Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 475 Nine Governors
The detailed report by the military and political officials of the Congo River Company lasted nearly two hours, during which it won warm applause and was highly praised by the accompanying government officials.

This is also the main reason why Governor Pan Tianshou was able to be promoted to lieutenant general. After returning to the kingdom, he will take up the position of Deputy Chief of Staff of the Royal Army, specifically in charge of military training, organization, equipment and logistics matters, and he will definitely be one of the senior military officials.

Major General Fang Shiwei will take over the important position of commander of the Royal 2nd Expeditionary Division. This is also a routine arrangement for senior military officers to rotate their posts and they will not stay in one place for too long.

The places where senior officers of the Royal Army are rotated to serve are nothing more than field troops or guard troops. After completing their term of office, they will enter the General Staff or military academies, and repeat this cycle to enrich their resumes and increase their talents.

Working at the Royal Army General Staff can broaden your horizons, communicate with armies from all over the world, and learn the latest strategies and tactics, the latest operational thinking and advanced concepts of the world's armies.

In military academies, one can conduct in-depth research on military strategy, campaign and combat deployment, military reform and military theory, strengthen and enrich one's own military literacy, improve military capabilities, and prepare for commanding large-scale military operations.

The Chu State not only had military officials, but also administrative officials who took turns to serve. Each term was five years, and the maximum term in office in the local area was no more than two terms, and they had to rotate to serve.

Whether it is a lateral transfer, a promotion, or a transfer to the bench, it mainly depends on the results of performance evaluation and solid political achievements.

If you have no achievements to show for your political work, no matter how strong the backing is, it will be useless.

Whether it is transfer, promotion or sitting on the bench, the cabinet will select highly experienced officials from various ministries every year to form a 36-member review panel, which will carefully review the information and finally give an evaluation score.

The personnel selected from each department are different every year, so cheating is impossible.

It is not a vague concept like upper-middle or upper-above-average, but a political performance score.

There are plans to adjust positions this year, and the names of all officials participating in the evaluation are covered. There are hundreds of officials every year, and it is impossible to recognize them all.

The jury lived in a centralized location, completely isolated from the outside world, for a month.

There are more than 20 officials who need to be reviewed every day. They need to review a large amount of information about their political achievements, the results of local council deliberations, verifiable political achievements, etc., and discuss and approve them in groups.

The controversial official under review will be finally decided by a seven-member committee, with the minority following the majority.

Once the evaluation score is released, it cannot be changed and becomes the core and most important part of the official's resume.

The Congo River Company, these frontier colonial officials, and the bonuses of the frontier areas, out of a full score of 100, the Congo River is 5 points, Costa Rica is 5 points, East Africa is 3 points, Central America is 3 points, Hawaii is 2 points, Guam, Saipan, the Solomon Islands and Shangri-La Island are all 1 point.

Sumatra and Kalimantan do not receive any extra points because these islands are built according to high local standards and are basically located in the local area. They are not considered frontier islands, so naturally there are no extra points.

At the end of the Imperial Conference

After hearing the complete report, King Zheng Guohui of Chu was in a particularly cheerful mood and laughed heartily, saying:

"My dear ministers, thank you for your hard work.

You have made outstanding achievements in the kingdom's colonial development. You are the first generation of pioneers in the Congo River Basin colony and have made indelible contributions.

The benefits will be felt in the present and for generations to come, and should be remembered by future generations.

You have been pioneering in the Congo River Basin for ten years. You have experienced a lot along the way and have gained a lot of insights. In the future, you should communicate more with Mr. Zheng Aiqing to ensure a smooth transition."

As the King of Chu finished speaking, a middle-aged official sitting beside the entourage stood up and said solemnly to
This person is Zheng Shouxu, who has held grassroots positions and was selected to join the Royal Secretariat because of his outstanding performance. He has served as deputy chief of staff.

He bowed deeply to Governor Pan Tianshou and others and said:
"I am a humble servant, yet Your Majesty has placed such high hopes on me that I have been entrusted with the important task of guarding the frontier. I feel the immense pressure and often cannot sleep at night. I beg the General to give me more guidance. I will follow the rules of Cao and Xiao, and this is the way to a steady colonization."

