It would be impossible for Jiguo Yuanyi to say that he was not surprised when he saw the desolate scene that Baldigo presented.
Tsugikuni Yuichiro had never been to Baldigo before, and his understanding of the country was limited to information. He felt that a place chosen by the Revolutionary Army as its headquarters must be rich in natural resources and the people must live and work in peace and contentment.
After all, it is the headquarters of a big force. Others can see the management ability of the entire force from their management level of the headquarters. It is like a businessman's car. Whether this person's business is reliable or not, if the car is too bad, it is certain that his business will not make money.
Tsugikokuen had plans of long-term cooperation with the Revolutionary Army. He wanted to use the Revolutionary Army's influence around the world to take the lead, draw the attention of the Navy Headquarters and the World Government, and gain valuable development opportunities for their new navy.
But now, after seeing the scene of Baldigo, this idea in Jiguo Yuanyi's heart was not so strong.
He did not think that such a revolutionary army was worth cultivating, and pouring supplies and weapons into such a force would not necessarily bring any help to the new navy.
In fact, if you help too much, the other party may even become dependent on you.
They only provide emergency relief but not poverty relief. The hardship of the people of Baldigo cannot be solved by Tsugiko Yoshiichi and others by allocating resources; similarly, the hard work of the people of Baldigo cannot solve such problems.
This geographical location and natural environment are actually not qualified to be the headquarters of a major force.
Baldigo is located in the first half of the Grand Line. Setting up the headquarters here can neither provide timely assistance to the partners fighting in the world, nor build sufficient logistical support to provide expenses for the soldiers. Except for the secrecy, all other hardware conditions do not meet the strategic needs of the revolutionary army.
Not only that, Baldigo will also devour the food resources of other countries in the same camp. The resources that Baldigo itself can provide to others are not the scarce resources needed for combat, and this rear area does not produce weapons.
Putting all of this together, the best approach for the Revolutionary Army is actually to lead the people of Baldigo out of here and rebuild from scratch in a place with more abundant resources.
Whether it is farming or industry, the limited labor force must be utilized so that their strength can be transformed into the driving force of the revolutionary army. Only in this way can the talents here feed back into the expansion of the revolutionary army's power, rather than simply consuming resources.
Jiguo Yuanyi also knew something about the mineral dolomite. Although it was very useful, this mineral was not irreplaceable or indispensable, and it was not even in short supply in the market.
If dolomite is a scarce mineral, the people here can just wear a piece of cloth every day, sing and dance and enjoy life.
"Yuichi, someone wants to board the ship for inspection. Can you let them in?"
After the new navy's ship docked at the shore of Baldigo, a team of soldiers soon came to the shore, raised their heads and shouted at the people on the ship, intending to board the ship for inspection.
Mihawk noticed the change in Tsugakuni Yoshiichi's expression and knew that Tsugakuni Yoshiichi was thinking at this time, but he still chose to ask Tsugakuni Yoshiichi's opinion on such a small matter.
Apart from kendo, Mihawk doesn't really care about other things. He even feels a little disgusted with managing these and those.
When Yoriichi Tsugakuni was away, in order to keep the new navy going, Mihawk had to make some compromises and personally devote himself to the cause of the new navy.
But now that Yoriichi Tsugakuni is back, Mihawk is actually no longer willing to spend time on those trivial matters. He wants more to hone his swordsmanship in order to defeat Yoriichi Tsugakuni one day.
It is true that the two of them are closely related partners, but one of Mihawk's biggest wishes is actually to be able to defeat Yoriichi Tsugikuni.
"Check?"
"Well, let's check it out. Since we're already on their territory, we should follow their rules."
"Just ask the crew to cooperate well, there won't be any problems."
When Ji Guoyuan heard someone wanted to board the ship for inspection, he nodded and didn't object. Although their new navy was well-known, they were here for negotiations. There was no need to show their "pride" on the revolutionary army's territory.
