Chapter 871: Far-reaching Impact

The plan for retaliation was set for a week later, and the officers and men of the voyage were so tired that they had very little rest for the week. But Li Heng was vengeful, and Zhou Hao didn't insist, so the matter was settled. In the afternoon of the same day, three warships set off, accompanied by five armed merchant ships, and the troops transported to Los Angeles were an infantry regiment, as well as a large amount of supplies, the purpose was to speed up the construction there, the winter in North America came early, and the time of several months passed in a flash, and there was no delay.

Xia Wanchun and a group of people were not idle in Los Angeles, the Spaniards walked away on the front foot, and they were busy on the back foot. It was necessary to build a temporary pier, and it was temporary anyway, grab a group of natives to cut down trees, and then drive wooden stakes into the sea, and the trestle continued to extend deeper. Without the expansion of North America by the Ming Dynasty, the Spanish development of Los Angeles would have been much later, and the pressure brought by the Ming Empire to European countries in this time and space was too great, and the conflict between the Ming Empire and Spain was undoubtedly something that had not happened in history. But objectively speaking, with the extension of the expansion of the Ming Empire, the contradictions between the colonists of European countries will inevitably occur, and it is nothing more than sooner or later.

Naturally, it was impossible to build a decent pier in three days, and the wooden trestle bridge still played a huge role. When the ships that rushed to reinforce appeared, Xia Wanchun breathed a sigh of relief, and now it was safe. There are still fewer people in my hands, and I don't have enough confidence. In recent days, it has been found that there are no big indigenous tribes nearby, but further away, some large tribes of tens of thousands of people have been discovered, and they have not yet made contact with each other, who knows if there will be a fight? Or rather. It was only a matter of time before the fight started, and the Ming Empire's greed for land was doomed to this result. Shunchang's rebellion is now the code of conduct for the colonists. How many natives are there in the Americas, Xia Wanchun doesn't know, but he does. As he succeeded, more natives had to submit to the rule of the Ming Dynasty or be wiped out.

In North America, survival comes first, which is the reason why the hearts of these scholars of the Ming Dynasty are getting harder and harder. They have no support from their families in this place, and they have to do it themselves if they want to get ahead. If it's a waste, just take your own luggage home, for now, of course. No one has done that yet, it's a shame.

The goal of Li Heng's retaliation is very clear, that is, Puerto Vallarta. The reason for choosing this target is the silver here. This port was because of the silver mines and prosperity, and the Spaniards mined the silver that was transported from here to Manila and returned to Spain with a load of Ming goods. Li Heng didn't think about it. Go straight to Mexico City, but forget if you are not familiar with the geographical environment. There weren't that many infantry to use.

The huge North American fleet has no opponent on the west coast of North America at all, and if it weren't for the fact that it was too troublesome to bypass South America, Li Heng would have the idea of killing the east coast of America. Before getting the news of the declaration of war at home, Li Heng could only make a cameo appearance as a pirate.

When ten warships and ten armed merchant ships appeared in the sea outside Puerto Vallarta, Franger, as the admiral here, had to meet the enemy with the only five warships he had. At this time he was desperate. But there is no choice, this is the Age of Discovery. If they flee without a fight, the colony will become fat in someone else's mouth, nibbling whatever they want.

Full of tragic feelings, the five battleships waved their flags. "This is the territory of the Kingdom of Spain". The answer was, "We know." "There was no room for manoeuvre, because the big guy who rushed to the front, with black smoke, spoke with his main gun.

With just one salvo at a distance of a thousand meters, a Spanish battleship turned into two sections, two hits, one hit the middle of the ship, and the keel broke directly. The ensuing battle can only be described as a massacre. The power of the new naval guns was simply not something that the Spaniards, who were still in the era of smoothbore guns, could resist.

The battle could not be considered fierce, and in just an hour, five Spanish sail battleships were reduced to pieces. At the last moment, the flag sent by Foranger in the direction of the port read: "Take care, God bless Spain." ”

God bless Spain I don't know, anyway, after a salvo of the huge steam battleship, the two Spanish merchant ships in the harbor hoisted the white flag. It's not that I don't want to run, but it's full of goods and I can't run fast at all. The church bell rang rapidly, and the Spaniards chose to fight.

