Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 410 Governor Corning
It is now August 1875, 8, just a week away from mid-August.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu was concerned about the preparations for the East African Company because it was a new direction for Chu's foreign colonization and was exploring a different path.

The old Dutch and British colonists were better at using colonial companies to advance their colonial rule around the world and avoid placing a heavy burden on government finances.

After more than two hundred years of exploration, this has been proven to be an effective method.

As for pioneering and colonizing Africa, King Zheng Guohui of Chu has not yet made up his mind to treat it as his own country and to have the government participate in high-intensity governance.

In Guam, Hawaii, the Governorate of Patagonia, and even Nicaragua, Honduras, and the former Dutch-occupied southern part of Kalimantan in Central America, all of these overseas territories have been clearly defined as part of the sacred and inseparable territory of the Kingdom of Chu. A large amount of Chinese immigrants and construction funds have been invested, and the economic development of the above-mentioned regions is directly led by the government.

This approach
Similar to what France did in French Algeria and the French Governor-General's Office in Saigon, everything was done by the French government itself and French colonial officials were sent to rule.

The difference between the two is

French white colonists are only a minority in the above-mentioned areas. In these overseas colonies, local indigenous people have always been the mainstream ethnic group in society.

The Chu State never recognized the legal and equal rights of the indigenous inhabitants of the conquered colonies. These conquered colonists were not allowed to own land, could not legally marry, own property or engage in business, could not migrate, could not spread religious beliefs, were deprived of most civilian rights, and could only exist as vassals.

Such harsh measures are not uncommon in colonies around the world today.

Unlike countries like Britain, France and the Netherlands, the Chu State had almost endless Chinese immigrants, and was able to achieve a "cage-replacement"-style transformation of the colony in just a decade or two, making the Chinese ethnic group the only and mainstream residents.

The small number of residents who originated from European white countries only exist as a supplementary minority and can be treated fairly under the guarantee of relevant treaties.

These inexhaustible Chinese immigrants are the real weapon for King Zheng Guohui of Chu to expand his overseas colonization, ensuring that the distant overseas territories are firmly under his control.

The powerful maritime armed force that the Chu State relied on for its foreign colonial rule was the ever-growing Royal Navy, which was similar to that of the United Kingdom.

However, King Zheng Guohui of Chu still had not made the final decision on opening up and colonizing Africa.

That is

Whether to expend enormous manpower and material resources to open up and colonize Africa, and whether to directly rule African colonies, is a major issue that is difficult to decide.

In a state of uncertainty
First, through licensed colonial companies such as the Congo River Company and the East African Company, we will gradually implement colonial rule in Africa and accumulate some experience.

The most important thing now is to act quickly and take over the territory first, and then talk about other things later.

In the mid-19s
The European, American and South Asian powers entered a final frenzy, and almost unanimously set their sights on the Last Supper, which was the African continent in a relatively primitive and barbaric state.

A colonial feast brewing to divide Africa is about to begin slowly.

The current action of Chu State is to run over and occupy the territory first, and when the curtain of the colonial feast slowly opens, the European powers will be surprised to find that
At some point, the State of Chu had already occupied a large piece of territory in Africa, sitting calmly at the center of the stage of dividing Africa, and no one could drive it away.

The vast black Africa of the Congo River Basin, which was favored by Belgian King Leopold II, has already been taken.

Surprise, not unexpected?
The Congo River Basin is a tropical jungle area in central and western Africa. It has large areas of lush tropical forests and abundant river systems. The land is vast and fertile. It is known as the "green lungs of Africa" ​​and is naturally an excellent place.

But the situation here is extremely complex, with hundreds of indigenous black tribes, Arab slave traders and tropical forest areas fragmented by river systems.

It is estimated that the total number of black people in the region exceeds 10 million, but there are no detailed statistics on the exact number.

This was undoubtedly a huge challenge for the Congo River Company, which was committed to colonizing the region.

The goal of the East African Company was to colonize the Horn of Africa, including later Somalia, Djibouti, Eritrea on the Red Sea coast, and other areas, which were either vast deserts with harsh environments or plateaus along the Red Sea coast.

The arid deserts and Gobi deserts in the region are completely unsuitable for farming and grazing. The living environment is extremely harsh, with almost endless yellow sand desert.

