Nanyang Storm 1864

The South African war, which King Zheng Guohui of Chu paid close attention to, actually brought him a small surprise.

after the war

The Boers performed very impressively, launching an active attack in two directions.

Attack Natal eastwards, dividing and encircling two major British strongholds;
The two areas where the British army was heavily concentrated were Ladysmith and Dundee. The Boers' ultimate plan of action was to occupy the port of Durban to gain access to the sea.

I have to say that the Boers really dared to think big.

Another group of Boer troops headed southwest, intending to occupy Mafeking and Kimberley, two strategic locations where the main British forces were stationed on the Western Cape railway line, in an attempt to deal a heavy blow to the British army.

In fact

The Boer army's swift attack did achieve part of its strategic intention. In more than a dozen battles, it killed and wounded more than 10,000 British soldiers, causing the British to suffer a heavy blow and lose all face.

At the end of October, British Lieutenant General George White led 10 troops to launch a large-scale counterattack. The two sides fought a bloody battle at Ladysmith, and the British army suffered heavy losses again.

The Maxim 37mm rapid-fire cannon obtained by the Boers through Germany showed its power in this heavy battle, and used dense rain of artillery shells to slaughter the British infantry cluster, causing unprecedented casualties.

This is much greater than the losses of the British army in history. How much exactly?

The British army claimed that they suffered 3312 casualties, lost 22 cannons, and another 419 people were missing, and lost countless food and supplies.

Actually

According to the report of the Chu Army Observation Group who watched the battle on the spot, the British army lost at least more than half of its troops.

Especially after suffering the baptism of artillery fire, the completely defeated British army was chased by the Boer cavalry, which made the situation even worse.

The Boers lost only 24 people and injured more than people, achieving a resounding victory at a negligible cost.

During the same period as the Battle of Ladysmith, the British army also suffered disastrous defeats at Kimberley on the western front and Stormberg on the central front, with losses of more than 3700 people.

The kick hit the iron plate and almost broke the ankle.

This was known as the "Dark Week" in the history of the British Army. General Buller resigned from his post as commander-in-chief of the British Expeditionary Force due to the unprecedented defeat and returned to the UK to be investigated.

European public opinion was in an uproar for a time, and Britain's position as the world hegemon had become unstable amid the tide of public criticism.

No one expected that the British army, which had always been known for its strength, would suffer such a tragic defeat.

This crushing defeat deeply hurt the British people's sensitive nerves, and unsurprisingly, they went crazy.

The British War Office is rushing to replace the supreme commander of the South African Expeditionary Force. The candidate has not yet been determined, but several experienced senior British Army generals have been included in the alternative plan.

Besides
The British War Office approved a plan to rapidly increase troops, aiming to double the current 18 troops on the South African battlefield to 36 within three months.

At the same time, an urgent arms order was sent, requiring the immediate shipment of 200 Maxim 37mm rapid-fire cannons and 500 million rounds of ammunition, and the shipment was required to be made within two weeks.

This urgent arms order was not sent to the Maxim Arms Company, but to the Chu State Military Headquarters. The meaning is self-evident.

The situation on the battlefield is urgent. The British army is in urgent need of this batch of arms. The State of Chu has always prided itself on being a close partner of Britain. You can handle this matter as you wish.

It is definitely too late to produce now, and the British are targeting the existing equipment and inventory of the Chu Royal Army.

A friend in need is a friend indeed. You can't let down your guard at this time.

General Pan Tianshou, Chief of Staff of the Chu Royal Army, could not make the decision on such a major event and reported it directly to His Majesty the King of Chu.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu looked at it without blinking an eye and said casually, "Give it to them, as many as they want."

Now only the Chu Royal Army has such a large batch of stocks. We will first ship 37 120mm artillery pieces and 200 million shells, and then the subsequent production will be carried out.

The new plant of Maxim Arms Company has just completed its expansion, and its production capacity is in the ramp-up stage, and it will reach full production capacity by the end of the year.

By then, it will have the capacity to produce 50 37mm rapid-fire cannons, 120 Maxim heavy machine guns and 20 artillery shells per month, which is enough to meet the demand.

The State of Chu was fully committed to meeting Britain's military needs. Branches of major Chu banks in London opened permanent offices next to Whitehall Street, where the British Treasury was located, specifically for Treasury loans.

Over the past two years
As the situation in South Africa continued to escalate, the UK also invested huge sums of money, signing as many as 131 loan contracts with a total amount of 2065 million pounds.

The amount of each loan contract is often over 100,000 pounds, and some are as high as over 1 million pounds, which is a quite astonishing figure.

Some people may ask, London's financial street is so strong, how could it need to borrow money from the Bank of Chu? Isn't this ridiculous?
London's old banks are indeed powerful, but they are no match for the local tyrants.

Britain's military operations in South Africa required a huge amount of resources to support them, from grain, oil, rice, flour, sugar, spices, tea, tobacco to cement, steel bars, natural rubber, cattle, sheep, horses, tents, military boots and other supplies, each of which was in great demand.

The 180,000-strong army had to eat, drink, and defecate for more than two years. The nearest supply point was the Governor's Office of the Congo River and the Governor's Office of Madagascar. It had stable and considerable logistical supply capabilities, and naturally became a material supply center.

Europe is not rich in food and needs to import large quantities of food, meat, oil, cowhide, rubber, sugar, tobacco and other supplies from South America and North America. This is a natural shortcoming.

Britain had many colonies, but the largest colony was far away in the Indian subcontinent, and the supply capacity of its colonies and protectorates in Europe and the Arabian Peninsula was also limited.

Egypt can only supply cotton and does not have the ability to supply large amounts of food, steel, and cement.

