The Ming Dynasty did not revolutionize

Chapter 225 Why exchange if you can rob?

In the next few days, Zhu Jianxuan stayed in the Academy of Sciences for half a day every day to discuss the new machine he designed with his disciples and craftsmen and answer their questions.

After they fully understood their ideas and entered the formal research and development state, they reduced the time they spent personally monitoring them and devoted more energy to handling government affairs.

Time slowly came to the end of May, and the old emperor asked someone to call Zhu Jianxuan to the West Garden where he lived.

When Zhu Jianxuan arrived at his father's residence, he found that both his parents were sitting in the hall. He hurried forward to greet them:
"Your son greets his father, the emperor, and his mother, the empress."

The Queen asked Zhu Jianxuan to sit next to her, and then asked him with a smile:

"Your father said that you are ready to take a concubine. The key is that you have been a little free recently. Is it time to start taking a concubine?"

Zhu Jianxuan was stunned when he heard this. He almost forgot about it.

"Thank you for your reminder, Mother. I have been so busy lately that I almost forgot about this matter. I will ask someone to start working on it when I get back."

The Queen immediately said:
"This matter should have been handled by the Imperial Clan Bureau, but now your father is actually in charge of the Imperial Clan Bureau, so let your father and I handle this matter for you, okay?"

Zhu Jianxuan didn't really care about this matter. He thought that finding something for his parents to do would save them from having to worry too much:
"Then I'll trouble Father and Mother to worry about it."

The Queen continued to ask with a smile:

"So what kind of person do you want? Besides being good at math, what are your requirements for the person?"

Zhu Jianxuan casually expressed his thoughts:
"We need a group of people who are over 18 years old, tall, have long legs and are good at bearing children. We'll use them now.

“I need another group of children around 12 or 13 years old, so that I can educate and train them from an early age, and reserve them for future use.

"Of course, they all have to pass math studies and exams to prove that they are really smart."

The Queen was speechless when she heard Zhu Jianxuan's requests:
"Except for mathematics, your requirements are like those of an old country lady. Do you think being well-educated and well-mannered is not important?"

Zhu Jianxuan thought for a moment:

"It cannot be said that it does not matter at all, it should be said that it is not important, the key is physical health.

"You also need to be mentally healthy, and it's best if you are generous and outgoing.

“Don’t be too quiet, it’s easy to get resentful alone.

"The family should be harmonious and prosperous as much as possible, with no conflicts between relatives and neighbors.

"For now, we will only select from the families of court officials, factory managers, and garrison officers. For the time being, we will not involve ordinary people."

The queen wanted to say something, but the old emperor laughed:
"Is his request the same as what you think? Aren't you satisfied with his request?
"If he had made a bunch of weird requests, you'd probably be annoyed, so let's just choose this."

The Queen didn't know whether to be satisfied or dissatisfied, so she nodded and said:
"Okay, I'm mainly afraid that he will be too polite to me, and if he doesn't like the one I choose based on this standard..."

The old emperor actually understood Zhu Jianxuan better:

"Don't worry, I know my son's character very well.

"To him, a woman is there to bear his children, and what he seeks is to make her as useful as possible and worry-free.

"You can't go wrong if you choose according to this standard..."

Zhu Jianxuan immediately followed up with:
"Father, your majesty is wise, this is what I think..."

The queen looked at her son helplessly:

"It's really so worry-free, so worry-free that it's a little hard for me as a mother to accept it. I feel like I'm useless."

The old emperor was very satisfied and said:

"Hasn't this child been like this since childhood? Are you still not used to it now?"

Zhu Jianxuan chatted with his parents for a while, had lunch together, and went back to continue his government affairs in the afternoon.

The old emperor and the empress began to select concubines for Zhu Jianxuan through the clan office.

Zhu Jianxuan didn't want a queen, and of course he didn't want a crown princess either, so this wasn't a matter of selecting a concubine, it had to be done according to the level of taking in a concubine.

It takes time for the news to be sent down to local guard posts and factories. It also takes time for officials who meet the requirements to gather the children together and for the female officials arranged by the queen to conduct an initial screening.

In addition, Zhu Jianxuan specifically requested that mathematics be used to verify whether one was smart, which required time to organize study and examination activities.

By the time the final candidate was selected and presented to Zhu Jianxuan, it was already autumn.

During this period, Zhu Jianxuan should still do what he should do.

By June of the 43rd year of Xianning, the economic crisis in the south had reached its limit.

Southern Investment Company began to buy at the bottom, and then the local market of Daming began to gradually recover, and industrial production also began to recover slowly.

On July 21, Duan Yucai brought a Spanish delegation headed by Godoy to Shuntian Prefecture.

