Chapter 2426

Haihan currently owns three developing areas in Jilong, Miaoli, and Kaohsiung on Taiwan Island. If Penghu is also included, then there are actually four Haihan colonial areas in the Fujian Strait. However, only Penghu and Kaohsiung can be counted among them.

It is a trading port. Jilong and Miaoli both focus more on energy and mining development, and the environment is relatively closed.

The reason why Haihan spent so much money on development in this area was that, first, he saw that the vast coastal plain on the west coast of Taiwan Island could be used for large-scale agricultural development and resettle a large number of people; second, the establishment of a ruling area here could connect him with Xu Xinsu on the other side of the Taiwan Strait.

Echoing each other from a distance, and at the same time controlling the key waterways connecting the north and south of the mainland in the Fujian Strait for a long time.

Judging from the various information Tao Donglai learned during his trip, Haihan's development progress in this area is far from reaching expectations, especially in areas like Miaoli, which were relatively closed in the early stage. In recent years, there has been almost no development.

What progress has been made? The local social situation has formed a relatively large gap with the Kaohsiung Port, which has vigorously introduced foreign funds and personnel. Even at this time, the Executive Committee is preparing to move a large number of immigrants from Shandong to the local area and invest resources to upgrade the local petrochemical industry.

, and it is unlikely to catch up with the development speed of large seaside ports like Kaohsiung.

However, this does not have much impact on the overall development of Haihan. Even the technological upgrading of Miaoli petrochemical industry is still just a practice in Tao Dong's view. If Haihan really achieves success in the refining and application of petroleum,

If a major breakthrough is achieved, Miaoli's local oil field reserves and production capacity will definitely be far from meeting the long-term development needs of Haihan Industry, and it will be necessary to find another place to build a real petrochemical industry center.

Of course, with the current industrial level of Haihan, Tao Donglai and most people in the Ministry of Industry believe that Miaoli can at least cope with the demand for the next five to eight years, and maybe even longer. For new oil fields and large-scale petrochemical industries

The demand for the chain cannot be said to be particularly urgent. Of course, Haihan will definitely enter the era of internal combustion engines at some point in the future, but everyone understands that it may have to wait until the next generation becomes the head of the family. At least in the next few years

Within this year, steam engines with mature technology, easy maintenance, and relatively low cost will continue to be widely used.

After Tao Donglai left Miaoli, he did not take a detour to Jilong Port for inspection. He knew that the situation there was not much different from Miaoli. The mining areas for mining gold were also in inland mountainous areas. The only difference was that the local port conditions were

It is hundreds of times better than Miaoli, and the natural harbor is the main reason why the Spaniards were interested in that place in the first place. However, most of the chicken coops are in mountainous areas, which are not suitable for traditional agricultural development, so the resettlement capacity is relatively limited, and most of the immigrants who moved to the local area are

They all became miners.

The Executive Committee has no special arrangements for Jilong Port in the near future, and Tao Donglai has limited time to go north on this trip, so he skipped Jilong Port and will see if he can arrange a few days to visit Jilong Port when he returns.

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After the fleet left Miaoli, it went all the way north to Dinghai Port in Zhoushan off the coast of Zhejiang, without stopping along the coast of Zhejiang. Now the Zhoushan Islands, together with Xiangshan, Shilu and other coastal ports in the south, have fallen into Haihan.

Hands, there are no pirates in these areas for a long time, and the Ming military guards along the coast are happy and free, so they can just collect the benefits from Haihan with peace of mind.

Of course, there are also many daring guardsmen who have secretly joined the Haihan trade system. They will even use Ming army troops and dispatch a few warships to cover the smuggling of various Haihans.

Goods enter the country and profits are made from them.

Some military leaders who originally relied on empty pay to make money, in order to have enough manpower to engage in underground business, even tried to recruit new personnel. After all, the income from doing business with the Haihan people was far greater than what they had been able to do before.

The little military pay he squandered.

Under such an environment, Haihan ships will not be intercepted or inspected when entering or leaving the coastal areas of Zhejiang, and the Coastal Guard will basically facilitate it, because there is no guarantee that there will be any private goods of a thousand households on board. As for the Haihan War

When a ship appears in the coastal waters, everyone will consciously turn a blind eye. As long as they do not actively provoke it, the Haihan people will generally not use force.

Tao Donglai's fleet arrived at Dinghai Port smoothly. Before he disembarked, the dock had been blocked to ensure that his whereabouts would not be leaked immediately.

