Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1864 Yidu County

"Master Jiang, this way please." In the old Prince Heng's Mansion in Yidu County, Qingzhou Prefecture, Jiang Yunfan, the special envoy of the Qing Dynasty from Yantai, just arrived and stayed here.The imperial court of the Qing Dynasty placed Jiang Yunfan and his party in the cleaned-up former Mingheng Palace this time, and the treatment was good enough to explain many problems.

Jiang Yunfan has served Liu Jianguo as a military and government counselor for several years, and has some understanding of the domestic situation of the Qing Dynasty, so he doesn't care about their extraordinary courtesy, and lives in this room with his followers peacefully. But still looks very nice old palace.

Following Jiang Yunfan to Qingzhou Prefecture, there were more than [-] officials from the Denglai Pioneering Team in military, civil affairs, intelligence, business, law and other fields.In the next period of time, together with Jiang Yunfan, they will fight with the Qing negotiators and work together to conclude a formal peace treaty.

Jiang Yunfan quickly chose their own rooms with the followers, and at the same time put the luggage and packages in a room that was temporarily used as a warehouse.More than a dozen fierce-faced and extremely sturdy Shandan warriors stood outside the doors of these rooms with weapons, acting as guards—the accompanying guards can carry weapons, which is the right that the people on the east coast strived for.

Of course, there were also some guards arranged by the Qing Dynasty in Prince Heng's mansion, most of whom were children of the Eight Banners of Manchuria and Mongolia. It would be a little frightening to see the hair-haired and armored guards brought by the envoys from the East Bank.These guys look like savages, with belts around their waists, quiver and whetstones hanging on them, bows on their left arms, arrows in their right hands, weathered faces, and piercing eyes. A warrior who came out of the deep mountains and old forests of Manchuria.

In the pre-Ming period, these people were called fish skin tartars, and they had always been the main force in the battle to the death, playing the decisive role.Unexpectedly, the people of the Eastern Kingdom had been operating the old lands of Huerha and Sauron for many years, but they slowly digested and annexed these savages, and gradually formed a large-scale army, which always caused headaches for the Qing troops everywhere.

It’s actually quite ironic to say this, because Gein’s so-called Eight Banners now have quite a few descendants of the Yuskin Tartars that Huang Taiji captured from the Northeast. ——In fact, the situation in mainland China does not allow the Eight Banners of Manchuria and Mongolia to be pampered and spend their days leisurely—but they have long since lost the blood and courage of their ancestors. When they saw these Shandan people who had just come out of the mountains, Some dare not look directly.So, when officials from the east bank came to protest that they were still staying here, these people seemed relieved, and immediately closed the team and left. Jiang Yunfan couldn't help but laugh when he saw it, these depraved Eight Banners children!

"It's only been half a year since I came back from Shun country, and I came to this Qing country as an envoy again. You think I'm a versatile diplomat, but I'm obviously a law student." In the slightly repaired study room As soon as Jiang Yunfan took his seat, he talked with Liao Jiangong, the deputy envoy for this trip, who was transferred from Heishui.

Liao Jiangong has worked in the area of ​​the Blackwater Pioneering Team for many years. He previously served as the commissioner of the Sakhalin District Administrative Office. Now he has been transferred to the Denglai Pioneering Team. It is said that he will serve as the commissioner of the Dengzhou District.However, some people say that his position as the commissioner of the Dengzhou area is only temporary and transitional. His final destination should be to go to Ningbo to replace Ma Wenqiang, the captain of the Southern Exploration Team who will return to China next year. The best payoff for years of hard work.

As for Liu Jianguo, the leader of the Denglai Pioneering Team, he was supposed to return to work in China next year, but it is said that he himself wants to stay for another year and see the opening of the Jiaoyan Railway with his own eyes before leaving.After all, this is the biggest project during his tenure, and it is also the project he cares about the most. He has to wait until everything is in place before leaving. I believe the higher-ups will also consider this.As for his successor, he has actually been determined, that is, the well-known local Lieutenant Colonel Guo Handong, who has just left South Africa and returned to the local Army Department for a transition.

