Chapter 632: The Maritime Strategy of the Tiger Army

The Tiger Ben army took Dengzhou City,.

One of the most important is to restore the port outside the north gate. The geographical location of Dengzhou City is very special, it is located at the northeast tip of the Shandong Peninsula, and the distance from Liaodong, North Korea, and even Jingshi is very short. Therefore, it has always been an important port in Liaodong. In the past, most of the logistical supplies in Dongjiang Town were transported from Dengzhou City. In the past, the home port of the Dengzhou Navy Division was also set up in Dengzhou City.

If the Tiger Ben Army wants to counterattack Liaodong in the future, it will definitely be indispensable to Dengzhou City, an important logistics base. The original port of Dengzhou City had only fifteen berths, which obviously could not meet the needs of the Tiger Army. If the Tiger Army counterattacks Liaodong from the sea, the logistical transportation task will definitely be very heavy. The number of ships owned by the Tiger Army Navy is very large, fifteen berths, which is simply not enough.

"Expand the berths to thirty!"

Zhang Zhun made a decision on the spot and said affirmatively.

Immediately, Zhang Zhun specially allocated 10,000 taels of silver as a special fund for the expansion of the wharf, and designated a special person to be responsible, which must be completed before the first month of next year. Zhang Zhun estimates that a year later, that is, in the first month of next year, he may have to use the newly built wharf in Dengzhou City.

In addition to the berths of the wharf, various advanced loading and unloading tools, such as gantry cranes, pulley sets and the like, are to be installed. Previously, without these tools, it took three days to load the cargo of an ordinary merchant ship. With these tools, it's all it takes for a day. Gantry cranes and pulley sets are particularly useful for loading large, heavy loads. And these goods are the most troublesome and time-consuming to use manual loading in the past. This is equivalent to increasing the number of berths to three times, greatly increasing the utilization efficiency of the wharf, and the transportation volume can naturally increase significantly.

It's not enough to have berths, more warehouses need to be built to store more supplies. Whether it is going north to Liaodong, east to Korea, or west to Beijing and south to Jiangnan, a large amount of materials need to be allocated at any time. The speed and efficiency of sea transportation are much more powerful than that of land transportation. If there is a need at the front line, it will be too late to transport it to Dengzhou City from all over the country. Therefore, a large number of warehouses had to be built here to stock up on sufficient supplies.

"The more warehouses, the better."

Zhang Zhun said cautiously.

He called Monday over and assigned him to be in charge of the construction of the warehouse. The two also studied in detail the size, type, and location of the warehouses, as well as the connecting roads between the warehouses. For such a trivial matter, Zhang Zhun attached so much importance to it, and the accompanying people next to him were a little puzzled, but they didn't ask for the time being.

"Your Excellency, please rest assured, we will improve the warehouse facilities as soon as possible."

Zhou Ming said affirmatively.

"Good!"

Zhang Zhun nodded and said.

He allocated 10,000 taels of silver on the spot and was responsible for the construction of various warehouses.

Many people present, including Gao Hongtu and Zhang Shenyan and others, did not understand Zhang Zhun's big strokes. They couldn't understand why Zhang Zhun was so eager to build the wharf and why he invested so much money to build ships. In their opinion, the Tiger Ben Army needs a lot of money now, and Brigadier Zhang has put too much money on the ocean.

Not to mention anything else, in Xue Zhidie's shipyard alone, there was almost never a shortage of silver. The cost of silver in the shipyard is like running water. This can't help but make people blush. In fact, not only Gao Hongtu and Zhang Shenyan were red-eyed, but also many high-ranking commanders of the army. In their opinion, if the same amount of money is put on the army, how many troops and weapons and equipment can be added! But all this money went to the navy!

Zhang Zhun obviously felt everyone's emotions. He knew very well that he had to be careful about this issue. On the surface, this question seems to be about the allocation of funds, but in fact, the core is a land-sea dispute. Since the emergence of the navy in this world, the competition between the army and the navy has existed in every country and in every strength. Even in the twenty-first century, the same exists.

The Tiger Ben Army has developed to the present, there is an army, a navy, and a marine, and it is impossible to compete with each other without being fierce. The commander of any branch of the military wants his troops to be strengthened. If the army wants to grow, of course, it must get more military support. Without military spending, where are the soldiers? Where did the weapons and equipment come from?

