April 2, the first year of Ankang in the Ming Dynasty.
Kingdom of America, Virginia, Port Norfolk.
A large fleet cruised in and out of the bay where Norfolk was located.
The battleship Guangdong of the Ming Navy docked at the dock of Norfolk Military Port.
The Guangdong is the first ship of the last traditional battleship of the Ming Dynasty.
It has a full load displacement of 20,000 tons and a maximum speed of 20 knots.
It has two twin-mounted 300mm naval guns and four twin-mounted 240mm secondary main guns.
Sixteen 160mm secondary guns, sixteen 80mm secondary guns, and two sets of quadruple torpedo tubes.
Before Zhu Jingyuan's new battleship was built, it was the most powerful battleship in the world.
Nelson and Wellesley, the two commanders of the British navy and army, and their officers, stood on the dock and looked at the fleet with complicated emotions.
A year ago, this ship and its commanders were the enemies that made me the most cautious and valued.
Now, we have to welcome the other party into our port and invite the other party to help us frighten the enemy.
Moreover, the surrounding officers and sailors looked at the battleship docking with a bit of envy and fear in their eyes.
The capital ships previously built by the British Navy had a full load displacement of less than 17,000 tons.
Even the warships built by the Ming Dynasty with the mentality of just being enough are still larger than the British ships.
After the Guangdong came to a stop, the gangway was lowered, and two groups of guards disembarked first to clear the way and inspect the scene.
Admiral Zheng Haiping, the governor of the Beiyinzhou Fleet of the Ming Navy, came out of the cabin with a group of navy and army officers.
Nelson, as the host of the counterpoint, immediately went up with two guards to greet him.
This is not the first time that the two sides have met, but it is the first time that they have met as friendly forces.
In the past, it was always a matter of wanting to send the entire opponent's fleet to the bottom of the sea.
When we meet now, it feels like meeting old friends again. They greet each other with a smile and a hand in hand.
"General Zheng is here, Norfolk is in full bloom. Welcome, welcome..."
"General Nelson is so polite. It's a rare opportunity for Mr. Zheng to appreciate the sights of Norfolk."
Seeing that the two seemed very friendly, the surrounding officers and soldiers at all levels also became excited.
The scene inexplicably erupted into cheers.
Zheng Haiping heard the sound, smiled and waved around, and immediately there was another burst of cheers.
Nelson tried his best to smile and introduced Wellesley and William Cabell, the acting governor of Virginia, to Zheng Haiping. Then the group entered the port city of Norfolk, which was also the seat of the temporary Virginia state government.
Both parties had serious matters to discuss, and they immediately became serious after arriving at the military camp.
Nelson, Wellesley, and Cabell took turns explaining the situation currently under their control.
Zheng Anping was an admiral. Nelson spoke first:
"Our cruiser fleet is still blocking the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay and controlling the sea in the bay.
"The fleet controlled by the North appeared around, but after Ming's notice was issued, the other party did not launch an attack."
Zheng Anping nodded slightly:
“The Ming Dynasty Beiyinzhou Fleet I brought can take over the prevention and control of the waters around Fokker and the Chesapeake Peninsula.
"As long as Bonaparte and Adams were not out of their minds, they would not attack the Ming Dynasty fleet at this time.
"Your fleet has worked hard for so many days, it's time to rest..."
Nelson immediately said:
"It's not hard, our fleet will continue to patrol the entrance of the bay, and the Ming fleet will just cooperate with the patrol in turn."
Nelson did not want to completely hand over control of the Gulf to Ming. God knows what Ming would do after the war.
Zheng Haiping glared at Nelson, seemingly a little unhappy, but did not argue here:
"It's still tough at this time. Since your people can withstand it, let's continue patrolling.
"The fleets of both our sides should conduct their own command and dispatch, and patrol the current sea areas separately, without interfering with each other.
"What about the army? Do you still have your soldiers on this peninsula to the north?"
Wellesley immediately introduced himself and said:
"Several cities around Norfolk, mainly Suffolk City, and Williamsburg northwest of Newport News, have each completed two relatively complete lines of defense...
"Our troops deployed on the upper reaches of the James River successfully blocked Napoleon's offensive trend.
"Having forced Napoleon's troops to give up their plan to continue a rapid assault on Norfolk and Newport News, Napoleon's troops also began to build defense lines in place."
Mu Yongfu, an army officer next to Zheng Haiping and the major general in charge of the missions on Long Island and the Chesapeake Peninsula, directly asked Wellesley after hearing this:
"What does Richmond want? The Eastern Peninsula, that is, your Chesapeake Peninsula. I remember there are two counties in Virginia at the southernmost end. Are they still there?"