After the wooden ladder was lowered, several people quickly boarded the boat.
These people were dressed simply and carried cold weapons such as long swords. Tsugikoku Yoshiichi and Mihawk stood at the bow and turned to look at these people. After a quick look, their eyes softened a little.
They did not sense any smell of blood on these people.
If nothing unexpected happens, these people should be just armed civilians. The inspection of passing ships is just one of their many jobs on the island. They themselves are not professional soldiers.
When dealing with ordinary people, the tone of the new navy officer who came forward to negotiate also became very kind.
"Hello everyone, I'm the person in charge of this ship, my name is Mason."
"He's a merchant sailing."
"Are you here to inspect the ship? Please come this way. We don't have any prohibited items on board. You are welcome to inspect any corner of the ship."
Mason is a major under Mihawk, about 25 years old, talented, and promising. Mihawk and Jiguo Yuanyi chose him as their adjutant for this voyage because they were impressed by his talent and ability.
Mason is a child of a wealthy family. His elders are wealthy businessmen in a country in the New World. However, when he grew up, Mason did not follow the path chosen by his family. Instead, he was determined to make achievements in this ocean with his own abilities.
At such a young age, he had already recognized the cruelty of this society. He felt that no matter how big the business was, it would not be able to face the "force majeure" of pirates.
He wanted to take his destiny into his own hands, and becoming a new navy officer was his choice.
In this negotiation with the Revolutionary Army, Mason was also highly expected by Yoriichi Tsugakuni and Mihawk. This guy is not only brave and brave in fighting with pirates, but also has some skills in business affairs after being exposed to them.
At most, Tsugikuni Yoshiichi and Mihawk have the final decision-making power, and the details still need to be handled by knowledgeable guys like Mason.
"merchant?!"
"Which trading company are you from? Which country are you from? What is your purpose in coming here?"
What was surprising was that after Baldigo's soldiers arrived on the island, they directly drew their weapons from their waists and looked at Mason and others who came forward to negotiate with them with unfriendly eyes.
His tone also became extremely harsh, and a fierce light flashed in his eyes.
This sudden scene also shocked Mason and others. They seemed to have not expected that such a scene would happen after they led these people on board.
Mason glanced secretly in the direction of Yuichiro Tsugikuni and Mihawk. For a moment, he seemed to be at a loss, not knowing what to do.
Obviously, the accident that occurred at this time was beyond everyone's expectations.
When Ji Guoyuan saw this scene, he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows, obviously very surprised. Noticing Mason's gaze looking in his direction, Ji Guoyuan shook his head slightly without saying a word.
Mason, who saw this scene, had a clue in his mind. The look of astonishment on his face instantly turned into a look of trepidation and a flattering smile. He then spread his hands and said weakly:
“No, no, no!”
"Gentlemen, please don't use the knife."
"We are a fleet from the Kingdom of Solbe! The Kingdom of Solbe!"
Mason also raised the flag of the Kingdom of Solbe at this moment. This country is the hometown of bears and was once controlled by the New Navy. However, in Tsugikuni Yoriichi, the New Navy, which implemented a contraction policy, also withdrew the navy stationed in the Kingdom of Solbe.
In order to prevent this country from falling into the hands of the World Government, the New Navy invited Long and his men to take over there. Of course, with the change of ownership of the Kingdom of Solbe, the New Navy and Long's Revolutionary Army have established a deep friendship to this day.
This friendship is not only because of the relationship between Xiong and Ginny, nor is it just the relationship between Tsugakuin Yoshiichi and Long, but there is a certain degree of mutual interest between the two major forces.
People can talk about feelings with each other, but it is more trustworthy to talk about interests between forces.
Mason's statement that they came from the Kingdom of Solbe was also a secret code agreed upon by the top leaders of the Revolutionary Army and the New Navy.
They thought that the other party would stop fighting after hearing the secret signal, but what surprised Tsugikuni Yoshiichi and the others was that after hearing the name of the Solbe Kingdom, these people looked at each other in confusion, as if they had never heard of this country at all.
