Fu Shanhe

Chapter 558 Unification of the Indochina Peninsula
"My lords, you have wronged the imperial court."

The reason the imperial court announced your deaths so quickly was mainly because a search and rescue fleet had recovered many bodies in the vicinity.

One of the bodies, dressed in official robes, was identified by the yamen officials as Lord Dulle.

After multiple verifications, the officials in charge of the investigation concluded that the gentlemen encountered a storm and unfortunately perished at sea.

If you calculate the time, it was four or five months ago.

It would have been better if Zhang Yunze hadn't explained; his explanation only made everyone more and more distraught.

After all that, it turned out to be their fault.

Even if the body drifts with the current in the sea, the distance it can drift cannot be too far.

After all, there are plenty of carnivores in the ocean, and it won't be long before he becomes fish food.

If the fleet hadn't been urged to set sail, they might have run into the search and rescue convoy, and they wouldn't have had to drift at sea for so long.

"My lords, rest assured, now that we have encountered this situation, I will certainly report to the court and help you restore your identities."

Before that, I would like to trouble you all to rest on the island for a few days while we await the court's decision.

Seeing that everyone's expressions were off, Zhang Yunze immediately added.

It's fine to make a joke; there's no need to cause trouble for yourself.

The Annam Protectorate didn't take these Confucian scholars seriously, but they still had to put on a show of respect.

If the stimulation goes too far and these people can't think straight, it would be a real problem if they died of anger on the spot.

"Lord Zhang, are you saying that we are already dead in the eyes of the world?!"
We are all just commoners now, and commoners without any legal status.

Until the imperial court restores our status, we are not even allowed to leave our homes freely!

Kong Songlin asked with a displeased expression.

Even though he knew this had nothing to do with Zhang Yunze, he couldn't help but feel angry.

The imperial court went too far, announcing their deaths so hastily, clearly for the purpose of seizing power and profit.

A political death freed up all the seats available for everyone else.

These great Confucian scholars, though not influential, were still respected even without official positions.

But their students were badly hurt.

Even if the court restores their status, they will never get back the official positions they lost.

It's uncertain when we'll be able to fill the gaps again.

Given their relationship with the cabinet, these students' careers will most likely end here.

"Lord Kong, according to the regulations of the Great Yu Dynasty, that is indeed the case."

"You are all loyal to the public and devoted to the country; I doubt you would do anything illegal that would put me in a difficult position."

Zhang Yunze responded with a smile.

If it weren't for dispelling the rumors that the Marquis of Hanshui had intercepted and killed the supervisory group, he wouldn't have had the time to waste words with these people here.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Lord Zhang. We will not wander around until the court responds."

Meng Jun'an said, barely suppressing his anger.

People have to bow their heads under the roof.

Since they are already dead according to the imperial court's announcement, they should keep a low profile.

If you offend someone at this time, you might end up with a real physical death instead of a political death.

……

Batavia.

News has come from Myanmar that the defenses painstakingly built by the Burmese have completely collapsed, and the mercenary group has suffered heavy losses.

The Kingdom of Burma has moved its capital and is preparing to retreat to the northwestern mountains to continue resisting the invasion of Yu's army.

Unless the Yu Dynasty is willing to acknowledge the treaty we signed with the Burmese, all our investments in Burma will be in vain.

Especially the bank loans, which were guaranteed by the credit of our colonial government!

Governor Rodriguez said, on the verge of tears.

The front lines collapsed too quickly, and many plans were not even put into action.

According to the plan, as long as the Kingdom of Myanmar holds out for two years, they will be able to recoup all their investment through commercial means and make a huge profit.

Other traders are doing better; at least the Burmese have paid a large sum of money upfront, but some of the final payments haven't been received.

The worst off are the banks, which, according to the treaty between the two sides, are free to attract deposits and make loans within Myanmar.

As an outsider, if you want to start a business, you need to establish a reputation first, and initial investment is inevitable.

The bankers are willing to take the risk at this time because they plan to absorb the transfer of wealth from wealthy people in Myanmar.

All that's needed is for the deposit certificate to be lost in the war, and they could swallow up hundreds of years of wealth accumulated by the Kingdom of Burma.

The plan was wonderful, but the situation collapsed too quickly.

Let alone trying to persuade officials and wealthy businessmen to deposit money, Yu Jun attacked before he could even set up any outlets.