When the delegation passed by the Suez Canal construction site, Duan Yucai took them to the site to see the current situation of the canal.

Reassure them that the Suez Canal itself is already navigable and is simply being deepened.

It will be fully open to navigation by the end of the year and can accommodate the world's largest ships.

Let Godoy and the Spanish Prime Minister (Secretary of State) confirm that Ming Dynasty's canal construction speed is not bragging.

After passing the canal construction site, Godoy was determined to build the Panama Canal.

With the Panama Canal, Spanish ships on the west coast of America no longer had to go to China and then return to Europe. They could go home directly via the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.

Duan Yucai handed over the Spanish delegation headed by Godoy to the Honglu Temple, and went alone to report on the trip to Europe to Zhu Jianxuan.

Zhu Jianxuan was not too surprised after hearing this. Exchanging Louisiana for the canal and the Ming-style palace was essentially selling the land first and then buying the canal and the palace at cost price.

We can build a canal for the Spaniards, and after the canal is built, they can't escape. If the Ming Dynasty can seize that place in the future, it can continue to use the canal built by itself.

Moreover, during the construction of the canal, they can begin to infiltrate local civilian forces, making it easier to directly seize control when conflicts arise between the two sides in the future.

But the value of all of Louisiana is far less than the cost of building a Panama Canal, not to mention the palace.

“Mr. Duan has done a good job. We can help the Spanish build the canal, but the labor must be organized by them.

“But the conditions Mr. Duan offered at the time were still too low.

"We can see that the Spanish are very eager for this canal, so we should also put forward as many conditions as possible."

As Zhu Jianxuan spoke, he asked the guard to bring a map of North America and unfold it.

Zhu Jianxuan stretched out his hand and gestured on the map and said:
“The three regions of Louisiana, California, and the Great Basin are not enough.

“We should continue to expand southward, and if possible, get a passage through the low Rocky Mountains to facilitate the construction of an east-west road.

"We should try to take as much of Texas as possible and use the Rio Grande as our border.

“The Rio Grande Valley also happens to be a natural passage through the Rocky Mountains.”

The border planned by Zhu Jianxuan is basically the border between the United States and Mexico in the previous life, which is a more suitable border for North American countries.

The Grande River is also the southern boundary of the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Plain in North America, and further south are the Mexican Mountains.

Duan Yucai looked at the situations on the maps and said with some concern:
"Your Highness, if you go further south, the Texas region is close to the core area of ​​New Spain. It will be difficult for Spain to give it up. They will definitely want a buffer zone."

Zhu Jianxuan waved his hand indifferently:

"Mr. Duan, you must have a principle in your heart.

“While we do want these lands in North America, this transaction is not important to us.

“East of the Mississippi River, we already have a lot of land that needs to be developed.

“Even if we were to acquire the land west of the Mississippi River right now, it would not have any practical effect in the short term.

"At the same time, Spain itself has no ability to develop the land there, and the ownership continues to remain in their hands, which means it will remain idle.

“Forget about making them impregnable, they don’t even have enough immigrants to build settlements.

“So, we are not in a hurry to get this land now.

"We can build transportation lines and settlements east of the Mississippi River, and wait until the treaty of friendship with Spain expires before we seize the land west of the river.

"The Spanish army is now just a bunch of chickens and dogs. It is effortless for our soldiers to defeat them.

“Why would you spend money to exchange something you can just take?

“So if they still want to trade, then we should take all the places they want, and we won’t help them build a palace.

“Building a canal in Panama will be of use to me in the future, but building a palace for them is a sheer waste of resources and manpower.

“If they insist on us building a palace for them, they will not only have to provide the workers and materials, but also pay our craftsmen and managers.

"You can just tell them that my father and I only want to get the California region, and we are not very interested in other places in North America.

“The Louisiana Territory was full of wild men and buffalo, and Spanish and French settlements were frequently attacked by Apaches.

"We are even less willing to build canals and palaces for them unless they can offer truly favorable conditions so that everyone in the Ming Dynasty can make money."

Zhu Jianxuan speaks very frankly and never hides anything when he wants to do something.

Duan Yucai bowed and said very steadily:
"I understand."

Two days later, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty and the Crown Prince summoned the Spanish delegation to the Wenhua Hall.

After accepting their blessings, the emperor announced the formal approval of the exchange agreement between California and Nicaragua and ordered the Ming Dynasty's Nicaragua garrison to withdraw.

The emperor encouraged the Spanish envoy with a few words, announced a banquet, and then left accompanied by the prince.

