When the British ambassador to China passed on the news of China's request to open the Western Australian iron mine to London, the British upper echelons felt that this was simply outrageous.
"Can't you at least come up with a proper lie?" This was the British's opinion. Australia and New Zealand were both British colonies. Between the two, New Zealand's status was obviously higher than Australia's. Although New Zealand was much smaller than Australia.
The essence of Australia was in the southeast, and the northwest was simply a desert. Logically speaking, it was unlikely that China would spend a lot of effort to explore and open up mineral deposits. But there was a very interesting problem at this time. China had a population of four to five hundred million, and the British at this time only had a population of forty to fifty million. If the British let the Chinese set foot on Australian soil, it would be a deterrent to the British.
Was China trying to scare us? This was the consensus of the British upper echelons. It had to be admitted that this kind of intimidation was really effective. The British Colonial Department opposed the Chinese to explore and mine in Western Australia. At this time, the gold rush was quite fierce, and some small shallow gold mines had been discovered in Western Australia, which caused a huge reaction in the British.
But the Chinese were so straightforward that if the British refused to let China mine in Western Australia, China would not support any British actions in the Far East. This seemed to be the reason why the China side stopped the British. What attitude to take towards China, this became the focus of discussion in the British.
Thirty-eight years had passed since 1840, and the British's efforts to open up the China market had finally paid off. The new China government had indeed opened up the country to do business with the British. Now the biggest buyer from the British in China was undoubtedly the new China government. A large number of machinery and equipment orders had given the British industrial capital quite a good profit. But this opening up was also a double-edged sword. The British sold a large number of trains and related technology to the China government, and the China government built a large number of railways. Chinese enterprises produced their own light industrial products to monopolize the China local market. On the contrary, the British light industrial products were pushed out of the China market, and soap and other products even counterattacked the Indian market.
Because of the large number of exports from China, the international price of raw silk and tea plummeted. China's raw silk and tea, which were able to afford the low prices, took a larger share of the market. The tobacco trade was basically cut off, and the British worked hard to open the door to China through the war. In the end, what rushed out was not China's silver, but an even greater amount of China's goods.
The main reason why the United Kingdom wanted to support the Satsunaga Alliance was that the United Kingdom wanted to make use of Japan's budding modern steam shipyards. Because Singapore's steamships had to go to China's Guangdong Shipyard for maintenance, Shanghai opened a new shipyard called Jiangnan Shipyard to allow British ships to go to areas further north for maintenance. These profits all flowed into the hands of China's Zheng Family. One of the reasons why the United Kingdom supported the Sarawak Alliance was to control Japan's shipbuilding industry and give the United Kingdom a stable base. With Japan, the United Kingdom would be able to open up the route from Canada to Singapore. At the very least, the United Kingdom would have a greater say in this route. The reason why the United Kingdom asked China to support the British position on Japan was not necessarily to completely open up the Japanese market. It wanted to get its own benefits from this matter.
After nearly half a month of discussion, London finally came to a consensus. In terms of strategy, controlling Japan's shipbuilding industry was the first priority. If they could have a huge influence in Japan, they could put great pressure on China in the Far East. After all, Western Australia was a British colony. It controlled Singapore and Malaysia. The United Kingdom believed that its navy was capable of dealing with China's shipping lines. No matter what kind of carrot they used, they had to make the Chinese take the bait first.
Of course, if they could really export iron ore to China on a large scale, it would be no less than a big tobacco deal. With such a source of revenue, the British government would also be extremely happy.
Therefore, in January 1868, when the Meiji Emperor of Japan asked for the return of the great government, the British ambassador to China also formally proposed to the new China's Zheng Family that the British government agree to China's request to explore and mine in Western Australia.
Zuo Zhidan did not expect the British to really agree to this request. He smelled a strong conspiracy in this. How could the British be so honest to cooperate with China? It was unrealistic even if he used his toes to think. However, Vézé's reaction surprised Zuo Zhidan even more.
"Sign a long-term contract. Either we invest in the mining area for the first ten years, and in return for the investment, we will transport the ore for free. Or the two sides will jointly invest in the iron ore mine, and we, China, will be responsible for the exploration and mining. The export of ore to China will be priced by weight. "Vézé put on a posture that showed that he was really ready to do it.
"Your Majesty, are you really going to do this? We are preparing for war with the British. "Zuo Zhidan quickly reminded. In order to deal with the possible naval conflict between China and Britain after the Dutch East Indies was seized, the navy had entered a crazy period of building ships. The navy did not dare to underestimate the British navy. If the two sides were to fight, the deal would probably be cut off halfway.
"If we can't beat the British, the deal will naturally fall through. If we can force the British to compromise with us, the deal will definitely go through. I want to ask you a question. Why does the entire military commission and even the government have such a strong desire to seize the Dutch East Indies? "Vézé asked Zuo Zhidan.
"Because of the plantation," Zuo Zhidan answered the question.
Vézé smiled rather maliciously. "If the iron mine fails, then there is nothing to say. If the iron mine succeeds, have you heard of the phrase 'insatiable greed'? "
Zuo Zhidan thought for a moment and suddenly came to a realization. As the saying goes, "Don't get up early if there is no profit." Only when there was a huge profit ahead could all the stakeholders unite. Now that everyone was so enthusiastic about attacking the Dutch East Indies, it could be said that the military saw the opportunity to make contributions, and the government saw the opportunity to improve the lives of the people of China. In the final analysis, the four words "huge profit."
If this matter was forced by Vézé alone, if the war failed, the responsibility would be borne by Vézé alone. When this request became the consensus of all interest groups, then it was not just Vézé's problem. From the military to the government, every force hoped for victory, and every force was willing to bear the price. This was much better than betting all of Wei Ze's charisma on his own.
The matter of the iron mine was the same. If there was no iron mine, which was a huge bait for the military and industry, and Vézé alone declared war against the British, the war may be started, but any failure could lead to the possibility of opposition to the war. There would never be a situation like the current preparation stage where everyone was united. It must be known that the navy repeatedly emphasized the cruel naval war with the British in the future. While announcing the cruelty of the war, the navy also eulogized the benefits that the whole of China would reap after the war was won with greater enthusiasm.
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