When Ang Lee thought that Gibraltar would be completely controlled by the Tang Empire in the future, he was very excited. With such an important chokepoint, he would be able to control the maritime traffic between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. This would definitely bring immeasurable benefits to the Tang Empire.
In other words, anyone who wanted to pass through this narrow strait in the future must obtain the consent of the Tang Empire. Otherwise, they would not be able to pass through. The Tang Empire could even use military ships to block the strait at any time to prevent the merchant ships of disobedient small countries from passing through at will. Thus, they could easily control the economic lifelines of the countries and force them to obey the orders of the Tang Empire.
At this time, because the Tang Empire canal between the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea had not been completed, the importance of Gibraltar was not very high. However, with the opening of the canal in the Tang Empire, Gibraltar's importance would skyrocket. At that time, the value of Gibraltar could increase by ten times.
Therefore, Ang Lee wanted to easily take over Gibraltar before the price of Gibraltar increased. He wanted to station an elite army of the Tang Empire here to firmly control Gibraltar and thus control the lifelines of the countries.
Of course, Ang Lee would not spend money to buy this piece of land. That would be too expensive. Ang Lee's purpose in life was to obtain benefits at the lowest cost. When Spain was in a panic, Ang Lee believed that as long as he played a little trick, he could make the Sultan of Spain, Mr. Rahman, obediently hand over the land with both hands.
After all, Ang Lee's strength was there for all to see. In addition, Ang Lee's request would not be too excessive. He would not carve up too much of Spain's land, just a very small piece of land. In addition, he would also give them some corresponding benefits. For example, when the Tang Empire built the Gibraltar Harbor, they needed to hire a large number of Spanish people. When it was operated in the future, a large number of Spanish people would also be needed to work, thus bringing a lot of employment opportunities to the country.
When the team set off, Ang Lee was still thinking about the issue of Gibraltar. Even when Li Xiaolu, who was sleeping in his arms, pressed on his thigh until it was numb, Ang Lee did not feel it. This showed how focused and serious Ang Lee was.
In Ang Lee's impression, Ang Lee was very clear about the approximate location of Gibraltar. It was at the southernmost tip of Spain, guarding the passage between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. However, Ang Lee did not fully understand the specific terrain of Gibraltar. He only knew that it was a very good harbor, which was now occupied by the navy under Rahman's command. There were not many merchant ships and fishing boats there.
Because Gibraltar was a very good harbor, Ang Lee was very worried. He was worried that Rahman would not be willing to give up such a good harbor to the Tang dynasty. However, Ang Lee was very confident in his own strength. He believed that as long as he showed mercy and power, he would be able to make Rahman reluctantly give up. After all, the entire land of Spain did not belong to them. They were Arabs, and the indigenous people before Spain were Europeans. They were not the same race. Once Ang Lee instigated the indigenous people of Spain to rebel and provided these indigenous people with sophisticated weapons, Rahman's rule would be over. Therefore, as long as Ang Lee hinted that he wanted to support the opposition, Rahman would choose to submit. He could not withstand too much pressure, so there was no other way but to submit.
His subordinates were very reliable. Not only did they successfully contact Rahman, but they also drew the topographic map of Gibraltar, which Ang Lee was very concerned about. Of course, more topographic maps of Spain were sent back one by one.
Ang Lee was not very interested in other places for the time being. His main attention was attracted by the topographic map of Gibraltar in his hands. He was planning the construction of the new harbor and, of course, the impregnable defense design.
At present, Gibraltar was just a small port, and its construction wasn't all that great. Although it could still meet the requirements, this was because there weren't enough ships. Once this port became an extremely busy maritime hub, the number of ships passing through would gradually increase. With the industrialization of the Great Tang, there would be even more merchant ships coming in and out. This required that Gibraltar's port be expanded accordingly so that it could meet the needs of the future.
In terms of how to expand a harbor, Ang Lee was undoubtedly very experienced. Since the Strait of Malacca, Ang Lee had begun to come into contact with various harbors. Moreover, he had personally participated in the construction of a large number of harbors and accumulated a wealth of experience in designing harbors. Therefore, there was absolutely no problem in letting Ang Lee design a harbor. It was a very easy task for him to complete this task.
Looking at the map in front of him, the appearance of the harbor expansion was already in Ang Lee's mind. Ang Lee had already thought about how to build a harbor according to local conditions. He had even thought about how to build a defensive position and what defensive weapons to equip with. In short, he would definitely build Gibraltar into an international harbor and an indestructible fortress at the same time.
As Li Xiaolu was sleeping in his arms, Ang Lee could not write the plan in his mind down on paper. He could only imagine it out of thin air. It would not be too late to write it down after they boarded the ship. Of course, he still had to draw a sketch according to the situation and pass it to his subordinates for discussion.
Work was a very hard thing, but for Ang Lee, there was nothing more exciting than achieving his life goal. Therefore, Ang Lee's thinking and designing of Gibraltar's harbor was an indescribable enjoyment.
The topographic map of Gibraltar drawn by his subordinates was very accurate. The height of each part and the distribution of vegetation were all clearly drawn.
The entire Gibraltar was a peninsula from the north to the south deep into the sea. The shape of the peninsula was very much like a sweet potato. The western side was facing the sea, the eastern side was a very high ridge, and the southern side was also a small plain. The overall terrain was very good.
Among them, the western side was very suitable for building a large harbor. The eastern side of the mountain could be built with turrets. Only a few turrets were needed to completely control the entire harbor of Gibraltar. This very important harbor would be impregnable and protect Gibraltar forever.
Ang Lee studied the map carefully and drew five to six turrets that must be built. As long as these turrets were built in these locations, no one would be able to attack Gibraltar.
