Chapter 644: The Monarch and His Subject Play Right (Part 1)
The whole capital was in a state of joy, and there were endless rituals, music and gun salutes to celebrate the marriage.
King Cai Wu Jie celebrated his becoming a prince at King Cai's Mansion.
Wu Jie is the only prince remaining in the Dahua Empire. Everyone knows that King Cai Wu Jie is about to go overseas to found a country.
Those who followed the previous princes to go overseas were all wealthy and made a lot of money.
After Cai Wang Wu Jie appeared, many people's eyes were shining and they were ready to board Cai Wang Wu Jie's big ship.
In order to have fun with the people, Wu Jie, the king of Cai, set up a running water mat in front of the palace for three days.
He will go overseas to establish his country by the middle of this year at the latest, so he does not need to keep a low profile.
Now only by being more high-profile can we harvest more talents.
In the past few days, King Cai Wu Jie also summoned his confidants to collect a large amount of information from overseas to determine where he would go to found his country.
The areas surrounding the Dahua Empire and the places where the Dahua Empire is about to expand cannot be chosen either.
Places located around countries established by other princes cannot be selected either.
All countries are vassal states of the Great China Empire. Once a large-scale war breaks out between two countries, the Great China Empire will definitely intervene in the early stages.
As latecomers, if their power is too weak, they will be suppressed by other forces and unable to develop.
If you come from behind and become stronger, there is no other way to develop and grow through war.
King Cai Wu Jie would not choose this choice that is not conducive to the development of the country he founded.
He and his confidants stared at the world map for a long time before choosing two places that he thought were very good.
King Cai Wu Jie was celebrating, and Ma Xianglin, Fu Xiucheng and others also called friends to celebrate the improvement of their titles.
In the past few days, all the well-known restaurants in the capital have been booked by these military nobles to entertain their relatives and friends.
Many people looked at them with envy and regretted why they did not join the army and fight for their next generation's family fortune.
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Emperor Su He looked through the imperial censor's memorials, and as expected, he was criticizing these emerging nobles for being arrogant and domineering, and the generals secretly contacted each other.
Remind His Majesty the Emperor to be wary of these generals.
He angrily threw these memorials aside.
"These censors are just too full to eat.
The empire had only been stable for a few years, and these censors began to develop towards the officialdom.
I started to play the trick of telling stories based on rumors, but there was no evidence at all.
They also didn't look at the empire's system. These generals only had the power to command troops, not to deploy them.
Without my order, they can't even mobilize a single soldier."
Emperor Su He looked through the investigation report reported by Xuanwu Guard again.
These new military aristocrats were indeed a bit flamboyant in their actions, but they did not behave out of the ordinary.
The military aristocrats were more arrogant, which was also conducive to the empire's martial spirit.
When a country loses its martial spirit, it becomes a child who enters the market with money and can be robbed by robbers at any time.
There is more than just the Dahua Empire in the world. The Dahua Empire is powerful, and other countries all have friendly faces.
As the strength of the Great China Empire weakens and it has huge wealth, other countries will surely turn into wolves.
These years of continuous propaganda, coupled with the Great China Empire's foreign colonization, have made huge gains.
The Dahua Empire had a strong martial spirit, and Emperor Su He was very satisfied with this.
After his death, the policies he leaves behind are likely to change over the next few generations.
But the spirit of martial arts and other forms will be passed down forever.
Tomorrow is the imperial meeting, and these people who have made meritorious deeds will be transferred to new positions.
Others are still circulating in the military and have already taken corresponding positions. Only Wu Jie and Fu Xiucheng's arrangements have not been finalized.
Emperor Su He wanted to listen to their opinions first.
He sent eunuchs to inform the two of them that he would summon them at Qianqing Palace today.
King Wu Jie of Cai is counting how many silver coins there are in the palace.
"Our family has developed over the years, and after including my reward, we only have three million taels of silver coins left.
How can we build a country with this little money? It’s not even enough to buy rice to feed the immigrants.”
King Cai Wu Jie slammed the table anxiously. He had obtained the qualifications to found a country overseas.
If it was because of money that the country was poor and weak at the beginning and fell apart in the end, he would really not be willing to do so.
When Princess Wu saw Wu Jie getting angry, she said helplessly: "Master, our family only has so little money left, so it's not because of your lavish spending.
You often assist the families of soldiers who died and were disabled and retired.
Even if we have a lot of money, we can't afford to spend like this.
Whenever a prince establishes a kingdom, His Majesty does not personally donate a sum of money."
King Cai Wu Jie shook his head and said: "Not enough, unless like King Zhao Su Xiong, there is a mine where you can share it with the royal family or get a loan from a bank.
