Chapter 191: Southern Inspection of Southern Morocco

"Your Majesty, are you truly determined to do this?" Inside the Madrid Royal Palace, Prime Minister Primo, whose face was usually calm and unruffled, wore an expression of astonishment as he looked at Gao Da with disbelief.

"If I don't do this, these rats hiding in the dark corners will never show themselves." Gao Da wore a faint smile, as if he had not the slightest worry about his own proposal just now:

"I do not wish to let a single rat escape; this will be a perfect opportunity to catch them all in one net."

"But, doing this is far too dangerous." Prime Minister Primo was still somewhat worried; after all, Gao Da's proposal could be considered quite bold:

"What if the enemy launches an assassination attempt on you in Southern Morocco? If any accident were to befall you, it would still be enough to destroy the current situation in Spain.

Your Majesty, you should stay in Madrid. The army will handle any threats for you and will never let the enemy approach the vicinity of Madrid."

The proposal Gao Da put forward that surprised Prime Minister Primo was to head south to inspect Southern Morocco during this cloudy and overcast time.

More than five years had passed since the establishment of the Southern Morocco colony, and the construction of the colony had already yielded significant results.

At that time, Gao Da and Prime Minister Primo had engaged in a political interest exchange; Prime Minister Primo had proposed the candidate for the first Viceroy of the Southern Morocco colony, and Canovas had thus ascended to the high position of Minister of Agriculture.

Now, five years had passed, and the Southern Morocco colony had welcomed its second Viceroy, Count Antonio, a seemingly very ordinary Spanish nobleman.

After five years of development, the number of Moroccans within the Southern Morocco colony had seen a sharp decline. When Spain had just occupied this land, over a million Moroccans were still living on it.

But now, according to the estimates of the Southern Morocco colonial government, the number of Moroccans in the Southern Morocco region did not exceed 800, 00.

Agadir was the largest city in the Southern Morocco colony and the location of the colonial capital. The reason Gao Da chose to inspect the Southern Morocco colony at this time, besides wanting to lure the snakes out of their holes, was that the development of the Southern Morocco colony truly required an inspection.

The development of the port of Agadir had been quite rapid since the founding of Southern Morocco. The vast majority of the materials produced by the colony were gathered at the port of Agadir and transported to the Spanish mainland by sea.

In these five years, a cumulative total of over a thousand Moroccans had chosen to join the embrace of Spain and become glorious Spaniards.

However, these people were ultimately only a tiny fraction; most Moroccans could only work as cheap labor on Spanish plantations or earn a meager, insignificant reward by serving Spanish colonists.

Although these Moroccans were also white, their treatment was only slightly better than that of the indigenous people in other Spanish colonies.

Unless they were willing to join Spanish nationality and voluntarily convert to Catholicism, they and their children and descendants would always be cheap labor for Spain.

There were only two ways to join Spanish nationality: one was to marry Spanish soldiers stationed locally; after becoming their wives, they could join Spanish nationality.

The second way was for those who had made huge contributions to the colonial government to be nominated as Moroccan immigrants and join Spanish nationality through immigration.

But no matter which way, on average, no more than 200 Moroccans could join Spain each year, and every single person had to undergo a fairly strict political vetting.

Those more extreme Muslims had basically no possibility of joining Spain. After all, Spain was a Catholic country; if there were too many infidels, it would cause damage to the stability of the country.

Returning to Gao Da's proposal, although Prime Minister Primo did not want Gao Da to risk going to the Southern Morocco colony, Gao Da clearly did not want to wait like this any longer.

Only by luring the snakes out of their holes and successfully wiping out these rebellious nobles and other forces could Spain's future political environment achieve long-term stability.

Although there were certain risks in going to Southern Morocco, Gao Da was not going alone. Not only would a Royal Guard of over a thousand men accompany him for protection, but the Royal Security Intelligence Agency would also arrange for a large number of intelligence personnel to be scattered along the route to ensure that Gao Da would not encounter any danger.

For the sake of the safety of Gao Da's itinerary, the inspection route would not be disclosed, and the Spanish naval fleet would also accompany him for protection to ensure the entire trip was foolproof.

After confirming that he could no longer persuade Gao Da to change his mind, Prime Minister Primo finally nodded and instructed: "Your Majesty, I have nothing more to say. May God bless you, and may your journey be smooth.

I will hold down the fort in Madrid for you. Whether it is Queen Isabella or the Carlists, they will eventually be swept into the dustbin of history and become fertilizer for Spain's development.

Spain will only continue to move forward under your leadership. Your Majesty, you must remember to return safely."

Gao Da nodded, his eyes full of solemnity: "Rest assured, Prime Minister Primo, I am still waiting to witness with you the day Spain achieves its great revival.

Before Spain walks to the pinnacle of the world, it is impossible for me to break my promise. What's more, there is the protection of the Royal Guard; even if the enemy has thousands of troops, what can they do to me?"

After this meeting ended, Gao Da's plan to lure the snakes out of their holes was successfully formulated.

