Chapter 1108 Who Will Have the Last Laugh?

"Mr. Ambassador, I am very happy that you can come to attend the opening ceremony of the Shanghai Industrial Expo today. I personally have always believed that in terms of trade issues, China and Britain have a relationship of 'prosperity and loss'. If the trade between the two sides is normal, it will be beneficial to both sides; if the trade is blocked, both China and Britain will lose a lot of benefits. Therefore, trade sanctions are not desirable." Chen Sheng did not lie. He has always been opposed to trade sanctions against Britain. However, there is still a lot of voice within Chen Han to launch trade sanctions against Britain. After all, in ancient Chinese history, this method has always been favored by the ruling class of the Central Plains.

The embargo on Mongolia during the Ming Dynasty forced the Mongols to fight and frequently go south, and even iron pots became a rare item on the prairie. That is the manifestation of this 'sanction method'. The Qing Dynasty's rhubarb trade with Russia is also a manifestation of this concept.

Now the people within Chen Han just replaced 'Mongolia' with 'Britain'. If the Sino-British trade is interrupted, the loss to Britain will be very large, and of course China will lose more, because China has always been a country where exports far exceed imports.

"The world is moving forward, and everyone should look forward. Common prosperity is the pursuit of China and Britain. The East and the West have a good basis for cooperation. I believe that disputes will only lead to death. Peaceful development and common prosperity will be the true meaning of the entire world in the future."

During the East-West War, the transaction volume between the British, French and Chen Han not only did not decrease, but increased rapidly.

Whether it is pharmaceutical products, steel, or other types of materials, Westerners' desire to buy is rising in a straight line. After all, war, medicine and steel are two basic factors necessary for the war machine of the "army".

The British also plundered a large amount of cotton and food from India when they came in. This is the war of the current era. There is no need for chemicals, no need for oil, and no need for a large amount of rare metal elements. Today's war only requires two basic factors, steel and population, as well as endless wealth.

Military uniforms, bedding, tents, medicines, livestock and grass, etc., all require a lot of money.

The cabinet had received many memorials from officials before, and many people believed that the quantity should not be relaxed to allow Westerners to purchase goods and materials. But the final result was that Chen Han only raised the export tariffs on some species such as steel and medicines.

Chen Han's current steel production can fully meet the needs of the Western world. After all, the two sides are thousands of miles apart. Europeans only purchase steel in China. The quantity is really not large, and the amount is not as high as medicine. There is no way. Time is at this juncture. Modern medicine has just emerged. If you want to wait for it to really take on the responsibility, it will take another 70 or 80 years. Europeans can only buy medicines from China. At least previous examples have shown that Chinese medicinal materials are useful, and it is not ignorant and ridiculous witchcraft.

Chen Sheng is a senior executive of Chen Han, and of course he knows the direction of the future development of East-West relations. Chen Ming has already formulated everything. Chen Sheng has no doubt that the future development will operate according to Chen Ming's ideas, because the will of the strong determines everything in this world. And the winner of the current war must belong to Chen Han.

China will not really invade Europe, and will not completely tear its face with Britain. The relationship between the two may be the relationship between Chang'an and the border states in the Tang Dynasty, or even less.

In the future, as long as the British brains are not broken, the trade level between China and Britain will sooner or later return to normal and develop rapidly. Perhaps one day there will be a fierce trade conflict and trade war between the East and the West, but this premise must be that the industrial revolution in Western countries has been completed. Otherwise, why would Britain confront China?

Unnecessary trade sanctions will only affect bilateral economic development. In this regard, China should learn from the old Americans in later generations and see that the trade sanctions they have issued time and time again are all for clear purposes.

"I am really shocked to see the speed of your country's industrial development. In just forty years, an ancient civilized country has risen again. Now, no country dares to underestimate China's power. These machines that work in all aspects are the source of China's power."

Kowal said to Chen Sheng with a lot of emotion, thinking that the Chinese Empire, which now overwhelms the whole of Europe, may not be as strong as either of Britain and France forty years ago. This is definitely a miracle brought about by the industrial revolution.

