1635 Han style rises again

July 1676, 5, Chang'an, Taichu Palace (Imperial Palace).

"Father Emperor." Prince Qi Zixing stood for a long time, and finally couldn't help calling softly, waking up the emperor who was in deep thought.

"Oh..." Qi Tian turned to look at the prince, nodded slightly, then crossed his arms, and continued to look at the world map on the wall.

"Father, my son has just received the envoy of Great Qin." Qi Zixing stepped forward a few steps, came to Qi Tian's side, and glanced at the map.

"What did Sun Kewang say?"

"Great Qin basically agrees with the northern strategy formulated by our Qi State. In the next few years, we will launch continuous military strikes against Monan and Mobei, and will not give any respite to the Qing Dynasty and the Mongolian Tartars. The country has put forward several requirements”

"A request? Do they want money, or supplies?"

"They... want all of them." Qi Zixing gave a wry smile, shook his head and said, "The envoy of the Qin State claimed that after decades of wars in the mainland, the economy is in decline and the people's livelihood is in ruins. If we continue to launch offensives to the north, we may not be able to sustain our financial resources."

"Hehe..." Qi Tian couldn't help laughing when he heard the words, "If the Qing captives and the Mongols are not destroyed, the north of the mainland will not be peaceful. If the north is not peaceful, how can the entire south be peaceful? In all dynasties and dynasties, when the regime was first established, all of them would The nomads in the north regard them as the biggest threat, and they should get rid of them quickly. The state of Qin made it seem like our state of Qi is asking them to go to the north."

"They may have heard that our Qi State has provided a package of economic support plans to the three vassals of Wei, Luzon and Shun, so they thought of coming to our Qi State to have a good time and get some assistance." Qi Zixing also laughed. .

"What do you think?" Qi Tian looked at his successor thoughtfully.

"My son thinks that a certain scale of money and material assistance can be appropriately provided to Qin State. This move will not only continue to expand the economic penetration of our Qi State in the mainland, promote the sales of our Qi State's industrial products, but also In this way, some positive changes may occur in many aspects such as the politics and economy of Qin State, and then promote its gradual growth into a huge consumer market."

"You should discuss this matter with the cabinet." Qi Tian nodded, agreeing with the prince's idea, "In addition to providing limited financial aid to Qin, why don't they send one or two hundred studious youths to our country every year? The country of Qi should study abroad in order to strengthen the exchanges and contacts between the personnel of the two sides, and all the expenses can be borne by us in the country of Qi."

"..." Qi Zixing immediately admired his father beyond words.

To expand Qi's influence, there is no more effective means than influencing the minds of the country's elite -- scholars.No matter what kind of young people Qin sent to study abroad, as long as they study and live in Qi for a few years, they will be more or less deeply influenced by the culture and values ​​of Qi.Over time, in the subconscious of these people, they will consider issues and handle affairs from the perspective of Qi State, and will be close to Qi State fundamentally.

Even more extreme, the teenagers sent by the state of Qin to study abroad, after receiving systematic study in the state of Qi, mastered a large amount of new knowledge, and after returning to the mainland, they used the values ​​and economic system of the state of Qi to treat the original conservative The system was transformed to a certain extent, thereby weakening or destroying the original feudal small-scale peasant economy.

There is also a more important point, the training of international students from the Qin State is also to increase the influence of the Qi State in the mainland and carry out the necessary cultural penetration.Don't always think that you have been a kingdom of heaven since ancient times, and you don't bother to deal with us "barbarians".It should be known that our state of Qi is not only rich in martial arts, but also advanced in technology, prosperous in culture, and rich in the country.

Through learning and communication, let more mainland elites understand and understand the true strength of Qi, learn some practical knowledge, and realize that they are beginning to lag behind this era.

Once the students from Qin State trained by Qi State return to the court, get high-ranking officials and generous salaries, and hold great power in their hands, it is equivalent to supporting a close person or even an agent of oneself in Qin State.By cultivating overseas students and exchanges in the future, our country Qi can also go to Qin country to mix more sand, find allies, or directly cultivate it into the elite of Qi country.

Of course, to be fair and aboveboard, it is also beneficial to Qi's own interests to cultivate Qin's overseas students and help Qin's growth.After all, if you want to gain access to the huge market in the mainland, you must not make Qin State too ignorant and backward, which is of no benefit to everyone.

