Chapter 104, Central Plains of South America
From the perspective of the development of human civilization, South America is actually a place with a not very good geographical location.
- Most of South America lies within the equatorial zone, with the northern two-thirds in the tropics. The tropical rainforest area is one of the most difficult ecological environments for humans to carry out economic activities, second only to the tropical desert. Just clearing the land in the tropical rainforest requires extremely heavy labor. The cost of building and maintaining roads and railways in tropical rainforest areas is much higher than in temperate areas - tropical roads are more likely to be swamped by overgrown plants, while railways and trains are more likely to rust. The bad climate makes the construction team more vulnerable to the plague.
Even if there are several navigable rivers in tropical rainforest areas, the river banks are mostly muddy and swampy, making it difficult to build towns. Moreover, the acidic soil of the tropical rainforest is quite poor and disease-ridden, and the climate is too humid, making it difficult for grains to grow.
To sum up, tropical rainforest areas are neither suitable for the development of agriculture nor industry. Even the construction costs of mines and transportation are extremely high. Therefore, in the tropics, the vast majority of the population lives on the coastline, while the inland plains, which appear to be densely vegetated, are actually sparsely populated.
Take Brazil, the largest country in South America, as an example. One-third of its 8.5 million square kilometers is the Amazon rainforest. Although the Amazon River has very superior shipping conditions, it is not only abundant in water, but also wide and deep. There are no dangerous shoals or waterfalls on the main river sections, and it does not freeze all year round. Direct navigation is possible between the main stream and major tributaries, forming a large and convenient river. Natural water shipping network. Unfortunately, the climate along the river is too hot and humid. Although water transportation is convenient and mineral and timber resources are abundant, the cost of infrastructure is prohibitively high, making it as unsuitable for human life as Siberia. As a result, until the 21st century, this excellent natural water transportation network remained basically idle and did not become the main artery of a civilized society like the Yangtze River and the Mississippi River.
In the south of the Amazon rainforest, there is a vast tropical savanna. Not only is it equally hot and humid, but the soil is also very acidic and must be completely modified before crops can be grown. Moreover, it is located inland and there are no navigable rivers, so the freight to transport any supplies or agricultural products here is extremely high. The Brazilians have been struggling until the 21st century, but they have not been able to reclaim this land.
Therefore, only about 600,000 square kilometers of land in the southernmost part of Brazil is arable land in the traditional sense, accounting for only 7% of Brazil's territory. What's even more tragic is that most of the 600,000 square kilometers of arable land is deep in the interior where transportation is inconvenient. The only land that has been developed relatively early is the southeastern coast of Brazil, which covers an area of 150,000 square kilometers with Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro as its core. It is equivalent to the area of four Taiwan Islands or less than half of Japan - the same as Russia. Brazil also looks vast, but its real core area is pitifully small.
Other tropical Latin American countries also have similar dilemmas - the land looks large, but there are not many places where people can actually live.
In addition to the port cities on the coastline, another densely populated area in tropical South America is the Andes Mountains. The terrain here is higher, so it is relatively cool and dry. Although the mountains are rugged, it is more suitable for agricultural development than the low-lying rainforest, so it became the cradle of the ancient Inca civilization. Even in modern times, major urban agglomerations in countries such as Colombia, Ecuador, and Bolivia are not located on the coastal plains. Instead, they are built in valleys and plateaus between the Andes Mountains, with an altitude of up to 2,000 to 3,000 meters, to avoid tropical heat and humidity. Climate Troubles.
The problem is, although high mountain areas are cooler, the construction costs of roads and railways have also skyrocketed. The rugged mountains severely limit the communication between these cities and the outside world, and also make transportation between these mountainous cities very difficult, increasing the cost of everything. The above-mentioned troubles were not too serious in the era of self-sufficient agriculture, so the Inca Empire was born in the mountains that looked down upon South America. But in the era of industrialization, it became a nightmare to develop industry and commerce - no large-scale industrial zone in the world can be built on high mountains with rugged and broken terrain!
Therefore, the Andes Mountains are like the Tibetan Plateau in America. Although they are majestic and dangerous, they cannot build an influential country.
In this case, Brazil is the Russia of South America, and the Andes Mountains are the Tibetan Plateau of South America, so where is the "Central Plains" of South America?
As you can see from the map, the three countries in South America that play this role in South America are Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina. They carved up the "Central Plains" of South America: the La Plata plain with a total area of 1.5 million square kilometers.
