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Chapter 1235 Bold Idea 2
It is not uncommon for superiors to withhold military pay, and even pensions cannot be fully received. What would soldiers and low-level officers think if they only watched their superiors and officials and nobles living a life of luxury every day? Can they still talk about loyalty?

Settle felt that he could try to win over these people. With their participation, the steps to set foot on the American continent might be easier. At least there would not be too many obstacles in communicating with the indigenous people.

By the way, what about the indigenous people? Shouldn't we fight for them? Settle hadn't thought this through yet, because he had learned from Mather that Spain had only used a few hundred men to defeat the Inca Empire, which had a population of tens of millions, and many tribes with millions of people.

He really couldn't understand why there was such a huge disparity in the results of the battle. Even when the emperor led a large army to West Asia, he was unstoppable and defeated the larger force with a smaller one. He did not dare to lead a single guard to destroy the entire Ottoman Empire.

With such low combat effectiveness and loose cohesion, it is really unsure whether he should be treated as a normal person. Let's just put him aside and leave it to the General Staff and the Emperor to worry about it.

"You observed very carefully, thought hard, and had sufficient evidence. It's a good investigative report. In this respect, you are better than Badaza. His performance report is really wild and unrestrained. He wrote whatever came to his mind and didn't grasp the key points at all. He also didn't have a clear idea."

It took Hong Tao about ten minutes to finish reading the contents of the book and start to comment. He first praised it, but then he went off topic and started to criticize Setel's brother, the current Korchin Marquis.

"He started school late, and my father was in poor health, so he had to deal with the trivial matters of the clan. I was lucky enough to be with him, otherwise I would have to stay at home and not see the outside world."

He has always respected his brother Setel. As the saying goes, the eldest brother is like a father. The two brothers are nearly ten years apart in age. After the death of old Oba, he relied on his brother to take care of and raise him until he joined the navy and started his own business.

"Yes, he is quite gifted in handling government affairs. You two brothers complement each other, and you have not disappointed Obataiji's spirit in heaven. However, I do not fully agree with your plan.

The corruption of the Spanish court and officials and the difficult living conditions of the people in the New World described in this book are very likely to be true, but they are an exception.

Spain was founded on navigation and relies heavily on maritime power, so the navy has always been treated well. At least compared to other jobs, the income is high.

When talking about the problems of the Spanish court and officials, most of the naval officers and soldiers would agree, and if they had a glass of wine in their hands, they might even curse a few words. But if you want to use this as an argument to persuade them to surrender, it is unlikely to succeed.

You are also a navy officer. Would you surrender to the European fleet simply because of the unfair treatment of your superiors? Put yourself in their shoes. Do not do to others what you do not want others to do to you. "

Speaking of the work of the current Horqin Marquis, Hong Tao is relatively familiar with it. Badaza is nominally the leader of the Horqin tribe, but it is only in name, or an honorary title.

In fact, the Khorchin tribe had been gradually dismantled after Obataiji's death, and was completely managed by officials sent by the court and local garrisons. The same was true for the Kharchin, Tumed, and Tushetu tribes, all of which were submerged in the vast ocean of ethnic assimilation.

This is not the worst. For example, the Zasaktu and Chechen tribes of Outer Khalkha Mongols, as well as the four tribes of Oirat, were directly wiped out from the map and books because they opposed or did not support the Ming Empire. Anyone who dared to claim to be from these tribes would be considered a traitor. If this continues for another 20 or 30 years, and the older generation is exhausted, it is estimated that few people will know these names, and they will lose their due appeal and cohesion, and completely become a few lines in historical manuscripts.

At that time, these marquises and earls will also be abolished, and there will no longer be any distinction between tribes from the surface to the essence. Similarly, similar work has been carried out unremittingly in various parts of the Western Regions. Although the progress is not as fast as in the inland areas, the results can be seen.

With the continuous influx of immigrants and the seeming inclination in policies, coupled with the deterrence of military force, it is estimated that the fate of the ethnic groups in the Western Regions will eventually be the same as that of the Mongolian tribes, and they will be gradually and completely assimilated.

But when it comes to persuading the Spanish Navy to surrender, it is not so easy. What is the situation inside the Ming Empire, and whether they can live a much better life after surrendering are unknown to the Spanish soldiers and officers.

They would not easily lay down their weapons and hand over their lives to the enemy just because of a few words from someone, even if that person was the emperor. Settle took this for granted.

"…Can we give it a try? The students have already convinced Mather, and he is willing to act as an envoy."

Settle was silent for a while, still not quite resigned. In this respect, he was a bit like Hong Tao. Once he had decided on something, he would try it as long as no one could deny it 100%, and he would not turn back until he hit a wall.

"Mather has been entrusted to the wrong person. He has helped you so much, and also helped the Ming Empire and me. But he was sent away so easily. His life or death is uncertain. Isn't this a bit inhumane?"

Hong Tao smiled and gently reminded Settle not to be too eager to make achievements. Even when treating prisoners, you should be more careful and pay attention to their character. You promised them that they would have a good life if they surrendered, but in order to prove some of your own ideas, you pushed them out without caring about their lives. It was too cruel.

"Your Majesty is so merciful that I am ashamed..." Having said that, Settle could no longer argue and could only say it awkwardly.

"Don't give up yet. I just said that it would not be effective to persuade them to surrender right away. I didn't completely deny your idea. If you want to make someone surrender, the most effective way is not to preach but to use your fists. Your overall idea is fine, but it's missing an important link. Now I will help you fill it in, and it should be almost there.

In this way, you go back and continue to work on Mather's thoughts, telling him not to be afraid and that the Spanish dare not act recklessly. But don't go to negotiate immediately, but wait a few days. When the Spanish fleet is hurt and the hope of survival is getting slimmer and slimmer, it is the best time for him to take action.

I will revise your plan and give it to Deputy Chief of Staff Bai, so that the Navy Staff can discuss and approve it collectively, and then formulate a new combat plan based on it. Don't worry, the credit will still go to the bait fleet, and if the persuasion is successful, it will also be counted as a share for Mather and the pirates."

But Hong Tao's point was not that it couldn't be done, but that there were some missing links. As long as the steps were readjusted, persuading the pirates to surrender would not be impossible. If the pirates helped, the success rate would be even higher.

(End of this chapter)