For the safety of Queen Sofia and Prince Hu An Fernando, the Royal Guard would continue to be stationed in the suburbs of Madrid to protect the political center of Spain.

And the Madrid Royal Palace would also strengthen its defensive forces; with the inside and outside coordination of the Royal Guard, even a regular army would be unable to threaten the safety of the Madrid Royal Palace.

After arranging all the defensive forces of the palace, Gao Da, under the gaze of Prime Minister Primo, amidst the complex looks of many government officials, and under the farewell of the Spanish people, boarded the fleet with a massive team of over a thousand people and began his journey of southern inspection to the Southern Morocco colony.

In order to make this southern inspection trip seem not so abrupt, the Southern Morocco colony had released news half a month ago that a large gold mine had been discovered in the colony.

As for whether the news of the gold mine was true or not, it no longer mattered; Gao Da had already left the Madrid Royal Palace for the Southern Morocco colony, which was the most important thing for Queen Isabella and the Carlist rebels.

The stability of Spain's situation could not be separated from the efforts of three people, and they were the current political triangle of Spain: Prime Minister Primo, Grand Duke Serrano, and Gao Da.

After Gao Da left Madrid, only the two old men, Primo and Grand Duke Serrano, were left to guard Madrid.

Although it was extremely difficult to overthrow the current Spanish government, for Queen Isabella and the Carlists, this might be the best opportunity.

Even though Prime Minister Primo and Grand Duke Serrano could control Spanish politics when united, they could not control every corner of the Spanish political scene.

Although the overall direction of the Spanish government was under the leadership of Prime Minister Primo, there were still some officials who were not satisfied with the government's existing system.

The previously introduced official performance appraisal system was a fatal blow to some slack officials. If they received a poor evaluation in the performance appraisal, not only would it be very difficult to be re-elected to their current positions, but wanting to advance further was out of the question.

The Spanish public also attached great importance to the official appraisal results published by the government; basically, as long as an official received a poor grade, they would no longer gain the trust and support of the people.

Since the promulgation of the performance appraisal system, most of Spain's officials had been absolutely trembling as they completed their tasks.

This feeling of having one's fate in the hands of others was like a Sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of these officials; one careless move could cost them their lives.

After everyone boarded the fleet, the fleet began to head south along the Mediterranean, passed through the Strait of Gibraltar, and entered the vast Atlantic Ocean.

Although they could head south along the east coast of the Atlantic to reach the Southern Morocco colony, for Gao Da, there was no rush to go to Southern Morocco so early.

Gao Da first ordered the fleet to head west into the vast Atlantic, and then had the fleet focus its fire on a certain assumed target to test the reaction capability and combat effectiveness of the warships.

After everything was completed, Gao Da then ordered the fleet to head south to Southern Morocco.

Although Gao Da arrived at the port of Agadir in Southern Morocco several hours later than expected, the colonial Viceroy, Count Antonio, did not dare to have the slightest dissatisfaction and quite respectfully led the colonial officials and garrison officers to welcome Gao Da's arrival at the port of Agadir.

After the fleet approached the port, first, over a thousand soldiers wearing the uniforms of the Royal Guard disembarked from the transport ships in a grand manner. After they stood in neat rows at the port, Gao Da and his party then disembarked from the warships in the fleet.

The officer leading this small-scale Royal Guard was Alessandro Leif Valang, one of the first excellent graduates of the Royal Military Academy. He was awarded the rank of Captain on the day of his graduation and was selected in the subsequent officer selection for the Royal Guard.

Because of his excellent performance in the Royal Guard and the expansion of the Royal Guard, Alessandro Leif Valang, who was originally a company commander, was first promoted to Deputy Battalion Commander of the 7th Infantry Battalion of the 2nd Guard Infantry Regiment of the Guard Division, and then was exceptionally promoted to Battalion Commander of the 14th Infantry Battalion of the 4th Infantry Regiment of the Guard Division.

The main body of the over a thousand Royal Guard soldiers responsible for protecting Gao Da's safety this time was composed of Alessandro Leif Valang's 14th Infantry Battalion.

The main reason Alessandro Leif Valang was able to rise rapidly in the Royal Guard was his excellent ability plus his identity as a Spaniard.

At the beginning of Gao Da's succession as King of Spain, because he was unsure of who could be used, he mainly used his subordinates brought from Italy.

But now, Gao Da had cultivated a group of Spanish confidants through various means, so he naturally had to reuse these Spanish subordinates.

After all, this was Spain; a small number of Italians could rise to power through Gao Da's favor, but most of the people Gao Da reused had to be Spaniards.

As Gao Da stepped onto the land of Southern Morocco, the Southern Morocco colonial Viceroy, Count Antonio, led a group of officials and colonial garrison officers to quickly step forward and said to Gao Da with a very respectful attitude: "Your Majesty, Antonio, on behalf of the officials and colonial garrison officers of the Southern Morocco colony, greets you!"

Gao Da nodded and looked at the colonial Viceroy in front of him.

Under the investigation of the Royal Security Intelligence Agency, Count Antonio's family background and recent movements were clear at a glance.