The southern part of this land is called the Pampas and the northern part is called the Great Chaco Plains. In modern times, most of the La Plata plain belongs to Argentina, with smaller portions shared between Uruguay, Paraguay and Brazil.
Compared with the prohibitive tropical rainforests and savannahs to the north, the La Plata Plain is located in the south subtropical and south temperate zones, with a climate similar to that of the Yangtze and Yellow River basins in China. It is the most fertile land on the continent, with flat natural prairies reducing construction costs, and moderate precipitation and a temperate climate creating a rich agricultural area. Summers are dry enough to allow traditional grains to ripen, while winters are cold enough to limit the impact of disease. But the real advantage of the La Plata plain lies in the river structure of the area - the Paraná River, the Uruguay River, and the Paraguay River merge into the La Plata River to form a huge estuary, from Buenos Aires Between it and Montevideo (the capital of Uruguay), it flows into the Atlantic Ocean. Whether it is the main stream or the tributary, most of the river sections are navigable, thus forming a natural water transportation system that is not inferior to the Amazon River.
This huge water system together covers this vast agricultural plain, the Rio de la Plata plain. The existence of rivers such as the Rio de la Plata is of great significance to this agricultural area. Even in the modern world, shipping by water still costs ten to thirty times less than trucking. Food crops with low value per unit volume such as wheat, corn, and soybeans. It can be transported downstream at low cost through water transportation, and can also be transported to other parts of the world through the ocean. The interconnected river network can form a larger economy, create more capital, and feed more people. And because of the convenient transportation, the possibility of forming a unified national power in the region has been greatly enhanced.
In the mountains and hills surrounding the La Plata River system, there are still very rich mineral resources scattered, as if waiting for large-scale development after the industrial revolution. According to the Chinese, such a unique piece of land is The so-called "foundation of hegemony".
Similar regions on earth, such as the Mesopotamia in the Middle East, the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River Basin in North America, the Yangtze River Basin in China, the Rhine River Basin in Europe, and the Ganges River Basin in India, all once gave birth to world powers and the most powerful states in the world. The cradle of developed civilization.
So, since the geographical conditions of the La Plata River Plain are so advantageous, why has it never been able to give birth to a world power that can compete with China, the United States and Russia in our history?
First of all, the situation in South America is different from that of the Old World. Early agricultural civilizations such as the Inca Empire were not born in the alluvial plains downstream of the rivers, but originated in the Andes. It is obviously difficult to directly copy the alpine agricultural model to the plains, and The level of Inca civilization was also a bit too shabby. Therefore, before the light of civilization could shine on the Rio de la Plata, the Spanish colonists broke in and declared the end of the native civilization of the Americas.
Secondly, after entering the colonial era, the La Plata River Basin, which was still sleeping in the wilderness, finally received initial development. However, because it is too far away from the Spanish motherland, and the Spanish really have no agricultural talent, the development speed is very slow. Until the Spanish colonial rule collapsed and South American countries became independent one after another, the entire La Plata River Basin The total population did not reach five million.
Due to the sparse population and the long distance and relative isolation between the various settlements, even though the La Plata River Basin had convenient water transportation conditions, it failed to form a unified country at the time of independence. Instead, it was divided between Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina. One divided into three. But by this time, insightful people from all over the world have fully seen the huge potential of this land, and also understood the principle that "he who gets the plain of the Rio de la Plata gets South America."
As a result, the longest and bloodiest Paraguayan War in South American history broke out. From 1864 to 1870, the ambitious landlocked country Paraguay, in order to dominate the La Plata River Basin and open up the sea, did not hesitate to use an enemy to Third, six years of bloody battles began with Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. Although some tactical victories were achieved, after all, the country was small and weak, and was eventually defeated and nearly half of its territory was divided.
After the war, Brazil seized a small piece of land in the La Plata River Basin from Paraguay, but Uruguay gained basically nothing. About 60% of Paraguay's population died in the war, and it has never recovered. Argentina became the biggest winner. After cutting off a large area of land from Paraguay, it occupied most of the La Plata River plain, and also controlled the mouth of the La Plata River and most of the navigable river sections. It has since become America. The "Hegemon of the Central Plains".
People of insight at the time generally believed that given time, Argentina would be able to become the king of South America like the United States.
