Fu Shanhe

Chapter 541 The sky is falling

Reform cannot be accomplished overnight. After giving his subordinates a heads-up, Li Mu simply disappeared.

The world's heroes are as numerous as carp crossing a river.

Throughout history, many founding emperors relied on their core teams of fellow villagers who had followed them from the very beginning.

With the talents of a single county as the core, one can conquer the world.

Many people don't lack ability, but rather a platform to showcase their abilities.

The bureaucracy of Annam in its early stages was not particularly capable, but after ten years of honing their skills, many of them have matured and grown.

Perhaps his political maneuvering skills are still inferior to those of the old foxes in the court, but his ability to govern the country is far superior to theirs.

This deviation is mainly caused by the environment.

Compared to the Da Yu court, the officials of the Annam Protectorate had much more work to do on a daily basis.

They had to organize land reclamation and production, resettle immigrants from within the country, and raise funds and provisions for the army's expeditions.

None of the government offices under the Protectorate were idle.

Even the seemingly most idle historian, at Li Mu's request, had to record which unit achieved what battles, who the officers and soldiers involved were, and their specific contributions...

After assuming their posts, how did the civil officials stabilize the new territories, and what measures did they take...?

There was so much to record and archive that, nominally a historian, he was practically becoming an archivist.

And yet, we can't complain, because these detailed materials will be invaluable historical records in the future.

All of this is evidence of the Protectorate General's expansion into the Indochina Peninsula and Southeast Asia, and the creation of a new China.

As a historian, one has an obligation to record everything one sees.

Even though the Annam Protectorate was established only a little over ten years ago, the official historical records it has kept exceed the total of any previous dynasty.

Their achievements speak for themselves, rivaling any great unified dynasty in history. Having witnessed the birth of a glorious civilization, historians will undoubtedly write extensively about them.

Apart from a few dark histories from the war years that were glossed over, the rest are all factual records.

The wars launched by the Protectorate General were all portrayed by historians as campaigns against rebellious forces from all sides.

Historians are human too, and naturally, they have biases when recording history.

Even the less busy government departments are busy; other government departments will only be busier.

In particular, officials in charge of immigration are constantly on the go, and double the workload has become the norm.

Everyone is too busy to deal with internal strife.

We are currently in the startup phase, and every time the military conquers a new territory, a whole host of new jobs are created.

I'm not worried about not having opportunities for promotion; I'm just afraid of not being able to perform my job properly once I'm in a position.

Compared to the era of limited resources, where everyone had their own job, this is a golden age.

The map is updated every month, and you might wake up one day to find that the Protectorate has another province under its jurisdiction.

……

Kingdom of Myanmar.

"What did those foreigners say?"

The Burmese king asked in a panic.

In order to curb the expansion of the Annam Protectorate, European colonists also took many measures, the most important of which was to support indigenous regimes.

After decades of diligent governance, the Kingdom of Burma reached its peak of power, with its territory bordering Yunnan to the north, the Indian Ocean to the south, Annam to the east, and India to the west.

With a domestic population of several million and an army of hundreds of thousands, it can be considered a minor power in Southeast Asia.

In the years when the Dayu Dynasty was in decline, they even invaded Yunnan.

Unfortunately, this dominant power's glory didn't last long, as the Annam Protectorate suddenly rose to power.

Having witnessed the Protectorate General's army sweep across the land, the Kingdom of Burma, realizing its own weakness, was forced to curb its ambitions and settle down.

In order to protect itself, the Kingdom of Myanmar also launched a military strengthening campaign.

Just then, European colonists came knocking, and the two sides hit it off immediately.

Large quantities of firearms were shipped from Europe to Burma in exchange for ivory and gems.

For a time, trade between Europe and Myanmar reached its peak.

With the help of several major European colonial empires, the Kingdom of Burma gradually built up its own firearms force.

Their combat strength is currently unknown, but they certainly look impressive.

Seeing the significant results, Myanmar's top leadership became smug once again.

Unfortunately, his good mood didn't last long. A message from Dayu once again plunged Rao Ming into panic.

The Annam Protectorate actually wrote to the Great Yu court, accusing them of colluding with Westerners to invade the Annam Protectorate.

They admitted that trade relations between the two sides had indeed become closer, but the claim of invading the Annam Protectorate was pure nonsense.