Although Count Antonio's ability was not very strong, fortunately, his loyalty could be guaranteed. His family had not been reused during the reign of Queen Isabella; after all, they were just an ordinary member of Spain's vast noble system.

Before being appointed as the Viceroy of the Southern Morocco colony, Count Antonio had always stayed honestly in his castle; apart from keeping a few mistresses, he had no major stains.

This was nothing in this era; after all, some nobles even had dozens or hundreds of mistresses, so many that they couldn't even count them.

As long as it wasn't the kind of forcing good women into prostitution, Gao Da didn't care how many mistresses his nobles and officials had.

After Count Antonio, a group of colonial officials and garrison officers bowed respectfully to Gao Da.

The number of people bowing was actually not many, counting them all up, there were less than ten people. Although there were many colonial officials and garrison officers, only a few of these officials and officers were qualified to meet Gao Da and bow in person.

Led by Count Antonio, Gao Da and his party headed to the Colonial Viceroy's Mansion to first understand the current development status of the Southern Morocco colony.

For the transportation to the Viceroy's Mansion, Gao Da chose the luxury carriage he brought from Spain.

Yes, Gao Da also brought his custom-made luxury carriage.

There were several reasons: first, Gao Da was already used to sitting in this luxury carriage. This carriage was a size larger than a normal carriage; not only was the space larger, but the decoration was also quite luxurious.

Just the funds spent on such a carriage amounted to several thousand pesetas, which converted to gold was more than a full kilogram.

Such a carriage with a larger volume needed at least six strong horses to pull it. This time, Gao Da brought eight white horses raised in the palace from Spain, which was enough to ensure that this huge carriage could move smoothly on the land of Southern Morocco.

Although the exterior of the carriage looked wooden, the interior was inlaid with thick steel plates, which could withstand rifle fire.

The base of the carriage was protected by steel plates several centimeters thick, which could ensure that the people inside the carriage could survive safely if affected by a bomb.

Sitting in such a carriage, Gao Da didn't have to worry about his safety at all. Gao Da would not be foolish enough to stick his head out and would not create space for potential assassins to assassinate him.

Many of the high-ranking officials and nobles who were assassinated in history were riding in convertibles, without too tight security forces, walking in the public eye like that.

It was only natural to be assassinated in such a situation, and Gao Da would not put himself in a too dangerous position. Coming to Southern Morocco this time, Gao Da would of course appear in public.

But such public occasions would be searched in advance, and no one would be allowed to approach Gao Da.

After five years of construction, the port of Agadir had transformed from a Moroccan-style city into a city with a mixed style.

Especially this street near the Viceroy's Mansion, the buildings were all in Spanish style, and next to it was the barracks of the Spanish colonial army.

A colonial garrison regiment was stationed here, which could ensure the safety of the Colonial Viceroy's Mansion to the greatest extent. Not far from the Colonial Viceroy's Mansion was the location of the colonial government, which also led to this street and its surroundings being almost the political center of the entire Southern Morocco colony, and one could basically not see the figures of Moroccans.

Before coming to Southern Morocco, Gao Da had heard of one thing, which was that colonial officials were proud of having a Moroccan maid.

But after coming to Morocco, perhaps because the colonial officials learned of Gao Da's arrival, Gao Da did not find the existence of so-called Moroccan maids.

The party arrived at the Colonial Viceroy's Mansion, and the Royal Guard soon took over the defense work of the Viceroy's Mansion.

For the sake of Gao Da's safety, the Royal Guard would take over the defense work of the location where Gao Da was. Whether it was the Colonial Viceroy's Mansion or the colonial government, they were of course within this scope.

Led by Count Antonio, Gao Da and several colonial officials and officers entered the conference room of the Viceroy's Mansion for a short meeting.

Count Antonio first took out the materials that had been prepared long ago and reported to Gao Da the development status of the Southern Morocco colony to date.

Although within the five years since the establishment of the Southern Morocco colony, the population of the colony had plummeted by 200, 00. But many of these 200, 00 people were relatively extreme Muslims; because they were difficult to rule, they were either sent to mines and plantations to be worked to death, or were directly driven to the Sahara Desert in the south by tough means.

With the sacrifice of these 200, 00 people, the development of the Southern Morocco colony was also very rapid.

Currently, the colony had built an L-shaped railway on the line from Agadir to Tata and from Agadir to Tan-Tan. The total length of the railway was over 500 kilometers, which was the most important transport line in the colony at present.

It was precisely because of the existence of this railway that the Spanish army could easily reach any location in the Southern Morocco colony.

No matter where a major Moroccan rebellion broke out, the Spanish army could reach it in the shortest time and complete the rebellion-suppression work.

Since the establishment of the Southern Morocco colony, the Moroccans had had quite a few rebellious actions. But most of these resistance scales were not large, and the largest one had less than ten thousand people participating, and they were quickly suppressed by the Spanish colonial army.

The number of Spaniards in the Southern Morocco colony had also grown from the scattered few at the beginning to over a thousand, and the number was still constantly increasing.

(End of this chapter)