Like a bomb exploding in the conference room, the audience remained silent at first, but soon aroused a flurry of discussion. 【Read the latest chapter】
"Comrade Wumu," someone asked: "Can such a serious case be solved by naturalized citizens alone? Will there be any elders——"
"There are no elders involved in this matter. In fact, there cannot be any." Wu Mu replied decisively, "All criminals have been arrested." His eyes swept across the people in the conference room, "I think there are doubts on this issue. It’s very, very, very inappropriate to be gay.”
"Delete this conversation from the meeting minutes." Jiang Shan raised his eyelids and said, "Instead of needlessly doubting who did it, it is better to consider how to prevent it - I believe that the comrades of the General Political Security Bureau have specific measures. Now let’s get back to Hale.”
“Another point that must be pointed out is that everyone should know that after review by the Ministry of Science and Technology, some of our self-produced instruments have been listed on the foreign trade committee’s list of export products, such as balances, microscopes, gauges, sextants, quadrants, levels, etc. Slide rules, vernier calipers, vacuum pumps, etc. Because most of the prototypes of such instruments have appeared in Europe. Because the prices are set very high, and all our products are in metric units, not many are sold, and all purchases The customers are all on record. But whether the instruments would have passed through multiple hands and ended up in Hale’s hands is anyone’s guess.”
"Why export it if you can't sell much at all? What is the plan of the Ministry of Colonization and Trade?!"
"I think there is something wrong with Skade. He has a serious tendency to walk alone!"
"Before Operation Engine. He repeatedly proposed appeasement of the Zheng Group and opposed the use of force. His motives are suspicious!"
"The capitulationist tendencies must be thoroughly investigated! I suggest launching a loyalty investigation against him!"
"Loyalty investigation is nothing! Just investigate his financial problems."
The discussion became increasingly noisy. Wu Mu saw Chief of Naval Staff Li Di dancing and telling the attendees on the left and right that the Department of Colonial Trade must be liquidated. Even the "treason" of the entire Executive Committee.
"Unless a targeted trade blockade is decided, it will be difficult to control the resale trade," Jiang Shan waited until the decibel level in the venue dropped slightly before speaking. "Southeast Asian companies' direct trade with the Philippines basically sells traditional goods, shipped to Manila's products include raw silk, satin, porcelain, cane sugar, fruits and tea. Of course, our specialties include salt, distilled liquor and glass products. These commodities are roughly the same as those traditionally shipped by Chinese merchants to the Philippines. To a considerable extent, they are crowded out Their market was cut off. They had no choice but to settle for the next best thing, shipping heavy goods such as copper, iron, and hardware. Just in time for Hale to arrive in Manila, the Spaniards purchased a large amount of metal supplies and even used their white money to buy iron. Pots and copper coins, and of course the all-important mercury.”
"Of course, the Philippine authorities did not want to have only one supplier. So the Portuguese shipped a large amount of Indian iron from Goa. There was also tin from Malacca and copper from Burma. The competition from the Portuguese coupled with the sale of crude copper and iron The profits were not high. Foreign businessmen from Fujian and Guangdong flocked to Hong Kong, Sanya, Kaohsiung and all the trading ports under our control. What could they do there? Naturally, they purchased large quantities of our products and shipped them to Manila for sale. Putting aside whether it can be done or not, at least it is unreasonable to implement a trade blockade when the existence of Hale cannot be fully confirmed. After all, trade with the Philippines is our main channel for obtaining many important commodities and large amounts of precious metals and hard currency. The Navy Comrades often expressed the need for large amounts of abaca to make sail ropes and anchor ropes."
Li Di looked a little embarrassed. Of course, he didn't stop for long, and he began to vigorously advocate that "the Great White Fleet will go straight to Manila Bay, kill all the white men and seize resources."
"Let's look at Lando's report. He obtained information from the Manila Port Department that the Spanish colonial authorities were deliberately guiding Chinese businessmen to sell certain 'Australian goods' that were in special demand. For example, they imported 263 boxes of soap in the past two months. .”
"Comrade Lando's influence is considerable," someone joked. "A white-skinned person who doesn't take a shower was actually led by him to buy soap."
"The Spaniards don't need so much soap when bathing every day. Comrades from the mechanical industry department pointed out that thick soapy water can be used as a cooling lubricant for industrial drills, various turning tools, and punches. In addition, at about the same time. Imported from Manila There are more than 600 boxes of Australian matches, and I am afraid they are not just for lighting cigars. All comrades are now serving in the army and powerful institutions, and all have more or less military backgrounds, so you should know that to Hale, they are not matches at all, but It's red phosphorus and potassium chlorate. The quantity may not be too much, but at least it allows him to save a lot of precious mercury in detonators and detonators."
