Chapter 217 Yang Zongli in Sumatra
Common interests are the basis of cooperation.
After long-term thinking, Hu Chuyuan made a very big concession, that is, to share the interests of vassal states and colonies with the United States. On this basis, China and the United States can maintain cooperation.
Including on the issue of the Kingdom of Hawaii, both sides are willing to continue to maintain the status quo for a long time and share the right to station troops in Hawaii.
Therefore, the United States friendly transferred their inaccessible pirate territories, including Wick Island, Toghi Island and Johnston Island, to China, while they occupied Midway Island.
Based on the symbol of a new division of forces, Germany and the United States are constantly transferring the Micronesia Islands and calling it the Roa Islands, which belong to the Qing Empire, and the Pacific Fleet of the Qing Empire has established naval bases in Guam and Nauru.
If you are greedy, you will lose, especially when you don't have enough strength... Therefore, the Kingdom of Hawaii is indeed not in Hu Chuyuan's plan.
As a friend, Hu Chuyuan is very happy to receive Princess Kaorani. He likes this exotic little aristocratic woman. Sometimes, she is arrogant, sometimes, she is intelligent, but all the time, she is beautiful.
Anyway, he can't talk about national affairs. Hu Chuyuan chatted with Princess Kaorani about some interesting things.
Inadvertently, Princess Kaorani talked about a previous joke. Hu Chuyuan said that he wanted to buy an island in Hawaii.
When this topic was mentioned again, Hu Chuyuan couldn't help laughing and said, "If you want, this transaction will always be valid. For 35 million US dollars, it can be concluded at any time."
Princess Kaorani sighed provocatively: "If you are willing to join the royal family, you don't need a penny, and you can become the king of Hawaii. We can always guarantee that this is effective."
Hu Chuyuan couldn't help but feel a little excited, but he also believed that this was just a joke between them.
However, some things always start with teasing.
Hu Chuyuan couldn't help looking at the beautiful princess in front of him. There was an indescribable sense of guilt in his heart, but he really liked this beautiful woman.
... When Hu Chuyuan was on the edge of cheating and hooking up with Xiao Si, Zhang Zhidong was dealing with some difficult official duties in the Qinzheng Hall.
As a politician, he is better at politics than Hu Chuyuan.
Over the years, he has come step by step, and his knowledge has been constantly improving during this period.
He is also constantly adapting to all kinds of new changes, including his new title - secondary phase.
Once, his dream was to be a middle court and a university scholar, but overnight, the middle court was no longer the peak of the empire. The peak was the three prime ministers - the prime minister, the second prime minister and the foreign minister.
As a secondary prime minister, Zhang Zhidong is responsible for internal affairs.
However, he has always had a huge shadow and worry in his heart. The foundation of an empire is the aristocracy. When the Manchu aristocratic system collapses, and the remaining princes have no real power. How long can the empire last when there is only a lonely emperor?
He dares not continue to think about this issue, but he knows that the problem will eventually break out.
He even suspected that Hu Chuyuan had the idea and possibility of being an emperor... This is absolutely unacceptable to him.
But he also understands that if he wants to be the enemy of Hu Chuyuan, time is his greatest weakness.
He is 61 years old, and Hu Chuyuan is only thirty-eight years old, but he controls everything in this empire. Take a look. Open your eyes and have a look. The people he can use today, the provinces of the empire... Those ministers, magistrates and governors who seem to be very capable, which one is not the Hu party?
Including himself, he is not one of the Hu parties!
Zhang Zhidong sighed silently in his heart. Instead of letting himself continue to think about it, he focused on facing the problem in front of him - the internal turmoil of Dutch Indonesia.
He drew a red circle in the message and ticked the words "Chinese reading ability".
These questions should not have been managed by Zhang Zhidong, but Foreign Minister Zhang Baixi gave him a special message today and asked him for his opinion. Zhang Baixi did not ask Hu Chuyuan's opinion first... This is worth pondering in itself.
They know that Hu Chuyuan must be involved behind the riots in Dutch India...
Zhang Zhidong thought deeply in his mind, estimated and guessed Hu Chuyuan's motivation.
