Xinshun 1730

Chapter 828 The Hague Tragedy ([-])

Anthony, who was the speaker of the inter-provincial assembly of a republic that was actually a commercial republic, looked at problems from a more commercial perspective.

As a former speaker elected by the regency oligarchs, he knows everything about business.In particular, the concept of "interest" is very clear.

For Dutch businessmen, with millions of taels of cash, they neither invest nor lend, so they think they have lost a lot of money.

What Dashun did this year was not quite right.

And the degree of understanding of the Southeast Asian economy also made Anthony understand that since Dashun is to be the suzerain of Southeast Asia, it must find export channels for Southeast Asian trade.

Before the Dutch or Portuguese arrived in Southeast Asia, Southeast Asia was still a self-sufficient feudal economy.

At that time, paying tribute and so on was actually easy to talk about.

Trade is best, no trade is fine.

Under the self-sufficient small-scale peasant economy, it is not impossible to live without trade.

However, the entry of the Portuguese and the Dutch into Southeast Asia, with the dual "mission" of the colonists, gradually disintegrated the old economic foundation of Southeast Asia.

Just like Ambon and other places, the Dutch used warships to seal off the islands in order to monopolize spices.At the same time, almost all the arable land on the island was destroyed.

As a result, those islands rich in spices can only use their spices in exchange for their necessary living supplies.

If you don't change... Cloth clothes are fine, Southeast Asia is very hot, it's a big deal to be naked; but what about food?Can you not wear clothes, can you not eat food?Eating cloves and cardamom for a living?
Obviously, not possible.

Dashun's land reform in Southeast Asia, for the time being, is only limited to the surrounding areas of Batavia City and the Bandung area in the south.

Those spice islands still maintain the original production mode and main commodities.

In this case, foreign trade is necessary.

Dashun itself cannot digest so many spices—the Dutch know this very well. When Dashun ruled the world and were hostile to the Catholic countries because of the baptism of Macau and Nanming, the Dutch tried to communicate and sell spices.

But the effect is very bad.

Maritime merchants in Dashun have their own smuggling channels, and it is also because these clove nutmeg and other spices are not very popular in Dashun.

Since Dashun cannot eat so much, since it is the suzerain of Southeast Asia, and since the Netherlands and other countries have partially dismantled the self-sufficient economy of Southeast Asia and made it a part of the world market.

Well, Dashun actually has no way out until now.

I really want to go backwards, at least 20 years of turmoil, gradually balanced, cut spices and replanted crops, returned to the original feudal self-sufficiency economy, and faced endless uprisings, resistance from the aristocratic class who benefited from spices, Western smugglers took advantage of Infiltration and so on.

This, coupled with the concept of "interest" that the Dutch can understand very well, made Anthony see that Dashun had another purpose from a very commercial and republican perspective.

However, what the purpose is, it is not known.

From the Ceylon Trojan horse plan back then to the earlier Sino-French alliance to organize and train the navy, in Anthony’s view, Dashun has an excellent centralization effect, wise politicians, and a more centralized system with long-term goals The ability to get things done—compared with the Dutch Federal Parliament, where a tax reform meeting can be held for two years without any results being achieved—this kind of centralization and clever politicians are within the reach of the Netherlands. unattainable.

In short, Dashun can plan long in advance and firmly move towards a certain goal with the centralized system of imperial examination bureaucracy.

This made it impossible for Anthony to guess what Dashun's purpose was.

He imagined many possibilities.

But they were all denied by him.

Is it to keep the trade share for France?

Obviously, impossible.France does not have the ability to take over the trade between Southeast Asia and East Asia.

Is it for cooperation with the Netherlands?

He also thought about this real purpose, but the reality is that Qi Guogong went to France, and France then sent more troops to the Austrian Netherlands, and continued to conquer fortresses, approaching the Netherlands.The Netherlands looked on the verge of a long period of chaos and a period of at least 20 years of devastation after the invasion of the homeland.Dashun will not cooperate with a deserted Netherlands, because he is not qualified.

Did it for Dashun himself?

This is even more impossible.All the East India companies are owned by big financiers and businessmen in the country, and they are related to the interest groups of tens of thousands of people. Even if countries don’t talk about mercantilism, what should they do if they only talk about the interests of these tens of thousands of people?
Nominally, the Netherlands suffered retaliation because it rejected Liu Yu's free trade.But looking at other countries, Anthony feels that he is doing the right thing. France, the closest ally to Dashun, has not released tariffs, or even canceled the ban on cotton cloth. Which country will be generous for Dashun’s goods? What about opening the door of convenience?
One possibility after another was considered, and one after another was denied by myself.

This feeling of knowing that Dashun has another purpose but not knowing the real purpose makes Anthony very uneasy.

Of course, the most serious problem facing the Netherlands at this time was the invasion of France.

Southeast Asia is still lost, the East India Company has begun to go bankrupt and liquidated, and the financial crisis has broken out. At this time, there is a feeling of breaking the pot: Anyway, it is like this, and the matter of Dashun, let’s wait a little later, for the time being Not the most important, the most fatal.

Generally speaking, judging from Dashun’s experience, it is only before the monarch is about to hang himself, or becomes a subjugated monarch, or is placed under house arrest, he will miss his home country, lament that he has not governed the country well, and start to worry about his own country. of the people.

The historical experience of Dashun is the same for the Netherlands.

As the former Great Speaker, Anthony can also be regarded as a "king of subjugation". At this time, he was really worried about the fate of the Netherlands, and as a "king of subjugation", he was worried about the fate of the Netherlands.

