If the previous silver trading rights were just an appetizer, then the subsequent meal would be enough for the queen to enjoy.
According to Princess Sissi's description, the development of the island in Mauritius was really a painful journey.
The island of Mauritius can be said to be an idle piece of Xiao Letian's whim. It does not seem to have much effect on the Chinese chessboard.
Ryukyu is really far away from Mauritius, separated by the entire Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean, all the way to 20° south of the equator.
This can be said to be an absolutely unfamiliar area to the Chinese. What is the use of Xiao Letian spending money to buy this land? Is it really just for a tryst with Princess Sissi?
The head of state is not that boring and superficial. Many plans will take many years to see the results, and many opportunities will appear very unpredictable.
Just like the bargaining with the Queen this time, Xiao Letian suddenly thought of this idle chess game. With careful planning, it would not be difficult to form a big dragon.
"Your Majesty, when you immigrate from far away East Asia to Mauritius, the fleet is not traveling through the Strait of Malacca, but through another unfamiliar sea area..."
In 1871, although humans had begun to use steam-powered ships on a large scale, the sailing ships of the past had not withdrawn from the stage of history.
Because sail-powered ships still save money and can cruise further without replenishing coal!
Although the Chinese have money, they also have a lot of money to spend. For non-urgent tasks like developing Mauritius, officials will definitely not use new technology steam-powered ships.
The sailing ship departs from Ryukyu and heads south for thousands of Mauritius. It is important to remember that this route does not pass through the Strait of Malacca, but heads south through the Sunda Strait.
Because the island of Mauritius is south of the equator and the Strait of Malacca is north of the equator, it would be a typical long way to go around the Strait of Malacca.
Sea-going ships can enter the Wharton Basin west of Australia by sailing through the Sunda Strait or the Java Islands!
From here, go straight west and pass through some scattered islands to reach Mauritius!
Taking this route is not just a shortcut, but more importantly, there is an equatorial warm current in this sea area, where the Indian Ocean water forms a continuous ocean current from east to west.
It flows from the Wharton Basin all the way to Madagascar and the coast of Africa!
It is really convenient and fast for sail-powered boats to take this route. Even if there is no wind, don’t worry, the equatorial warm current will push you forward.
Everything seems beautiful, but the sea is capricious. Although the warm current is very stable, the Indian Ocean is a stormy ocean.
Another huge problem with this route is that it is empty, with no land and few islands. If you encounter a storm, you will have to risk your life!
"My kind Majesty, you should know how terrible the storm in the Indian Ocean is. Too many ships have been buried in the sea, and too many Chinese immigrants have died in the storm..."
"It's not just these immigrants going to Mauritius, but also the Chinese's currently expanding ocean fishing industry, which is also threatened by the storm..."
"So... I beg the Queen to sell us some islands and land as a haven for Chinese sailors?"
"Don't worry, the land that the Chinese want to buy is not near the golden waterway, it is all undeveloped and barren land on the empire's territory..."
The atmosphere in the palace became a little tense, and the queen's expression became a little more serious. If silver is just an ordinary metal, then the symbolism of land is much greater.
"Buy land?" The Queen pondered for a long time. "Can you tell me where you want the land?"
Princess Sissi quickly smiled and said, "Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, Chagos Islands...including the coastline of Western Australia..."
The picture shows that Xiao Letian's conspiracy has finally reached the core part, and his sword is aimed at Australia!
The future industrial development of the Chinese nation is inseparable from resources. In the second industrial revolution, petroleum, coal, metal minerals... these raw materials are all indispensable!
But Xiao Letian also knows very well that resources must be in his own hands to be safe. If he relies entirely on imports, he will wait for others to choke him.
Coal is not a problem. The coal in Shanxi Province is enough for China!
Oil is not a big problem. Brunei’s oil fields are already controlled by the Chinese!
Metals such as gold, silver, and non-ferrous metals are difficult to deal with. These are rare metals in the world, but the overall consumption is still small. I believe that the Chinese will be able to solve this problem in the future.
But iron ore! This is a chokehold!
If China wants to industrialize, the scale is too huge. Iron ore is the most basic and important of all metal resources. If we don't start thinking about the layout now, it will be too late when the time comes.
Western Australia will be the most important iron ore base in the future. China and Australia have been fighting diplomatic lawsuits over iron ore trade for many years.
But in 1871, in the mid-19th century, Western Australia was still a completely wild land!
That's right, there isn't even a white-settled city in Western Australia right now. It's a complete wilderness of deserts and plateaus, and even the indigenous peoples don't want to live here.
There are only some indigenous towns on the coast that rely on fishing!
Why is this happening? Because Australia is a very unique land. All lakes and rivers are concentrated in the east, while there are only a few seasonal rivers in the west.
The Great Sandy Desert, Gibson Desert, Victoria Desert, Darling Mountains, Kimberley Plateau...together make up the barren Western Australia.
Drought, the only thing humans know here is drought. There are also rivers and lakes in deserts and plateaus, but they are all seasonal.
During the short rainy season, you can see the precious water flow, but once the rainy season is over, everything will dry up!
Agriculture cannot develop here at all, and it is difficult for people to even maintain their lives, so there are no white immigrants living here. They are all concentrated in Sydney.
Of course, there are also explorers and geologists who want to find mineral deposits in those mountains and deserts.
However, due to the technological level at the time, the British never found valuable mineral veins!
The development of Western Australia actually had to wait until the end of the 19th century, that is, nearly twenty years later, when geologists discovered gold mines in Western Australia, and then large-scale immigrants appeared.
The development of iron ore in Western Australia was even further away, not until after 1952, when the Korean War broke out!
Australia's BHP Billiton, one of the world's three steel giants, only started after that!
Xiao Letian dared to make this request just to bet on the status of Western Australia in the eyes of the British!