The fortified fortress, which was considered a shelter, was devastated by the bombardment of the huge naval guns, and although the fortress was difficult to destroy, the batteries above it were washed over. After this work was done, the fleet lowered the boats and the marines landed. The result was also no suspense, and this time the robbery was a great success. Two cargo ships laden with silver became trophies, and a hundred tons of silver were neatly piled up in the holds, and after the landing force occupied the port city, a large-scale robbery was carried out. A total of more than 100 tons of silver and 8 tons of gold were grabbed.

The victors took not only a large amount of precious metals, but also more than 500 prisoners, leaving behind a mess. This is because there is no official declaration of war in China, otherwise Li Heng and Dai Zhiyuan would not be so polite. Another reason is that the focus of the North American strategy is to continue to push eastward, and Mexico is not the focus of development.

It is unknown why such a plan was formulated in China, and Li Heng's task as the commander of the fleet can only be to carry out the task. The results of this robbery were so fruitful that Li Heng himself was stupid. After returning to Jinshan, I discussed with Dai Zhiyuan, this alone food can't be eaten. Simply, two and one are added to five, half of which is handed over to the treasury, and half of which is shared among everyone. Even so, after such a division, the heads and brains of the entire colony were exhausted, and in the end, in order to unify their minds, the legal population of all colonies was given two dollars each. The local aborigines who returned to obedience have issued a lot of iron tools, which is not to be mentioned later.

After the news of the "large-scale conflict" between the two countries was transmitted back to China, I don't know how it was poked out by the newspapers, and after the news was published in the "Ming Pao", the whole Ming Dynasty was boiling. For a while, all the newspapers shouted "hit and beat", and if you don't write like that, no one will read your newspaper.

At first, the cabinet was relatively cautious, and Chen Xie deliberately held a meeting to study it, but he never thought that these cabinet members, who were red-eyed by overseas colonized foreign wealth, would unanimously demand a declaration of war on Spain. Case. Chen Xie had nothing to say, he was not thinking about Manila for a day or two. As the last stronghold of Europeans in the South Seas, this place has long wanted to be pulled out.

In contrast, the Spaniards were much slower to react, and it took time for the news to reach back home, and finding Anglo Sansmo Sansmo was not there. Hurry up and send someone to Daming. By the spring of the following year, the mission's fleet was still at sea, and the Ming fleet had blocked the port of Manila. In this operation against Luzon, the fleets of various parts of the South Seas were the most active. Chen Jiye even rushed to send a message back to Beijing in the winter, asking to be the commander-in-chief of this operation.

This request was naturally fruitless, and the person who finally won the position of commander-in-chief was not a naval general, but Lin Ya, a veteran general of the army, who was in command at the age of sixty. Command the Xinghai Fleet and the garrison, and cooperate with the fleet that arrives from the Grand Commander. The campaign began with a blockade of the harbor to warn ships of other nations to leave.

The Governor of Manila, Spain, urgently sent an envoy to Xinghai City to inquire about the reason. The answer was like a bolt from the blue, and the Spanish fleet in the Mexican colonies went to war with the Ming Dynasty. Although it has been repeatedly explained that this is a misunderstanding, it is too late, Chen Jiye, the king of the Xinghai of the Ming Empire, said. Da Ming didn't think it was a misunderstanding.

In fact, Chen Jiye was the staunchest supporter of this war, and the reason was simple. He always had the idea of turning Luzon into his fief as well. Nanyang is rich, and now that he has possessed Java and taken Luzon, who else can the children of the Chen family be able to compete with him? When the time comes, it doesn't matter who it is. They all have to honor him.

Chen Jiye's idea is normal, but Chen Xie will never allow such a thing to happen. That's why he refused his request without hesitation, and sent Wang Rui to Xinghai City to warn Chen Jiye in person that it was enough to keep the foundation of Java. Don't think anything wrong. This move was a big blow to Chen Jiye, and after Wang Rui arrived in Xinghai City, he began to administratively deprive King Xinghai of his rights. The meaning is obvious, you can become a rich man, but you must not blatantly divide the facts.

Chen Jiye couldn't understand why Chen Xie did this, and Chen Xie didn't give him a clear explanation. In any case, after this blow, Chen Jiye's modus operandi changed, and he began to use the money in his hand to slowly influence the entire political landscape of Java, rather than unabashedly grasping power. He did this, and Chen Xie unexpectedly acquiesced.

