Reborn as King of South America

Chapter 83 Negotiation cracked
In the city of La Paz, Balivian pushed away the woman beside him, put on a long gown and stood up from the bed.

It was already three o'clock in the afternoon. Last night, Balivian had fought many battles with the three beauties in bed, which exhausted his body. Therefore, he slept for most of the day before getting up.

On December 1864, 12, Melgarejo, the elder brother of Balivian, launched a coup and seized power in Bolivia.

Mariano Melgarejo is one of the most famous caudillos in Bolivian history, and even in Latin American history. He is known as the "Wild Caudillo."

Melgarejo was cruel by nature. He slaughtered his opponents and took pleasure in collecting beautiful women to amuse his men.

As Melgarejo's younger brother, Balivian was infected with many of Melgarejo's bad habits, such as corruption, gambling, and robbing beautiful women, which made the prosperous La Paz a mess. The residents of La Paz, whether they were descendants of white people, mixed-race people, or Indians, hated La Paz.

Small-scale riots and assassinations against him occurred from time to time.

However, Balivian was not as ruthless and decisive as his brother. He would let off the white people who opposed him and only vigorously suppressed the mixed-race people and local Indians.

Balivian's self-proclaimed magnanimity did not win the approval of the white people. The white people who opposed him still gathered secretly and tried to overthrow his and his brother's rule.

After resting for most of the day, Balivian regained a lot of energy and was in a good mood. He walked to the garden alone and sat down to appreciate the flowers.

Not long after Balivian sat down, a servant came to him and whispered something to him.

Balivian frowned, and his newly-awakened interest disappeared in an instant: "Let him meet me in the living room."

Balivian said something unhappily, then got up and left the garden.

"General, when I was leading my troops on patrol this morning, we were attacked by a group of unidentified troops. Although I led my troops to fight back hard, we were outnumbered and were eventually captured by them." Bavi slightly modified the process of the battle in the morning and reported it to Balivian.

"Oh, if you were captured, why did you come back?"

"Their leader said he wanted to pass through Bolivia, so he sent me and my men back to report to the general."

There are no powerful opposition forces near La Paz, and the strength of the armed forces that were able to capture Bavi's subordinates at one time must not be underestimated.

Balivian recalled the intelligence he had received recently and speculated that the army that captured Bavi should be the Chinese rebels in Peru.

The Chinese Independence Army occupied southern Peru, and the huge impact it created also spread to Bolivia. Encouraged by the Chinese Independence Army's riots, many riots occurred in La Paz Province near Peru. However, the strength of these rioters was limited, and they were quelled by the army mobilized by Balivian shortly after the riots began.

Balivian didn't know much about the Chinese Independence Army, but they were able to occupy southern Peru in just two months, so they were definitely stronger than his own army.

Balivian knew his own limitations and had no intention of forcefully confronting the Chinese Independence Army. Instead, he passed the news of the Chinese Independence Army's entry into Bolivia to Melgarejo, leaving it to him to decide how to respond to the Chinese Independence Army.

Before Melgarejo made a decision, Balivian planned to stabilize the Chinese Independence Army first, so he told Bavi: "Reply to them and tell them that the power to decide on the passage of foreign troops lies with the president. Let them stay where they are for a few days and wait until the president issues an order before letting them pass through."

"General, their troops are too numerous. If they stay in La Paz Province, they will pose a great threat to the security of La Paz City. How about you give an order to have them withdraw from Bolivia?"

Bavi's worries are not without reason. The entry of the Chinese Independence Army into Bolivia will definitely make some people who are dissatisfied with the rule of the Bavi brothers think differently. If they take the opportunity to collude with the Chinese Independence Army and use the power of the Chinese Independence Army to fight against the Bavi brothers, then Melgarejo's rule is likely to be overthrown.

As Balivian's trusted subordinate, Bavi naturally has to consider his master.

"Achacachi, Caracoto, Guaqui, and Viacha will each leave 300 people to defend the city, and the remaining troops will be transferred to La Paz to prevent the Chinese rebels from attacking the city." After considering for a moment, Balivian agreed to Bavi's suggestion and made targeted deployments against possible attacks by the Chinese Independence Army.

After making the arrangements, Balivian sent a telegram to Melgarejo to report the news, and at the same time ordered the defensive forces to assemble in La Paz.

The intelligence of the large-scale mobilization of Bolivian soldiers was soon learned by the cavalry of the reconnaissance battalion, and the news was then passed on to Li Mingyuan.

At this time, Li Mingyuan was meeting with Balivian's representative Bavi in ​​the tent.

"General Balivian has reported your army's request to cross the border to the president. Before the president's order is issued, General Balivian hopes that your army will withdraw from Bolivia to avoid unnecessary conflict between the two sides."

Bavi said respectfully.

"You general have other requests, right? Please raise them all and I will consider whether I can agree to them."

When Li Mingyuan learned about the Bolivian army's mobilization, he realized that the Bolivian side would not allow the Chinese Independence Army to pass through the border, so he joked.

Bavi's face was embarrassed, because his advice to guard against collusion between the Chinese Independence Army and the local Indians instead strengthened Balivian's determination to fight against the Chinese Independence Army. He not only rejected the Chinese Independence Army's demands, but also demanded that the Chinese Independence Army pay compensation for provoking the fight between the two sides.

"The general demands that your army be held responsible for provoking the conflict between the two sides, return our weapons and equipment, and compensate us with 3,000 muskets, 1,000 war horses, and 100,000 silver dollars..."

Bavi Road.

The reason why Bavi asked for compensation was because Bolivian President Melgarejo issued an order not to allow the Chinese Independence Army to pass through the border. In order to deal with the possible attack of the Chinese Independence Army, Melgarejo sent 10,000 reinforcements to Bavi, which would arrive in La Paz the day after tomorrow.

With the support of his brother, Balivian became bolder and was no longer afraid of the threat posed by the Chinese Independence Army. Therefore, he made a huge demand and made many compensation demands to the Chinese Independence Army.

"Your general is really good at doing business. He wants me to compensate him with so many weapons and money just because dozens of soldiers were killed or injured. Aren't you too greedy?" Li Mingyuan said calmly.

Your army invaded our territory without reason, and my general's request for compensation is not excessive.

Bavi said with a stiff neck.

In peacetime, it is very difficult for an army to pass through the territory of a country. Li Mingyuan took into account the reaction of Bolivia. He initially thought that Melgarejo would be intimidated by the powerful strength of the Chinese Independence Army and secretly reached a compromise with Li Mingyuan. On the surface, he disagreed with the Chinese Independence Army's transit, but secretly did not stop the Chinese Independence Army from transiting.

However, Melgarejo's reaction was much stronger than Li Mingyuan had expected. He directly ordered his troops to assemble and prepare to stop the Chinese Independence Army.

The two sides have different positions and naturally different ideas. Li Mingyuan wants to pass through Bolivia peacefully and minimize the casualties of Chinese soldiers, while Melgarejo has to consider the impact of the Chinese Independence Army's entry into Bolivia on his rule. Therefore, there is a huge gap between the two and there is no possibility of reaching a compromise.

(End of this chapter)