Duan Yucai and the Minister of the Honglu Temple stayed together at the banquet. After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Duan Yucai began to chat with the Spanish envoy and discuss some semi-formal matters:
“I’m sorry, I have conveyed the conditions I proposed in Madrid to our Emperor and Crown Prince.

"Your Majesty has no interest in deals involving the Great Plains and the Canal, and even less interest in helping you build a palace.

“We know that if there is no Panama Canal, your passenger ships will take the Shenzhou route in the future and return to Europe via the Suez Canal.

“But once the Panama Canal opens, you will no longer use the Suez Canal.

"So building the Panama Canal is of no benefit to the Ming Dynasty."

Godoy, who represented the king and queen, looked confused and seemed very surprised and panicked.

The Spanish Prime Minister, Count Blanca, immediately said:
"The Panama Canal is certainly beneficial to the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty has colonies on the east and west coasts of North America. The Panama Canal allows direct communication between the two coastlines."

Duan Yucai said seriously:
“No, it is not a good thing for the Ming Dynasty to allow the east and west coasts of North America to bypass the Ming Dynasty and directly communicate and trade in North America.

"If your colonies in America were completely united and had mutual exchanges and trade among themselves, would that be a good thing for the king and court of your Kingdom of Spain?

"The area controlled by the Ming Dynasty on the northwest coast of North America is an imperial province directly managed by the Ming court, while the American Kingdom on the east coast is an independent country.

"The Ming court does not expect them to be directly connected. It is in the best interests of the Ming court to keep them isolated from each other.

"The current situation is that if Ming Dynasty goes to the east coast of North America, it will take the Suez and Atlantic Canal routes, and if it goes to the west coast, it will directly take the North Pacific route.

"Now these two places can refrain from interfering with each other, and will not cooperate privately in North America..."

The Spanish Prime Minister couldn't help but frown when he heard these words.

What Duan Yucai said was indeed true, but the Spanish Prime Minister keenly realized that this was probably not what the Ming Dynasty really thought.

Based on my understanding of the Ming people, they really like the Great Plains which are suitable for reclaiming land and farming, and they must be very interested in the land west of the Mississippi River.

These words now are probably just to lower one's own expectations in order to increase the price demanded.

Godoy, who was standing next to him, was only in his early twenties. His thoughts were not as complicated as the Prime Minister's. After listening to what Duan Yucai said, he immediately felt hopeless about his mission:
"Your Excellency... Is it true that His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty has no interest in this deal at all?"

Duan Yucai glanced at the Spanish Prime Minister:
"It cannot be said that there is absolutely no such thing. You should know that the people of the Ming Dynasty like land suitable for farming. The Great Plains of North America has a large amount of potential arable land.

"However, they are only potential arable lands now. There is basically no large-scale development so far, and their value is very limited.

"We need enough arable land to make up for the loss to the Ming Dynasty caused by the construction of the Panama Canal.

“What our Crown Prince means is that we should at least draw a line from the point where the Baja California Peninsula joins the mainland and run eastward to the Rio Grande.

"With this horizontal line and the Grande River as the future border, all lands to the north will belong to Ming.

"In this way, most of the plains in North America, and most of the land suitable for cultivation, will belong to the Ming Dynasty.

“Only in this way is it worthwhile for the Ming Dynasty to provide craftsmen and managers for free to assist you in building the Panama Canal.

"And this deal does not include the palace. Your royal family will need to pay extra money and hire our construction company to build it for you."

Duan Yucai’s requirements were higher than Zhu Jianxuan’s, and he added the long and narrow peninsula under California.

Godoy was confused after hearing this:
"Well...our King and Queen did not authorize such a large-scale land transaction..."

The Spanish Prime Minister even shouted directly:
"That's impossible. We already have important colonies north of the Grande River. We can't trade them.

"The Baja California Peninsula also directly faces New Spain, closing off much of the northern coastline."

Duan Yucai said indifferently:
"Then there is no need for us to formally discuss the transaction. After the banquet, I will have the Honglu Temple arrange a ship to escort you all back home."

The Spanish Prime Minister felt that the Ming Dynasty was asking for too much and really wanted to just go back.

Continuing to stay here means having the intention to trade, which means waiting for the Ming Dynasty to make a move.

But the king and queen did have an interest in canals and palaces.

I feel that the place of Texas is very important to New Spain, but for the king and queen, it may not be a place that cannot be traded.

In the era of traditional monarchies, especially in Europe, territorial transactions could be considered relatively simple.

Because in the logic of traditional monarchies, territory is the private property of the monarch himself, and is no different in essence from jewels or firewood in a warehouse.

When nationalist states emerged, the territory became the homeland of all citizens.

So in the monarchical era, monarchs could easily give up or trade land, but it is difficult for nationalist countries to do such a thing.

