New Han Dynasty 1834

Chapter 114 European-style Merger Disputes

After Mexico gained independence, it established exchanges with European and American countries, following the traditional European model.

Countries with mutual interests usually appoint a special envoy to stay in each other's countries for an extended period to handle matters related to their bilateral relations.

Britain, France, and the United States all sent special envoys to Mexico.

During the Han army's invasion of Mexico, most of the news that reached Mexico City was immediately known to the envoys of the three countries, who were all completely bewildered at the time.

Neither the British nor the United States envoys to Mexico had anticipated that the Han, after occupying California, would continue its offensive into Mexican territory.

They all initially believed that the Han Chinese would most likely fail to conquer the Mexican mainland and would probably suffer a crushing defeat.

They believed that the Han emperor and his advisors would make the same judgment and therefore would not attempt it.

But then the situation took a sharp turn for the worse. The giant not only attacked Mexican territory, but also swept through the country with unstoppable momentum.

Mexico's tens of thousands of regular troops crumbled at the first encounter with the Han army, and Mexico's two largest cities were captured by the Han army in a single day.

Things took an unexpected turn of events.

Britain and the United States originally shared the hope that Mexico could withstand the Han invasion and contain the Han forces, so that they would have a chance to reclaim their interests on the northwest coast of the Americas.

As a result, Mexico was unable to withstand the Han Chinese offensive and was on the verge of collapse.

Once Mexico surrenders to the Han Dynasty, the entire country of Mexico will become Han territory.

The border conflicts and interests between the United States and Britain and Mexico would then directly become border conflicts and interests between them and the Han Dynasty.

Dealing with the Han Chinese is on a completely different level of difficulty compared to dealing with the Mexicans.

Given the fighting prowess that the Han army has demonstrated so far, if they were to attack the United States and Britain, the speed might not be as fast as in Mexico, but they would certainly be very difficult to resist.

Especially the United States, which is now a neighboring country of Mexico, and the two countries also have a dispute over Texas.

After the Han Dynasty took over Mexico, it was able to use Mexico as a conduit to interfere in affairs on the east coast of the Americas.

The Americans originally envisioned building a two-ocean empire "from ocean to ocean".

As a result, not only did they lose all their strongholds on the west coast, but their east coast behind them was also threatened.

Mexico, which was originally their tool against the Great Han, is now becoming the Great Han's tool to enter the East Coast, and the situation has rapidly deteriorated to an unprecedented level.

The British and American envoys have realized that they must immediately change their approach and address the potential damage to their national interests caused by the potential fall of Mexico.

If possible, Mexico should not be allowed to be annexed by the Han Dynasty. If it is impossible to stop it, Mexico should at least be allowed to retain some territory rather than be completely annexed by the Han Dynasty.

Alternatively, Mexico could be turned into a public colony, with sovereignty belonging to the Han Dynasty, but it must remain open to Britain and the United States, guaranteeing their existing interests and trade privileges in Mexico.

When the Franco envoy learned of the Han invasion of Mexico, he was overjoyed, instinctively believing that the Han had become a natural ally of Franco.

With the attack from both the east and west coasts, the Big Han and Francis should be able to force Mexico to submit as soon as possible and sign a most-favored-nation trade agreement with Francis.

Envoy Franst had originally planned to send someone to contact the Han army and coordinate their operations.

Before even basic communication could be established, Mexico was on the verge of collapse, and he himself had to deal with the conflict between France and the Han.

If Mexico surrenders and is incorporated into the Han Dynasty, then Veracruz, which was occupied by France, will become a port of the Han Dynasty.

If France does not withdraw his troops soon, it could escalate into a conflict between France and the Han Dynasty.

It was clear that the Mexicans had agreed and were preparing to sign the surrender document.

The envoys from the three countries could not bear it any longer and tried to forcibly stop it all, or at least try to delay it as much as possible.

Upon hearing the shouts, Li Anbang looked up and saw three Europeans struggling to move forward, repeatedly identifying themselves to the surrounding soldiers and to him.

