Chapter 898 Investigation Mission
Except for the two purebred foreigners Johnson and Morgan, this group of people who traveled from another time and space will have an innate fear and even hatred for Japan, a small country in East Asia. However, in the current era, Japan's national power is far inferior to that of the Ming Dynasty, and it is difficult to say that it poses any direct threat to Haihan. But if there is a chance, I believe that not only Shi Diwen, but also Qian Tiandun will not object to stepping on him.
But such verbal arguments are indeed difficult to convince the other party, because everyone is now talking about maps drawn hundreds of years later. In fact, not much is known about the actual situation of the local area in this era. Many members of the travel team have traveled to Jeju Island and Kyushu Island, but the way of traveling to eat, play, take photos, and provide very little military information, and it does not have much reference value.
"Anyway, I have to make a trip in person in the end." Qian Tiandun finally gave up his efforts to persuade Shi Diwen and turned to seek a more scientific way to resolve differences: "Seeing is believing, is it good or not, and where should I go?" We still need to conduct on-site inspections before we can find out. This is also the intention of the Military Commission and the General Staff.”
Shi Diwen said: "It's a pity that we can't gather the six members of our North American team now. Otherwise, we can take this opportunity to relive the fun of visiting Black Earth Port."
The six-person North American team that was originally responsible for going north to inspect Annan's Black Earth Port have now gone their separate ways. Wang Tom became the navy commander and spent more time on Hainan Island. The two foreign doctors are currently in Sanya all year round. On the one hand, they provide medical protection for the travelers, and on the other hand, they teach their apprentices their medical knowledge, especially surgical skills. Qiao Zhiya works as a supervisor in Changhua Industrial Zone and is very likely to follow the path of politics in the future. Roger is far away on Amborna Island in the South China Sea, guarding the gate of the South China Sea for Haihan, and he probably won't move anywhere in the short term. And Shi Diwen went north to Zhejiang this time, and his future development direction is probably all the way north.
Qian Tiandun shook his head and said: "Don't say that Tom and the others can't participate, even you can't go."
Shi Diwen said in shock: "Why can't I go?"
"Things must be prioritized. Now that the East China Sea has not been cleaned up, how can we allow you to take the time to travel to the north?" Qian Tiandun joked: "If something happens to the East China Sea while you are gone, will you let me To command the naval fleet? ”
Shi Diwen frowned and said: "Whether I go or not is not a problem, but if I don't have someone to conduct on-site inspections, I'm afraid there will be problems."
The "own people" Shi Diwen refers to naturally refer to the time travellers. With Haihan's current navigation ability, it is not difficult to send an expedition team composed entirely of naturalized citizens to carry out the mission. However, trained naturalized citizens may not be able to fully understand the travelers' intentions for future development. There will inevitably be deviations in focus. As for recording methods such as videography and photography, it is even less likely to rely on naturalized people. These priceless equipment must be operated by time travelers.
Qian Tiandun asked: "If you were to recommend a naturalized civilian officer to lead the team, who would you choose?"
"Wu Sen." Shi Diwen didn't spend too long thinking before he answered: "Both his ability and loyalty are excellent, and there is currently no more suitable candidate than him in this fleet. But in the Northeast Asian waters It is a completely unfamiliar area for him, and this may be a big test.”
Although Wu Sen was a demoted general from Annan, his performance after joining the Haihan Militia has always been praised by military senior officials. His professional quality and loyalty are beyond doubt. In this battle to the north, the battle at Zhujiajian Island was independently commanded by Wu Sen.
"It is also an unfamiliar area to us." Qian Tiandun corrected him: "Prior to this, including you, Tom Wang and the group of people from the Shipping Department, they should not have run ships in the waters near the Korean Peninsula and Japan. We don’t have any advantages in this aspect.”
"But can you rest assured if Wu Sen leads the team?" Shi Diwen still felt a little unsafe: "This round trip is a voyage of thousands of nautical miles, and it is an inspection mission to an unfamiliar area. I think we still have to have our own Only people can take charge.”
"Don't worry, the Military Commission has already selected the person." Qian Tiandun said with a smile: "Chen Yixin will be coming from Penghu in a few days. The intention is to let him lead the team to carry out this inspection mission."
