Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty

"What is the theory of sea power? We still have to start from the essence of sea power."

Jiang Xinghuo said: "The cost of long-distance water transportation, if the distance is extended to thousands of miles, can be regarded as almost one-tenth of the cost of land transportation."

"Suppose the Ming Dynasty relaxed its maritime ban and conducted large-scale maritime trade."

Jiang Xinghuo looked at the two of them thoughtfully.

"For example, it is also the Silk Road. Assuming that the end points are all areas controlled by the Great Food Law, the result of the cost advantage is that the cost of ocean trade transporting the same goods through water transport must be much lower than that of land transport. This means The benefits of sea transport are far greater than those of land transport.”

"We have said before that economic factors follow economic interests. So as long as large-scale maritime trade is carried out, will coastal cities and ports develop rapidly? Will the population and economy gather in coastal cities and ports?"

This actually contains the root of the problem of uneven regional development.

There is no way, people only care about money. The cost of sea transportation is 90% lower than that of land transportation. Only people who can't think about it will use land transportation.

And those who can't think about it are destined to lose their pants and be eliminated by the market.

As time goes on, more and more population, economic and other resources will naturally gather in coastal cities and ports.

"That's true." Zheng He nodded.

Jiang Xinghuo said: "Then I am the same as the land power theory. I mention the content of the sea power theory, and you can judge whether what I say makes sense."

Seeing the two people nodding, Jiang Xinghuo elaborated.

"Since the land bridge has a heartland, the theory of land power holds that if you control the heartland, you control the world island, and if you control the world island, you control the world."

"Then the theory of sea power is tit for tat. Based on the fact that the cost of sea transportation is lower than that of land transportation, it will inevitably lead to the concentration of population and economic resources in coastal cities. The theory of sea power believes that the population and economic resources in the 'marginal zone' along the coast will increase over time. The economy will reach far beyond the 'heartland' of the World Island Central Continental Bridge."

"Through continued maritime trade, this population and economic agglomeration effect will not only occur in these areas, but also at important nodes on the shipping routes, such as ports, straits, key islands, etc. These places will also become Part of 'The Fringe'."

"Having an overwhelmingly superior naval fleet, as well as attached land and overseas bases, and supply and repair ports, can control the 'edge zone', that is, have control of the sea."

"Countries with sea control can seize overseas colonies, seize overseas markets, and further expand their advantages in the 'marginal zone'."

"In other words, as long as the 'periphery' surrounds the 'heartland', sea power can be used to restrict land power. So who unified or integrated the eastern edge of the world island (East Asia) or the western edge of the world island (Western Europe) ), whoever controls the most potential areas on the World Island can become the overlord of the World Island."

"Do you think the sea power theory is reasonable?"

Zhu Gaoxu thought for a while and then said: "I think it makes some sense. At least it is more reasonable than the land power theory that no one else can do except the Mongolians of Genghis Khan's generation."

"You might as well talk about it." Jiang Xinghuo encouraged.

"It's still the world island war that Mr. Jiang mentioned before in the second volume of "On National Destiny". At that time, I remember you said that a main island, no matter how large it is, has limited resources. Facing an island that occupies more islands, it will inevitably fail."

Zhu Gaoxu's wisdom increased visibly.

"Then if we talk about fighting a war, the theory of land power is defensive operations, and the theory of sea power is encirclement operations. Encirclement operations are much more proactive than defensive operations!"

"The encircling party can choose to attack on any side, concentrate its forces to attack one point, and cut off all the enemy's retreat routes."

"More importantly, the implementation conditions of the sea power theory are not as harsh as the land power theory. There is no need to have tens of thousands of hard-working soldiers like the Mongols. The soldiers can be directly transported by ship and water. Shipping to any port.”

Jiang Xinghuo nodded repeatedly after hearing this.

If "we, the Qing Dynasty," had this understanding, why would we be passively beaten everywhere along the coast?

Isn't this the best example of sea power beating land power?

The Yingge Blue Army with tens of thousands of people can defeat "our Qing Dynasty" with hundreds of thousands of troops begging for mercy.

At this time, Zheng He also said.

