Anti-Qing: Starting from the Jintian Uprising

Chapter 458: The Burmese War (6K)

But soon, tears began to well up in his eyes.

He asked with a choked voice.

"Really...really?"

At this moment, Zhao Zhi knew that everything he had done before was worth it.

I have not been forgotten or abandoned!

The court remembers me, and the emperor remembers me too!

The education I received in the military academy was not just brainwashing for myself and others.

The above mentioned people all took it seriously and worked hard to implement it!
When you are an official, you must be true to your conscience!
Martin said with a smile.

"Of course!"

"Who in the world dares to lie under the banner of my Supervision Department?"

"How about it, Brother Zhao Zhi, are you willing to join us?"

Hearing this, Zhao Zhi took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

Loudly.

"I am willing to go through fire and water and sacrifice my life for the court and for Your Majesty!"

"Whatever it takes!"

Ma Tian laughed, walked up to Zhao Zhi, patted him on the shoulder and said.

"Haha, I knew I was right."

"You have passion, conscience, and a bottom line in your heart. You are born to be a good material for my Supervision Department to supervise all officials!"

Zhao Zhi nodded vigorously, his eyes flashing with passion and piety.

He, Zhao Zhi, will definitely supervise all officials for His Majesty the Emperor!
……

Myanmar, the capital city of Mandalay!

There is a tense atmosphere in Mandalay.

Soldiers shuttled back and forth inside and outside the palace, blocking the entire main hall of the palace.

The entire palace was filled with a tense atmosphere.

The contemporary Burmese King, King Mindon Min, stood in the hall, staring at everyone in front of him.

In the hall, several headless corpses were lying, and the smell of blood was strong.

The soldiers were dragging the bodies out, leaving long bloodstains on the floor, which was a shocking sight.

The faces of all the ministers in the palace were filled with fear.

King Mindong shouted coldly.

"This king will assist the Tang Dynasty, expel the British, and recover Lower Burma."

"Everyone, who is in favor and who is against?"

Under Mindong's piercing gaze, all the ministers in the hall fell silent.

Immediately, there was a burst of agreement.

"Your Majesty is wise!"

"Drive out the British and recover Lower Burma!"

"..."

The main reason why these people were so obedient was because of the corpses that had just been dragged out.

Just now, King Mindon asked the same question to everyone, but the answer he got was completely opposite to what he got now.

Afterwards, a group of soldiers as ferocious as wolves and tigers rushed in from outside the hall, and then several pro-British officials who took the lead in opposition were beheaded.

Now, King Mindon has raised this question again.

No one would object at this time!

There are indeed many pro-British officials in the Burmese court, but no matter how pro-British they are, they will not risk their lives for the interests of Britain.

For these people, their own lives always come first.

Seeing this scene, King Mindon looked around and said.

"In that case, then it's settled!"

"Pass on my order. General Tun Min Tun will lead the troops. Gather the troops and prepare for battle!"

"Cooperate with the Tang Dynasty's Nanyang Fleet to wipe out the British forces in Burma!"

"No mistakes!"

Upon hearing this, several important generals in the court stood up and spoke.

"I'll obey!"

……

The third year of Kaitai in the Tang Dynasty, the tenth day of the second month in the Western calendar of 1858.

The Tang Dynasty fleet set out from Malacca, headed north along the coast, and headed straight for Mawlamyine.

Since the British invaded Lower Burma, they began to operate in coastal ports everywhere.

The coastal port of Mawlamyine was one of their main business targets.

Its importance is second only to that of Yangon, the capital of British Burma.

The British army stationed thousands of British troops and colonial soldiers in the city of Mawlamyine.

It’s a pity that after the Indian rebellion broke out, the British army transferred most of its garrisons to India for reinforcement.

Therefore, Myanmar, like Malacca, is completely short of military forces.

After the Tang army arrived in Mawlamyine, it took only half an hour to break into the city of Mawlamyine.

boom! Boom boom!

There was a deafening sound of shelling.

The British army was losing ground.

Shells fell one after another around them, and the shock waves of the explosions blew the British people off their horses.

Drosen wiped the dust off his face, shook off the gravel in his hair, and said through gritted teeth.

"Quick, retreat!"

"Retreat to the woods first!"

Seeing that the Tang army's artillery bombardment was getting more and more fierce and the Tang army's offensive was getting closer and closer, all Drosen could do now was to retreat.

"These damn Tang people took advantage of the rebellion in India and attacked us when Great Britain was unable to look east. They are really despicable."

At the side, Drosen's adjutant, Major Ricca, couldn't help cursing.

A group of defeated soldiers fled into the rainforest outside the city of Mawlamyine, cursing.