Facing Dashun, it’s broken, the original shoes are broken, and now I’m barefoot, I’m just like this, why can’t you help me, why don’t you become blood-stained at the mouth of the Amstel River?

It is said that there are priorities, and it is time to consider the French issue.

but.

If you want to consider France now, you have to consider Dashun, and now the Netherlands and France have to rely on Dashun's mediation.

Ordinarily, the Netherlands previously pursued a policy of diplomacy determining its destiny, and as a European country, there was no need for Dashun to mediate.

However, now it still involves a "political correctness" issue.

This issue of political correctness can be divided into three major directions.

At the beginning, when the people of the Netherlands cheered for Orange to come to power, there was an important reason. The Regency Parliament caused dissatisfaction among the people.

That is, the Regency faction is justifiable, upright, not afraid of the shadow, and honorably fulfilling the obligations of the international treaty, sending troops and money, and supporting Queen Theresa's succession to the Austrian throne.

However, for such a justifiable and righteous thing, the Regents greeted the French in a "low manner": We are only fulfilling our promise, and we are under pressure from Austria and the United Kingdom to send troops. We are not trying to be your enemy. We really There is no way.I hope you France will not be angry, and don't be too angry with our Netherlands, okay?

This humble attitude made the Dutch people who still have the feeling of a big country quite angry: Just do it!It was France and Prussia that made the mistake. They signed the Basic Law of Austrian Succession to the Throne, but they refused to recognize it when they died.They did something wrong. We, the Netherlands, do it out of justice. Why should we humble ourselves to France?
Done!

Isn't it cheap to please France and say good things?
Isn't this traitorous?

Isn't this without honor and dignity?
If the Orange family were consuls, could they be so despicable?Can you sell your country like this?
It must be to lead our Dutch army to fight against France. How could it be possible to lick France?
This is why Liu Yu said that it is necessary to completely obliterate, shatter, burn, and disillusion the only remaining "big country feelings" in the hearts of the Dutch people.

Han Feizi once said: A small country does not live in a lowly position, a weak man does not fear the strong, a disrespectful yet insults his neighbors, a greedy and clumsy friend will perish.

The problem with the Netherlands is that it clearly does not have the strength of a world power, but it still has the mentality of a world power.

If this mentality is not eliminated, it will be difficult to cooperate in the future.

It's not that this "heavenly kingdom" sentiment is wrong.Rather, not all cats and dogs should have this kind of mentality.

For example, those small countries in the dynasty of Qin Muchu, the people are very dissatisfied with the monarch's dynasty towards Qin Muchu, and think that if they recognize an ally, they should stick to it to the end. You should be afraid of reprisals, let alone contact Chu State in private...

Another example is North Korea, now North Korea is supposed to be aggrieved. When Dashun's envoys go, they have to treat them well, dare not neglect them, and often pay bribes. Please speak well. Even the succession of the throne has to ask Beijing for instructions.

As a result, the people of North Korea were very dissatisfied, thinking that the king was simply cowardly, lowly, and spineless.It's time to send troops to Liaodong, break through the Shanhaiguan Pass, and cross the Yalu River with pride, just do it!
The above two are consistent with the mentality of many people in the Netherlands before.

Maybe the difference is that the Netherlands is "the ancestors are really rich".And North Korea is really rich in ancestors.

The problem is that without the strength of a big country, but with the mentality of a strong country, this is the way to die.

What the Regents did is actually right. France can be a friend, as long as it is not a neighbor, but it is better not an enemy.

There are so many places where the British pit the Netherlands. The Anglo-Dutch war has been fought several times, and the trading fishing grounds have been robbed. Why should they get so close to the UK?Just because the Orange family was King of England?

What if you really want to form an alliance with the British and lose?The British have warships as the Great Wall. Seeing that the situation is not good, they slipped back to the island. What should the Netherlands do?France is the number one army power in continental Europe, why should the Netherlands resist?Is it possible that the Netherlands turned into Suriname and threw seven provinces into it, using the Atlantic Ocean as a trench?

The current battle situation has indeed confirmed the concerns of the Regency: the British saw that the situation was not good, the Duke of Cumberland's elite troops slipped back, and the Netherlands was dumbfounded.

Before William IV of Orange came to power, indeed, there were not many promises.

Such as the abolition of the tax system, the return of the guild system, the killing of business oligarchs, the suppression of financial capitalists, etc., are all the wishful thinking of the Dutch people and the Dutch conservative class.

However, before William IV came to power, he promised to fight against France resolutely, not to contact France quietly like those lowly and traitorous regents, and to fight to the end, just like his ancestors - when Prussia withdrew In the war, the Dutch advantage is indeed great.So that was the only promise and high-profile slogan that William IV could make. Otherwise, there would be no promises or slogans, and it would be hard to be the consul.

Moreover, the core of his consulship is that Prussia withdrew from the war; but on the face of it, it is Liu Yu and other Chinese who have deceived others too much, insulted the national dignity of the Netherlands, and insisted on making the Netherlands a tributary state.

He took advantage of this coup, and the hole Liu Yu dug for him is also the same. Naturally, he must be tough enough on external issues.At least it looks strong enough.

Now that William IV has been working for several years, he is full of anger and contradictions, and none of the wishful political demands of the Dutch conservatives have been achieved.There is only one person left who is "resolute and tough against the enemy".

This persona has almost become William IV's last fig leaf and the last source of legitimacy.

He is crooked and deformed, so he can't go to the battlefield, and he can only talk about his inability to move.

Cannot be weak to the law, this is the political correctness of the reign of William IV.He only promised such a thing, and when many Dutch people who still had the feeling of a big country heard this promise, they cried bitterly, thinking that the Netherlands would be great again.

(End of this chapter)