The war between the Ming and Spain in the spring of 1670 was without suspense, and the powerful Ming navy, with a concentration of thirty warships, easily wiped out the Spanish fleet in Manila. The subsequent landing battle did not change much, and after the landing of two infantry divisions from the east and west, Manila was encircled.

By the time the Spanish envoys arrived at the city of Xinghai, the battle for Manila was over. More than 3,000 Spaniards were killed, more than 8,000 were wounded, and more than 15,000 Spaniards became prisoners. The Spanish envoy could not change any result, so he could only retreat and rush to Jingshi to see Chen Xie. I hope that through negotiations, a good result can be achieved, and I hope that I can at least encircle the colonies, like Mexico. But his efforts failed, Chen Xie didn't even see him, only Li Mingrui came out to say hello, and said: The Ming Empire has been provoked, and a counterattack is inevitable.

The retaliatory actions of the Ming Empire had a profound impact on European countries, and the relationship between several maritime powers unexpectedly changed. Relations between England and the Netherlands warmed rapidly, and relations between Spain and France, although still stiff, did not mean to deteriorate further. The envoys of various countries reached a secret agreement in private, and the four countries of Britain, the Netherlands, Spain, and Portugal formed a maritime alliance. We will work together to deal with the overseas contingencies that European countries may encounter.

In the course of a series of secret meetings, France unexpectedly chose neutrality. Returning to Europe, Pierre, when he met with Louis XIV, repeatedly emphasized the power of the Ming Dynasty. clearly stated his own views, united with the Ming Dynasty, dominated Europe, and carved up the world. Louis XIV did not explicitly state this view, but in the subsequent Ming-French relations, diplomatic envoys (consuls) were sent to each other between the Ming and the French. The relationship between the two countries has not embarked on the path of alliance, but only to maintain the status quo.

Louis XIV's mentality is not difficult to understand, on the one hand, he had the ambition to dominate Europe, on the other hand, he was worried that the hand of the Ming Dynasty would reach into Europe, which would cause many uncertainties for his hegemony. Louis XIV also did one thing, which was to tell the Ming the news of the secret alliance between the four kingdoms.

The Mingxi War of 1670 ushered in a new era. On the one hand, the shipbuilding industry of the Ming Empire was in full swing, and new warships were mass-produced to replace the old sail warships. On the other hand, the development in the Americas has accelerated across the board.

European countries began to study the Ming Dynasty, study the Ming Dynasty, and prepare for an all-out war against the Ming Dynasty. In 1671, the first steel plant in North America was built, and the Ming Empire began to develop industry in North America and produce munitions locally. In the same year, about 300,000 Ming people immigrated to North America. The colonies continued to develop eastward, and there were constant wars with the natives, and at the same time, some natives who were willing to cooperate were included in the North American household registration of the Ming Dynasty.

In October 1673, the first phase of the arsenal was completed and put into operation, with an annual output of 15,000 rifles, 30 cannons of various calibers, and 500 mortars. Raw materials from this period still needed to be imported from the mainland, and there is no doubt that even so, the armed needs of the North American colonies, with the completion of this arsenal, greatly eased the pressure of demand.

In November of the following year, the steel plant was completed, with an annual output of 100,000 tons of steel, of which 30,000 tons could be used to make guns. As a result, the North American colonies were self-sufficient in military-industrial production. At the end of the year, Li Heng, commander of the North American Fleet, returned to China to report on his work, and reported to the emperor through the cabinet and was named Marquis of Jinshan. During the same period, there were six Ming generals who were feudal, and they were the developers of each colony.

In the spring of 1675, the Salt Lake City Colony was established, and in the same year, the construction of the railroad from Jinshan to Salt Lake City began, and the North American immigrant population officially exceeded 500,000, and the indigenous population of Shun was 100,000. Premier Chen Xie proposed to speed up the pace of development of North America, further increase immigration, and ensure the rapid development of the North American colonies. The North American Special Administrative Region was formally established, with jurisdiction over the provinces of Jinshan, Los Angeles and Salt Lake. In the same year, the new version of the Ming map added the Special Administrative Region of North America and the Special Administrative Region of Egypt. (To be continued......)