It is an indisputable fact that these things can only be supplied from the Congo River Governorate, which is the only industrialized area in Africa.

In these areas, the major banks of the Chu State had branches all over the country, and they had sufficient financial resources to purchase in bulk and then transport them to Cape Town and Port Elizabeth through various trading companies.

No matter how strong British banks are, they cannot reach that far.

Therefore, the British Treasury's large order naturally fell on the head of the Bank of Chu. This fat meat made the big banks' stomachs fat, and their mouths were really greasy. They never expected that the real fun was just beginning.

As the London government went crazy, it sent a large number of troops to South Africa and bought out almost all of the large immigration ships from the Chu State at high prices, which brought the immigration that had lasted for 36 years to a near halt.

All the Chu State immigration ships received new instructions to pick up people nearby.

Immigrant ships in Panama and Hawaii immediately headed north to Canada to pick up as many British soldiers as possible.

In Guam, immigrant ships from the five mainland islands headed for India, Sri Lanka, Australia and New Zealand to carry British soldiers to reinforce South Africa.

Such a long journey, three to four months, can only be completed twice at most.

A large number of Chu cargo ships were also requisitioned to transport large amounts of supplies to South Africa.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu also ignored London's request and said with a wave of his hand, "Give it to him. The British are wealthy and respectful people. They won't be short of such a small amount of money."

As a result, the Chu State's huge shipping force was mobilized and happily helped the British transport personnel, equipment and supplies, which naturally attracted criticism from Europeans.

The German media, in particular, described Chu as the British's "follower and accomplice, a fierce thug with long braids."

The State of Chu turned a deaf ear to these criticisms and continued to fully support Britain's deployment of additional troops to South Africa.

Hard work always pays off
September 17th, 2025

Prince Zheng Guohui of Chu received a telegram of thanks from Her Majesty Queen Victoria, in which Her Majesty the Queen described Prince Zheng Guohui as;

"The most trusted and respected monarch, with a far-sighted strategic vision that is unmatched by ordinary people, and a close friend of the British royal family"

"Sincerely thank you and look forward to further strengthening global cooperation..."

The British are now being ridiculed by the whole of Europe. All kinds of harsh, sharp and vicious language are coming down on them like a tide, but unexpectedly it has the opposite effect.

Given the pride of the British, they could never tolerate such humiliation.

Seeing that the time was almost right, King Zheng Guohui of Chu immediately sent Foreign Minister Pan Yuchen to lead a high-level delegation to London to discuss relevant matters in secret.

The theme is that the State of Chu planned to attack the East Indies.

The purpose of this trip is to obtain understanding from the British side, not permission. This must be clearly distinguished as the two have completely different meanings.

This will minimize the impact on the close relations between the two countries and is also a move that respects the British side.

Although everything is ready, it is still necessary to inform them before taking action.

After Foreign Minister Pan Yuchen and his delegation left Manila, King Zheng Guohui of Chu issued a level one war preparation order to the Royal Army and the Royal Navy, and the huge war machine began to operate.

Sumatra

巨港
Palembang is a Dutch-occupied area located in the southeastern swamps of Sumatra Island, only 2 meters above sea level, and geographically spans both sides of the lower reaches of the Musi River.

The city is crisscrossed with waterways, earning it the name "Water City".

Palembang is a traditional commercial port in Sumatra with developed commerce. It has close exchanges with Srivijaya, Jambi, Penang and Johor. It has a long history and cultural heritage and is one of the central cities on the island.

The city has a population of about 24.6 and is a traditional agricultural and commercial city. Port transportation is its largest industry, with frequent ship traffic and sails like clouds.

The stone pavements in the city were polished smooth and mirror-proof, and on both sides of the roads were tall and short wooden houses, which had turned dark brown due to age.

Three people were walking towards us on the cobblestone road. The one in the middle was a fat old man with a slightly balding head. He was wearing a light-colored brocade gown and was walking in front.

Careful identification
You will find that this is Major Han Wenqin, originally from the Fifth Department of the Ministry of the Interior. He has been an indispensable figure in all the military operations of the Chu Army in Southeast Asia.

More than 30 years have passed

The once vigorous young officer has grown old and fat, becoming a kind-faced old man, and is now the colonel director of the Fifth Department.

He is a senior operations officer in Southeast Asia and would not personally take action unless there is an important mission.

His old boss in the Fifth Department has already held the important position of Minister of the Interior.

The two men following him, one with a strong underworld air, the other strong and capable, his sharp eyes scanning the surrounding situation from time to time.

Colonel Han Wenle said as he walked, "Boss Lu, is what you said about this family true? You can't lie, otherwise you will really harm me..."

This light and airy sentence frightened the man with a strong sense of Jianghu, that is, the Lu Gang leader. His face turned pale, and he bent down humbly and said;
"Mr. Han, you are too rude to me. Even if I, Lu Ah Hu, were brave enough, I would not dare to show off in front of you. This matter is absolutely true. The Zheng family was indeed severely deceived by the Dutch. It can be said that their wives and children were separated and their family was destroyed."

"Well, the more miserable the better. Why do these foreigners bully us?" Han Wenqin paused here, and a strong murderous intent appeared on his face, no longer having his original kind look.

He snorted coldly and continued, "Given a little face, these foreigners dare to open a dyeing factory. They really don't know how to spell death."

At this moment, the powerful aura he exuded seemed to make the air around him cold.

"Yes, yes, these foreigners deserve to die!" Lu Ahu had turned into a kitten at this moment. His strong body was hunched over and his fleshy face couldn't help but twitch.

Compared with the killing god in front of him, this hero of the martial arts world is just like an old lady who eats vegetarian food and chants Buddhist scriptures.

I can’t afford to offend you. I really can’t afford to offend you! (End of this chapter)