Chapter 2255
Although he said this, He Xi also understood that when Xu Xinsu's strength grew to a certain level, he might not be able to maintain the status quo forever. Even if Xu Xinsu can endure loneliness, his family and subordinates may not be able to restrain their ambitions.
Regarding the historical trend of this region of Fujian, it has already deviated from the original track, and Haihan has no way of predicting how its relationship with the Ming Dynasty will change in the future. Therefore, Haihan has also taken some preventive measures in recent years, such as increasing contacts with key figures of the Xu family, using subtle ways to influence their choices, and trying to avoid a situation in which a "Min Kingdom" will coexist with the Ming Dynasty on the southeast coast in the future. .
Xu Yuzhuo and Xu Jiaqi are Xu Xinsu's two most respected and trusted descendants. They are in charge of the navy and army under Xu Xinsu respectively. According to Xu Xinsu's family history, he is very likely to pass the power to the military power in the future. Descendants. Therefore, Haihan put the most effort into these two people, so that if one of them takes over the military and political power in Fujian in the future, the current stable situation can be maintained.
Of course, Xu Yuxing is also regarded as one of the key figures of the Xu Xinsu Group, but he rarely leaves Fujian. Haihan's opportunities to contact him are relatively limited, and He Xi can only take advantage of the rare opportunity of the other party's visit to Sanya to personally take action. Reception, and by the way, test the other party's views and attitudes on some important matters.
However, Xu Yuxing was obviously a figure in the city. After several days of contact with He Xi, he basically didn't reveal any flaws. It wasn't until the discussion about the possibility of the Ming Dynasty granting Xu Xinsu the title of king that Xu Yuxing's mood fluctuated slightly.
Regarding this matter, in fact, the senior executive committee and Xu Xinsu had discussed it in the early years and reached a basic consensus. Under the circumstances at that time, Xu Xinsu's goal was only to establish an armed force in Fujian that only obeyed his orders. He had no ambitions for the unattainable goal of becoming a king, so he did not hesitate on this issue. He agreed with Haihan's opinion - if the imperial court really plans to grant a king in the future, then he will accept this reward.
The symbolic meaning of this choice is to voluntarily give up the practice of dividing borders and dividing the country to establish one's own business. But Haihan didn't know whether Xu Xinsu had told his most respected nephews and descendants about this, let alone whether these descendants would agree with Xu Xinsu's choice.
Based on his own experience, He Xi concluded that Xu Yuxing either didn't know anything about it, or he didn't agree with Xu Xinsu's position, so he had emotional fluctuations.
"Zheng Zao is here." He Xi originally wanted to talk a few more words about this topic, but when he saw Zheng Zao walking towards her, he gave up his original idea and reminded Xu Yuxing first.
Zheng Zha walked closer, nodded to He Xi and said, "Master He."
Then he took the initiative to turn to Xu Yuxing, who was standing next to him inconspicuously: "Sir, why don't you introduce it to us?"
He Xi smiled and said: "Since the young prince has recognized it, why do you need me to bother you anymore?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Yuxing had already opened his mouth and continued: "My Excellency, Xu Yuxing, has met the young prince!"
"Master Xu, I have admired you for a long time!" Seeing that the other party no longer concealed his identity, Zheng Zha said straight to the point: "I heard that Master Xu has been in Sanya, but I have never had a chance to meet him. Today I finally met him through this banquet. It is really a pleasure to meet him. Nice to meet you! ”
"I'm so virtuous and capable, but the young prince of labor cares so much about me. I'm so ashamed!" Although Xu Yuxing rarely appears in public, his social skills are not bad at all. At least he has plenty of experience in dealing with dignitaries.
Zheng Zha said: "Master Xu, you don't need to be too modest. Aren't the brilliant achievements that Xu Jiajun has achieved overseas over the years all based on the military information provided by Master Xu?"
Xu Yuxing said sternly: "It's all because of my father's strategizing, good command, and the dedicated efforts of the three armies. In addition, with the help of powerful allies like Haihan, we can achieve a fairly good record. It's not the fault of the next person. Little Prince Miu" Like it!”
Zheng Zha tried it out and saw that his reply was flawless. He knew that this person was by no means a simple character. He immediately changed the topic and said: "It is a rare opportunity to meet in Sanya. I would like to invite you two to have a meal together at your convenience these days. It’s a simple meal, please show your respect to the two adults!”