The last time Dengzhou City was attacked, the two commanders of the Marine Corps, Fang He and Liu Dong, euphemistically stated that the number of Marines was too small and they might not be able to undertake the heavy task of attacking the city. Obviously, the implication of the two is not that they cannot attack the city, but that they want to take this opportunity to expand the establishment of the Marine Corps and have more personnel and weapons and equipment.

It is undisguised to say that such ideas exist in every branch of the military, it is just whether they have the courage to show it in front of Zhang Zhun. And among these disputes, the dispute between the army and the navy is obviously the most important and the most troublesome. If we cannot unify our understanding, there is a possibility that the army and navy will have contradictions in future battles.

During World War II, the Japanese army and navy were very deeply contradictory, and the two fought with each other, and finally buried themselves. The situation is similar in the United States. Nimitz and MacArthur never peed together. Britain has always been the leader of the navy, and the army is the queen mother, and the situation is better. Of course, Zhang Zhun didn't want his troops to make it seem like little Japan, pinch each other by land and sea, and finally end up together.

In the evening of the same day, Zhang Zhun summoned relevant officers of the Tiger Army, including officials from the army, navy, and marines, as well as officials from the internal affairs system, to give a speech on maritime strategy. This speech was something Zhang Zhun wanted to hold a long time ago, but he never had the time or the right opportunity. But now, the speech had to be done immediately.

If he continues to delay, there will be a big misunderstanding of his allocation of funds and his future strategy. The development of the Tiger Ben Army is somewhat different from other armies in history. Due to Zhang Zhun's personal reasons, the development of the Tiger Ben Army pays more attention to maritime strategy. In other words, the development of the Tiger Army was mainly carried out by relying on the sea.

However, the people of this era do not have a clear understanding of maritime strategy at all. Even Gao Hongtu, Zhang Shenyan and others do not have an in-depth and accurate understanding of the ocean. At most, they also know that the maritime trade business is more profitable. However, the risks are also significant. There are pirates on the sea, there are wind and waves, and if you don't do it well, it is the result of the destruction of the ship and the death of people. Yes, even if they are great Confucians, their understanding of the ocean is at this level. And the level of the two of them just represents the general understanding of the ocean among the officials of the Ming court.

The most obvious example is that Taiwan, an important island, was not within the territory of the Ming Dynasty. The small Penghu Islands were garrisoned by the Ming army, but the huge island of Taiwan could not see the shadow of the Ming army. Even, when the red-haired ghost entered the island of Taiwan, the Ming army did not react at all. Only when the red-haired ghost tried to enter the Penghu Islands did he encounter a counterattack by the Ming army.

As long as the Penghu Islands do not want the Taiwan Islands, obviously, this is very abnormal.

In the final analysis, it is still the people of this era who only pay attention to the land and not the sea. Zheng He's more important purpose in going to the West was to show off the strength of the Ming Kingdom, not to obtain benefits. I don't know when the Chinese are always ashamed to talk about interests in front of outsiders. In particular, the interests of the ocean are even more ashamed to mention. Or, at all, they don't see any interest at sea.

"In this world, there was once such a country, and its land area was only slightly larger than our Beizhili. It is surrounded by the ocean, and there is no land connection to it. It also has a small population of its own. According to our consistent thinking, such a country will certainly not be able to compete for world hegemony. ”

"However, it is such a country that has become the hegemon of the world in two or three hundred years. Its colonies, spread all over the world. It has more than 200 times the size of its own territory. Its armies fight in almost every corner of the globe and are able to win almost all of them. ”

"This country has a special name, called the Empire on which the sun never sets, which means an empire that never falls. Its rise is incredible in itself. Its most powerful army is its navy. It has the most powerful fleet in the world and can reach every corner of the world's oceans. ”

Zhang Zhun's opening remarks were very interesting and immediately attracted everyone's interest. In fact, Zhang Zhun's ability to tell stories is really not good. However, the bravery of the British Empire back then still made many people talk about it. In particular, its maritime supremacy has indeed made many people yearn for it. In fact, in terms of national strength, the Ming State is not lost to Britain at all, but in the end, the division of the world's maritime power does not have the share of the Ming State. This cannot but be said to be a great sorrow.

"Ocean consciousness is the soul of a littoral people."

