Xinshun 1730

Chapter 259 The thunder is loud, the rain is small

After clearly telling the French mission that it was impossible to exchange porcelain and silk, Earl Morpas had mixed feelings.

Judging from the brochure of this new type of firearms and tactical system, it can be seen from a glimpse that Dashun's army is still very strong.

But no matter how powerful the army is, it is impossible to defeat the mighty power of nature.

The desolate and vast Siberia, the drought and the lack of supplies in the Central Asian desert all made it impossible for Dashun to participate in the European war.It is possible to contain Russia a little, but it is impossible to attract too much energy from Russia.

Going to sea, Dashun's navy is quite weak.It is just getting started now. The six cruisers add up to less than 20 tons, which is 3000 tons away from the British warships. Not counting personnel training, the difference is at least [-] million taels of silver.

If Dashun wants to have more power to contain Britain and the Netherlands, it seems that it is best for Dashun to have a similar navy.

The good news is that the new tactics and new bullets are really useful for France.

The worry is that this kind of transaction is only the last choice. Relatively speaking, France prefers the technology of porcelain and silk.

In fact, before coming to China, most people in the French mission were full of confidence.

They think that they have a lot of cards in their cards and can exchange for what they want.Moreover, Liu Yu exposed his impatience in wanting the design of a new battleship prematurely. For a negotiation, a negotiator who reveals his truth prematurely is a failed negotiator.

Even in Pondicherry, Duplex, who has been in charge of the East India Company's trade with China for many years in India, also believes that France can exchange a lot.

For example, France's flat glass technology, which is transported too much wear and tear, and the price is too high, although the profit is large, but the sales volume is not good.This technology can be used as a bargaining chip in exchange for porcelain technology.

However, when they arrived in Songjiang, they saw a lot of flat glass, and knew that Liu Yu's side had also started to produce flat glass.

What's even more frightening is that a few years ago, Dashun needed to purchase flintlock guns from France. In just a few short years, it was able to reversely sell new types of arms and army tactics to France.

This was a bit outrageously fast, and Earl Morpa felt deeply shocked.

It seems that the descriptions of those missionaries are not knowing that they are flattering words for missionaries. This ancient Eastern Empire has its own unique features.

Thinking about it now, Earl Morpa realized that Liu Yu had exposed what he wanted in the negotiation prematurely, so he was really confident.

Because Dashun can exchange too many things, but France can exchange too few things.

"Dear Chinese Earl, I think we can talk about this deal slowly. As you said, if you talk about obtaining technologies such as porcelain and silk, it may cause your country to be hostile to us, and I can give up."

"However, whether the new tactics you envisage are effective still needs to be tested in actual combat. And the French warships, even you know, are the best designs in the whole of Europe, or the whole world. This is recognized."

"I don't think it's a fair trade for a technology that has yet to be tested for a technology that is recognized as excellent."

Liu Yu thought to himself, Hammer, you are clearly bargaining.But I have expressed my desire to get the design drawings of the new battleship many times before, and at this time, it is too late to talk about "learning or not learning" and so on.

But this matter is best settled in Weihai.If you go to the capital to discuss it publicly, you may have to put a hat on your head that you know a lot about foreign countries.The ministers of Dashun, no matter how rusty their brains are, they also know that new weapons cannot be exported.

"Mr. Earl, as the Minister of the Navy of France, you should have some understanding of the current situation in Europe. France needs to be clear about its own strategy."

"France is not England."

"If you can get Flanders and Northern Italy, you can actually give up everything overseas. After all, France is a land power country."

"Even if you are the Secretary of the Navy, I must say so. The new army tactics and the method of loading rifled bullets are urgently needed by France at this time, and they are also extremely beneficial."

"France must figure out whether it wants to be the hegemon on the European continent, or to expand overseas?"

"As far as the policy of the War of Polish Succession this time is concerned, the cardinal's foreign policy of easing the relationship between France and Austria has gone bankrupt. Northern Italy, Flanders, these fertile lands, perhaps because of this bullet and the associated The corresponding tactics fell into the hands of the French or the Bourbons."

"Conversely, Dashun is now in the surrounding area, and there are no decent and strong enough enemies. And this new type of lead bullet is not urgently needed for Dashun. On the contrary, in Southeast Asia, especially Batavia, there are A large number of our diaspora, and a good navy to counter the Dutch East India Company, are necessary."

"This is a win-win deal. Southeast Asia is the blood vessel of the Netherlands. Once it is cut, the Netherlands will be weakened; Britain will also be affected in India. When necessary, we can cut off trade with Britain, which is also beneficial to France. of."

In the era of cold weapons, due to the size of the Central Plains and the constraints of the limit of governance, it is impossible to expand in both land and sea.

In the age of gunpowder, especially the age of flintlock, the pressure of this two-way expansion was reduced, just like Liu Yu described Nanyang as the Western Region of Dashun.

Children only make choices, adults naturally choose and I want them all.

It's just that I want this kind of thing, and France is not qualified to talk about it.

With a bunch of enemies on the European continent, France has to maintain a sufficiently strong army, and the navy will always come second.

Even Earl Morpa, as the Minister of the Navy, had to agree with Liu Yu's statement.

For France, Flanders plus Italy, if they can get it, those overseas territories can actually be thrown away or exchanged.

Don't look at Duplex calling so happy, he is an outlier in France.