The Ming Dynasty decided to establish the Dongyi vassal state in the Chesapeake Peninsula and Changdao area, without setting up a vassal king for the time being.
The unpleasant-sounding name of the Chesapeake Peninsula was also renamed the Dongyi Peninsula by the Ministry of Rites of the Ming Dynasty.
The Chesapeake Bay on the inside of the Dongyi Peninsula is also named the Dongyi Inner Bay, and the Delaware Bay outside the peninsula is named the Dongyi Outer Bay.
The name of Changdao is a free translation. It is relatively easy to understand and fits the shape of Changdao, so it continues to be used.
Mu Yongfu is a descendant of Mu Tianbo, Duke of Guizhou, and also a descendant of Muying, the adopted son of Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of Qianning.
Mu Yongfu, who was born in Prince Mu's Mansion, was the top old nobleman in the Ming Dynasty and the top nobleman in the world.
Mu Yongfu is also the son of the contemporary Duke of Guizhou. Although he is not the eldest son, in the Ming Dynasty, succession was based on assessment and not on order.
Therefore, if Mu Yongfu performs well, he will have a chance to inherit the title.
After Wellesley learned Mu Yongfu's identity, his expression became particularly serious and serious:
"Sorry, our contact with Richmond has been interrupted, and Richmond is likely to be lost.
“The two southernmost counties of the Chesapeake Peninsula were also already occupied by Northerners.”
Mu Yongfu suddenly said with disgust:
"Richmond is under siege. It makes sense that it can't hold it. What's going on with the two southernmost counties on the Dongyi Peninsula?
"Didn't you specially arrange troops to garrison such an important place?
"Even if the Army couldn't think of it, couldn't the Navy think of its importance?"
Wellesley and Nelson looked a little embarrassed, because this result was to some extent the result of their laissez-faire.
So the two of them apologized together, seemingly sincerely, but without emotion in their hearts:
"I'm sorry, Your Excellency, we failed to defend the peninsula..."
Mu Yongfu pursed his lips:
"What's the use of saying sorry now? Forget it, I won't argue with you anymore.
“Duke Yanping, it’s no longer meaningful for me to stay here, so I’m leaving now.
"I have to deal directly with the French and the American North."
Zheng Haiping understood what Mu Yongfu meant, nodded slightly and ordered:
"Qiu Lianggong, take a cruiser and send General Mu off. Mr. Ruan Yuan should also go directly."
Qiu Lianggong was the rear admiral in charge of this task, so he was certainly not surprised by this task that had been arranged long ago.
Ruan Yuan is the right chief historian of the Dongyi Kingdom who is responsible for the civil affairs of the Dongyi Peninsula, and this is also a position that has been arranged for a long time.
The purpose of the two coming ashore was to meet Nelson, Wellesley, Cabell and others.
We may have to deal with each other frequently in the future. Getting to know each other in advance can avoid unnecessary troubles in the future.
Qiu Lianggong and Ruan Yuan stood up at the same time, bowed their hands to Zheng Haiping and said goodbye, and left the conference room with Mu Yongfu.
Qiu Lianggong's fleet did not dock directly, but was cruising outside the Norfolk port.
Mu Yongfu's landing force also remained on the ship and did not disembark.
Several officials and staff under Ruan Yuan also stayed on the ship.
The three leaders returned directly to the ship, and the fleet set off directly.
Turn back outward again, leave Dongyi Inner Bay, go north along the peninsula coastline, and enter Dongyi Outer Bay.
Under the guidance of several American pilots, we followed the fjord all the way north to the deepest part of the fjord.
The northeast corner of the Dongyi Peninsula meets the mainland, and the northernmost part of Delaware is now Newcastle.
There are three states in the Dongyi Peninsula, and the southernmost corner belongs to Virginia.
The northeastern region belongs to Delaware, and the western and central regions belong to Maryland.
The area on the west side of the junction between the peninsula and the mainland belongs to Cecil County in Maryland.
The administrative center of Cecil County is a small town called Elkton, with less than two thousand residents.
The west side of the peninsula's junction with the mainland belongs to New Castle County, Delaware.
The administrative center of New Castle County is called Wilmington, which can also be translated as Wellington, or Wilmington.
The name comes from the British mainland and is widely used in the British colonies. There are several Wilmingtons in the United States and Canada.
Wilmington, Delaware has a population of more than 40,000. This number may seem completely inconspicuous in modern times, but it is currently the largest town in the entire state of Delaware and the capital of Delaware.