What on earth does he want to do?
Zhang Zhidong is a little confused.
The Dutch can't stop it. After looking through some materials, Zhang Zhidong can confirm the news. Among the mutadals in Dutch Indonesia, Zhang Zhidong quickly found a little mistake... Several rebel leaders have the background of studying at the Berkeley Military Academy.
Zhang Zhidong quietly picked up the pen and drew a red bar on the Berkeley Military Academy.
This is also the nest of a rebel group.
At this time, Zhang Baixi came in.
Zhang Baixi is young, only 51 years old, and now he is one of the three-phase.
Entering Zhang Zhidong's office, he sat down, but he looked a little nervous and asked Zhang Zhidong, "Lord Zhongtang, do you have any opinions about the situation in Java?"
Zhang Zhidong was worried, but he smiled and said, "This place is really not what I know. How to deal with it, it is mostly up to Lord Shoufu to make up to decide?"
"Is that so?"
Zhang Baixi was a little disappointed, but it was expected.
He knew that Zhang Zhidong was famous for its slippery head and wall grass. Wherever the wind blows, people fall.
He thought for a moment and said, "According to reason, the Dutch have been the enemy of our Chinese people in Java for a long time. Our country should have sent troops to help, but the situation there is really unpredictable, and the British don't know how they will react."
Zhang Zhidong turned to think about it and asked, "Have the British ever sent someone to speak frankly to you?"
Zhang Baixi said, "No, this matter is a little urgent, but it has only been more than a month. The Chinese private army has captured Java and Sumatra. The strength of the army is surprising. I'm afraid that there are as many as 40,000 to 50,000 people, and there are still many well-trained people. In fact, it's not a big deal for the Chinese to take Dutch India by themselves, but... everything is like this. Which country dares to allow me to be Chinese in the future?
Zhang Zhidong deliberately asked, "Have you ever discussed it with Lord Shoufu?"
Zhang Baixi said, "Lord Shoufu recently rested and received the Queen and Princess of the Kingdom of Hawaii in the Capital Garden. It's not convenient for me to disturb him, so... I haven't asked yet!"
Zhang Zhidong thought about it in his heart, thought for a moment, and said, "This matter is difficult to say, but in fact, it is not difficult to do. As long as you declare that all countries, China has not participated in it, and let the countries make their own decisions... That's all right."
Zhang Baixi said, "No... I know the surname of Lord Shoufu. If he knows this, he will probably have to support it, and even go to Europe in person to lobby countries and negotiate with the Netherlands."
Zhang Zhidong smiled and said, "Isn't that better, the chief assistant, this is the only thing!"
Zhang Baixi said, "Otherwise... If it is done, our country and Britain will no longer tolerate each other. Asia is so big that we and the two countries must fight against the high and low.
"This...?"
Zhang Zhidong didn't know what to say for a moment. These things were not what he was good at. He was still quite sure to toss the governors of the provinces. He was not within his ability to toss the foreigners.
Seeing that Zhang Zhidong really didn't want to make the decision and didn't have a clear opinion, Zhang Baixi could only sigh and leave for the time being.
In the corridor of the Qinzheng Hall, Zhang Baixi walked silently, always uncertain in his heart. If he was really asked to deal with it, he would never want to go deep into this matter, and didn't even want to ask any questions.
It's not that he doesn't have the courage, but that he knows very well that China still needs to maintain a certain cooperative relationship with Britain.
The most terrible thing about Britain is not that it has the largest navy in the world, but its dignity as an empire, which usually forces Britain to make some special crazy choices... For example, the naval competition between Britain and Germany.
In the distant Sumatra.
A sudden heavy rain gradually came to an end, and the dark clouds in the sky gradually dispersed. Strong sunlight penetrated the towering trees in the rainforest, and the spots fell on the muddy path.
In the distance, from time to time, the sound of Sumatra elephants came, and it seemed that a large group of Sumatra elephants was rectified and embarked on a new road.
On a towering tree, Yang Zongli silently leaned against the trunk to rest. In a flash, he was almost 35 years old. Since he entered the Philippines in 1887, he has lived in Nanyang for nearly 11 years and fought for 11 years.