Now no one knows or even dares to think that it would be as simple as the British conquest of India later.In terms of conflicts and negotiations with China, this conflict is smaller than Liu Yu thought.

In the last century, the British power was expelled from Southeast Asia by the Dutch and retreated to India.The French East India Company also had a great influence in Siam, but soon after the collapse of the East India Company, the capture of Pondicherry by the British, and the changes in internal economic policies, it can be said that France is now completely independent in India. defensive.

The cardinal also warned the East India Company many times to be calm and not to provoke the British.

Of course, France hopes that Dashun will share the military pressure of Britain and the Netherlands in the direction of Nanyang, open the blood vessels of the Netherlands, and contain the British military power.

Even India can be given up if it can.

The East India Company was half dead, and the French court believed that India was a money-losing product, completely inferior to a small island in the West Indies that could grow sugar cane or indigo.

However, Earl Morpa is also very clear that battleships are the biggest reliance for French negotiations. He wants to confirm whether this is really the only exchange as Liu Yu said?Or is it that Liu Yu just passed on the imperial decree, and the emperor did not instruct that porcelain and silk technology should not be traded at all?
"If you really can't get the technology of porcelain and silk, this can be exchanged. But now, this condition cannot be agreed. These Chinese are very cunning, not the natives who can be fooled with glass balls."

Thinking this way in my heart, I didn't completely reject Liu Yu's proposal, but went around in circles, saying that this matter can be discussed slowly in the future.

At least, talk in the capital.

How could Liu Yu fail to guess what the other party was thinking, it was nothing more than that he would not give up on Huang He, and wanted to exchange for more and more valuable things.

I thought that if I didn’t know anything about the design of sailing battleships, if it weren’t for your 200 years of experience in naval warfare, if it weren’t for the navy’s inability to leapfrog development, I would have slapped my face: I can talk about it, or I can’t talk about it, what does it have to do with France? easy to talk about?Trade and trade are not good, the navy and the navy are pulling their hips, and they have to bear the pressure of Russia and the United Kingdom!

After cursing a few words in his heart, a smile appeared on his face.

"Well, in this case, let's head to the capital as soon as possible."

After agreeing, he led the French mission around several places in Weihai and Liugong Island.

I visited the military academy, took an open class on the siege of a fortress, and showed Dashun's soft power from the side.

Then he took the negotiation with no results at all, and went to Tianjin by boat.

They deliberately walked around the newly repaired Dagukou Fort, and did not allow them to visit the inside of the fort, so naturally they couldn't see that those terrifying cannons were all made of wood.

Judging from the appearance alone, some knowledgeable members of the French mission can conclude that this is a very good fort.

After looking at the fort from a distance, I also saw a team of new troops that the emperor had just dispatched here, performed drills and formations, and arrived at the capital after being able to look like a powerful army.

The arranged residence was the same as the place where the Russian mission came to live, but a sum of money was allocated from the internal funds to renovate the place.

Long before the ban on religion, there were many Catholic churches in the capital.Later, there were still a large number of Raksha captives serving as soldiers in the capital, and the people in the capital were well-informed, so naturally they would not make a fuss about these Westerners.

After arriving at the residence, Liu Yu is no longer in charge of it.

A ceremony officer will come to ask about the other party's rank, select candidates who are qualified to enter the palace to meet the emperor, and teach them the etiquette of five prostrations and three kowtows.

Just as the Duke of Qi went to Paris, he used the etiquette to meet the King of France; Count Morpa also used the etiquette of the Celestial Dynasty to meet the emperor of the Celestial Dynasty here.

There is nothing to dispute about this. Just a few years ago, because of the etiquette of Catholics, Dashun chose a strict policy of banning Christians.

The news was sent back to France. Since the French court sent people here, they naturally knew to abide by the local etiquette.

It was nothing more than a matter of interests. Now Dashun could bring benefits to France. Even if there were not too many business contacts, it would still deter Britain, the Netherlands and Russia.

The arrival of the French mission was done with great fanfare in the capital, for fear that the Russian special envoy in charge of the western border negotiations here would not know that the French were coming.

It seems that there is already such a sense of cohesion, and Liu Yu didn't arrange these little tricks. Seeing these little tricks, Liu Yu is in a good mood. It seems that those people in the court who are eager for change still have brains.

Liu Yu, who was delighted by this small diplomatic gesture, took advantage of the time when the French mission was still studying etiquette, and visited the British ambassador who was presiding over the negotiations this time.

The already very old British father-in-law is still in good spirits, and he is also very happy to see Liu Yu coming.The two families have entangled interests. His grandson followed the Qingzhou Army to experience and fought in the Western Regions with style, which made the British Duke feel relieved that "you can feel at ease".

"Shou usual, you came just in time. I'm getting old, and I seldom deal with Westerners. I'm going, just to drink tea and get a seal. This time, it's up to you."

"Your Majesty is also relieved. If it is someone else, His Majesty is not at ease."

"Remember one sentence. Your Majesty's meaning, this time, is to make loud thunder and little rain."

The loud thunder and little rain is the attitude of the emperor and Tianyou Hall towards the visit of the French mission.

The thunder was loud so that the Russians could hear it clearly.

The raindrops were light, because the rain was not going to be heavy. The officials of Tianyou Hall thought for a long time, but they couldn't think of any great benefits between China and France.

(End of this chapter)