The leader didn't seem to care where Tsugikoku Yoshiichi and the others came from. He raised the long sword in his hand and shouted:
“Nonsense!”
"I don't care where you're from. You guys suddenly showed up here in the guise of a merchant ship. You must have bad intentions."
"Everyone, be quiet. We're going to search the warehouse!"
The leader waved the long knife in his hand in front of Mason. It seemed that he felt that his action had successfully intimidated the other party. Then he made a gesture to the soldiers behind him and asked them to go into the warehouse to check.
As for himself, he looked at the new sailors on the deck with a wary look on his face, looking very confident.
Tsugikoku Yoshiichi and Mihawk had been standing at the bow of the ship, quietly watching the scene before them. Seeing that the other party had sent people into the warehouse to check, Mihawk finally frowned and said with some displeasure:
"These people are a bit rough."
Although it was just a very short sentence, Yoshikazu Tsugakuni knew that someone with Mihawk's personality could say such words because the other party's behavior had angered him.
"Well, let's take a look."
While Tsugikuni Yoshiichi was talking to Mihawk, a lot of people gathered on the dock.
Some people even climbed the wooden ladder and walked towards the deck without getting the consent of Mason and others. After arriving on the deck, these people just glanced at Mason and others, greeted the soldier with a knife, and then walked towards the cabin in a carefree manner. The whole process was very natural, and they didn't even ask Mason whether he allowed them to enter the cabin.
This scene also made Mason's face change slightly, and he couldn't help but ask:
"What does this mean?"
"Who are those who entered the cabin?"
Mason already sensed something was wrong at this time and frowned.
"Oh, them, my teammates."
The man curled his lips into a smile and said nonchalantly.
After hearing this explanation, Mason was speechless for a moment. After taking a deep breath and adjusting his mood, he stood aside with a cold face, wanting to see what the other party wanted to do.
After a long time, the subjects who entered the cabin for inspection came out one after another. However, unlike when they came in empty-handed, they came out of the cabin with a lot of things in their hands, big and small bags.
Before Mason could speak, the head chef in charge of the crew's food had already chased out and shouted to Mason on the deck:
"Young Captain!"
"They took all our supplies and food!"
The chef stopped himself just as he was about to blurt out the word "major". The food reserves on the ship had been stolen. Besides being confused, the chef was more anxious.
Mason's face turned cold when he saw this scene. He put away his timid and flattering smile and asked the person in front of him in a deep voice:
"What is this for? Can you give me an explanation?"
Even though he was furious, Mason still maintained his basic politeness.
"ah?!"
"We found contraband on your ship. Of course, we have to confiscate it!"
"Of course, the same goes for you guys. You actually carried so many contraband on the ship. So don't rush to leave. Go to the prison and confess honestly."
The soldier in front of him smiled brightly, as if he felt that the pressure of words alone could not force Mason to surrender. He thrust the long sword in his hand forward and placed it directly on Mason's neck. The threat was self-evident.
“!!!!”
Mason probably never dreamed that something like this would happen during this negotiation.
Isn't this Baldigo? Has the dragon's control over this island become so weak? Would they allow something like this to happen?
Mason was at a loss at this moment. He didn't know how to deal with these guys. Should he attack directly? He was worried that this would affect the deep friendship between the New Navy and the Revolutionary Army.
But it is obviously impossible to just surrender and let these people catch him and put him in prison.
Although Mason is nominally the leader of the ship, there are some things that are beyond his ability to decide.
Ji Guoyuan let out a light sigh and looked towards the depths of the island. His domineering aura was released and he rushed towards someone on the island with precision.
He didn't know what was hidden behind this matter, but it would be better to let Long solve the current problem himself.
At this moment, Jiguo Yuanyi finally saw clearly that these guys who came on board to inspect were not Long's subordinates at all.
(End of this chapter)
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