"The strength of maritime awareness directly determines the strength of a country's maritime power and the rise and fall of a country. The rise of the empire on which the sun never sets is precisely because its citizens have a strong sense of the sea. The territory of the land is of course important, but the territory of the sea is equally important. ”

"That's right, the ocean is also our territory. The Bohai Bay, the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea, the South China Sea, the South China Sea, all of these are all part of our territory. Let's not just see Liaodong, don't just see the Mongolian steppe, don't just see the west of Yumen Pass. We should also see that there is a large number of sacred territories around us. ”

Zhang Zhun paused slightly, and continued to speak in an impassioned tone.

Obviously, his remarks caused a strong reaction from the audience below. The ocean is also part of the territory? It's the first time they've heard it! In the past, almost everyone thought that the ocean was public and that anyone could travel freely. Since it's public, there's no need to be overly concerned. However, if these seas are also part of the territory, it is necessary to pay attention to them.

For this point, Zhang Zhun from later generations, of course, has a deep feeling. We Chinese have never lost to anything, and for thousands of years, we have been the leaders of the world. Only in the past two hundred years has he been bullied severely. And this bullying started from the ocean. The collapse of the Beiyang Sailor Division is an unforgettable pain for any aspiring Chinese.

If we summarize and reflect on the reasons for the defeat of the Opium War and the First Sino-Japanese War in modern times, we can list many items, such as the decline of the feudal system, the closed and backward small peasant economy, the mediocrity of the Qing government, and the isolation of the country. After thousands of years of feudalism in China, the continental consciousness characterized by the emphasis on agriculture and the suppression of commerce was deeply rooted, and this was the crux of the huge difference between the Eastern and Western maritime concepts.

In China's traditional economic thinking, valuing agriculture and suppressing business has almost always occupied a dominant position. Starting from the standpoint of small peasant proprietors, Lao Tzu advocated a self-sufficient agricultural economy in a small country and widows, opposed the commodity economy, and opposed the idea of exploitation brought about by commerce.

Lao Tzu believes that the small country and widows are the most natural and ideal living environment of "willing to eat, beautiful clothes, peaceful living, happy customs, neighboring countries looking at each other, hearing the voices of chickens and dogs, and not interacting with each other until the old age and death". The small country and the widow are the reproduction of the "Tao" referred to by Lao Tzu in society.

As the founder of Taoism, Lao Tzu opened up the spiritual connotation of China's thousands of years of advocating nature, striving to be one with nature, and ensuring that life is transcendent, free and easy. Especially in the Song Dynasty, Confucianism and Taoism were unified, and Lao Tzu's Taoist ideas were more rooted in the hearts of Chinese people, forming a part of the Chinese character.

Lao Tzu's idea of valuing agriculture and suppressing commerce had a great influence on later generations. Since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty "deposed the hundred schools of thought and respected Confucianism alone", the doctrine of Confucius has become the orthodoxy of feudal culture for 2,000 years. One of the main contents of Confucius's economic thought is the "concept of righteousness and benefit" of "emphasizing righteousness over profit".

The idea of agriculture and the concept of being ashamed of one's words and profits, which is respected by Confucian orthodoxy, provided an important theoretical basis for the development of the idea of valuing agriculture and suppressing commerce in later generations. Shang Ying, an outstanding representative of the pre-Qin Legalists and a reformer who rewarded the cultivation and war of enriching the country and strengthening the army, was the first person to implement the policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing business.

Shang Ying regarded agriculture as the "main industry" and industry and commerce as the "last industry", and advocated the implementation of the policy of valuing agriculture and suppressing business. The new law he drew up provided that those who produced a large amount of grain and cloth were exempt from servitude and taxes; Whoever abandons agriculture and business will make his whole family a slave to the government.

Han Fei, the master of pre-Qin Legalist thought, took another step forward in the idea of valuing agriculture and suppressing commerce. In his famous "Five Worms", he listed businessmen as one of the "five beetles" that endanger the country and society. Xu Guangqi, a famous scientist in China in the Ming Dynasty and known as "the first person to introduce Western learning", also strongly advocated the idea of agriculture, believing that agriculture is "the source of people's education and the foundation of national prosperity".

The expositions of the above important historical figures on the idea of agriculture have played an important role in the long-term prosperity of China's idea of valuing agriculture and suppressing business. In addition, under the constraints of feudal etiquette such as the "Three Principles and Five Constants" and "Parents Are Not Far Away", the formation of marine consciousness characterized by openness and enterprising has been greatly restricted.