They tried to use this to delay the Tang army's pursuit of them!
But they already knew that the Tang army did not give any preferential treatment to prisoners of war. No matter what your identity was before being captured, after being captured, you all had to go to labor reform.

This was unacceptable to an officer of aristocratic origin like Drozan.

This is a great humiliation for them.

Therefore, they would rather hide in the rainforest and find a way to return to Britain after the war subsided, rather than become prisoners of war of the Tang army.

These British people have lived in Myanmar for such a long time that they have already adapted to the local environment to a certain extent.

Even if you enter the forest, you can survive for a short period of time!

It's not like when they first came to Myanmar, where they felt cold as soon as they entered the forest.

A group of people fled hurriedly into a forest.

Accompanying them were not only a group of terrified defeated soldiers, but also many ordinary British people living in Mawlamyine.

There are businessmen, bankers, doctors, lawyers...

These former bigwigs in Mawlamyine are now fleeing in panic.

On the contrary, the ordinary people in the city didn't care much about the arrival of the Tang army.

They have long been accustomed to the changing of the flags on the city walls!

Before it was Burma, then it was Britain, and now it is the Tang Dynasty. In their eyes, there is no difference.

Life goes on as usual!
Drosen and his group fled into a dense forest in panic, with visible fear and terror on their faces.

Behind them, the sound of gunfire continued.

That was the Tang army clearing out the British soldiers who were still resisting stubbornly in Mawlamyine City.

Hearing the faint sound of gunfire coming from behind them, the British fled even faster.

There was tension in the air.

Due to the crowded situation, many people fell down and never got up again.

On both sides of the road, randomly discarded debris and even property can be seen everywhere.

Finally, as time passed, the sun finally set.

A group of people lit bonfires in twos and threes, preparing to rest and continue their journey at daybreak.

Traveling in the rainforest at night is really too dangerous.

That night, after eating toast and pea soup, Harry leaned against a tree trunk and rubbed his calves with his hands.

This day's escape almost drained the last bit of strength from his body.

He felt a pain all over his body!
"Damn it, damn the Tang people, Great Britain will make them pay the price!"

Harry couldn't help cursing.

As a pure Anglo-Saxon, he has become accustomed to being a superior person overseas by virtue of the power of the British Empire as the world hegemon.

Especially in a barbaric place like the Far East!
His skin color and his ethnicity make him a natural superior person.

Those savage native monkeys were more submissive than each other in front of him.

In his opinion, these yellow-skinned natives from the East were born to be slaves to their noble white people.

This was the first time that he was driven like a pig in the East, and Harry felt extremely uncomfortable.

However, no matter how awkward he was, he could not change the fact that the Tang Dynasty was now in a dominant position.

The only thing he could do was to vent his emotions by cursing.

Soon, Harry, who was tired after a day's work, leaned against the tree and fell into a deep sleep.

Harry didn't know how much time had passed, but he woke up from his sleep feeling a chill on his neck. In a daze, he reached out and touched his neck.

Immediately, he touched something cold and slippery.

In an instant, Harry woke up and cold sweat broke out on his back.

"Shit, there's a snake, there's a snake!"

Harry couldn't help but scream, grabbed the snake around its neck and threw him away.

The snake hissed in mid-air, spun around and landed on a woman's chest.

It opened its mouth and bit two large white buns with its fangs.

The woman was instantly awakened by the severe pain and let out a sharp and shrill scream.

"what……"

"There are snakes!"

In an instant, screams resounded throughout the camp.

Many people were awakened from their sleep.

All eyes looked over here!

However, at this moment, someone in the crowd suddenly cried out in surprise.

"No, where are the people?"

"Where is my brother?"

"My father is missing too!"

"Monica, Monica where have you been?"

"..."

The people who were awakened instantly discovered that there were many fewer people in the crowd.

Everyone's face was filled with confusion and fear.

At this moment, there was a sound of a bowstring exploding.

An arrow came flying through the air and pierced Harry's chest, who was feeling frightened, and nailed him to the tree trunk behind him.

Harry opened his mouth, looked down at the wound in his chest, and a hoarse sound came from his throat.

pain! Severe pain!

The intense pain continued to torment his nerves.

But soon, he no longer felt the pain. As the blood flowed out, his body gradually lost consciousness and the world in front of him gradually turned black and white.

At this moment, the bowstring began to vibrate.

Arrows shot out from the dark forest and hit the British gathered in the open space.

In an instant, screams rang out.

British soldiers in the crowd raised their guns and prepared to fight back.

However, the rainforest was dark at night, and he didn't know which direction to shoot if he wanted to fight back.

Snapped! Bang bang!

The Burmese musketeers hiding in the rain forest also opened fire, shooting from the darkness toward the light with a very high accuracy.

In an instant, screams and wails resounded throughout the forest, and chaos continued to spread.