Aside from gaining the status of a creditor of the Kingdom of Myanmar, all previous investments were wasted.

"Your Excellency, the Yu Dynasty is unwilling to even acknowledge the legitimacy of the Burmese government, let alone the treaties they have signed."

According to the Annam Protectorate, the Burmese king did not receive investiture from the Da Yu emperor upon his accession to the throne, thus illegally establishing himself as king.

I've studied Eastern history, and it seems that many indigenous regimes here would send people to Dayu to seek investiture upon succession.

The vassal system they established was equivalent to a secular version of the medieval papacy.

The emperor of the Great Yu Dynasty had unlimited power to interfere in the affairs of the vassal states.

Not only could they bestow titles upon the rulers of vassal states, but they could also appoint and dismiss ministers of vassal states and formulate laws for vassal states, among other privileges.

The Annam Protectorate was able to quickly sweep across Southeast Asia mainly because, legally, it possessed the right to conquer vassal states.

Many locals were proud to be subjects of the Yu Dynasty, so much so that the Yu army swept across the land without encountering fierce resistance.

Political official Alex explained with his limited knowledge.

Due to differences in cultural systems, the political systems of the East and the West also differ.

In theory, the emperor of the Great Yu Empire had boundless power and could interfere in the internal affairs of his vassal states.

In the Western world, these would be considered the legal basis.

If you were to do that in the Eastern world, the vassal states below would rebel in no time.

The expansion of the Annam Protectorate was smooth, mainly because it was powerful enough to defeat the locals in the early stages.

After occupying the area, they dispersed and resettled the local people.

The neighbors were not from their own tribe, and communication between them was often difficult. How could they possibly organize a rebellion?

After surviving the initial military control phase, everyone learned the Dayu language, received their allotted farmland from the government, and began to accept their new identity.

After all, everything else is intangible; only an improvement in life is something that can be truly felt.

The unification of language, script, and ethnic customs, along with intermarriage among immigrants, further accelerated the integration process.

After a series of measures, the local situation quickly stabilized.

Unable to understand the specifics, Alex, following Western thinking, attributed these issues to legal consensus.

"Damn it!"

"According to your logic, the current invasion of the Kingdom of Burma by the Yu army is seen by the Burmese as a war between an emperor and a feudal lord?"

Rodriguez couldn't help but curse.

Foreign invasion and civil war are often two different concepts.

In wars between the emperor and the feudal lords, the people's support is divided on which side, making it difficult to ignite a nationwide war. "Yes, Your Excellency the Governor."

"Besides this explanation, I can't think of any other reason why the Kingdom of Burma would collapse so quickly."

In the event of a purely external invasion, even if the invasion is defeated on the battlefield, the vassals below will rely on the city fortresses to resist the enemy's attack.

Even if Yu Jun's fighting strength is superior, their advance speed couldn't possibly be this fast!

Alex nodded and said.

A beautiful misunderstanding arose, unexpectedly resolving their doubts.

This realization immediately dispelled everyone's idea of ​​continuing to bet on the Kingdom of Myanmar.

"If that's the case, then there's basically no hope of further resistance from the Kingdom of Burma."

It's possible that before the war even ends, the Burmese king will rush to apologize to the Emperor of the Great Yu.

The only hope for reversing the situation lies with the Tatars and the Guifang people.

These two ethnic groups have always been the source of troubles on the northern border of Dayu.

The frequent intrusions often left the Great Yu in a sorry state.

They were also the only force capable of causing the Great Yu Empire to suffer repeated defeats in its foreign wars.

"Commander Nathanil said with a solemn expression."

We are no longer in the era of cold weapons. Anyone with common sense knows that it is impossible to expect nomadic peoples and hunter-gatherer peoples to defeat the Great Yu Empire.

The advance on the battlefield is going smoothly, but that is only temporary.

Based on experience from the Burma battlefield, once the Great Yu Empire shifts its strategic focus northward, it will be their turn to suffer.

This could very well be another westward migration of East Asian ethnic groups.

Historical experience shows that every westward migration of East Asian peoples has brought disaster to Central Asia and even the European world.

Fortunately, the Kingdom of the Netherlands was in Western Europe; otherwise, their actions might have brought war to their homeland.

"Forget it, the Dayu navy has already blockaded the coastline, so it will be very difficult for us to transport supplies to the Tatars."

Now that they've started fighting, let's not get involved in what happens next.