Just relying on the money donated by His Majesty is just a drop in the bucket."
Wu Jie's sixteen-year-old eldest son Wu Zhengxi heard the discussion between his father and his mother.
He interjected from the side: "Father, mother. I see that there is an endless stream of people coming and going in our house these days.
Many people want to follow their father and go overseas to found a country.
We have no money, but these people have a lot of money.
We can definitely buy and sell official titles and gain a lot of silver coins.
As for this official status being just a nominal one, he still has specific real power, which is in our hands."
Wu Jie, King of Cai, waved his hand and said: "These people are all extremely shrewd old fritters who will not let go of the rabbit before they see it.
It is simply impossible to play tricks with them.
Unless we can really delegate power and allow these people to become local hegemons, it's not worth it to undermine our power."
When Wu Zhengxi heard that his father denied his suggestion, he was not depressed. He suggested again: "Dad, I saw in the newspaper that there are many forces who want to control an island in Nanyang and become the king of the mountain.
They were attacked by the navy and the trouble became known to everyone.
It can be seen that many people do not have a sense of security. We can give them a sense of security and divide a place to allow them to govern themselves.
I don't think it will affect our rights. Now we have nothing and no rights to lose.
In the future, we can completely follow the example of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in pushing the favor order. If that doesn't work, we can use the army to push back. It's not easy to take back local power."
King Wu Jie of Cai heard the eldest son's suggestion, but he was very hesitant.
He didn't want to fall behind others at the start, nor did he want to undermine the kingdom's centralized power.
When he was in trouble, the housekeeper came to report.
His Majesty the Emperor will summon him at Qianqing Palace.
King Cai Wu Jie immediately changed his clothes and entered the palace by car.
He knew that this was a summons from Emperor Su He, and he must be asking him where he would choose to establish the country.
Fortunately, he had determined his goal and could discuss the matter with Emperor Su He calmly.
The speed of the car was very fast. As a prince, he took the car directly to the gate of Qianqing Palace.
Then he got off the car and headed to Qianqing Palace under the leadership of the young eunuch.
King Wu Jie of Cai saw Emperor Su He reviewing memorials.
When you are the head of a country, you are so busy every day.
Thinking that he would be like this in the future, he felt very headache.
When Emperor Su He saw King Cai Wu Jie arriving, he immediately asked someone to give him a seat.
He asked King Cai Wu Jie: "Wu Aiqing has been dealing with Russia in the northwest for many years.
You should know more about Russia. Do you think this is what we should pay attention to after we have won a great victory?"
Wu Jie relaxed when he heard Emperor Su He asking about the situation in the northwest.
This is the direction he knows best and he is not worried at all about saying the wrong thing.
King Cai Wu Jie replied in a relaxed tone: "Your Majesty, I believe that this war is just the beginning of the conflict between the empire and Russia.
Russia has great endurance and is also a country rich in population and resources.
Russia and the Ottoman Turkish Empire were engaged in a centuries-long war over the Crimea region.
Russia would not let go of even this small island, let alone the vast land in Siberia.
Russia is just weak now and chooses to endure the humiliation and bear the burden.
Once they think they are strong enough, they will inevitably choose to start a war again.
The minister believes that the empire cannot be passively defensive, the strength in the northwest region has been accumulated enough, and railways can be built to pass through the major cities in the northwest region.
The empire can take the initiative and seize strategic areas.
When the time comes, the empire can advance, attack, retreat or defend, and the choice of war is entirely in our hands.
The empire's business is too big, and it may not be able to devote all its energy to the northwest region.
Just hold on to the Ural Mountains and the Central Asian steppes.
The hinterland of the empire will not be affected by the war, and we can return to attack at any time."
Emperor Su He listened to King Cai Wu Jie's arrangements, and he had already made a decision on which general to entrust the northwest region to defend.
"Wu Aiqing is very considerate. After asking about official matters, I will next ask about private matters, where Wu Aiqing plans to establish a country."
King Cai Wu Jie did not speak, but asked for a look at the world map.
Emperor Su He immediately asked the young eunuch to move the world map in the Qianqing Palace to the right of the two men.
Cai Wang Wujie pointed to the vast area of North America and the Arabian Peninsula beneath Ottoman Turkey.
"Your Majesty, I am not very strong, and I am too old. I have lost the intrusion of youth, and I want to play it safe.
In the northern part of Zhao State in North America, according to the introductions of businessmen, it is severely cold all year round.
Only a few Indian tribes survive there.
As long as the problems of food and heating are solved, there will be no problem at all for me to establish a country here."
The Indian tribes didn't even have firearms, so Wu Jie wasn't worried at all.
He is most worried about King Zhao and Su Xiong, but the northernmost region of North America suffers from wind and snow all year round.