"The bosses really value young people!" Shi Diwen couldn't help but sigh.
In fact, Chen Yixin is already twenty-five years old, and he cannot be said to be particularly young. It's just that he was still a teenager when he participated in the time travel, and the impression he gave people has always stayed at that time. In terms of age, Qian Tiandun is only more than four years older than Chen Yixin. However, Qian Tiandun has been entrusted with important responsibilities by the Executive Committee since time travel, and he has become a high official in overseas colonies early. He is also a professional soldier, so he is indeed much better than a junior like Chen Yixin in terms of ability and experience. However, with the rapid expansion of Haihan's territory, Chen Yixin is getting more and more opportunities to exercise his own skills. In the future, he should also become a general who will expand territory for Haihan.
After Haihan has gained a foothold in Zhejiang, it will not only open the market door in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, but will also use this as a basis to establish a maritime trade network radiating to Northeast Asia in the future. It is definitely not enough for Qian Tiandun and Shi Diwen to be in charge here. In the following period, more travelers and naturalized cadres will inevitably come to Zhoushan to establish a more complete management organization. .
Chen Yixin had an extremely fulfilling first half of 1633. He had hardly stopped to rest since he led the team to scout Tamsui in January. Haihan successively conquered the Tamsui and Chicken Coop areas originally controlled by the Spanish in late February and early March. While developing Taipei, Qian Tiandun and Shi Diwen led their troops north to Zhejiang in early April, while the defenses of Penghu and Taiwan , and temporarily handed it over to Chen Yixin.
Before that, the area under Chen Yixin's sole jurisdiction was only a small place like Wanshan Island. After arriving in Fujian, he mostly assisted Qian Tiandun. All of a sudden, the defense of three new ports including Kaohsiung, Tamsui, and Jilong were handed over. Only when he got it in his hands did he truly understand the difficulty of being a military director. However, the military had already made plans for his appointment, and it didn't take long before Yu Yao, who was more experienced, was transferred from Guangdong.
Chen Yixin received instructions from the Military Commission at the same time that he would be transferred to the north at the appropriate time. Chen Yixin had no objection to this. Transferring to the north meant that he could work with Qian Tiandun again. This was actually a good arrangement for him. With Qian Tiandun in charge of the overall situation, he no longer has to worry about making mistakes due to lack of experience.
On July 3, when the Ma Yue incident broke out in the East China Sea, Chen Yixin, who was in Penghu, finally received a transfer telegram from Sanya. The Military Commission asked him to complete the handover of work with Yu Yao as soon as possible, and then go to Zhoushan to accept the new position and Task.
"Good thing, brother!" Yu Yao exclaimed at the farewell banquet for Chen Yixin: "Once Zhoushan is captured, then we will go north to the Jiaodong Peninsula, or we will go northeast to expedition to Korea and Japan. No matter which direction we go, we will be a big country from now on. Maybe the Japanese Governor-General of Korea will have your share in the future." Chen Yixin said with a smile: "Even if there is such a position, it will be General Qian and General Shi who will take my turn."
Yu Yao shook his head and said: "Don't just focus on the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea. We haven't officially set foot on the mainland yet. When we really start to compete in the Central Plains in the future, Qian Tiandun and the others will at least be the commanders of war zones. The Military Commission will not send them overseas to live in peace and happiness.”
Chen Yixin thought to himself, then I should be sent to Japan and Korea to become the emperor? However, although he felt a little unhappy, he thought that Yu Yao must have been drunk too much, so he didn't care about the fault in his words.
On July 5th, Chen Yixin packed his luggage and set off by boat from Magong Port in Penghu to go north. He only stopped in Wenzhou for one day for supplies, and then sailed directly to Ningbo. In the middle of the month, Chen Yixin successfully arrived at Dinghai Port, Zhoushan.
"The Military Commission hopes that you can lead the team to complete the preliminary inspection in Northeast Asia." Qian Tiandun explained the situation to Chen Yixin at the reception banquet: "As for the purpose of the inspection, it is mainly to help us choose where to stay in Northeast Asia. ”
"Is there any alternative place now?" Chen Yixin asked smoothly.
