Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 433 "The Southward Expansion Plan" (Part 1)

As dusk settled, the sky over Shixing City turned a deep purple. The last rays of the setting sun struggled for a moment on the eaves of Xinzhou University before finally being swallowed by the night.

Four fully armed mounted policemen, each holding a torch, guarded the carriage from the front and back. Their iron hooves clattered on the cobblestones, startling several owls perched in the pine trees along the roadside.

Luo Zhenhui leaned back in the soft leather chair inside the carriage, pressing his right index and middle fingers against his temples and slowly drawing circles.

The carriage was filled with the scent of fine leather and sandalwood. It was a specially commissioned carriage by the decision-making committee, and every detail exuded power and status.

"What are your thoughts on the matter of *** next year?" Luo Zhenhui's voice was low and hoarse, as if he had been pondering these words for a long time.

“Ha, in the blink of an eye, fifteen years have passed.” Li Xianqing did not answer directly, his gaze falling on the blurry buildings outside the window. “Time really flies. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and look at the ceiling in my bedroom, and I’m so confused that I don’t even know where I am.”

"Yes, time flies. In a few months, I'll be *** years old." Luo Zhenhui's lips curled up slightly, revealing a bitter smile.

“It’s not that bad, you’re not even *** years old yet, are you?” Li Xianqing turned his head and looked directly at his old partner. “So, you can still %￥……#%￥#.”

"Ha!" Luo Zhenhui suddenly burst out laughing, the sound jarring and jarring in the carriage. "Old Li, Old Li, are you testing me?... #...**, those people are probably going to cause trouble."

At this moment, the carriage traversed an uneven stretch of road, causing the carriage to sway slightly.

The brass wind chimes hanging from the ceiling of the carriage made a crisp sound.

"Old Luo, you know everything?" Li Xianqing's voice suddenly lowered, almost drowned out by the sound of wheels rolling over the cement road.

Luo Zhenhui sneered and said in a deep voice, "I'm only fifty years old, not senile. How could I not know?"

"Sigh, I never imagined that our group would be so estranged from one another because of some minor differences in policy." Li Xianqing sighed slightly. "Fifteen years have passed. Everyone has grown and developed their own ideas."

"Moreover, everyone is extremely stubborn in believing that they are the most correct one." Luo Zhenhui said quietly, "So, we are all considered by them to be conservatives, old-fashioned people, unambitious, only good at hiding in the Xinzhou Bay area and developing in a cowardly manner, and they are single-mindedly focused on farming and mining, turning a blind eye to countless opportunities to expand their territory."

"In some people's eyes, we're all old!"

"Old Luo..." Li Xianqing looked at him with concern, "You haven't become discouraged because of this, have you?"

"I just feel that my biggest failure is that, as the leader of the team, I was unable to bridge the internal divisions." Luo Zhenhui shook his head. "Perhaps I really am getting old, lacking both the courage to govern this country and the passion and vigor that the 'younger generation' should have. Ah, that's true, we were never born politicians."

The horse-drawn carriage made a rhythmic rumbling sound on the cement road, and outside the window, the lights of Shixing City gradually lit up.

Luo Zhenhui looked at the newly planted pines and cypresses on both sides of the street. The saplings were not even as tall as a person and swayed gently in the evening breeze.

Fifteen years ago, this place was a primeval forest, which was completely cut down by immigrants to build cities and settlements.

Now, in order to beautify this small town, they have gone to great lengths to transplant these saplings from the forest.

The world is full of unexpected turns; that's how amazing it is.

"Old Li, how many people have Liu Guoqiang's gang persuaded so far?" Luo Zhenhui suddenly asked, his voice low.

Li Xianqing tapped his fingers lightly on his knees, a habitual gesture he made when he was thinking.

"As far as I know, at least six of the fifteen cabinet members explicitly support their 'Southward Expansion Plan.' Not to mention the military, apart from Wei Yingbin who remains silent, all the other officers are on their side."

Luo Zhenhui's lips twitched slightly.

Of the fifty-seven time travelers, twelve were in the army, navy, and military-industrial complex; two were in charge of smuggling trade in the Americas; one was in charge of the Yongning Bay (now San Francisco Bay) colony; and six were in the cabinet departments, making a total of twenty-one.

If they can persuade a few more wavering members of the time-traveling groups, then this so-called "southward plan" will most likely be approved at the plenary meeting.

If Xinhua were to engage in large-scale immigration and colonization in California and push the border to the vicinity of Mexico, it would inevitably cause great tension among the Spanish.

To preserve Mexican silver and prevent the invasion of the core Spanish American colonies, the Spanish, even if weakened by the European war, would inevitably divert significant manpower and resources to respond forcefully. They might even launch a preemptive military offensive.

Before doing so, the Spanish will certainly first ban the booming smuggling trade to demonstrate their determination to retaliate.

If this is the case, Xinhua's current small domestic market is likely insufficient to absorb the ever-expanding industrial capacity.

The booming industrial and commercial sector will be severely impacted as a result, and more than 10,000 workers will face the risk of unemployment.

