Chapter 401 Developing the Four Southern Ports
Regardless of the true thoughts of the viewers who watched this documentary short film, the executive committee’s goal of having the publicity department work overtime to edit this film has been achieved. Because there is no more intuitive information dissemination channel, these spectators will add a lot of their own subjective opinions to the word-of-mouth communication, and after a lot of embellishing, when the news spreads, the Haihan Militia will almost be mythical. The victorious heavenly soldiers and heavenly generals.
However, during the period when the Haihan militia went on the expedition, the work at the base camp did not stop. Haihan's jurisdiction was expanding to the outside at an alarming rate. In the first three months of this year, the Ministry of Civil Affairs introduced a total of more than 6,500 immigrants from mainland China, and more than 3,300 immigrants from Annan. In addition to other people who came to Sanya on their own through various channels, in 1629 the first The population growth in the first quarter has exceeded 10,000.
At present, the total population of the areas under the jurisdiction of the Executive Committee has exceeded 30,000, and three-quarters of them have obtained Haihan naturalized citizenship. Although the Executive Committee verbally recognizes the existence and validity of dual citizenship, there is no doubt that a considerable number of people with naturalized citizenship have gradually abandoned their status as "Ming Dynasty citizens". In particular, the Li and Miao ethnic groups who came from mountainous areas and the foreigners from Annan have a very high degree of recognition of their new identities. For them, Haihan is a powerful and trustworthy regime. As for the Ming Dynasty or other What kind of regime - I'm sorry, the people have never felt the benefits brought by these regimes, only endless taxes and labor.
For ordinary people, especially those refugees who came to Sanya due to famine and war, the social system under the Executive Committee that takes care of food, housing, birth, old age, sickness and death is simply a paradise. For some people, the policy of not allowing private land sales is a pity, but fortunately, under the governance of the Executive Committee, there is not only one way to survive on the land, there are too many jobs for people to use their labor to make a living. In exchange for the necessary living materials. As long as they obtain the native place of naturalized people, the living standards of the people will not only be struggling on the line of survival. They can see the hope of improving their living standards from the old naturalized people who joined the Haihan system in the early days, and even some Opportunity has evolved from a laborer who governs people to a laborer who governs people.
The southern part of Hainan Island, including Yazhou, has always been sparsely populated. In addition, the majority of the naturalized people recruited in the early stage came from poor backgrounds. These two conditions made it difficult for the Executive Committee to implement what was originally regarded as The land policy, which was a major problem, did not encounter much resistance, and some external civil forces that tried to fight against the executive committee were eliminated by the militia with lightning speed before it took shape. And the local government of the Ming Dynasty, the only one that can support the landlord class, has now become the spokesperson of the Haihan Executive Committee. Naturally, it will not stand up to the Executive Committee, the most powerful landowner on the island.
It is precisely with the land policy of collective ownership as the basis that the executive committee can organize high-efficiency agricultural production, thereby liberating more laborers from the land and investing it in the manufacturing, commerce and service industries, allowing Sanya to advance It has entered the atmosphere of modern industrial society for several years.
With the gradual putting into use of the Sanya Inland River Port, the maritime trade driven by the two ports of Sanya Port and Shengli Port has become increasingly prosperous. After nearly two years of implementation, the free port policy formulated by the Executive Committee for the Sanya region has attracted a large number of Ming maritime merchants to gradually shift their trading locations from Guangzhou on the mainland to Sanya. Not only can you buy various commodities from the West, but more importantly, the origin of Haihan commodities is much larger than in Guangzhou, and you can also trade by barter. There are no high taxes and no bullying from foreigners in Sanya, which is much better than ports such as Manila and Batavia where foreigners call the shots.
The increasingly mature financial system of Haihan Bank has also provided great convenience for the development of maritime trade in Sanya. Maritime merchants with large trade volume can travel across the ocean with just a banknote issued by Haihan Bank. I will no longer be afraid of carrying boxes of gold and silver outside. Now, in addition to Guangzhou, branches of Haihan Bank have been opened in Huizhou, Chaozhou and Zhangzhou in Fujian, which can provide local merchants with deposit-and-exchange financial services. More and more maritime merchants are becoming accustomed to using Haihan Bank's banknotes. Even among some well-connected businessmen, the freely transferable bearer Haihan Banknotes have initially acquired the ability to make monetary payments.
This significance is much greater than the circulation vouchers used within the jurisdiction. The function of circulation vouchers is more to allow the financial sector to control the local economic scale and price levels, which is a mandatory financial measure. And banknotes have begun to have payment capabilities externally, and their reliability comes from users' self-recognition, which means that Haihan Bank's credit is enough to begin to absorb more funds from Daming and invest in the construction of Hainan Island. Come. As for how to absorb more funds, the operation of "Qiong Lianfa" over the past year has provided the best template.