Drosen was awakened from his sleep, and hearing the commotion coming from all around him, he was a little panicked.

Suddenly, the adjutant Major Rica spoke up to remind him.

"Sir, please have someone put out the bonfire first."

"Otherwise, we'll be sitting ducks in the dark!"

After Major Ricca finished speaking, Drosen finally reacted and ordered his men to extinguish the bonfire.

But at this moment, in the dense forest, a group of naked natives with oil paint on their faces and holding sharp blades rushed out from the darkness.

Shouting loudly, they rushed towards the chaotic British.

In an instant, the two sides collided with each other.

But it was obvious that the British, in chaos, were being overwhelmed by the natives.

The British soldiers attempted to fight back with their guns, but they had just finished gathering when they were dispersed by the frightened crowd.

It's a mess everywhere!
Although the British soldiers were so elite that they would be able to react even if attacked at night.

However, we cannot help but realize that the military and civilians are now mixed together.

The army was able to react, regain composure quickly, and prepare to meet the enemy, but the ordinary people in the ranks could not do so.

Under the burden of these panicked people, even if the British army reacted, they would not be able to make a correct response.

When De Rosen saw this scene, he was extremely furious and his eyes were bloodshot.

But he really couldn't change anything.

They could only watch helplessly as the situation gradually turned in a direction that was unfavorable to them.

"Oh Shet!"

"Damn it, what are we supposed to do?"

"God, please bless us!"

"..."

In the chaos, the British troops were dispersed.

In panic, Drosen could only prepare to break out with the soldiers who were still under his control.

Snapped! Bang bang!

Crisp and orderly gunshots rang out.

After a period of queuing, Drosen led the team out of the Burmese encirclement.

A group of people ran wildly in the dark rainforest, even more panicked than during the day.

I don’t know how much time had passed, but the screaming and gunshots behind me finally disappeared completely.

Drosen held onto the trunk of a big tree, breathing heavily.

He looked back and saw a hint of paleness appearing on the horizon.

Before they knew it, they had been on the run all night.

The moment he saw the sun, Drosen felt all the strength in his body being drained away instantly.

His body slumped against the tree trunk.

If it weren't for his adjutant Rica supporting him, he would have fallen to the ground.

"Oh Shet!"

"We should be rid of the enemy now. Let's take a break!"

Drosen quickly greeted him.

Everyone around took their seats.

After counting the number of people, Drosen found that there were less than twenty people left with him.

An emotion called despair is gradually spreading in the air.

Seeing this, Drosen could only speak to comfort him.

"Hey, guys, don't get discouraged."

“Let’s go to Yangon!”

"The British still have a considerable number of troops stationed in Yangon, and Yangon is not a coastal city, so the Tang army's naval guns are not a big threat."

"God will bless us. Britain will definitely be able to defend Rangoon!"

The reason why the British army was defeated so quickly in Malacca and Moulmein was not because of a huge gap in the military quality of the soldiers on both sides.

This is because the killing effect of the Tang army’s large-caliber naval guns was too strong.

The Tang army used naval guns to suppress the British artillery and infantry, and then their own infantry launched an attack.

The British army naturally couldn't stop it!
But Yangon is an inland city, and the Tang army’s fleet may not be able to reach Yangon.

In this way, the Tang army's biggest threat to the British army was gone.

Drosen didn't believe that Britain could not defend Rangoon like this!

When everyone heard this, they immediately responded in unison.

Then, the group of people began to find places to rest.

After a good sleep, the team set off again, heading towards Yangon.

The rainforest is hot and humid, with swamps everywhere and poisonous snakes, insects and ants everywhere.

When Major Rica was passing a roadside swamp, he accidentally stepped into it. When he pulled his foot out, he found that his legs were covered with leeches.

These leeches are wriggling and sucking blood!

He couldn't help but let out a scream, but he could only order someone to help him pull the leech off and then continue walking.

The air was filled with a smell of corruption, and everyone couldn't help but cover their noses.

Because they all know that this is the smell of miasma, and if people smell it too much, they will die.

Soon, the dry food and water that the group brought with them were used up.

A group of people can only get drinking water from streams and lakes.

But the problem is that the water from streams and lakes only looks clean. As soon as you drink it, you will start to have diarrhea and shivering.

Soon, the team began to lose members.

People kept falling down along the way and never got up again, remaining in the rainforest of Myanmar forever.

In this way, a group of people continued their journey in the rainforest by catching insects and poisonous snakes to fill their stomachs and drinking sewage to quench their thirst.

After several days passed, they finally walked out of the rainforest and arrived outside Yangon.

However, at this time, their clothes were tattered, their bodies were covered in dirt, their hair was disheveled, and they looked no different from beggars.

Drosen and Rika supported each other, looked at the city wall in front of them, and couldn't help sobbing.

