March 7, 1878

In Havana, the capital of Cuba, there was a tragic incident of Chinese diaspora injuries, when hundreds of thugs and unemployed people besieged the Fengda trading house run by Chinese businessmen and ransacked its mansion not far away, killing and injuring more than 10 Chinese including wealthy businessmen and their families.

The out-of-control thugs also attacked more than 10 houses in the surrounding area, looted property and beat victims, in a heinous atrocity.

After this terrible incident, the foreign affairs agencies and chambers of commerce of the Tang Empire in Cuba strongly condemned it one after another, urging the Cuban colonial governor's office to act quickly to arrest the murderers, maintain local stability, and ensure the personal and property safety of overseas Chinese.

When the Tang Empire government learned of this, it was extremely angry and sent an official diplomatic note to the Spaniards, putting forward 13 demands.

This includes;

First, the whole city should immediately arrest the rioters and the murderers who caused the tragedy, so that no one escapes, earnestly safeguard the personal and property safety of the Tang Dynasty nationals, and ensure that such things do not happen again.

Second, the relevant rioters will be severely punished, and the Tang Empire will send criminal justice experts to track and supervise the progress of the case throughout the process, so as to ensure that all evil is eliminated and criminals are punished.

Thirdly, the Governor-General of Cuba and Havana must be held accountable for the police.

Fourth, the property and personal losses of Chinese businessmen totaled 1.72 million Tang Yuan, which must be compensated in advance to comfort the traumatized hearts of the victims' families and reflect a responsible attitude.

Fifth, in view of the Viceroyalty of Havana's failure to maintain the safety of the Chinese diaspora, the Empire will send an appropriately sized guard force to Havana and other cities.

Sixth, the Tang Empire planned to set up Guantanamo and the surrounding areas as military bases for a lease period of 99 years.

Seventh, the Royal Government of Spain needs to apologize for this incident that seriously hurt the Chinese diaspora and publicize it through the news media with sufficient influence.

Eighth......

The 13 demands are more demanding than the other, and many of them have seriously hurt the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Spain, and it is impossible to agree to them.

The Tang Empire's blatant threat of military invasion and the Spaniards, who were trying to force it, bowed their heads, which led to a sudden tension in the region.

In March 1878, the heavy cloud of war loomed over the Caribbean region of Central America, and the Tang Empire was a hegemonic presence in the whole of America, and every move affected the situation in the entire region.

At this time, Britain was in a stage of tense struggle with the Tsarist Empire, and the Ottoman Empire was forced to sign the "Peace of San Stefano" on March 2, 1878, which was categorically rejected by the world powers led by Britain, and forcefully demanded that Tsarist Russia spit out the fruits of victory.

At this scorching moment

German Prime Minister Otto von Bismarck came out and expressed his willingness to mediate, claiming to be an "honest intermediary, taking into account the demands and ideas of all parties."

Due to the extreme unfavorable balance of power to Tsarist Russia, the Anglo-Tang alliance with the Ottomans took an extremely tough attitude, and Tsarist Russia was forced to agree to renew the contract with the foreign powers, which was equivalent to a big concession.

Now

The great powers are engaged in intense and intensive diplomatic activities in Berlin, testing each other's bottom lines and bargaining chips on the relevant provisions of the Berlin Treaty, and preparing for the next step.

At a time when European affairs are entangled in affairs, London still expresses its views on the increasingly tense relations between the two countries;

"It is hoped that the two countries will uphold the purpose of maintaining regional peace and stability and make political decisions that are conducive to the settlement of the incident as much as possible, so as to avoid Central America falling into the ...... of war again."

The implication

I just hope that the government of the Kingdom of Spain will make a substantial compromise and stop carrying it to death, once a war breaks out, you will die an ugly death.

The British knew in their hearts that the Spaniards, who were now down, were far from being the opponents of the Tang Kingdom, and they would die ugly after the start of the fight.

The question is

After all, the Spaniards have a wide ancestry, although they are now declining, but after all, there is still a sense of pride, and the eagle of the Pyrenees is not easy to be so impressed.

The foreign negotiations between the Tang Dynasty and Spain soon collapsed, and the government of the Kingdom of Spain categorically rejected the unreasonable demands of the Tang State, saying that it would deal with the infringement of overseas Chinese in its own way.

April 8, 1878

Nicaragua Canal

After a decade of large-scale construction, the world-renowned Genesis project was put into trial operation at the end of last year, and the lock facilities and the signal tower of the canal project have been commissioned.

Today

The majestic Nicaragua Canal's two-line, three-stage locks connect the Pacific Ocean with a long-winding canal, the most spectacular and world-class hydraulic project ever built.

According to the project plan, the Nicaragua Canal will be officially opened to navigation in two months, and it will be put into daily operation.

The wharves, warehouses, naval bases, and a long shipyard along the shore of the lake have all been built, and the roads extend in all directions, and they initially have sufficient capacity to receive large passenger and cargo ships from the two oceans.

The Seven Princes of the Tang Dynasty, His Royal Highness Tang Li Kun, the Imperial King of Guangnan, was dressed in the uniform of the Imperial Royal Praetorian Guard, and his side was full of senior generals of the army and navy, and he was watching the ironclad ships of the "Zhendong" and "Zhennan" like a huge mountain slowly sail into the locks.