"What a smart bastard!"
"Why should we export soap? Are we already rich enough to supply soap?"
"Of course not. Our industrial outlets mainly use soap locust powder for similar applications. The effect is similar and the corrosiveness is relatively small. In contrast, the added value of soap exports is high, which helps us import more goods from the Philippines."
"That's not all. The latest information is that the Manila authorities are very interested in the various grain products we produce, especially the flagship product of Tianchu Food Company's Jeju branch-dried potato vermicelli. They have purchased more than a ton."
"Do you want to improve the food? Or are the Japanese doing something else?"
"To improve their food, they can buy Lingao rice noodles produced by Tianchu Lingao Branch Factory. It is cheap and good quality, but the Japanese are obviously not stupid - it is mixed with sweet potato flour and the fiber content is too high. In comparison, , Jeju's potato vermicelli is almost entirely pure starch, except for a small amount of alum as an additive. According to the information we have previously obtained, Hale is trialling nitrated starch** and has experimentally produced a small amount of finished product. If he can obtain Having a stable source of starch instead of having to work hard to grow potatoes and corn and refine the starch by hand will undoubtedly take him another step towards mass production."
The conference room erupted with exclamations, curses and complaints. "I don't understand," said Dongmen Chuiyu, the representative of the General Staff: "Three acids and two alkali, at least two are needed to make methane and mercury fulminate. Where can Hale get it? Should he order it from Comrade Ji Tuisi?"
"There is news from Portuguese businessmen in Macau: Someone once ordered many strange styles of lead pipes, lead plates and lead cans in the foundry of Goa. After the order was completed, they were all sent to Manila. It can be inferred that the black I used these things to assemble a small lead chamber for making sulfuric acid. Maybe Hale turned the wine bottles and glass bowls we sold into chemical experimental equipment. The raw material may be sulfur produced in Taipei. Recently, Manila has been in frequent contact with the Tamsui and Keelung garrisons in northern Taiwan. On average, one ship sails to the two places every month to transport supplies and bring back goods. This number is too high - in previous years, there were only one or two ships per year. Intelligence revealed something noteworthy. The Spaniards on the island of Taiwan had recently changed their traditional policy and no longer paid in kind sulfur to the Chinese laborers who built the city for them, but instead paid tobacco and spices. This may be Due to the instructions of the Governor of the Philippines, all the sulfur has undoubtedly been transported to Manila. In addition, they are reinforcing the castle in Tamsui, transporting new artillery and companies. It is obvious that the Spaniards will not hesitate to use force to ensure that Taiwan Sulfur supply.”
"As for nitric acid, it should be made using the saltpeter method. The Spanish shipped Indian saltpeter from Goa by the shipload. In return, the Governor of the Philippines, Juan Salamanca, even withdrew his petition to ban the Portuguese from trading in Manila. However," Jiangshan continued, "Comrade Lando managed to create some obstacles for the Spanish. He provoked a duel according to European customs and killed the main Spanish contractor who purchased Indian goods for the Philippine authorities. Now in Manila Saltpeter imports have shown a downward trend."
"Sounds so powerful. Why doesn't he just kill Hale as well?"
"I am skeptical that he can produce nitric acid in batches." Xu Yingjie said, "Whether it is mercury fulminate or nitrated starch, concentrated nitric acid is needed. The process of making concentrated nitric acid is very complicated. Only saltpeter and concentrated sulfuric acid are needed. It can’t be done.”
Even Lingao's chemical department took a lot of effort to make 97% concentrated nitric acid. The principle of nitric acid concentration is very simple, but the process to achieve it is quite complicated.
"Then where did he get the mercury fulminate? The sample that Lando retrieved was analyzed by you, and the conclusion report was also issued by your chemical industry."
"First of all, mercury fulminate does not need concentrated nitric acid, but higher purity nitric acid. These are two different things. The key is that the nitric acid produced by co-heating sulfuric acid and saltpeter contains more impurities - I am not sure what method he will use to remove it. He is very interested in impurities and improving purity. It is certain that he is bound to take great risks when using this nitric acid to make mercury fulminate or nitrated starch. So far, he has not been killed, which surprises me... …”
"I'm afraid he wasn't the only one killed."
"It's not afraid of death, and it's not afraid of spending money. It should be possible to make it in small quantities, but certainly not in too much. As for nitrated starch, I think it can be made under the same premise."
"In short," Dongmen Chuiyu concluded: "Hale's arms industry in Manila actually relies heavily on the supply of raw materials from the outside world, as well as the equipment and upstream products obtained from us. Without these, he cannot function. "
"No matter how talented Hale is, he is only one person. It is completely impossible to build a self-sufficient and mutually supporting industrial system from scratch." (To be continued...)
