Chapter 440: French meat must be eaten (first update, please subscribe)
Strategic bombing!
After deciding on the strategy to aid France, Zhu Xianhai became worried when faced with the reality of France's rapid collapse!
During those two days, he finally understood the helplessness of the mustache guy facing Italian noodles. He was not afraid of god-like opponents, but was afraid of pig-like teammates.
You can still defeat a god-like opponent, but what can you do to a teammate who is like a pig?
If France was a neighbor of South China, they could just send troops there... Well, I guess in that case, they wouldn't be South China's ally. But the problem is that the two countries are separated by an ocean. Before the troops could be transported to France, France would probably have surrendered.
It's really sad that a country was defeated so quickly.
But France needs to be saved!
France was saved not because he was strong, but because he was "all show and no substance". To put it bluntly, even after a falling out, he could be easily defeated.
There is no way. If Russia is the weakest link among the imperialist powers, then France is the shame among the imperialist powers.
Even a coward like my Qing Dynasty can jump around with him.
If I don't leave such a pig-like teammate to myself, how can I be worthy of their God? If I let others deal with him, then they will definitely take advantage of him.
Suffering a loss now is to gain an advantage in the future. And it is a big advantage.
France needs to be saved, but how to save France?
"Since we can't send our army to France in a short time, let's use our greatest advantage!"
So, after much deliberation, Zhu Xianhai decided to send out the airship unit, which was the only unit that could be sent to France in a short period of time.
"If you want to help the French army win the war or keep the war going, the best way is to control the air superiority and then use airships to destroy the vital parts of the Prussian army - train stations, military stations, and railway hubs! They have an advantage in manpower, so they can't transport their troops to the front line. They have an advantage in artillery, so they don't have enough artillery shells. If necessary, we can destroy everything - including Prussia's supply sources and the people's will to resist; in the end, they will surrender because their industrial potential has been destroyed."
Although this is just a slightly idealistic statement, it is certain that the use of airships on the battlefield in this era will definitely play a role beyond people's imagination, just like in Argentina, a dozen airships almost became the last straw that broke the camel's back. Even until now, many surrendered Argentine senior officers still stubbornly believe that it was the airships that destroyed the soldiers' will to resist.
"In that case, let's use the airship's bombs to save France!"
In the absence of any better options, airships became the last and only choice.
What happens after the airship is dispatched?
There are still many problems to come. In addition to expanding the airship force as much as possible to enhance its strength, the more important issue is how to send the airship force to France.
If he had a choice, Zhu Xianhai would certainly like to fly directly from Nanhua to France, but the distance of nearly 11,000 kilometers would take at least half a month to fly at the current speed of the airship, and it would also require crossing the ocean. Needless to say, this plan was rejected by Zhu Xianhai.
How to get to France?
On the morning of May 17, 1870, when a telegram from a fleet of six merchant ships sailing out of Nanhua Port was delivered to Zhu Xianhai, after putting down the telegram, he walked to the wall and stared at the West African coast on the map, where there was a piece of land marked in red - Guinea.
"Four years ago, when we entered Guinea and bought land and built a port in Conakry, now known as New Town, many people thought that since we already had plantations on the Congo River, we didn't need to open plantations in Guinea. But what about now? Our airships can take off from there and carry out strategic bombings on Europe and those old powers in Europe."
Although it is known that with current technology, the possibility of launching a strategic bombing of Britain from Guinea is... zero. Because the fuel is not enough to support a round trip of 8,000 kilometers!
But Zhu Xianhai still felt a little complacent. Four years ago, with his insistence, Nanhua quietly opened up a colony in Guinea. On the surface, it was for plantations, but in reality? It was for the mineral deposits underground in Guinea. Although in another world, Guinea is one of the least developed countries in the world, the richness of Guinea's resources can be called a "night pearl" in Africa. Its reserves of bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, copper, nickel, zinc, graphite and other mineral resources are very rich, and it is known as a "geological miracle". Among them, bauxite reserves rank first in the world, reaching 40 billion tons, iron ore reserves are 19.9 billion tons, diamond reserves are 40 million carats, and gold reserves are 637 tons.
Among these minerals, Guinea's iron ore is exactly what South China needs. Except for Brazil, there are no large iron mines in South America. Although the iron ore in the Patagonia Plateau can support South China in establishing its steel industry, the 250 million tons of iron ore reserves can only support a million-ton steel company at most.
To develop the steel industry, sufficient iron ore is necessary. After the Franco-Prussian War, France ceded Alsace and Lorraine, which were rich in iron ore, and its economic development was seriously lacking in resources. But what about Germany? The steel industry rose rapidly.
For Nanhua, which is seriously short of iron ore resources, there are only two options to solve the problem of insufficient iron ore. One is the iron ore in Brazil, and the other is the iron ore in Guinea. Although Brazil is closer, the cost of obtaining iron ore from Guinea is lower - the occupation cost is lower.
Now, although the iron ore in Guinea has not been mined yet, the strategic value of Guinea will be revealed. In the future, Guinea will be a springboard for South China to bomb Europe!
"Your Majesty, now, our airship troops have set off by ship. After they arrive at the Central African Company, they will soon fly from there to the New City. Now, the only question is when the French and Prussians will start the war!, and..."
Zuo Zongtang asked, looking at His Majesty who was standing in front of the map with his back to him.
"On what pretext did we declare war on Prussia after they had already started the war?"
"Need an excuse?"
Turning around, Zhu Xianhai asked back.
"Only if you have an excuse can you justify your actions."
"No!"
Zhu Xianhai shook his head and said.
"As long as France has a legitimate reason to do so, it will be fine. As for us, as an ally of France, even if there is no excuse, all we need is to declare war to prove to the world the unbreakable relationship between us and France. Of course, before that, we must also get what we need! After all, it is impossible to send troops in vain!"
"It may be difficult to get them to agree to this from the beginning..."
Zuo Zongtang said a little worriedly.
"After all, at the beginning, they certainly don't think they will fail."
"So, we need to turn the tide!"
Zhu Xianhai said with a smile on his face.
"However, the construction of the airship field in the new city needs to be accelerated. If there are not enough workers, you can recruit them in Buenos Aires. Don't be afraid of spending money."
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
