Dong Shu stayed in Phnom Penh for half a month. During this half month, representatives from the nine Han vassal states, four indigenous vassal states, and 16 large Chinese families in Nanyang came to Phnom Penh one after another.
After each representative arrives, Dong Shuheng will receive them individually.
On the one hand, he needs to get familiar with these people. As the head of the suzerain country, Dong Shuheng mainly meets and communicates with these people every year. Just like the patriarch of a big family, he has to meet with his clan members every year.
On the other hand, we do have to discuss a few things in person this time.
This time he met with the vassal states in the south. Dong Shuheng proposed the establishment of a Greater China Circle for the first time.
In fact, more intuitively, this is a confederal alliance.
The Great China Circle is dominated by the Renaissance Army, and the countries in the circle have great independent power.
These countries want to promote Chinese culture and use Chinese as one of their official languages, while they can also retain their original dialects.
The national systems of the countries within the circle are not restricted, and each country has the freedom to choose its own national system.
China is the suzerain state of all countries within the China circle.
The countries within the circle must gradually realize economic integration and military alliance.
Protect the entire country within the Great China Circle from invasion by foreign enemies, and at the same time improve the living standards of the people in the circle countries.
Mutual benefit, mutual help, sincerity, and sharing of honor and disgrace.
Specifically, in terms of economy, the first is to establish a customs union. A unified customs policy will be implemented within the alliance, while another set of tariff systems will be adopted for countries outside the alliance.
This is to establish a relatively closed economic community.
This is actually beneficial to everyone.
Nowadays, the Renaissance Army and the surrounding vassal states basically have a complementary economic relationship.
Strengthening internal trade protection is beneficial to all countries within the current Greater China Circle.
For example, after the establishment of a customs union, the ore and rice produced in Nanyang will definitely be cheaper to sell to China than other countries outside the circle, because their tariffs entering China are low, which is equivalent to reducing costs.
In addition, the cost of Chinese machinery, equipment, textiles, etc. entering these vassal countries will be much lower than that of Western products.
For some small countries, they only need to develop one industry to make their people live a good life.
For example, in Siam, as long as they grow rice well, they can sell the rice to all countries in the Greater China Circle. Then they can use the Chinese dollars they earn to import other industrial products they need.
For example, the Lanfang Republic is rich in domestic timber and mineral resources. It only needs to export these things and does not need to develop all types of industries.
Of course, there is a premise for this, that is, there must be a Chinese mainland with a relatively complete range of industrial categories as the foundation.
This large industrial body allows all countries in the circle to easily buy what they need.
And these things can't be worse than those from Xiyi.
Another economic measure is currency integration. The Hua Yuan of the Renaissance Army will be the only currency in circulation in the entire Greater China Circle.
This will avoid confusion and ensure fairer trading of goods.
This also has a premise, that is, these vassal states are relatively small in size, and everyone does not mind using Huayuan.
Also, Huayuan needs to be strong enough.
This strength can currently only be guaranteed through metal currencies.
Why Dong Shuheng suspended the full promotion of paper currency before was because he wanted to integrate currency first and then move on to paper currency after currency integration.
How can we make the vassal countries trust us if we have paper money now? Compared with a colorful piece of paper, people will definitely recognize real money more.
Monetary integration is not that easy. It also involves the issuance, exchange and settlement system of currency.
The simplest point is that the Renaissance Army needs to issue more currency.
Fortunately, the Renaissance Army has now taken control of Fuso, and its silver reserves have increased significantly.
There is also the Donghua Kingdom, which is the region with the largest silver reserves in the world.
As a large number of Chinese mining companies settle in Donghua, a large amount of silver will inevitably be imported to China.
This can basically guarantee the silver metal needed for the issuance of Huayuan.
Cultural integration is also very important.
An alliance can be more cohesive only if it has a unified cultural foundation.
But this is actually very difficult to do.
The Great Empire ruled its colonies for hundreds of years without forming a unified culture, except for a few countries established by Anglo-Saxon immigrants.
Why? Because their culture is too narrow, and the cultures born in these small European countries are very limited and exclusive.
It's just like the Western religion's self-centered thinking. Except for those who believe in me, everyone else is a heretic and heresy.
