Chapter 444 Taking the initiative to urge

The Ming Dynasty in this era is like a big ship that is about to capsize. The bottom of the ship is leaking everywhere. The external environment is constantly stormy and the people on the ship are fighting among themselves. There is no chance to repair the ship. But for people who came to this era

For the time-traveling group that has just entered its third year and is not yet very solidly established, the Ming Empire is still a behemoth that cannot be resisted for the time being, and in the minds of the vast majority of time-travelers, they do not want the Ming Dynasty to fall too quickly.

After all, the Ming Dynasty is still the orthodox Han people, while the wild boar skin outside the pass is completely barbarian. Therefore, Haihan's basic position is still on the side of the Ming Dynasty. If he can help this empire that is about to reach its end through military assistance, he can continue to live.

, the vast majority of people will definitely vote in favor - of course, no matter what form of assistance it is, it will certainly not be provided free of charge.

Regarding the issue of how to extend the life of the Ming Dynasty, in fact, discussions had begun within the preparatory committee at that time long before time travel. The more common view is that the problem faced by the Ming Dynasty is not just the weakness of military strength, but the entire society.

All kinds of social conflicts caused by the backwardness of the system broke out during this period. Unilateral military assistance could not change the reality that the Ming Empire was declining. However, reasonable assistance methods might be able to help the Ming Dynasty withstand attacks from outside the Northeast Pass.

, thus allowing Chuanchuan Group to have more time to make full use of the market and various resources under the Ming Dynasty to strengthen its own strength.

To carry out military cooperation with the Ming Dynasty, all aspects involved are extremely complex and there are many issues that need to be considered. Fortunately, there is already some cooperation with the Guangdong government and the Fujian Navy that is not fully public. Related

The department can be considered to have accumulated a certain amount of experience, so it will not have to look for new solutions when the problem comes.

"I'm going too far off topic. You'd better listen to me finish talking about the expansion of military recruitment first!" Yan Chujie saw that the topic of discussion had strayed far away from the original point, and quickly drew everyone's attention back to his own proposal.

Above: "I believe everyone has already understood the necessity and feasibility of troop expansion through my introduction. Now I will talk about the recruitment plan."

The pay of the Haihan Militia has always been good. After joining the army, they directly obtain naturalized citizenship and enjoy the salary standard of second-level labor. Moreover, due to the frequent expansion of the army, there are actually quite a lot of opportunities for promotion at the bottom of the militia. Now the militia is the middle shift platoon leader.

The grassroots officers at the same level have all been replaced by naturalized civilian militiamen who joined the army early and performed well. Individual personnel with outstanding performance will have further opportunities for promotion, and this rate of increase is faster than that of other armies of the same era.

It is very difficult to appear in .

In addition, militia soldiers who retire from the army and change jobs, or who are injured or killed in battle, will receive very thoughtful arrangements and care, as well as generous remuneration or pensions. If they are unwilling to accept the work arrangements of the civil affairs department after retirement, they can also be assigned

At least 30 acres of low-rent farmland, and you can go home and farm on your own. To put it harshly, for ordinary people, serving as a soldier in the Haihan Militia and working for the executive committee is still very cost-effective.

It is precisely because of these favorable treatment, coupled with the fact that the battles in which the Shanghai Han militia participated were never defeated and the results were brilliant, the enthusiasm of young people in the area under Haihan's rule to join the army has always been very high. Every time the military recruits foreign troops

, it is almost possible to recruit the required soldiers in a very short period of time, and the number of applicants will often greatly exceed the original recruitment plan. Therefore, for Yan Chujie, there is no need to worry about the issue of soldier resources when opening the next phase of recruitment, although the plan

The recruitment quota may exceed a thousand people, but judging from the current population size under Haihan's rule, there will probably still be an overwhelming number of applicants.

"There is a small adjustment in the recruitment plan. I hope you will pay attention to it." Yan Chujie introduced: "Due to the progress of the Shilu project, a group of Lidong and Miao villages will gradually move out of the Shilu area in the past six months. These villages

There are a large number of young people of the right age, which are a good source of soldiers, so we plan to focus the recruitment area on Shilu and recruit local indigenous young people to join the army. This can also play a certain role in promoting local social stability.

