In the Imperial Study, the ministers of civil and military affairs discussed the excavation of the Suez Canal.

The civil and military officials could only see the location of the Suez Canal from the world map hanging on the screen, and those with a little bit of brains could know the great role of the Suez Canal by comparing the sea route.

Deng Haonan naturally had many more ideas than them, so he just took the contract in his hand and studied it carefully.

This contract was a contract between the Ottoman Turkish Empire and the Chinese Empire regarding the details of the construction of the Suez Canal. It bears the autograph of Murad IV and the seal of the Ottoman government, indicating that the Ottoman Empire has agreed to the terms of the contract.

Although the content of the contract is dozens of pages high, the core text is actually very simple.

First of all, this is the first one. The lease was for a period of ninety-nine years, and at the end of the term, all rights to the canal were vested in the Ottoman Turkish Empire. The second is that the Ottoman Empire must provide free of charge the land needed for the construction of the Suez Canal, that is, the land required by the Suez Canal Company of the Chinese Empire. The third is that the Turkish government must provide the necessary labor. The fourth is that the company has the right to send relevant personnel and related equipment into Egypt, as well as to send troops to protect such personnel and equipment. Fifth, the Turkish government will receive five percent of the company's profits.

Obviously, the profits from the construction of the Suez Canal were basically taken by the Chinese Empire. And the lease term is as long as ninety-nine years, and Turkey's profit is only five percent, which is too little. More crucially, the land needed for the canal was owned by a Chinese company, which was clearly equivalent to the destruction of the sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire and the emergence of a state of China in the Egyptian region.

Of course, land ownership has not risen to the point where it is linked to national sovereignty in this era. But the lease for ninety-nine years, with a profit of only five percent, is indeed too little, so that Murad IV agreed, which is indeed doubtful.

"Emperor" Liu Hu was the special envoy of this negotiation, and only listened to him say: "Wechen went to Constantinople to meet the Turkish king Murad IV, on the issue of the Suez Canal negotiations, Wechen asked for a sky-high price, but Murad IV did not bargain, as a result, Wechen took out the contract plan for him for the first time, and he agreed the next day."

Wen Tiren, the secretary of the Ministry of Industry, said: "Even if this barbarian is stupid, it is not stupid to this point. According to Weichen, the Turks must not be well-intentioned, and I hope the emperor will think twice."

Shangshu Chengji of the Ministry of Rites came out at this time and said: "According to Lord Liu, the Turks have already budgeted for the cost of digging the canal before, about two billion lira, and 200 million yuan, such a huge excavation cost, the Turkish Empire can't afford it, and our empire can't afford it."

The ministers were dumbfounded, and the number was simply terrifying.

Deng Haonan smiled faintly and said: "Cheng Aiqing, don't be scared by the Turks, let's not talk about whether we can get 200 million silver dollars to dig the canal, how is the length of the Suez Canal compared to the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal of the empire?" ”

"Nature is incomparable"

The ministers replied proudly.

The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal is one of the world's longest, largest and oldest canals. From Beijing in the north, to Hangzhou (Yuhang) in the south, through Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang provinces, through the Haihe River, the Yellow River, the Huai River, the Yangtze River, the Qiantang River five major water systems, a total length of about 1,794 kilometers.

"According to Turkey's previous measurements, the length of the Suez Canal is only 120 kilometers, less than a tenth of the length of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. The difficulty of construction is even more incomparable. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty spent only 110 million taels of silver to dig the canal, but in my opinion, the Suez Canal can be dug with only 30 million silver dollars. ”

Deng Haonan deliberately connected two concepts that could not be equaled in order to dispel the doubts of the officials.

Sure enough, the officials didn't know how much it would cost to dig a canal in Egypt, and by Deng Haonan's comparison, the cost of less than 30 million yuan was obviously still within the affordable range.

Qian Qianyi said at this time: "In this way, the Suez Canal has no money problems at all. Colleagues, you don't have to worry about the financial burden, the Suez Canal has been dug successfully, and you can trade with Europe once a year, and only 30 million is enough."

Everyone nodded yes and agreed, agreeing with Qian Qianyi's statement.

