Chapter 1872 Dinghaiport Experience
There are no eternal enemies, only eternal interests. Even though there were perennial territorial disputes between the Ming Dynasty and Haihan, this did not prevent local officials from benefiting from their interactions with Haihan. What's more, since last year, the two countries have reached a new agreement on diplomatic relations, and they have jointly shelved disputes over certain areas with unclear ownership to avoid the outbreak of armed conflict between the two countries. Of course, there is actually another secret reason, which is that Ming Dynasty needs the support of Haihan on the northern front to resist the Qing offensive.
However, in the eyes of local officials in various coastal state capitals, the court's compromising attitude was more forced than anything else. Because there is a clearly visible gap in the armed forces between the two countries, it is no longer possible for the Ming Dynasty to regain actual control of these areas through war. Moreover, the benefits brought by this cross-border trade are too great, enough to make many officials give up their so-called principles.
After the normalization of diplomatic relations between the two countries, local officials in Zhejiang finally understood why the powerful officials in Fuzhou and Guangzhou in the south had been pretending to be deaf and dumb to Haihan's actions all year round, because as long as they did nothing and ignored him, they would There will be a lot of money pouring into your pocket automatically. Being a Clay Bodhisattva can bring you a lot of money for incense and keep the area under your control safe, so who would want to risk their wealth and life to fight to the death with Haihan?
What's more, those who bravely tried to challenge Haihan did not hear of anyone causing real trouble for Haihan. People who once made a lot of noise later disappeared from the officialdom without a trace. Others who chose to compromise soon discovered that their lives were getting better and better, and the benefits Haihan could provide were even beyond their imagination.
Today, officials in Jiangsu and Zhejiang no longer regard Haihan as a scourge, but as a fat God of Wealth. As for Haihan's small actions in the Zhoushan Islands and some coastal counties, as long as the money is in place, everything can be discussed.
Since last year, North Koreans have been coming to Zhoushan one after another. At first, they were just businessmen, monks and traveling scholars. They came to Zhoushan in the name of non-governmental exchanges. After confirming that the local government would not interfere between North Korea and Haihan, After the exchanges, North Korean official personnel gradually stationed in Zhoushan Dinghai Port operated by Haihan. Of course, these people will not claim that they are working for the North Korean official to avoid causing unnecessary trouble, but in fact the North Korean Guild Hall in Zhoushan Port is a semi-official embassy agency, and officials like Jin Shangjiu will It is in the guild hall to handle various diplomatic affairs with Haihan and Daming.
However, Jin Sangjiu did not come to Zhoushan with this group of North Korean students. He actually left Seoul half a month earlier than them and came to Zhoushan in advance to prepare for receiving this group of students. Of course, the main part of this work The target is the crown prince Li Shu, and the others are not qualified enough to let him, the newly appointed Li Cao, consult and run errands.
Because he completed the diplomatic mission extremely well during the Anti-Qing War and guided the Haihan Fleet to successfully block the Qing army in the Yalu River, with this credit, Jin Sangjiu was promoted from the original fifth-rank Li Cao Zhenglang to the third-rank official. Councilor Li Cao will be considered a figure with a place in the court from now on.
Jin Sangjiu did not get carried away just because he got the promotion. He knew very well where his credit came from. He knew that if he left Haihan as his backer and returned to Seoul to work as a yamen, his career in the future would have to go back to the yamen. Same old thing. If you still want to move up, you must continue to maintain close contact with Haihan, so as to gain more opportunities to make meritorious deeds.
Therefore, although Jin Shangjiu was already a senior official of the third rank, he still did not give up his original job in Zhoushan. Just as the country was about to send a group of students, including the Crown Prince, to study abroad in Haihan, Jin Shangjiu took the initiative to take over the task and returned to Zhoushan. In terms of familiarity with this place, no one in North Korea can match him, so this reception task really belongs to him.
Jin Shangjiu actually didn't know how long Li Shu would stay in Zhoushan. It might be just one night, or it might be ten days and a half. He didn't dare to inquire about such sensitive information involving security in advance. But as a minister, he naturally had to make preparations for the prince to live in Zhoushan for a long time.
Although the guild hall built by North Korea in Dinghai Port is not as large as the embassy in Sanya, considering that this is one of the main overseas offices of North Korean officials, the guild hall still has plans to receive important figures. After Jin Shangjiu came over, he ordered the layout of the guild hall to be adjusted according to the plan, and one of the courtyards was freed up as the residence for the crown prince Li Shu after he arrived in Zhoushan.