In the Eritrea region, which is located in the narrow plateau area south of the Red Sea, it belongs to the coastal edge of the Ethiopian Plateau. Only a few areas are suitable for farming and animal husbandry production.

The most critical thing here is the geographical location, which is also the place that King Zheng Guohui of Chu attaches the most importance to.

From Eritrea to Djibouti, they are all located in the coastal area of ​​the southeast end of the Red Sea. The narrow and important Bab el-Mandeb Strait is located here, facing the Yemen region on the opposite bank across the sea.

This East African land has become increasingly important due to the increasingly busy Europe-Asia route.

Large cargo ships and oil tankers from the State of Chu traveled thousands of miles from the Arabian Sea in the Horn of East Africa, crossed the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and entered the Red Sea. They sailed more than 1900 kilometers northwest along the Red Sea waterway and arrived at the city of Suez.

The city of Suez is the entrance to the Red Sea side of the Suez Canal controlled by British forces. Cargo ships pass through the Suez Canal and arrive at Port Said on the Mediterranean side, from where they can reach European countries unimpeded.

The Horn of Africa is important because it controls the key route between Europe and Asia.

The most exciting thing is that this is still an unowned land.

"The speed of a train depends entirely on the locomotive," said King Zheng Guohui of Chu, using a metaphor with a smile. He continued, "The East African Company needs a capable individual to make a breakthrough. I wonder who Lord Wu has his eye on?"

"Your Majesty, I intend to recommend Lord Kangning, the co-governor of Krabi, as the first governor of the East African Company. I respectfully request Your Majesty's decision." Wu Qingfeng replied respectfully.

He looked at His Majesty's face nervously. If he saw any sign of dissatisfaction, Wu Qingfeng would have backup personnel.

The minister who is recommended to hold an important position has registered with His Majesty the King. It goes without saying that he must take responsibility whether he does a good job or a bad job.

If Corning performed exceptionally well as Governor-General of the East African Company, then the Secretary of State for the Colonies, Wu Qingfeng, would also have had a share of the credit for recommending him, and his face would be particularly radiant.

If the opposite is true, you will inevitably be implicated and suffer the consequences.

The leader of the East African Company was not a manager or treasurer, but a governor-general. This had been a common practice since the late 15th century among established European colonial powers like Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands, Britain, and France, and these governors held significant semi-official power. The most famous examples were the British East India Company, the Dutch East India Company, and the Dutch West India Company, all of which were large-scale foreign colonial companies organized around shareholders, each holding a colonial license granted by the king.

These colonial companies could set tax rates, promulgate local laws, build immigrant towns and strongholds to collect taxes, establish corporate armed forces and mercenary systems, and launch armed conquests through economic means. They were not truly production and operation companies.

Therefore, its chief officer is the governor, which is the customary practice in the world today.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu naturally had his considerations when adopting this novel approach.

Opening up and colonizing Africa is not an easy task. It is far more challenging than the desert expedition in South America. The profits are meager but it is easy to be criticized. It is better to let semi-official colonial companies test the waters first.

First of all, in the Congo River basin, the local black indigenous population is as high as more than 10 million, and some say it is about 20 million. These are rough estimates and cannot be considered accurate.

There are hundreds of black indigenous tribes in the area. The strong ones have hundreds of thousands of people, while the weak ones probably have only hundreds of people. They are scattered throughout the Congo River basin.

If you want to conquer them one by one, you can imagine how difficult it would be.

With such a large black indigenous population, it is impossible to adopt the strategy of "emptying the cage and replacing the bird", and it is difficult to assimilate them. This is the biggest difficulty in opening up black Africa.

If we wait until half a century later
The national consciousness awakening movement sweeping the world has reached the African continent. The colony in the Congo River Basin under its rule is a big problem. Continuing to maintain high-pressure rule will easily lead to criticism from the international community.

The most typical negative example is South Africa, which finally had to give up after persisting for more than a hundred years.

Taking all factors into consideration
King Zheng Guohui of Chu had different attitudes towards the Congo River Company and the East African Company. The former was highly experimental in nature, while the latter firmly implemented the policy of "emptying the cage and replacing the bird" to create an overseas enclave unique to the Chu State.

The natural conditions in East Africa are harsh, with more than 80% of the area consisting of endless deserts, Gobi deserts and bare mountains, which are not suitable for human habitation.