The huge gate closed, and the two ironclad giant ships slowly sank visibly under the adjustment of the water, and a circle of cheers came from the surrounding area.

His Royal Highness Tang Li Kun could not suppress the excitement in his heart, the world's top water conservancy buildings presented in front of him had been recorded in history, and the "Zhendong" class ironclad giant ship was also one of the main ships of the Royal Navy to fight for regional maritime supremacy.

A combination of both

The result is an unbelievable victory, with the Atlantic Task Force, led by the three ironclad giants "Zhendong", "Zhennan", and "Zhenbei", accompanied by its conquest army, sweeping away the Spanish fleet and bombarding the city with artillery fire, demonstrating the undoubted power of the Imperial Royal Navy.

obey the oracles;

This will be the Imperial Janissary to complete this war of colonial expansion independently, and the two princes will lead the expedition, only winning, not defeating.

Not only to win beautifully, but also to win completely, to win and make the enemy fearful.

Declare that the great power of our Tang Empire is far away, everywhere, and the prestige of the country is beyond the waves.

From the point of view of army and naval strength, the imperial expeditionary forces have a crushing advantage, while the Spaniards are tired and old, and they have reached the end of their strong crossbows.

What's more, the Tang Empire brazenly launched this war of invasion under the banner of "liberating the Cuban people".

In Cuba and Puerto Rico, there were countless Cuban rebels who were eager to play the role of the lead party and wreak havoc on the Spanish colonizers.

As for after the victory...... Hmph, there has never been love for no reason in this world, and there is no free bread that falls from the sky.

After a while

The lock dropped to a certain water level, the huge gate slowly opened, and the ironclad ships "Zhendong" and "Zhennan" sailed out one after another, and the sound of firecrackers and gongs and drums resounded on the shore.

Behind these two ironclad giants, there were also a large fleet of troops going to Cuba and coal supply ships, which were quite large.

Just today, April 8, 1878

The Tang Empire has officially declared war on the Kingdom of Spain, and is moving troops to the Caribbean Sea through the newly completed Nicaragua Canal, indicating that from now on;

The Tang Empire has the strength to transfer troops from the two oceans, and both the army and navy can be mobilized in one place in a very short time to deal a fatal blow to the enemy.

The potential strategic implications are enough to make everyone think twice.

"Lord Wang, according to the latest intelligence; Unwilling to lose Cuba, the last colony in Central America, the Spanish Bourbon government has urgently dispatched 36,000 expeditionary troops and a large number of sail warships to reinforce Cuba. The general standing on the side whispered.

Guangnan Wang Tang-Li Kun's eyes were sharp when he heard this, and two fierce killing intentions flashed, and he said with a sneer;

"It seems that these Spaniards don't cry when they don't see the coffin, and they actually come all the way to die, so it will be fulfilled for them.

Passing on the king's commands;

Immediately dispatched reconnaissance ships to closely patrol the waters around Cuba, and the main force of the Atlantic Task Force was hovered 200 kilometers northeast of Havana, waiting for an attack.

Once the traces of the Spanish reinforcements to the Grand Fleet are detected, they must be reported as soon as possible, so as to create a good fighter for the main force of our task force to completely annihilate the enemy.

The Spaniards could never have imagined that this king would give such a big gift, right?

Hahahaha......"

His Royal Highness Tang Li Kun laughed, his laughter was full of invincible domineering and high-spirited self-confidence, which infected a large group of senior generals around him, and they also laughed.

The stale brains of the Spaniards would never have imagined that the elite ironclad fleet of the Tang Empire could be transferred from the Pacific Ocean to the Caribbean Sea in just a few days, which cannot be said to be a fantasy, but a miracle.

The blame is only on the upper echelons of the kingdom in the Madrid court, who have not adapted to the rapid development of the world today, let alone paid attention to the progress of the Nicaragua Canal.

It stands to reason

It is impossible for the Spaniards not to be unaware of the Nicaragua Canal project, but even if they did, they did not keep track of it, let alone expect that the canal project could be put into trial operation and move troops freely between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.

In the outdated concept of the Spanish bureaucracy, it is still believed that the Tang Empire needs to send the main ironclad fleet to the south to bypass Tierra del Fuego, which will take at least 4~5 months.

This may have emboldened them to send a large number of expeditionary forces and the forces of the Royal Spanish Navy to Cuba, because the Spaniards had already ascertained;

In the ports of New York and Campton, the main naval bases of the Atlantic Fleet of the Tang Empire, most of the two Duke-class ironclad warships and the "Tornado"-class ironclad warships are in port, and there is no sign of a large-scale move.

In this day and age, it is not a trivial matter for the fleet to sail far away, at least the coal bunkers must be full, and the fleet has to follow a few coal carriers, but it is not a matter of leaving without saying go.

The Royal Naval Base on Long Island in New York is 2,500 kilometers away from Cuba, and in the vast Atlantic Ocean, the Spanish fleet has a good chance of being able to cross the interception and smoothly send reinforcements to the island of Cuba.

(End of chapter)