Chapter 956: Sneak Attack on Luzon Island
Chapter 937 – Sneak Attack on Luzon
Versailles, a group of prospective allies have retreated, the Japanese government still insisted on the fulfillment of the agreement, Napoleon IV touched bad, unprecedentedly elevated diplomatic relations with Japan.
Substantial rewards were likewise rare, and the French government now needed to set an example of the benefits of working with them in order to attract more collaborators and reverse the political passivity.
Because of the war, France was not rich now, but the concealed camel was bigger than the horse, and even pulling out a single hair would be a lucrative gain for the Japanese government.
Besides, in this world, besides money, there is something called technology. Even in this era when the technology blockade is not strict, it is equally difficult for Asian countries to introduce advanced technology.
Not to mention the difficulties in communication, even if someone is selling technology, you need the ability to recognize the authenticity and also a bulging wallet.
If you look at the history of industrial development of the Meiji Restoration, you will find that it is also a history of the Japanese government’s pattern of being cheated. A lot of the technology and equipment introduced to Japan will face incompatibility when they arrive in Japan.
Perhaps it is the first time to lose more fooled, only later Japanese self-reliance, catching up, to erase the gap between the two sides.
Rarely and the European powers on the line, the Japanese naturally will not give up this good opportunity. Still do not know the domestic plan of the Japanese Minister in Paris, Honda Ichiro, at this moment is spirited and the French to exchange contracts.
The cover is “French technical assistance to Japan treaty”, the treaty contains all kinds of civil and military technology thousands of items, almost the world on the rotten street technology are included.
Theoretically, if the Japanese introduced and digested these technologies, they would be able to advance to a third-rate industrial country, and the process of industrialization would be shortened by at least ten years.
As for the more advanced technologies, it was not something that they, a country whose industrialization had not even been completed, were qualified to pry into. The basic industry was not up to par, and many advanced technologies had no way to be utilized even if they got their hands on them.
Unfortunately, the reality is cruel, this seems to be vital to Japan’s treaty, most likely there is no way to fulfill it.
The French are not philanthropists, and the so-called technical assistance was established after the Japanese government declared war on Austria. The exact amount to be given still depended on the performance of the Japanese army on the battlefield.
……
The sea is blue, the sky is vast, the red sun is only half exposed, smearing a piece of the evening sun, like a colorful veil, and even the sea water is dyed a golden yellow.
The sky gradually darkened, with the roar of the ships, the pier, which was already silent, once again clamored.
A group of ragged laborers, at this moment have stood up, looking into the distance, eyes full of expectation.
The work on the docks was not good, not to mention hard, but also unstable. Even in the prosperous Luzon Island, there was no guarantee that there would be work every day.
When it is busy, there may be hundreds of merchant ships transiting here in a day, and there is endless work. When it is idle, it may not open for ten days and half a month.
Because of the war, the trade lines in the South China Sea area were also depressed. The merchant ships that ran single gangs already didn’t dare to go out to sea easily.
France and Austria have played pirate tactics in the South Seas, and have now developed to the point where there are killers, not spared.
Encountered a real pirate, the big deal is to rob money, the chance of survival is still not low; encountered this pseudo-piracy, usually even with the ship together with people finished.
In the case of death without proof, in the face of two big hooligans, who also has no way, can only let the pirates take the blame.
Now can do trade in the South China Sea area, are large fleet of ships together, usually also invite a neutral country navy to send warships to escort, only to be able to pass safely.
In this context, in the past the prosperous Luzon Island is also depressed, less passing ships, dock workers naturally have a hard time.
Judging from the clothes, it can be roughly judged that these workers are most of mixed race, followed by Chinese, Japanese and a small number of whites.
This is also in line with the situation in Luzon, where the Spaniards have ruled for hundreds of years, and civilization is still only passed on in the cities, with most of the local natives in the tribal era.
Since they were tribal, there was no need to expect them to come out and find work. Anyway, the wild plants and fruits were enough to fill everyone’s stomachs, so there was no need to make any effort at all.