After the fleet from Seoul docked at Shengshan Island, it sent a telegram to Dinghai Port to report its itinerary. Jin Shangjiu also received a notification from Haihan officials that the prince's fleet would arrive at Dinghai Port the next day.
Although Haihan's garrison in North Korea did not send senior officials to escort Li Bo and his party, Shi Diwen would personally greet them in Zhoushan. Therefore, Jin Shangjiu had to be careful about this matter and not act too presumptuously to steal Shi Diwen's limelight.
Early the next morning, the fleet set off from Shengshan Island, passed by the west side of Qushan Island and Daishan Island, and then saw Zhoushan Island on the sea to the south. The fleet passed through the waterway between Jintang Island and Zhoushan Island, and then turned eastward to reach Dinghaigang Bay, which was guarded by a large number of small islands. The busyness of maritime shipping here also greatly impressed the North Korean students who had all flocked to the deck to enjoy the scenery.
Xie Li also boarded Li Bo's ship today and introduced him to the basic situation of Dinghai Port: "Your Majesty, please see, taking the high point called Xiaozhu Mountain that protrudes in the middle of the bay in front as the dividing line, the bay is divided into There are two parts: the east side is a civilian and commercial port, and most of the trade between my country and Jiangsu and Zhejiang is completed here, while the west side is a military port, but the East my country Sea Fleet was stationed here. All the main ships have gone north to support the war in your country, so there are only about a dozen combat ships stationed here.”
Li Xin thought that it would be a bit difficult for a dozen warships to defend the vast East China Sea, but when he thought about it, the Ming Dynasty Navy here is said to have not even left Hangzhou Bay. How can there be any opponent in the entire East China Sea? Threatens Haihan. Armed pirates? The coastal areas of Jiangsu and Zhejiang have been completely wiped out by the Haihan Qing in a few years. The surviving pirate leaders have changed their identities and joined the Haihan camp. No one will challenge the majesty of the Haihan again when they are tired of living.
Xie Li continued: "The port facilities of Dinghai Port have been expanded twice, and the third phase of the expansion project is also in progress. After completion, it will become the largest trading port in the entire East China Sea region."
Li Pu couldn't help but asked curiously: "I heard that Sanya is known as the first port in the South China Sea. How does this seaport compare with Sanya?"
This question made Xie Li think about it for a moment before he answered: "If it compares with trade volume, of course Sanya is bigger, but Zhoushan Port has more room for expansion. In ten or twenty years, maybe the situation will be different." It’s hard to say what’s going on.”
Xie Li's answer is relatively objective. Although Sanya is prosperous, the space in the two harbors of Victory Port and Sanya Port is limited. The only way to expand is to continue to build wharves upstream of the Sanya River and Linchun River, and that would not be possible. Not suitable as a harbor expansion project. In addition, Sanya is indeed a little far away from the Ming Dynasty, the main trading partner, and is far less convenient than places closer to the mainland such as Hong Kong, Penghu, and Zhoushan. Zhoushan has caught up with extremely fast development in just a few years. If If we can maintain this momentum, it is really possible to catch up with and surpass Sanya in a few years.
Li Fu asked: "I would like to ask, under the rule of Haihan, were there many ports of the size of Dinghai Port?" Xie Li was a down-to-earth person and answered honestly: "The largest port in Zhejiang is Dinghai Port. There is also Shipu Port two hundred miles south. However, further south, Jilong Port, Magong Port, Kaohsiung Port in the Fujian Strait, and Hong Kong at the Pearl River Estuary are also large-scale ports. There are six or seven ports of similar size. Speaking of ports, the Manila Port that our country captured by defeating the Spanish in the South China Sea this year is said to be the first port in the South China Sea before Sanya. Now the largest ports in the South China Sea are all Chinese ports! ”
In fact, even further down this ranking is still the port of Haihan. If the Port of Batavia on Java Island had not suffered a war in the past few years, almost half of the city was destroyed, and it could barely squeeze into the top few, but now it has Things are different now. In addition, after the emergence of Haihan, it has taken away a lot of trade shares from the Dutch, and it can no longer be ranked among the top trade ports in the South China Sea.