The terrain in the east was very unsuitable for building a port, so it could only be abandoned. On the other hand, the terrain in the west was relatively flat, making it the best location to build a port. Li An had spent a lot of thought on how to build a port, constantly perfecting it in his mind. He only stopped when he was satisfied with the best plan.
"Gibraltar, what a good place! It's really a waste to leave it in the hands of the Spanish. If it's invaded by pirates, who knows how many merchants will suffer. It's better to leave it in the hands of the Tang dynasty. "
Ang Lee muttered to himself.
"Gibraltar, why is Assistant Minister Li suddenly talking about this place?"
Li Xiaolu, who was lying in Ang Lee's arms and sleeping, suddenly woke up. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and looked at Ang Lee in confusion.
Ang Lee gently stroked Li Xiaolu's pink face and said, "The place we're going to this time is Gibraltar! Why, do you know this place? "
"Of course, that's my hometown. No, it used to be my hometown. Ever since the Moors came, they drove us all away. They wanted to occupy the harbor there, so I haven't been back for a long time. Are we really going there?"
Li Xiaolu seemed to be a little emotional, and there seemed to be some tears in her eyes.
Ang Lee had seen countless people, so he could naturally understand the meaning in Li Xiaolu's eyes. He gently stroked Li Xiaolu's soft body and said, "Is there something sad? If there is, you can tell me. Let me give you some advice. "
When Li Xiaolu heard this, the tears that she had been holding back for a long time finally fell out. She said sadly, "I used to have a happy family, but when the Moors expelled us, my family was all gone. I was the only one left. Sob sob sob."
After saying that, she began to cry sadly.
This was similar to what Ang Lee had guessed. It had been like this since ancient times. When an invader occupied the land of another country, in order to occupy this land forever, they would choose to drive the original owner of this land to another place to achieve their goal. In the process, it was inevitable that the indigenous people would disagree, which led to bloody conflicts and even inhumane tragedies.
In later years, the Russian Maozi occupied the outer northeast of Hua Xia. In order to obtain this land permanently, they drove away all the ethnic minorities who originally lived in the outer northeast of Hua Xia. After being opposed, they cruelly used force and killed a large number of ordinary people, causing a scene of blood to flow like a river.
There were too many examples like this. Since ancient times, there were too many to count. It was more common than the hair on a cow.
Li Xiaolu's family were the indigenous people of Gibraltar. After the Arabs crossed the sea and occupied Spain, they decided to occupy this important area of Gibraltar in order to better control Spain. They decided to operate it as an important stronghold. Because the foreign people would not trust the local people too much, it was necessary to drive away the indigenous people who originally lived in Gibraltar. In addition, the territory of Gibraltar was relatively small. If the indigenous people were not driven away, it would affect their immigration and port construction.
Many of the indigenous people who had lived in their hometown for a long time would be very reluctant to move away. After all, they had already adapted to life in their hometown. If they were to move to another place, they would naturally find it difficult to adapt. There would be resistance in their hearts. They might even openly resist the unreasonable demands of the foreign government.
How could the bandits reason with you? Since the indigenous people were unwilling to move, they could only use violent means. Therefore, there were so-called violent evictions and massacres.
Li Xiaolu's family was completely separated because of the evictions and massacres by the Arabs. From then on, Li Xiaolu became a loner. Fortunately, she met a friend who went through the same experience and brought her to the art gallery. Only then did she have the hope to live on.
At this moment, because Ang Lee mentioned Gibraltar, Li Xiaolu's sad past was brought up, so she could not help but cry.
"These bandits are too much. How could they hurt the little beauty's family? We have to settle the score with them. "
Ang Lee comforted, as if he wanted to fight for justice for Li Xiaolu.
"Really? Assistant Minister Li can really get justice for us? "
Li Xiaolu asked excitedly.
Ang Lee nodded and said, "What else is there to say? What's our relationship? Tell me! How do you want to get justice? "
After that, he looked at Li Xiaolu.
"I want to erect a tombstone for my dead family at the place where we used to live. Is that okay?"
Li Xiaolu asked.
Ang Lee was quite surprised. This could be considered a request? This request was too low.
"Of course it's okay. This request is too low."
Ang Lee said.
At first, Ang Lee thought that Li Xiaolu would ask for revenge. He did not expect that she only wanted to erect a tombstone for her family. This was unimaginably kind.
"Then what else can I ask for? I don't want to cause trouble for Assistant Minister Li. "
Li Xiaolu asked curiously.
Ang Lee thought for a moment and said, "You can ask for compensation. You can ask for monetary compensation from the bandits who hurt your family. Or, you can ask them to pay with their lives."
After that, he looked at Li Xiaolu. However, he saw that Li Xiaolu did not show any anger. Instead, she looked sad.
"My family is already gone. What's the point of killing my enemies? It will only increase the sin of killing. Moreover, I can't remember who killed my family. I can't just find someone to kill! "
Li Xiaolu said.
Obviously, she didn't care about revenge. She was a weak woman. What happened in the past was already in the past. She didn't want to pursue it, and she didn't want to create a massacre. She just wanted to live well and live her life every day.
Li An smiled and said, "You're such a kind-hearted girl. Good luck will follow you. However, you just said that Gibraltar is your hometown. It was snatched away by the Moors. As such, it's time to return it to its rightful owner."
"Assistant Minister Li wants to help us take back our hometown, but our family is gone."
Li Xiaolu's face was filled with loneliness.
Ang Lee said, "What I mean is that Gibraltar is your hometown. It should not be occupied by the Moors. If the Tang dynasty can occupy this land, we will gather the people who have left here and let them return to their homeland. I believe that they will be grateful to the Tang Empire and will be willing to be the people of the Tang dynasty."
After that, he looked at Li Xiaolu.
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