There are only a small number of Arab nomads in the area. They are black indigenous people who believe in Islam. Due to thousands of years of historical evolution, they have some mixed white genes.

Including the Eritrea region, the total population is only about a few hundred thousand, and the area is as large as 200 million square kilometers.

"Kangning, one of the Eight Heroes of Medan?" King Zheng Guohui of Chu asked casually after hearing it.

He had an excellent memory and often toured various places. Although he could not say that he knew all the officials of the hundreds of prefectures and counties in Chu State by heart, he had some impression of them.

It looks like

At some point, Corning got in touch with the Secretary of State for the Colonies, Wu Qingfeng, and was strongly recommended.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu looked over with a deep and thoughtful look, which instantly penetrated Wu Qingfeng's heart. Wu Qingfeng lowered his head and said in a more respectful manner:
"Your Majesty is wise, this is the man.

He and the current Royal Secretary-General, Mr. Fan Zhicheng, are among the eight people appointed by His Majesty. They are privately called the "Eight Heroes of Mindanao" in the official circles.

Kang Ning has served as the magistrate and county magistrate of Iligan County. After a five-year term, he was evaluated as excellent and was promoted to the position of the co-magistrate of Jiabi Prefecture, which has been four years.

Corning started his career as a pioneer in Iligan County from a poor and backward state, and has experienced the entire process of colonization and reclamation. He has rich experience in colonial resettlement and is capable of boosting economic development.

While serving as the governor of Krabi Prefecture, Lord Kangning single-handedly shouldered the responsibility of developing the local light textile industry. He was familiar with domestic and international affairs and was a diligent and capable reclamation official.

Considering that the East African Company has a heavy task of developing the colonial economy and a light military task, I believe it would be safer to recommend an official with rich colonial experience to take on this important task.

I look forward to your Majesty's wise judgment on all these humble opinions."

The reasons given by Wu Qingfeng, the Minister of the Colonial Department, really touched the heart of King Zheng Guohui of Chu. He nodded slightly with a relaxed expression, which made Wu Qingfeng secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

It’s settled, Your Majesty has approved it.

The governor of the Congo River Company was Major General Pan Tianshou (former commander of the First Division), who was personally appointed by King Chu, and the military commander was Colonel Fang Shiwei. Both of them were front-line military commanders with rich combat experience.

This means that the Congo River Company will focus on military conquest and expansion, supplemented by the development of the colonial economy, in order to explore a new path for colonization in Africa.

The East African Company was different. It would strictly implement the colonial policy of "emptying the cage and replacing the bird", focusing on colonial economy and transit ports, gradually controlling the important Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and military means and colonization were only auxiliary.

The two have different focuses and governance methods, so the choices of governors are naturally different.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu considered this for a moment, then instructed Secretary Fan Zhicheng, who was standing by his side, "Pass on this king's order and summon Kang Ning to the palace for questioning."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Fan Zhicheng responded hurriedly.

After reporting to the Colonial Minister Wu Qingfeng, he respectfully left the Purple Palace and straightened up, with a hint of complacency in his eyes.

Over the years
The Colonial Office really attacked everywhere and reaped great rewards. These colonial achievements were recorded in the books, which laid the foundation for Wu Qingfeng's current authority and status as the second in the cabinet.

It surpassed the always powerful Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Finance, and was second only to the Chief of Staff's residence representing the Ministry of Military and Political Affairs. It was highly valued by the King of Chu, and its status naturally rose steadily.

These important officials in the Chu court were generally young, all between forty and fifties. They were in the prime of their lives and able to do business. Who wouldn't want to make further progress?
Under the wise governance of the King of Chu, this new kingdom showed a prosperous development momentum and was moving towards an even more powerful Great Chu Empire.

If one day

His Majesty the King of Chu has taken a further step by donning the yellow robe and has accomplished the immortal great cause of the Great Chu Dynasty. According to the current king's nature of always loving the Tang, Song and Han dynasties, it is not impossible for these founding heroes to be listed in the Lingyan Pavilion, which is a great event worthy of bringing honor to the ancestors.

It was precisely because of the hope that the ministers of the Chu State were full of energy. From top to bottom, the atmosphere was clean and upright. Everyone was holding back their energy, presenting a gratifying scene in the early days of the dynasty.

(End of this chapter)