Father of France

Chapter 140 The East
The Embankment was a grain transshipment and processing center in French Indochina, where the Chinese had a very large influence. However, Coman knew that this was only temporary and that a nationalist country could not allow such a phenomenon to exist in the long term.

However, Corman didn't have time at that moment, as he had to go to the Governor's Palace to submit military supplies documents. The scenery had already changed as he entered the city center, but Corman still didn't expect that the entertainment facilities in the Saigon Governor's Palace would be so complete. The ballroom of the Governor's Palace seemed to be another world.

The light from the crystal chandelier shattered on the marble floor, and the air was thick and sweet, stirred by the steam from cigars, perfume, alcohol, and countless burning candles.

The gold thread on the military uniforms was dazzling, the ladies' skirts rustled, and their laughter rose, trying to drown out the music played by the band.

"The governor is here? We haven't been back for very long, have we?" Coman glanced at the guard who brought him over, his face full of disbelief.

“Mr. Dachanliu is indeed here.” Thierry coughed lightly, seemingly a little embarrassed, but did not deny Coman’s question.

"Then let's wait and see." Koman didn't say anything after hearing this, and at the same time, he didn't intend to get involved in the glitz and glamour.

After a while, Jean-Jacques de Chambord, the highest-ranking civil official in French Indochina, came out. He had previously been the Chief of Staff of the Free French Navy and, as a key figure in de Gaulle's rise to power, was assigned to a high-ranking position in this most important colony after the war.

"You've worked hard, Koman." After listening to the report and learning that he was going to make contact with the Chinese on the embankment, Dashangliu couldn't help but say, "These annoying opponents have caused us a lot of trouble."

When Da Shangliu arrived in South Vietnam, he was in charge of negotiating the return of North Vietnam, and he felt deeply humiliated by the difficult process involved.

During the talks, Dasanliu naturally raised the issue of the withdrawal of troops from Laos by the major Eastern power. His request was related to an order issued by de Gaulle.

De Gaulle had asked him to rely on troops sent from the mainland and the loyalty of the colony people to first control several areas, providing a "safe base" for France to restore its colonial rule in Vietnam.

The interim government proposed that France should begin its actions in Cambodia and Laos, where the political situation was favorable to France.

Dassanio's proposal for the withdrawal of the Eastern superpower's army from Laos was clearly intended to allow the French army to take over French Indochina in the first place.

However, this did not elicit a direct response. From the process of talks with the Grand Eastern Parliament, it can be seen that Chiang Kai-shek's basic stance at this time was to agree to the entry of the French military delegation into the North Vietnamese-controlled area and to negotiate with the Kuomintang regarding the administrative transfer of northern Vietnam. However, Chiang Kai-shek would not completely withdraw his troops from northern Vietnam and Laos before the Sino-French negotiations concluded.

Conversely, the Chang Gonghui used the troops stationed in northern Vietnam as leverage in negotiations with France regarding the treatment of overseas Chinese in Vietnam.

Based on this consideration, during his talks with Dassanio, Chang Gong took the initiative to raise the issue of the treatment of overseas Chinese and implied that if France could not do so, it would affect "the friendship and cooperation between China and France".

For France, Sino-French cooperation means that Chang Gong will withdraw his troops from Vietnam on time and hand over the administrative bodies of northern Vietnam to France.

This attitude from the great Eastern power indeed had an effect. Dachanliu finally relented, stating that France "should treat the overseas Chinese in Vietnam with the utmost friendliness."

The negotiations between China and France over the past two months have yielded significant results. Both sides have successively ruled out alternative solutions and, either passively or actively, returned to the path of negotiating a civil agreement between the two countries.

For France, this means abandoning its plan to prevent the Eastern superpower's army from entering Vietnam to accept the surrender by changing the surrender zone.

For the major Eastern power, this meant ceasing support for the Vietnamese national independence movement. After lengthy negotiations, China and France finally reached an agreement on the transfer of administrative power in northern Vietnam.

Although he did not comment on the issue of troop withdrawal, which was of utmost concern to the French interim government, Chang Gong formally pledged to agree to France sending a military delegation to northern Vietnam to negotiate the administrative transfer of the region.

At least legally, France's return to northern Vietnam was guaranteed. The exchange was that the treatment of overseas Chinese in Vietnam be included in the negotiation agenda, and the scope of the Sino-French negotiations was expanded to include a Sino-Vietnamese relations agreement with the treatment of overseas Chinese as a key component.

In order to smoothly take over the administrative bodies in northern Vietnam, France had to make certain concessions.

The issue of the status of the Chinese community had delayed the negotiations for too long, which is why Dassanio reacted so strongly when Koeman mentioned contacting the Chinese community in the Embankment area.

“Commissioner, the Chinese are not necessarily an obstacle for us,” Koeman said after listening to Dashanliu’s complaints from beginning to end. “Don’t forget, pro-Soviet parties are not only present in Vietnam. Our opponents are facing a war now, and it’s not certain whether they can win.”