He was wearing dark green trousers and a short shirt, with short hair, a steel helmet full of green branches in his hand, and a Jiangnan rifle in his arms.
This gun is rough, durable and light. Although it can only hold five bullets, its range and accuracy are not as good as the Enfield rifle recently equipped by the Dutch, but it is more adaptable to the harsh environment of the rainforest.
The best thing is that it is easy to use and maintain, and even new soldiers can use it reasonably.
There are more than 20,000 Chinese independent troops in Sumatra and Java, using this Jiangnan M1894 rifle. The firearms are purchased from the United States and the Jiangnan General Administration of Manufacturing, and the bullets are produced in the Philippines and Sarawak.
The soldiers in charge of the investigation quietly climbed down the tree trunk and told Yang Zong Li that the Dutch convoy was very close and not far from them.
Yang Zongli raised his eyes coldly, closed his hands to his mouth, and imitated the sound of birds. Then, more voices spread in the tropical rainforest, as if a group of birds were shocked.
There are hundreds of soldiers hiding in this dense tropical forest, each wearing dark green shorts, disguised as branches, and groups scattered on both sides of the road.
After more than ten minutes, a transport team of Chinese workers and indigenous people came over. More than 1,000 Dutch colonial troops were escorted in front of them. They were very well-equipped. It can be seen that they were all equipped with the new Lee-Enfield rifles provided by the British.
The M1894 Jiangnan rifle used by the Reading Army is relatively advanced at present. In 1893, the new design was completed at the Auckland Arsenal. In 1894, it was officially installed in the U.S. Army. The range and rate of fire were greatly improved and lighter.
In June last year, when the Reading Army first entered Sumatra and Java, the Dutch were still equipped with the oldest single-fire rifles, even black gunpowder. After several months of fighting between the two sides, Java was completely captured by the Reading Army.
In order to prevent the Chinese reading army from completely occupying the whole of Southeast Asia, the British also sold the latest Lee-Enfield rifle to the Dutch and temporarily loaded it to the Dutch colonial army in Sumatra.
The Dutch colonial army also urgently purchased a large number of Maxim machine guns and 75mm howitzers to increase their defense forces in important cities.
Yang Zong Li doesn't care about these problems at all.
The Dutch colonial army had stepped into the ambush circle. Yang Zong Li waited silently and aimed the muzzle at the commander with the rank of quasi-general in the middle.
Pang.
He pulled the trigger and knocked down the brigadier general. Immediately after him, there was a terrible sound of gunfire in the whole rainforest.
They are all veterans who have been fighting for many years. Everyone is very experienced. Although they do not carry heavy artillery, machine guns and grenades can defeat the opponent to the maximum extent, making it impossible for the opponent to organize effective resistance.
Only in this way can we minimize our casualties.
In the roaring sound of sharp machine guns, dozens of colonial soldiers in the front fell down like cut wheat. The soldiers hiding behind pulled the vines and jumped into the muddy ground and quickly rushed to the front line.
More and more Dutch people died in the shooting, new grenades were constantly thrown from the canopy, and mines planted on the ground were constantly detonated.
Life.
At this moment, it seems too fragile, even worse than a weed.
More than ten minutes of buried shooting soon ended. Only one body was left on the muddy swamp and the road. The blood stained the whole forest. Many of the Dutch who were killed were still black and their bodies were fragmented.
Red, black, white and green things are scattered and flowing along the muddy water, making people want to vomit.
Yes.
This is the war. Most of the indigenous and Chinese workers forcibly organized by the Dutch dispersed, and some hid in the woods and waited for the end of the battle.
In the forest, some people shouted in Cantonese, Minnan dialect and Hakka dialect, greeting the Chinese workers, and soon called out hundreds of people. Some of them were injured and simply bandaged them first.
Everyone chattered. Some soldiers took out foreign cigarettes and scattered them to the Chinese workers in their hometown. They also used foreign kerosene lighters to help them light them, and then talked about their hometown and here.
"Follow us. Our head is Yang Zong and Mr. Yang. Tens of thousands of people are occupying the monument. In a few months, we can reach the giant port. In the future, Sumen, the old island, will also be our territory."