.”

The enlistment of young Li and Miao people into the army is nothing new in the Hai-Han militia. Although the Li and Miao ethnic groups had a relatively deep political conflict in the past, the militiamen of the two ethnic groups have not been able to compete in the melting pot of the army.

The barriers were quickly eliminated and they became partners who fought side by side and shared life and death. And the comradeship relationship established in the army gradually affected the outside world. In the past, the frequency of fights and even armed conflicts between the two races that were commonplace has also increased.

The relationship declined rapidly and relations gradually normalized.

It’s no wonder that Haihan gave great support to the Li and Miao villages that were willing to cooperate, allowing them to obtain better economic benefits and living security through labor, and canceled many of the discriminatory regulations promulgated by the Ming Dynasty.

All ethnic groups are treated equally. After being able to have enough food, clothing, and basic dignity, the Li and Miao ethnic groups no longer have to fight for living space and production resources. Most of the young and aggressive young men have joined the militia as soldiers.

Peace comes naturally.

However, in previous conscriptions, in order to ensure the interests of the Han people who make up the majority of the population, the military generally recruited Han soldiers. The proportion of militiamen from the Li and Miao ethnic groups in the militia is currently only maintained at close to 30%.

In this army expansion and recruitment plan, the military hopes to recruit more young men from the Li and Miao ethnic groups to join the army, and hopes to use this to alleviate the pressure faced by the Shilu project in terms of resettlement.

No one raised objections to the military's arrangement, and the Ministry of Civil Affairs even expressed their appreciation. Ning Qi continued: "That's fine. The Shilu project requires the relocation of two to three thousand people from the Limiao Mountains."

There are so many, half of them are young people. If your army takes away those young people, it will be easier for us to arrange immigration."

Due to the military's full preparations in advance, this military expansion bill was passed without much difficulty at the executive meeting. However, the plan to provide military assistance to the Ming Dynasty derived from the military expansion bill, because it involved

There were too many departments and preparations required, and no clear conclusion could be drawn at the meeting. Special research would need to be conducted at another time.

After entering July, good news finally came from the Indochina Peninsula across the sea. After three months of continuous fighting, the North Vietnamese troops finally basically wiped out the main force of the remaining resistance forces in South Vietnam, and from Hue

The coastal areas south to Nha Trang were also cleared, and a large number of states and counties changed their flags and were re-incorporated under the rule of the Thang Long court. Among the four ports in the south proposed by the Hai Han side before the war, Da Nang and Quy

The two places in Renggang have returned to the control of the northern court and can now enter the development stage.

This news is both painful and happy for the Executive Committee. The happy thing is that these long-coveted coastal areas can finally be brought under its control, but the painful thing is that Haihan currently does not have enough resources to use.

For the construction of large overseas engineering projects. At present, almost all the technical personnel and main construction teams of the Ministry of Construction are concentrated on the road construction site from Changhua to Shilu, and the first phase of this road will last at least until the end of the year.

It is possible that some personnel will be sent to Annan to take charge of the port construction work. Although everyone is very excited about the addition of two new overseas territories, the Shilu project is the top priority at this stage and cannot be lost. Annan port is the priority

The level can only be ranked at the back.

However, the Executive Committee is not in a hurry, but others are starting to become anxious. In order to develop Da Nang and Quy Nhon Port, Annan State even sent a special envoy to Sanya to discuss with the Executive Committee the possibility of cooperative development.

The special envoy sent was not an outsider. He was the refugee Zheng Lin who was rescued by the fleet originally sent to Black Tu Port on the Thanh Hoa coast. Because this person was related to the powerful North Vietnamese official Zheng Lin, the Executive Committee was asked to follow up.

The North Vietnamese court established a relationship, and there was later all-round cooperation in politics, military, and economy. After Zheng Lin returned to Thang Long Province, because he had lived in Black Tu Port for a period of time and had a better understanding of the Hai Han people, he was appointed as

The special envoy was responsible for handling affairs related to Hai Han. After the Thang Long Palace recognized Hai Han’s actual control over Heitu Port in the name of a concession, Zheng Lin was appointed as an observation envoy and lived in Heitu Port for another year.

