African Nationhood

At the end of February 1907, the South China Navy, under the instructions of Chairman Shi, dispatched the "Wei Admiral's Fleet" towards the Sulu Sultanate.

On March 1907, 3, the British Foreign Office forwarded a note from the South China Dominion Cabinet to the Dutch Foreign Ministry.

The content of this note is the territorial map of the Sulu Sultanate in its early years. The cabinet of the South China Autonomous Territory, which attached this territorial map, hopes that the Dutch authorities will return the occupied territory of the Sulu Sultanate.

The Dutch cabinet was very confused after receiving the note and angrily denounced South China as a shameless blackmail.

No wonder the Dutch are angry, because since the Royal Southeast Asia Petroleum Company discovered large oil fields on Sumatra, the Dutch have also launched oil exploration in Southeast Asia.

Sure enough, an oil field was discovered on the southwest coast of Tarakan Island in East Kalimantan.

As soon as these oil fields were discovered here, the Southern Chinese came to ask for their return to their homeland in the Sulu Sultanate.

What a coincidence!
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands directly replied: "There is no territorial dispute between our East Kalimantan Island Colony and the Sultanate of Sulu. All territorial treaties have been signed with the United Kingdom and Spain. I hope your country will confirm it carefully!"

Naturally, the Nanhua cabinet refused to give up and continued to issue notes to the Dutch government, taking an increasingly tough tone.

The British Foreign Office did not take it too seriously and continued to pass on the news.

The war of words between the Netherlands and South China became more and more fierce. Finally, on April 4, South China issued an ultimatum to the Netherlands: If there is no clear answer within 1 days, it will be returned to the homeland of the Sulu Sultanate. Please bear the consequences!

This statement can be said to be full of threats. The Dutch cabinet is very hesitant about this threat and does not know what to do.

Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands directly summoned Cabinet Prime Minister Theo de Mestre to discuss a solution.

The Queen of the Netherlands felt that the Netherlands should not anger the South China Dominion. The Chinese Legion had just defeated the British Empire.

Moreover, the previous Lanfang Company incident had only passed a few years ago, so the Netherlands could not be a rival to the South China Army.

Moreover, Great Britain, the mother country of the South China Dominion, is at the doorstep of the Netherlands. Once a conflict breaks out, Great Britain declares war on the Netherlands.

The huge ships and cannons of the British Navy will be placed directly at the door of the Netherlands, and it will really be over by then!

……

The Dutch cabinet responded to the cabinet of the South China Autonomous Territory, saying that the matter could be resolved through negotiation. They hoped that the South China Autonomous Territory would not be impatient and that the Dutch government was willing to show sincerity and jointly negotiate a solution.

The Netherlands was very aggrieved by this show of weakness, but the Nanhua cabinet was unmoved and did not respond to the Netherlands' overtures.

The Dutch cabinet is as anxious as ants on a hot pot. They have been very forbearing, but South China is too strong.

The Dutch Prime Minister Theo de Mestre had no choice but to contact the British Ministry of Foreign Affairs through diplomatic channels, hoping that the British Cabinet would advise the South China Dominion government.

The newly appointed Prime Minister of the Cabinet and an old friend of Chairman Shi, Prime Minister Henry Gambel Bannerman, immediately summoned the Prime Minister of the South China Cabinet Ouyang Geng.

Ouyang Geng held a dialogue with Prime Minister Bannerman on behalf of the South China Autonomous Territory government. He said that the South China Autonomous Territory has a very firm attitude and must take back the lost territory of the Sulu Sultanate.

Prime Minister Bannerman expressed his desire to speak with Chairman Shi, but Ouyang Geng refused because Chairman Shi was not feeling well.

Prime Minister Bannerman had no choice but to give up, but he still advised Ouyang Geng not to be too impulsive. Things that can be resolved through negotiation are always better than using a knife or a gun.

Ouyang Geng did not accept or refute this opinion, which gave Prime Minister Bannerman a soft nail.

……

The British Foreign Office continues to inform the Dutch Foreign Ministry that the attitude of the South China Autonomous Territory remains the same. Please confirm as soon as possible whether to return the territory?

On April 4, the Prime Minister of the Netherlands and his delegation went to London to hold talks with the Ouyang Geng delegation who was also in London.

The former Prince Leopold estate outside London has been purchased by the Dominion of South China to serve as a consulate and office.

When Prime Minister Meister saw Ouyang Geng, he first approached him.

"Premier Ouyang, we had talks before when you were in Europe. When you came here to look for Mr. Paul Kruger, we also provided help. I believe you will not forget it."

Ouyang Geng immediately grimaced, "Your country was one of the cold receptions I received in Europe before, so Prime Minister Mister, please put away your lame greetings and let's get down to business."

Prime Minister Mister's face turned pale, and he sighed silently.

"Prime Minister Ouyang, whether you agree or not, our government does not recognize the 'homeland of the Sulu Sultanate'."

Hearing what the other party said, Ouyang Geng's expression became more serious.

“Can I understand what you just said, Prime Minister Mestre, as your country’s direct rejection of our proposition?
If so, there is no need for us to continue talking, let’s just solve it by force! "

After Ouyang Geng finished speaking, he was about to stand up. Prime Minister Meister couldn't sit still now.

