Chapter 2349
Although the looting operation carried out by North Korea did not achieve results that satisfied Haihan, at least it could be regarded as a letter of surrender handed over by Li Zhen after he ascended the throne. He had already used this to show that he would still stand firm in the future. On the Haihan side, even if it means turning against Japan and starting a war, it will not hesitate to do so.
This is of course a great risk for North Korea. Once the Japanese shogunate regards this as a war provocation, North Korea is likely to have to face attacks from powerful foreign enemies for two consecutive years, but it can take this opportunity to obtain Haihan's Trust still does more good than harm to North Korea.
But even if the Japanese shogunate will respond to this, it should be a matter of the coming year. An army as powerful as Haihan would try its best to avoid organizing campaigns in the harsh winter, not to mention Japan, whose war mobilization capabilities are far inferior to Haihan. So at least this winter, Li Zhi does not need to worry about Japan taking drastic retaliatory measures for the time being.
But Wang Tom doesn’t plan to spend the whole winter warming up in the Datong River base. He hopes to take advantage of the pause in all combat operations in the past few months to return to his old profession and go out to complete an exploratory mission. Sailing itinerary.
"Is it really okay to go to sea for a few months in winter and you plan to go north?" Although Qian Tiandun also knew Wang Tom's professionalism, he was still a little worried about his bold plan.
Tom Wang smiled and said: "Actually, it's not a big deal except that it's a little cold, as long as you bring enough supplies and equipment."
"But you are going to explore unfamiliar waters this time. Even if we have charts of those places, we still don't understand the sea conditions at all. You must consider the risks of doing so!" Qian Tiandun had to remind Wang seriously. Tom.
"Don't worry, I cherish my life very much." Wang Tom nodded and said: "Even if it is for the sake of the country, nothing will happen to me. Besides, I am not going to sea alone this time. I will definitely bring a fleet with me. Related I have been preparing the action plan for a long time.”
"It seems I can't persuade you to give up your mind." Qian Tiandun said: "Then I wish you good luck!"
"Someone has to take the lead in doing some things. If I take the lead, I will be more sure in the end." Wang Tom responded: "If everything goes well, I will be back before spring."
The navigation plan that Wang Tom is planning to implement is not within the Yellow Sea and the Bohai Sea, but in the Sea of Japan east of the Korean Peninsula and the Sea of Okhotsk further north. If conditions permit, he would even like to go further north to the Bering Sea.
This kind of voyage to explore unknown waters undoubtedly has a strong attraction for people like Tom Wang who dream of being a navigator, and it even excites him more than leading troops to fight.
Of course, such a voyage plan was not just to satisfy his personal interests, but was Haihan's objective need to expand his sphere of influence.
Of course, Haihan Kingdom's expansion plan in Northeast Asia will not stop at the Korean Peninsula and the Liaodong Peninsula. Even if there are not enough troops to advance into the interior of Liaodong for a while, they can explore unknown areas from the sea. Tom Wang has been staying in Liaodong for the past two years, partly because he was waiting for the right time to implement this plan.
However, Haihan had just captured Jinzhou two years ago and had to spend time consolidating his control over the area. Elite troops from both the army and the navy were deployed on the front line of the Jinzhou Isthmus to prevent the Qing army from counterattacking. At that time, Wang Tom naturally focused on the overall situation, commanding the navy to provide cover for the army in the Liaodong Peninsula, and at the same time playing the role of a transport brigade.
Now that the Jinzhou defense line is basically stable, even if the Qing army launches a large-scale offensive, it will be difficult to break through Haihan's carefully constructed defense line. North Korea is guarded by the Datong River base, and the Qing army should not risk an invasion in winter. Now that Tom Wang was free, he could finally start to implement his long-planned sailing plan.
Even if Haihan possesses the most advanced shipbuilding and navigation technology of this era, it is still very dangerous to go out to sea to explore unknown waters, and the cold weather in winter will also cause a lot of trouble to the sailors on the ship. They should have waited until Spring and summer are more suitable, but Wang Tom is worried that the situation in Northeast Asia will change after spring, and the plan will have to be shelved by then.
