In a war with England, the British fleet crisscrossed the southeast coast as if no man's land, and the coastal port cities were looted in turn, and Mu Zhanga was also afraid, hearing that he was at war with Western countries, it can be said that he was cowardly before fighting, for fear of another war with England, if the British fleet did not go deep into the Yangtze River, the Qing Dynasty was only afraid that it would lose even worse. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

Listening to Daoguang's question, he made up his mind, although the Nanyang Navy spent a lot of silver on the imperial court, but Yuan Qi invested more money in the navy, and Yi Zhizhi himself put a lot of effort into the Nanyang Navy, how could he easily put the navy in danger?

It seems that the conquest of the South Seas, Yi Zhicontent must be to conclude that England will not participate in the war, after all, no one in the Manchu Dynasty is more familiar with the situation of Western countries than Yi Zhicontent, thinking of this, he hurriedly bowed down and said: "The emperor is shengming." ”

Daoguang didn't say anything, he believed that since Yi Zhixiang dared to take the initiative to provoke a war, he must be completely sure, however, what Qiying said was also good, Spain and the Netherlands are by no means comparable to the Japanese and Annan, after all, these two countries were early maritime powers in Europe, and once also invaded the southeast coast and occupied Taiwan.

After a while, he asked, "Luzon has the size of Shandong and Jiangsu provinces combined?" ”

"Back to the emperor." Qi Ying said: "The size of Luzon is several times that of Taiwan, and the sum of the two provinces is not exaggerated. ”

Luzon alone is the size of two provinces, Java is bigger and farther, how long will it take to conquer the South Seas? Daoguang was silent, conquering Annam and Wa Kingdom, the imperial court not only did not produce silver but also made a lot of money, this time to conquer Luzon Java, will it still be the same? This is hard to say, after all, Spain and the Netherlands are Western countries, and the situation is very different from that of Annam. What happens if it drags on for a long time?

Seeing that Daoguang was silent, Mu Zhang'a said boldly: "The hundred-legged insect is dead but not stiff, Spain and the Netherlands are all prosperous maritime powers after all, the Nanyang Navy was just a little large-scale, and the Western countries are capricious, divided and combined, it is difficult to reason, and Tsarist Russia is ready to move in the northwest, intending to get involved in Xinjiang, and the southeast coast is really not suitable to start a war ..... lightly." ”

Daoguang nodded and said: "What Yi Zhishu said is not unreasonable, Spain and the Netherlands, provoked for no reason, and dispatched warships to blockade Wusongkou, which is really too deceitful, and it will not be conquest, which will damage the prestige .....of the imperial court." ”

After a pause, he continued: "In the past few days, the newspapers have repeatedly introduced the large-scale massacre of Han Chinese by Spain and Spain in Nanyang. ”

"Your Majesty." Mu Zhang'a hurriedly said: "The meaning of the slave is that the navy can punish it slightly, so as not to expand the war." ”

A little punishment is not a good strategy, both inside and outside can be explained, Daoguang is a little moved, but then he thinks that Yi Zhicontent is notoriously bold, and once the war starts, can he still be able to help the court? Rather than this, it is better to simply let the navy do what it wants, and the war will go smoothly, and it will be a great achievement to conquer Luzon and Java and open up the frontiers of several provinces. Moreover, Nanyang has always been a gathering place for the Han people who are not satisfied with the king, and pacifying Nanyang can be regarded as removing a big worry!

Seeing that Daoguang was quite hesitant, Mu Zhang'a continued: "Now there are many sons of the nobles of the clan who serve as senior generals in the navy, and there are also many children of the Eight Banners in the navy. ”

What kind of bad idea is this? Qi Ying had to take the initiative to speak: "The emperor is cautious, this expedition is a Western country, and the sons and daughters of the nobles of the clan have no experience .......in leading the army alone. ”

Seeing that he hesitated, Daoguang encouraged: "But it doesn't hurt to say it. ”

"Yes." Qi Ying said boldly: "The Spanish Netherlands in the South Seas, the navy must attach great importance to it, and it must be Yi Zhi's content to personally lead the troops, as expected, Yi Zhi's contentment should be in Dinghai at this time, or even ..... already south." ”

Mu Zhang'a said in a deep voice: "Yi Zhishu dares to send troops without following orders? ”

"Your Majesty." Qi Ying hurriedly said: "Minister Nanyang, the Nanyang Navy is responsible for the southeast coastal defense, from Jiangsu to Guangzhou Qiongzhou Sea, all of which are ..... the scope of naval patrol. After a pause, he continued: "For the conquest of the South Seas, the navy will inevitably gather troops, mobilize warships, transport ships, and transport ammunition, food, and other materials, and it will take some time to prepare. ”

Daoguang bowed his head slightly and said: "The conquest of Nanyang is not a trivial matter, and it will be decided tomorrow when the ministers are convened to discuss." ”

No one expected that Yi Zhi's expedition to Nanyang would be so resolute, and before Daoguang could make up his mind, the secret private messages of the nobles of the Dinghai clan arrived in Beijing one after another.

