use the local port facilities to carry out trade activities without having to worry about security issues. Isn't that much less troublesome than going to Khasab?"

Rui tried hard to make his suggestion sound more sincere, but unfortunately he was facing Qian Tiandun. Qian Tiandun saw the significance of controlling the waterway of the Strait of Hormuz much more clearly than people of this era.

Khasab is indeed just an unknown little place now, but by gradually controlling the strait waterways in and out of the Persian Gulf through Khasab, the long-term benefits in the future are limitless. This is actually just like when Hai Han settled in Xingdao, they were looking at the long-term benefits of decades or even hundreds of years. Moreover, the successful experience gained in Xingdao in the past has fully proved the feasibility of this strategy of controlling key waterways.

As for the purpose of informing Rui of this decision, he just didn't want the other party to misjudge the situation and think that this move was aimed at Portugal. In fact, all countries entering and exiting the Persian Gulf by sea will be the target of this long-term plan.

Qian Tiandun responded in a deep voice, “Lord Rui, the difficulties you mentioned do exist, but Hai Han will never hesitate to move forward in the face of difficulties. If anyone wants to prevent our army from achieving its goals, they have chosen to be our enemy!”

Hearing Qian Tiandun's strong statement, Rui could only swallow the words that were on the tip of his tongue. Although he was unwilling, he did not want Qian Tiandun to think that he was hostile to Hai Han. That would not be a good thing for him or Portugal.

Qian Tiandun continued, "When our country develops Khasab in the future, it will be an excellent model for our two countries to take care of each other from north to south and jointly manage the strait."

Joint management of the Strait? Rui could only smile bitterly. He did not believe that the Hai Han people would be so restrained.

After all, Hai Han’s territory has increased more than a hundred times in the past thirty years, and it has been conducting military operations aimed at external expansion every year. Now it has extended its tentacles to the Strait of Hormuz. Is this really just a plan for "co-management"?

Rui could certainly imagine that the Strait of Hormuz would most likely be a replica of the Malacca model.

A country like Hai Han would never allow others to manage the key waterways within its reach, even if the original owner of the place was an ally like Portugal.

Rui was almost desperate, but he still tried to grab the last straw: "General Qian, although Khasab is a remote place and is administratively managed by the local indigenous tribes, it is nominally under the jurisdiction of the Ottoman Empire. If you force your way into the area, it may displease the Ottoman Empire and cause big trouble!"

“Also, the Persians would not be happy to see another strong man appear in the strait. They might try to trip up your country or even use force to expel you. Although the Hai Han army is very powerful, this is after all the doorstep of Persia…”

Qian Tiandun retorted: "Your Excellency and I have different opinions. First of all, although the Arabian Peninsula south of the Strait is nominally under the jurisdiction of the Ottoman Empire, many places have only declared their allegiance to the Ottoman Empire, but in reality they still maintain the status of local rulers."

"Secondly, Khasab, which we are talking about, is extremely far away from the core area of ​​the Ottoman Empire. It is several times farther away than Isfahan, the capital of Persia. I don't think the Ottoman Empire would go to war for such a small place with almost no economic benefits."

“Third, I know a little about the relationship between Persia and the Ottoman Empire. These two countries have been at war for more than a hundred years. They are sworn enemies and are unlikely to fight to the death. If one of them declares war on Hai Han, the other will definitely not regard us as an enemy. Instead, it is likely that they will unite with us to deal with their old enemy.”