Without Li Anbang's signal, the surrounding soldiers were certainly not allowed to move freely.

Upon seeing this, the interpreter beside Li Anbang immediately translated the three men's words, explaining that they were the special envoys of Britain, the United States, and France stationed in Mexico.

After listening, Li Anbang casually gestured, "Let them come over, I want to hear what they have to say."

The imperial guards who had been blocking the envoys from the three kingdoms finally released them on Li Anbang's orders.

The three men straightened their clothes and quickly approached Li Anbang, explaining their identities and basic demands.

"I am Richard Packenham, the British Special Envoy to Mexico. A trade agreement involving Most Favored Nation status has been signed between Mexico and Britain. The annexation of Mexico by the Great Han would affect British interests. We must negotiate and handle these matters together. Mexico cannot be annexed by the Great Han before that."

"I am Pohuatan Ellis, the US Special Envoy to Mexico. The US has signed a trade agreement with Mexico involving Most Favored Nation status. At the same time, we also have important territorial disputes. The Han Dynasty's annexation of Mexico will affect these relations. We cannot allow Mexico to be annexed by the Han Dynasty until these issues are resolved."

"I am Antoine-Louis De Fodi, the Franco envoy to Mexico. A large number of Francois are engaged in industry and commerce in Mexico. Franco troops are currently fighting against Mexican troops in Veracruz. The Great Han cannot annex Mexico alone! We need to negotiate and handle the war affairs in Mexico together."

The envoys from the three countries spoke differently, but their purposes were the same.

They used the potential conflicts of interest involved in annexing Mexico to delay the time it would take for the Han Dynasty to directly annex Mexico.

Do not allow Mexico to sign a surrender and annexation agreement immediately.

From a European perspective, these matters are of great importance, and if the Han and Mexico cannot resolve these issues, the actual unification will likely be delayed.

European countries are rife with all sorts of agreements and disputes.

When a European country annexes another country, it usually creates very complex diplomatic issues.

The countries involved must resolve the remaining disputes, otherwise the annexation will be difficult to complete.

Because all the countries involved might intervene.

Just like modern mergers and acquisitions by large multinational corporations, which often require approval from the relevant countries, the acquiring party must make sufficient commitments to the relevant countries in order for the acquisition to be successful.

Now that the Han Dynasty wants to annex Mexico, it has directly triggered similar problems.

After listening to the translation, Li Anbang was very surprised: "Is that all you have to do? Do you really need to come all the way here at this time to talk about this?"

"What do these things have to do with Mexico's surrender to the Han Chinese?"

"I'll discuss these trivial matters with you after I've dealt with Mexico's surrender."

In Li Anbang's view, these so-called trade disputes and border conflicts are trivial matters that he is too lazy to care about.

Moreover, this matter has nothing to do with Mexico's surrender.

The special envoys from Britain, the United States, and France were all taken aback by Li Anbang's words: "How can we sign an agreement without resolving these issues?"

"How can this be a trivial matter? Does the Great Han intend to accept the entire agreement between Mexico and us?"

"This is obviously a very important matter. What will happen to our agreement after Mexico is annexed by the Han Dynasty?"

Li Anbang looked at the special envoys of the three British countries with great surprise: "What nonsense are you talking about? What do you mean by accepting the agreement between Mexico and you in its entirety?"

"Guards, take those three aside."

Li Anbang felt that these people were problematic and was unwilling to continue dealing with them.

Now that Mexico is going to be incorporated into the Han Dynasty, everything must be done according to the rules of the Han Dynasty.

Only agreements signed by Mexico in the past are valid if recognized by the Han Chinese; otherwise, they are just worthless pieces of paper.

Li Anbang believes that the Han Dynasty's annexation of Mexico has nothing to do with other countries.

Several guards stepped forward, dragged the astonished envoys from the three kingdoms away, and kept them under guard in a corner of the camp.

The envoys from the three kingdoms were completely taken aback by this outcome and cried out in astonishment, "No! You can't do this to me!"

