Chapter 2926
Harugong was silent for a long time before saying: "The competition in our direction is not as fierce as in the west. Besides, we have been waiting for so many years, so there is no need to be too hasty. I still insist that taking steady steps is the most suitable path for us."
The "west" mentioned by Harugong naturally refers to the Annan and Xingdao garrisons located on the west side of the South China Sea. Because they are separated by the entire South China Sea, they are unlikely to compete with the Luzon region in the direction of external expansion, and those two companies have already stated at the Cam Ranh Port meeting that their goal is the Indian Ocean to the west.
Therefore, in fact, in the Pacific direction, the Luzon region has no competitors, and this is one of the reasons why the Manila authorities have been standing still for many years. There is no competitive pressure anyway, so just accumulate strength first and wait patiently for the right time to come.
But Qiu Yuan obviously did not agree with Harugong's caution. He shook his head and sighed: "Old Ha, we were too cautious at the beginning. We felt that it was not safe and sure, so we missed the window period for development. Wait. It’s been almost twenty years since we finally got a new opportunity, so we can’t miss it again.”
After Haihan captured Manila, Qiu Yuan and others focused their main energy on maintaining local social stability. The garrison with limited strength did not pursue the Spanish while they were victorious. Instead, they stayed on Luzon to clean up the remaining Spanish forces and wipe out the tribal armed forces that resisted Haihan's rule.
Although the Manila authorities later tried to organize an armed fleet to attack Cebu Port and other places in the southern part of the Philippine Islands, due to limited military strength, they were unable to divide their forces and station them locally, and they could only end hastily after defeating their opponents. At this time, the executive committee's development focus had shifted to the mainland, and the Manila authorities were unable to win more support from the country, thus missing the window period mentioned by Qiu Yuan.
Looking back at the decisions made during that period, it is actually difficult to say whether their choices at that time were wrong or right.
If a more radical strategy had been chosen at that time, with the troops prioritized to pursue the Spanish while they were victorious, quickly expanding the area of control to the southern part of the Philippine Islands, and driving the Spanish to the south of the Celebes Sea, then the Executive Committee would indeed It is possible that they will invest more resources in the Luzon region because they have controlled the entire Philippine Islands in a short period of time.
The Luzon Region, which has received resource investment, may embark on a completely different development path and become one of the most important overseas regions under Haihan's rule.
But this is just a possibility that has never happened. The Manila garrison at that time was not familiar with the environment of the Philippine Islands. With limited troops, the result of dividing the troops and advancing rashly was probably to focus on one and lose the other, making it difficult to achieve the expected strategic goals. . The Spaniards might even seize the opportunity to launch a counterattack against colonial sites that had neglected their precautions.
If that happens, let alone seeking domestic support, Qiu Yuan and others will have to take the blame, and maybe even the consul and garrison commander of the Luzon region will have to be replaced.
The relatively conservative strategy did miss the window period for rapid expansion, but it also ensured the stability of the Luzon region in the past two decades. Although they have no great achievements or faults, their status in the Luzon region is very stable. Now they each have a considerable family property, which is enough to ensure the prosperity of several generations.
Of course, they are still obsessed with the goal that has never been achieved, otherwise they would not have responded so actively to Qian Tiandun's call and actively joined the plan.
Xiao Liang also spoke at this time: "The three of us are all in our fifties. As for whether we have any lofty goals in this life, we don't have many. We can take advantage of the opportunity to make another move before retirement and fight for future generations." Once the country is down, it will probably be our upper limit. Lao Ha, if you are really worried about the combat effectiveness of the troops, then it is not a big deal for us to ask Feng Annan for troops."
Haru Gong said: "According to what you said, Feng Annan and Roger are deliberately trying to compete with each other. At this juncture, they still have enough energy to lend us troops?" Xiao Liang said: "Your second son is serving in Camlan Port, so he must be with you. Have you mentioned the situation over at Annan? Although the Eighth Lu Division is at the same level as our Fourth Lu Division, they have much more troops than us. Based on our relationship with Feng Annan, we can ask him to borrow two infantrymen when necessary. Battalion, if we borrow some more navy, there shouldn’t be much of a problem.”
The Eighth Army Division and the Second Detachment of the South China Sea Fleet are the permanent units of the Haihan Army in Annan. The various units under their jurisdiction are stationed in many coastal areas controlled by Haihan in Annan. There are garrison bases of the Haihan Army in Hetu Port, Do Son Peninsula, Da Nang, Quy Nhon Port, Cam Ranh Port, Vung Tau Port and other places.
Precisely because the garrison locations are numerous and scattered, Feng Annan also has sufficient reasons to expand the scale of the establishment. Almost all the troops at all levels under the jurisdiction of the Eighth Lu Division have been strengthened, with about one-third more troops than ordinary troops.
Harugong's second son, Ha Jianzhong, is a colonel commander of the Eighth Army Division and is stationed at Cam Ranh Port Base. Qiu Yuan's son Qiu Zhiguo also served as a civil affairs official in Camlan Port. Both of them agreed to arrange for their son to work for Annan. In addition to avoiding suspicion, a very important reason was because they had a good personal relationship with Feng Annan and could safely leave their son to his care.
Correspondingly, Feng Annan also sent his son Feng Xingbang to serve in Manila, and is now the combat staff officer of the Fourth Army Division. Although he was one level lower than Ha Jianzhong who was the regiment leader, as long as the war started, it would not be difficult to arrange military merit for him to be promoted.
It was precisely because of such an interest relationship that Xiao Liang was determined to borrow troops from Feng Annan across the sea.
Of course, if they really want to borrow troops, the Luzon Region will still have to bear the corresponding military expenditures and material consumption, and will also owe Feng Annan a huge favor, so unless it is a last resort, borrowing troops is probably just a no-brainer. It's just an alternative emergency plan that can be easily activated.
Of course, Harugong was not unaware of the situation of the Annan garrison. He just wanted to persuade them not to pin their hopes on the intervention of external forces. However, seeing that he could not persuade the two of them, Harugong had no choice but to compromise.
Currently, the troops that can participate in combat operations at the Cavite base include three infantry regiments under the Fourth Army Division and an independently organized cavalry battalion, with a total strength of approximately 5,000 people.
The Navy has a fully-equipped fleet on standby, including two Majesty-class warships, eight Expedition-class warships, 16 Exploration-class warships, 26 Yugong-class comprehensive supply ships, and 12 A Sailfish-class fast reconnaissance ship, and twenty Barracuda-class troop carriers.
However, this is only a seemingly powerful lineup on paper. In fact, most of the ships have been in service for more than ten years, and some of them are even older ships that are more than twenty years old. Their combat effectiveness will certainly not be comparable to those of new models that have been subsequently improved. Ships are comparable.
Among the ship orders submitted by Xiao Liang to the Ministry of National Defense, although they were all customized with the latest models, the fastest delivery date was one year later. Obviously, they could not be counted on for the time being. The Manila authorities, who were in a hurry, could only I made do with these old boats first.
(End of chapter)