When shaking hands and greeting Chen Sheng, Kowal praised Emperor Chen in front of him. All diplomatic envoys from the West knew this Chinese rule. It was absolutely right to praise His Majesty the Emperor. Chen Sheng smiled happily.

There were many foreign envoys at the meeting. In addition to the British, there were also French, Danes and Prussians in Europe. Sweden, an old friend of China, became increasingly estranged from Chen Han after the status of the new crown prince was established.

In addition, there were envoys from more than a dozen countries and regions led by the Ottomans and Iran, such as the Eelam family of Egypt.

Then there was a large group of Chen Han's vassal states, including Gorkha, Sikh, Siam, Phnom Penh and Japan.

The foreign envoys in front of Chen Sheng and Fang Weidian were like a stream of nobles crossing the river, and they were endless. It was not until ten o'clock when the opening ceremony officially began that it came to an end.

After Fang Weidian and Chen Sheng delivered their speeches respectively, the first Shanghai Industrial Expo officially opened.

Chen Sheng personally invited foreign ambassadors to China to accompany him to visit the industrial expo. In fact, it was also a trade fair. Some orders had even been finalized before, but now they were brought to the expo, making the expo's halo even more dazzling.

In the exhibition area, the dazzling array of industrial products was enough to prove that Kowal's boasting was not groundless. China is now truly at the forefront of the world in industry. The application of a large number of new technologies and steam engines has allowed China's industry to develop rapidly at an astonishing speed.

In this regard, even the British, who started the industrial revolution a few years earlier than China, cannot compare.

Because compared with the narrow British mainland, China has better natural conditions for developing industry and a broader market. As long as someone guides it correctly and can ensure the relative stability of the national order, China's industry will develop at an astonishing speed.

And what about Britain? When the industrial revolution just started, they were forced to fall into the quagmire of the North American War. That war was not limited to the North American continent, but a global war. The land battles on the thirteen states of North America were mainly land battles, and the global naval battles were the focus of the British.

The war delayed the pace of British industrialization, although no one in the UK noticed this at the time. But now, looking back, the huge gap in strength between China and Britain started from that war. The independence of the Americans not only had a great impact on the Western world, but also had extraordinary significance for the Eastern world.

Among the diplomatic envoys from various countries stationed in China, many were part-time major shareholders of foreign companies. Their purpose of visiting this industrial expo was very clear, that is, to see with their own eyes the industrial strength of the Chinese and the forefront of their applied technology. But in addition, they would also select the goods they liked, and then order them in large quantities, and rent or simply buy the ships manufactured by Chinese shipyards, and transport them back to their own countries as quickly as possible so that they could generate benefits as quickly as possible.

As for the envoys of other countries, the Chen Han vassal state, although they were also interested in this industrial expo, they were more interested in the interests of each other - mercenary leasing.

Japan and Gurkhas are the center of this transaction, and the most important thing is that these two countries have a lot of soldiers. Gurkhas are a group of poor ghosts. Even if they bite off a piece of fat meat from India, there are still countless poor Gurkhas, and these are the source of Gurkha mercenaries. Japan is under great population pressure. Although their domestic population has been greatly reduced by millions in recent years, Japan is far from being sparsely populated. So many young and strong people, instead of letting them do nothing and "live a relaxed life" in the countryside and cities, it is better to form mercenaries and rent them out by the Tokugawa Shogunate to make money.

The latter no longer insists that only samurai can join the army. After all, they are mercenaries, and a large number of Japanese civilians are flooded in. The Tokugawa Shogunate has trained six mercenary corps formed in this way, plus four pure samurai corps, there are 100,000 "active" mercenaries in Japan alone. And Japan's regular army has as many as 50,000 - the Tokugawa shogunate is only willing to maintain an army of 50,000, and there are also 100,000 Class B reserves and 50,000 Class A reserve corps. The small Japanese military force is beyond ordinary.