At present, the capital invested by "Qiong Lianfa" in Sanya has far exceeded the principal of more than 100,000 yuan when it was established a year ago. The latest data provided by Schneider was 420,000 yuan, which covers more than 20 Investment projects include infrastructure, water conservancy, transportation, grain, spices, sericulture, shipbuilding, transportation, manufacturing and other fields. Among them, projects such as infrastructure, spices, and transportation that have achieved quick results have begun to make considerable profits. Shareholders have long since put all their original scruples behind them. Now, whenever the Ministry of Commerce launches any new projects, "Qiong Lianfa" will subscribe first without hesitation. However, while the investment in "Qiong Lianfa" was still in the ascendant, business leaders headed by Schneider were already planning new investment areas.
"These are Pipa crabs and drumsticks sent from Lingshui. They are said to be local specialties. You are in for a treat today." Tao Donglai greeted everyone: "Use your chopsticks and let's talk while eating!"
Pipa crab, also known as "Qiong beast crab", is a rare straight-moving crab. This strange-looking crab has a large body and fat meat, and is delicious. Chicken leg snails are commonly known as "beauty legs" and have plump and tender meat. However, both of these seafood are only produced in the Lingshui area, and this season happens to be the peak fishing season. Lingshui County is only separated from Tielu Port by a bay, with a sailing distance of more than ten nautical miles. The local fishermen also know that the area under the Haihan rule in the south is relatively wealthy. Since last year, they have been transporting their catch to Tielu Port and even Victory Port. For sale, specialties such as pipa crabs and drumstick snails will not be missed.
Today's occasion was led by Tao Donglai, who brought together the executive committee and some heads of economic and trade units to hold an outdoor dinner party on the front deck of the "New World". The theme was to discuss the next investment direction, or It would be more accurate to say the next steps for external expansion.
After everyone ate and drank for a while, Tao Donglai brought up the topic: "As you probably know, we have basically controlled the southern coastal areas of Hainan Island, and are gradually controlling the waterways in and out of the Beibu Gulf. Our next main goal is Obtain actual control of the sea area from Guangzhou to Hainan Island and southward to the east of Indochina Peninsula. Considering the long coastline of the east coast of Indochina Peninsula, we have selected four new port areas in the south before this expedition. As a springboard. We have finished the battle, and now we need to consider how to save time, effort and money to build these places. I hope everyone can brainstorm and come up with ideas."
"Why don't we first consider developing near the Pearl River Estuary? We now have more than 50% of immigrants and 60% of maritime trade passing through the waters of the Pearl River Estuary, but we only have a small Wanshan Port there, and it is a military-civilian port. Although we defeated Liu Xiang at the end of last year, the defeat was only by Liu Xiang, and the 'Eighteen Zhi' had not yet been defeated by us. The garrison at Shanggang probably can't stop them at the Pearl River Estuary." Yue Zhiyun from the Ministry of Shipping first questioned Tao Donglai's view.
"The establishment of a large stronghold at the Pearl River Estuary, especially a stronghold with obvious military purposes, is a relatively sensitive matter for the Ming Dynasty. We must be more cautious." Tao Donglai explained: "Of course this is not the case. It means we won’t do anything. In fact, the Guangdong Office has started studying the local situation this year to see if we can find a solution that can be recognized by the Ming Dynasty government so that we can build a larger seaport base near Hong Kong Island. Don’t worry, if there is any clue about this matter, the first non-military unit to receive the news will definitely be your shipyard.”
The Executive Committee has long wanted to establish a large-scale military stronghold at the Pearl River Estuary. The emergence of Wanshan Port is more like a transitional measure. The development of Hong Kong Island with a larger area and better comprehensive conditions is the real goal of the Executive Committee. The target you want to get your hands on. In order to achieve full control over the waters of the Pearl River Estuary, the navy must continue to expand its scale on the existing basis. This is why Tao Donglai said that the shipyard will be the first non-military unit to get the news.
Ning Qi also added: "Whether it is the northern part of Hainan Island or the area near the Pearl River Estuary, the Ming Dynasty's reaction must be considered at this stage, and the methods should not be too radical. As you just said, our current main trade objects and immigrants The source is still the Ming Dynasty, and the relationship with the Ming Dynasty must be kept as peaceful as possible. It is easy to break up, but it is difficult to repair it." Gu Kai asked: "To develop the area on the Indo-China Peninsula, this investment is required. Compared with the development of Hainan Island, is it still the same as before, with the introduction of foreign shareholders? ”
"The current idea of the Ministry of Commerce is to copy the previous practice of establishing 'Qiong Lianfa' and set up a similar institution in Annan to invest in the development of the southern coastal areas of Indochina." Schneider explained: "However, in view of the actual situation in Annan, There probably won’t be many real businessmen among the shareholders of this organization.”
Regardless of whether it is South Vietnam or North Vietnam, foreign trade has always been firmly controlled in the hands of a very small number of privileged classes. Therefore, the slightly powerful businessmen in Annan basically have official backgrounds, and those who have the financial resources to participate in the Hai Han development plan , most of them will also come from this group. Everyone here is basically familiar with the situation in North Vietnam. Schneider doesn't need to speak too bluntly, everyone can understand the meaning.