"The theory of sea power is naturally much more reliable than the theory of land power, but I have a question. If the key to the theory of sea power is that the naval fleet needs to have control of the sea, then the key to control of the sea is naturally to be dispersed in the 'marginal zone' There are many ports, key islands, and straits on the route, but these places are destined to be far away from the Ming Dynasty."

Jiang Xinghuo agreed with this view and added.

"It is said in "Zhu Zhiwu Retreats the Qin Army": The country of Yue is too far away, so you know how difficult it is. This is the truth."

"So that brings up another issue."

Jiang Xinghuo said slowly and seriously.

"A hegemonic country with sea control must exclusively occupy key nodes on the route that can bring massive wealth, such as ports, islands, and straits. However, these places will be far away from the mainland. In this case, how to To maintain maritime rule?”

Judging from the historical experience of Jiang Xinghuo's previous life, since the opening of the new sea route, the history of the rise and fall of every great country that has sat on the throne of world hegemony is a history of the rise and fall of its maritime power.

Because of this, Jiang Xinghuo included the theory of sea power in the third volume of "The Theory of National Destiny".

Xipanya, Putaoya, Helan, and Yinggelan Chou all rose up by possessing sea power. This was still the case until Jiang Xinghuo's previous life. This historical law of national destiny will not cause any problems when the Ming Dynasty is destroyed.

Similarly, these world hegemons with sea power have also figured out an effective theory for safeguarding sea power through long-term practice.

Why is Yinggelan always misbehaving and always making trouble everywhere?

Why does the Ugly Kingdom always stir up trouble and collude with others?

The truth lies in what Jiang Xinghuo said below.

"And this is a topic that will inevitably arise from the geopolitical temple game in terms of sea power."

The two pricked up their ears.

Jiang Xinghuo wrote a few big characters on the ground and read.

""Great Power Game Science"."

"Sea power hegemons must use the "Great Power Game Theory" to check, balance, suppress, encircle, and isolate their opponents who can threaten sea power."

"If we can't do that, then the key nodes on the route will be really beyond our reach. At that time, we can only give up the massive wealth brought by the route and return to the mainland, which means losing sea power."

"Next, I will briefly teach you what "Great Power Game Studies" is through several parts."

——————

The secret room next door.

Zhu Di put his hand on his forehead.

Zhu Di was trying to recall what the first volume of "On National Destiny" was about more than two months ago.

After recalling it for a long time, Zhu Di vaguely remembered that the first volume of "On National Destiny" seemed to mention the Ming Dynasty's voyages to the West for maritime trade.

Zhu Di had wanted to do this for a long time, and he was unambiguous.

Thanks to Dao Yan's planning and promotion, Ming Dynasty's first five-year shipbuilding plan has also been launched. So far, the shipbuilding progress of the Ming Dynasty has been advancing steadily. Thanks to the great wood that Zhu Yuanzhang, the great emperor of the Ming Dynasty, left for future generations, it is enough to build a huge fleet that is absolutely invincible in the world today.

Zhu Gaochi turned around and said softly: "The Game of Great Powers is completely different from the previously unscrupulous [Iron Horse] and [Thousand Miles of Text]."

Xia Yuanji nodded. This was much more reliable. He didn't know why Master Jiang just mentioned the strategy of 'dividing power between the emperor and the prince', which was obviously testing the emperor's bottom line.

"Very clear derivation."

Li Zhigang, who had never listened to the previous class, now found it interesting.

"From the land power of the Mongols, which is the heart of the continental bridge, we reflect and discuss the reasons for the failure of the Han and Tang Dynasties to control the trade routes in the Western Regions. We draw the result that there is a huge gap in the cost of water transportation and land transportation, and then deduce the corresponding large-scale ocean trade. It will lead to the economic agglomeration of the coastal cities and ports on the shipping routes, that is, the periphery surrounds the heartland, and only those with sea power can control the periphery and then control the world." Zhu Gaochi probably concluded to his father.

When Zhu Di heard this, he raised his head and said, "So, this is a brand new theory."

"Li Shangshu."

"I'm here!"

Li Zhigang's heart skipped a beat, and he didn't know why the emperor was looking for him.

Zhu Di said: "Now that the Ministry of Rites of the Ming Dynasty has come to negotiate the tribute system of various vassal states, can this be said?"