But the population and supplies here are not large, so it is not worthy of Zhao Wang Su Xiong's covetousness.
According to the news he learned, King Zhao Su Xiong was hoarding troops and marching toward central North America little by little.
Now to deal with the local Indian tribes, the ultimate goal is to take over the east coast of North America controlled by the English.
If Wu Jie hadn't been accustomed to this kind of climate in the northwest, he wouldn't have chosen this place.
"My other choice is the Arabian Peninsula.
This place belongs to the sphere of influence of the Ottoman Turkish Empire, but there is no established country, only numerous tribes.
I am confident that I will gain a foothold here."
Wu Jie's other choice is the Arabian Peninsula, which is full of deserts.
This area is completely desert and does not produce much resources at all. Even the Ottoman Turkish Empire looked down upon it.
He just wanted to focus on developing the harbor city as a transit point for the Chinese Empire to reach Africa and Europe.
Among the major forces around, Zhang Yuliang, the king of Fujian, looked down upon this place. Egypt had a vast desert. If he did not seize the better Ottoman Turkish Empire, he would be asking for trouble by focusing on the desert.
Both Jin and Zheng had fertile lands, and their domestic minerals were relatively rich, so they looked down upon the Arabian Peninsula.
This kind of useless place is the right place for rising stars.
He was also prepared to accept the advice of his eldest son and choose a place with a large area and sparse population, which would be more suitable.
He values places like India, Australia, and Persia more.
But these places are already in the possession of the empire, and Wu Jie will not look for trouble.
Emperor Su He listened to what King Cai Wu Jie said, and he suggested: "I think the Arabian Peninsula is better, because it is close to the sea and is the only way for the main routes between Europe and Asia.
The next two to three hundred years will belong to the age of the ocean. Guarding the ocean will lead to greater development."
Emperor Su He knew that under the great desert of the Arabian Peninsula, as long as you dig a few dozen meters with a shovel, there would be oil known as industrial blood.
Before the advent of the internal combustion engine, the role of oil was very limited.
The Arabian Peninsula is very important and is the main oil producing area. After the emergence of the internal combustion engine, its status will be greatly improved.
The resources of the Arabian Peninsula are very single. The Great China Empire does not need to control them personally. It can indirectly control these resources as long as it is controlled by its vassal states.
And because of the natural limitations of the Arabian Peninsula, which is extremely short of food and resources, no too powerful country will emerge there.
When King Wu Jie of Cai heard Emperor Su He's suggestion, he said excitedly: "Your Majesty is so knowledgeable and insightful that he is much stronger than this old man.
I followed His Majesty’s suggestion and chose the Arabian Peninsula to establish the country.
At the beginning of the founding of the country, we still need the Imperial Navy to provide me with some help."
King Cai Wu Jie wanted to ask for more help, but he thought for a while but did not say anything.
His relationship with Emperor Su He was too important, and he was likely to encounter obstacles that he couldn't overcome after the founding of the People's Republic of China.
At that time, it was the most appropriate choice to seek help from Emperor Su He and spend the favors accumulated by jointly establishing the Great China Empire.
Wu Jie felt it was too much of a loss to use this favor now.
It is better to follow the advice of the eldest son and enfeoff some nobles.
Anyway, the Arabian region is full of vast deserts with only a few oases.
He enfeoffed these nobles in the desert, and their influence on the king's power was very limited.
When Emperor Su He heard Wu Jie's request, he smiled and said: "It just happened that the King of Fujian Zhang Yuliang was celebrating the opening of the Suez Canal.
He invited the Imperial Navy to celebrate, and the Navy happened to be on the way to help Wu Aiqing win the coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula, so there was no problem at all."
Cai Wang Wu Jie saw this incident in the newspaper.
The navy set off for the expedition in May, leaving him only two months to prepare.
Fortunately, he had already prepared and chose to raise money by selling his official titles, otherwise he would not have been able to raise the resources needed to found the country in such a short period of time.
Wu Jie said excitedly: "I thank His Majesty for your generosity. I will then communicate with the navy and follow the navy to the Arabian Peninsula."
They are escorted by the navy, so they don't have to worry about the endless pirates near the route.
Wu Jie can save resources, build a usable army, and only use coastal defense artillery to defend the harbor city.
Building a usable navy is too expensive and he simply cannot afford it in the early stages.
He discussed some details of the founding of the country with Emperor Su He before leaving Qianqing Palace.
King Cai Wu Jie walked out of Qianqing Palace and saw Fu Xiucheng waiting at the door.
He and Fu Xiucheng nodded to each other and said hello.
King Cai Wu Jie couldn't figure out why Emperor Su He summoned Fu Xiucheng. (End of this chapter)