At this time, there were only six or seven soldiers following them.

However, just as the group of people came out of the forest and wanted to find a place to rest, they saw a large cloud of dust suddenly appear in the distance.

Beneath the smoke and dust, a dark army was marching.

From the flag the army was flying, Drosen knew that it was a Burmese army.

"Oh my god!"

“The Burmese army has also gotten involved!”

"Rangoon is in danger now..."

Ricca at the side asked with a dejected look.

"Sir, what should we do?"

“Want to go into Yangon?”

Drosen opened his mouth with a conflicted look on his face, but still spoke.

"Enter!"

“Where else can we go if not to Rangoon?”

The group walked towards Yangon and finally dared to enter the city before the main force of the Burmese army arrived outside Yangon.

The Governor-General of British Burma, Earl Dalhousie, came to express his condolences.

"Drosen, why are there only a few of you?"

"Where are the troops stationed in Moulmein?"

After some condolences, Duo Meng asked.

Drosen said with a grim expression.

"Lord Governor!"

"No more, all gone!"

"The Tang army fleet bombarded Mawlamyine, and the artillery forts in Mawlamyine were blown up. Then, the Tang army entered the city of Mawlamyine."

"I led my troops to withdraw to Yangon, but we were attacked by the Burmese on the way. My troops were reduced in number along the way. Now, these are all I have left."

Dalhousie took a deep breath and said with a grim expression.

"These damn Burmese people have really chosen to stand on the side of the Tang Kingdom."

Drosen couldn't help but ask.

"Your Excellency Governor, what should we do next?"

Dalhousie said with a serious expression.

"The Tang army is still operating along the coast and will not necessarily go deep into the interior of Myanmar to fight."

"If it were only the Burmese who attacked Yangon, we would still have hope of holding on to Yangon."

"As long as we hold on to Rangoon, once Britain has put down the Indian rebellion, they will naturally send troops to reinforce us."

"Then everything will be easy to talk about!"

Drosen nodded vigorously.

Dalhousie patted him on the shoulder and said.

"Take a good rest!"

"The defense of Yangon is in the charge of Brigadier General Pierre, a veteran who once participated in the Battle of Waterloo."

"He will take care of the defense of Rangoon..."

The Battle of Waterloo took place in 1815, when Brigadier General Pierre was actually just a private.

But this is not important. In Europe of that era, as long as a person had participated in the Battle of Waterloo, he would naturally give people the impression that he was a veteran with rich war experience.

It will naturally give people a sense of security!

Upon hearing this, Drosen nodded vigorously.

"Your Excellency the Governor is wise!"

……

Outside Yangon!

After arriving in Yangon, the Burmese army set up camp.

The camps were connected to each other, surrounding the city of Yangon.

The Burmese army commander Tun Min Tun stood on a loess observation tower and looked out at the city of Yangon in the distance.

Since the Second Anglo-Burmese War in 1852, Britain has occupied the entire Lower Burma.

With Yangon as its capital, it began to control the entire Lower Burma region. The Konbaung Dynasty could only retreat to the northern part of Burma.

Six or seven years have passed since then, and the resistance in Lower Burma has never stopped. The Burmese people have written a heroic and tragic song of resistance to colonial rule with their blood.

Now, Myanmar finally has the confidence to send troops to recover lost territory!
"Report, Your Excellency the General, our army has successfully blockaded the city of Yangon."

"The British troops in the city are hiding inside and dare not attack!"

A messenger came to report.

Tun Min Tun nodded and spoke in a very condescending manner.

"Pass the order down, order our vanguard to launch a tentative attack on Yangon City!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the messenger beside him clasped his fists and left.

Tun Min Tun walked up to the Burmese artillery position and spoke in a slightly flattering tone to several gunners who looked obviously different from the surrounding Burmese soldiers.

"From now on, I'll leave the matter of operating the artillery to you all!"

"If our army can recapture Yangon, this general will reward you handsomely!"

At this moment, his arrogant attitude just now disappeared in an instant.

Well, it’s mainly because these gunners are from the Tang Dynasty.

He was an instructor sent by the Tang Dynasty after Myanmar purchased arms from the country.

Responsible for teaching Burmese army gunners how to operate new breech-loading rifled artillery!
Since they would be needed in the subsequent attack on Yangon, and since they were Chinese, not Burmese, Tun Min Tun was very enthusiastic.

The leading artillery officer Yan Yuanzhou said with a smile, patting his chest.

"Okay, okay, General, don't worry!"

"Our artillery skills are top-notch even in the Tang army, otherwise we would not have been sent to Burma."

"If we are all fakes and sent to Burma, wouldn't that be a disgrace to the Tang Dynasty?"

"General, rest assured, we will complete the mission!"

(End of this chapter)