Valuing agriculture and suppressing commerce became an economic ideology that ran through the entire feudal society, and was deeply rooted in the cultural concept of the feudal economy, which directly influenced the Chinese nation's march towards the sea and the formation of the capitalist market economy. In the late feudal period, the Ming and Qing dynasties strictly imposed a policy of sea ban and seclusion for hundreds of years, which made the precious maritime consciousness of the Chinese nation almost annihilated.

"How much do we know about the ocean?"

"Zheng He has been to the Western Ocean seven times and looks majestic, but does he really know the ocean? What was the purpose of his voyage to the West? ”

"I'm sure many of you here may think that if you don't pay attention to the ocean, there's nothing big about it! The sea is empty, there is nothing, far less important than the land! But, I say, you are wrong! You guys are completely wrong! ”

"The ocean is very important to us! Even life-threatening! If we take control of the sea, there will be no chance for the pirates to go ashore! If we had controlled the sea, Japan would not have had a chance to land in Korea at all! If we control the seas, the fleet of Westerners will not be possible in the South Seas! ”

"Friends come from afar, and enemies come from the sea! In the past, our understanding of the world was too closed, too self-contained, too high-minded, believing that we were the heavenly kingdom, the core of the world, and that everyone else had to rely on our breath to exist. But I have to tell you coldly, you're wrong again! ”

"In this world, there are many peoples, and there are many countries! What is connected to our land is only part of it. There are also quite a few parts that are not connected to us by land. Only the ocean can bind all nations and countries together. In other words, the ocean is the link that connects the world! ”

Zhang Zhun did not hesitate to introduce his topic to the core step by step.

Yes, the thinking of the Ming people is indeed more conservative and closed. However, you can't say that the Ming people were stupid. You can't say that the people of the Ming Kingdom do not understand the interests of the sea at present, and they will not understand the huge interests of the sea in the future. In fact, the people of the Ming Dynasty were very intelligent, and once their minds were opened, they were quick to accept new things.

For example, Xu Guangqi, Sun Yuanhua, Zhao Shizhen and others, after receiving all kinds of scientific and technological cultural knowledge from the West, were soon able to learn for their own use. One of the most famous examples is the Hongyi Cannon. The crosshairs, illuminating doors, and scales of the Hongyi cannon were all inspired by Xu Guang. And Sun Yuanhua copied the Hongyi cannon with more advanced performance.

Sometimes, however, being smart is mistaken by being smart. Zheng He's seven voyages to the Western Ocean, in addition to showing off his strength, also brought a huge consequence, that is, he was convinced that there was no maritime power around the Ming Kingdom that threatened the Ming State at all. From East Asia to the coast of Africa, there is simply no country that can pose a maritime threat to the Ming Kingdom.

This is a huge misunderstanding. A misunderstanding that the ass decides the head. The rulers of the Ming Kingdom at that time, under the influence of Emperor Jianwen, first thought of consolidating their rule, rather than gaining benefits. When they feel that their rule is too secure to be violated, they ignore the sea.

If people are too smart, they can easily go the wrong way. The same is true for the state. If Zheng He's fleet did not go to the Western Ocean for some purpose, but really wanted to get rich, the place it passed would have become a colony of the Ming State long ago. With the strength of Zheng He's fleet at that time, it was effortless to take the countries along the way!

"Now, I want to explain some of the most basic theories of the ocean. It may sound a little strange to you, but I'm sure you'll figure it out eventually. ”

Zhang Zhun talked eloquently.

What he wants to expound is indeed some of the most basic theories, some basic ocean theories that can be accepted by everyone present. It is not enough for the Tiger Army Navy to understand, but also for everyone present to understand this. Otherwise, the army will always desperately obstruct the development of the navy and desperately compete for the navy's military spending, and Gao Hongtu, Zhang Shenyan and others will not understand his decision.

Mankind's understanding of the strategic position and value of the ocean is a process of deepening. From ancient times until the fifteenth century, people who came into contact with the sea were mainly people living in coastal areas, and their activities were mainly shellfish gathering and small fish, using seawater to make salt, and navigating the coast. The practice of relying on the sea to eat the sea and navigating in the vicinity has enabled mankind to form an understanding that the ocean has "the benefits of fish and salt and the convenience of boats."

In ancient China, the idea of "focusing on the mountains and seas and making the country rich" was formed, and the "Guanshanhai" policy of the state to manage the development of mountains and seas (mainly sea salt production) appeared. This was the basic understanding of the value of the ocean before the fifteenth century. It must be admitted that the understanding of Gao Hongtu, Zhang Shenyan and others has stayed at this stage.