After seeing these secret folds, Daoguang and Mu Zhang'a, Zaiquan, Pan Shien, Qi Liaozao, Sai Shang'a, Chen Fuen and other important ministers knew how big Yi Zhi's ambition was, and they were all shocked.

In the southeast sea frontier, the Japanese kingdom, the Ryukyus, Taiwan, Luzon, and the Java Islands are connected into an island chain, as a defensive chain that can be attacked, retreated, and defended, and the Strait of Malacca, the most important maritime trade route, is controlled in order to facilitate external expansion.

What did such a huge plan mean for the Qing Dynasty? This means that the territory of the Great Qing Dynasty will reach an unprecedented level of prosperity! The question is, is there any chance that this plan will be realized? Will there be a large-scale war in Europe in five or six years, not to mention how many troops will be needed for such a large-scale expansion in the northwest? And how much silver do you need to consume? Is this something that the Qing Dynasty can afford?

Knowing that Yi Zhishu had led the fleet south, Daoguang was not in a hurry, and thought about it repeatedly for two days, and then gathered a group of important ministers in the Xinuan Pavilion of the Heart Cultivation Palace. ”

Seeing this posture, everyone naturally understood the topic to be discussed today, and after thanking him, he sat down one after another, and Daoguang said straightforwardly: "Yi Zhi's expansion plan in the southeast and northwest, you should all know it, there is no annotation official today, the speaker is not guilty, and all the ministers can speak freely." ”

"Your Majesty." Mu Zhang'a took the lead in speaking: "Yi Zhizhi is content to conquer Luzon Spain, and intends to fight quickly, taking advantage of the fact that England has not reacted to it, and capture Luzon, which means that the other party is not completely sure that England will not intervene, this matter is not a small risk, once Britain intervenes, the war between the two countries will start again, and the southeast will inevitably be eroded. ”

Zaiquan has long-term correspondence with many of the disciples of the clan Jueluo in the navy, and he can be said to know the most about the situation in Dinghai and the pattern of the Western Ocean, and besides, he and Mu Zhang'a can also be regarded as mortal enemies.

He dared to be so bold because Spain had a grudge against England and France, and the decline of the Spanish Empire was caused by Britain and France. ”

Seeing that the two of them were carrying it as soon as they came, Daoguang said: "First of all, from the big picture, is it feasible to expand in the southeast and northwest?" ”

"Your Majesty." Qi Liaozao said: "Yi Zhizhi said that the Persian Gulf is rich in black gold, which is a cornucopia, but the words are unknown. As we all know, from Xinjiang to the Persian Gulf, not to mention thousands of miles, according to the Yi Zhixiang plan, the scale of the use of troops is at least more than 200,000, and the cost is so large that even Yuan Qi is afraid that it is difficult to bear. ”

Sezanne took over and said, "If the imperial court cannot control such a large new army, the trouble will definitely be greater than that of Tsarist Russia. ”

"Yi Zhishu was born in business, and he is the treasurer of Yuanqi, who is good at calculation, if Yuanqi's financial resources cannot support the large-scale use of troops in the northwest, how can he openly propose it?" Pan Shien said slowly: "As for control, Xinjiang is far away from the coast, and the new army is especially dependent on supplies, so it is easy to control the new army in the northwest, and the new army in the northwest must be dominated by cavalry, and the children of Manchu and Mongolia have an innate advantage." ”

After a pause, he continued: "Not to mention the southeast, Yuan Qi actively supports the expansion in the northwest, which can be said to be beneficial and harmless for the imperial court.