Rodriguez immediately gave the decision.

Selling out teammates is just a basic tactic.

Abandoning the Kingdom of Myanmar is futile; they're hopeless.

Abandoning the Tatars meant that there was no need to continue investing in them after the outbreak of war.

Without the Burmese Kingdom's sacrifice, every shipment of supplies sent to the Goguryeo Kingdom would be a losing proposition.

Moreover, the Yu Dynasty's navy is very strict; once someone is caught by them, regardless of their nationality, they will be beheaded.

The protests were to no avail; in the Great Yu Empire, treason was a capital offense punishable by the execution of the entire family.

They don't care about any foreign lands or anything like that.

When the official letter arrived at the Nanjing court, they were still asked to hand over the families of the criminals.

“Your Excellency, I may choose not to participate, but the Mughal Empire has already been drawn into it.”

As we had anticipated, this ancient empire is now decaying.

The 100,000-strong army collapsed almost immediately on the battlefield.

Allowing them to border Dayu is like building a sheepfold next to a wolf's den.

The East India Company's interests on the subcontinent will soon be challenged, and it will be difficult to explain this to its domestic audience.

Alex spoke up to remind him.

In its overseas colonial campaigns, the Kingdom of the Netherlands did not have many strategies; they had only one goal: "to seize profits."

If the Annam Protectorate hadn't risen so quickly, they could have easily pretended not to see the changes in East Asia.

But once their own interests are involved, the situation changes.

Whether it was supporting the Kingdom of Burma or instigating the establishment of an anti-Yu alliance, the essence was that the Annam Protectorate threatened their interests.

"Send someone to remind the Mughal Empire to hurry up and train their army, so we can sell them guns and cannons."

As for other actions, let them all stop!
The Great Yu Empire is no pushover; if they find evidence against us, we'll be in serious trouble.

After a moment of contemplation, Rodriguez spoke slowly.

Being able to recognize reality in a timely manner is an inherent survival strategy for small countries.

Strategic planning failures are nothing new for the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Because they were both rich and weak, they were often beaten up when they were in Europe.

It was only through flexible foreign policy, taking advantage of the contradictions between major European powers, that they were able to preserve themselves.

……

Yongning Prefecture.

The rapid advance and frequent reports of victory at the front lines put Li Mu in a great mood.

Before breakthroughs in communication technology, the territory of the Annam Protectorate had essentially reached its limit after conquering the Kingdom of Burma.

If we continue to expand outwards, the choice of capital will become a major problem after we take over the Great Yu.

Strategic security is not a concern; once the northern barbarians are wiped out, the Goguryeo Kingdom will be dealt with as well.

Japan, the only unstable element, certainly needs to be dealt with.

In the entire Southeast Asia region, there will only be one voice in the future.

The real headache is that the territory is too vast, the capital is located in a remote area, and it is too far from the border.

It was difficult for the imperial decrees to reach every corner of the empire in a timely manner.

However, for communication technology to achieve a breakthrough, power technology must first be developed.

Breakthroughs in power technology require breakthroughs in industrial technology first.

With current industrial technology, even if electricity were developed, it would be impossible to promote and utilize it widely.

Besides communication issues, transportation is also a major problem.

Steam locomotives were put into use in some areas, but their costs remained high.

The main problem is the high cost of steel; even with the extensive use of sleepers, railway costs remain high.

The steam engine had decent power output, but it was extremely wasteful of coal.

Once it starts spinning, thick smoke billows into the sky, clearly indicating heavy pollution.

Apart from ore transportation, trains in other regions were run by mules and horses.

It wasn't that the officials of the Annam Protectorate were incapable of accepting new things; it was simply that, after considering the overall cost of use, using mules to pull trains was more economical.

If the cost issue cannot be resolved, promotion is out of the question.

In addition to these factors, the highly developed maritime trade in Annam was also a significant factor restricting the development of railway transportation.

Due to population limitations, Annam Protectorate mainly developed coastal areas, with maritime transport accounting for 80% of its transportation volume.

The development of inland areas is just beginning, and the demand for transportation capacity is not so urgent.

"Based on feedback from the front lines, the fighting in Myanmar is expected to end within the year."

What are the Ministry of State's plans for these newly acquired territories?

Li Mu asked with concern.

With the conquest of the Kingdom of Burma, the Indochina Peninsula was officially unified.

(End of this chapter)