Throughout the Ming Dynasty, everyone's understanding of the ocean is actually basically stuck at this stage. Most of the coastal people in the Ming Dynasty only knew how to use seawater to boil salt and use the sea to fish, and the rest basically did not understand. For example, when Zhang Zhun just crossed over, Yang Jiatun was like this. Maritime trade, which few people are qualified to do.

Since the late fifteenth century, the Age of World Exploration has arrived, the New World has been discovered, new routes have been opened, voyages around the world have been carried out, the world market has been expanded, modern colonial plunder has begun, the development of European capitalism has been promoted, and the era of capitalism replacing feudalism has arrived. The discovery of America, the voyage around Africa, opened up new avenues for the emerging bourgeoisie.

The markets of the East Indies and China, the colonies of the Americas, the increase in trade with the colonies, the means of exchange, and the increase in commodities in general led to an unprecedented upsurge in commerce, navigation, and industry, and consequently to the rapid development of the revolutionary elements within the collapsing feudal society. However, the Ming Dynasty did not attach enough importance to maritime interests, especially the northerners.

The inertial thinking of northerners riding horses and southerners riding boats doesn't know when it started, but it has penetrated deeply into everyone's blood anyway. When Zhang Zhun was in Hejian Mansion, he also made a special investigation. It turned out that in Hajian Province, there really was not a single big merchant who had conducted maritime trade. Their resistance to the sea is evident.

"Why is Jiangnan richer than the north?"

"A very important reason is the developed maritime trade in the south of the Yangtze River!"

Zhang Zhun continued to talk eloquently.

He explained that most of the world's coastal areas have formed a superior geographical environment due to their proximity to the sea, and the climate is warm and suitable, suitable for human habitation, suitable for economic and social development, and has become developed regions. China's coastal area is bordering the western Pacific Ocean, in the middle latitudes, with a pleasant climate, abundant products and convenient transportation, it is reasonable to say that it should be the most densely populated area and the most developed economy, culture and science and technology in Chinese.

However, at present, the Ming Kingdom has not really formed a coastal economic belt, and even the population is not the largest in the coastal area. The most populous area of the Ming Kingdom was the Central Plains. Although Shandong is surrounded by the sea on three sides, it does not have a large population and is not well developed in commercial trade. I have to say that this is very regrettable, and it is not commensurate with the development of the world.

"As I said before, now, in distant Europe, the Western powers are rising rapidly."

"On the contrary, our country, on the ocean, is still resting on its laurels."

"Why? Where did our Zheng He's fleet go? ”

Zhang Zhun said in a deep voice.

This was the first shot he formally questioned the imperial court.

Yes, this is the first time that Zhang Zhun has comprehensively criticized the court in public.

The rulers of the Ming Dynasty went against the trend of history to ban the sea, which was objectively related to the prevalence of piracy at that time, but from a deep level, there were profound internal reasons. First of all, for the feudal ruling class, whether to advocate or ban navigation can only be based on whether or not it can maintain feudal rule, and once the foundation of its feudal rule is damaged or even shaken by navigational activities, it is inevitable to ban and stop navigation.

At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, navigation was advocated, and its purpose was to pursue the grandeur and luxury of all nations, as well as to show the strength and stability of the country. However, when navigation promoted the development of the social commodity economy and the prosperity of the market, promoted the emancipation of people's minds and brought new social ethics and morality, so that the feudal rulers could not control people's minds and endangered the feudal rule, it was resolutely forbidden.

Commercial activities, especially maritime trade, are not fixed in one place and "difficult to control" like agricultural producers, and business operators are not scattered but relatively concentrated, and it is easy to "gather and rebel". They are not as easy to control as agricultural producers, they are active in their thinking, they "do not obey morality, and they are in contact with barbarians, which endangers education."

In this way, the development of nautical activities and other industrial and commercial activities. It went beyond the limits of what the feudal order based on the small-scale peasant economy could tolerate, shook the natural economic foundation of "agriculture-oriented", and it became inevitable to ban it.

It can be seen that Zheng He's voyage to the West was stopped, and the rhythm of the great development of China's navigation industry in the early years of the Ming Dynasty was suddenly interrupted, and the essential reason was that the feudal rulers felt the potential threat of navigation activities to the feudal regime. From this point of view, Zhang Zhun's maritime strategy is incompatible with the principles and policies that the Ming court has always adhered to. Even if the sea ban was opened, the rulers of the Ming Dynasty were still careful to block the influence from the sea.