"We are all diplomats, and we should be involved in these matters."

"Without the recognition of us, the European and American countries, your agreement is invalid!"

The interpreter translated these words, and Li Anbang frowned slightly after listening, but did not respond.

Li Anbang felt that these Europeans were taking this surrender document far too seriously.

This surrender document was merely a tool, a means to reduce the resistance of the Mexican local government.

For the Han Dynasty to truly control Mexico, the key is to use military force to destroy all resistance forces.

After signing the surrender document, Li Anbang was to prepare to join forces with Wu Kang of the Northern Route Army to conquer the local forces in Mexico.

As for the recognition from European and American countries, that needs to be decided on the battlefield; verbal agreements are just empty words.

Mexican President Bustamante also cautiously reminded him: "Your Excellency General of the Great Han, these matters are indeed quite troublesome."

"If the negotiations between Mexico and the Han Dynasty are not completed before Mexico is incorporated into the Han Dynasty, then the Han Dynasty will have to handle the rest on its own."

"7

After listening to the translation, Li Anbang glared at Bustamant: "Who gave you the right to interrupt?"

The interpreter translated this sentence as: "You are not qualified to participate in the discussion of these matters."

Bustamant paused for a moment, unsure how to respond: "I—I understand."

Li Anbang had his military advisor and interpreter draft a simple letter of surrender on the spot.

The soldier was responsible for writing the original surrender letter in Chinese, and the interpreter then translated it into a Spanish version.

After writing it, take it to President Bustamant for his signature.

Bustamant glanced at the translated Spanish document, which roughly translated the following:

Although Mexico is located in the wilderness overseas, both officials and ordinary people yearn for the civilization of the Han Dynasty and hope to be governed and educated by the Han Dynasty.

Now, through the joint petition of all Mexican citizens, the Mexican president presents the Han Dynasty with a map symbolizing the land and household registration documents symbolizing the people, formally requesting to be incorporated into the Han Dynasty.

From this day forward, all land and people of Mexico belong to the Great Han Dynasty and are subject to its administration, a commitment that will remain unchanged for ten thousand generations.

Please grant permission, Your Majesty the Emperor of the Great Han Dynasty.

After reading it, Bustamante was quite frustrated and muttered to himself, "The Great Han clearly conquered Mexico by force, but the agreement is to be written as a referendum for all citizens to join the Great Han."

"Moreover, this is an application requesting the approval of the Emperor of the Han Dynasty."

"If this surrender document were to circulate, it would have a very negative impact on Mexico —"

The content of such surrender letters was typically polite language in the Han Dynasty, expressing that the foreign barbarians admired the king's rule and actively requested to be submitted to the Han.

Moreover, the final signature must be a request, and only after the emperor's explicit permission is the submission truly completed.

After the application was submitted, the emperor would issue a corresponding imperial edict, announcing that, at the request of the Mexican people, Mexico was officially allowed to submit.

They also granted honorary titles or official positions to those who submitted to them.

According to Bustamante, this was a devaluation of Mexico's status and a reduction in the legitimacy of its future struggle for independence.

Bustaman also instinctively felt that after he signed the papers and Mexico was annexed by China, he would be of no use to anyone.

Bustamant had no idea that by signing this application addressed to the emperor, he would at least become an official of the Han Dynasty.

The two sides have different ways of thinking, and their attitudes toward the same statements are also different.

The interpreter beside him thought Bustamant was hesitating: "Stop dawdling. If you don't want to sign, then have someone else sign."

Bustamant sighed: "I understand, I'll sign it right away—"

Bustamant's fingers trembled slightly as he slowly signed his name, then he slumped weakly into his chair.

Bustamant felt that he had once again jeopardized the country's freedom and that he would become a sinner in history.

The interpreters of the Great Han Dynasty had some understanding of European politics and knew that a president like Bustamant signing a document alone was not the most effective method.

So they called over the Speaker of the Mexican Congress and had him sign the simple supplementary application as well.

>