Chapter 3211
Simang first joined the Haihan Army's military operations as a military observer, exactly one year before the Battle of Hirado.
That year, the Portuguese fleet sent troops together with the Haihan Army and attacked the port of Manila, which was still under Spanish control at the time. Shortly after the war ended, North Korea was violently attacked southward by the Qing army, and immediately asked Haihan for help.
So the Combined Fleet, which had just finished resting in Manila, headed north to the Korean Peninsula and participated in the Korean Campaign that summer.
During the battle with the Qing army, Haihan discovered that the Qing army had begun to install standard firearms of unknown origin, so he followed the clues and found the manufacturer, located in the Hirado Domain in the westernmost part of Japan.
The feud between Haihan and the Hirado clan has been going on for a long time. The Hirado clan not only sheltered Zheng Zhilong's descendants, but also colluded with the Spaniards, manufacturing firearms and providing them to the Manchus and other forces.
So after resolving the troubles on the Korean Peninsula, Haihan sent troops to attack the Hirado Domain in the second year. Although nearly twenty years have passed, Simang still remembers the situation at that time.
At that time, Kaihan dispatched a large number of naval forces with the Northern Fleet and the East China Sea Fleet as the main force, and carried out a complete blockade of Hirado Island. Simo witnessed the Kaihan army attacking Hirado Port in the Hirado Strait and razing Hirado Castle to the ground. the whole process.
Therefore, he can especially understand why the Japanese are dissatisfied with Haihan's public mention of the Battle of Hirado.
After all, the Hirado clan was also a territory of the Tokugawa shogunate in name, so it was really a big humiliation for Kaihan to knock on the door and ransack the house in such an unreasonable way.
Of course, what is even more sad is that instead of being able to recover this situation, the shogunate was forced to sign the so-called "Sea-Japan Trade Treaty" when the fleet led by Shi Diwen broke into Edo Bay a few years later, promising to Han opened many ports, allowed Haihan merchants to enter Japan to engage in trading activities, and leased Sasebo Bay to Haihan for a long time at an extremely low price.
The fall of the Hirado Domain can be said to be the trigger that Japan was forced to open its borders. It is understandable that the shogunate's envoys felt humiliated by this period of history. But if they showed such dissatisfaction in front of the Haihan people, they would be humiliating themselves.
"These Japanese...it seems they have not learned the lessons of the past!" Thomas shook his head and said: "They may not realize that Haihan is more powerful today than twenty years ago!"
Ximang said: "I hope they can be more aggressive. It would be better to offend Haihan thoroughly and then go through the process twenty years ago again."
Thomas responded knowingly: "You mean to let Haihan send out troops to beat them up again?"
Simang nodded and said: "Although Japan's strength is not that great, it can still hold off Haihan for a while."
If Haihan uses troops in the direction of the East China Sea, the other directions will inevitably calm down a little, which may buy a little more time for Malacca. But with Japan's strength, how long can it hold back Haihan even if it starts a war?
There are only a few diplomats like them who are depressed because of the international situation. For most countries in the East, it is good to keep their own peace during this period. They are not qualified to participate in international politics, let alone other countries. exert influence.
About an hour after Portugal entered the venue, diplomatic envoys from other countries also arrived at the arms show.
Fortunately, they do not need to wait in line for a long time to enter the venue like the Portuguese. Officials have temporarily opened a diplomatic channel to arrange for them to enter the venue directly. It is worth mentioning that the official plan was to miss the peak flow of people on the first day and invite envoys from various countries to visit, so there was no preparation to set up a diplomatic channel at the beginning. It wasn't until the Portuguese came uninvited that the officials realized that these foreign envoys might not be so patient in waiting for invitations, so they temporarily opened a diplomatic channel.
It’s just that the Portuguese who came to queue early in the morning did not enjoy such special treatment.
After the Annan delegation arrived, they rushed straight to a Majestic-class warship on the riverside - the very object of the Japanese's strong dissatisfaction just now.
Although most of them have visited this kind of warship more than once, the "Visa" belonging to the East China Sea Fleet docked on the bank of the Qiantang River today is of special significance to Annan.
According to the results of yesterday's negotiations with Haihan's high-level officials, Haihan is preparing to sell this warship of the East China Sea Fleet to Annan. This will also be the first majesty-class warship owned by the Annan Navy. After entering into service, Annan's strength will be greatly improved. Maritime armed forces.
Annan can be said to have coveted the Majesty-class warship that has long been the main flagship of the Haihan Navy. However, Haihan has never been willing to open the sale of this type of warship. Annan has no place to buy it even if he has the money.
Although the East China Sea Fleet's VIA has been in service for a long time, not everyone is qualified to buy it. Only a few allies who attended the meeting yesterday got this opportunity, and they must compete for this only ship through bidding. Majestic level.
Among them, the one with the strongest financial resources and the most urgent need for maritime armed forces was Annan, so he quickly defeated other competitors in the bidding and won the warship.
This is a warm-up for this arms sales event, allowing major buyers to get into the game as soon as possible. The actual situation is just as Haihan expected. Countries have shown extremely high enthusiasm for purchasing from the warm-up stage.
Although the final purchase price is not low, it is definitely much cheaper than ordering a new boat. What's more, this ship is ready-made. It only needs to be packed up and maintained at the Zhoushan Shipyard, and then it can be directly returned to the country for service. There is no need to wait for a long construction period like a new ship.
Today, when the Annan delegation came here to see the exhibition, they also stopped by to inspect the goods. Although Annan plans to buy a lot of things in this year's arms purchase, this warship is definitely the most valuable item and must be carefully inspected inside and out.
The delegation stood in front of the display board with great interest and listened to Officer Haihan's introduction to the war history of this meritorious warship.
Annan's special envoy Zheng Ting saw the gloomy-looking Portuguese next to him and couldn't help showing off to them proudly: "You two also think this battleship is very good, right? It will go to the South China Sea next."
Thomas asked in confusion: "This is a ship of the East China Sea Fleet, why should it go to the South China Sea?"
Zheng Ting smiled and said: "Because our country has bought this warship, it will soon become a member of the Annan Navy!"
Thomas and Simang looked at each other and saw shock in each other's eyes.
Haihan disposed of this old battleship to Annan, which may mean that Haihan will gradually release arms sales of Majesty-class battleships. Once this type of main warship begins to appear in the navies of other countries, the balance of maritime power in the entire East will inevitably face readjustment, which is not necessarily a good thing for Portugal.
Annan, who has completely imitated Haihan's army-building model, has been purchasing warships and weapons from Haihan for many years. The navy is not weak at all. If we get a few more majestic-class warships, it will become a small force in the South China Sea. Haihan Navy No. 1. Even maritime powers like Portugal and the Netherlands will have to be wary of it.