"That's nothing to say. Don't worry, we'll cover you!"
The veterans can't wait to attract Chinese workers to participate in the war. Some indigenous soldiers are also pulling people. Everyone is chattering to enjoy the short-term happiness after the victory. Some Chinese workers and soldiers are only looking at the transport boxes and carts.
Everyone knows what these materials are, because the convoys come from the Bedong Gold Mine.
A special veteran led a team to clean up the battlefield and unloaded all the equipment from the Dutch. When they met the Lee-Enfield rifle, everyone also took one or two back.
A more special group of soldiers are responsible for inspecting and transporting materials. A box of boxes are all gold ingots, as well as copper ingots and tin ingots. The Bedong Mine is a copper, gold and tin associated mine with six large mines with a large output. It can produce more than 600 tons of copper, more than 10 tons of gold and more than 100 tons of tin every year.
There were several boxes of gold sand that were not ready to refine. The yellow gurgled suddenly poured out and scattered all over the ground, reflecting that even the mud and water on the ground turned golden yellow.
A young non-commissioned officer wearing a lieutenant's sleeve was particularly excited. He couldn't wait to run to Yang Zongli's side and said with a surprised smile, "Sergeant, look, the devils are about to run away, and even the gold sand has been shipped out together."
Yang Zong smiled, threw away half of the cigarette in his hand, grabbed the gold sand and weighed it in his hand.
After a while, he said to the young non-commissioned officer, "Tell my brothers that each person will be rewarded with 20 silver dollars, plus 10 for the injured."
"All right!"
Some soldiers aroundhad heard the sound and immediately cheered.
Yang Zongli continued to knead the gold sand in his hand, and his eyes couldn't help looking farther away, looking at the direction of the giant port.
Don't do it. He has made a deal. There are only thousands of Dutch colonial troops there, and they have not received good supplies for two months. They have been blocked by him like this, and it is rare that the supplies will be cut off by him.
Now, Yang Zong's goal is to take down the giant port.
In fact, with the military strength in his hand, plus the two artillery troops supported by Zhang Lingpu and Cai Jinzhang, he can completely attack the cave and the giant port, but he just wants to drag.
He is in charge of the whole Dutch East Indies. He has to consider the overall situation. A momentary victory is not important. The important thing is to drag down the Dutch, how much they come and how much they die, even the British are deeply afraid.
In this year, the Dutch increased their troops six times, basically how many people died, and more than 20,000 people died.
To be honest, Yang Zong Li likes the Dutch like this, and he doesn't eat it all in one bite. He just boils it slowly and consumes it slowly.
The reading army is a guerrilla, but it has become stronger and stronger over the years. Combined with the experience of the past few years, he has also found some returnaries from Guangdong in particular, responsible for cooperating and communicating with the local Azeans and Minakas who believe in Islam.
Coupled with the secret supply and support of the Huameng Association, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, Nanyang Company, Zhang Bishi and others, the reading army does not care about the length of time, and it is not a problem to fight for seven or eight years.
The main sponsor, Zhang Bishi, is very anxious. Yang Zong Li can understand that the Dutch have already exploited oil in the upper reaches of the Musi River. This is the project that Zhang Bishi especially wants recently.
Yang Zongli really wants sulfur, iron ore and copper. Only with these can he make bullets. The bullets used by the Dutch do not match them. Even if he grabs some Lee-Enfield rifles, he can't use them for too long.
He just asked people to pick out all the Lee Enfield rifles, go back and sort them out slowly, and find out those with the highest shooting accuracy, which are specially used to be converted into sniper guns.
The name of the M1894 Jiangnan rifle in his hand is good. It is hard to say that the M1888 Jiangnan rifle with the largest number in the reading army is hard to say. It is basically off the target 300 meters away.
This is a matter of manufacturing accuracy. The rougher it is, the easier it is to produce, and the cheaper the price is.
Cheap... It's not that there are no good goods, but you can't ask for too much. At least in this kind of old rainforest, it's relatively easy to maintain, and it's not easy to break, or get stuck.
(to be continued)