1890 King of Southeast Asia

In early September, Liu Yiming embarked on a journey to leave, but not to go back, but to take this opportunity to visit various European countries.

"Dear sir, welcome to your arrival." A day later, in Hamburg, Liu Yiming disembarked here, and Crown Prince William came to pick up the ship.

To be honest, Germany's attitude is 10,000 times better than that of Britain. Of course, it may be related to the Franco-Russian alliance treaty that has been circulating recently.

"Hello, your Royal Highness the Crown Prince." Liu Yiming saluted and got on the same car with the Crown Prince.

At this time, the Crown Prince was still very young, only eight years old, mainly used to express his attitude.

"Sir, do you want to go to war with France?" Crown Prince William asked naively in the car.

"What's wrong? Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince, if France is willing to release my people, I don't want to go to war with him. War means death!" Liu Yiming said with a smile.

All this started with two things. On August 29, after negotiating the general conditions, Liu Yiming sent diplomatic official letters to various countries, and the contents were also sent to major newspapers.

"The Nanhua government has made suggestions to various countries on the Chinese issue, hoping that all countries can treat the Chinese well, stop treating them unfairly, stop restricting the freedom of the Chinese, and return the looted property. We reserve the right to take further action."

As soon as the news came out, it could only be described as a laughing stock.

What country is Nanhua?

I've never heard of it.

Where is this country?

What? He robbed the Dutch colony to build a country? Isn't that a colony?

In short, this was understood as a joke, except for two countries. The Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

One was beaten, and the other was shocked by Nanhua's execution. Why? Because Nanhua has already started to transport troops to the Brunei colony.

"Your Majesty, hello!" In the palace, Liu Yiming bowed and greeted.

"Hello, sir, please sit down." Emperor William said.

"Are you telling the truth?" Emperor William asked as soon as Liu Yiming sat down.

"Of course, I will discuss the Chinese issue with France soon, and you will see it clearly at that time." Liu Yiming knew what William was talking about.

"Then, I want to ask, how is Nanhua's military strength?" William asked after a pause.

"After the expansion, we have 200,000 land forces. In addition, we have twice the number of reserves, which can be pulled out in an emergency. As for the navy, our warships are still on the slipway." Liu Yiming smiled confidently.

"So we need Germany's help, strong help." Liu Yiming looked at William's face and said.

"I want to know, if the situation worsens, what are you going to do?" William did not answer directly, but asked.

"My country is 13,000 nautical miles away, and French Indochina is only 1,000 nautical miles away from my country. Soon this distance will be reduced to a few hundred nautical miles." Liu Yiming said irrelevant words.

"This man is a lunatic, but it's good like this!" William thought to himself.

But he said differently: "Germany has the best weapons, I can give you a cheap price."

Liu Yiming frowned, knowing that this matter was a failure.

"I am not here to seek weapons, but I hope to get a sum of money." Liu Yiming did not stand up, but said.

"Okay! The Prime Minister will negotiate with you. I have something to do. Excuse me." William looked behind the curtain and said.

"Mr. Liu, how much loan do you want? What will you use as collateral?" A pot-bellied, kind-looking man stood up...

Three days later, Liu Yiming left Hamburg with a treaty, as if he was escaping.

"Commander, what's wrong?" Lin Anmin asked Liu Yiming, who was sitting on the deck and whose face suddenly turned black.

"Huh~ It's okay, but I didn't achieve the result I expected this time." Liu Yiming took out a piece of paper in his hand.

"Trade treaty? Aren't we here to talk about loans and cooperation?" Lin Anmin blurted out after flipping it open. Then he immediately realized that something was wrong.

"The Germans are too greedy. Such a large loan, 20% interest per year, and only 90% of the actual loan amount, and require the principal to be repaid within five years." Liu Yiming said in the smoke and dust in the distance.

"He thinks I can..." Lin Anmin almost blurted out again.

"Die Qing? Not even as good as this!" Liu Yiming smiled and shook his head.

"Let's stop the German attack for now. Has France responded?" Liu Yiming asked.

"No, but they discussed the establishment of a consulate." Lin Anmin said.

"Send someone to cancel the rest of the trip, copy this trade treaty and hand it to France, and go to the United States next." Having offended France, Liu Yiming planned to go directly to the United States, this time for the Chinese. In Xu Hui's reply, a group of Chinese Americans had arrived in Nanhua, and this time Liu Yiming planned to go to the United States.