Unfortunately, Argentina's rise appears to have ended there. Next, the country did not continue to move north, take advantage of its natural advantages, annex Paraguay and Uruguay, and completely establish its status as the ruler of South America. Nor did it realize industrialization and become a real world power. Instead, they just sat back and enjoyed the rich products of the Pampas grassland, and did not think about progress in the lazy peace. They wasted more than a hundred years. In the end, during the Falklands War, the last layer of glossy paint was exposed. , becoming the only laughing stock in the world that has regressed from a developed country to a developing country...
As a traverser regime working on the same land, the East Coast Republic certainly does not want to be as "degenerate" and unprogressive as Argentina, let alone end up as tragic as Paraguay - fortunately, in the seventeenth century, Latin America The land in the Plata River Basin is still very barren, with no How many people are inhabited can be said to be first come first served for everyone. Therefore, from the beginning of its establishment of power, the East Bank Republic has tried its best to fill the La Plata River Basin with population at all costs, and at the same time bulldozed it in the most cruel way. The local Spanish colonial stronghold is determined to secure this geomantic treasure.
The Tianjin strategy, under the strong request of the East Coast Republic, has changed from a fire reconnaissance and landing warfare exercise to a frenzied and extremely large-scale "buying piglets" operation - so far, only in Tianjin Here, a full 180,000 people have been sent to the East Coast Republic to repair the earth, and more than 20,000 people have been sent to South Africa and Madagascar to deal with Uncle Black.
Not to mention how to pay for the huge "payment" for purchasing so many people from the Eight Banners Soldiers, if there were not the magical crop [Seven-Day Quick-Growing Wheat] obtained from the Doraemon World, and the central government specially allocated 10 million yen Subsidy, use [chronological vending machine] according to Meiji With the yen price in the 1990s, a large amount of brown rice, beans and wheat were purchased as if they were cheating. With the economic scale of hundreds of thousands of people in the East Coast Republic, not only would it be impossible to pay the bills, but the local area would probably be destroyed. So many refugees poured into the country that they were overwhelmed.
But even so, the sudden influx of so many people still caused serious social problems for the East Coast Republic, and a lot of chaos broke out in the domestic order... However, in order to occupy the "Central Plains" of South America at their feet, the East Coast Republic It's better to bite the bullet and fight - after all, after missing this God-given opportunity, I don't know when it will be possible to acquire such a large population at such a low price next time.
In fact, the prosperous trade along the coast of Dagukou was almost coming to an end at the end of November... Wang Qiu opened a porthole and felt the cold wind outside, which was getting colder day by day, and the wind that blew up from time to time. snowflakes, all of which reminded him: winter is coming!
——The Bohai Sea in the winter of the Little Ice Age in the late Ming Dynasty was far colder than the same season in later generations!
Nowadays, the ponds near Dagukou Camp have begun to freeze, and ice floes are gradually appearing in the Haihe River. Under the strong northwest wind, even the sea surface will be frozen before long - by that time , the landing troops must be withdrawn. And the abnormal and prosperous scene in front of us will disappear soon... I hope that after importing so much food, a few more people here can survive!
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After completing the handover of "goods" and receiving the food exchanged for human trafficking from the "short-haired thieves", the Guan Ning Army cavalry escorting the refugees did not leave in a hurry, but planned to sell trophies and food in this market. Purchasing some commonly used odds and ends - in the past few months of the campaign, these Guanning rebels took advantage of the Jurchen Eight Banners' illustrious reputation to attack prefectures and counties in various places in Northern Zhili, and robbed a lot of valuable things. .
But these soldiers need to move around to fight, and it is difficult to carry too many bulky things. They are eager to replace them with soft items such as gold and silver jewelry.
Moreover, although they had just made a war fortune, water transportation in Beijing was cut off and department stores were so expensive that it was difficult to buy anything good even with gold and silver. Now that there is a lively market at the seaside, these Guan Ning Army soldiers naturally want to take the opportunity to do some shopping.
As a result, with the arrival of Guan Ning's soldiers, the market became more and more noisy. All kinds of objects were put out for sale at low prices - jade ornaments, porcelain calligraphy and paintings, silk embroidery, farm tools for plowing, scholars' books, businessmen's abacus, actors' musical instruments, and even official seals in the yamen, it was really There are no shortage of surprises, and some of them are obviously funerary objects dug out of graves, and the prices are outrageously low.
In addition, there are people who come to the market to sell people - not the unkempt, sallow and skinny refugees who were "wholesaled" before, but pretty young women and handsome prostitutes with red lips and white teeth, who are the "private goods" of these soldiers. "Most of them were stolen by them as personal pets, and then when they got tired of playing with them, they resold them at much higher prices. But even so, it's usually just seven or eight taels of silver for one person.