Lieutenant General Pan Tianshou naturally recognized Zheng Shouxu, a typical member of the Tongzhou Party. He had served in grassroots official positions and was transferred from the position of deputy chief of staff to the prefect of Donggang, where he governed the city of Donggang well and prosperously.

It is said that this person is a distant relative of the royal family and is included in the royal family tree branch, but it is just a distant relative.

Zheng Shouxu was a former aide to the current cabinet ministers He Xian and Wu Qingfeng, and they all worked together beside the King of Chu. He is a senior political figure.

Although Donggang failed to make it into the top ten cities of the kingdom, it was ranked around 13th or 14th, so there was hope for further advancement.

The main reason why Donggang City did not really develop was the "weak skills and strong capabilities" policy. Although there were some sugar factories, it was still weak in the industrial field.

Then why did New Xi'an reach a population of 58.9 by the end of the year, becoming the ninth largest city in the kingdom?

This is actually different

New Xi'an is located in the westernmost part of Shangri-La Island, only 970 kilometers away from Davao, an important city in the kingdom, and is not far from the core circle of the kingdom.

Whether it is resettlement of immigrants or undertaking projects, it has certain advantages. For example, it focuses on the development of tea plantations, cocoa, natural rubber, oil palm and other government agricultural support projects, so it is the first to get the moon.

Donggang is located in the easternmost part of Shangri-La Island (note: Moresby), about 2400 kilometers away from New Xi'an, and more than 3300 kilometers away from Davao, the nearest major city on the mainland. Its geographical location is extremely remote.

Whether it is transportation or resettlement, the cost of Chinese immigration is relatively high, and they do not have an advantage in taking on various government preferential projects.

In addition, during the expedition to Australia, due to strategic considerations of the Chu State, it strongly supported the Chinese immigrants who settled in Donggang to settle in Australia, and the Australian expeditionary force mainly came from Donggang. Over the past few years, more than 100,000 people left.

As a result, urban development fell into serious stagnation, and all industries declined. It was not until later that it finally recovered, but it was like a person who had just recovered from a serious illness. How could it run quickly again?
During Zheng Shouxu's tenure as the mayor of Donggang, he developed Donggang City into a medium-to-large city with a population of more than 33. The transit trade and woolen mills were both doing very well, which was quite outstanding.

Between cardiac filament electroporation
Lieutenant General Pan Tianshou understood the intention of His Majesty the King of Chu. In the future, the Congo River Company will shift its focus from "suppressing and eliminating black indigenous tribes, vigorously reducing the population, and actively promoting the in-depth development of Chinese cities and settlements" to the "economic reclamation" route.

Isn’t it the clearest signal that the position of governor has changed from a soldier to a colonial official?

He stood up hurriedly, raised his hand and saluted sincerely, and replied:

"Lord Zheng, your compliments are unmerited. We, humble folk, fear we have failed your Majesty's trust. However, I have a humble opinion, and I will be happy to share it."

"Thank you so much. If I had missed this day, I would have the audacity to ask the General for advice. Please do not refuse."

"Why ask for advice? We'll prepare a bed for you. This is a great honor that even an invitation alone cannot offer."

"Thank you so much, General."

Seeing that the two were still exchanging pleasantries, the King of Chu laughed and waved his hand to interrupt them. He then asked about other matters, and the two men returned to their seats.

Zheng Shouxu totally ignored him. This time, he was in charge of the Congo River Company, which was a leap in his career. He went from being an assistant official in the Shangri-La Governor's Office to a big boss in charge of a region.

The level of governor is equivalent to the state or province level in foreign countries. It is also the highest level of local government office under the Chu State. It has great responsibilities and powers, and also great pressure.

As far as he knows

The government is planning to establish the Governor of Sumatra in the near future, which will complete the nine governors-general, namely the three local governors, namely the Governor of Tongzhou, the Governor of Kalimantan and the Governor of Sumatra.

The prefectures under the jurisdiction of Hainan Island and Cebu Island had a special status in the State of Chu. They were directly governed by the Prime Minister's Office. In addition to the various ministries, there were also direct-governed ministries to govern the two places.

It is under the overall management of a minister of the direct administration department, and three deputy ministers of the direct administration department are in charge of the southern area of ​​Hainan Island, the northern area and Cebu Island respectively.

