New Han Dynasty 1834

Chapter 118 Evacuation

Winters in southern Texas are not cold; temperatures in the coldest month are usually between 10 and 20 degrees Celsius.

As long as we don't encounter the most extreme cold wave, the temperature is perfect for marching and fighting.

After being released, the US special envoy to Mexico, Powatan Ellis, and his entourage crossed the Rio Grande and immediately identified themselves to the Texas patrolmen on the other side.

Then he rode his horse northeastward, and after exactly ten days, he arrived in Houston, the capital of Texas at the time.

Texas is currently preparing to move its capital and has already selected Osjang as its new capital.

However, due to the sudden change in the situation in Mexico, especially the ongoing military operations by the Great Han in Mexico, the Texas government felt a great threat.

Therefore, the Texas government decided to temporarily postpone the relocation of the capital in order to carefully deal with the current crisis and potential chaos.

Recently, there have been reports of refugees from northeastern Mexico fleeing to Houston, and border patrols returning troops fighting in northeastern Mexico.

A sense of panic has now settled over Houston.

Ellis, by virtue of his status as a special envoy and the information he brought about regarding the Han army, was almost immediately received by the Texas high command.

Texas President Mirapo Buonapat Lamar and Secretary of State David Guverner Burnett met with Ellis in the president’s temporary office.

Ellis first gave a brief overview of what he knew about the Han army as quickly as possible, and then explained the Han general's requirements.

Finally, he offered his advice to the President and Secretary of State of Texas: "The immigrants of Texas should be evacuated immediately and retreat into the United States to organize defenses."

Upon hearing this, Texas President Lamar immediately retorted, "Is the Han army really as legendary as they say, equipped with devilish rifles and artillery? Do we really have no chance of defending Texas?"

Ellis immediately replied with great certainty, "Yes, they do have the legendary devil's rifle and shells, though they certainly wouldn't call them that themselves."

"All the rifles used by ordinary soldiers are capable of hitting targets at a distance of 300 to 400 yards, so their starting distance for combat is more than 300 yards."

"While other armies are still on their march, they will be directly attacked by their army."

"The special rifles of the hunters have an effective range of thousands of yards, so much so that they need to be equipped with binoculars to assist in aiming."

"Generals and communications soldiers who ride horses on the battlefield are all potential targets for their hunting."

"All their rifles were breech-loading, so their rate of fire was much faster than that of smoothbore guns, allowing them to suppress light artillery with rifles."

"And their artillery is even more terrifying, with an effective range of over two thousand yards and a power ten times that of traditional exploding shells."

"Texas cannot withstand the attack of the Han army on its own."

"The army that is now heading toward Texas, I estimate, consists of 15,000 Han soldiers and 60,000 to 80,000 Native soldiers as servants."

"These troops already outnumber the total number of immigrants in Texas."

"In this situation, if Texas still wants to continue fighting, it's not bravery, it's utter foolishness."

"So please order a retreat to the United States as soon as possible."

"The immigrants to Texas are mostly citizens of the United States, so the United States is naturally willing to accept them."

Former interim president of Texas and current Texas Secretary of State John Burnett said, "If these things are true, then we really can't withstand them."

"Moreover, I have heard that whenever the Han army breaches a city, they will have their servants kill all the white people."

"Is this also true, Mr. Special Envoy?"

Upon hearing this question, Ellis seemed to recall something terrifying. He couldn't help but tremble slightly as he took a deep breath, and then confidently stated again, "Yes, it's all true. Any city that refuses to surrender will eventually be wiped out by the mad natives."

"If it were only the Han army, that would be fine. They are an army composed of Eastern knights. They do not rob or kill indiscriminately, and their discipline far surpasses that of any other country's army."

"In addition to their extraordinary bravery and powerful weapons, they possess extremely high combat capabilities, possibly making them the strongest army in the world."

"But the native servants around them—they were all real lunatics; they would really kill any white person who resisted."

"There were at least 100,000 white people in Mexico City. Apart from those who fled before the city fell, all the white people who remained in the city were killed."

"There really wasn't a single one left—"

"The bodies of those white men are piled up like mountains—just like the bison you hunted in America—"

"My God, I really don't want to think about those images again. They were the most horrifying and disgusting images I've ever seen in my life."

"Once the Texas army clashed with the Han army and lost on the battlefield, these tens of thousands of native servants would kill all the white people in Texas."

"You must not doubt this; it is absolutely true, and I saw it with my own eyes."

The Texas president and secretary of state remained silent after hearing this.

Ellis picked up the hot tea and took a sip, trembling slightly again, as if trying to dispel the chill in his mind.