"It's just that the empire invests this money, and just collecting the cost of crossing the river is a million profits. How can this Turk sit still? If they suddenly turn around and rob the canal after we have successfully dug it, how will the emperor deal with it?"

This is exactly what Deng Haonan is most concerned about. He had already guessed what Murad IV had in mind.

"You're right" Deng Haonan smiled and said: "Murad IV must have thought that we had no place to spend our money, so we went all the way to Egypt to dig a canal. He thinks that we are far away from the canal, and even if he sends troops to seize the right to run the canal, we have nothing to do with him. That's why he agreed to our request so readily that even he could tolerate a small profit of only five percent. ”

Ni Yuanlu asked in surprise: "Is the emperor saying that Murad IV is ready to wait for us to dig out the canal, and then he will send troops to occupy it?" ”

Deng Haonan nodded, and Lin Feng next to him looked embarrassed. "The imperial fleet has not yet rushed out of Southeast Asia, and even if it reaches the shores of the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea in the future, it will not be able to form an advantage over the Ottoman Empire. After all, we are thousands of miles away from Suez, and if we fight for the canal with the Ottoman Empire, it is far away. ”

Liu Hu nodded and said, "The Red Sea coast is the sphere of influence of the Ottoman Empire, and the army is fighting too far there."

Deng Haonan smiled and said: "That's right, if the navy and army wait until then to expedition to Egypt, it will be a great loss."

Everyone was stunned, feeling that Deng Haonan had something to say. Lin Feng asked, "What does the emperor mean?" ”

Deng Haonan got up and came to the screen, knocked heavily on the Suez Canal area, and then turned around and said: "It will take at least five to ten years for this canal to be completed, and in such a long time, according to the provisions of the contract, we can build several fortresses around the canal."

Build a fortress?

The eyes of the civil and military officials suddenly lit up, how could they forget this stubble

Liu Hu said: "Weichen has read the Egyptian information given by the Turks, and there is only one populated area near Suez City near the area through which the Suez Canal passes, and the rest of the areas are desolate desert areas and lakes. ”

"Maybe we can even occupy Egypt."

"Egypt is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa, and occupies Egypt to the east to attack West Asia, to the south to attack Africa, and to the north to meddle in European affairs, so its strategic location is very important."

"Cut off Egypt, and the Ottoman Empire's territory in North Africa will also get out of control, and they will be taken by the sheep."

……

At this time, all the officials seem to have ideas.

Deng Haonan smiled faintly, and secretly said that they were not too stupid, and at this time, they seemed to know some about the purpose of Deng Haonan to dig the Suez Canal.

"Your Majesty's move is high."

"The Emperor Shengming"

Only then did the ministers remember that the emperor, as the initiator, was the one who saw the farthest and had the highest strategic vision.

"Now that you have understood, let's discuss the specific matters."

Finally, after discussion, Deng Haonan appointed Zhang Fengai, the governor of the river with experience in dredging canals, as the director of the Suez Canal of the Chinese Empire, with full responsibility for the construction of the Suez Canal. At the same time, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Industry, and the Ministry of Household will fully cooperate with Zhang Fengai's work.

In October of the first year of Shenwu, after some preparations, Zhang Fengai set off for Egypt. In order to prepare for the construction of the Suez Canal, the Ministry of Household allocated 10 million silver dollars as start-up funds, and in the future, warships will be sent to Egypt every month to transport follow-up funds. The Ministry of Industry dispatched 10 Beijing officials, 300 river officials from all over the country, and 500 outstanding river workers from all over the country to accompany him. At the same time, the Ministry of Industry loaded the equipment needed to dig the canal onto the ship and shipped it to Egypt.

Among these equipment, in addition to the excavation tools required to dig the canal. There was also equipment for carrying out the production of cement and carrying more than two thousand craftsmen. These craftsmen were not there to dig the canals, but to build the fortresses. According to Deng Haonan's deployment, the construction of the canal is just a pretense, and the construction of fortresses and taking root in Egypt is the most important strategic chess piece.

The Ministry of War also sent a large number of warships to escort the convoy, and carried 1,000 marines and men, nominally to protect the Chinese, but in fact they were preparing to take the opportunity to go deep into Egypt and fix it in Egypt like a nail. Of course, this was only the first army to enter Egypt, and in order not to suspect the Turks, there will be additional forces in the future.