Shi Diwen has also arrived in advance to welcome Tao Donglai on the dock. As a senior general stationed overseas all year round, Shi Diwen has rarely returned to Sanya in recent years, and even less often meets Tao Donglai.

Although there is no relationship between the two, Shi Diwen knows very well that Tao Donglai is not visiting in a private capacity, but on behalf of the executive committee, so he must also show his due

Respectful attitude.

"Mr. Tao, you have worked hard all the way!" Shi Diwen stepped forward quickly and first raised his hand to salute Tao Donglai with a military salute.

After Tao Donglai returned the gift, he stretched out his hand and shook Shi Diwen's hand: "Then it's harder for you who have been stationed overseas all year round!"

Shi Diwen knew that Tao Donglai's whereabouts were kept secret, so he had no intention of standing on the dock and continuing to chat slowly, so he motioned for Tao Donglai to get on the carriage first. After a while, the cavalry escorted Shi Diwen's car away.

Military port pier.

Among the many overseas colonies currently controlled by Haihan, Zhoushan can be regarded as one that has developed quite well. It is adjacent to the prosperous areas of Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Maritime merchants from many countries in Northeast Asia come here to trade. The annual cargo throughput is higher than overseas.

One of the best among the colonies, Zhoushan Dinghai Port's annual profit paid to the national treasury is no less than that of several major ports on Hainan Island. The volume of goods imported by Haihan to Ming Dynasty through Dinghai Port is no less than that of the Pearl River Basin, and the Ming Dynasty purchases goods here.

There are also huge quantities of products and raw materials, accounting for a non-negligible proportion in Haihan's business system.

Of course, in addition to trade, Zhoushan's military role cannot be ignored. Although the East China Sea Fleet has fought less in recent years, its deterrence has increased with the fleet's year-by-year expansion. According to the data reported by Shi Diwen,

At present, there are more than 4,000 navy and army personnel stationed in the Zhoushan area. The East China Sea Fleet has more than 40 combat ships of various sizes. The Zhoushan Shipyard is also the only one among the overseas colonies north of Hainan Island that can build and repair the most powerful ships in Hainan.

The place where the advanced majesty-class warships are built. Zhang Tianxiang, the second son of the shipbuilding master Zhang Tiangui, now serves as the director of the Zhoushan Shipyard.

It is able to receive such attention, on the one hand, because Zhoushan's geographical location and surrounding environment are unique. It is close to the prosperous land of the Ming Dynasty to the west, can take care of the Fujian Strait to the south, can take care of the Liaodong Peninsula and the Yellow and Bohai Sea areas to the north, and can attack North Korea at any time to the east.

It is very necessary for Japan, Ryukyu and other places to station a powerful naval fleet and have complete supporting facilities.

On the other hand, since Shi Diwen was sent to Zhoushan as the local governor in 1633, he has almost single-handedly managed the colonial area, and his performance has always been very satisfactory to the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee expressed its gratitude to Shi Diwen

Shi Diwen's trust was even greater than that of other senior generals who led troops to fight overseas all year round. For example, the expansion, mobilization and deployment of the East China Sea Fleet were basically based on Shi Diwen's opinions.

"I stopped by Zhangzhou a few days ago and met Xu Xinsu." Tao Donglai started talking about business in the car: "Xu Xinsu hopes to lease an island in Zhoushan for a long time and use it as a trade transit.

What do you think?"

Shi Diwen raised his eyebrows slightly and said, "Which island does he plan to get?"

Tao Donglai responded: "Zhujiajian Island."

"Inappropriate." Shi Diwen shook his head and said: "Mr. Tao, that island is the fifth largest island in the Zhoushan Islands, covering more than seventy square kilometers. If he really plans to build a place to transfer goods, he needs to ask

Do we want such a big island? In my opinion, it’s not that simple!”

Tao Donglai said: "Actually, this is not the only place Xu Xinsu mentioned. He also hopes that our country will allow the Xu family to build a town in the Zhuoshui River Basin in Taiwan to resettle the Xu clan members and other people with interests."

Shi Diwen smiled and said: "Then his intention is quite obvious. In the important land of Taiwan, he has begun to arrange a way out for his family... If one day he betrays the Ming Dynasty, if the territory of Fujian cannot be saved, at least it will be okay

Withdraw to Taiwan."

Tao Donglai said: "My thoughts are similar to yours, but I think Xu Xinsu may want more than just Fujian, and there are more plans."

Shi Diwen said: "How do you say this?"