The Kingdom of Myanmar's military buildup is purely for self-preservation.

Even if someone harbors ambitions towards the Annam Protectorate, they would only think about it in their hearts; no one would be foolish enough to say it aloud, let alone start a war.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured!"

"The Spanish, British, Dutch, Portuguese, and French all pledged their full support for us after the outbreak of war."

Trade routes in the Indian Ocean will be permanently open to us.

When necessary, they will send mercenaries to fight, but we will have to pay for it.

Prime Minister Okuzo Ran replied calmly.

He was responsible for contacting Westerners, and being able to win over so many supporters in a time of crisis is a definite political achievement.

If they can defeat the Annam Protectorate, he will undoubtedly deserve the greatest credit.

The only regret is that this battle was not easy to win.

Westerners may seem powerful and impressive, but their strength in Asia is limited.

It's fine to secretly support them in their fight against the Great Yu, but on the surface, these guys are all incredibly cowardly.

Several years ago, they clamored to organize a coalition army to crush the Great Yu Empire, but after all these years of clamoring, they've only talked the talk but never walked the walk.

Anyone with a discerning eye can see that this shows a lack of confidence.

It's not surprising at all; anyone would have doubts when faced with the behemoth that is the Great Yu Empire.

Without sufficient benefits, who would be foolish enough to launch a long and arduous expedition?
"I don't want to hear these empty words. Since they want to fully support us, we must put it into practice."

We need to figure out as soon as possible how many guns and cannons to provide, and how many reinforcements we can send.

And what about the mercenaries? Aren't these Westerners planning to send troops themselves?

The King of Burma asked with a solemn expression.

European colonists did not have a good reputation in Southeast Asia, and the Burmese king did not believe their promises.

In terms of political reputation, the Great Yu Dynasty is the most reliable.

In order to maintain the dignity of the Celestial Empire, the Emperor of Great Yu would fulfill any promises made to vassal states, even at a loss.

Unfortunately, the most reliable person became their own enemy, leaving them no room for maneuver.

The Westerners verbally expressed their support but did not provide any concrete solutions, which he viewed as mere empty promises.

Many of the indigenous regimes in Southeast Asia before them fell to the guns and cannons of Yu's army after receiving empty promises from Westerners.

Without their instigation, the indigenous regimes would have surrendered on their own without Yu's army even needing to attack.

I can't speak for other things, but as long as you surrender quickly enough, you can still save your life and wealth. For some unambitious nobles, being able to relocate to the territory of Dayu is also a good option.

Mercenaries are very popular in continental Europe, but they are a foreign concept in Southeast Asia.

Influenced by the Great Yu Dynasty, all countries established standing armies, and could directly deploy regular troops in battle.

Private armed forces are not allowed to exist among civilians, let alone organized armies.

"Your Majesty, mercenaries are a specialty of the Westerners."

It is said that there is a group of people in the European world who make a living by fighting wars for others.

To save on military expenditures, Western countries maintain small standing armies during peacetime and prefer to hire mercenaries to fight in times of war.

O'Sullivan immediately explained.

Compared to urging Westerners to translate their support into concrete actions, it's simpler to educate one's own king about common European knowledge.

Without sufficient shared interests, simply causing trouble for Da Yu is not enough to get people to provide real financial support.

If we want the Westerners to provide substantial support, we must offer them sufficient benefits, which will most likely require sacrificing the interests of the Kingdom of Burma.

During wartime, no one would say anything if you did this, but once the war is over, you'll be in big trouble.

His political enemies in the court would certainly use the pretext of treason to launch an attack on him in the imperial court.

Even if it's a collective decision made by the top leadership and approved by the king himself, the blame will still fall on the person who actually carried it out.

If you don't want to take responsibility, the best way is to change the subject first and wait for others to bring it up so you can shift the blame.

"With a group of temporary mercenaries fighting a war, isn't their king afraid of a backlash?"

The King of Burma asked incredulously.

Due to cultural differences between East and West, monarchs in the Eastern world found it difficult to understand the outsourcing of war.

In the Eastern world, whoever controls military power holds the power of discourse.

If mercenaries are used to fight, by the time the war ends, it will be time for a change of dynasty.

"Your Majesty, perhaps those Western bumpkins are ignorant and do not know the dangers of losing military power."