There was a long silence before Secretary of State Burnett pressed on, "They're demanding our surrender. What will be the consequences of surrendering? How will we be treated?"

Ellis said very decisively, "They will become slaves, below the status of native servants and soldiers."

"The Han army managed the native servants and soldiers, and the native servants and soldiers managed the white indentured slaves."

"White people demand to do the hardest and dirtiest jobs."

Upon hearing this, Texas President Lamar could not contain his anger and shouted, "These Han Chinese are the real devils. They bring their native servants and soldiers, and their actions are just like those of devils."

"Is the United States truly not prepared to intervene? Is Europe prepared to allow evil to rule the Americas?"

Ellis echoed this sentiment with equal indignation, adding, "The gentlemen of Congress are afraid of war and unwilling to take the initiative to fight the Great for Texas."

"But if the Great Han attacks the territory of the United States, they will have no way to deny it."

"Therefore I suggest that you all retreat to the United States first."

"Wait until the Great Han takes the initiative to attack, forcing the United States to fight against the Great Han."

"Then we'll find an opportunity to take back Texas."

Lamar immediately countered, "If the Great Han really attacks the United States, will Congress really declare war on the Great Han?"

Ellis also bluntly shrugged, saying, "I can't guarantee anything, but this is the only direction where there might be a favorable outcome."

"Of course I will leave immediately. I will go to Washington to report on what I have learned over the past year."

"Please help me arrange a boat or vehicle—"

Lamar nodded with a very grim expression: "Of course I can help you, but please stay a moment."

"I will convene Parliament immediately, and I ask Your Excellency to address the Parliament and reiterate these points."

"Persuade everyone to make a joint decision to temporarily evacuate this area —"

After a moment of silence, Ellis agreed.

Lamar first sent Ellis to rest, then immediately went to convene a parliamentary meeting.

The Texas legislators are currently in Houston and are monitoring the situation in the southwest border region. They gathered immediately after receiving the notification.

Lamar had Ellis speak first in parliament, restating what he knew about the Han army, and then answer questions from the members of parliament.

Ellis's introduction made the atmosphere in the council particularly oppressive, with most members remaining silent.

Many people were praying silently, as if Texas was about to be destroyed.

However, with more members of parliament, there will naturally be more different ideas.

Sam Houston, the former commander-in-chief of the Texas military and former president, and the city's name originator, then spoke up: "The heart of Mexico is very far from Texas, separated by a large number of mountains and wastelands."

How will the Han army of tens of thousands be supplied? Do they have enough ships in the Gulf of Mexico?

"Their army may be powerful, but once they lose their supplies, they won't be able to continue the offensive, will they?"

Ellis casually replied, "Those 70,000 servants were mostly responsible for transporting and collecting supplies."

"They used mules and vehicles to transport supplies from southern Mexico, traveling along the foothills where the plains meet the mountains, where the ground is quite flat."

"Once they arrive in Texas, I don't know if the supplies will be able to sustain them; that's something you need to determine."

"If the Han army is unable to maintain its supplies and cannot occupy Texas, that would certainly be a good thing."

"But if they can maintain it, the outcome is predictable."

"My advice has always been to evacuate as soon as possible, take everything you can, and destroy as much of what you can't take."

"Then we will turn back to observe the situation of the Han army and see if the Han can maintain its supplies."

"If they cannot maintain their supplies, we will have a chance to retake the land."

Houston considered it for a moment and agreed that it was indeed not a good time to gamble, so he nodded in agreement with Ellis: "Let's vote, evacuate or hold on."

The speaker announced the start of the vote, and the results came out quickly: the vast majority of members chose to leave.

Texas currently has no other options.

The enemy has an army larger than their own population, with extremely high military discipline, weapons with superior performance that overwhelm them, and extremely fanatical servants.

The probability of winning in a direct confrontation is extremely low, and the key point is that if they fail, they will all be wiped out.

They could only gamble that the enemy's supplies were insufficient and they would be unable to continue their conquest of the entire Texas.

If you gamble wrong, you might become a slave at best, or your whole family might be wiped out at worst.

Most Texas lawmakers are unwilling to gamble their lives on this possibility.

Moreover, it's not uncommon in Europe and America for people to evacuate after their country is destroyed and establish a government-in-exile elsewhere.

Therefore, most of the councilors decisively chose to evacuate first.

Regardless of whether all citizens can evacuate, all members of parliament certainly do not want to stay.

The council voted to approve it, the speaker and the president signed it, and then the order was officially issued for the nationwide evacuation of Texas.

Of course, there are only about 70,000 people nationwide, and they are quite scattered, so it is estimated that most places will not be able to be notified.

The gentlemen could only ensure their own evacuation; as for the others, they were left to fate.