However, these 100,000 Class B reserves only receive a small amount of military salary, and the salary of the 50,000 reserve corps is only one-third of that of active Japanese soldiers. As for the 100,000 mercenaries, it will not waste a grain of rice for the Tokugawa shogunate, but on the contrary, it can earn a lot of profits for the Tokugawa shogunate.

That is a first-level mercenary corps composed of pure samurai. Chen Han hired two, both of which are in the Americas, and most of the money is paid by the American vassal states. The remaining two, one was hired by the native princes of South India, and the other was hired by Mysore. There are six second-level mercenary corps, Chen Han also hired one, and the Japanese government itself hired one, both of which are on the battlefield in America. There is another in Africa, and two in Central Asia, and the latter's "master" is the Seven Khanates in Central Asia. The last one left is in Japan, and it is already a sweet bun that many people are eyeing.

The Japanese have an extraordinary skill. They can expand mercenaries at any time, and their reserve forces can also enter the regular army at any time, because the former can become mercenaries at any time. The four words "Mercenary Country" are really true to the Japanese.

As long as there is money to be made, the Tokugawa Shogunate can send the last soldier under its command to make money.

But the Shogunate still has integrity, much better than the Grand Duke of Hesse in Germany.

Seeing that the Huaxia Alliance is playing happily by itself, Kover and others who were left aside are a little unwilling.

Chen Han is going to change the emperor, so should the war in Russia and America continue?

If the emperor is changed, the political situation will naturally be shaken. Does the new emperor still want to fight?

In response to the inquiries of the "curious" Western diplomats, Chen Sheng smiled faintly, and did not directly express his position, but kicked the ball to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' fault.

"Everyone, whether the war will continue in the coming year depends not on the ascension of our new emperor to the throne, but on the attitude of Russia and its allies behind it." Chen Sheng said to everyone that the foundation of the Chen Dynasty was very stable, and the transition between the old and new emperors would not cause any major disturbances.

"Your Majesty is wise and powerful, and has blessed the world. There is no one like him in the history. Your Highness the Crown Prince is humble and diligent in government affairs. He is wise and prudent, and is also respected by the people of the world. The change of the throne this time is a natural outcome. How can there be any turmoil in the national situation?" Fang Weidian said firmly.

Whether there is war or not, the major principles and policies of the country are the will of the entire court and the interests of all classes. Even if Chen Ming is in power, he will seek the opinions of the cabinet and the Council of State. Now that the war has reached the current point, how can Chen Ding decide to cease fire on his own? Moreover, Chen Ming is going to lead the army in person. If Chen Ding decides to cease fire, wouldn't it be a big back swing to avoid his father? This is simply impossible. There is no possibility of China stopping the war.

Don't look at China's self-proclaimed peaceful character, love of peace, and opposition to war. But this is nothing in the face of real national interests.

Russia was the biggest threat to Chen Han in the north before, and even peace-loving people cannot deny this. A population of more than 35 million and a relatively vast land all indicate Russia's combat effectiveness and war potential.

Therefore, destroying Russia has become an urgent matter for Chen Han.

For Chen Han, this is national interest.

Although China is extremely powerful now, in essence, China is still a country, not a great alliance of mankind. It is not the Soviet Union or the United Nations. The great game between the East and the West is the struggle for world hegemony and interests.

People can regard Chen Han as a newly rising empire. A very powerful country without enough colonial interests will inevitably challenge the previous colonial powers and snatch prey from the other side, which will also undermine the current international relations.

China today is no different from Germany in history. The only difference is that Chen Han is stronger than Germany at that time. It is strong enough to challenge the whole of Europe on its own.

After China's rise, an extremely complicated international struggle also began. In this international struggle involving the colonial and fundamental interests of various countries, powerful countries such as the United States, France, Britain, China, Prussia, Austria, Russia, the Ottoman Empire, and Persia all participated. As for who can "laugh last", war is a necessary means of testing.

In this competition between countries, each country is trying to win over allies to fight against hostile or potential hostile countries. Britain and France can go from mortal enemies to wearing a pair of pants and working closely together, which is the embodiment of national interests.