He Xi already knew that Zheng Zha had the intention to invite Xu Yuxing for a private meeting, so she did not refuse immediately: "Since it is the young prince who is the host, it is better for me to be respectful than to obey."
Xu Yuxing hesitated for a moment and then agreed: "Then I'll bother the young prince!"
"Okay, then it's settled! I will order someone to send invitations to you two later."
After Zheng Zha finalized the matter, he did not delay here any longer. The matters he wanted to talk to He Xi and Xu Yuxing were mostly about military affairs, which was not suitable to be discussed in the current environment. Moreover, there are many people Zheng Zha wants to deal with on this occasion. He must seize the time to contact as many people as possible and obtain more information.
After Zheng Zha left, Xu Yuxing asked: "This young prince wants to invite us to meet in private. What exactly does he want to discuss? Does Mr. He have any clue?"
He Xi said: "Everyone knows that this young prince cares most about two things, one is military and the other is trade. His invitation to the banquet will definitely not be about business, it can only be military. In my opinion, he probably wants to propose a joint attack on a certain place!”
"To jointly send troops...there must be enough oil and water. Is there such a target around Annan?" Xu Yuxing responded dubiously: "I do know that Annan has been at war with Siam and Lancang in the west, but the problem But their battlefields are all in the inland mountains. It will be very difficult for us to send troops to fight, and we may not get any benefits.”
He Xi said: "I don't think Annan has such a plan. They know that if there are no common interests to look forward to, we will not easily send troops...at least they will not let us send troops into the inland mountainous areas to participate in the battle. If from It is still possible to go around the sea and attack the coastal areas of Siam.”
Xu Yuzhuo was not as familiar with the geography and international situation of the South China Sea as He Xi was. Hearing this, he first recalled the terrain of the Indochina Peninsula in his mind, and then slowly understood what He Xi meant. Most of the east coastline of the Indochina Peninsula belongs to the territory of Annan, and the southern end is the Champa State bordering it. The western line of Annan State borders the Kingdom of Lancang and Siam respectively. Most of the national borders are in mountainous areas, and there are many disputed areas. Several countries have been fighting endlessly for this reason for years. However, as Annan's military strength has gradually increased in recent years, the border war has been developing in a direction that is beneficial to Annan.
From the southernmost tip of the Indochina Peninsula, we skirted the coastline of the Champa Kingdom and entered the Gulf of Siam, later known as the Gulf of Thailand. If we want to launch an offensive against Siam from this sea area, we will face a large coastal plain. This will indeed be a good offensive direction.
Xu Yuxing sketched a rough sea route in his mind, then shook his head and replied: "The distance is too far. If we want to send out a large-scale armed fleet to expedition to Siam, I think it will be difficult for Annan to maintain the sea supply line of the combined fleet. This will Let the fleet take unnecessary risks."
The voyage from Fujian to Sanya is more than two thousand miles, and the voyage from Victory Port southward, bypassing the Indochina Peninsula and entering the Gulf of Siam, is more than four thousand miles. This distance would only be enough if it were a trade route, but if it was an armed fleet going on an expedition, the supplies needed for the battle would be far beyond what civilian ships could match.
Of course, such a long-distance expedition cannot rely entirely on the participating fleets to organize their own supplies. In that case, the size of the supply fleet would probably be several times larger than the armed fleet. Most of the supplies must be organized and transported nearby by Annan. According to the information Xu Yuxing has, Annan's maritime transportation capacity is obviously still far behind the implementation of such a combat plan.
Haihan has organized coalition expeditions at distances similar to this, or even farther away. For example, the fleet that set out from Sanya to aid North Korea last year had a voyage of more than 6,000 miles. However, such operations organized by Haihan have multiple ports along the way that can provide supplies and huge maritime transport capacity at their disposal. The situation is completely different from Annan's situation.
Haihan's organization and transportation capabilities have been tested in combat operations over the years, and they have trustworthy strength. On the other hand, Annan has not had any achievements in this area in the past. It is no wonder that Xu Yuxing raised questions.