Once they learn from this experience, they will gain valuable lessons in the future.

But that's none of our business. Recruiting a bunch of mercenaries to be cannon fodder is a good option.

O'Sanlan answered calmly.

In the Eastern world's way of thinking, this is the only reasonable explanation he can come up with.

As long as the King of Burma is willing to believe, how far he is from the truth is not important.

He was happy to have more reinforcements since the Westerners were willing to send mercenaries.

In any case, you only need to pay a deposit upfront, and the remaining fees are paid as the machine is installed.

Once they're sent to the battlefield, the Yu army won't care who they are; they'll all be killed without discrimination.

Whether they wanted to or not, once they reached the front lines, they had no choice but to passively take up arms and fight against the Yu army.

To collect subsequent payments, they must first help the Kingdom of Myanmar win the war.

If they were to be defeated, these Burmese nobles would be forced to flee their homes, and naturally no one would be willing to pay the remaining balance.

"Ok!"

"In that case, hire as many as possible."

We'll hire as many people as they can send.

Tell those Western bumpkins that as long as they can defeat Yu's army, the mercenaries will receive their full pay and provisions.

The Burmese king immediately issued a blank check.

Despite his disdain, he still acknowledged the fighting prowess of Western armies.

With the help of these European colonists, the fighting capacity of the Burmese army has improved considerably in recent years.

However, this improvement is still far behind that of the neighboring Annam Protectorate.

Although they are both guns and cannons, they are still far inferior in power.

Located at the crossroads of Eastern and Western civilizations, and given the dominance of Eastern civilization, they naturally lean towards it.

Unfortunately, our ancestors were too arrogant. A few years ago, they went on to invade the Great Yu Kingdom with great bravado. Not only did they suffer heavy losses, but they also left behind a powerful enemy that was almost invincible.

After the rise of the Annam Protectorate, they also took measures to ease relations and once thought that their foreign policy had succeeded.

The Great Yu court accepted their goodwill, and several Yu cabinet ministers expressed their intention to maintain a long-term friendly and neighborly relationship with them.

Unfortunately, these promises had no effect whatsoever on the side of the Annam Protectorate.

All it takes to start a war is "suspicion".

They were suspected of colluding with Westerners to attempt to invade Annam Protectorate, which means they were colluding with Westerners to invade Annam Protectorate.

Explanation is meaningless; anyone on the border who wants to create conflict can provoke trouble at any time.

The flames of war have already been ignited on the frontier, and the Nanjing court will certainly provide unconditional support to the Annam Protectorate.

It's better for Li Mu to expend his excess energy on external enemies than to vent it within the territory of Dayu.

As for the fate of the Burmese Kingdom, those scholar-officials didn't care at all.

……

Batavia (Jakarta).

"Your Excellency, news has arrived from the Kingdom of Burma."

The Great Yu Empire is about to invade Myanmar, and they hope to quickly realize their promised support.

They wanted everything, from weapons and equipment to military pay and provisions.

They also demanded that we dispatch a large army as soon as possible to help them drive out the invading Yu army!

Denberg stepped forward to report.

"Have the Burmese gone mad?"

What makes them think we'll help them unconditionally?

Governor Rodriguez asked in an exaggerated manner.

They were always the ones taking advantage of others, never imagining that one day someone would take advantage of them.

If this were to happen on the European continent, it would be no exception.

Supporting allies for political reasons is acceptable even at a loss.

The problem is that this is a colony, and the rules are different from those in the mainland.

"Your Excellency, the Yu Dynasty is expanding very rapidly, and its sphere of influence is almost spreading to the Indian Ocean."

The Strait of Malacca is nominally in our hands, but in reality, it is jointly managed by us and the Yu Dynasty, and in many cases, they have more say.

If the Kingdom of Burma fell into the hands of the Yu Dynasty, their influence could directly extend into the Indian Ocean.

At that time, our interests in India will face a severe challenge.

Political appointee Alex couldn't help but offer a reminder.

Their colonial government was not only subordinate to the Dutch government, but also a member of the Dutch East India Company.

Using Batavia as a springboard, the Dutch East India Company amassed enormous profits in India, reaping huge gains every year.

Once Dayu's influence extends there, it will inevitably impact their local interests.

(End of this chapter)