Although the addition of these soldiers made the market more lively, the buyers and sellers also felt as if they were facing a formidable enemy, and each of them quietly took out sticks and swords - these soldiers who kill people and swindle goods are not kind-hearted people. Generations, even if there are "short-haired thieves" soldiers watching, it is common for them to use knives over price disputes. As for theft and robbery, it is even more common.
As the saying goes, "The son of a rich man cannot sit down in court." Of course, all of you "high-status" time-travelers will not go to the kind of mixed market to hang out and hunt for goods, nor will you pay attention to the rags in the hands of ordinary soldiers. I'm interested in this thing, and no one is planning to get one in a place like this. The little girl is here to enjoy it, but this does not prevent them from sending reliable personnel to try to get some information from the mouths of the Guan Ning Army soldiers - these days, the lower-level officers and soldiers generally have no sense of confidentiality. They only need a few bowls of wine and flattery. In just a few sentences, everything was said. Combined with the photos taken by reconnaissance satellites, Wang Qiu and the others can tell a story about the current war situation in North China even if they are sitting in a battleship in the Bohai Bay.
"...Well, while taking control of Beijing, Huang Taiji also sent troops to conquer Xuanfu in the west and drove Emperor Chongzhen to Shanxi. They are currently facing off on the same front in Datong. Now it reaches Daming in the south, Xuanfu in the north, and the entire northern Zhili They all fell into the hands of the Great Khan of Houjin. A group of Mongolian cavalry that went deep south even looted Dezhou, Shandong... This development momentum is really... tsk tsk, the so-called 'invasion is like fire'! ”
Wang Qiu couldn't help but admire when he saw that the arrows marked on the map had riddled the Ming Dynasty with holes in such a short period of time.
"...Hey, even though we are old rivals who have been fighting each other for many years, I still have to admit that this Huang Taiji is indeed a hero of the heroic generation who can always turn the impossible into possible - even though most of the time Mainly because his opponent likes to seek death too much..."
Marshal Huangshi, who had just returned from negotiating with the Jurchen envoys, sighed while hanging his military hat on the coat rack, "...In fact, after the invasion of Beijing, Huang Taiji's situation was not as good as it seemed - — Although Guan Ning's army was ungrateful and rebellious towards the Ming Dynasty, would they be loyal to the Jurchens? If they were to take advantage of the opportunity and rebel, then these tens of thousands of Eight Banners soldiers would not be able to return to Liaodong.
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Then, although the noble ministers in Beijing surrendered in despair, if they really wanted to recruit traitors and make them become dignitaries of the new dynasty, then let alone how successful these people were, they would not be able to fail. It's different from letting go of the fat around your mouth. But if they directly torture and plunder their property, then the Eight Banners soldiers who have made a fortune will certainly be happy, but who will dare to submit in the future?
In addition, there are refugees everywhere, the spreading plague, and the water transportation is cut off... In short, Huang Taiji's entry into Beijing this time is far from being a success, but sitting on the fire pit. Without the food we brought, his situation would have been even more difficult. ”
Having said this, Huang Shi couldn't help but sigh, "...So, I feel very hesitant about the new deal that Huang Taiji just sent to propose."
"...Oh? What kind of deal, continue to trade people for food? The more the better here!" Major General Mo Ming said without hesitation.
"...No, these refugees who were driven here today are already the last batch of goods that were 'officially' organized by the Later Jin Dynasty. In the future, there will only be some private small-scale population transactions at most, and there will never be such a large-scale one again." 'Selling piglets' - after all, Huang Taiji also knew very well , population is the core productive force. If too many people are sold, the fields will continue to be abandoned next year... Therefore, after reducing the number of refugees in Gyeonggi to an affordable range, he will not Planning to traffic humans to us again”
Huang Shi said, "...but he still wanted to get more grain, cloth, soju, medicine, salt and other daily necessities from us...In fact, he originally wanted to buy even ordnance and gunpowder, but I refused. ”
"...Then what did he pay for? Could it be that he wanted to pay on credit?" Wang Qiu said with some surprise, "...or was he willing to pay for it?"
"...No, he searched the Forbidden City and found a bunch of antiques that were said to be very valuable. He even dismantled the copper turtles and golden nanmu pillars in the main hall, hoping to use these things to pay off the debt... ..." Huang Shi spread his hands, "... Do you want to do this business? "
None of you here have much interest in junk things like antiques. However, it is the recent strategic decision of the Chinese League to inject blood to the Jurchen Eight Banners soldiers this winter so that they can cause greater damage to the Ming court before they lose their use value. So after asking for advice from the rear, everyone on the front line still held their noses and agreed to the deal, but the price had to be cut as low as possible.