Wei Chen secretly thought that no matter how feasible the northwest expansion was, the imperial court should support it, and it was better to be able to expand, but it was also consolidated to the northwest. ”

These words can be said to be on the road to Daoguang's heart, and he asked: "What about the southeast?" ”

"The defense of the southeast island chain is really unheard of." Pan Shien groaned: "Wei Chen secretly thinks that the defense of the island chain is suspected of being scattered, and the Japanese Kingdom, Ryukyu, Taiwan, Luzon, and Java Islands, even if one fleet is stationed on one island, it also needs five fleets, and the imperial court is afraid that the imperial court will not be able to support such a huge navy." ”

Zaiquan said loudly: "For a long time, Yi Zhifu has not been in favor of passive defense, emphasizing that attack is defense, and the so-called island chain defense should not be to let the navy be stationed on the islands. After a pause, he continued: "It is difficult to say whether the northwest expansion is feasible, but the southeast expansion should be no problem, and the island chain will basically be completed after Luzon and Java are defeated, but the so-called southeast expansion is easy to know, and the South Seas may only be the beginning of ......" ”

Hearing this, everyone is in the same boat, and the expansion to Nanyang is just the beginning? How ambitious is that kid? Daoguang was also quite surprised, and said, "Why do you say that? ”

"Yi Zhishu once said it privately." Zaiquan said: "Consolidate the Northwest and the South Sea, when war breaks out in Europe, it is a time of rapid external expansion, and the navy wants to control the Strait of Malacca, in fact, it is for external expansion, isn't the South Sea just a beginning?" ”

How ambitious is that kid? Daoguang's heart sank, and if he continued to indulge the other party, how could he control it in the future?

Meritorious and shocking! This thought flashed through Mu Zhang's mind in an instant, blindly suppressing may not be as good as conniving and instigating, the greater the merit of that kid, the closer he is to death!

On the morning of the next day, Daoguang issued an edict to severely reprimand Spain and the Netherlands for their deliberate provocations, and to count the crimes of massacring the Han Chinese in the two countries.

Yi Zhizhi received an edict from the clipper in Yulin Port, the capital of Qiongzhou, in addition to the edict, there was also a court mail, Daoguang in the court sent him a detailed report on the plan to conquer the South Seas, and told him to fight as quickly as possible to avoid provoking a large-scale war, for the northwest expansion plan, is also allowed.

The fleet is anchored in Yulin, on the one hand, it is to prepare for the war, on the other hand, it is also to wait for the reaction of the imperial court, although it is imperative whether the light agrees or not, this battle is imperative, but after all, there is still a big difference between the order to go out and send troops without authorization, especially in terms of military morale.

Naturally, he also hopes to be ordered to go on the expedition, so it is justified.

"Master Hou." Lin Meilian, who was dressed in military uniform, poked her head at the door and said, "All the generals are waiting outside." ”

Yi Zhizhi strode out of the big tent, glanced at all the officers, raised the edict in his hand, and said, "The emperor has issued an order to conquer the South Seas!" As he spoke, he read the edict aloud, and then he said in a loud voice: "Herald! The fleet will be pulled out early the morning after tomorrow, and the target, Manila! ”

The officers who had gathered outside to wait for the news were all overjoyed and replied, "Obey!" ”

The officers who were waiting to disperse, Yi Zhizhi lit a cigar, the mood was extremely relaxed, once the fleet entered the South Seas, he had no scruples, whether the information of the imperial court could be received or not, but it completely depended on his mood, the conquest of the South Seas, the dispatch of troops to the northwest, he was tantamount to the withdrawal of the strength of the South Seas Navy, and in the next two years, it should be the beginning of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, let them toss first.

"Master Hou." Lin Meilian reported softly: "Mr. Huang is here." ”

Yi Zhizu turned his head to take a look, and Huang Dianyuan, who was wearing a blue navy uniform, strode over and commanded softly, "No one is allowed to approach." So saying, he turned and entered the big tent.

Huang Dianyuan walked into the big tent and gave a military salute, then said with a smile: "The big shopkeeper is leading the troops outside, and he is still bringing a woman, not afraid of criticism from below?" ”

Yi Zhizhi smiled, "That's a translator, I can speak English, Spanish, and Dutch, who dares to criticize?" ”

"Do you know three Chinese?" Huang Dianyuan was speechless: "No wonder the big shopkeeper is with him." As he spoke, he turned his head, "I heard that the emperor ordered the expedition to the South Seas?" ”

Yi Zhishu nodded and said, "Not only did he agree to conquer the South Seas, but he was also allowed to enter Xinjiang, and now Yuan Qi can finally walk on two legs by sea and land." ”

"Congratulations to the treasurer!" Huang Dianyuan said happily.

"Don't be in a hurry to congratulate, this battle in the South Seas is not easy to fight, Spain, the Netherlands, and England have been entrenched in the South Seas for many years, and it will definitely be a protracted war." Yi Zhixiang glanced at him as he spoke, "But I can't miss such a good opportunity in the northwest, and I'm worried about the serious shortage of troops now." ”