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Chapter 658 Sense of Crisis

According to Hong Tao's plan, the first priority of the Ming Dynasty is to eliminate the threat from the north, that is, the Mongolian tribes. But if the Russian Empire extends its tentacles to the Siberian region, it will not be enough to defeat the Mongolian tribes.

As the saying goes, a man without long-term plans will have immediate worries. A man should think twice before taking a step. How can an emperor just focus on his feet and ignore the road? Just now, Hong Tao was standing in front of the map, wondering whether he should compete with the Russians on land for control of the Siberian region, or give priority to defeating the European fleet at sea to gain control of the sea.

But after thinking for a long time, I still couldn't come to a final conclusion. No matter which of these two directions is chosen first, there will be huge resistance. It will require the mobilization of huge national strength to succeed, and each has its own advantages and disadvantages.

I am good at going by sea, and I am familiar with shipbuilding and naval warfare. I can calculate clearly without any staff. But the stamina of going by sea is insufficient. The Middle East and Europe are not as weak as they were in the Song Dynasty. Relying on naval warfare can only destroy their economy, but cannot hurt their bones.

This method is more suitable for opening up commercial routes, dumping Ming products to various countries, gaining an advantage at the economic level, occupying several important ports, supporting puppet regimes, and expanding influence.

If he wanted to conquer the country completely, the simplest and most practical way was to go by land. He would push forward from West Asia to Europe and open up trade routes. However, Hong Tao was not very good at land warfare. He was a beginner and had no confidence.

Moreover, land warfare requires the mobilization of more manpower and material resources, takes a long time, causes huge casualties, and increases uncertainty. Sometimes a heavy rain or snow may make all previous efforts go to waste.

"Your Majesty, it's better not to go to a place as cold as the North Sea. There's no need to worry about it."

When Wang Chengen heard that the emperor was worried about the distant Beihai, he immediately expressed his attitude. Beihai did not originally belong to the Han people, so whoever wanted to occupy it could occupy it, and it was none of the Ming Dynasty's business.

"What if the Russians are not satisfied and, after gaining a foothold in Beihai, they go south to seize our land like the Mongols did?" Hong Tao did not find Wang Chengen's idea strange. If you ask ten Ming people, including officials, five out of ten will give the same answer.

Indeed, for the people of the Ming Dynasty, Beihai was just a few words in books, and it sounded so desolate and barren. If they had the time to worry about it, they might as well take advantage of the Korean Peninsula first.

But as a time traveler, you cannot think like this. The Russians’ love for the land is no less than that of the Han people. If they are really allowed to occupy the Siberian region, the northern border of the Ming Dynasty will never be idle for a moment.

Moreover, unlike the Mongolian tribes, they were not born nomads. They could learn advanced technology from Europe, manufacture advanced weapons, and had a centralized management model. In all aspects, they were more threatening than the nomads.

This is not Hong Tao's imagination, but has been proven many times by history. From the founding of the Qing Dynasty to the founding of New China, from the Western Regions to the northern desert to Sakhalin Island, it has been coveted by Tsarist Russia all the time. As the ancients said, you are not afraid of thieves stealing, but you are afraid of thieves thinking about it. There is always such a behemoth spying on you, and you can't eat or sleep well.

"With His Majesty here, the Mongols are no match, and neither are the Russians. We can just fight them back!" Wang Chengen was open-minded and didn't worry at all about having another group of guys eyeing the Ming Dynasty.

"That's right, I was overthinking it. You should train well in the future. Who knows, one day you might have to personally lead an expedition with me again!"

Sometimes thinking too much is a pain, and after Wang Chengen interrupted him, Hong Tao finally let it go. Anyway, there was nothing he could do now, as there were Mongolian tribes blocking the way, so he had no way to make any plans in advance.

I simply stopped thinking about it. I just took it one step at a time. As long as I cultivated my inner strength, I wouldn't have to worry about the Mongols and the Russians. If I could fight, I would fight. If I could talk, I would talk. Anyway, the buffer zone of Siberia couldn't be taken away by the Tsarist Russia. As for whether to go north or south first, it's best to do both. What? It's too difficult! Nonsense, if it's not difficult, would it still be called Hong Baopi? Go if there are difficulties, and go if there are no difficulties!

"Ah... another personal expedition!" The emperor was no longer worried, his chopsticks flew and he ate heartily. But Wang Chengen began to worry, the emperor said that he would lead an expedition in person one day, and if he listened to him, he might go to Beihai, which would be several times more dangerous than the last time he went to Liaodong. What should he do?

"Scared?"

"As long as His Majesty is here, I am not afraid of anyone!"

Wang Chengen puffed out his chest and then shamelessly lied. The last time he followed the emperor to lead the army, he hardly had a good night's sleep from the start to the victory.

When I was surrounded by the elite Jurchens in Ningyuan City, the scene of the city being broken and people dying would appear in my mind whenever I closed my eyes. When I arrived at the front line of Tashan, I saw the bodies and broken limbs of people killed by artillery and muskets all over the ground. My calves started to cramp and I couldn't eat for several days.

But as the emperor's personal steward, I can't leave him alone, not to mention when he goes to war, even in the Forbidden City. I have to follow him wherever he goes. Now I can only pray that there will be no more blind people provoking me at the border, and I can live in peace for a few more years!

"Well, that's good. You are so brave, I certainly can't lose out. Go and call Wang An, Zhang Ran, Yuan Keli, and Li Ruzhang into the palace. I need to make some plans before I go meet the Mongols again!

They have received dividends from the woolen mill and purchased goods from the market in recent years, and they have taken advantage of the situation. It is time to show some appreciation. They can't just keep doing this without saying anything!"

Hong Tao didn't even need to see if Wang Chengen was lying, he could tell just by listening to his voice. However, this time he didn't expose the young eunuch's weakness in person, but punished him with actual actions to cure his cowardice.

"Mongols, Mongolians! Why should we conquer the Mongols?" Wang Chengen was almost crying. Why did the dignified Emperor of the Ming Dynasty have to make things difficult for him?

Going to Liaodong to conquer the Jurchens at least had an excuse, that they were the first to provoke the war. But the Mongols had been surprisingly honest in recent years, and although there were often reports of war at the border, they were all trivial matters, and medium- and large-scale wars were almost extinct.

Isn't it better to just live in peace? Why fight over the dividends from the wool spinning mill? That little bit of silver is just money in the eyes of the Mongols, but it is almost negligible to the Ming emperor.

"How dare you! You can't ask about military and national affairs casually. Go quickly and come back soon! Oh, yes, let Zhang Ran find a few Mongolian warriors from the Imperial Stables to wait outside the palace to take orders. Ask Li Ruzhang if there are any men under his command who are familiar with the internal affairs of Mongolia, and call them as well!"

As a result, this sentence angered the emperor. His fat face became stern, his brows furrowed, and the room suddenly became as if the air conditioner was turned on.

(End of this chapter)