"Mr. Marquis, we meet again!"
"Yeah, it's great to see you in Spain!"
After repelling the invading enemy, Turena met with Zheng Shengying who came from Valencia to facilitate the exchange of information.
Turenne then explained his combat intentions to Zheng Shengying. The main area of activity of the French army was the area east of Mount Villa and north of the Central Mountains.
That is, the Barcelona-Zaragoza-Valladolid line, with an area equivalent to 30% of the Spanish mainland, and the vast area to the south was all given to Zheng Chenggong.
For this old friend's generosity, Zheng Shengying thanked him on Zheng Chenggong's behalf.
In fact, there is no problem for the French army to attack a hundred miles further south, because their own forces are limited and it is impossible to estimate a large range.
Turena's division of the war zone between the two sides was much better than expected, which meant that his troops could scrape as much territory as possible.
With the gift knocking on the door, Turena followed up with his request, which was to sell as many Spaniards in his own war zone to the other party as possible...
It doesn't matter if the price is low, the important thing is that as long as it is operated properly, you can make a lot of money even if you wholesale, and it will be a treasury.
As long as Zheng Shengying nods, even if a young and strong man is sold for only ten silver coins, we can accept it.
It's hard for the opponent to use cash, and it's okay to exchange them for advanced weapons. In short, all the spoils must be cashed out.
Turena knew that Zheng Shengying was Zheng Chenggong's most trusted brother and had a certain right to speak, so he made this request in person.
To this, Zheng Shengying naturally agreed without considering or rejecting it.
Everyone in the Zheng family is willing to accept anything that is profitable.
Even if you make a profit difference, if you earn five silver coins from a slave miner, a million miners can still earn a huge five million!
Emperor Haojing has spoken in advance, so the generals can go ahead with this matter.
Just don’t worry about the trouble and the long journey. You can cash it out once it reaches the mainland or New Guinea.
"Oh my God! Are we going to sell all the Spaniards in the Iberian Peninsula?"
Afterwards, D'Estre was very surprised by this incident, and he did not expect that Turenne would also start a business.
It is said that the emperor in the East was particularly good at business. He turned the dilapidated Ming Empire into a prosperous and powerful one after taking power for twenty years.
Turena has been fighting there for a long time. Could it be that he was infected by the emperor of the Ming Empire?
"This time we are not trying to force Spain to sign an armistice agreement that is beneficial to our country, but to completely eliminate this country. Now the Ming Empire's navy is already cruising in the Mediterranean, and their army has landed in Valencia. I believe it is completed This goal is not difficult. So the question for us is, how many of these Spaniards were loyal to France after the war? To our King? Instead of Philip IV? Ten percent? Twenty percent? Even if there is Not even half! Because if the remaining half launches a rebellion, it will only make our garrison exhausted. There are two solutions, either kill them all, or sell all the young and middle-aged people among them to the Ming Empire. Obviously, the latter one The method is more beneficial to us, at least we can exchange it for some money, weapons and even goods. You must also know that the conflicts over land in the local area are becoming increasingly fierce, and the land of the Iberian Peninsula will become an ownerless land in the future. This cannot Have you sold land equal to the area of mainland France to our nobles and Pingmin? Not only can it solve the conflict, but it can also increase the revenue of the treasury. It can also expand our country's territory and truly realize the plan to dominate Europe. After digesting Iberia After the peninsula, France's population will reach 30, 40, or even 50 million, and by then the rest of Europe combined will not be our opponent!"
"You think so far, you have become a strategist!"
After hearing these words, D'Estre thought about it and felt that it was very far-sighted. At least he and many generals would not consider this level.
"Before leaving Paris, I reported the outline of the plan in writing to His Majesty the King, and it was approved. We can just go ahead and do it in Spain!"
"Then you also gave a large area south of Barcelona to the Ming army generals? Wouldn't it be better to send our army there? At least you can get more slaves to pay back the money!"
"You should have learned a lot from your trip to the Ming Empire, right? Have you seen their giant iron-clad ships?"
"...I saw it, does it matter?"