There are six governors-general of the outer islands of the frontier, namely the Governor of Shangri-La, the Governor of Hawaii, the Governor of Central America, the Governor of Patagonia, the Governor of East Africa and the Governor of Congo, a total of 6.

These nine governors-general were high-ranking officials in the imperial court, second only to the prime minister. Their status was equivalent to that of ministers, but their actual power was slightly less. The governor-general of Congo, with an area of ​​over 230 million square kilometers, presided over the largest territory and faced the heaviest tasks, a role he could potentially ascend to in the future.

Lieutenant General Pan Tianshou is limited to his military status. His highest rank in the future will be Chief of the Royal Army General Staff. He will retire as a general, and that will be the end of his career.

If I do well, it is not impossible for me to enter the cabinet and become a prime minister.

Thinking of this, his heart was burning with heat.

The King of Chu was sitting high above them, like a teacher standing at a podium, watching every move of the students below, just like observing the lines on the palm of his hand.

Seeing Zheng Shouxu looking a little absent-minded, he smiled with relief.

It is good to have a utilitarian mindset; such ministers are easier to control.
I have plenty of high positions and generous salaries. As long as you have the ability, just show it.

The State of Chu is now planning to establish the Supreme Court, the Supreme Procuratorate, and improve the upper and lower houses of parliament, which will provide many high-level positions.

The State of Chu has been established for twenty years. Why is it only now preparing for the Supreme Court and the Supreme Procuratorate?

This is indeed the case.

As the saying goes, laws should not be granted lightly, and the same applies to the highest judicial power. It is impossible to hastily grant it to some inexperienced young people at the beginning of the founding of the country, and they cannot handle such heavy wealth.

It will take a period of time to cultivate a large number of experienced judicial officials, judges and prosecutors, and select the best from among them before the establishment of the Supreme Court and the Supreme Procuratorate.

The judicial system of the Chu State was built from the bottom up. At the beginning of its founding, it first improved the grassroots county-level courts and independent prosecutor system to solve the imminent grassroots judicial problems.

When the time is ripe, the construction of intermediate courts and independent prosecutor systems at the prefectural level will be further promoted. Together with the establishment of new prefectures and counties in succession, this will become the focus of the new administrative system construction and will be gradually improved.

A few years ago
Finally, the local high court and senior circuit prosecutor system at the Governor's Office level was improved, completing an important part of judicial construction.

In the past, the highest judicial power to sentence criminals was in the hands of the King of Chu, but later it was delegated to the local high court.

After the establishment of the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the power to approve the death penalty will be returned to the Supreme People's Court, highlighting the cautious intention.

Generally, these vicious cases are committed by Chinese or white people from European and American powers, and only then will they go through the courts and procuratorates for repeated review and trial, following the complete process.

Other ethnic groups colonized by the colony did not receive such treatment, and were generally dealt with at the county level. Many mobile courts at the county level had the authority to pronounce sentences, including death sentences and hard labor, on the spot.

Appeals will only be allowed in cases involving Chinese suspects and white people from European and American powers. After going through layers of review, court debate and other legal procedures, this is the legal treatment of enjoying full civil rights.

There are many outdated customs and habits. For example, if a Chinese family abuses and kills their foreign wife, they will be fined in some places, whipped in some places, sentenced to hard labor in some places, while some remote places turn a blind eye.

No matter how it is handled, the lives of Chinese immigrants will not be endangered.

Even if Chinese residents were sentenced to hard labor, it would only be six months to a year at most, and it was relatively easy work. They would manage prisoners in the labor camp and work as foremen or supervisors, and they would not have to do hard labor under the scorching sun every day.

The overall social concept is "to favor sons over daughters", and wives and concubines of different races who are bought and sold have an even lower status. Under the severe patriarchal authoritarianism of the Chinese, they have almost no say.

Being reduced to a machine that works day and night and gives birth in the family, they will never receive equal treatment, and being beaten and scolded is a common occurrence.

We don't speak the same language to begin with, and if you meet a man with a bad temper, and he hits you too hard, wouldn't he be beaten to death?
Although this outdated custom is not good, King Zheng Guohui of Chu has no intention of changing it and acquiesces to the existence of traditional customs.

