Chapter 3503
Ordering civilian ships from Haihan and then converting them into warships is not without precedent. Even allies such as Annan and North Korea once used this method to solve the problem of warships because they were eager to expand their armies and prepare for war. needs.
However, now that Annan and North Korea have built their own shipyards with the support of Haihan, they can build some small-tonnage warships on their own, and they no longer need to rely on these emergency remedies.
But for those small countries with limited budgets and eager to see results, the solutions provided by these shipyards in Fujian are undoubtedly extremely feasible and cost-effective.
As long as you place an order with these shipyards during the Zhoushan Forum, you can receive the first batch of sea-going ships built by them within a year.
Although in order to circumvent Haihan's strict restrictions on the manufacturing and export of weapons and equipment, private shipyards will not build and sell military-style ships, but there are also operational gray areas in this process. Some people will provide special modification plans to guide buyers. How to use simple steps to transform these civilian ships into armed merchant ships with basic combat capabilities.
As for these orders from the People's Liberation Army, the government-owned shipyards cannot finish them, and they have no intention of competing with private shipyards. As long as the shipyards do not cross the line, the Ministry of Defense will acquiesce in the existence of this kind of deal.
After all, when it comes to wartime, Haihan will also have to mobilize these private shipyards to build and maintain warships so that they can maintain certain technical capabilities, which will also be of great benefit to national defense construction.
The first person to take advantage of this ship show was Ma Dalan, a big financier from the South China Sea.
The feud between the Matalan Kingdom and the Dutch East India Company has been going on for a long time. Since finding Haihan as an arms supplier in 1636, the Matalan Kingdom has become one of the major buyers of Haihan weapons and equipment.
After Haihan captured the Luzon Islands, he drove the Spaniards to Sulawesi in the south, which had an impact on the maritime security of Matalan. As a result, Spain and Matalan also fell into the sphere of influence. In the midst of the disputes, the Matalan Kingdom's demand for armaments further increased.
Due to certain considerations of maintaining geopolitical balance, the equipment sold by Haihan to the Matalan Kingdom is not an unlimited supply, and the Matalan Kingdom, which needs a large number of warships to safeguard its own interests, can take advantage of this opportunity to expand its own. maritime armed forces.
After Ambassador Matalan arrived, he first boarded several sample ships docked at the pier to visit. After understanding the ship costs and delivery dates, he quickly placed orders for a total of twenty ships with various shipyards participating in the exhibition, and expressed his willingness to The deposit will be paid within the next few days.
Even if such an order is placed in several major government-owned shipyards in Haihan, it is no longer a small amount. The Matalan people stated very confidently that this is only the first batch of orders. If the quality of these ships can really reach the level advertised by the shipyard, there will be more long-term orders in the future.
For Matalan, who originally wanted to buy equipment during the forum, the quotation provided by the Fujian Shipyard can save a lot of money, and this difference can be used to purchase various weapons needed on the ship.
The shipyards participating in the exhibition were naturally overjoyed. They did not expect that on the first day of the exhibition, high-profile guests would come from the sky, giving the exhibition a good start.
The orders from Matalan will naturally become promotional materials for the shipyard, used to show its latest performance to other visitors.
However, the real big customers that Fujian shipyards are about to welcome are not the Matalan people who were the first to place orders and were extremely cheerful, but another customer who was not even allowed to attend the Zhoushan Forum. Masato Masuyama is no stranger to the environment in Zhoushan. This is his fifth visit to Haihan in the past three years, and Zhoushan is his first stop each time.
However, the reason why he came here this time was not because he received an invitation from the Zhoushan Forum. On the contrary, it was precisely because Haihan wanted to hold this international event and the Tokugawa shogunate did not receive an invitation that he hurried over to try to find out the reason.
The current situation is really weird for the shogunate. This time, Haihan posted a hero post widely. Ryukyu, Korea, and even Haihan's old enemy, the Manchu Qing Dynasty, which are adjacent to Japan, all received invitations from Haihan's executive committee. But Japan was ignored without warning.
And not only the Tokugawa shogunate was not invited, but as far as Masuyama Masatoshi knew, even several daimyo from Kyushu who were very close to Kaihan also did not receive invitations to participate in the Zhoushan Forum, and did not give any Public explanation.
Of course, there were also smart people in the shogunate, and they quickly deduced a possibility - among the international issues to be discussed during the so-called Zhoushan Forum, there must be some content that is extremely unfavorable to Japan.
Only in this way can we explain why Haihan took the initiative to exclude all Japanese forces.
The shogun Tokugawa Ietsuna also agreed with this view, so he urgently dispatched Masato Masuyama, who had dealt with senior officials of Kaihan several times, to Zhoushan.
Masato Masuyama has three missions during this trip. The first is to find out the inside story of the Zhoushan Forum and confirm whether it is related to Japan. The second is to carry out diplomatic mediation nearby when the situation is unfavorable and try to win the interests of the shogunate. The third is to see if there are any opportunities. Purchase another batch of arms and equipment to prepare for the upcoming civil war.
Of course, if he happens to meet people from the Kyushu vassals in Zhoushan, there will inevitably be a fight between open and covert attacks.
After Masato Masuyama came to Zhoushan, he also took the time to meet with some guests from other countries who came to participate in the forum. Unfortunately, although he tried various methods, he did not get much valuable information from these people. information.
Several countries from Europe are concerned about whether Haihan's transnational trade policy and overseas colonial activities will change. As for Japan's international status and Haihan's policy towards Japan, that is not their current focus.
Most of the other countries are located in the South China Sea, thousands of miles away from Japan. In addition, the Tokugawa shogunate has long adhered to the policy of isolation from the country. Therefore, it does not have much friendship with these countries outside the region, nor can it be said to have any common interests. It was good enough that someone was willing to take the time to meet with Masato Masuyama, so how could he provide him with any inside information.
As a last resort, Zengshan Masari had no choice but to shamelessly ask for a meeting with several Haihan officials he knew. But as he expected, Haihan didn't even send an invitation to the Tokugawa shogunate. How could he receive him at this time when he came to Zhoushan on behalf of the shogunate?
Several officials he knew declined his request for a meeting, citing busy official duties or physical discomfort.
Even an official with whom he thought he had a good personal relationship avoided him and advised him to return to Japan first. If there is relevant news, it will naturally spread after the forum ends.
After hearing such a reply, Masuyama Masato did not dare to leave. He had to wait until the forum activities were over to confirm that everything was fine before considering returning to his country.