Therefore, although Liao Jiangong was his deputy on this trip, Jiang Yunfan respected him very much.He knew that he would not be able to compete for the captaincy of any pioneering team in the Far East San Francisco for a while, so he respected Liao Jiangong who might be in charge of the southern pioneering team. Mainland coffee is also willing to bleed.You must know that these coffee beans (Arabica species, planted by the local natives after being influenced by the people on the east coast) from Mount Kilimanjaro were acquired by him at a huge price and countless favors, and they are usually cherished very much. It would be considered a hemorrhage to actually take it out and share it with others.

"This time Captain Liu has basically made a plan to make peace with the Qing people." After the secretary put the coffee on the table, Jiang Yunfan took a sip of the aroma intoxicatedly, and then said: "But there are conditions for peace. People recognize the current line of actual control between the two sides, and use this as the boundary, and in the future, they will not be able to claim sovereignty over the Second Mansion of Terengganu at will, unless the two parties sign another agreement to redefine the status of the Second Mansion of Denglei."

"This shouldn't be difficult to do." Liao Jiangong also took a sip of coffee, and after admiring, he looked at Jiang Yunfan and said, "It's just an acknowledgment of a fait accompli. .They themselves are willing to negotiate peace with us, which already represents the recognition of the current actual control line between the two sides, and this is not a problem."

"Yes, this is the premise, and it doesn't seem to be a problem now. Then, according to Commander Liu's instructions, find a way to let the Qing Dynasty dismantle the military stronghold on the west bank of the Jiaolai New River, and make the junction of Laizhou and Qingzhou a buffer zone. This is our most important task in this regard. Ah, by the way, it is also very important not to let the Qing Dynasty interfere with our excavation of the Jiaolai New River Canal, and it must be emphasized.” Jiang Yunfan nodded, and then continued Said: "I just don't know where the Qing Dynasty's bottom line is on this matter. But if you think about it differently, since they intend to admit that our team occupies most of the Denglai Second Mansion, let us dredge the Jiaolai Xin River." It should be a high-probability event. As for dismantling some military forts at the junction of Laizhou and Qingzhou, it may be difficult for them to do it. If they die, they can reduce some garrisons, and most of them are willing to do this."

The secretary soon brought some extra-grade biscuits produced by Dafeng Food Company, and the two chatted while eating and drinking. They fully exchanged views on the border issue between the two countries, and they had a good idea of ​​the negotiations for the next period of time.After talking about the border issue, Jiang Yunfan naturally turned the topic to commercial trade, which has always been the focus of attention of people on the east coast.

"Speaking of trade, many people seem to be very concerned about it. Before I left, Han Jin from the Bank of Taiwan made a special trip to pay a visit. It seemed that he was trying to persuade us to try our best to reach an agreement with the Qing people. I left I was in a hurry, and I didn't have time to discuss it carefully with him, but as far as I feel, there are many businessmen like him." Jiang Yunfan said: "Denglai has developed for so many years, the local economy is prosperous, and the commercial capital has accumulated relatively strong. There is an impulse to further expand trade. The construction of the Jiaoyan Railway feels like a great boost to these commercial capitals, and the opening of trade with the Qing Dynasty is already an irresistible trend. At this point, our most important The task is mainly to obtain the most favorable tax rates, more open ports, and more commodity import and export trade quotas from the Qing people. Commissioner Liao, do you have anything to add in this regard? Let’s add up the total.”

"That's about it. I don't have anything to add for a while. However, I always feel that the merchants in Denglai are so keen on trading with the Qing Dynasty. I'm afraid they will be disappointed in the future. The products they deal in really have no market in the Qing Dynasty. The ones that can really reap the benefits are probably companies like the Bank of Taiwan that have a lot of high-quality products in their hands. There are still some markets for high-quality furs, rare South Seas, and whale products, but they are not too big. "Liao Jiangong has been in the Heishui area for many years. He knows how much the Qing court lost after losing most of northern Manchuria and all of the outer northeast. With the opening of trade, the demand for this part will be great.

"That's right. The British and the Dutch can only sell military products to the Qing people. The sales of other products are really miserable. Only some cheap duffel have a certain market in the port city because they are durable. They are not the same as the Qing people. Trade must export a large amount of precious metals to balance, otherwise it will not be able to continue. So is our trade with the Qing Dynasty really good, I am afraid that it will also lose a large amount of precious metals and become enemies in disguise." Jiang Yunfan smiled helplessly, He said: "But it doesn't matter. Opening up trade is the consensus of everyone. No one can stop it. Then let's talk about it. We have to see when it is good and bad."