"If Annan officials intervene, will there be trouble in the future?" This question raised by Gu Kai undoubtedly represents the thoughts of most people here.
Although the shareholders of "Qiong Lianfa" are inextricably connected with the Ming Dynasty government, they have no foundation in Hainan Island. How the investment projects of "Qiong Lianfa" in Hainan Island will be operated are basically unclear to the shareholders. They can only obey the arrangements of Haihan, and their background will not be of any use here. But if development is carried out in Annan in a similar way, we have to take into account the official influence on specific project operations. After all, those places are still nominally Annan’s territory, and a large amount of manpower and materials need to be obtained locally during the development period. , if the two parties have different opinions, then Haihan's influence in this development organization may not be comparable to the degree of control over "Qiong Lianfa".
"I'm not that pessimistic." Schneider wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin, and then explained his point of view seriously: "If there is moderate official intervention, it will be greatly reduced in terms of obtaining manpower and materials, and at the same time, we will have more resources. There are many opportunities to promote our financial system and values to the Annan court. Don't forget that when they extend their hands, they also leave room for us to reach in. If such opportunities require us to sacrifice moderate benefits. If so, I think it is acceptable. After all, in the long run, we still have to find ways to keep Annan’s interests consistent with ours, so that the cooperative relationship can go further.”
"Of course, we must limit the extent of Annan's official involvement in the development project in the contract beforehand to ensure that our core interests will not be infringed. As for the formulation of the provisions, please rest assured that it will be decided by me and Gu Kai The barrister drafted it himself, leaving absolutely no loopholes for them to exploit," Schneider said, patting Gu Kai next to him on the back.
Gu Kai shrugged and said: "I must explain that I didn't know beforehand that this guy would drag me into this. I won't bear the blame!"
There was a burst of good-natured laughter from everyone, and Tao Donglai took up the topic and said: "Mr. Shi and I also had an argument about whether this method has more advantages than disadvantages or more disadvantages than advantages, but in the end I was convinced by him. Because if we want to recruit local labor and prepare materials for development on our own, it will be no less difficult than repeating the process of developing Victory Port after we crossed over, but I think no one is willing to spend the same time now. and energy to do the same thing again. With the influence of Annan officials, we can compress the time required to a quarter or even less of the estimated time. Taking such a small risk for this, I think It’s worth it.”
For Haihan, a group of time travelers, there is no feasibility issue in developing the Indochina Peninsula, only the length of time. However, this seemingly unimportant factor is the most important point for the time travelers - They chose to come to this time and space because they wanted to gain greater power and more benefits in their limited lives, and even be able to pass on their fame and wealth to future generations. However, time is the biggest obstacle that restricts their achievements.
Every time traveler wants to see the day when the Haihan regime stands in the east of the world before they grow old, and achieving this goal will require several years of struggle. If you can save time at every step of expanding your sphere of influence, In a year and a half, they may still have the opportunity to see the rise of Haihan in his prime.
Establishing a stronghold in the Indochina Peninsula is a necessary springboard for Haihan's forces to move south to compete for golden waterways such as the Malacca Strait, Sunda Strait, and Lombok Strait in the future. After controlling these choke points, Haihan can free up his hands to slowly expand in the Indochina Peninsula. The South China Sea has demarcated a sphere of influence, thereby establishing its own maritime exclusive economic zone and controlling the only channel for maritime trade between the East and the West. Of course, to achieve this goal, Haihan still has a lot of work to do, and he must even be prepared for the outbreak of a large-scale war. Old Western maritime powers like the Netherlands and Spain will not consciously withdraw from the Far East because of Haihan's appearance. area. The rise and fall of old and new forces in the region will inevitably be accompanied by the outbreak of war. Only force can determine the final ownership of these regions.
The process of achieving this goal may take five years, or eight or ten years, but if there is an opportunity to shorten the process, then even if there are some risks, it is worth bearing. This is Tao Donglai's point of view, If the introduction of Annan official power in the development of the four southern ports can help shorten the construction process, it will be a very cost-effective solution for time-travelers who are precious.
After Schneider and others took turns to analyze the pros and cons, no one doubted this general direction. After all, it is the common goal of everyone to realize the rise of Haihan as soon as possible. To this end, it is also necessary to make some sacrifices and concessions in terms of interests. Reasonable choice.
After the general direction is finalized, all that remains is the discussion of various operational details. Haihan has previously developed three ports in the Annan region: Black Tu Port, Tushan Port and Yongan Port, and has accumulated certain experience in the development of overseas ports. However, the concession area of the four southern ports is significantly larger than that of the Tushan and Yongan ports. The development zone designated by Camlan Port even exceeds that of the Black Tu Port in the north, so it will still be quite difficult to operate.
After the business department finalizes the general framework, Hai Han will send an envoy to Thang Long Palace to submit a formal cooperation proposal to the Annan court. If all goes well, construction projects at these four ports can begin in the first half of the year.
(End of chapter)