[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-rise-of-the-empire-spain":3,"chapter-rise-of-the-empire-spain-rise-of-the-empire-spain-chapter-84":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Rise of the Empire: Spain",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2365012,4632,"Chapter 84: Colonial Plan (Please Subscribe!)","rise-of-the-empire-spain-chapter-84",84,"\u003Cp>\"How many troops do we currently have that can be committed to Morocco?\" Gao Da asked after thinking carefully for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing that Gao Da had an idea, Serrano replied quickly, \"20,000 Spanish troops can be deployed at any time, Your Majesty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If we add the troops we have deployed in Ceuta and Tetouan, there are about 30,000 troops that can be mobilized, which is more than enough to deal with the Moroccan army.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ceuta and Tetouan were Moroccan cities occupied by Spanish military force, so naturally, they required more troops to suppress them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Spain also viewed these two cities as bridgeheads for colonizing Morocco; whether during the reign of Queen Isabella or now, the garrisons in these two cities had never been reduced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What does the government intend to do?\" Gao Da turned his gaze toward Primo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Make the situation in Ceuta more chaotic; only then can it affect the entire Moroccan region,\" Primo said with a smile. \"As long as these Moroccan rebellions cause casualties among Spanish civilians, that will be the moment for our army to declare war on Morocco.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Moroccan government could not escape responsibility for the Moroccan rebellions; as long as there were casualties among Spanish civilians, Spain would have sufficient grounds to intervene militarily in the Moroccan situation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once the war broke out, the final outcome would no longer be up to the Moroccan government.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the great powers did not intervene, it would not be impossible to turn Morocco directly into a colony. In any case, it is quite convenient to suppress rebellions given the proximity to the Spanish mainland.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By continuously squeezing Morocco, Spain could accelerate its industrial construction and economic growth, and also divert domestic conflicts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Very good, let's do that.\" Gao Da nodded, no longer hesitating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As you command, Your Majesty.\" Primo nodded with a smile upon hearing this, and walked out of the Wang Gong with Serrano.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although Spain was not a great power, its desire for colonies was no less than that of the great powers. As the world's first empire on which the sun never sets, Spain once possessed vast colonies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although there were few colonies left now, the Spanish government, including Prime Minister Primo, still harbored a desire for colonies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was also the norm for European countries in this era. If Spain and Portugal had witnessed the huge income brought by colonization through the Age of Discovery, then the strength of the British Empire had caused the colonial ambitions of European countries to expand continuously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As long as it was a European country, it basically had thoughts of expanding its colonies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fact that countries like Portugal and Belgium possessed colonies in Africa was enough to prove the influence of colonization on European countries in this era; it could quickly make a country wealthy without requiring too much investment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Primo and Serrano walked out of the Wang Gong, Gao Da called for the butler, Luo Lun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The desire of Primo and Serrano for Morocco also reminded Gao Da. Although Africa was vast, almost all the great powers had focused their attention on this continent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Spain did not participate in the scramble for Africa early, what might be left for Spain in the future would only be desolate deserts and uninhabited primeval forests.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Africa possessed an area of up to 30 million square kilometers, with countless types of mineral resources, and its economic value was immeasurable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As long as it could occupy a part of the African region, it would be a great help to Spain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since the government was already keeping an eye on Morocco, Gao Da naturally set his sights on other regions of Africa, such as the Congo, which Belgium had obtained in history.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were many reasons why Belgium could obtain the Congo, but in the final analysis, it was because several European great powers were unwilling to let the others obtain this land.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the King of Belgium happened to appear at this time and began the exploration and occupation of the Congo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to the Congo being occupied by other great powers, a Belgium with significantly weaker comprehensive strength was naturally no threat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was precisely because of this that this land finally fell into the hands of the Congo, allowing the Congo to snatch this piece of fat from the hands of many great powers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How vast was this Congo colony that Belgium obtained? The total area reached 2.34 million square kilometers, and it possessed a large amount of mineral resources.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The copper reserves of the Congo were about 75 million tons, accounting for 15% of the world's total reserves; cobalt reserves were about 4.5 million tons, accounting for 50% of the world's total reserves; tantalum ore reserves were about 30 million tons, accounting for 80% of the world's total reserves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In addition, the Congo also possessed 206 million carats of diamond reserves and extremely rich iron ore, non-metallic minerals, and other resources.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides minerals, the Congo also possessed large reserves of oil and natural gas, and its economic value was definitely far greater than that of ordinary colonies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, what moved Gao Da even more was that the Congo possessed a large amount of uranium ore, and the purity of this uranium ore was extremely high.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The uranium-235 extracted from uranium ore was the main raw material for making atomic bombs; if he could occupy the Congo, it would be of significant help when Spain developed atomic bombs in the future.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Higher purity uranium ore could help Spain better extract uranium-235, which was quite important for Spain's future strategic deployment, and its importance was no less than that of the Congo's other mineral resources.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If nothing else, the sheer purity of these uranium ores alone made Gao Da decide to take the Congo at all costs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At present, the biggest enemy for Spain to take the Congo was actually Belgium, or rather, King Leopold II of Belgium.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because King Leopold II of Belgium did not use government funds in the process of colonizing the Congo; all expenses came from the property of the Belgian royal family.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This also led to Leopold II successfully turning the Congo into his own territory after obtaining the right to rule it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Da did not think he would lose to Leopold II in this colonial scramble; after all, he could also rely on the Spanish government, and the Spanish government was far stronger than Belgium.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even without rising to the national level, Gao Da was confident that he could surpass Leopold II.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time Spain's five-year industrial development plan was completed, Gao Da's factories would have long been earning a fortune.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At least in terms of throwing money around, Gao Da was really not afraid of Leopold II. In any case, relying on his vision from the future and massive capital, Gao Da could earn enough funds at any time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just like the engine research that Benz and others were conducting. Once they manufactured automobiles and significantly reduced production costs through assembly line production, the sales of automobiles would be enough for Gao Da to never worry about funding again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How much property could Leopold II have? And how much would he dare to take out to engage in a colonial struggle with Gao Da?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since Gao Da was exploring the Congo region earlier than Leopold II, it was already destined that Leopold II would be at a disadvantage in this colonial struggle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Daily 10,000 words, day 2\u002F7, 6,200\u002F10,000 updated today.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1260,"2026-06-25T09:27:12.995Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","29c00e8cb09d1bcecb00a9cfc932a0f672730001646d379cce3a5a27e8b052d7","rise-of-the-empire-spain-chapter-85","rise-of-the-empire-spain-chapter-83",493,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Frise-of-the-empire-spain-cover.jpg"]