Chapter 651 The Tenth Navy
At this time Sheffield went on a trip, preparing to relax for the last time before the world war. Before the ship arrived in Manila, the Second Balkan War had ended. Bulgaria, which had been poached by the German-Austrian alliance, ended this short and fast war after the Ottoman Empire joined the war, and swallowed up all the results of the First Balkan War.
After more than a decade of development, Manila is very different from when the slave owners first came. This fully demonstrates that capitalist countries are not incapable of infrastructure construction, but if nothing unexpected happens, Manila will not look much different in the next 100 years. Capitalist infrastructure construction is limited to building something from scratch. After this stage, it is no longer unusable.
"You're so polite! It almost makes me think that I'm the king of the Philippines." Sheffield was shocked when he got off the freighter. He asked Natalia, Mary Pickford and others to go down from another exit, while he blended into the crowd very low-key.
"Boss, everyone is very happy to know that you are coming." Gu Cheng couldn't contain his excitement and asked, "How long will you stay in Manila this time?"
"Just a short stop. Actually, I'm going to the Middle East, and there are several ports along the way." Sheffield looked back at the two battleships flying the Southern Cross flag. After negotiating a salary of $500,000 per month, the slave owner temporarily re-planned the two battleships under his own flag.
The negotiations for leasing the battleships were rather tortuous, and it was only after Sa Zhenbing was finally found that preliminary opinions were reached. The two battleships had been waiting in the port of Manila for several days and would accompany him to the Persian Gulf.
As the hegemon of the world today, the British Royal Navy, which adheres to the two-power standard, is undoubtedly the world's number one. The German Navy, which is competing with the British in arms, ranks second, and the United States ranks third. The others are the core forces of the two camps, and the Japanese Navy. Fortunately, after ordering two French Courbet-class battleships and renting two Beiyang government battleships, the Sheffield United Company's naval forces barely squeezed the three South American powers out of the top ten and acted as the goalkeeper.
"It should be able to protect the smooth flow of the shipping route." Sheffield recalled the good old days in Manila and also visited the ruins of the open-air camp. Gu Cheng accompanied him from beginning to end.
As a guest at Gu Cheng's current manor, Sheffield asked, "I believe you never thought that today would be such a good day. This is certainly related to the hard work of you Chinese. But it is undeniable that this has more to do with us colonizers using you Chinese to suppress the local indigenous people. What role should the Chinese in the Philippines, including yourself, play? Are you considered an accomplice of us colonizers?"
"In fact, let alone the Chinese in the Philippines, the entire Southeast Asian colonies are almost like this." Sheffield said to himself without waiting for Gu Cheng's answer, "I hope our harmonious relationship can be maintained forever. Just like now, our hands are stained with the blood of the locals, but you Chinese community are sharpening our knives for us."
This is the relationship between the colonists and the Chinese in Southeast Asia. The slave owner, a citizen of the United States, did not have to worry about whether it was politically correct and directly pointed out the value of the local Chinese. To the locals in Southeast Asia, the Chinese were far from being as innocent as they claimed.
"Boss, you are still so honest after not seeing you for so many years!" Gu Cheng said with a wry smile, "This is indeed the fact."
"It is a fact that everything has a price to pay. We don't have enough people to suppress the local natives, so we ask you for help. It's just like the British were willing to use Indians as police in the colonies." Sheffield sighed softly, "So you should understand that today you can be the king and hegemon in a land that is not yours. Who should you thank? Don't thank your motherland. As far as I know, whether it is Wanli of the Ming Dynasty or Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, their reaction to the Manila Massacre was that it was a good killing."
Sheffield, the monopoly capitalist, took advantage of this opportunity to discuss the interests of the Chinese compradors in the Philippines whom he had supported. He hoped to maintain the relationship as much as possible, with the joint company taking the bigger share and the Chinese businessmen taking the smaller share. This would be good for everyone. From a historical perspective, this was a reactionary alliance formed by the two sides to jointly deal with the resistance of the Filipinos.
"They listen to you very much!" Mary Pickford asked softly after she followed Sheffield away. "Is that so?"