Afterwards, the two chatted about the possible impact of large-scale trade with the Qing Dynasty, such as whether it would increase the financial strength of the Qing Dynasty and so on.But when it comes to the end, the two feel that there is no need to worry too much, because the current troubles of the Qing Dynasty are really not ordinary. Even if they increase a little financial strength, it may not help the improvement of the overall situation.

The biggest trouble they are currently facing is probably the war against Shun Kingdom.They had already been defeated in Sichuan before, and were expelled to northern Sichuan and Hanzhong. The threat of the naval gunboats on the east coast basically froze, just like the confrontation between Jiangnan and Shunguo at the Jiangxi border.It is conservatively estimated that the Shun Kingdom has attracted more than [-]% of the troops of the Qing Dynasty, which is really the number one problem.

In addition to Shunguo, the Manchu Qing also smelled a hint of danger in the Western Regions, that is, Galdan who had already unified the Oirat Mongolian tribes.The ruler of Junggar wiped out the Yarkand Khanate in southern Xinjiang, took control of northern Xinjiang, and at the same time started the Hundred Years' War with the Kazakhs in Central Asia and initially gained the upper hand.Now, this dangerous man turned his eyes to the east and became interested in the huge Qing Dynasty.

Of course, he has not been arrogant enough to attack the Qing Dynasty now, which is no different from courting death.Galdan’s first step strategy is to march into Mobei Mongolia, which is under the control of the Manchurians, to conquer here first, integrate the people and horses on the grassland, and strengthen its own strength-this is particularly critical, because Gain Mobei Mongolia can serve Karma Erdan provided a large number of "native" people, which was very important for him to control the Moors in southern Xinjiang (the Moors are used here, everyone understands...), and to subdue the Kazakhs in Central Asia.But there is no doubt that this strategy of Galdan is also digging the corners of the Manchu Qing and disintegrating their strategy of integrating Manchu and Mongolian. Therefore, it is bound to have a fierce conflict with the Beijing court.

The conflict with Junggar and Mongolia cannot be dealt with casually.The Mongolian regime, which ruled the Western Regions, had its own arsenal and was familiar with the application of firearms, especially cannons. It was so powerful that even the Russians did not dare to do anything to them.The only disadvantage is probably that there are fewer troops, but it is not difficult to pull out tens of thousands of elite cavalry. This requires the Qing Dynasty to mobilize several times the infantry to deal with it. After all, defense is always relatively passive.

To sum up, the Manchu Qing court is now facing the attack of the Dashun regime in the southwest, the strong challenge from the emerging Junggar and Mongolia in the northwest, and the continuous harassment and attacks from the East Bank people in the east. Life is going well. It can be described as difficult.Jiang Yunfan and Liao Jiangong felt that the most realistic choice for the Manchu Qing was to negotiate peace with the people on the east bank, and then decisively end the endgame in Sichuan, and take advantage of the advantages that were still in their hands in northern Sichuan and Hanzhong, shrink their troops to defend, and contain the Shun The army went north to the passage out of Shu, and concentrated on solving the threat of Junggar and Mongolia first.

And only by solving the threat of Junggar and Mongolia, the Manchu and Qing courts can stabilize their foundations, and then gradually plan for the south.Otherwise, once the important base of Mongolia is lost, how can the Eight Banners of Manchuria control such a huge China?Do you rely on Han civilian officials and generals?That is simply unimaginable, I am afraid that the color of the mountains and rivers will not be far away.

"Now I don't know what the Qing Dynasty's plan is in the southwest. Whether it is war or defense is not sure. And our intelligence and diplomatic personnel have just been allowed to enter Sichuan, and the relationship has not yet been established. The blurred and even contradictory parts will probably be better in a year or so." Putting down the white porcelain coffee cup in his hand, Jiang Yunfan said with a smile: "Now there is Wei Boqiu's student, former Dongan North Korea Company Chen Ming, the son of the boss Chen Shuo, is in charge, and he was just appointed as the head of the Chengdu Commercial Station two months ago, in charge of the diplomatic, commercial and intelligence affairs of Chuanzhong Yiying, I hope he can take up the burden there."

(End of this chapter)