"Perhaps we don't have to rush to guess the real purpose of the Annan people. Wait patiently for a day or two, and he will tell us himself." Although He Xi also thinks that what Xu Yuxing said makes sense, after all, there is currently no basis for this speculation. It's just talk on paper.
Moreover, he did not think that the target of the Annan people was Siam. In fact, part of the reason was the details mentioned by Xu Yuxing just now. Annan already had an advantage on the inland front, but it was not strong enough to launch a large-scale attack from the sea. , in this case there is actually no need to open a second battlefield and spend a huge price to invite Haihan and Xu Jiajun to send troops.
He Xi thinks that Zheng Zha may have a bigger plot, but currently he doesn't have a clear idea in his mind, he just has a vague feeling. After all, with Haihan, a successful example of rapid expansion, in front of them, the Annan people would not be able to remain indifferent while watching Haihan occupy the surrounding territory bit by bit.
Now that Annan is in power with a military general, the scale of external force expansion will only become larger and larger, and the geographical scope will also become wider and wider. The small Indochina Peninsula will sooner or later be unable to accommodate the ambitions of the Annan people.
Of course, if it was just like this, it wouldn't be enough to make Haihan feel nervous about it. As Haihan gradually promotes industrialized production in the country, the gap between the two countries' national and military strength will only become wider in the future. Annan's wisest choice is to temporarily sit as the second-in-command or in the international alliance organized by Haihan. The third-in-command position, rather than treating Haihan as a competition target for his external expansion.
But in any case, when Haihan still controls the Annan coastline, if this country wants to expand externally through sea routes, it must first obtain Haihan's recognition and support. And if Haihan does not get enough benefits from this process, or even risks harming his interests, then Annan will definitely not be able to take this first step.
He Xi also had another reason. He believed that Zheng Zha had made an appointment with him instead of meeting with a military general. That was probably not to discuss military operations, but to discuss intelligence matters in other fields.
Zheng Zha didn't know that these two people were thinking about him behind his back. After he ended the conversation with the two intelligence officers, he found Li Nai and expressed to him Annanguo's intention to set up a permanent trade agency in Guangzhou.
"As we all know, the Third Young Master has great influence in Guangzhou. I hope the Third Young Master can help our country and choose a good place to build a guild hall in Guangzhou. Of course, we will not let the Third Young Master help in vain. In return, our country will also build a guild hall in the capital. Provide Furifeng with a good piece of land for the expansion of the store." Zheng Zhao expressed his wishes to Li Nai in a concise and concise manner.
Seeing the other party's posture, Li Nai obviously hoped to get his answer on the spot, and smiled and said: "The young prince is interested! I don't know when your country plans to start, so I can inform Guangzhou in advance and make corresponding preparations. .”
Zheng Zha said: "I plan to go to Guangzhou in person after this competition."
"Oh? The young prince wants to handle this matter personally?" When Li Nai heard this, he realized that the other party paid more attention to this matter than he expected.
"I heard that Guangzhou is the most prosperous city in the south of the Ming Dynasty, but I have never had the opportunity to see its true face. This time I used the excuse of going abroad on business to experience the customs of Guangzhou." Zheng Zha responded: "If the third young master can arrange his time, It would be best if we go to Guangzhou together, and we will save our eyesight when we get there.”
Li Nai smiled and said: "It is my honor to accompany the young prince to visit Guangzhou. But...I have some things to do recently. I need to go to Danzhou after the competition. If the young prince is not in a hurry, you can go there How about you go to Sanya or go to Haikou to wait for me for two or three days, and then return to Guangzhou together after I finish my work?”
"Okay, then it's settled!" Zheng Zhuo was very happy to do things, and he could still afford to wait for two or three days. Just after the competition, he also needed to stay in Sanya to handle some diplomatic matters.
As one of Haihan's most important trading partners in the Ming Dynasty, Furifeng had actually opened a route between Guangzhou and Annan long ago, and had set up shophouses in many locations including the capital to carry out long-term trade. Of course, most of the business stores are still located in various ports controlled by Haihan for safety reasons.
Furifeng's business store in Annan Capital City is not too big. Since Annan is willing to offer land to help the store expand, Li Nai is also willing to give him a favor. As for the good land, Fulifeng has surrounded a lot of land outside Guangzhou over the years. It would be fine to sell ten or eight acres at market price to Annan people to build a guild hall.
(End of chapter)