Father of France

Chapter 158 Relocation and Resettlement Plan
It turned out to be the father of the last Miao king. Koman met the person in front of him. Wang Bao was active after the French withdrew from French Indochina.

There are a total of eighteen Hmong villages in Laos. Wang Bao gathered some tribal chiefs and Hmong youths to form a local armed force and declared allegiance to the newly independent coalition government.

It is worth mentioning that the local armed forces led by Wang Bao were not part of the Lao "government army." His army was semi-independent, primarily protecting the interests of the Hmong people in Laos. The resolute and courageous Wang Bao quickly gained the appreciation of General Noksavan, a powerful figure in Laos at the time, and even became the only Hmong general in the Lao Royal Army.

However, the semi-independent status of the Miao people was threatened by the Viet Minh from the very beginning. The Viet Minh's long-term goal was to take over French Indochina in its entirety, complete the path of regional power that the Nguyen Dynasty should have followed in the 19th century but which was interrupted by the French invasion, and annex Laos and Cambodia.

Even Laos and Cambodia, which are much larger, are considered by the Viet Minh to be within their grasp, not to mention the Hmong people, who have an even smaller population and are struggling to achieve semi-independence.

"Coman, since you can communicate directly, I'll leave this matter to you." General Dashanliu waved his hand, pushing the matter of arming the Miao people aside.

"Yes, General." Seeing that General Dashanliu didn't seem interested in this kind of thing—winning over ethnic minorities—the French weren't as flexible as the British in this respect. He agreed and extended an invitation to Wang Nengchu, "County Chief Wang, let's have a good talk about the future development of the Miao people."

Wang Nengchu hesitated for a moment before nodding. He couldn't even tell Koman's rank, but being able to communicate directly was always better than dealing with Dashangliu, who didn't seem very sincere.

Koman was also surprised that Wang Nengchu could speak Chinese. It seemed that Wang Nengchu did not always stay in Laos and must have crossed the border to contact his compatriots on the other side of the border quite often.

After a moment's thought, Corman decided to use Vietnam's ethnic oppression of the Miao people as a starting point. This was a place where relations between the two sides could be quickly improved. France's management of French Indochina North was not deep, and at present, there was no hatred between France and the Miao people.

How many French people are there? And how many Vietnamese people are there?

“We have lived here for over a hundred years. The Vietnamese, like the Han Chinese, look down on us and drive us to the mountains,” Wang Nengchu said indignantly. “They want to eliminate our existence.”

“Um…” If Coman didn’t answer, it would seem like he wasn’t being sincere, but as for this matter, “Ortai doesn’t seem to be Han Chinese. As for Vietnam, they do seem to always follow the policies of their northern neighbors.”

Based on Wang Nengchu's description, Koman estimated that the reason why Wang Nengchu and his Miao people currently live on the Lao side of the China-Laos border is probably related to Ortai, the only governor of three provinces in history. As for how much of a connection there is, he couldn't experience it firsthand since he wasn't a person from that time.

However, Koman did have some knowledge of the dynasty in which Ortai lived. Although Yongzheng was not good at fighting, it was only relatively speaking, and he did not need to worry too much about the ethnic minorities in the south.

It is estimated that the process of "replacing native chieftains with centrally appointed officials," which is emphasized in textbooks, was not so gentle.

Vietnam, a small southern China, naturally followed suit when it learned that the Qing Dynasty was implementing the policy of replacing native chieftains with centrally appointed officials in its southwestern region. This has been the case in Vietnam throughout the 21st century.

As I've said before, the policies implemented by Vietnam and North Korea, the two neighboring countries of this great Eastern power, combined—I dare not say all of them, but almost half of the policies that this great Eastern power has implemented—are essentially the same.

This is all inherited from ancient times. Vietnam is always more open than the major Eastern powers, while North Korea is more conservative.

During the socialist period, although there were various reasons, North Korea was clearly biased towards heavy industry, while Vietnam followed suit and implemented an open policy. Under the nose of the major Eastern power, they demonstrated what being too conservative looked like and what it meant to take too big a step and end up hurting themselves.

Vietnam also began to realize that being too open would only turn it into a subcontractor, preventing it from accumulating anything, and power began to concentrate.

Koman didn't have time to lament the plight of this small group of Miao people. Perhaps he could suggest that Wang Nengchu go and talk to Ortai?

Of course, what needs to be done still needs to be done. Koman invited Wang Nengchu to find a restaurant, which was actually just to have something to eat on the embankment. Eating was just a side thing. As part of Saigon, the embankment was quite prosperous. The main thing was to let County Chief Wang take a look and have something to look forward to.

He didn't expect the rumors circulating online about Li Hongzhang's trip to New York to have any effect, but he believed that a better life was something the Miao people also pursued. What ethnic group is naturally inclined to live deep in the mountains and forests? Aren't they all forced into it?

The Miao people, represented by Wang Nengchu, understood this principle even better, as they had encountered the policy of replacing native chieftains with centrally appointed officials in two different countries; otherwise, why would they harbor such deep resentment?