"Premier Ouyang, wait a moment. I'm just expressing our position. As for the matter, we can discuss it again."

When Ouyang Geng heard this, he did not continue to stand up. He said "hmm" and stopped talking.

Prime Minister Mister saw that Ouyang Geng was silent, so he had no choice but to continue speaking.

"The opinion of our government is, can we find another way to resolve this matter?"

Ouyang Geng wondered: "Other ways, what other ways?"

"Our country proposes: Let's negotiate between the two sides. How about we pay to redeem the homeland of the Sulu Sultanate?" Upon hearing this, Ouyang Geng immediately remembered what Chairman Shi said when he came: If the Dutch want to cede other lands, The territory may be denied to the Sulu Sultanate's homeland.

That means they must have found more valuable minerals on the east coast of Borneo, either gold mines or oil fields.

Ouyang Geng, who had been reminded by Chairman Shi, probably understood what the Dutch were thinking, but he was not sure, so he spoke to test it out.

"We are not short of money. What if we want you to exchange territory elsewhere for the homeland of the Sulu Sultanate?"

Prime Minister Mister thought for a moment and smiled: "That's okay, we can exchange it for the territory close to Lanfang Company."

Hearing this, Ouyang Geng was convinced that the Dutch had found valuable minerals on the east coast.

"No, we only want the territory that is reasonable and legal to us."

Prime Minister Mister did not expect that the Chinese Prime Minister suddenly changed his mind.

"You said that just now, and now you change your mind. Why?"

Ouyang Geng smiled, "Before coming to London, I heard that you discovered rich minerals on the east coast of Borneo.

I didn't believe it before, but now it seems that you have really discovered a rich mine, so you don't want to return our homeland. "

Prime Minister Mister was shocked when he heard this, but his face remained unchanged, "I still don't know when you got the news."

Ouyang Geng looked at the white man in front of him who was pretending to be calm. He smiled and said, "You can deceive us as much as you like, but we are determined to demand reasonable and legal territory. If your country does not agree, then we can only solve it by force."

Hearing that the other party was really going to use force, Prime Minister Mister was scared, but still unwilling to give up.

"You are just a dominion and do not have the right to declare war. Once Britain declares war on the Netherlands, the whole of Europe will condemn Britain, and the international reputation of your dominion will suffer."

Ouyang Geng laughed out loud when he heard this, "Do you think we care about this false reputation?
Besides, our request for our homeland is reasonable and reasonable, but it is you who are greedy for the interests of rich mines and ignore our reasonable demands.

I just want to ask you one more thing, does your country really want to use force with us? "

Prime Minister Mestre was immediately frightened. The Netherlands really did not dare to be hostile to South China, let alone provoke Britain, the world hegemon.

“Well, let me tell you, we have discovered oil fields on Tarakan Island in East Kalimantan, but they have not been exploited yet and we don’t know the specific situation.

You can take back your homeland, but the oil fields must be exploited together with us. "

When Ouyang Geng heard this, he secretly admired Chairman Shi's wisdom and foresight.

"Yes, but there must be a prerequisite for this."

Hearing Ouyang Geng agreed, Prime Minister Meister felt much more relaxed.

He smiled and said, "What do you want?"

Ouyang Geng said with a smile: "This matter is simpler. If your country gives up control of Zambezi Company, we will agree with you to develop the oil fields in Borneo with us."

Hearing what Ouyang Geng said, the expression on Prime Minister Mister's face immediately froze.

"You, you are going too far!"

Ouyang Geng sneered: "It's too much. This world is about the jungle and the strong. We don't want your land for free, we will also give you money.

You bought that piece of land from us for 100 million guilders, and now we buy it back for 100 million guilders, so you won't suffer any loss.

But if you want to invest in our oil fields in Borneo, your capital must not be less than N2 million. After all, the prospects for oil are very bright, and we cannot suffer losses, right? "

Prime Minister Mister was speechless. The Chinese in front of him were so shameless and greedy!

"Aren't you afraid of our rejection?"

"It's okay to refuse. We can directly send troops to occupy it without spending any money. That would be better.

The war between the United States and Spain has only ended a few years ago. You should know what will happen if the war is defeated? "

Prime Minister Mestre could no longer remain calm. He said in a low voice: "I need to ask Her Majesty the Queen for instructions. Please give me some time."

Ouyang Geng nodded, "Okay, I can wait, but my patience is very limited, Prime Minister."

……

A few days later, the Dutch cabinet signed a series of agreements with the South China Dominion, and both parties held a press conference.

At the press conference, the Netherlands announced to the media that the conflict between the Netherlands and the South China Autonomous Territory had been resolved.

The two parties will next work together to develop oil fields in Tarakan Island on the east coast of Kalimantan.

As for the agreement by the Dutch cabinet to hand over control of the Dutch Zambezi Company to the South China Autonomous Territory, the two parties signed it quietly.

On April 1907, 4, the South China Defense Forces crossed the Zambezi River and entered the Dutch Zambezi Company. After handing over to the Dutch, both parties said a friendly farewell. (End of chapter)