Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1946 Overseas Interests ([-])

"This Mr. Mao, give me all the troubles." It was already evening, and the streets of Cadiz Port, which was originally humid and hot, gradually had some cool smells. Gao Wengang opened the windows to the maximum to let more people A cool breeze blows in.He is too hot now, not only because of the weather, but also because of his boredom and anxiety.

Just now, the secretary sent him an urgent document.The urgent document was sent from Viana do Castelo in northern Portugal, and it was written in coded language. It took the secretary more than an hour to translate and sort it out, and then handed it over to Gao Wengang for review.The content is actually very simple, that is, the Portuguese garrison stationed there wants to move, and wants to transfer eastward to the Crimea Peninsula to deal with the increasingly complicated situation there.

To be honest, Gao Wengang, who was born as a civil servant, did not think that his army of more than 2000 people—the original number was 1770, with the Army’s 10,000th Mixed Battalion as the main body, and some infantry soldiers were recruited after arriving in Portugal—could play a significant role.Once the Russians go south, there will be 20 + [-] troops. Can you blend in with thousands of people?

Of course, he does not think that this force is qualified to participate in the armed conflict currently taking place in the southern Netherlands.The French army is powerful and famous, and it is invincible in the Netherlands and the Rhine. Didn't you see that Austria and Spain avoided it?It's just that the Dutch are spending money to recruit soldiers, and they are constantly digging trenches and repairing fortresses to prevent them from being burned.There are more than 2000 soldiers and horses from the east coast, no matter how advanced the tactics are, no matter how sophisticated the weapons are, they still have a ball!Not enough people to stuff their teeth!

Therefore, in his opinion, this army is just a decoration and has no effect.Moreover, it was an expensive decoration, and Gao Wengang had to figure out a solution for all the expenses, but he didn't have any command power, which was simply unacceptable.I don't know what the local elders think, but they don't even stop these bastards from the military department. These thousands of people sent out to the army are useless, and they are not as real as naval warships!Hmph, it seems that the country is full of stupid people. If I go back to serve as a member of the executive committee, I will definitely find a way to veto this resolution.

But now the problem is in front of me, and I always have to solve it!Lieutenant Colonel Mao Jun has already formally written himself, requesting that he be transferred to Haji Port "in case of accidents". How should he answer?It is absolutely impossible to directly refuse. I have no jurisdiction over their Portuguese garrison troops. If they really want to leave, I will definitely not be able to stop them.The reason why Commander Mao still officially issued an official document now is that more than half of the rations and salaries have to be approved by Gao Wengang.

And this has to mention the current fucking power structure.Gao Wengang, as the special envoy of the East Coast Republic to Europe, is in charge of all diplomatic, economic, judicial and other civil affairs in the area under his jurisdiction, but he has no control over this army. The reason is that the military department does not want to give him military power. I'm afraid the guys also think this is a bit inappropriate, so let them discuss things.

To put it bluntly, Mao Jun and Gao Wengang basically check and balance each other.Mr. Mao asked for money to raise soldiers, and Gao Wengang tried to pay for it, so sometimes he had to listen to someone else's opinion.But in the final analysis, there is no subordinate relationship between them. While respecting Gao Wengang's opinion, Mr. Mao still has a lot of autonomy.

This time, Lieutenant Colonel Mao Jun stated in the official document that the 2250 Portuguese garrison troops (mercenaries who recruited two infantry companies in Portugal) will dispatch the entire army. The strength of the army has increased to a full state of more than 2700 people.

In addition, according to the agreement reached between the East Bank government and the Kingdom of Portugal, the East Bank people can also recruit a "volunteer army" with a number of no more than 3000 in Portugal to go overseas to fight together.These [-] people are basically part of the active army of the Kingdom of Portugal. After they all took off their military uniforms, they joined the command system of the East Coast people as mercenaries and became a reliable and experienced armed force.

Lieutenant Colonel Mao Jun believes that after the total of more than 5700 troops are transferred eastward to the Crimea Peninsula, and supplemented by the local Haji garrison with a thousand troops, it is already a considerable military force, which is enough to fight in some areas. The local "troubleshooting", although there may be some confusion within this army.

There is no doubt that it is very expensive to maintain an army of several thousand men, especially when the army is still fighting abroad.Gao Wen had just calculated and calculated, and felt that with the current financial situation in Cadiz, it might be sustainable in the short term, but it would be unbearable in the long run.You know, they have no choice but to give up the once-in-a-lifetime thing of providing loans to the Ottoman Empire. How can they afford to support such a large number of troops to fight abroad for a long time?

As for Lieutenant Colonel Mao Jun’s official document mentioning that he went to the Genoese or the Venetians to seek loan assistance to support their troops, Gao Wengang was even more annoyed: You bastards, let me run the loan, When it comes time to repay the loan in the future, isn't it my job to figure out a solution?Not to mention whether the money can be repaid, just say that I have to take care of all these troubles by myself, and let you go out and have a good time when I am in place?

Gao Wengang was a little depressed, and instinctively wanted to reject Mao Jundong's proposal, but after much deliberation, he still couldn't make up his mind.An army of 6000 people is marching and fighting abroad. I am afraid that the cost of this year will not be more than 100 million yuan!The commercial stations he currently manages, although the profits are not bad, but due to the heavy tasks and high expenses, the annual balance is not much at all.Now he has to spend more than 100 million yuan in cash to support Mr. Mao and the others to fight outside. Where can he get so much money?

