The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 85 Qi’s plan

On the west side of Jinglin Park on Chunhua Street, Xuanwu District, Chang'an, an office building in the East-West style sits majestically. It is decorated with complex and gorgeous decorations, with numerous columns and railings. The open courtyard is made of Weihai (now Cairns, Australia) tin-glazed pottery. It is decorated with carved ribbons, as well as numerous statues and symbolic medallions.

This building belongs to the newly established Department of Overseas Colonial Affairs. It may have borrowed European Gothic style. Above the five-story main building is a towering spire that seems to pierce the sky, making the entire building look particularly grand. .

The architects may have wanted to use this style to present a new imperial look, but also to create a fantasy in this excellent location, with spiers, mansard roofs, oriental mythical beasts, historical reliefs, tall red brick chimneys, and All kinds of weird and complicated decorations.

Standing on the high tower, you can overlook the entire picturesque Jinglin Park, as well as the Museum of All Nations, the Royal Banquet Hall and the Ministry of Immigration Affairs.This tall tower that is incompatible with its surroundings seems to show everyone that the changes in the imperial era are coming.

With the increasing strength of the country, alienation and exaggeration became prevalent in Qi's mainland and overseas territories.Take government buildings, for example. No matter how insignificant the colony itself, its government buildings must be grand and luxurious. As one insightful publication put it, "...maintaining the appearance of power often helps us to avoid the real use of force." .

Even the colonies inhabited by ordinary immigrants moved from simplicity to pomposity with alarming speed.

In the early days, the pleasant village houses in Dongzhou (now New Zealand) were built with elegantly decorated stones and wooden boards. They were simple oriental-style residential buildings.The cornices, hanging buckets, large window frames, whitewashed walls, and the kitchen in the outer room are inharmoniously covered with corrugated iron sheets. The high chimney emits smoke from burning eucalyptus trees, exuding the aroma.

Starting from Changning (now Durban, South Africa), along the coast, you can see the stone farmhouses of the early Qi settlers on one side of the Meiling Plateau (now the Little Karoo Plateau, South Africa) - these buildings are so sturdy and so Simple and natural, shaded by trees, the dry stone walls make the interior warm and comfortable, and it is located so beautifully at the foot of the mountain.

However, the modesty of their rank and manner was not always passed down.Because the early pioneer immigrants had a clear understanding of the status of their place.But now, when the people of Qi looked around, they found that everywhere they looked were "ants", and a sense of pride (arrogance) slowly grew in their hearts.

In the past decade or so, many cities, including Hanzhou itself, have become extremely exaggerated, pursuing taller, larger, and more luxurious buildings.Even the hundreds of low-rise courtyards scattered on the hills in the Ruiyun (today's Paddington town near Sydney) and Yuping (today's Balmain town near Sydney) areas of Linzi Prefecture (today's Sydney, Australia) also have It has a rich and leisurely temperament, with neatly planted trees, clusters of flowers, and window glass reflecting dazzling light.

From Weiyuan (today's Port Moresby) to Quang Ninh (today's Cilegon, Java, Indonesia), from Temasek Island to Nanping (today's Cam Ranh, Vietnam), all the rapidly rising cities were home to a large number of the empire's new rich. They relied on coffee, cocoa, nanmu, rubber, palm oil, copra, wool, oh, and maybe food to make a fortune quickly, and built high-rise mansions of different styles one after another in these places.

All the new buildings do not have any ideological enlightenment significance. They show more of a kind of arrogance, seeming to say that we are standing on top of the world.

When conquering "barbarian lands", the people of Qi were no different from those early colonists in history. They all liked to leave their own traces in the conquered lands.

Spanish conquistadors carved their names into Mexican desert rocks in elegant script.The Romans, regardless of blasphemy, carved their names on the Colossi of Memnon.

The people of Qi also left such primitive memorials all over the world. They may have been carved in places where ships docked, or where troops rested during their march, or where vigilant sentries used bayonet points to carve them randomly at their stations at night.

Qi has no scruples in claiming unquestionable suzerainty over the Nanyang Islands. You will see the names of Qi’s warships and sailors painted on the high cliffs overlooking the harbor on many islands, showing off endlessly. own military exploits.

In the prosperous Indian subcontinent, among the magnificent ruins representing the ancient empire, in the solemn and majestic temples, and in the gorgeous and extravagant palaces, the conquerors of Qi - such as the passing diplomatic envoys and intelligence personnel, searching for India Soldiers on the road, adventurers who didn't know where they were, and merchants who traveled long distances to seize their wealth, all shamelessly carved their own names on it.

The Gujrat Governor's Palace, which has a history of hundreds of years, has now become an officer station of the Qi Garrison. Many soldiers have also left their posts on the soft sandstone of the Bala Katra Palace in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Your name, the name of your unit, and the date you felt homesick.