Second, the feudal regime's policy of monopolizing commerce and restricting business operations prevented the smooth development of industry and commerce in feudal society. Judging from the course of the development of human society, only by placing itself in the world market can a nation obtain the vast space necessary for the development of the capitalist mode of production. If, on the other hand, a nation is isolated from the world market, it loses the general climate best suited to the growth of the capitalist mode of production.

In the shell of the feudal system, capitalism may still be suffocated even if it breaks through the ground. The large-scale and sustained development of maritime activities in Western countries is almost synchronous with the development of capitalist relations of production. Through seafaring activities, capitalism opened up foreign markets, obtained foreign raw materials, and provided conditions for its rapid development. It can be said that without the opening of new shipping routes, without the expansion and plunder overseas, there would be no primitive accumulation of capitalism.

However, China's long history has been in a feudal society for a long time, which has fundamentally restricted the development of China's maritime commerce activities from the social system, and affected China's economy to the world. Of course, there are objective reasons for this, that is, China has a vast territory and abundant resources, and most of the materials can be self-sufficient, and there is no need to import them from outside.

Third, judging from the political and economic situation of the Ming Dynasty, Zheng He did not have the opportunity to become "Columbus", nor did it mean that China's navigation technology could not reach the American continent, but that China did not achieve the current situation when Zheng He became "Columbus", and China's feudal ruling class did not have a pioneering sense of sea power.

Although the rulers of the Ming Dynasty advocated Zheng He's voyage to the West, they were influenced by traditional thinking only to show China's wealth and strength, that is, purely to serve the so-called prestige policy of the Celestial Empire, not to open up sea routes open to overseas.

Although Zheng He broadened his horizons in his repeated foreign exchanges with the West and called on the Ming government to attach importance to navigation and sea power, in the political and economic context of the time, it was impossible to attract the attention of the ruling class and be accepted by the ruling class.

The Ming and Qing dynasties banned the sea for more than 400 years, which seriously constrained the Chinese nation's enterprising spirit of developing towards the sea, cut off exchanges with foreign countries, inhibited the development of commodity economy and foreign trade, stifled the growth of the budding capitalism, and kept the country's development in a state of rigidity and stagnation.

"To talk about the ocean, I have to introduce you to a book."

"The name of this book is called "The Theory of Sea Power."

Zhang Zhun waved his hand and asked people to bring up a large basket of books.

This is the first book he printed through Shen Lingfei and looking for a printing house in Jiangnan. Although the appearance is not very beautiful, the price is very low. The engraving printing and letterpress printing industry in the Ming Dynasty were very developed, and Zhang Zhun printed 3,000 copies of the "Theory of Sea Power", which was only 500 taels of silver.

"On Sea Power" is one of the few military books that Zhang Zhun can basically memorize backwards. No way, the Marines don't know about the theory of sea power, it's just as ridiculous as Buddhists don't know about the Buddha. In the past, when I was in the army, the content of "On Sea Power" also had to be assessed at any time. Well, it's not about Zhang Zhun himself, it's about recruiting recruits.

Mahan's "Theory of Sea Power" is actually not very long, and Zhang Zhun can accurately describe its general meaning. With the help of a master of book editing like Xue Ningying, it is not difficult to copy "The Theory of Sea Power" in general. Since it was not difficult, Zhang Zhun did not hesitate to plagiarize it.

If there is a "Theory of Sea Power", why is there no "Theory of War"? Because Zhang Zhun felt that it was not necessary at all. The content of "The Art of War" is more comprehensive than that of "On War", and as long as you are proficient in "The Art of War", there is nothing to add in military strategy. Even, in his heart, Zhang Zhun felt that the description of "On War" was not as good as "Sun Tzu's Art of War". The only weakness of "The Art of War" is that it does not elaborate on the ocean, so Zhang Zhun has to make up for it.

"The world after is the world of the ocean!"

"To control the sea is to control everything around the sea!"