Even for those malicious businessmen who intend to plunder Qin, although this kind of plunder still exists in the form of "commercial trade" and "mutually beneficial cooperation", it is still necessary to train some talents for Qin. There is too little talent, and even plundering seems troublesome.

"Father, which strategic location is this going to plan?" Qi Zixing looked at the world map on the wall, which had already been drawn by Qi Tian with a charcoal pen several times, as if marking something.In a more conspicuous place, there is a big mark circled in the middle of the empty Pacific Ocean.

"Recently, I have received two important pieces of news from the Black Clothes Guard and the Admiralty." Qi Tian turned to look at Qi Zixing, "First, the Black Clothes Guard learned from British businessmen from all over the world that as of last year, the British Ten large colonies have been established on the east coast of North America, with a total population of about 15, which can be regarded as firmly occupying the most superior central coastal area in North America. Second, the Yunzhou Squadron of the Qi State Ryukyu Fleet Three motorboats discovered an archipelago in the middle of the Pacific Ocean last August. . . . well, this is it.”

As he spoke, Qi Tian approached the map, and pointed to the place in the middle of the Pacific Ocean that was circled by charcoal.

"Father..." Qi Zixing looked at the location of the North American continent, and then at the location of Hanzhou, with a confused expression on his face.

"Yes, the North American continent is too far away from our mainland of Hanzhou, which is more than 1 kilometers away. Even our territory of Paradise Island (now Tahiti Island), which is located in the easternmost part of the South Pacific Ocean, is more than [-] kilometers away from the North American mainland. Kilometers." Qi Tian said quietly: "However, that continent contains all the favorable conditions for the rise of a great country, rich and diverse mineral resources, rivers and lakes with extremely abundant water resources, vast and endless plains, and Continental similar climatic environment."

"Father is worried that this continent will eventually be monopolized by the United Kingdom, and then grow into a powerful empire that can dominate the world?"

"Even if the North American continent is not finally monopolized by the United Kingdom, as long as an independent and unified country is formed there, it will inevitably become a pole of the future world powers, and even gradually grow into a world hegemony."

When Qi Tian thinks of the eagle sauce that countless countries look up to or fear in future generations, a strong impulse will arise in his heart, and he wants to use all the power of the country to nip it in the bud in advance regardless of the cost.

"However, the long distance, the harsh sea conditions, and the lack of convenient midway supply points will make the entire immigration operation extremely difficult." Qi Zixing shook his head and said: "In addition, to open up a colonial stronghold beyond our control, Moreover, we will not be able to obtain any benefits during this period, which will greatly deplete the national strength of our Qi country."

"However, now our naval fleet has discovered this archipelago in this sea that is almost in the middle of the Pacific Ocean." Qi Tian showed a trace of relief, "The west of this archipelago is about [-] kilometers away from the Japanese archipelago, and the east About [-] kilometers to the coast of the North American continent, it is an excellent midway supply point. Therefore, no matter what, our country Qi must first control this archipelago, regard it as a strategic place, and build and manage it. Then, use this as a springboard to move our Chinese people to the North American continent on a small scale one after another, taking advantage of an opportunity."

"Father, to occupy that archipelago, incorporate it into our overseas territory of Qi, and build and manage it, the investment should not be huge, and the cabinet government will reluctantly allow it. But if you want to open up that distant American continent, Spending the country’s money and causing damage to the country’s power, I am afraid that it will make the domestic public opinion violent and attract criticism from all parties.”

"...Unexpectedly, we in the Qi State will run education, open up the wisdom of the people, and use various newspapers as a mouthpiece, but in the end, we will be so concerned about public opinion if we want to do some long-term things." Qi Tian smiled wryly, "But In the future, even if the government cannot do the expansion of the Americas, we must use the power of the royal family or gather private capital to vigorously promote this kind of colonization."

"Father, the American Trading Company, which is controlled by our imperial family, has not made a profit for 20 years. Instead, it has invested nearly one million Hanzhou silver dollars, and even the officials of the household department have the idea of ​​withdrawing shares." Qi Zixing carefully reminded: "If that There is not much profit in the North American continent, and I am afraid it will be difficult to stimulate the investment enthusiasm of domestic merchants."

