amaotonovel Chapter 1117: Spending Money
Chapter 1117: Spending Money
Chapter 1117: Spending Money
"Approaching Europe..." Zhu Su fell silent, revealing a thoughtful look.
To be honest, he had thought of such a strategy before. The army of the Ming Dynasty was very powerful, but the army often consumed baggage when advancing, and the mountains were high and the roads were long, so there were too many accidents along the way.
It is much easier to advance by sea, and the Ming Dynasty's naval power is still unique in this era.
It would take at least a hundred years for Europe to have a fleet that could confront the Ming Dynasty's treasure ships head-on. In fact, advancing by sea was the best solution for the Ming Dynasty to send troops.
But advancing by sea also has its disadvantages. First, ships can only threaten coastal cities, and the Crusaders are not fools who will obediently run to the beach to endure the bombardment of ships and cannons.
Although it is possible to leave the soldiers behind and let them leave the ships and advance by land, if the number of soldiers is too small and they are too far away from the coastline, it will be easy to get stuck in enemy territory and have their retreat cut off.
If there are too many people, it will take time and effort for the Ming Dynasty to prepare supplies. The new Ming army had just finished the battle in Annan, and now the country is undergoing reforms, and there are still many rebels being purged. The army is needed as a ballast for the court. It is impossible to carry many troops on the fleet to land and fight like Zhu Su did when he rescued Zhu Di.
However, the method Zhu Di mentioned was indeed a method. Advance both on land and at sea. On land, confront the Crusaders that destroyed the Ottoman Empire, and on sea, attack Europe from behind and attack Wei to save Zhao. As long as the news reached Central Asia and they learned that their retreat was cut off, the morale of the Crusaders would surely drop and they would undoubtedly be defeated.
The only concern is whether a direct attack on the front and back of European countries will make them angry. The foundation and influence of the Ming Dynasty in Central Asia are still very weak. In comparison, it is easier for European countries that have opened up the Ottoman Empire to occupy Central Asia.
If European countries were determined to intervene, the Ming Dynasty could not send troops to rescue them every time.
But Zhu Su thought about it... and felt that there was no need to hesitate.
At this time, the European countries were in the late Middle Ages, and were relatively barbaric in all aspects, without any particularly strong beliefs or civilizational identity. Civilizations that were still in this stage generally had one thing in common: fear of danger and not morality.
As long as we defeat and scare them, and fully demonstrate that China is a more advanced and superior civilization than theirs, they will often feel awe of China. Not only will they not dare to act rashly, but they will also take the initiative to move closer to Chinese civilization.
Moreover, Zhu Su's ambitions did not stop at Asia and Fengmingzhou, and Zhu certainly did not want the Ming Dynasty to stop there. If possible, Zhu Su hoped to expand the Ming Dynasty's colonies to Europe.
Old Zhu's appetite is even bigger now. He wishes that the entire territory under heaven would belong to the Ming Dynasty.
Sending out a fleet would not only intimidate the European countries, but if possible, it might also allow the establishment of a concession on the European continent.
If we can gain a foothold in Europe with the help of the concessions, we might be able to use it as a base to slowly erode Europe.
Of course, it is also possible that because the concessions were too deep into Europe and far away from the Ming Dynasty, they were assimilated by Europe and became the nourishment for the progress of European civilization...
The pros and cons are not easy to determine. In short, in order to gain a firm foothold in Central Asia, Zhu Su felt that it was necessary to first defeat the European churches and cause them some trouble.
As the saying goes, hit with one punch to avoid a hundred punches.
Otherwise, these fanatics would organize a Crusade every now and then, and wouldn't the Ming Dynasty be overwhelmed to cope with them?
After taking Tie Xuan to Shuntian Imperial City to meet Zhu Di, Zhu Di told Zhu Di about his idea of "advancing by sea". Zhu Di quickly agreed to this method.
"Since we can cut off the retreat of those foreigners by sea, then we should do so!"
"They dare to provoke our Ming vassal state, why should we give them face?"
"It just so happens that Dingshi has returned with his fleet. This time, let our Ming Dynasty's Fengmingzhou fleet go to Europe for a tour!"
"Dingshi, you should take your fleet to Europe and show off the military power of the Ming Dynasty. Destroy as many countries as you can and bring them back..."
"Yes, I obey your order." Tie Xuan knelt down quickly, thought for a while, raised his head and said, "Your Majesty, although I have led the fleet several times and traveled between Ming Dynasty and Fengmingzhou, I don't have much experience in naval warfare."
"Please send another general who is proficient in naval warfare. I am willing to serve as your deputy general to avoid causing trouble for China's important affairs."
"Yes." Old Zhu nodded, very satisfied with Tie Xuan's statement. This fleet has been in Tie Xuan's hands for a long time, but he still does not cling to the power in his hands and takes the initiative to ask for the power to be handed over, which is really precious.
However, generals who are proficient in naval warfare are also in short supply in the Ming Dynasty. Although the Imperial Academy of the Ming Dynasty also opened a specialty course in naval warfare, there are actually not many naval generals with actual combat experience.
To put it bluntly, this is also because there were too few naval battles in this era, and the generals who commanded the fleets had no battles to fight, so naturally they did not have much practical experience.
"In that case, let's find you a commander..." Old Zhu said, and looked at Zhu Su. "Old Five, this battle on the sea will be led by you."
"Would you like to go?"
Zhu Su had been staying in a corner, looking at his nose, his heart, and pretending to be aloof. Suddenly, when Old Zhu called his name, his whole body trembled.
"Ah? This... Father, Europa and Fengmingzhou are poles apart. After I accompany you, I will go to Fengmingzhou to establish my fiefdom..."
"Tie Xuan's fleet is going to march west. Who will you go to Fengmingzhou with?"
"Or, do you think that we in the Ming Dynasty can find someone more suitable than you?" Old Zhu said.
"..." Zhu Su was speechless. His original plan was that if Tie Xuan wanted to lead the team to the west, he would first ask for a few ships from the South China Sea Fleet and head to Fengmingzhou.
As for whether there are other more suitable candidates, if Zhang He was still in Ming Dynasty, he would also be one of the candidates. Unfortunately, Zhang He is now in Fengmingzhou, maintaining the security of the colony.
Apart from Zhang He, the only suitable naval commander in the Ming Dynasty...
"Father, what do you think of Jiujiang? Jiujiang has made considerable achievements in commanding the South China Sea Fleet in recent years..." Zhu Su suggested.
"You mean, you want us to hand over our Ming Dynasty fleet to the hands of that kid in Jiujiang?" Old Zhu glared.
Zhu Su's face was embarrassed. He almost forgot that he also knew the "great achievements" that Li Jinglong had made in history. As the first generation of war god of the Ming Dynasty, Li Jinglong had a record of being defeated by Zhu Di's 500,000 troops with 50,000 troops.
Old Zhu will definitely not be reassured.
"...I heard that every time there is a war in Jiujiang, Duke Cao's Mansion has to sell some property..." Zhu Di's voice came faintly from the side.
"..."
This is all thanks to the "fire suppression" tactics Zhu Su taught Li Jinglong. Every time Li Jinglong fought a war, he would "spend a lot of money".
Even Zhu Di knew of this reputation.
(End of this chapter)