"A strong naval fleet is the foundation of the struggle for supremacy at sea! Without the ocean, we can't move an inch! The development of colonies is inseparable from powerful force! I must tell everyone present that it is very necessary to make a high profit and vigorously expand the overseas colonies! ”

"What is a colony? To put it simply, the colonies are our markets, our raw materials. We bought raw materials from the colonies, processed them into commodities, and then sold them to the people of the colonies for a high profit. ”

"For example, growing cotton. As we all know, in our country, the places suitable for growing cotton are all in remote areas, and it is not easy to produce cotton on a large scale. If cotton is planted in the Central Plains, it will compete with grain for land. So what to do? We can go to the Mughal dynasty and grow cotton. ”

"The Mughal dynasty is the former Tianzhu, our fleet, can get there. According to the intelligence, the situation there is very chaotic, large and small kings, big kings, small kings, and earth kings, fighting each other, and it is a mess. If our fleet gets there and conquers them all, we can ask them all to grow cotton and sell it to us at a low price. Or maybe we set up a cotton mill there and produce cotton fabrics from local materials. ”

Zhang Zhun turned to the most substantive issue - colonies.

Yes, Zhang Zhun has always had the ambition to make the colonies of the Ming Kingdom, all over the world, replace Britain in advance and become the real world hegemon. However, due to the traditional way of thinking of the Ming people, it is still a bit difficult for them to accept the concept of colonies. There is no way, the people of the Ming Kingdom love face too much, they like to hear praise from others, and they don't like to take money out of other people's pockets.

In fact, in Zhang Zhun's view, Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Nanyang, India, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, and the Americas, these vast regions are all completely likely to become colonies of the Ming Kingdom. As long as the Ming Kingdom's sea power is strong enough, it can completely turn the Pacific Ocean into its own inland sea, thus establishing an incomparably powerful Pacific empire.

That's right, the Pacific Empire.

"My goal is to make more than half of the world's land and more than half of the oceans have the flag of the Tiger Army fluttering! Our fleet can dock in any seaport in the world! No matter where we Han people go, we are the masters of wherever we go! I hope that the prince will encourage me! ”

Zhang Zhun ended his speech with such an epilogue.

"Bang Bang!"

There was a round of applause from below.

Zhang Zhun smiled and nodded, and got down from the podium. In fact, Zhang Zhun knows very well that it is impossible to change everyone's thinking at once. The importance of the ocean can only be understood step by step. However, as long as everything has a beginning and continues to work hard in the future, there will always be results.

Since coming to this world, Zhang Zhun has never underestimated the intelligence of the Ming people. The people of the Ming Kingdom are smart, but they lack a little bit of correct guidance, which makes their cleverness useless in the right place. Seriously speaking, which of those high-ranking officials in the imperial court is stupid? It's just that their ingenuity and ingenuity are used in the struggle for power and profit, and intrigues. If everyone had used it on the right path, the Ming Kingdom would have soared into the sky long ago.

At this time, Britain, as well as most of the Western powers, were still in their infancy and had not yet reached their peak. The Tiger Army is now catching up, and there is no problem at all. The population of the whole of Europe combined is not as large as the population of the Ming Kingdom, and the area of the whole of Europe combined is not as large as the territory of the Ming Kingdom. Ming, how could it be possible to lose to the European powers?

"My lord, Dorgon said he wanted a copy of The Power of the Sea."

Mo Luo suddenly arrived and asked Zhang Zhun for instructions.

"He wants "The Theory of Sea Power"?"

Zhang Zhun was slightly stunned.

Dolgon actually knew about the existence of "The Theory of Sea Power"?

Mo Luo explained: "That's exactly what he said. ”

Zhang Zhun pondered for a moment, nodded and said, "Okay!" Give it to him! ”

Immediately, he asked someone to take out a copy of "The Theory of Sea Power", handed it to Mo Luo, and then transferred it to Dolgon.

After Mo Luo left, Zhang Zhun felt a little weird. Could it be that Dorgon is actually going to start thinking about the ocean? It's rare! It seems that the god of Jianyu never mentioned the sea. But that's fine, let's see if there's any place for Dolgon in the future. In addition to being a Tartar, this kid still has some strengths. Now that Dolgon is in Zhang Zhun's hands, Zhang Zhun really doesn't worry about what tricks he plays, and he can't jump out of the palm of his hand.

Unconsciously, Zhang Zhun actually had a ridiculous idea, if he killed Dorgon with one sword, he would be cheaper. It is better to let him wear the guilt and make meritorious contributions, go to Japan and fight against little Japan, and fight poison with poison. With his ingenuity, it seems that it is not impossible to take Japan. If he can't handle it in Japan, then let him go to India. It's always okay to deal with India. If you can't even deal with Indian Ah San, then you have to kill him with one sword.

On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, Zhang Zhun rode back to Fushan City.