This was very important for the Chu State to integrate the next generation, because many second-generation Chinese had fathers who were Chinese and mothers who were conquered ethnic groups, ranging from various ethnic groups in the East Indies to Australia, Central America, South America, and West Africa. This situation was very common.

Under the Congo River Company
No Chinese person was allowed to marry a black woman or reproduce, but it was allowed to vent his desires on female black slaves in private, and this could not be stopped.

However, they were not allowed to reproduce. Once discovered in Chinese villages and towns, it would be a scandal and would attract the attention of Chinese colony and city officials, who would impose severe punishment on them.

In Chinese families, the lower the status of women, the less say they have, and the less influence they have on the second generation of Chinese.

Regardless of their religious beliefs, language, customs or political inclinations, colonial Chinese schools required students to live on campus in junior high school and provide centralized education, with an emphasis on loyalty education and Chinese identity education.

The second generation of Chinese who have received systematic education in loyalty and patriotism will help the entire kingdom complete its phoenix-like transformation as soon as possible.

Only by integrating the foreign population into the Chinese family as quickly as possible can we help the Chu State move towards a stronger, more united and more glorious new century.

In the East African Company and the Congo River Company, there are many white brides from Armenia, as well as some white women from North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. Their origins are very complicated, and their languages ​​and beliefs are very different.

The Chinese accepted everything without any concern. After all, these Chinese male immigrants didn’t care to know what language the women spoke, what their beliefs were, or what their needs were.
Most Chinese immigrants are pragmatists. For women, just being able to have children is enough.

The purpose of marrying a woman is to have more children, to have more work, and to pray to Buddha and make wishes in the temple. There is no other way.

A beating every day will make sure he is completely obedient.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu was helpless and felt deeply sorry for these women with tragic fates. They could only pray to be born into a powerful race in their next life so as not to be bullied.

Ever since the Ottomans discovered that trafficking in Armenian and Caucasian women was a way to make a lot of money, they have been increasingly active in transporting white slaves from the Arabian Peninsula and the Caucasus region over the years, with the main destinations being East Africa and the Congo River Basin.

The total number of Armenian and Caucasian women who flowed in through Ottoman slave traders in recent years was about 280,000 to 290,000, which is a huge number.

In addition, there were white women who flowed in through other channels, such as female captives from the Arabian Peninsula tribes abducted by Chinese mercenaries of East African companies, as well as women from Iraq, Syria and even Iran, many of whom were exchanged through smuggling.

This solves the problem of more male than female Chinese immigrants, allowing more Chinese immigrants to get married, have families, and continue the family bloodline, which is a good thing in some ways.

In theory, human trafficking is something that these self-proclaimed civilized European countries advocate for prohibiting. Many British, French, American and German diplomatic envoys have expressed dissatisfaction with this, believing that Chu's actions are contrary to the responsibilities of a civilized country.

The Chu government rejected all these criticisms on the grounds that "foreigners should not interfere in internal affairs."

These British, French, American and German countries all said one thing and did another. On the surface, there were no slaves in the British mainland, but in reality, there were a large number of enslaved people in the estates of nobles and landowners, especially in Ireland.

Under his rule, Egypt, Syria and India were full of human trafficking markets, and the business was very prosperous.

The same is true for France, which has one set of practices in its European homeland and another in its colonies.

The serfs in Germany had just been liberated, and in many Junker estates, there were still many peasants trapped on the land. Although they did not have the status of serfs, they were actually the same.

As for the United States, it said one thing and did another. Not only did it massacre Indians on a large scale, but it also bought, sold and abused Indian and black slaves.

The Louisiana population market in the southern United States was still booming after more than a decade, with tens of thousands of slaves bought and sold every year. Didn’t the federal government know about it?

Not to mention the Ottoman Empire and Tsarist Russia. The former was a traditional slave-trading power, famous in modern European history. There were human trafficking markets in every town and city, just like livestock markets.

The number of serfs in Tsarist Russia reached tens of millions, and it was the most conservative social system among the powerful countries. It was simply covered with lice and was a sight to behold.

There was a lot of criticism from the outside world, but as long as it was beneficial to colonial development, King Zheng Guohui of Chu turned a blind eye and pretended not to see it.

(End of this chapter)