But this problem does not exist in Chinese culture. Chinese culture is very tolerant.
No matter what religion you believe in, I respect you, as long as you don't hurt each other.
The core of Chinese culture is gratitude and fraternity.
Gratitude is a manifestation of ancestor worship. No matter what religion you believe in, I only ask you to be grateful to your ancestors, worship your ancestors, and honor your parents.
Being grateful to our ancestors can enhance a nation's pride, because as an ethnic group, we all have common ancestors.
From worshiping ancestors and caring for the ethnic group, a kind of patriotism dissolved in the blood is derived.
The suzerain is our mother. We must be filial to our mother, so we must also love the suzerain.
This is acceptable no matter what religion he originally believed in.
Let’s talk about Confucianism. In fact, it plays the same role as the teachings of many religions, which is to guide people on what to do.
Benevolence, wisdom, etiquette, righteousness, and trust, these codes of conduct summarized by Confucianism, can also be accepted by many religions.
Religions are mutually exclusive. Confucianism is a science.
I am a scholar, not a religion, so there is no need for you to reject me!
Therefore, in China, both Taoism and Buddhism have been combined with Confucianism.
Even those Western religions can be combined with Confucianism.
Because as long as you teach people to be good, you cannot reject Confucianism.
Because the core of Confucianism is to teach people to be good!
Therefore, the cultural integration proposed by Dong Shuheng is possible.
This culture is based on the core of Chinese Confucianism. The filial piety, benevolence and loyalty in this thought play a great role in consolidating the status of the suzerain state.
Of course, in cultural integration, another very important prerequisite is the promotion of language and writing.
Because the spread of culture relies on words and language, it is based on words and language as the carrier.
Therefore, Dong Shuheng demanded that the vassal states in the Greater China Circle use Chinese characters and Chinese as their official languages, or at least one of the official languages.
As one of the important measures for cultural integration, Dong Shuheng planned to build fifty Confucian academies in all vassal states within five years as a base for spreading culture.
In terms of military integration, Dong Shuheng did not do a one-size-fits-all approach.
As for some of the weaker vassal states, these were mainly the small Chinese states in Southeast Asia.
The Renaissance Army can directly send troops to provide protection. But they have to bear part of the military expenses.
There are also some vassal states that originally had their own armed forces.
The original military strength of these countries is not too weak, and under normal circumstances they are capable of protecting their own security.
Such a country may choose to sign a military alliance and mutual assistance treaty with the Baath Army.
When invaded by other major powers, the Renaissance Army has the obligation to help them.
Similarly, when the Renaissance Army wants to use troops abroad, they also have the obligation to send troops.
Of course it is not as simple as this. It also includes a series of issues such as the sale of military equipment and how to use troops together abroad.
Finally, all the vassal states in Southeast Asia and Indochina held a conference in Phnom Penh.
At the meeting, Dong Shuheng publicly announced the result.
Siam and Annan also signed treaties with the Renaissance Army.
In fact, there was a similar agreement before. But this time, Dong Shuheng has officially established and publicly announced this relationship.
After the conference was over, representatives from the participating countries and major families returned to their own turf.
Dong Shuheng invested in the construction of the frontline headquarters.
The first batch of troops sent by Peng Yulin has arrived. He himself has also come to Phnom Penh. Peng Yulin will also participate in this possible war.
On October 20, the third year of the Renaissance, the Renaissance Army launched a large-scale military exercise in Phnom Penh. Siam, Lanfang, Annam and other major local countries all sent troops to participate, although they only sent some symbolic troops.
But this earned a lot of attention for this exercise, especially in Siam, where many Westerners live.
When the French marched northward in large numbers, the warning meaning of the Renaissance Army's arrangement was very obvious.
But the French don't seem to care.
Five days later, the French Far East Fleet arrived at the mouth of the Lancang River.
Prior to this, large-scale riots had broken out in the Nanqi area. Instigated by the local church, the Catholics attacked the Annan government and openly rebelled.
Annan naturally sent troops to suppress it. The Nanqi area was originally the most unstable area in Annan, and it was also the area where the Annan Kingdom had the weakest control.
Annan had just purged the forces of powerful ministers, and a large number of the remaining parties of powerful ministers were eliminated, especially in the Nanqi area.