After all, the most effective way to reverse the conservative thinking of the Chinese people to relocate to their homeland and squeeze out a large number of people from the Central Plains is to plunge this land into a long and devastating war. To put it harshly, the more serious the destruction and panic caused by the Eight Banners soldiers in the customs, the easier it will be for the time travelers to absorb immigrants - anyway, according to the history of another time and space, they will all die...
After finalizing the deal, the atmosphere in the cabin became more relaxed, and everyone began to drink tea and discuss some unimportant topics.
"...By the way, since Huang Taiji demolished the Forbidden City, where will he live in Beijing?" Major General Mo Ming asked casually.
"...I lived in Zhongnanhai at first, and then moved into the residence of Wen Tiren, the chief minister of the cabinet. I didn't stay in the palace for long at all..."
Huang Shi replied, "...Actually, Huang Taiji has never paid much attention to enjoyment. He may not be as particular about life as the prefects of the Ming Dynasty!"
"...I think so. After all, he is also a wise king!" Wang Qiu agreed, "...I remember that when I was in junior high school, I went to the Shenyang Forbidden City once and found that Huang Taiji's daily life seemed to be very consistent with ancient times. The image of imperial life in folklore:
Huang Taiji and his several concubines seemed to live in a Phoenix Tower. The empress of the palace lived in the main room, and the other women lived in side rooms. There is a fire kang and a stove in each room. Folks say that the Empress of the East Palace bakes big cakes and the Empress of the West Palace peels green onions. This is probably what happened. Moreover, not counting the buildings that were later built in the Qing Dynasty, in Huang Taiji's era, the entire Shenyang harem was at the level of a landlord's courtyard. If Huang Taiji had sex with any woman, the whole courtyard would probably hear the sound - anyway, I It’s hard to imagine what it would be like for Xiaozhuang and Hai Lanzhu to live across the street from each other, and not see each other with their heads down..."
"...Aren't they sisters? Let's understand each other, isn't there their aunt in the first wife's house?" Huang Shi replied casually
"...That's right, Queen Zhezhe lives in the main house..." Mo Ming nodded while searching for information on her smartphone, "...I checked and found that in Huang Taiji's backyard, except for the one received from Lin Danhan, Nang Nang Queen Mother Na Muzhong, and the other women seem to be basically aunts, elder sisters, younger sisters, etc. They are really like a family in bed. This is the advantage of playing 'family bucket' - the back house is harmonious..."< br>
When this ambiguous topic was mentioned, everyone laughed in a way that only men can understand...
After chatting for a while, Huang Shi stood up and prepared to leave - as the supreme commander of the entire East Asian theater, he is now responsible for the strategy of the four battlefields of Tianjin, Shandong, Fujian and Japan, and may open up more new ones in the future. battle front. Although only Japan is in a state of hot war now, there are still things everywhere that require his decision-making and decision-making. Fortunately, we now have satellite phones and [random doors], otherwise I would be really busy.
However, just as he was going out, he heard everyone's smartphones ding. Then Wang Qiu immediately took out his phone and looked at it, his face suddenly became very strange, "...Huh? The latest military intelligence announcement, Nanjing Is there something going on here? The Donglin Party is planning to establish a new emperor!”
"...No way? Emperor Chongzhen is still alive today! Those people in Nanjing are too audacious! Where have the righteousness of the monarch and his ministers gone?"
Huang Shi blinked his eyes in disbelief, "...Moreover, the historical Emperor Hongguang of Nanming, who is now the Crown Prince of Fu, is still staying in Luoyang. Even the old Prince Fu has not been killed by Li Zicheng. Nanjing Who is the Donglin Party planning to support? ”
"... According to the announcement, they are preparing to support King Lu. To be precise, it is King Lu's second son, Zhu Yihai... This guy fled to Nanjing after the Wenxiang Sect uprising. The former King Lu and his eldest brother both He disappeared during the war, so his second son can inherit the throne..."
"...The second son of Prince Lu? How ridiculous! Moreover, even the palace and residence have been lost. No matter which vassal prince is elected as emperor, it must be more decent than him!" "...Oh, who knows what the Donglin Party is thinking? ? Maybe it’s because of his unfair reputation..."