"The iron-clad ships sold to us by the Ming Empire and the technology we introduced were introduced by them more than ten years ago. Our iron-clad ships are only the smallest in tonnage and have the lowest combat effectiveness. There are even higher ones. I have seen them with my own eyes. There are two levels. If my guess is correct, they are building a heavy ironclad ship with a tonnage of over five thousand tons, which should be larger than Zheng Shengying’s flagship.”
"I have indeed heard of it. It is said that it has been launched into the water and is undergoing sea trials."
"In other words, the Ming Empire's military technology is more than twenty years ahead of ours. If we can build such a large ironclad ship by ourselves within twenty years! What's more important is that they can build eight or even more such large ships in one batch. Ironclad ships, even if we have such technology and capabilities, do we have such huge financial resources? The Ming Empire’s annual tax revenue can reach 80 million to 100 million silver coins, what about us? You must have seen various kinds of iron-clad ships in their capital. Is it a novelty? How does it compare to Paris?"
"you mean……"
"For a long time to come, the strength of the Ming Empire will be far ahead of other countries in the world. For its own interests, France can only be friends with it, not its enemy. Do you know the secret of victory?"
"What?"
"Join forces! If we are ranked third in the world in terms of strength and want to defeat the second in the world, then there is only one way to join forces with the number one in the world!"
"So how do you beat the world's number one?"
"Wait until the strength of the world's number one is smaller than that of the world's second and third, and the second and third can join forces!"
"...Did you learn this in the Eastern world?"
"If you stay there for a while, you will understand something."
"The war zone in the south is considered a gift from us to them?"
“What’s the key to gift giving?”
"...There's a secret to this too?"
"certainly!"
"...Okay! What is it?"
"Give them what they want! Only by giving the other party a gift they like will they agree to our request. This is the simplest way to trade. If they are not interested in the land on the Iberian Peninsula, then they must be interested in the people and things on this land. We are interested, otherwise they would not have spent huge sums of money to send such a large fleet over.”
"You know them well!"
"It helps to work with them and make less fatal mistakes. I hope that after I die, someone will understand them as well as I do!"
"In order to defeat them in the future?"
"In order not to be wiped out by them in the future!"
"...Isn't this view too pessimistic?"
"If you have time, I hope you will read more newspapers and magazines of the Ming Empire. If you have higher pursuits for yourself, I hope you can study abroad or work in the Ming Empire. This will help you understand this country and understand Their emperor is very helpful. After you have more information about the Ming Empire, it is not too late to draw conclusions! Give an example in your field. According to my guess, their 10,000-ton ironclads should be in ten years Launched within 10 days. At this rate, in another twenty years, when you are sixty years old, the Ming Empire’s fleet that the French Navy will face will have the smallest ironclad of 4,000 tons, which is Zheng Shengying’s. A flagship. In the Ming Empire, I also learned about an aircraft that is much faster than an airship and has a higher combat effectiveness than an airship. But I don’t know the flying principle of this weapon at all, because it is completely different from an airship, and they are top secret. How far have we researched in this area? I think we are still imitating their airships? Even for such a long time, we haven’t even figured out how the fuel used in the airships is made! A challenger first You must have the strength to challenge the king, and then put it into action, otherwise it will become a big joke! If you really have that plan, first aim at the Ming Empire and study hard. The naval equipment of ironclads is the final result, the premise It means that the country is rich, can receive enough taxes and fees, has enough people to pay taxes, has a large enough land for Pingmin to live, and then invests enough money in researching related science and technology. If you only pursue results , then the distance from the target will only get further and further away!”
Turenne's advice to Louis XIV was to never be an enemy of the Ming Empire during his lifetime.
If possible, it is best for both parties to become allies, so that they can obtain the greatest benefits for France.
The young Louis XIV was not a willful person, and he was still willing to accept some suggestions that were beneficial to France's strength.
In North America, France can occupy half of North America.
In South America, France gets all of Brazil.
In Europe, France could acquire the Iberian Peninsula, as well as Spanish lands in the southern Apennines, Sicily, and Sardinia.
Before thoroughly digesting this huge victory, Louis XIV had no reason or excuse to break with the Ming Empire.
If the other party gives you such a big piece of cake, but you are still not satisfied, or even take a bite back.
No one will be willing to cooperate with him in the future. After all, the king of a country must be trustworthy.