The officials Nguyen Phuc Thi had just sent were unable to control the situation at all.
In addition, many local big families were dissatisfied with Nguyen Phuc Thi's compromise with the Celestial Empire.
These big families controlled some local armed forces, which allowed Nan Qi's uprising to achieve a huge victory.
On October 26, the French fleet launched a brazen attack on the Annan garrison guarding the Vung Tau fort.
French warships used a very despicable method.
They first asked the local Annan people to dock for repairs. The Annan people naturally refused. Moreover, the war in the Nanqi area is tense now. The defenders also know that the rebellious local Nanqi people have a close relationship with the French people.
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It was just that Nguyen Phuc Thi, who had a weak character, ordered his troops not to be allowed to take the lead in firing at the French.
To put it bluntly, although Nguyen Phuc Thi now has China as his backer, he actually has no trust in China at all.
He would not let the Chinese army enter Annan unless it was absolutely necessary.
If the French come over, they will probably want some power and gold and silver. The Chinese may not leave once they come in.
In fact, Dong Shuheng's expansion in the past two years was a bit fast, which made several vassal states in the south feel fearful.
Especially after Beiqi was excluded, everyone in Annan held a grudge.
Although Dong Shuheng did not directly take Beiqi out of Annan's hands, in the eyes of Annan people, it was no different from directly snatching it away.
The agreement signed between Dong Shuheng and the vassal country was signed by Annan, but in the alliance treaty, the suzerain country had a prerequisite for sending troops, and that was that it had to accept the invitation of the vassal country.
Nguyen Phuc Thi felt that Annan could still solve the problem of Nam Qi.
After all, the Annan people still have hundreds of thousands of troops in their hands. After the reconciliation with China in recent years, they also purchased many muskets from the Fuxing Army.
The current rebellion in the Nanqi area is mainly because it is too broad, and the local big families have deep-rooted and intricate control over the local area. Therefore, Annan's army has not yet reacted.
Nguyen Phuc Thi felt that as long as he was given enough time, his army would be enough to annihilate these people.
After eliminating several powerful officials, Nguyen Phuc Thi is now in control and is full of confidence.
Now the Nguyen Dynasty's army is gathering in Saigon. After the food and grass are ready, they can go south to quell the chaos.
At this critical juncture, the French arrived.
Nanqi's army also followed the trend and moved north. There must be some kind of connection between them.
On October 26, five warships of the French fleet forced their way into Vung Tau Bay despite the Annamite obstruction.
Seeing that the French did not declare war, the Annan garrison did not dare to fire cannons in accordance with the king's request.
After the French entered the port, they immediately hoisted the red battle flag and fired brazenly at the Annan fleet in the port.
Basically, the Annamites still had old warships in their hands, and they were all sunk in less than half a day.
However, the fort set up by the Annamites at the entrance of the harbor was unable to fire into the harbor.
Then, the French warships anchored outside the bay and the warships in the harbor attacked front and back, knocking off the Annamite fort.
In the afternoon of the same day, the French landed at Vung Tau Port under the cover of warships.
The five thousand Annan garrison guarding the port suffered heavy casualties under the bombardment of French naval guns.
The five thousand French army successfully occupied the port city of Vung Tau without suffering many casualties. During this period, they repelled two counterattacks organized by the Annamites.
On October 28, after a day of reorganization, the French began a large-scale attack on Saigon.
At this time, there was still an army of 50,000 Annamites gathered here.
After the French started the war, they said that they had been invited by the Nanqi people to help them fight for independence and freedom.
What a high-sounding reason!
Annan saw that only 5,000 French people had landed, so he was not very worried.
They believed that they could not defeat the French in Vung Tau before because they had the support of naval guns. Now they have the backing of a fortified city and their military strength far exceeds that of the French.
Therefore, until now, Annan has not asked the Renaissance Army for help.
This also caused them to miss the best opportunity.
ps: I spent a long time communicating with the editor about the new book today, and I gained a lot. Although it’s just an update, I still have to bite the bullet and ask for recommendation votes and monthly votes! Thank you again for the reward from Takemura House, and I will try to give you an extra update recently!
Hey, everyone! Also, Women’s Day is coming soon, so I wish female book lovers a happy holiday!