As the commander of the navy, he also has to take into account Haihan Navy's operations in other sea areas. It is impossible for him to spend time in the north like this year after year. After all, he must seize the time to do what needs to be done first, so as to prepare Haihan Navy for the future. Get ready for expansion in this area.
Although satellite maps of these areas are available in Fort Victory's large database, as Qian Tiandun said, there are still great risks if you only have sea charts but do not understand the sea conditions. Therefore, in Wang Tom's travel plan, the fleet will be mainly composed of military ships with good navigation performance, and will bring sufficient supplies to avoid finding supply locations in unfamiliar waters.
But fortunately, there are currently no Western colonists carrying out colonial activities in this area. Even Tsarist Russia has not yet expanded its scope of activities to this area. Therefore, Haihan’s activities in this area should not need to worry about foreign invaders from the West. competitors appear.
Wang Tom spent a long time planning this operation and made relatively detailed arrangements for personnel, ships, and materials, so the preparations progressed very quickly after starting the preparations. The only thing that made him a little uneasy was that the naval force that was going to participate in this exploratory mission had just completed the snow-stepping operation. It seemed that they had not received sufficient rest after returning to the base, and they had to start preparing for a new voyage plan.
However, this plan has the full support of the Executive Committee and the Ministry of National Defense, and the budget is very sufficient. Therefore, the personnel participating in this plan will also be remunerated according to the standards of combat missions. The income in a few months can cover this. One year's military pay is enough to cheer up the sailors to complete this task.
Tom Wang gave the troops involved in this operation a seven-day holiday, allowing the soldiers to freely arrange the time before departure. Even if they want to leave the camp to play in the nearby casinos and fireworks venues run by North Koreans, they will be allowed at this time. After all, they will have to spend the next two or three months in a closed space on the ship. The entertainment of these few days may be the material they will use to slowly reflect on it in the next few months.
For those North Korean businessmen operating in the service industry near the Datong River, this sudden holiday arrangement is simply a windfall. Thousands of Han soldiers from all over the world poured into these places and spent a lot of money without hesitation. This situation is really a disaster. It happens only a few times throughout the year.
Of course there will be official North Korean eyes and ears in these places, but the only news they can find out is that the Haihan Navy will be dispatched in the near future. As for the destination and mission content, only a very small number of senior officers know the inside information. It is a highly confidential military secret and it is unlikely that the outside world will find out.
Seven days later, all garrison personnel stopped their vacation and returned to the base. Personnel involved in this operation will also undergo three days of intensive training to help them calm down and return to a normal state. In December 1638, just before the arrival of the New Year, a fleet quietly sailed out of the port at the base of the Taedong River. After going to sea, it went south along the coastline of the Korean Peninsula.
This fleet consists of one majestic-class warship, four expedition-class warships, two exploration-class warships, and twelve comprehensive supply ships. The number of troops dispatched has exceeded 1,500, and the scale of the operation is not large. Smaller. Even if there is a situation that requires the use of force during the voyage, the configuration of this fleet is enough to cope with any maritime armed force in Northeast Asia.
However, Wang Tom, who has always been belligerent, did not want any war to occur during the voyage this time. He preferred to use the limited time to go to more places instead of fighting other forces encountered along the way.
Of course, within the Sea of Japan, the only real threat to the Haihan Fleet is probably the Japanese navy. However, the Hirado fleet, known as Japan's number one naval force, collapsed half a year ago. It would be difficult for Japan to pull out a second armed fleet of equal strength.
At the request of North Korean officials, the fleet stopped for a while when passing Ganghwa Island. Wang Tom went to the island to meet with the North Korean military judge Shin Kyung-jin to hand over the prisoners that North Korea had snatched back from Japan's Hirado Domain.
Originally, this batch of Japanese prisoners had arrived at Ganghwa Island half a month ago. The reason why they were not transported to the Taedong River base was because North Korean officials, in order to show their merit to the people, specially transported these prisoners to Seoul and held a prisoner sacrifice ceremony outside the city. ceremony, and Li Zhi became the first king of the Li Dynasty to hold such a ceremony in Seoul.
Although such a ceremony is quite artificial, it is tantamount to a shot in the arm for the North Korean people. Especially in Seoul, which had just ended its turmoil, the new king achieved such a "feat" just after he ascended the throne, which was enough to respond to those who questioned his courage and courage.