Of course, given the abundant resources and vast land area of ​​the New Continent, it was not so bad that the unemployed workers would lose their livelihoods and go hungry.

The problem is, you can't just send all the industrial workers you've worked so hard to train to clear land and farm, causing the already nascent Xinhua industry to decline and turn into a purely agricultural country.

According to the central government and cabinet's medium- and long-term development plan, after Xinhua develops for another ten to twenty years, it will have a population of six or seven hundred thousand, its industrial development will gradually become systematic, and it will have cultivated a domestic market of a certain scale, and even developed the Japanese or North Korean markets as alternatives. At that time, it will not be too late to take action against the Spanish.

However, when the radical "youngsters" in the time-traveling group learned that the Spanish navy had been almost completely wiped out in the Battle of the Downs and had temporarily lost control of the Atlantic and even the European region, they were immediately energized and began to clamor.

They clamored that, taking advantage of the defeat of the Spanish navy, they should push the border all the way to Mexico, completely incorporating the rich California into the Chinese territory, thus establishing China's dominant position on this continent.

Faced with this radical trend, Luo Zhenhui and Li Xianqing, as the team leaders, not only insisted on the established development plan, but also patiently persuaded the "younger generation" in the group to maintain internal unity, not to ruin the hard-won good situation, to continue to focus on development, to work hard to consolidate the foundation, and not to create any complications that would hinder economic and industrial development.

It's important to remember that when they first landed, it was the team's professionalism and close cooperation that enabled them to gain a foothold on the unfamiliar and wild West Coast. Now, however, policy differences could turn their close comradeship into that of opposing political rivals.

“Liu Guoqiang has proposed convening an expanded meeting of the decision-making committee to formally discuss the ‘Southward Expansion Plan’.” Li Xianqing’s tone carried a hint of helplessness. “I have read their proposals, which include not only increasing the number of immigrants and expanding settlements, but also establishing a military base in Yongning Bay, stationing naval warships, and a series of plans to force the Spanish to fully open the American market.”

"Taking such a big step could backfire!" Luo Zhenhui shook his head. "We only have 200,000 people, our industrial base is just starting out, and our steam-powered ship technology isn't fully mature yet. Thinking about launching a long-distance expedition like this is just needlessly wasting our national strength."

“They said…” Li Xianqing paused, then gave a bitter smile, “They said that, taking advantage of the Thirty Years’ War in Europe and the decline of the Spanish navy, they should inflict a heavy blow on the Spanish colonial authorities in the Americas, destroy the Spanish military presence in the Americas to the greatest extent possible, and thus eliminate their threat to our Xinhua once and for all.”

"In this way, Xinhua can focus on its trans-Pacific immigration operations and its political and economic infiltration of the Ming Dynasty, making full preparations for the Jia Shen Incident."

“Although the Americas are the main source of Spain’s gold and silver exports and play a crucial role in the Spanish royal family’s finances, they are not Spain’s Achilles’ heel,” Luo Zhenhui said slowly. “Moreover, even if we destroy the coastal areas of Spanish America, as long as they can export gold and silver steadily, the Spanish can still hold on.”

“Even when we conquered Panama and cut off their maritime gold and silver transport routes, Spain was still able to transport gold and silver to ports on the Atlantic side by land, through the vast jungle.”

"Are we really going to have to send warships through the Strait of Magellan and into the Caribbean in the end? Not to mention that we don't have that kind of military strength right now, even if we did, wouldn't we be afraid of being wiped out after such a long and arduous expedition with no logistical bases?"

"They said that attacking the silver mines in Spanish America could be considered to force Spain to submit."

"Ha, what arrogance!" Luo Zhenhui laughed upon hearing this. "Leaving aside the Potosí silver mine, its production has declined sharply, greatly reducing its value for attack. But the silver mines in Mexico are all located deep inland. How can we reach them? Unless we tighten our belts and expand our existing military force three to five times, advancing all the way from the coastal ports."

"But the problem is, even if we capture the Spanish silver mines and cut off their source of gold and silver imports, what if the Spanish don't submit? Are we prepared to fight them for three to five years?"

"If that's the case, should we still immigrate? Should we still develop industry and commerce? Should we still care about people's livelihoods?"

Li Xianqing remained silent and did not respond.

As the carriage rounded a bend, the Ministry of Military Affairs building came into view.

Inside the building, which blends traditionalism and Chinese elements, lights were still faintly lit, indicating that many people were working overtime.

“At my age…” Luo Zhenhui said softly, “I should be thinking about how to ensure a smooth transition, so that the next central government can successfully take control of the government. But now…”

He looked at Li Xianqing and gave a bitter smile: "But now, I'm afraid even a decent job is difficult."

“They…” Li Xianqing chose his words carefully: “Their ideas are a bit radical, but not to the point that we should be forced to abandon them. Some things can always be discussed. We are ultimately a close-knit group with shared interests, and we won’t hurt each other… our relationship.”

"Under the temptation of drugs, how much of the affection we once shared can remain?" Luo Zhenhui said in a low voice.

Upon hearing this, Li Xianqing's face immediately showed deep worry.
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(End of this chapter)