Li Shu sighed: "With so many major trading ports under your control, it's no wonder that your country is so rich!"
As they spoke, the fleet was already guided to the shore. Due to the special status of the passengers on board and the escort of warships, these ships all docked at the military port. And Li Bo was able to once again observe the Haihan warship docked on the shore at close range. He even noticed that there was a shipyard built in the direction of Xiaozhushan, and there were ships under construction in several large and small shipyards. sea ship.
After the ship docked, some staff from the dock boarded the ship first to confirm the conditions of the passengers, especially the condition of the Crown Prince Li Bo, to ensure that the subsequent meeting between the leaders of both parties could proceed smoothly.
"Mainly because I'm afraid that you are not in good health. This has happened before. A distinguished guest was unable to move due to severe seasickness. In the end, he had to be carried off the ship on a stretcher." Xie Li was afraid that Li Shu might misunderstand, so he asked Li Mu specifically. He explained the purpose of this link.
Li Fu expressed his understanding of this. In fact, such situations are not uncommon in diplomatic situations. Before his father wanted to meet with foreign envoys, Li Cao Yamen would also send someone to confirm with them. In fact, he is not completely free from seasickness, but he has recovered more than half of his body after resting for a night on Shengshan Island last night. At this time, his physical and mental conditions are pretty good, and he is even a little excited.
In order to show the importance they attached to the arrival of the Crown Prince of Joseon, the Zhoushan authorities even arranged a small welcome ceremony, with a band playing gongs and drums to create an atmosphere. This slightly nondescript arrangement seemed to Li Bo to be Haihan's unique way of welcoming him. Although he was a little surprised, it didn't show on his face.
Jin Shangjiu first boarded the boat to meet Li Bo, and then followed Li Bo before disembarking, so that he could introduce to Li Bo the important people who came to greet him at the dock as soon as possible.
Although Shi Diwen was the only high-ranking Haihan official present, almost all the chief officials of the Zhoushan authorities' major agencies attended today's welcome ceremony, and there was a long queue behind Shi Diwen.
After the two sides exchanged greetings, there was actually a military parade. Jin Shangjiu introduced to Li Bo in a low voice: "This is a unique ceremony of Haihan. This arrangement is only made when senior officials of Haihan meet with important foreign figures."
Hearing that he could be so valued by Haihan, Li Pu happily accepted such an arrangement. Accompanied by Shi Diwen and other Haihan officials, he inspected an army company stationed locally. The equipment of this army company seemed to be the same as the troops Li Bo had seen at the Datongjiang base. However, An Daoshi, who was following behind and watching, noticed that the rifles held by these Haihan soldiers seemed to be the same as those of the Haihan troops stationed in North Korea. Weapons are different.
The difference that Andao Shi noticed does exist objectively. Only a few elite troops are qualified to equip the advanced seven-shot continuous rifle, while the army stationed in Zhoushan is only an ordinary army, and the rifles they are equipped with are also inferior in performance. Just a flintlock gun. Of course, this gap in combat effectiveness only exists within the Haihan Army. Externally, it is still a powerful existence that is difficult to defeat.
After the welcome ceremony, Shi Diwen invited Li Bo to ride in a carriage to the location of the local management committee to attend a welcome banquet prepared for him and this group of North Korean students. Li Pu also knew that the Haihan people had always regarded hosting banquets as a conventional social means, so he thanked Shi Diwen for his warm hospitality.
"Actually, someone from Ningbo Prefecture is coming today, but because his identity is relatively sensitive, it is not suitable to appear at the dock, so I can't meet the crown prince until I get there." After getting in the car, Shi Diwen said something that surprised Li Bo. information.
Of course, Li Pu knew that the Ningbo Prefecture mentioned by Shi Diwen refers to the local government of the Ming Dynasty, and his visit to Haihan was undoubtedly humiliating to the Ming Dynasty. However, listening to Shi Diwen's meaning, it seemed that the local government had come specifically to What is it about people showing themselves a welcoming attitude?
"Ningbo Mansion...doesn't mind my visit to your country?" Li Bo asked tentatively.
Shi Diwen smiled and said: "Frankly speaking, as long as the prince does not go to Ningbo Mansion to walk around in public, they will not mind."
Li Pu suddenly realized that the purpose of sending people here from the local government was to persuade him to keep a low profile and not to wander around in their jurisdiction and cause trouble for them.
(End of chapter)