"They are our assistants in dealing with local Filipinos. The Chinese community has a problem. Sometimes they want to make money but don't want to contribute. They want all the benefits but don't want to take sides. In front of our United States institutions, they are loyal and reliable. In front of the local Filipinos, they think they can get along with the locals. They are too smart. They are so smart that they think they can have it both ways. I explained it to them in a clear way, which is good for everyone."
"Is that so? Can't we get rid of them and rule the Philippines directly?" Mary Pickford asked naively.
"No, just like the British Empire used Indians to control other colonies, in Southeast Asia, we have to use Chinese to do some inconvenient things. My sweetheart, you are so naive." The slave owner pulled Mary Pickford's cheek and laughed, "After crossing the Strait of Malacca, you will see similar operations. But the ethnic groups are different!"
With two battleships as escort, Sheffield's next stop was Western Australia, where he observed how his crops were growing. Australia's most valuable iron ore had been developed, which played a huge role in Western Australia.
A huge granary has been built in Kuwait, which will play a huge role in the world war. It is well known that the drier the climate, the more conducive it is to the preservation of food. Kuwait has piled up mountains of food, which can provide sufficient support for the Allies.
A month later, Sheffield arrived in Goa, India. Two French-made Courbet-class battleships, also flying the Southern Cross flag, were waiting there. All the owners of the world's tenth largest navy went to visit the Governor's Palace in Goa in a dignified manner. As for the four combined battleships, they stopped off the coast of Portuguese Goa.
Goa is full of churches, and the population here is somewhat different from the Indians. Latin colonists have never been opposed to intermarriage with locals. In the eyes of white supremacists in the United States, this is racial degeneration, and those who intermarry with locals should be forced to be sterilized.
Of course, the slave owners had already left the country where they had fostered the culture, and they certainly did not come to Goa to slap their hands in the face. They praised Portugal's policy of treating overseas territories equally, which fully demonstrated the kindness of the Kingdom of Portugal.
"Mr. William is the richest man in the world. How enviable." Governor Ablack pointed meaningfully in the direction of the port. The outlines of four battleships were still faintly visible.
"It's just that the relations with some countries are pretty good." Sheffield pretended to be modest and said, "This kind of war machine has always been a help to friends. I can't represent the position of the United States. But if the United Company can get the same treatment as the Portuguese Governor gives to Portuguese companies, I can guarantee that no matter what happens in South Asia in the future, I will support the Portuguese government to occupy Goa forever. This is the place of the Portuguese, forever. I will do my best to help the Portuguese royal family, whether it's battleships or airships, as long as I have them, I can help. The United Company set up Goa as its headquarters for operations in India, and naturally it must maintain a harmonious relationship with Portugal."
As the temporary owner of the world's tenth largest navy, Sheffield is still very confident. After India's independence, even nuclear bombs appeared. What is there to be afraid of? At most, he can directly set up a nuclear missile launcher in Goa. He does not believe that New Delhi dares to move.
"I have always admired the United Company very much. We can cooperate." Ablack nodded in approval. Today, Portugal is no longer the colonial empire. And because Portugal is not big, it has always been willing to negotiate on the management of colonies. As long as they are not independent, many rights and interests are the same as those of the mainland.
Now that there is such a powerful company willing to offer to help, Ablack is exactly what he wants.
"If my wife had not been very smart, many of my things would not have been so easy to accomplish." The slave owner felt that marrying a French noblewoman was still very beneficial. Many European countries recognize this!
The world's tenth largest navy then held an exercise with the Portuguese fleet in Goa, but in the eyes of the slave owners, it was just two random shots to show a cooperative stance.
Soon, the news reached the ears of the commander of the British fleet in India. After learning what happened, he said meaningfully, "This richest man in the United States is a fool. He might have been an outstanding adventurer three hundred years ago, but he is useless in this era. Look at the performance of the mercenaries he organized in North Africa. They are just like the natives of Africa."
In the eyes of the Indian fleet commander, the best way to deal with the nonsense committed by the richest man in the United States, whose brain has been damaged by money, is to ignore it and there is no need to react at all.
The slave owner stayed in Goa for a few days and waited for a few days before finally confirming one thing: his navy, the tenth largest in the world, was nothing in the eyes of the British and was simply ignored.
"I hope you can be so arrogant after the war! Haha!" Sheffield sneered and set sail again, heading straight for the Persian Gulf, the destination of this trip.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