There were circles everywhere, and the tiny docks were no exception. Also at the bottom of society, the same were divided into three, six, nine classes, just look at the clothes.
This is Spanish territory, and the white man naturally has the highest status. The whites are naturally at the top of the hierarchy, but most of them are at the management level, and very few of them work as laborers.
The rest of them are of similar status. When there is a lot of work, they can be friends, but when there is little work, they are rivals. In order to make a living, the various groups did not have many private conflicts.
The prosperity of Luzon was built on the harbor, and the Spaniards did not make any effort to develop the local economy, so there were not many jobs.
Compared to the mines and plantations, the income from the docks, though unstable, was higher.
Those who were able to stand here were the winners in the struggle. So not only do they have to support themselves, but they also have to support the bigwigs of the gangs behind them.
The distance was getting closer and closer, and the hull of the ship was faintly visible. A middle-aged man sighed, “Don’t look, this is a Japanese warship no work for us.”
To make a living on the docks, the most important thing is vision. What business needs to be robbed and what business can be taken, all have to make accurate judgment.
For example, right now, it’s a Japanese warship that’s coming, basically no business. Even if it is docking for supplies, that will use priority Japanese labor.
The same applies to merchant ships, these days out to sea to make a living, Asians are vulnerable, must be grouped to survive. Clans, townspeople, and gangs are all important.
The young man who jumped forward retreated back to his original position and helplessly replied, “I know Uncle Liu. We haven’t even received a few orders of business this month, and we still have to pay profit money to the gang.
I don’t know when such days will end. If it continues like this, we’re going to go drink the northwest wind.”
The crowd sat on the ground in twos and threes, and some took out big cigarettes and smoked them, gulping smoke to paralyze their nerves as a way to escape from the sorrow of reality.
Seeing this scene, the middle-aged man frowned and said impatiently, “Deng Pocky, put away your big cigarettes. It’s not a good time to smoke this stuff, if you don’t spend your money sparingly, let’s see what you’re going to eat later.”
After saying that, the middle-aged man kicked over. In these days, most of the dock workers are single, one person to eat the whole family is not hungry, the work is hard and tiring, smoking cigarettes is very common.
Although Spain was also a party to the international anti-smoking regulations, but that was more just due to the pressure of public opinion, or to give Austria a face, and did not really implement it.
Nowadays, there are only a few European countries that have really accomplished the anti-smoking campaign, and there is only one Austria that has carried out the anti-smoking campaign in its colonies.
The Vienna government’s unlimited recourse bill, regardless of time and place, catching drug offenders will be pulled out to shoot at targets, so that the world’s opium traffickers are afraid to step forward, only to curb the opium flood.
That’s right, it only curbed the drug epidemic. The drug trade still exists in the shadows, but the government has cracked down so hard that drug trafficking in Austria has become the most dangerous profession in the world.
Originally, the middle-aged man was one of them, but after having a family, he had to support his family and forced himself to quit smoking.
Because of the perseverance to quit smoking, coupled with the work of maturity and stability, the middle-aged man was a fellow gangster in the eyes of the gang, before becoming a small leader on the dock.
In a sense, the middle-aged man is also a beneficiary of Austria’s anti-smoking campaign.
Since the establishment of Lanfang Province, it had become a center for Chinese in the South Seas to gather. After all, there were too few safe places these days, and every once in a while, the colonizers would start an anti-Chinese movement to harvest wealth.
Lanfang Province is under the banner of Austria, so there is no need to worry about the threat of foreign enemies; internally, it is also the implementation of provincial autonomy, by the Austrian influence, but also played the rule of law.
No matter how the law is, at least there are rules of the game, so there is no need to worry about security.
With a safe investment environment, the insecure Chinese capital naturally flocked in, directly driving the economic development of Lanfang Province.
It has developed to the point where the big Chinese families in the Southern Ocean region have basically moved their nests to Borneo.
Although it is an autonomous province, the Chinese have a natural reverence for imperial power. When the emperor ordered a ban on smoking, the autonomous government didn’t have the guts to say no.