But it is not appropriate not to agree.Black Sea trade is also very important to today's East Coast Republic. The Don River, the Dnieper River, and the Danube River are like three rivers flowing with gold, constantly sending wealth to the people on the East Coast.Moreover, this is only an economic benefit. From a political point of view, the Crimean Khanate, which dominates the northern shore of the Black Sea, is the most important fulcrum for the people on the east coast to achieve their strategic goals in the Near East. Object.Now that the Russians are sending out a lot of signals about the war, it seems that 20 gray animals will burst over like a flood in the next moment. It is also unknown that the small body of the Crimean Khanate can withstand it.

At such a critical juncture, if someone in Gao refused to approve the transfer of troops—of course, the transfer of troops was only superficial, and the real meaning in the official document sent by Mr. Mao was to ask someone in Gao for money—which would lead to the Crimea If the Khanate is defeated across the board, no one will be able to bear the responsibility.

After much deliberation, Gao Wengang's brows were almost twisted into a mess, so he asked his secretary to find the financial statements of more than a dozen business stations under his control, as well as the expenses that would be spent in the future: for example, what information to collect? , doing market research, buying art at a low price, and buying informants are all expensive tasks.

Of course, it was impossible to read the financial statements carefully, and he didn't have the time.However, after spending more than a few hours on a rough look, he still has a certain understanding of the situation of these commercial stations in the next two years.

"The signs of the French instigating the war are becoming more and more obvious. Southern Netherlands, Franche-Comté, Lorraine, Luxembourg, Cologne and even the United Provinces, there are too many places that need to spend money to manage. Buying informants requires money [-]. Spying on intelligence requires money, even collecting public information. Moreover, informants are not very willing to go to war-torn areas. If you want them to work hard, you have to spend more money. This is the case in Western Europe, and the same is true in the Balkans Ah, it’s really a waste of money.” Gao Wengang had already finished his dinner in the office, and now he was looking at the files for a long time by the candles, so dizzy, he made himself a pot of tea and said to himself: “But Things are going to happen on the Black Sea side this time. If you don’t prepare in advance, I’m afraid something will happen. That’s all, let’s be more cautious this time. Mr. Mao and his gang want to go to the Black Sea area to garrison, let them go Well, I just don’t know how to raise the money, alas. I hope they are only stationed, and the cost will be less. If they really want to go to war, my family’s wealth will be wiped out in no time. .Well, it seems that we still have to go to the Italians and see if we can get some low-interest loans to fill the gap."

The "Italians" he mentioned actually refer to the Genoese, who have always been a major exporter of capital, and have made a lot of money by relying on the relationship with the people on the east coast over the years, not only selling tropical products such as sugar, but also making a lot of money. , At the same time, it also made a fortune in the process of acting as an agent of East Coast industrial products, and its capital strength is very strong.Gao Wen just came to ask them to borrow some money to spend. It shouldn't be a big problem, and the interest rate will be very low. Compared with the usury they lent to the King of Spain, it is simply heaven and earth.

No way, who made the Genoese people rely more and more on the asylum of the people on the east coast now!The blockade of the country's port by the French Eastern Fleet has just subsided in less than three months. Speaking of it, Gao Wengang and the Netherlands came to mediate.Isn't it just a matter of building a few warships for Spain? It's a big deal, and it can be solved after coordination.

In fact, in history, because no one spoke to Genoa, several powerful countries pursued a policy of appeasement, which made the French extremely inflated, sent a fleet to directly seal the gate, and bombarded the port of Genoa, Created a shocking incident of aggression.Later, the French's continuous blockade of Genoese, cutting off Sicily, its main food supply, from the mainland, coupled with the threat of an army landing, finally forced the Genoese to surrender and sent envoys to Paris to accept After being humiliated by King Louis XIV of France, the blockade was lifted after signing a series of guarantees.

During this process, Austria took a default attitude, and England, Sweden and other countries did not care. Spain, one of the parties involved, was even a coward. Small-scale expansions in Lanche-Comté, Luxembourg, and the Southern Netherlands were the same.

But in this time and space, people on the east coast certainly cannot sit back and watch their ally, the Republic of Genoa*, be treated like this.Not long after the incident broke out, they began to actively intervene, mobilizing a number of transport ships and returning from the northern shore of the Black Sea full of food.Perhaps because the French warships were not authorized, they seemed extremely entangled. Faced with these ships flying the flag of the east coast, they wanted to stop them but dared not stop them. In the end, they could only hold their noses and let them go.

Subsequently, the people on the east coast grabbed Spain, united with the Dutch, and conducted an emergency mediation with the French. Finally, after the Republic of Genoa promised to deliver the four warships, it would not build any ships for the Kingdom of Spain. , the French finally agreed to let them go, which is a good ending compared to history.It can also be seen from this that whether someone is willing to stand up for them at the critical moment is completely two different results.I believe that after this incident, the Genoese will have a deeper understanding of the influence of the East Coast people in the Western Mediterranean, and will be more closely united under the banner of the East Coast Republic.Therefore, Gao Wengang felt that it would not be a problem at all to ask the Genoese for a loan to use it.

"I hope that the Russians on the Black Sea side will eventually retreat. If this war lasts for three to five years, I will have to prepare a loan of several million yuan for Mr. Mao and his gang..." Gao Wengang was helpless at the end. thought.

(End of this chapter)