Nanyang Storm 1864

1903 January 11

A small fleet of ships, consisting of a large migrant ship and two cargo ships, set sail from the port of Manila. The migrant ship, named "Weishanhu," carried 2762 passengers on its voyage to an inconspicuous little port in the Persian Gulf... Dubai Port.

At this time, the most distinguished passenger on the immigrant ship was Chu-Zheng Tao, the 33rd prince of the Great Chu Empire, who was the unfortunate prince who was assassinated in the Chinese concession in Nagasaki. The matter was later left unresolved.

For Prince Chu-Zhengtao, this was undoubtedly an extreme neglect, as if he were a dispensable minor figure in the imperial family, which only fueled the young prince's determination to take a desperate gamble.

He sold his princely residence and everything of value, borrowed 300 million silver dollars from the Royal Colonial Bank through connections, mortgaged his earldom and hereditary fiefdom, gathered all the manpower he could, and set off for the Arabian Peninsula to make his way in the world.

Given that several princes have already established considerable power in the region from Yemen to Jeddah, it would be difficult to accommodate them even if they tried to squeeze in.

His Highness Chu-Zheng Tao turned his attention to other weak points, and after careful consideration, finally chose the southeastern Arabian Peninsula, centered on Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

His Highness Chu-Zheng Tao graduated from the Royal Manila Military Academy, holds the rank of active-duty captain, and has served in the Colonial Department for more than two years. He has a certain international strategic vision and unique insights into issues.

he thinks

The Arabian Peninsula was within Britain's sphere of influence, especially the northwestern Mediterranean coastal region centered on Jerusalem, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria, which represented Britain's core interests on the Arabian Peninsula.

Although this area nominally belonged to the Ottoman Empire, it had been regarded as a private territory by the British, who used it to resist French invasion and were hostile to invasions by all European powers, including Germany and Italy.

Ordinary business dealings are restricted, and the infiltration of military forces is strictly guarded against.

This region is a core interest of Britain and will not be allowed to be interfered with by any other country, including the State of Chu.

In addition to the northwestern Arabian Peninsula along the Mediterranean, the second layer of British interests lies in Iraq and Kuwait in the eastern Arabian Peninsula, and the Najd region along the Red Sea in the west.

Iraq is a traditionally rich land on the Arabian Peninsula, with a large population and a long history. It was once part of the Ottoman Empire's overseas province of Iraq. Today, it has been thoroughly infiltrated by British influence, which is able to dominate the region's politics and direction.

Kuwait, due to its strategic location, was originally a vital passage for Germany to build the Middle East Railway to the Arabian Peninsula.

However, due to strong British opposition, this railway, which carried the German Empire's beautiful vision of penetrating the Arab world, was aborted midway and it is now impossible to reach Kuwait.

In 1902, Sheikh Abdulaziz, supported by the British in Kuwait, led a group of men from his family's refuge in Kuwait to seize Riyadh from the rival Rashid family and establish the Emirate of Saudi Arabia.

The Najd region, located in the western Red Sea region, is controlled by dozens of Arab tribes of different affiliations. The larger tribes number in the thousands or tens of thousands, while the smaller ones number only seven or eight hundred. Most of them live in the desert oasis areas along the coast, leading a traditional nomadic life.

The third layer of British interests involved the Kingdom of Oman and the Kingdom of Iran along the Persian Gulf, both of which were British protectorates.

After the Russian forces launched a large-scale invasion of northern Iran, Britain directly sent troops to occupy southern Iran, cutting off Russia's influence in the Persian Gulf and creating a stalemate.

Prince Chu-Zheng Tao, the 33rd prince, cautiously considered that if he invaded the Kingdom of Oman by force, he might be met with military intervention from Britain, thus causing his efforts to fail.

This is a desperate gamble for him, betting his royal and noble titles and wealth that would guarantee him a lifetime of riches. He can only win, he cannot afford to lose, so he must proceed with extreme caution.

After repeated and careful consideration, the final conquest was decided to take place in the northern part of the Kingdom of Oman... Dubai Port.

Compared to the Kingdom of Iran and the Kingdom of Oman, Dubai and the surrounding Abu Dhabi area at this time were just a small oasis on the edge of the coastal desert, with a population base of several thousand people, and were considered to be areas controlled by tribal chiefs.

Its importance, in the British considerations, can only be considered the fourth level, and is the least noticeable region.

Without British intervention, the chances of establishing a foothold in this region were over 90%.

Prince Chu-Zheng Tao was now at the bow of the highest deck of the "Weishan Lake" ship, watching the giant ship below cut through the blue waves and sail forward, leaving the skyscrapers of the metropolis of Manila behind, the distance between them growing ever greater.

His emotions were in turmoil, wondering when he would be able to return to his homeland after this desperate and adventurous expedition.

His only hope was that his father would take a look at him and see that he wasn't a mediocre and useless fool.

The struggles among the royal family members of the Great Chu Empire were extremely fierce, and all they sought was to gain more imperial favor.

His Highness Chu-Zheng Tao also has the right to inherit the throne, but he is already over forty in the line of succession. The children of His Highness Chu-Zheng Yuan, the Crown Prince of the Empire and Prince of Manila, have a higher priority in the succession to the throne. This is something that cannot be envied.