Together with the promotion of knowledgeable people, and the Austrian Navy’s crackdown on tobacco ships, which limited the importation of opium, the anti-smoking campaign in Lan Phuong Province was also well accomplished.
Those who sold opium were shot, and those who smoked opium were forcibly sent to drug rehabilitation centers. No matter what the status or not, they were all moved to quit smoking, which naturally included the gang leaders.
After all, the biggest gang in Nanyang, Hongmen, is essentially controlled by several big families. The upper levels have all quit smoking, and the following club members are naturally affected.
Moreover, the anti-smoking campaign was not just about banning cigarettes, it was also accompanied by a great deal of publicity. By now, everyone had gotten used to despising smoking big cigarettes, just as people in later generations resented drug use.
Good words are hard to persuade the dead ghost, see their words were treated as a whisper, the middle-aged man frowned, directly turned away to a blind eye for clean.
“You guys don’t learn from him, he goes on like this, sooner or later he will be dead on the street. As for the issue of lucrative money, I will communicate with the club, we are all from the same hometown, and the club will not let you starve to death.”
This year’s Hong Sect is not just a mere gang organization, it is likewise a gathering place for the township party, most of the Hong Sect around the world have no mandatory binding force on each other, they are just topped with a common sign.
This in turn gave him different attributes, while collecting protection fees, he also took on social assistance duties, such as helping compatriots who had just arrived in Nanyang to settle down, find jobs, and so on.
……
Warships are different from merchant ships, and if you want to dock you definitely have to negotiate in advance. There is no doubt that this Japanese fleet is the uninvited guest.
There was no use in communicating, although the Itabashi Empire was in decline, it didn’t take the Japanese seriously, and there was no way they would agree to lend them a harbor to use as a stopover.
Even if Britain and France intervene, the situation on the European battlefield is becoming more and more obvious, not falling on the French is enough to give face, how can it be possible to stand on the side of France?
Seeing that the negotiation was delayed without result, the fleet commander Ito Yuken coldly ordered: “Send the prepared gifts to the Spaniards, tell them that we are only docking to pick up some supplies, will not be delayed for a long time, and will leave before dark, and will not cause him any trouble.
Inform the army to be ready to take action as soon as we dock and take the enemy by surprise.”
Leaving before nightfall, that was impossible. Ito Yuken had specifically chosen this time of day, and as soon as it docked, it would be delayed until nightfall.
The Spaniards have been operating in Luzon for a short period of time, and although the shore guns on the island are old, their power is still not to be underestimated. If the attack is really strong, the Japanese army is bound to pay a heavy price.
As for the Spanish Philippine fleet, a group of eliminated sail warships, and two old iron armor ships, Ito Yuken is not in the eye.
Japan’s reserves were limited, and this war had to be fought quickly. The core of the Philippines is in Luzon, as long as you take this place, the rest will be easy.
Money makes the world go round, not to mention just a short stopover for supplies.
The Japanese government was heading south this time in the name of rounding up pirates, and went to charge Austria on the surface. The Spaniards didn’t realize the danger at all, and even subconsciously, they never thought that the Japanese could pose a threat to them.
Even though the Japanese fleet in front of them, the size of some excessive, they still take for granted that the Japanese dare not challenge Spain. It can only be said that the days of peace were too long, making them lose the sense of crisis.
On the island, three or two Japanese ronin began to converge on the tavern. This is not the first time, a drink in the evening seems to be the habit of the Japanese.
If one were to pay attention, one would notice that these people were different from normal days, all of them looked as if they were pumped up with chicken blood, their eyes full of murderous spirit.
……
“Some of us have been here for over ten years, and some of us just arrived last month. We all came here for one purpose, to help the Empire seize the South Seas and drive out the white invaders.
Today the opportunity has finally waited, our fleet is out there and we are going to launch a general attack at night. Our mission is to take the Governor’s Palace and the Municipal Building before the battle starts and disrupt the enemy’s chain of command.
Time is running out, now start distributing weapons ……”
(End of chapter)