Chapter 3580
Chapter 3580
Chapter 3580
Regardless of whether the other party was inquiring for information in a private capacity or representing the Ming Dynasty officials, Tao Hongfang would certainly not admit that Hai Han was about to launch a war against the Ming Dynasty again.
What's more, he has not yet met Shi Chengwu, who has just returned to Nanjing, and is still unclear about the real purpose of transferring this fleet to Nanjing, so he naturally cannot express his opinion easily.
So no matter how the other party hinted, Tao Hongfang just insisted that this was a normal deployment and that he had no intention of attacking the Ming Dynasty. Seeing that he could not get any useful information from him, the other party could only leave in disappointment.
I don’t know whether the rain-praying ceremony at the Da Baoen Temple a few days ago really worked, or the arrival of the East China Sea Fleet changed the fortune of Yingtian Prefecture, but at noon that day, there was an unanticipated rainfall.
However, this also disrupted Shi Chengwu's plan. He wanted to take this opportunity to hold a review ceremony at Yanziji Wharf to show the public the mighty appearance of the East China Sea Fleet. However, after the rain, many onlookers dispersed. Holding a review ceremony in the rain would certainly not be very effective, so Shi Chengwu had to give up the idea.
It was not until that afternoon that Tao Hongfang met Shi Chengwu, who had hurried over to take over his work.
Although the two were both officials in Nanjing, they belonged to different departments and were busy with work, so they could not meet each other all the time. After exchanging a few pleasantries, they turned the topic to business.
What Tao Hongfang was most concerned about was, of course, the fleet that had just arrived at Yanziji Wharf outside the city: "Chengwu, why did the higher-ups suddenly dispatch such a large fleet to Nanjing?"
Shi Chengwu responded, "This is an arrangement made by the regional combat headquarters. The purpose is to strengthen armed patrol activities in the Yangtze River Basin and deter the Ming Dynasty from taking any rash actions."
Tao Hongfang asked in confusion: "Armed patrols? Is this really necessary? There doesn't seem to be any news indicating any dangerous movements on the other side of the strait in the near future."
Shi Chengwu coughed dryly and said, "Perhaps the higher-ups feel that our combat readiness has been somewhat lax, so they're trying to tighten it up for us."
Upon hearing this, Tao Hongfang subconsciously glanced at the clockwork clock on the bookcase, wondering if it was possible that the higher-ups felt that he had not made any moves in Nanjing and was slacking off, so they wanted to deploy some military operations to keep the Management Committee busy?
But he immediately overturned this idea. Shi Chengwu's words proved his previous guess, that the transfer of the East China Sea Fleet to Nanjing was not an order from the Executive Committee and the Ministry of National Defense, but an arrangement of the East China Sea Regional Operations Command, and the one who held the military power of the East China Sea Region was Shi Chengwu's father Shi Diwen.
Tao Hongfang didn't know that Shi Diwen had quietly returned to Hangzhou, and Shi Chengwu was called back to Nanjing to see him. But it was not difficult for Tao Hongfang to think that this transfer should have come from Shi Diwen's idea.
Tao Hongfang did not think that Nanjing's war preparedness was slack. He felt that Shi Diwen's deployment seemed more like an attempt to increase Shi Chengwu's influence in Nanjing.
However, if such words were spoken in front of Shi Chengwu, it would be disrespectful to the elder. Tao Hongfang could only ask indirectly what kind of support the fleet needed to provide after it settled down in Yanziji.
Shi Chengwu responded: "I think the most needed support is to control local public opinion and prevent the people from thinking that a war is about to break out, so as to avoid causing unnecessary chaos."
The scale of this fleet far exceeded Shi Chengwu's expectations. He could fully imagine how many unreliable rumors would arise among the people after a large number of people witnessed the fleet entering Yanziji.
Once people believe that war is about to break out again, there may be a wave of refugees due to panic, and the losses that will be caused will be difficult to predict.
After listening to this, Tao Hongfang couldn't help but smile: "Chengwu, are you worried that the rumors of war will cause panic among the local people? I think you are overthinking it." Shi Chengwu said: "What do you mean?"
Tao Hongfang explained: "According to what I have learned, the discussion about this fleet is indeed very heated inside and outside the city, but it has not caused the panic you are worried about. Many people are more concerned about how ordinary people will benefit if our country launches an offensive against Ming again."
"When everyone thinks the war will be one-sided, there may be more people in the private sector who want to take advantage of the war to make money than you and I imagine."
After Shi Chengwu thought about it, he had to admit that what Tao Hongfang said did make some sense.
The strength shown by the Hai Han army during the battle last year, although it cannot be said to be crushing, at least it did leave the Ming army completely helpless. The local people who witnessed this battle will naturally have a clearer understanding of the Hai Han army's combat effectiveness.
If war breaks out again, the people will certainly believe that the obviously stronger Hai Han army will continue to win, and the war is unlikely to spread to the Yingtian Prefecture area, which has become Hai Han territory.
Under such circumstances, the public's pessimism about the war may not be as much as Shi Chengwu worries.
Tao Hongfang continued, "The people who are really anxious are on the other side of the river. Someone has come to me today to sound me out. The panic you're worried about may occur, but it's unlikely to happen on our side."
When Shi Chengwu asked him further, Tao Hongfang recounted in detail the visit of the wealthy businessman from the other side of the strait today.
Shi Chengwu knew a little about the situation of this wealthy businessman, so it was not difficult for him to understand Tao Hongfang's story. He also believed that the other party should have come on behalf of the Ming government.
However, Shi Chengwu had another idea: "Hongfang, as you said, the other side has become nervous after seeing the arrival of this fleet. I think we should take advantage of the situation to add fuel to the fire and create more tension on the other side."
"If we can create some chaos on the other side without starting a war, and even better, trigger a refugee crisis, that would be an effective offensive!"
Tao Hongfang asked: "What do you want to do?"
Shi Chengwu said: "Then we have to return to the topic just now. We need to control public opinion first."
Tao Hongfang immediately understood what Shi Chengwu was planning and nodded, "You mean, we should use public opinion to artificially create panic on the other side and make the people there flee on their own initiative."
Shi Chengwu added: "Not only should we let them flee, but we should also try to drive them to our territory."
Such measures had not been taken before, firstly because they had not been authorized by the Hai Han high-level officials, and secondly because the armed fleet stationed locally was of limited size and could not provide a strong enough deterrent.
Now that these two conditions are met, Shi Chengwu can't wait to give it a try.