Nanyang Storm 1864

"Hmm, very good, very good. The Colonial Department's measures are very effective and the progress is very encouraging. I am very pleased!"

After listening to the report on the progress of the "restructuring and upgrading" work in Tunisia and Crimea, Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu, a veteran colonizer, beamed with joy and was in a very good mood.

Taking advantage of the World War, they quietly resolved potential future ethnic conflicts.

As an emperor who had ruled the empire for half a century, Zheng Guohui was all too aware that this was a ticking time bomb that would affect the long-term stability and security of the future. Destroying it in advance would ensure a long-term peaceful and tranquil environment.
Most people focus on the present, while he focuses on the future.

On Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Dynasty's desk lay several urgent telegrams from the Supreme Command of the Allied Military Group, as well as secret telegrams personally signed by the British Prime Minister, the French and Italian Prime Ministers, the US President, and others, and secret telegrams from the King of Belgium and the King of Serbia, among others, displaying various different demands.

All of this stemmed from the dramatic changes in the political landscape of Tsarist Russia, which felt like the sky had fallen for the countries involved in the Allied military alliance, leaving them in a state of constant fear and unease.

Tens of thousands of miles away, everything in the Great Chu Empire was as usual. The economy of the cities and countryside was thriving, and the people lived a peaceful and happy life. They felt no fear or anxiety from European society.

Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Dynasty felt the same way, as if he were only scratching the surface of the crisis that was erupting in Europe.

But this major crisis in Europe showed him that there was room for maneuver.

Specifically
The emperor of the Great Chu Empire set his sights on parts of the Austro-Hungarian Empire's European territories, as well as some Bulgarian territory, specifically the Thrace region and the coastal areas north of Thrace that now belong to Bulgaria.

This includes Thrace-Eastern Macedonia and the region north of Eastern Thrace, located within Bulgaria, covering an area of ​​approximately 3.2 square kilometers.

If it could be connected with the Thrace region, its total area would reach 7.72 square kilometers, which is a really nice place.

Thrace, located on the northern coast of the Aegean Sea, encompassed what would later become northern Greece (Western Thrace), southern Bulgaria (Northern Thrace), and the European part of the Ottoman Empire (Eastern Thrace), all of which were under Ottoman rule at the time.

The future changes in its territory still need to be realized through the Balkan Wars of 1923. Now that the Great Chu Empire has taken action, Greece and Bulgaria are out of the question.

The Great Chu Empire's European expeditionary force, numbering over 30, is currently amassed in Bulgaria, eyeing the Ottoman Empire's territory to the east and preparing to launch a new offensive.

This new offensive campaign will advance directly to the outskirts of Constantinople, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, with the aim of severely damaging its confidence in fighting to the bitter end, forcing the Ottoman Empire to surrender, and further dismantling the Allied military alliance.

The campaign, originally planned for December, had to be postponed due to the significant changes in the political situation in Tsarist Russia.

It was now early February 1918. Through continuous reinforcements to the eastern front, the Great Chu Empire had a total force of over 123 million men on the eastern front.

some of

The main eastern front had 82.5 troops, while the newly opened southern fronts in Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire had more than 41.6 troops.

In the brutal war that lasted for more than a year, the number of troops lost reached 297,700, of which 85% were officers and soldiers of the Central African Regiment and the Volunteer Corps, and the number of Chinese soldiers killed or wounded was around 47,900.

For such a large-scale battle to achieve such remarkable results, the casualties are acceptable.

Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Empire was very satisfied with the 41st Prince's battlefield performance. Recently, the empire initiated a motion to confer the title of Prince upon Marshal Chu-Zheng Hui, and a large number of outstanding generals were also to be granted noble titles such as Marquis, Earl, Viscount, and Baron.

Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Empire decided to wait until he conquered the Thrace region before bestowing the title of Prince of Thrace upon him. Wouldn't that be a more legitimate and justifiable move?
Now these European territories are all under the command of the Great Chu Empire's expeditionary force, like fat meat right in front of their mouths, practically within easy reach.

This inevitably tempted Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Dynasty, as the saying goes: "A thief never leaves empty-handed."

Ahem... that's roughly the idea, but it shouldn't be expressed like that; it seems too undignified.

The most fascinating thing about Thrace is that it has been part of the Ottoman Empire's conquered territory since 1432, nearly 500 years ago.

The region is inhabited by Turks and Greeks, as well as a small number of Bulgarians. The residents can be expelled through harsh measures during the war.

For young and middle-aged men who were unwilling to leave their hometowns, they were conscripted into the army and spent their time on the battlefield, thus achieving the desired outcome.

Given the current size and significant influence of the Great Chu Empire, there's no need to hide these small actions. The world's major powers, such as Britain, France, and the United States, are generally aware of them and won't keep a close eye on them.

Everyone has a dark history of colonialism, and it would be embarrassing for anyone to have their past exposed.