We can imagine a picture of a young Qi soldier carving words on a landmark building with some difficulty. He is wearing a navy blue military uniform and a white belt, his musket is leaning against the wall, and his military cap is tilted to his head. Finally, under the beard, the tongue sticks out slightly from the lips due to concentration.It wasn't until the officer checking the post approached, and the sound of breathing resounded in the winding stone steps, that he quickly put his bayonet into its sheath, straightened his general's hat, and stood at attention with his back against the low wall, so as not to reveal the crooked name newly carved on the stone behind him. come out.

The people of Qi seemed to be using this graffiti method to show that they had been here and conquered, and then used it as a mark of permanent occupation.

"The entire Qianzhou Governor-General has a population of more than 27, and is basically self-sufficient in food. It also has more than ten large and small warships stationed in the South African Squadron, three mixed battalions of the Army, and several thousand local garrison corps. We are the Qi State is the most stable bridgehead in the Atlantic Ocean." Meng Huiguang, Minister of the Ministry of Overseas Colonial Affairs, stood in front of a world map, looking at the position of South Africa, and said softly: "With the absolute strength of the Qianzhou Governor-General, you are going to Cape Town. Accepting the colonial stronghold handed over by the Dutch on behalf of our Qi government should not be a big deal. But do you know what you need to do after taking over Cape Town?"

"Please give me your instructions, Minister Meng." Su Bingyi, the first governor of Cape Town and the special ambassador of Qi State, responded respectfully.

"There are more than [-] European immigrants in the Cape Town area. Together with the natives and slaves under their control, the population is probably as many as [-] or [-]." Meng Huiguang turned his head and looked at Su Bingyi, "The ancients said that they are not from our tribe. The mentality of the people must be different, and the ambitions of the Rong and Di are not the same as those of the Chinese. After you take office as the Governor of Cape Town, you need to separate and clean up these European immigrants, indigenous people, and slaves, and move a considerable number of Han people here. , in order to achieve the purpose of long-term peace and stability.”

"I'll take note of this." Su Bingyi nodded and said, "After taking over Cape Town, I will deal with this matter immediately."

"When dealing with the population problem, we still need to be cautious. Don't use force blindly to make the locals panic." Meng Huiguang said with a smile: "For those landless farmers, indigenous people and slaves, we only need to move them to the nearby Hailing Island. (today’s Madagascar). Let them colonize the island for our country, open up more immigration strongholds, and play their due role. And those farmers and ranchers who obtained land ownership from the East India Company , you can gradually replace the land to other areas in Qianzhou on the grounds of re-registration. In short, the disposal methods need to be methodical, and the Dutch must not be jealous of this."

"You must perform your humble duties with caution and live up to the ardent expectations of the cabinet and ministers." "By the way, after taking over Cape Town, you also need to start hoarding necessary war supplies such as food, clothing, medicine, and ammunition to prepare for emergencies. "

"Meng Shangshu, do we really want to go to war with Britain?"

"The cabinet and the military are having intense discussions and deductions, and so far, no final decision has been made." Meng Huiguang said: "But I think that no matter what the outcome of the discussion is, this battle will eventually be fought. It's the difference between a big fight and a small fight. Humph, the Yingyi knew that the Huaidah Kingdom in the Gulf of Guinea was the country under the protection of Qi State, but they insisted on breaking into the land and buying slaves by force. This clearly did not take our Qi State seriously. Here! If we don’t respond toughly, won’t we be looked down upon by other European countries?”

"Furthermore, more than ten years ago, the British and foreigners continued to increase tariffs and import rates on various goods in an attempt to exclude our country's goods, which is really annoying. My cabinet has ordered the General Representative to Europe and the General Representative to the UK on several occasions The minister negotiated with them but did not receive a satisfactory answer. Over the years, the British-Barbarian foreign trade import policy has not changed at all. Instead, more of our Qi's products have been listed in the prohibited catalog, causing our Qi's trade with Britain to suffer huge losses. Small. Taking the example of the British and barbarians, Venice, Genoa, Portugal, and even Denmark, Sweden and other European countries have followed suit, and there is a strong tendency to jointly boycott our products. If it is allowed to develop, Spain and France, which have not yet taken measures, will , Prussia, the Netherlands and other countries may follow up and set up various trade restrictions to prevent our country's products from entering the European market. In this way, our country's decades of market development in Europe will be destroyed. once."

"Don't forget that last year, the case of British and foreign businessmen abducting and killing a scholar from the Royal Academy of Sciences of Qi State aroused fierce public opinion. If it were not proved after careful investigation that this case was indeed a private act of the British and foreign businessmen and had nothing to do with the government, Maybe at that time, we will take corresponding acts of revenge. Oh, after this incident, the impression of Yingyi in the eyes of the people of Qi State will be even worse."