Among the princes, most of the top ten in the right to inherit the throne served in the army and navy, holding high-ranking military ranks from colonel to lieutenant general, and thus still had some possibility of inheriting the throne.

The other princes pursued their own interests: some were devoted to literature and art, some enjoyed studying engineering and water conservancy, some entered politics, and some ventured overseas.

Achieving something in any field would bring him honor before his father, the Emperor, which would be an extremely prestigious thing. Gazing at the ever-receding metropolis of Manila, Chu-Zheng Tao was filled with a surge of emotion, a poignant and heroic feeling that stirred within him, bringing tears to his eyes.

He wanted to emulate his father's conquests forty years ago, leading this small team of warriors to establish a foothold in the Persian Gulf, thousands of miles away, and build a foundation of his own.

"Father, I, your unfilial son Chu-Zheng Tao, bid you farewell. From now on, I will face countless mountains and rivers and embark on a long and arduous journey."

I should take my father as my role model, fearless of death, and fight my way through thorns and obstacles to bring glory to the royal family of my Great Chu Empire.

If I do not accomplish something, I will have no face to meet His Majesty the Emperor.

I humbly request that Your Majesty take good care of your health, for this would be a blessing for the nation and its people.

Your unfilial son, Zheng Tao of Chu, kowtows twice!

Facing the direction of the palace, he solemnly straightened his robes and knelt in worship. Behind him, a large group of people passed by in a dark mass, many of them weeping bitterly.

Those who followed the thirty-third prince, Chu-Zhengtao, to venture into the Persian Gulf included maids and guards from the prince's residence, subjects from fiefdoms, classmates and relatives of the emperor, and retired officers and soldiers still full of patriotic fervor. They were all recruited through newspapers.

The mother of the 33rd Prince Chu-Zheng Tao is Mei Jianxia, ​​the second of the three Mei sisters. The Mei family originally came from Lanfang Prefecture and now has great influence in Bandar Seri Begawan.

His Highness Chu-Zheng Tao is going all out to conquer the Persian Gulf, how could the Mei family not give their full support?

These three ships belong to Oriental Ocean Shipping Company, a subsidiary of the Mayer Enterprises. This is one of the large ocean shipping companies with royal and government shareholdings; otherwise, it would not be possible to have routes to Europe and West Africa.

However, although the Mei family is the third largest shareholder, they have the right to operate and control the business. The government and the royal family send directors to participate in supervision, mainly for investment and profit sharing.

The fact that the three Mei sisters enjoyed such privileges was closely related to their favor within the Great Chu royal family, and the fact that they had given birth to six sons and eight daughters for the royal family, naturally earning them special treatment.

The Mei family contributed money, effort, and manpower to this expedition.

A force of over 2200 men was assembled for His Highness Chu-Zheng Tao, including many veteran soldiers, a cavalry unit of over 200 men, a heavy machine gun company, more than 30 trucks, a large number of diesel engines and other equipment.

Such a force would be enough to sweep across seven or eight Arab tribes surrounding Dubai and Abu Dhabi, conquering the region.

If the troop strength is insufficient
With the influence of the Thirty-Third Prince, a mercenary cavalry force of over a thousand men could be quickly assembled within the jurisdiction of the East African Governor's Office, with payment made after the service was completed.

After conquering Dubai and Abu Dhabi, that will be the time for the Mei family to exert their strength. They will allocate two immigration ships to send immigrants from Southeast Asia to the Persian Gulf region.

按照40天一个来回航次计算，每艘移民船一年可以跑8~9个航次，运输2.5至2.7万移民。

The two ships carried more than 5 Chinese immigrants, enough for the Thirty-Third Prince to gain a foothold in the Persian Gulf and then expand into the surrounding areas, developing his own power.

What will so many people eat and drink?
It's simple, just smuggle it.

Compared to smuggling from East Africa to the Persian Gulf coast, Dubai Port enjoys an extremely advantageous geographical location. It is only a few hours' voyage from the Kingdom of Iran on the other side, and just a day's voyage from the coastal areas of Kuwait and Iraq, making it extremely convenient.

Throughout the Persian Gulf region

With a population of over 6500 million and dozens of cities of varying sizes, supporting a small smuggling town of only tens of thousands of people is a piece of cake.

Over time, Dubai Port can be developed into a distribution center for goods exported from the Great Chu Empire to the Persian Gulf. The warehousing, transportation, port and smuggling businesses that develop from this will definitely be very profitable.

In any case, the Ottoman Empire was now weak, and its naval forces in the Persian Gulf were still outdated sailing ships and small steamships, which were powerless against the fast smuggling vessels.

Besides smuggling
Dubai is also well-suited for developing offshore fishing, food processing, and saltworks, all of which are promising avenues for future growth.

Prince Zheng Tao of Chu had no idea what was going on.

The areas surrounding Dubai and Abu Dhabi are rich in oil resources, practically sitting on a world-class oil depot, possessing almost inexhaustible wealth.

He simply wanted to make a name for himself and gain his father's attention and favor; he didn't want to live a mediocre life. That was all.

Who knew that by sheer luck, they would stumble upon a mountain of wealth? (End of Chapter)