After using these tool men, he happened to hear the news that the Haihan Fleet on the Datong River was about to be dispatched again. Li Zhi made a request to the Haihan Fleet, hoping that it could be completed when the Haihan Fleet passed Ganghwa Island. A formal prisoner handover procedure.
In fact, the reason for making such a request was simply that Li Xie wanted to take this opportunity to inquire about the movements of the Haihan Army through official channels. Although it was inconvenient for him to leave Seoul himself, he still sent Shen Jingzhen over to see if he could get some more specific information.
Wang Tom was already a little dissatisfied with the North Korean side's compromised mode of action. In addition, the number of captured Japanese was also small, so he did not intend to personally hand over to the North Korean side. However, this time it was Li Zhen's initiative. Wang Tom considered it again and again. It was decided to give Li Zhi enough face and let the fleet dock at Jianghua Island for a day.
As for why Li Zhen arranged this handover procedure, Wang Tom had already expected it when he learned that the North Korean official who came to meet was the military judge Shen Jingzhen. So after meeting Shen Jingzhen, the questions he asked were basically within his expectations.
"As for the whereabouts of our army this time, do you want to know, Sir Shen, or His Majesty the King?" After hearing Shen Jingzhen's question, Wang Tom did not answer immediately, but asked a few questions first.
Shen Jingzhen smiled and said: "General Wang is joking. This is of course His Majesty's intention. I am just passing on the message."
Shen Jingzhen is well aware that there are many taboos among the Haihan people. As long as there is no initiative to report actions to North Korea, they must be military secrets, and even allies cannot pry into them casually. Although he was the Bingcao Banshu in charge of the Korean military, he still did not have enough weight to ask about the movements of Haihan's army. Only King Li Xie, who was deeply trusted by Haihan, made a request to get a positive response from Haihan.
Sure enough, after hearing this, Wang Tom's tone softened a bit: "Since it is His Majesty's wish, it doesn't hurt to talk about it. In fact, our trip is just part of the winter training. By the way, it is also important for the sea area east of your country. Make a visit ”
Shen Jingzhen said: "So, your country is planning to go to war with Japan?"
Tom Wang shook his head and said: "We will not have such a plan for the time being. Even if we have such a plan in the future, we will definitely avoid winter. We are just going to sea for a while. Please tell His Majesty the King when you return."
< br>
Shen Jingzhen said: "If this is the case, that would be the best. Although our country is not afraid of Japan, the domestic situation has just been settled, and it is really not appropriate to join another war immediately. I hope General Wang can understand."
< br>
What Shen Jingzhen was talking about was the current widespread anxiety in the Korean court. Li Zhi was worried that Haihan went south this time because he was dissatisfied with the results of North Korea's actions in Hirado, so he was preparing to deal with Japan personally. Once the Haihan Army is dispatched in a large scale, the situation will probably intensify and move towards a national war. When the time comes, North Korea, as an ally of Haihan, cannot sit idly by and can only bite the bullet and join the war.
With North Korea's current financial situation, getting involved in this war will only make the already weak treasury even worse. At that time, it will have to continue to borrow money from Haihan in order to fight the war. Although Li Zhi is almost numb to his country's debt situation, he does not want the situation to continue to worsen. Taking a step back, even if war with Japan is really going to happen next, it would be best to get Haihan's confirmation as soon as possible, so that at least the response will not be too passive.
Li Xie arranged for Shen Jingzhen to meet with Wang Tom, hoping to confirm the matter in person. If we really want to go to war, we must try to prevent our own troops from being pushed to the front line and used as cannon fodder by the Haihan people.
Wang Tom could roughly think of the scruples of the Koreans, and thought that he still thought more highly of Li Xie, thinking that since he had the courage to send troops to Pingdo, he should no longer be afraid of Japan, but now it seems that Japan's prestige is clearly Even though North Korea has already attacked the Goto Islands, Li Zhi still wants to try his best to avoid a war with Japan.
Of course, from Li Zhen's point of view, there is nothing wrong with making such a choice. Wang Tom could only say a few words of comfort to reassure Shen Jingzhen that Haihan would not go to war with Japan at the moment.
(End of chapter)