Li Zhigang felt helpless: "Of course there is no such thing."

Zhu Di smiled and said: "Well, then follow Mr. Jiang and learn hard. You will definitely use it in the future."

Li Zhigang had no choice but to agree repeatedly.

Dao Yan suddenly spoke at this time.

"His Majesty."

"Oh? What's wrong with Master Daoyan?" Zhu Di turned his head and looked.

Dao Yan said slowly: "This "Great Power Game Science" may be used to check and balance the Timur Khanate."

"Master is saying?!"

Zhu Di suddenly realized something and his eyes lit up.

——————

“The first part of ‘Great Power Game Science’ is ‘Offensive Realism’.”

“What is ‘offensive realism’?”

Jiang Xinghuo pointed at the two of them and smiled: "If we are prisoners who don't know each other, and we are extremely hungry at this time, and there is a steamed bun on the ground, what do you think will happen?"

Zhu Gaoxu scratched his beard, and Zheng He also scratched himself and started to grow his beard.

The two of them almost said in unison: "Let's fight!"

"That's it." Jiang Xinghuo explained: "The so-called 'offensive realism' refers to the fact that in the absence of a unified organization that can maintain peace, the first thing that big countries must consider is survival, and all big countries are very You will soon realize that dominant power, especially dominant sea power, is the key to its survival."

"Then the relationship between countries will become tense. International, that is, the communication between countries. In the international system, there are no countries that maintain the status quo, except for the kind of temporary hegemons and big powers that want to maintain a short-term dominance over potential opponents. Rarely are we satisfied with the distribution of power before us.”

"On the contrary, all major powers always have the motivation to seek change centered on their own interests, that is, if they can suppress their opponents."

Jiang Xinghuo pointed at Zhu Gaoxu: "Suppose we are all separate countries now, and I am the largest country, and you are the second country after me, that is, the second child."

When Zhu Gaoxu heard the last two words, his heart skipped a beat, and he became panicked for a moment.

Mr. Jiang won't know my identity, right?

"That is to say, a great power is mainly measured by its relative military strength. For a country to qualify as a great power, it must have sufficient military capabilities. The second largest country may not have the strength to defeat the hegemonic power, but it must have the ability to turn conflicts into consumption. War will seriously weaken the potential of the dominant country, even if the dominant country ultimately wins the war."

Jiang Xinghuo asked: "As a human being, a balance of power briefly formed between you and me. This balance of power is not that you and I are evenly matched, but that I can't kill you for the time being. So what do you think I should do?"

Zhu Gaoxu replied: "Looking for an opportunity to kill me?"

"This is the truth. The principles between people are also universal between countries. This is the case in "The Game of Great Powers". If the goal can be achieved at a cost-effective cost, then the big country will use force to change the balance of power. But Sometimes, when great powers believe that the cost of changing the balance of power is too high, they have to wait for a more favorable situation, but the desire to acquire more power, especially more sea power, will not disappear unless a country Complete domination.”

Zheng He couldn't help but said: "How is this possible? There will always be challengers, right?"

"yes."

Jiang Xinghuo smiled half-heartedly.

“Since no country can completely achieve hegemony, the entire world will be filled with permanent great power competition.”

"This is the origin of the "Great Power Game Science"."

“This ruthless pursuit of sea power means that any potential power may change the distribution of sea power. Once they have the necessary strength, they will seize these opportunities. In short, potential powers have premeditated plans to seize power. "

"So, in order to obtain sea power, a big country will not only sacrifice the interests of other countries, but also prevent its opponents from obtaining sea power at any cost. Therefore, when sea power changes in favor of another country, a big country will try its best to defend the balance of power; And when there is a possibility of change that is beneficial to the country, it will seize the opportunity and find ways to tip the balance."

Jiang Xinghuo said: "This is the content of the first part, and in the second part of "Great Power Game Science", I will continue to talk about what national power is."

Zhu Gaoxu and Zheng He both listened with rapt attention.

Especially Zheng He, it seemed as if a new door had been opened at this time.

Behind the gate are thousands of miles of waves and sea power, as well as a new model of how to get along with other countries.