Of course, the treatment Zheng Lin enjoyed during this period was fundamentally different from when he fled. Basically, the standards of food and accommodation were the same as those of travelers, and this standard of living exceeded his treatment in Shenglong Mansion.

.When Thang Long Palace transferred him back to appoint a new position, Zheng Lin was actually quite reluctant to leave Heitu Port.

The new task assigned by the Annan court to Zheng Lin this year is to discuss with Haihan a cooperative development plan for the four southern ports. The reason why the Annan court was so actively involved was mainly because of the three northern ports that Haihan presided over the development of.

The economic benefits generated allowed Annan's rulers to see the convenience and potential of sea trade. However, several of the most prosperous coastal trade ports in the south, Dong Hoi, Hue, and Hoi An, have all been destroyed by the war, and a large number of Ming dynasties

The merchants chose to leave Annan and return to the Ming Dynasty or settle in Sanya. The Portuguese did not have the ability to independently build large ports on the southern coast for the time being. The maritime trade in the southern region almost came to a standstill. This made people who once had high hopes for southern maritime trade

The Annan court was very dissatisfied.

The Annan rulers originally planned to let the Haihan people take the responsibility for building the new port. Although this would put the ownership of the land under the control of the Haihan people indefinitely, it would at least have a chance to save Annan's financial situation and make the already empty

Annan's treasury can be replenished. However, the Haihan people did not know what medicine they took. In the past, they would quickly start building the port after reaching an agreement. For fear that Annan would regret it, Tushan Port even negotiated while building.

came to seize the concession rights. But this time, a few months after the Battle of Hue, there was no further movement from Hai Han. The coastal area they claimed before the war was still deserted, and no construction was planned.

There are signs, which makes the Annan rulers a little bit restless.

Although the Haihan people occupied the three ports of Black Tu, Tushan and Yong'an in the northern coastal area in the name of concession, the Annan court still obtained a lot of profits from the import and export trade of these ports - of course a considerable amount.

Part of it went directly into the pockets of the powerful people who monopolized trade. Although Haihan's trade with Annan was almost an example of the trade scissors gap between industrial countries and agricultural countries, for the Annan court, which was so poor that it was about to pawn its pants, these

The maritime trade brought by the port still brought certain profits, giving Annan the opportunity to exchange the less valuable local commodities such as rice, wood, medicinal materials, ivory and other commodities for better returns.

After the fall of the Hue regime, the Annan court would certainly not be satisfied with import and export trade limited to only three ports. There were also many good things that could be sold to the Haihan people in the thousands of miles of mountains and rivers in the south, provided that there were large commercial ports in the area.

However, after waiting and waiting, the Haihan people who got the land to build the port have not started construction. Seeing that waiting like this is not a waste of time, the Annan court finally decided to send an envoy to Sanya to explain the matter clearly.

Zheng Lin does not have many old acquaintances in the Sanya area, and Wang Tom is one of them. Wang Tom was the commander of the special fleet that rescued Zheng Lin. Therefore, the executive committee also included Wang Tom in this reception.

Among the staff, Zheng Lin showed no pretense as an Annan official after meeting Wang Tom. He still called him his benefactor and thanked him repeatedly for saving his life. Wang Tom declined for a while before Zheng Lin changed his address to "brother Wang".

In addition to Tom Wang, Schneider was also responsible for receiving the Annan envoy. It was only with Schneider, a calculating old fox, on the scene that Tom Wang was willing to reluctantly accept this task that should have been handled by the diplomatic department.

.

After three rounds of wine and five dishes at the reception banquet, Zheng Lin took the initiative to bring up the business: "Among the many agreements reached between you and our country last year, one of them mentioned assisting our country in rebuilding the southern commercial port and reopening the sea after the war.

As for the terms of the trade, now that the war in the south has been basically settled, I don’t know when you are going to start implementing these terms of the agreement?”

Schneider responded: "Special Envoy Zheng, let me correct you on a mistake. This is not that we are assisting your country in building a port, but that your country has provided these coastal areas to us as a concession in the form of military collateral.

As for when to start building the port, there was no clear timetable negotiated at that time. These contents were all evidenced by transcripts at the time and are well-documented. Special Envoy Zheng should not just open his mouth."
Chapter completed!