After a four-month voyage, Zhang Fengai and his entourage arrived at Suez City on the side of the Gulf of Suez in the Red Sea in February of the second year of Shenwu.

Turkey sent representatives to greet them, and both sides were polite with their own intentions. Then Zhang Fengai led the workers to start surveying the construction site and route of the canal, and the Turks did not suspect that Zhang Fengai brought a thousand Marine officers and soldiers, perhaps they were not afraid at all that after all, the Turkish army had not fought with the Chinese army, and the Turkish army was now a first-class power in this region, and they were afraid that there would be no face if it was spread out by a thousand Chinese troops.

The Suez Canal is a sea-level waterway that runs through the Isthmus of Suez in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea, providing the closest route from Europe to nearby lands in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans. It is one of the most frequently used air routes in the world. It is the junction between Asia and Africa, and the main channel for people to travel between Asia and Africa. The canal stretches 195 kilometres (105 mi) north from Port Said to Suez City in the south, and is dug north of Port Said into the Mediterranean Sea to the south of Suez. The Suez Canal is located on the west side of the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt, across the Isthmus of Suez, between the two cities of Port Said on the Mediterranean Sea side and Suez (L-UY) on the Gulf of Suez side of the Red Sea, with a total length of about 163 kilometers.

Before leaving, Zhang Fengai was summoned by Deng Haonan alone. Deng Haonan told Zhang Fengai what he knew.

At first, Zhang Fengai didn't know anything about the Suez region of Egypt, and listening to what Deng Haonan said was like a fantasy. But Zhang Fengai has an advantage, that is, she has a good memory, and quickly recorded it in her notebook after listening to a lot of Deng Haonan's verbosity.

Along the way, Zhang Fengai was studying Deng Haonan's words, because this was his first-hand information. After arriving in Egypt, Zhang Fengai was able to fully understand Deng Haonan's meaning and memorize it word for word.

When he saw the situation in Egypt, Zhang Fengai suddenly looked up to the sky and sighed. The sigh was nothing else, but Deng Haonan's words were like oracles, and they were truly presented in front of him.

If there is no Deng Haonan, even the experts who have the ability will need to survey for several years before finally finalizing the excavation route. But now, after Zhang Fengai has been verified, it has proved that what Deng Haonan said and the plan are completely correct and the best route.

In fact, before that, the Suez Canal had already existed.

As early as 4,000 years ago, during the Middle Kingdom of ancient Egypt, about 2,000 BC during the time of Pharaoh Sost, a canal had been dug. However, the canal is different from later generations, with the northern part of the canal being fed by the direct flow of the Nile, the middle section being a large lake, the Lake of Bitterness, and the southern end being the port of Chrysma that flows into the Red Sea. This canal was the oldest forerunner of the Suez Canal, and in the 7th century BC, the Phoenicians set out from here, and people called it the Pharaonic Canal.

After the seventh century, the canal has gone through many vicissitudes. In the first half of the seventh century, the Arabs invaded Egypt and dredged the canal, which had been silted up by the Nile, in order to bring Egyptian grain, gold, silver and jewelry to Mecca. However, in the eighth century, Egypt ordered the canal to be blocked out of military considerations to prevent European and Asian countries from competing for it. Since then, this canal cup has been shelved for thousands of years.

After the Ottoman Turkish Empire occupied Egypt, it was determined to reopen the canal in order to open up the Black Sea to the Red Sea. However, at that time, Turkey's measuring tools were too backward, and the sea level of the Red Sea was 20 meters higher than that of the Mediterranean, but in reality, the sea level of the Mediterranean Sea was 10 centimeters higher than that of the Red Sea. The Turks eventually abandoned the idea of digging the canal because they did not have the ability to raise the sea twenty meters to complete the navigation, because there was no theory of sluices in this period.

Until twenty years ago, the trade of the Turkish Empire was severely attacked by the great European voyages, and the center of trade shifted from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic. At this time, the Turkish Empire thought about the canal again. If the shipping lanes can be opened, then trade will be reintroduced to the Mediterranean.