Following the victory in World War I, a frenzy of partitioning the Ottoman Empire and dismembering the Austro-Hungarian Empire swept across the world, with countries forming an alliance to intervene in the internal affairs of Tsarist Russia in an attempt to vent their anger.

In the military-occupied territories of the Great Chu Empire, they naturally possessed an inherent advantage in discourse.

The plan in mind has been decided
Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu personally wrote a secret letter to British Prime Minister David Lloyd George and French Prime Minister Jean-Claude Clemenceau, specifically requesting that the two heads of state commit to the Thrace issue.

Of course, not now, but in the post-war distribution of interests, a tacit understanding was reached on this issue. This is a common under-the-table deal among the world's major powers.

As long as Britain and France agree, other countries, including the United States, Italy, and Germany, can be ignored, as they have very little say in the distribution of postwar interests.

The new territorial claims of the Great Chu Empire primarily harmed the interests of the Ottoman Empire, and also involved the division of parts of southern Bulgaria. Both of these were core forces within the Allied military bloc, and their acts of war should be severely punished by the international community.

Of course, the Emperor of the Great Chu Empire also promised

It will primarily support Britain and France's claims to the dismemberment of the post-war Ottoman Empire's territory; this is an exchange of interests, and the pie offered is quite generous.

It means that
The Great Chu Empire only wanted the Thrace region; the other territories of the Ottoman Empire could be divided between England and France. This did not include the Arabian Peninsula.

The Great Chu Empire led 27 kingdoms to join the Allied military alliance, including the Ryukyu Kingdom, the Quang Nam Kingdom (Vietnam), the Colombian Kingdom, the Madagascar Kingdom, and a series of smaller kingdoms established in recent years.

The postwar demand was for international recognition of its territorial divisions, which included 13 small kingdoms on the Arabian Peninsula (note that the Kingdom of Jeddah, the Kingdom of Yemen, the Kingdom of Sana'a, and the Kingdom of Kuwait, which were established 20 years earlier, were not internationally recognized due to obstruction by the Ottoman Empire), 6 kingdoms in East Africa, and 4 kingdoms in South America. This gap needed to be filled.

Fortunately, the Arabian Peninsula is not a core area of ​​British interest, and these kingdoms have not interfered with the extremely sensitive Jerusalem. Instead, it has been placed under international co-governance, which should be widely recognized internationally.

in the original history
After the war, the Allied military bloc carried out a frenzied dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire's territory, forcing the Ottoman Empire to sign a humiliating armistice agreement, with many territories being "entrusted to the administration" of the Allied powers.

The former territories were completely divided up by the Allied Powers, and the shrewd and calculating Britain and France even incited the neighboring countries of the Ottoman Empire in an attempt to dismember and divide it.

At the Paris Peace Conference, the Ottoman Empire lost all the territories it had occupied since the 15th century, and its inherent territory was also almost entirely divided up.

The Great Chu Empire only took the most prized piece of meat from the Ottoman Empire, and the rest is all yours to share. Is that too much to ask?
The Great Chu Empire's demand was for the existing European parts of the Ottoman Empire. Apart from the already independent Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, and Macedonia, only Thrace was truly enticing. Acquiring this territory would mean being separated from Constantinople by a narrow isthmus, practically within earshot of each other, and even able to hear the morning call to prayer from the Great Chapel.

Constantinople, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, would be left with no defensive depth and would be exposed to the military threat of the Great Chu Empire.

If cannons were set up, Constantinople could be bombarded directly from the border.

This would cast a deep shadow over the Ottoman Empire, indirectly giving them control of the Bosphorus Strait, known as the "Crossroads of the World," and allowing the military and civilian ships of the Great Chu Empire to move freely in and out of the Black Sea.

If the Great Chu Empire is displeased, the citizens and troops in Constantinople will die of thirst and starvation if the water supply and transportation routes are cut off; there will be no other way out.

The entire military city of Constantinople was built on a high hill on the western shore of the Bosphorus Strait, guarding the entrance to the strait to the east and overlooking the Thracian plain to the west.

The entire city is like a natural fortress, with terrain that is easy to defend and difficult to attack. The problem is that it is a large city with a population of over 230 million. Drinking water, food and vegetables need to be imported from outside, as well as a large amount of daily necessities.

Losing Thrace means losing the buffer zone that ensures the basic security of the capital region.

It's like having a sharp dagger pointed at your neck at any moment; you even have to speak in a low voice.

After writing several secret letters in his own hand, Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Dynasty instructed his royal secretary to send them to Europe as soon as possible, and then he drank a couple of sips of tea, feeling relaxed and refreshed.

Then he stood up and walked towards the side hall.

A large European model has been placed in the side hall, depicting the entire Serres region in bright yellow, along with parts of the Bulgarian provinces to the north, which are now considered to be within reach.

Emperor Zheng Guohui admired the territory with satisfaction. This land, together with Crimea and Tunisia, formed the three points of the Great Chu Empire's presence in Europe, complementing each other perfectly.