"The most quintessential places in South America are all occupied by the Spaniards. With the current colonial population of more than 20 in the American Trading Company, the land they occupy is a corner of bitter cold land. Don't say [-] years, I'm afraid I'll give it another [-] years. It is also impossible to make a substantial profit." Qi Tian couldn't help laughing when he heard the words, "However, this is not the case in the North American continent. The entire west coast region contains countless gold and silver mines, and the reserves are no less than our Hanzhou. Native."

"Since that's the case, if Qin, Yunzhou Daming, or the Japanese heard about it, wouldn't they flock to go by boat, and end up taking advantage of them."

"The distance is far away. Even if we can control it for a while at first, we will not be able to control it forever." Qi Tian said meaningfully: "For our country Qi, as long as that continent can be broken into countless local forces, It doesn't matter who will be cheaper in the end."

"Based on Father's intention, it doesn't seem that we must occupy and control a vast territory in the American continent?" Qi Zixing was a little surprised.

"The vastness of this world is far beyond our imagination." Qi Tian shook his head and said: "Whether it is the North American continent or the South American continent, it is too far away from our Qi mainland. Homeland is a waste of national strength. Furthermore, the land of America is not the core interests of our Qi country, so naturally we don’t need to invest too many resources to distract our Qi country’s main energy. In this way, we only need to leave a few idlers for future use. It is enough to intervene and divide the American continent."

"I would like to be taught." Qi Zixing listened, and bowed his hands.

Qi Zixing was deeply impressed by his father's strategic vision and precise layout.

Less than a few years after Qi State established itself in Jianye City, it began to prepare for the colonization of the eastern region, and successively established two supply transfer points at Beikou and Haijiao, which led to the first war between Qi State and the Dutch East India Company. At that time, they perfectly avoided the complete blockade of the Dutch, and were able to concentrate all sea power from the North Port, raiding the Nanyang trading posts and strongholds of the East India Company, and finally forced the Dutch to take the initiative to cease fighting and seek peace.

Afterwards, it occupied Guangning, controlled the Sunda Strait, threatened Batavia, and at the same time strangled the throat of the Dutch East India Company going south to the Hanzhou mainland. It played an extremely critical role in the Second Han-Dutch War .

In the following decades, Qi State gradually controlled Ryukyu, embracing Japan in the north, Yizhou in the east, and Luzon Territory and Annan Territory, implicitly forming a maritime blockade of the mainland, giving Qi State an excellent geographical advantage in this area.

In order to gain control of the Strait of Malacca, the State of Qi seized several major islands at the eastern end of the strait, such as Temasek Island, Batam Island, and Bintan Island, from the Sultanate of Johor. , was completely reduced to a commercial stronghold, and no longer has the ability to block and control the Strait of Malacca.

More than 20 years ago, under the insistence of the father, led by the royal capital, raised a large amount of business capital in China, and spared no effort to support the vigorous colonization in South Africa.As a result, Qi currently has absolute control over the region, and can cut off European countries' trade channels to the East at any time according to changes in the international situation.

Although the money-losing American trading company has set up a presence in South America for many years and has yet to make a big splash, let alone see what effect it has now, Qi Zixing still believes that his father's move must have deep meaning.

Today, the father asserted that the North American continent is the foundation of the king and hegemony, and the Qi country must be deployed as soon as possible to divide its power.Although he didn't know how his father came to this conclusion out of nowhere, Qi Zixing still gave him unlimited trust in view of the foresight and wisdom shown by his father over the past few decades.

"Your Majesty, Lieutenant (Lieutenant Colonel) Qi Ziye, Lieutenant (Lieutenant Colonel) of the Strategic Planning Department of the Naval Operations Department, requests an audience." An attendant entered the hall and reported softly.

"Hey, what is the second child doing here?" Qi Tian looked at the prince next to him, and smiled, "It's an official invitation to see you, I guess it's something serious.... Let him come in."

After a while, Qi Ziye in a navy uniform strode into the hall, and when he saw the crown prince was there, he nodded slightly at him, then respectfully bowed his hands to Qi Tian and said: "Your Majesty, I would like to ask for an amnesty edict to save the prince. The robes in the army are life-saving."