"Not to mention, the rising navy of the British and foreigners also poses a potential challenge to our Qi State. In the past, during the Taizu period, it was pointed out that the geographical location of the British and foreigners was similar to that of our Qi State, both of which were far away from each other. The land of disputes on the mainland will not be affected by war. Moreover, it can also choose the most appropriate time to seize a large amount of political and commercial interests based on the development of the situation on the mainland. With its safe and stable situation, it will inevitably It will attract more mainland talents and funds as a refuge. As time goes by, its development momentum may be unstoppable."

"So, both the business class, public opinion, and even the military hope to launch a war against Britain. In addition to safeguarding the dignity of our country, this war will also take the opportunity to weaken Britain's maritime strength and force them to Open up the market and reduce restrictions on our Qi products. Of course, this battle is also a military deterrent to European countries. Our Qi country is capable of projecting military power to Europe."
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In the Wenxuan Hall of the Taichu Palace, Emperor Taiping, the supreme ruler of the empire, stopped in front of a wall, folded his hands on his chest, and was also looking at a huge world map, silent for a long time.

Du Yuanzhi, the commander of the Imperial Guard and General Zhenguo (Lieutenant General), Ge Yanmin, the Chief of Staff of the Imperial Guard and General Guangwei (Major General), and Teng Xiguang, the military attaché and General Mingwei (Brigadier General) stood aside, inhaling intently, not daring to Make any noise so as not to disturb His Majesty's thoughts.

"How reliable are the war situation deductions conducted by the General Staff?"

"Your Majesty, after several rounds of review, I and others all believe that the General Staff's military deduction is generally feasible." Du Yuanzhi bowed and responded: "Even if we look at the worst deduction results, our Qi State will not There will be too much loss.”

"With the war going on, besides its traditional ally Portugal, is it possible for Britain to contact and win over other European countries?"

"Your Majesty, since the deaths of William III and Queen Anne, the relationship between the UK and the Netherlands has become increasingly indifferent. The two sides even often have disputes over the North Sea fishing area, almost wanting to trigger an armed conflict. In addition, there are still conflicts between the UK and the Netherlands. There are constant disputes over the Caribbean sugar trade and the slave trade in the Gulf of Guinea. Therefore, it is unlikely that Britain will bring the Netherlands to their side. ... As for France, it is even less likely to form an alliance with Britain. In the past few decades, Britain has Du united the European countries to attack France, which can be regarded as a life-and-death feud. If not for this, France would not deliberately get close to our Qi country over the years in order to check and balance Britain."

"What about Spain?"

"Your Majesty, I think that Spain does not dare to be an enemy of our Qi State!" Du Yuanzhi said very firmly: "Not to mention that Spain's American territories do not dare to act rashly under the threat of our Qi State's Guoqing State and our Yinzhou Governor-General . Even if it makes a difference, with their fragile financial problems, they may not be able to gather a decent fleet to participate in the war. In addition, more than ten years ago, during the War of Spanish Succession, the British captured their Gibraltar pass, It still makes him deeply hate him.”

"Your Majesty, according to the news from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Madrid, in recent years, the United Kingdom has conducted direct trade with its American territories without any notification to the Spanish government and evaded a large amount of taxes. This has made Spain extremely dissatisfied. For this reason, , they also deliberately strengthened the armament of the American fleet and prepared to curb the smuggling behavior of British merchant ships to a certain extent. An armed conflict between them in the future will be a high probability event. By then, we may be at war with Britain. Under such circumstances, we can also bring Spain to our side." Ge Yanmin took a step forward, cupped his hands and chanted.

"In other words, once we go to war with Britain, the most they can do is win over Portugal to help them?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. ... However, the Portuguese colonial territories of Goa and Diu in India, and Mozambique and Angola in Africa are all within the attack range of our navy. In this case, their attack on the British I’m afraid you have to think twice before making an invitation.”

"In this case, after the war in Persia eases, let's choose an opportunity to launch a punitive war against Britain."

"Your Majesty is wise!"

"Your Majesty..." Just when several people were about to leave, Teng Xiguang suddenly thought of something, turned around, bowed and said: "Colonel Lieutenant Li Yanliang has arrived in Chang'an and is currently transferred to the Equipment Planning Department of the Army General Staff Headquarters."

"Li Yanliang?" Emperor Taiping felt that he had heard this name somewhere, but there were so many state affairs that he couldn't think of it for a while.

"Li Yanliang is the grandson of the late Princess Le'an." Teng Xiguang reminded in a low voice.

"Oh!" Emperor Taiping suddenly understood, caressed his forehead, and said with a smile: "You call him here tomorrow afternoon, and I will see him."

(End of this chapter)