"Hang up the map." Qian Tiandun put down his chopsticks and ordered immediately. The place where he held a banquet for Chen Yixin was in the headquarters of Dinghai Fort. Military maps were always available. At that moment, soldiers brought a large map of Northeast Asia and hung it on the wall. It is a habit in the military to hang up the map and discuss it whenever business is discussed, even during meals. Chen Yixin has long been accustomed to this. He is not surprised to see such a situation. Instead, he is a little friendly, because after Qian Tiandun was transferred to the north, few people usually hang out maps to discuss business matters during meals.
"The inspection area this time is mainly the west coast of Kyushu Island, Japan, the Korean Strait and the southern tip of the Korean Peninsula. There are two key places for inspection." Qian Tiandun introduced: "One is Jeju Island and the other is the Wudao Islands. What do you have? Opinion? ”
Chen Yixin looked at the map and said: "These two places are close to North Korea and Japan respectively. They should have their own advantages and disadvantages!"
"Young people, don't be so tactful." Shi Diwen, who was next to him, said to Chen Yixin with a smile.
"Just say what you think, don't have any scruples." Qian Tiandun also encouraged.
Chen Yixin said: "If you consider it from the perspective of immigration, Jeju Island is more suitable. Not only can we introduce immigrants from the Korean Peninsula, but the Jiaodong Peninsula can also be used as a source of population. The voyage from the Jiaodong Peninsula to Jeju Island is slightly longer than to Zhoushan. In recent times, the climate conditions are more suitable for northern immigrants to settle. Anyway, after occupying this place, we will not return it. I think we should consider the needs of long-term development. Although the Goto Islands are close to Nagasaki, their development needs. Space is limited and will be abandoned sooner or later. If we really need to occupy a seaport in the Kyushu region of Japan for use as a long-term base, I suggest that it is better to target Sasebo Bay, which is still an undeveloped fishing village. We must occupy the local area. It will be relatively easy. There will be no problem in stationing a large fleet or building a commercial port.”
"You've done your homework in advance!" Qian Tiandun knew that he was prepared when he heard Chen Yixin's answer. Judging from his choice of Sasebo Bay, his understanding of the geographical environment near Kyushu, Japan, has even surpassed that of Shi Diwen.
"I just study blindly when I have nothing to do." Chen Yixin responded with a smile.
After hearing this, Shi Diwen also slapped his forehead and said: "How could I forget this place, Sasebo? This is the third largest naval base of the United States in Japan!"
Although Sasebo is unknown in this era, in its original history, after Togo Heihachiro discovered this treasure land during a survey in 1883, the small fishing village quickly developed into an operational base and shipbuilding center of the Imperial Japanese Navy. In 1889, the "Sasebo Fort" was established here, making it the defense center of Western Japan and the main base for sending troops to the Asian continent. In the Battle of Tsushima Strait in 1905, the Japanese combined fleet that defeated the Russian Baltic Fleet was dispatched from this place. After World War II, this place was spotted by the Americans and became their own. Of course, the American watchdog and Japan's naval fleet are also stationed in this harbor.
In terms of port conditions, this place is naturally more than eight streets behind the Goto Islands. Only Kure Port in Hiroshima and Yokosuka Port in Yokohama are larger than the American naval bases in Japan. If Haihan wants to station a fleet in this area in the future in order to control the Japanese Islands and the Korean Peninsula at the same time, then Sasebo Bay is indeed more suitable than Jeju Island.
But to be honest, this is still only a theoretical choice, and the real situation still needs to be investigated on the spot. Chen Yixin only rested for three days on Zhoushan Island before preparing to hit the road.
As the commander of the East China Sea Fleet, Shi Diwen assigned four ships for this expedition, including an exploration-class warship, an expedition-class warship, a light reconnaissance ship and a comprehensive supply ship. The person in charge of commanding the fleet was Wu Sen, a previously selected candidate. The expedition personnel included 186 sailors and a fully strengthened platoon of special operations battalion soldiers. In addition, there were three military doctors, a cook, a blacksmith, and There are eight carpenters and other support staff, and six people from the Ministry of Construction, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Commerce and other units, totaling about 260 people.
Compared with the team of only seventeen people who inspected Black Earth Port back then, the current expedition team can be said to be strong and strong, fully demonstrating the improvement in strength brought about by Haihan's own development in the past few years.
(End of chapter)