"The Cholon district is a gathering place for Chinese people, and France is known for its liberalism, equality, and fraternity. Our current policy is to promote ethnic equality in French Indochina and form a prosperous French Indochina Federation." Comand, with a nonchalant expression, spoke in a high-sounding tone. "We have the same attitude towards the Hmong people. We oppose both Dai Viet nationalism and regional nationalism."

Koeman himself found this statement hypocritical. Vietnam was quite different from the major Eastern power; the reform of the chieftain system in Vietnam was much easier than that in the major Eastern power.

Had the French invasion not interrupted Vietnam's path to becoming a regional power, given the size of the Vietnamese majority and the lack of significant geographical obstacles, it would have been very likely to have become a nation-state. The situation is different for the major Eastern power; its northeastern region is considered relatively easy to traverse.

If Han Chinese go to the grasslands, will they adopt the lifestyle of the grassland people or the traditional agricultural lifestyle? If they adopt the agricultural methods, the grassland ecology will not allow it; if they adopt the nomadic methods, won't they become a nomadic people?

Even more challenging than the dense forests of Northeast China and the grasslands of Northern China is the Great Northwest, and then there is the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, which presents the ultimate challenge.

Given its geographical environment, if the French hadn't arrived during the colonial era, Vietnam, given a century of development, would have had a strong chance of conquering Laos and Cambodia with its overwhelming population advantage.

It's important to know that even in French Indochina today, almost 90% of the population is Vietnamese, and that's after the arrival of the French.

While eating, Koman and Wang Nengchu discussed the issue of ethnic equality. Before long, Gu Qing sent someone to deliver a map of French Indochina, which was Koman's favorite part of giving his opinion.

A man's lifelong pursuit is to emulate George Lloyd and Clemenceau, whose mere stroke of the pen can give birth to a nation.

Koman wanted to do the same, but the times limited him, and according to Wang Nengchu, the eighteen Miao villages with 10,000 people each, totaling two or three hundred thousand people, were a huge hurdle.

Ninety percent of the population in French Indochina is Vietnamese, which means that Vietnam has a population of nearly 30 million.

He certainly didn't help one percent of the population fight against the confidence of the dominant ethnic group in a country.

When Wang Nengchu had expressed this idea, Koman, citing classics and historical traditions to persuade him to abandon the idea, said, "However, as a friend of County Chief Wang, the government can still do some things within its power at present."

Koeman took a sip of beer and smacked his lips, which immediately rekindled Wang Nengchu's hope. "Mr. Koeman, our loyalty to France is self-evident."

Similar to the Kachin people's loyalty to Britain and the United States, Koman understood this point. He spread out a map of French Indochina, pointed to the location of Hue, and drew a line westward all the way to the Mekong River. "We can plan out the plains in southern Laos and allocate them to the Hmong people as an autonomous region, still under the administrative division of Laos. In this place, the Hmong people can give full play to their diligence and pursue a happy life. Of course, there are also obligations for the Hmong people, and we will never force them."

Koeman's move is, in a sense, still a change from local chieftainships to centrally appointed officials, but in the opposite way. As for why he chose the Hue line, it's because Vietnam's geography is like a dumbbell, heavy at both ends, with Hanoi in the north and Saigon in the south, making it very easy to cut off in the middle. The central part of Vietnam is the weak point, which is the location of Hue.

If the Hmong people are settled in southern Laos, they can play a very important role even without doing anything.

During the Vietnam War, there existed a supply route called the Ho Chi Minh Trail, a mountainous and densely forested route along the borders of Vietnam and Laos, and Vietnam and Cambodia. This trail wasn't entirely within Vietnam; in such a narrow region as central Vietnam, if such a secret supply route had existed, it would have been cut off by the United States long ago.

The residence that Koman arranged for Wang Nengchu was located within the area of ​​the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Once activated, it would allow them to recruit Miao people to block the transport lines of the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

“The land in southern Laos, all the way to Hue, is currently being logged by the French Indochina Forestry Authority. The land there is fertile, and the conditions are much better than in the northern mountainous areas,” Coman explained, introducing the local customs and culture. “County Chief Wang, you don’t need to give me an answer so quickly. We French people will not force the Miao people. You can make your own decision on whether to relocate without interference, based on what is in your ethnic interests.”

Anyone who saw Koeman at this moment would feel that he was full of sincerity. His advice was indeed from the bottom of his heart, and it wasn't just out of sympathy for the perpetually unlucky guy.

When imperialism appears sincere, it is often actually plotting something malicious.

Koeman's good intentions at this time were all based on the logic that if he couldn't stay in France, he should find another nation to take his place.

However, this cannot be said to be beneficial to the Miao people. Just because the Vietnamese will launch a heavy attack on imperialist lackeys like Wang Nengchu in the future does not mean that the current plan is not beneficial to the Miao people. It is unreasonable to take all the benefits without paying any price.

“If County Chief Wang agrees, I will draft a resettlement plan for the Miao people. If County Chief Wang can persuade the Miao people to agree, we will announce the plan. If he does not agree, I will forget about today’s conversation.”

Koman smiled and handed the initiative back to Wang Nengchu. Wang Nengchu was genuinely surprised by Koman's malice towards his people and said directly, "I will discuss it with my compatriots and won't keep the government waiting too long."

(End of this chapter)