"I think Xu Xinsu's purpose in renting Zhujiajian Island is to garrison troops. This place is only more than 200 miles away from the mouth of the Qiantang River and the Yangtze River. In the event of a war, these two river basins will be within its attack range." Tao Dong

Although Lai is not a real military general, his military knowledge is not bad, so he immediately expressed his opinion.

"Mr. Tao, what do you mean is that if Xu Xinsu wants to establish his own business, he will probably not be satisfied with taking over Fujian, but will draw a boundary further north?" Shi Diwen had already thought of some possibilities in his mind.

sex.

"There is nothing more suitable as a line of defense than a natural moat." Tao Donglai simply said more clearly: "A few hundred miles upstream from the Yangtze River Estuary is the city of Nanjing."

Shi Diwen frowned and said: "Even if Xu Xinsu's current military power can capture Nanjing, does he really need to betray the Ming Dynasty? His current status is the Emperor of Fujian, and we have been reminding him not to act rashly, and he is just like this

Can’t stand the loneliness?”

"The temptation to become king and emperor is too great. Even if he doesn't want to, don't the officials under him and the relatives around him have such thoughts? It's hard to say!" Tao Donglai slowly shook his head and said: "

Xu Xinsu now needs soldiers and money, and can afford to fight if he really wants to, but Ming Dynasty will definitely not be able to withstand such a torment!"

Shi Diwen was silent for a moment and then said: "Given Xu Xinsu's situation, if Chongzhen makes him a king, he may be able to live in peace for a few years. Anyway, the place in Fujian is out of control, so it's better to give Xu Xinsu some false fame benefits and stabilize him first.

Rebellion is.”

It is actually difficult for Haihan to accurately predict the development trend of Xu Xinsu and his forces, because the rise of Xu Xinsu has never happened in the original history. It is purely because of Haihan's intervention in this time and space that it will happen in this time and space.

Fujian has supported such a local force. Haihan can influence it in various ways, but the final decision on how Xu Xinsu will choose the direction of future development is his own.

As Tao Donglai said, Xu Xinsu now controls Fujian's officialdom and military power internally, and has strong backing like Haihan externally. If they want to take action in Fujian, the officials in Guangdong and Zhejiang are well aware that Haihan is behind it.

With the support of the Han Dynasty, I am afraid that they will not easily intervene to quell the chaos. The external military pressure they need to face is actually very limited. In addition, the Ming Dynasty is now suffering from internal and external troubles, and it is difficult to take into account the situation in the south. The hope of success is very high.

Of course, if Xu Xinsu really plans to do this, he must first try his best to win the support of Haihan, otherwise he will lose strong support. The firearms unit under his command relies heavily on the ammunition and spare parts provided by Haihan.

If you fight, your combat effectiveness will decline.

Of course, Haihan didn't want to see the situation in the Ming Dynasty get out of control, so he had been trying every means to get Xu Xinsu and her people to give up their unreasonable thoughts of establishing their own business, and wait for the right time to ask for some legitimate rewards from the court. Shi Diwen

The so-called "king king" is a solution that Haihan believes may solve Xu's development ambitions.

But the problem is that the Ming court may not be willing to compromise with Xu Xinsu. At least until he breaks out and shows his true strength, he may still have illusions, thinking that the imperial power and the authority of the court are enough to suppress the ambitions of the Fujian emperor. However, he does not know that Xu Xinsu controls

The military strength can be regarded as unmatched by the Ming Dynasty, and it is even enough to compete with the Qing army in the north. The key lies in Xu Xinsu's thought.

Tao Donglai shook his head slightly and said: "We may not even be able to convince Xu Xinsu now, so how can we make the Ming Dynasty bow to him? And even if the Ming Dynasty really does this, we are not 100% sure whether this threat can be completely eliminated.

.”

Shi Diwen thought for a while and said: "Since Xu Xinsu didn't say it clearly, there is still hope for this matter. He wants to build a town on Taiwan Island, which cannot be accomplished in a year and a half."

Tao Donglai nodded and said: "Maybe he himself felt that the time was not yet ripe and he was not very sure, so he arranged a retreat first. For us, there is still time to slowly resolve this problem."

Shi Diwen said: "But I don't understand one thing. If Xu Xinsu's purpose of renting Zhujiajian Island may be to station troops, then why not just find an island farther away from Dinghaiport to avoid our eyes and ears?

act.”

Tao Donglai said: "This is what he did on purpose. He specially found a place nearby to show us what he did to show his integrity. If he went to a place like Shengsi Island to hide his troops and we found out, wouldn't it be possible for him to do it?

How worried are we? Besides, even if we hide further away, can we hide it from your eyes and ears?"
Chapter completed!