Of course, overseas colonies of nationalist states can also be traded.

Because that is not the home of citizens, but the place where the barbarians who occupy and rule overseas live.

On the other hand, the colonies of traditional monarchies with two layers of overlap are the lands that are easiest to trade.

The reason why the United States was able to expand rapidly throughout history was that its mainland was in North America and was surrounded by colonies and monarchies of other countries.

They were able to acquire millions of square kilometers of land through simple transactions.

While the Spanish Prime Minister was worried, he also tried hard to find the logical problems in Duan Yucai's language:

“If the Ming Dynasty wants a plain suitable for reclamation, then there is no point in claiming the Baja California Peninsula.

“If the Ming Dynasty hopes to continue to isolate the east and west sides of the Rocky Mountains in North America, there is no need for it to demand the Grande Valley and Texas in northern Mexico.

“The Ming Dynasty wants these places you mentioned, but actually it wants to connect the two sides of the Rocky Mountains.

"So building a canal is also beneficial to the Ming Dynasty."

Duan Yucai immediately smiled and said:
"You are right. If Ming obtains these places, it can and should connect the east and west sides of North America.

“Ming can list all the lands west of the Mississippi River and on both sides of the Rocky Mountains as imperial provinces.

“Administer the provinces on both sides of the mountain range through the Rio Grande Valley and the Panama Canal.

“We can build a port at the southernmost tip of the Baja California Peninsula as a transit port for supplies to the Panama Canal.

"Only under such circumstances would the construction of the canal be beneficial to the Ming Dynasty, so the Ming Dynasty was willing to build the canal.

"If the Ming Dynasty did not have these places, if it only obtained the Louisiana region, it would still be separated from the California region by the Rocky Mountains and Texas.

"Then the Ming Dynasty will have no choice but to hand over Louisiana to the United States for management. Then why would the Ming Dynasty build a canal for you?"

The Spanish Prime Minister was obviously choked, but there was indeed nothing wrong with Duan Yucai's logic.

The Louisiana Territory alone could not be exchanged for the Panama Canal construction project.

However, the Prime Minister still felt that these demands of the Ming Dynasty were excessive, as they were a plan that only considered the interests of the Ming Dynasty.

The Spanish Prime Minister couldn't help but asked back with a hint of sarcasm:
"In order to facilitate the Ming people's travel on both sides of the Rocky Mountains, does the Ming court also want to obtain the entire New Spain?"

Duan Yucai waved his hand and said:

"No, most of New Spain is rugged mountainous terrain, which is not suitable for cultivation at all. We Ming people have no interest in it.

“We won’t take this piece of rotten land unless you, Spain, give it to us for free.

"We only claim as far as the Grande River, which is the southernmost point of land suitable for cultivation in North America."

The Spanish Prime Minister choked again, then forced himself to say:
"It's not just you Ming people who like land suitable for cultivation. We Spaniards like it too..."

Duan Yucai immediately asked back:
“Do you Spanish have so many people to cultivate the land in North America?
“You have nearly 400 million people in Spain who need a place to live?

“If those lands remain in your hands for a hundred years, they will remain the same.

"We in the Ming Dynasty will turn it into a village and city suitable for living."

The Spanish Prime Minister was completely speechless. The Ming Dynasty really needed land more than any other country.

Before annexing the Qing Dynasty, they had the largest population in the world, more than all of Europe.

Now it has reached a staggering number.

As for Spain... there won't be 100 million people in a hundred years.

Unless Spain specifically targets the Ming Dynasty, there is no need to continue building settlements north of Texas.

The negotiations came to a complete standstill.

Godoy, on the other hand, finally straightened his mind at this time and joined the discussion again:

"What is the minimum Ming needs to get in order to help Spain build the Panama Canal?

"We need to return to Spain and ask what our Majesties the King and Queen mean."

Duan Yucai said directly:

"I have made the conditions very clear."

The Spanish Prime Minister immediately added:
"The Ming needs to make at least some concessions so that we can prove that our negotiations are effective, rather than just following the Ming's orders."

Duan Yucai hesitated for several seconds:
"Then we will give up the Lower California Peninsula. This land is long and narrow and not suitable for cultivating good farmland..."

The Spanish Prime Minister immediately added:
"Regarding the Texas region, we hope to keep the city of San Antonio, with the big river north of San Antonio as the boundary."

Duan Yucai waved his hand directly:
"Impossible, let's use the Grande River as the boundary. This is what our Crown Prince demands, and I can't make any concessions.

“It’s because of towns like San Antonio that Texas has any value at all.

"Otherwise there would just be a lot of wasteland and wild people there."

(End of this chapter)