However, Turkey went to war everywhere and the financial consumption was too huge to support the budget for the canal, so the construction plan was put on hold.

Until now, the Chinese Empire suddenly demanded the opening of the canal. This came as a shock to the Turks. However, the Turks did not think that the Chinese Empire would be able to dig out the canal, after all, the difference in water level of twenty meters could not be balanced at all.

So, the Ottoman king nodded in agreement. First, he didn't want to be unhappy with the Chinese Empire, second, he didn't believe that the Chinese Empire could succeed in digging, and third, he thought that even if the excavation was successful, it would be a great thing for the Turkish Empire, and Turkey's Zhongxing would rely on this canal.

Zhang Fengai designed the canal route according to the plan that Deng Haonan gave him. Although the canal does not take the shortest route through an isthmus that is only 120 kilometers (75 miles) long, it uses several lakes from north to south: Lake Manzara, Lake Timsach, and Lake Great and Little Bitter.

However, using the lake in this way is easier to excavate. The overall length is straight, but there are also 8 major corners. To the west of the canal is the low-lying delta of the Nile, and to the east is the uneven and arid Sinai Peninsula. Before the canal was built, the only significant residential area was Suez City, and the rest of the area was an endless desert no-man's land, which made it easy for the empire to quietly build fortresses.

According to the plan, Deng Haonan demanded that the canal be militarily accessible to guò warships, which would allow two-way water transport in trade. As a result, Zhang Fengai widened the canal to allow north-south water transport between Europe and Asia.

Once built, Eurasian ships did not have to go around Cape Storm (Cape of Good Hope) at the southern tip of Africa, greatly saving voyages. A voyage from the port of London in England or the port of Marseille in France to the port of Mumbai in India can be shortened by more than half the distance via the Suez Canal than around the Cape of Good Hope.

Of course, before the opening of the Suez Canal, it was sometimes possible to transport goods from ships by land transport between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. However, the Turks were heavily taxed, and soon merchants did not use this method.

According to Zhang Fengai's prediction, the Suez Canal will officially start construction in August of the second year of Shenwu, and it is expected that Shenwu will be completed in ten years. As a major international shipping route connecting Europe, Asia and Africa, the Suez Canal will connect the Red Sea with the Mediterranean, connecting the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Indian Oceans, greatly shortening the east-west voyage. From the lowest point, the Isthmus of Suez is crossed, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea. Along the way, the lakes and marshes and depressions that have dried up, such as the Great and Small Kuhu Lakes, are used as waterways. It is 161 kilometres long from Port Said to Port Tawfik, with a total length of 173 kilometres including the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. The river is 160-200 meters wide and the bottom is 60-100 meters wide, allowing passage of sea vessels with a draft of 11.6 meters and a full load of 65,000 tons or an empty load of 150,000 tons. The average time is 15 hours.

After the opening of the canal, the distance between Western Europe and the Indian Ocean was shortened by 5,500-8,000 kilometers compared to the detour of the Cape of Good Hope in Africa. Compared with the detour to the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, it is shortened by 5,500-8,009 kilometers from the countries bordering the Atlantic coast of Europe to the Indian Ocean; 8,000-10,000 kilometers from the Mediterranean countries to the Indian Ocean; For the Black Sea coast, it was shortened by 12,000 km. As the key point of the junction of Europe, Asia and Africa, the strategic position of the Suez Canal is self-evident.

On August 19, the second year of Shenwu, Zhang Fengai sacrificed to the sky and the sea by the mouth of the Red Sea in Suez City, and then announced the groundbreaking.

Since the route of the canal was demarcated, the entire canal was divided into eight sections and construction began at the same time. Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians were requisitioned to dig canals, and Suez was responsible for their food, water, and tools, not for their wages.

The reason is that under the Turks, the Egyptians were only slaves and did not want money.

Turkey doesn't treat Egyptians as human beings, so Zhang Fengai will not pity them. So, Zhang Fengai mobilized the army, divided the workers into three groups, and worked in three shifts day and night, regardless of their lives and deaths.

According to later investigations, a total of 790,000 Egyptians were arrested as coolies in the construction of the Suez Canal, of which more than 500,000 died due to disease, fatigue, strikes, man-made and other factors.

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