One is located in the Aegean Sea, one in the Black Sea, and one on the coast of North Africa. Not bad, not bad, not bad at all!
There is also an even more radical plan.
That is to gradually encroach on seven provinces in eastern Bulgaria, continue eastward to connect with Moldova and Odessa, swallow up the Mykolaiv and Kherson regions of Ukraine, and connect them with Crimea.

However, this plan was directly rejected by Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Empire.

The reason is that Europe is different from other parts of the world. If it really did that, it would completely offend Tsarist Russia and become a thorn in Tsarist Russia's side that it was determined to get rid of.

Its strategic priority was even higher than that of its historical enemy, the German Empire.

the reason is simple

On the surface, the Great Shu Empire swallowed up a large area of ​​Eastern Europe, turning Ukraine into an inland region. Tsarist Russia no longer even had coastal ports near the Black Sea. How could it not be anxious and jumping up and down?

Over the past two centuries, through ten Russo-Turkish wars, Tsarist Russia has finally extended its reach to the Black Sea coast, fulfilling the dream of successive Tsarist monarchs to expand westward.

Even with changes in the political landscape, this core westward strategy will not change.

The Great Chu Empire abruptly stood in front as a roadblock. On the surface, it seemed to have gained an advantage, but in reality, it was just a shield for Germany and Austria-Hungary behind it. It was incredibly foolish.

If the Russians don't target you, who will they target?

The size and military strength of the Great Chu Empire were enough to intimidate the small Balkan states, but it could not frighten away a behemoth like Tsarist Russia, which would inevitably lead to the brewing of the next war.

Moreover, the timeframe will not be long, ranging from a dozen years to at most 20 years, before the Russian Empire will inevitably launch a sudden attack and initiate a war against the Great Chu Empire.

How could Russia defend its more than 1360-kilometer-long border against millions of Tsarist soldiers?
Therefore, Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Empire decisively rejected this plan of the European expeditionary force.

The entire Ukrainian plains were left for Tsarist Russia and Germany to fight over, while the Great Chu Empire would not interfere.

After Tsarist Russia ended its civil war and unified the country, it inevitably turned its attention back to Poland west of Ukraine, a trajectory that history has proven to be correct.

In comparison, the Crimean Peninsula, with a total area of ​​2.6 square kilometers, is not the main direction. Its northern part is connected to the Ukrainian mainland through the Perekop Isthmus, which is about 8 kilometers wide, while the other three sides are surrounded by the Black Sea and the Sea of ​​Azov.

This determines

The Crimean region, which was owned by the Great Chu Empire, had only the 8-kilometer-wide Perekop Isthmus in the north as part of its border, requiring the garrisoning of heavy troops and the construction of strong fortresses for defense.

As early as the 14th to 18th centuries, the Crimean Khanate dug a 7-kilometer-long and 15-meter-deep artificial trench at the narrowest point of the isthmus, forming the "Tatar trench" defense system, which was awe-inspiring.

This fortification, along with stone walls and 40 watchtowers, successfully resisted Russia's military expansion for three centuries.

With vigorous preparation, a large-scale artillery fortress system that isolates the north and south can be formed, greatly strengthening Crimea's defenses and upgrading the "Tatar trenches" into "Tatar fortresses".

In addition, the Great Chu Empire possessed absolute naval superiority, and this terrain was extremely favorable for defense, making it difficult for Tsarist Russia to deploy even millions of troops.

This isn't a matter of how many troops we have, but rather that we have the strength but can't use it effectively.

This will inevitably lead to a result.

Even if unified Tsarist Russia regains its strength, it should not dream of taking over Crimea as long as its naval power does not surpass that of the Royal Navy of the Great Chu Empire.

From a military perspective, there is absolutely no possibility of it.

This is similar to the British Empire occupying Gibraltar in Spain. As long as the Spanish navy does not surpass that of Britain, there is no way they can take over the territory.

In the future war to seize Crimea, the Royal Navy of the Great Chu Empire will inevitably be deployed to conduct a comprehensive bombardment of the Russian army's heavily concentrated areas with large-caliber naval guns, directly making them taste defeat with artillery fire.

This defensive advantage is many times better than the over 1360-kilometer-long land border planned by the radical plan.
As the supreme ruler who controlled the empire for more than half a century, Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Empire understood one principle well: greed should be moderate.

Doesn't he want the seven eastern provinces of Bulgaria, plus Moldova and Odessa, plus the Mykolaiv and Kherson regions in southern Ukraine, to be connected with Crimea?
Of course he wanted it, but the Great Chu Empire didn't have the appetite to digest such a large area of ​​European territory spanning hundreds of thousands of square kilometers.

Rather than becoming a thorn in the side of Tsarist Russia, Emperor Zheng Guohui of the Great Chu Empire preferred to take a cautious approach and first secure Crimea. (End of Chapter)