"As for the Viet Minh, we need to rephrase it. This way, we can stabilize the situation while concentrating our efforts on striking the Viet Minh." Corman remembered that Dassanio was a standard advocate for war against the Viet Minh. The left-wing government in Paris couldn't really interfere with the attitudes of these officials in French Indochina. For high-ranking French Indochina officials like Dassanio, it was too easy for them to escalate the situation. Corman couldn't stop them; he could only try his best to help.

He told Da Shangliu all the methods he had thought of before coming. Apart from the humiliating method of using the Red River as the boundary, Da Shangliu had really considered the other methods.

"The Army Chief of Staff is so knowledgeable about the situation here," Dassanio couldn't help but marvel. He didn't believe it was Koeman's knowledge; it must be the idea of ​​the Army's top leader.

“The local Vietnamese don’t have a good attitude towards the Chinese, and we can take advantage of that.” Koman breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed the other party had taken his advice.

In the eyes of the Vietnamese, overseas Chinese in Vietnam are not productive, but only profit-driven, and mostly make a living by lending money; they are the Jews of Southeast Asia. In the social sphere, overseas Chinese in Vietnam like to organize secret societies and establish organizations that the Vietnamese cannot understand at all, thus excluding the Vietnamese. In short, many Vietnamese believe that the Chinese have harmed the interests that the Vietnamese should have.

In this situation, it is appropriate to win over this hostile group. Although it cannot solve the problem in the long term, Koeman did not expect long-term stability. He just wanted to get through this period.

After leaving the Governor's Palace, Coman began his journey of gathering reactionary forces. However, the first thing to do was to solve the problem of raw materials in North Africa. Fortunately, Dassanliu had just given the green light, allowing Coman to operate freely in Saigon.

On the pedestrian walkway along the embankment, a bustling crowd moved about, some leisurely, others in a hurry. This flow of people resembled a group of homeless refugees, or a group of aimless beggars wandering about.

This kind of population can still be seen even in today's prosperous scene.

They had a habit of walking in groups, never in a hurry, seemingly oblivious to the crowds, as if they had no happiness, no sorrow, and no curiosity, only knowing how to walk.

Thierry had already informed Coman of some of the situation on the embankment, and after listening, Coman had a general understanding of the Chinese community there. The Chinese on the embankment did not exist in the form of Chinese families.

Instead, they settled on the embankment in a clan-like manner, somewhat similar to Italian Mafia families in the United States, but on a larger scale.

"Isn't this the foundation of modern warlords?" Koman recalled many warlords in modern history who rose to power based on their hometowns and clans. He didn't expect that the foundation of the embankment was quite good.

According to local clan distinctions, the Chinese in Cholon are divided into five groups: Guangzhou, Chaoshan, Fujian, Hakka, and Hainan.

The fate of Chinese families in the embankment was closely linked to the rise and fall of the gangs they belonged to. Most employees in family businesses came from the same hometown, and business partners were also preferred to be gang members. The main family leaders were usually also members of the leadership of the gang association or hometown association.

Typical Chinese families often live in row houses with arcades, with shops or accounting offices in the front and living areas in the back and upstairs, forming a "shop in front, home in back" or "shop downstairs, home upstairs" layout.

Koman was just there to soak up the atmosphere; he wasn't planning on doing anything right away. He and a few subordinates who had come from North Africa went straight into the restaurant. It was a Chinese restaurant with an upper floor, occupying the entire building, as large as a department store, with many private rooms, each with a balcony or terrace facing the street.

The sounds emanating from these buildings would be incredible in Europe. First came the shouts of restaurant customers ordering their food, followed by the loud cheers of chefs.

Upon entering the restaurant, a waiter greeted Coman and led him upstairs, a floor specifically for Europeans. The menus were essentially the same, just not as loudly advertised. The restaurant had electric fans and thick soundproofing panels on the walls.

Perhaps it was because Koman's top-top hat and military uniform were so eye-catching that the restaurant owner himself appeared. Koman glanced at the man and saw that he was dressed like a gangster from an old movie. He watched the man walk over quietly and then took the initiative to ask, "What's up?"

"This officer speaks Mandarin." The man was surprised, but quickly put on a slightly respectful smile and introduced himself, "My name is Gu Qing, and I am the owner of this restaurant."

"What a fine surname and a fine given name." Koman immediately showed his respect. If it were a city channel, the surname Gu would be the top of the four domineering CEO surnames. If it were a fantasy channel, it would be even more impressive, the number one family of the chosen villains. "If you don't mind, sit down with me. We might live in the same country in the future."

“Sir, we have always been part of the French Empire.” Gu Qing demonstrated a flexible moral bottom line; businessmen are indeed different.

Because of his accent, Coman tried to speak slowly, and Gu Qing didn't seem uncomfortable; perhaps she just thought that's how French people speak. This could probably be considered a kind of close relationship between the military and the people.

(End of this chapter)