"Okay!" Lin Anmin nodded.

…………

"Prime Minister, what did you talk to him about?" William asked after Liu Yiming left.

"No results, he didn't agree to any conditions." The Prime Minister still said to William with a casual look.

"He has no choice! He still doesn't lower his humble revelation to Germany! Humph! Wait, he will be back after breakfast!" Henry was furious.

“Yes, Your Majesty.” The Prime Minister took a deep look at the arrogant, irritable, and politically incompetent emperor…

…………

Barboza had traveled a lot on the Atlantic route and was very familiar with it. It only took him a week to cross the Atlantic.

"We are lucky. We didn't encounter strong winds this season." Seeing that the New York Harbor was already in sight, Barbosa couldn't help but say to Liu Yiming complacently.

"That's because you are experienced and skilled." Liu Yiming shook his head and said.

During the seven-day voyage of the Vega, the power system was in full swing for more than half of the time, and even reached 22 knots when sailing along the ocean current.

"No, no, no, it's mainly because of the Vega. She is a good ship..." Barbosa shook his head and touched the railing.

"Wu~ here! Welcome to the new world! Sir!" Barbosa saw the New York Harbor, proving that this voyage was really over, and couldn't help cheering.

…………

"Toot~" The Vega slowly sailed into the port.

"Commander!" This time, it was not other people who greeted him, but international students. Looking around, there were nearly a hundred international students here, but some of them still had a braid on their heads.

"Haha! Hello! How are you doing in the United States?" Not far from the port, in a small shop not far from the port, Liu Yiming enjoyed the hospitality of these international students.

"Very good, Mr. Mellon comes to see us from time to time." A boy who looked only sixteen years old said.

Liu Yiming frowned. He was able to come here at the age of sixteen, which was already a genius of Nanhua. Someone had to do patriotic work for them, so that they would not be lost.

"How is your study? Can you understand the lectures? If you have any difficulties, call the consulate directly. If you are bullied, remember to fight back. Our country is still very weak, but we will do our best to ensure that you are not bullied..." Liu Yiming talked freely.

With these people, speeches are certainly useful, but first, Liu Yiming just got off the ship and was not prepared, and second, there are still some overseas students who are dying here, so some things cannot be said.

And blindly giving speeches does not have such a big effect, especially when the saying "a man dies for his friend" is still part of the mainstream culture.

"Commander! Try this. After coming to the United States, everyone is not used to American food. Fortunately, we found a cook who worked to pay off his debts at the dock. We raised money to pay it back and let him open a small restaurant. Come and try it." A student enthusiastically pushed a dish.

"Hmm! Cantonese cuisine, but it seems to be missing something." Liu Yiming took a bite of the fish.

"Um... there is not enough seasoning in the United States. This chef can cook all four major cuisines, so he just made do with the existing conditions and integrated them." Someone explained.

"Are there many Chinese in New York?" Liu Yiming asked inadvertently while eating and chatting.

"Many! I think there are tens of thousands, most of them in Chinatown." The international students said.

"Hmm..." Liu Yiming wanted to target this group of people, but no one has come for so long, whether it is the Mellon Foundation or the US government, it seems that it is better to keep a low profile.

"Okay, okay, that's it! I have to go. Come, help me send a letter to Mr. Richard Mellon. You don't have to go specially. Give it to him when he comes next time." Liu Yiming pointed out the most active student.

"What's your name?" Liu Yiming asked.

"My name is Chen Zhuo, from Semarang, and I'm eighteen years old this year." Chen Zhuo said.

"Okay, remember what I said just now?" Liu Yiming nodded and asked.

Chen Zhuo nodded heavily.

"The United States doesn't welcome me very much. I have to leave. I will wait for you to come back in Nanhua, including you too." Liu Yiming pointed to those people with braids, "When the time comes, we will build Nanhua into a more prosperous and powerful country than the United States!"

The students bid farewell to the commander with tears in their eyes. Many of them even recited a poem when they were in the mood, but I didn't hear it clearly, so I can't tell you.

"Set sail!" Liu Yiming sent a telegram to Lu Zhengyang's uncle at the dock, and then boarded the Vega, which had been replenished. The Vega will go south, bypass South America, pass through the Drake Passage, and then go north.

…………

A month after leaving the United States, the Vega came to the most turbulent strait in the world, the Drake Passage. When he came here, Liu Yiming couldn't help but admire the great power of nature.