In the historical American Revolutionary War, Wilmington was occupied by British troops, so the state of Delaware moved its capital to Dover in the southern interior, and did not move back after the end of the Revolutionary War.
Now the entire Delaware directly joined the Northern Group at the invitation of Adams and Napoleon, so no war broke out on the mainland, so the capital remained in Wilmington.
Regarding the handover of the Dongyi Peninsula, there are some detailed issues that need to be discussed with relevant personnel in Wilmington.
The key is issues involving the city of Wilmington itself.
Strictly speaking, the city of Wilmington does not belong to the Dongyi Peninsula. The urban area is actually outside the peninsula.
But New Castle County, to which Wilmington belongs, has at least half of its land located on the peninsula.
A similar situation exists in Cecil County across the street, with part of the county's area outside the peninsula.
In fact, there is currently no clear way to divide these areas outside the peninsula.
Under the extremely urgent situation, Zhu Jingyuan, the British and French officials, and Napoleon did not consider it in such detail.
After receiving the mission, Mu Yongfu, Qiu Lianggong, and Ruan Yuan realized that this problem might exist during the internal discussion before executing the mission.
So the three people immediately learned about the local situation through personnel from the United States and the West Factory, and then made a general analysis first.
If the Ming Dynasty got the complete counties of Newcastle and Cecil, including their land outside the peninsula, then the largest town on the Dongyi Peninsula would be Wilmington.
If these lands are not used and the boundaries are drawn directly from the geographical boundaries of the peninsula, then the largest town... No one knows which town is the largest. Anyway, it has only about 2,000 people at most.
Residential areas throughout the Dongyi Peninsula generally have a population of one to two thousand, or even only a few hundred or dozens of people.
The entire peninsula covers an area of more than 14,000 square kilometers, with a total population of about 320,000. The average population density is 22 people per square kilometer, which is similar to Inner Mongolia in Zhu Jingyuan's previous life.
Moreover, the population of Inner Mongolia still tends to be concentrated, and the people on the Dongyi Peninsula are almost evenly distributed.
Army Major General Mu Yongfu believes:
“If our Ming Dynasty’s goal is to defend the peninsula as conveniently as possible for a long time, then we should use geographical boundaries as the boundary, so that our future land defense lines will be as short as possible.
“If the Ming Dynasty’s goal was to use this peninsula as a base to attack and expand its land, then it should obtain as much land as possible outside the peninsula in these two counties.
“In this way, our usual garrison troops and subsequent offensive troops do not have to be limited to the peninsula.
"This can increase the enemy's defense area, and lengthening the defense line will make it easier for our army to break through."
Rear Admiral Qiu Lianggong added:
“My view is that instead of choosing the narrowest physical boundaries, it’s better to capture the entire jurisdiction of both counties.
“I suggest building a canal in the narrowest place, using the existing bays and rivers, to connect the inner and outer Dongyi Bays to facilitate naval mobilization and two-line defense.
"It is best to have a certain distance between the canal and the border so that we can protect the canal on both sides of the canal."
But the right chief historian of the Dongyi court sighed and said:
"Two generals, the question now is if Taisi accepts territorial demarcation instead of geographical boundary demarcation."
Qiu Lianggong laughed:
"It depends on Mr. Ruan's skill. Just like what our Prince of Dashi did in the Western Cape, we can make these Western barbarians voluntarily hand over the land we need."
Ruan Yuan seemed unsure and sighed:
"I hope we can resolve this negotiation ourselves, and I hope there is no need for His Highness Prince Dashi to come forward."
Qiu Lianggong's fleet slowed down its sailing speed and entered Waidongyi Bay early the next morning.
There is the American Northern Patrol Fleet in the bay, all of which are low-level cruisers.
The officers and soldiers on the fleet have been notified that Ming's fleet will enter the bay and go to Wilmington for negotiations.
Now that I suddenly saw the Ming Dynasty's fleet coming in, I was still a little nervous and panicked, and asked about the situation here with flags.
Qiu Lianggong asked people to respond to them normally, and then led the main fleet to stay in the bay to prevent various emergencies.
Let the fleet headed by two armored cruisers carry Ruan Yuan, Mu Yongfu and the escorting officers and soldiers deep into the bay.
That afternoon, the fleet that Ruan Yuan was on entered the mouth of the Delaware River and slowly sailed into the Wilmington Pier.
Ruan Yuan and Mu Yongfu came to the bow of the ship and looked at the getting closer and closer to the pier, but gradually found that the pier was full of people, a scene of huge crowds of people.
"Is this the whole town coming out..."