With the interpretation of Fang Yizhi, the special envoy to Europe, Louis XIV gained a new understanding of the Ming Empire and the emperor of this empire.
Louis XIV was willing to accept all goods and technologies from the Ming Empire, and also welcomed businessmen from the Ming Empire to do business and invest in France.
In addition, Louis XIV also followed the example of the emperor of the Ming Empire and relaxed the restrictions on commerce and agriculture, collecting only 20% of taxes and grain.
But this was tantamount to alleviating the land crisis in mainland France, but soon Louis XIV got a god-given opportunity...
After annexing the Iberian Peninsula, I no longer have to worry about land issues all day long.
This plan will not only enhance France's national power, but also allow Nongmin to have land for farming.
If you can't afford land, you can go to New France in North America to farm.
There is no fee for the first three years, and after three years, taxes are paid based on 20% of the harvest of the cultivated land.
It is expected that one million to three million people can be immigrated to New France. After a hundred years, North America will be completely consolidated.
But where the Prince of Condé is needed, Turenne has to come and solve it himself...
The city of Barcelona had been shelled for three consecutive days, but Benavidez did not intend to surrender easily.
Although nearly two thousand cavalry had been lost before, the defenders still had great defensive strength as long as they reduced the number of troops in the defense area.
Is Turenne eager to attack the city?
No!
That's not necessary at all!
France will annex the entire Spanish mainland after the war anyway, so why waste the precious lives of its subordinates?
Since he gave most of the war zone to Zheng Chenggong, his troops will be the main force in this battle.
The French army besieged Barcelona, on the one hand, it was to fulfill its promise to send troops, and at the same time, it was to contain some enemy forces for friendly forces.
On the other hand, they are waiting for Zheng Chenggong to lead his troops to defeat Philip IV's main force, and then they can pick up what is ready...
There is nothing wrong with doing this, because Turena knows the gap in weapons and equipment between the two sides.
If his own army had as many advanced weapons as Zheng Chenggong, even if it was only half the number, he would not arrange it like this.
Although Zheng Chenggong's landing force only had 50,000 troops, because it was equipped with a large number of advanced weapons, its combat effectiveness was equivalent to more than 100,000 French troops, or more than 200,000 Spanish troops.
Could Philip IV mobilize 300,000 people to stop Zheng Chenggong's attack on Madrid?
Obviously impossible!
In this case, Zheng Chenggong would most likely capture the city unless they were attacked by disease along the way.
Turena just put on a show in Barcelona and then started waiting for news.
Although his mission is to occupy the area north of the "Barcelona-Zaragoza-Valladolid" line, His Majesty the King did not request a specific method.
Many of his officers and veterans had been fighting with him for many years, and Turena didn't want them to fall into the Spanish War before they retired.
I also want to get them a good salary, even if it is the last one before retiring.
So the Marquis's plan is to let the fleet bombard him for a week first...
Anyway, the battlefield is very close to the French mainland, and it is very convenient to use ships to transport supplies while controlling the sea.
Then let the navy launch the siege first, and then let the army attack after the bombardment is almost done.
Taking advantage of this period, a certain number of cavalry can be mobilized to cooperate with the armored troops and infantry to advance into the enemy's hinterland.
After learning Turenne's true thoughts, D'Estre believed that the elder already had the ability and talent to be prime minister.
If His Majesty hadn't been in power, after Mazarin, it would have been Turenne's turn, but it's a pity...
However, it seems that Turena has never expressed a desire to pursue a civilian career and seems to prefer to stay in the army.
Rumor has it that after the destruction of Spain, Turena will be promoted to Duke!
This is the title second only to the prince, and it is also the highest title among titles with different surnames.
D'Estre has no objection to this. I am afraid that Turenne's contribution to France is second only to Richelieu and Mazarin.
Far higher than Boudes and Condé who defended Paris, the two combined may not be equal to Turenne alone.
Mazarin relied heavily on Boudes for the army, and the fleet was commanded by Sodi. Turenne, who was fighting overseas, was loyal to Louis XIV, which greatly stabilized the security of France to a certain extent.
Especially after Turenne returned with his troops, all the conspiracies about the throne disappeared soon...