Unfortunately, before he finished praising her, Zhang You started to get seasick again.

"Ugh..."

Fortunately, Liu Yiming already had experience, but he still couldn't help but tease.

"Will you come again next time?" Liu Yiming said with a teasing tone.

"Humph! I'll come! I won't take you with me! Vega is my ship. You've been sitting for so long, give me money!"

Amidst the teasing, Vega passed the Drake Passage without any danger and changed its course to the north. Liu Yiming got off the ship in Peru and prepared to discuss the import of saltpeter and the contracting of mines with Chile, but a telegram from Xu Hui forced Liu Yiming to cancel the subsequent visit plan.

"Lin Anmin, you take people to visit Chile and Peru, mainly for the import of saltpeter and the contracting of mines. No matter what, the mines must be obtained. We don't want saltpeter mines. Don't tell them what mines they are. Most of those places are barren land. Just use the purchase of prospecting rights as an excuse to return the saltpeter mines to them free of charge after exploration."

"In addition, the trade treaty can also be discussed, but they don't lack agricultural products. The main discussion is industrial products. Pharmaceuticals will open the way, daily chemicals will be dumped, and heavy industrial products will be discussed later." Liu Yiming hurriedly boarded the ship and embarked on the return journey.

As for saltpeter, it is the most important strategic resource at the moment, but Liu Yiming only imported a small amount. Synthetic ammonia can already be mass-produced, and the imported saltpeter is used as a cover-up. Liu Yiming plans to apply for a patent for synthetic ammonia in 1907. He has no other intentions, just to disgust the Germans.

Who told the Germans to disgust Liu Yiming? Before this, Liu Yiming thought the British were arrogant enough, but he didn't expect that Germany and France were even more arrogant!

The most important thing is copper mines. Half of the global reserves are in South America, and Chile ranks first in South America, followed by Peru.

Liu Yiming believes that only children make choices, and I want everything that adults choose! The role of copper mines will soon surpass most ores. The second industrial revolution is the world of copper and aluminum!

Let's not talk about the negotiations between Chile and Peru for the time being. After a month and ten days of sailing, on November 20, the Vega returned to Surabaya Port. The port, which was once a commercial port, is now divided into a dedicated berthing area.

There are several merchant ships docked, and the South China soldiers are boarding in an orderly manner. Looking at the numbers, they are soldiers from the Fourth Brigade.

"Commander, welcome home!" Xu Hui hurriedly greeted Liu Yiming, apologized to Zhang You, and took Liu Yiming to the government hall.

"Have you found out who leaked the information?" Liu Yiming asked in the car.

Liu Yiming hurried back because the Dutch were sending more troops to Kalimantan, and they seemed to have noticed Nanhua's plan.

"It was the British." Xu Hui looked complicated.

"Huh~" Liu Yiming was very angry, "Did Cyril say anything?"

"Commander, I didn't say it comprehensively. It wasn't the British government who did it. It was the British-Indian Army in the Brunei colony. After drinking, they went out to tease the little girl and let it slip that many Chinese soldiers went to Brunei." Xu Hui said.

But what Xu Hui didn't say was that the soldiers of the Indian army thought that these Chinese were going to steal their jobs and work like dogs, so they were upset and drank, and then spread it out.

"Can't the British be more reliable!" Liu Yiming held his forehead. It would be better if he was tricked by the British, at least there would be some depth.

"The British are fully cooperating. Wang Yang replaced the 4th Brigade with British equipment and sent it to Kalimantan to prepare for the implementation of the plan." Xu Hui said.

"Not enough. The Fourth Brigade has good combat power, but too few people. Send another brigade." Liu Yiming said without thinking.

"There are only two brigades in Java. Is that enough?" Xu Hui said.

"Draw out 3,000 people from the Production and Construction Corps and 2,000 people from the militia. The deputy commander of the Fourth Brigade will serve as the chief commander. There will be a new brigade. Not only that, the other three brigades will also be expanded in this way." Liu Yiming said.

"Will this be..." Xu Hui wanted to say something.

"There is no time to slowly arrange. After a month of training, they can be deployed. The Dutch are even less prepared than us. The biggest enemy of Kalimantan is still the natives. From this point of view, Wang Yang is right to send the Fourth Brigade." As he spoke, he had arrived at the Government Affairs Office...