The Australian Revolution of 1828

The artillery support from the Third Company arrived very quickly. Around 9 a.m., they arrived at the Laoputou Wharf in a gunboat of about 500 tons and aimed the gunboat's 32 cannons at the Japanese garrison camp.

The bastion barracks is like a thorny fortress, with a concave polygonal shape, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.

War was imminent, and the red-haired devil's captain was also in a state of panic and at a loss.

Originally, the plan was simply to arrest Tang Boqian quietly, torture him severely, and then throw him into the river. However, the stupid subordinates backfired, leading to the current situation.

They can't kill them, but releasing them would confirm their own problems. Arresting Xia people without cause is a real dilemma.

Moreover, the conflict between the two countries has a long history, and if this matter were to trigger a war between them, the Dutch governor of Batavia would not be able to explain it to the Dutch governor.

After all, the governor of Batavia was preoccupied with the rebellion of the princes of Yogyakarta and had no energy left to create more powerful enemies.

While the Netherlands had colonies throughout the East Indies, its navy was ultimately weaker. It wouldn't be a problem to bully the local powers in Southeast Asia and the Lanfang forces, who lacked merchant ships, a navy, and firearms.

However, news from British India indicated that Xia had a population of over one million, plus more than five warships and an unknown number of armed merchant ships, making it a force capable of rivaling Batavia.

The officer in charge of guarding the old shop was named Walter Simmons. Seeing the Xia Kingdom's army surround the camp, he angrily slapped the red-haired officer in charge, cursing, "Damn it, look what you've done!"

"Yeldi Bailo, tell me what to do?"

Yerdi Bailo was the red-haired officer who led the team to the trading post to demand the person, and was also the person directly responsible for the attack on Tang Boqian.

Now that things have gone wrong and he doesn't want to take responsibility, he suddenly had an idea and said, "Sir, I think we should ask Batavia for help and at the same time order Liu Tai'er to expel the Xia people."

Given the vast disparity in power between the two countries in the Pontianak region, Walter Simmons didn't want to escalate the situation. He slapped Yerdi Bailo again and yelled, "Don't you think things are complicated enough already?"

"If war breaks out, do you think Batavia will have any troops to send?"

Walter Simmons was left speechless with frustration after dealing with a foolish subordinate.

After hesitating for a long time, he still did not want to let Tang Boqian go so easily, and ordered: "Yeldi Bailo, immediately report the behavior of the Xia people to Chief Liu of Lanfang (Taiwan No. 2) and order them to expel all the Xia people in Pontianak."

"In addition, send people to Machen (the capital of southern Borneo), Sampha (north of New Putrajaya), Lampawa (north of New Putrajaya), and Batavia (Jakarta) to explain the situation and request reinforcements."

The Dutch pride wouldn't allow them to back down or admit defeat to the Xia people, so they had no choice but to grit their teeth and use every means at their disposal to suppress the matter.

The order and request for help were quickly relayed by several carrier pigeons, one of which delivered the order to Liu Tai'er.

Lanfang's management did not want to get involved and repeatedly tried to dissuade Liu Tai'er from sending reinforcements, saying, "Chief of Staff, the conflict between Chelsea and the Netherlands is our opportunity; we absolutely must not send troops!"

Unfortunately, Liu Tai'er was supported by the Netherlands, so he couldn't refuse.

Moreover, without the support of the Dutch, Lan Fang's position as Minister of State would be unstable.

After careful consideration, Liu Tai'er almost defied all opposition and decided to quickly gather troops to rescue the Dutch at the old shop.

Lanfang was called a local government, but in reality it was a joint-stock company composed of several agricultural and mining bosses, located in areas such as Dongwanlu, Wanna, Zhunan, Shalaman, Nanbawa, Bageting, Danshui Port, Pontianak, and Xinputou.

These company owners also served as local leaders, and their power was no less than Liu Tai'er's. If it weren't for their fear of the Dutch, they would have already removed Liu Tai'er from his position.

It was only because Liu Tai'er was backed by the Dutch military that the authorities had to repeatedly back down and allow Liu Tai'er to serve as the head of the Lanfang General Staff for a long time.

Now that the conflict between the Netherlands and the UK has broken out, it is time for Lanfang to sit back and watch the fight. These chieftains have no desire to get involved, especially the chieftain of Xinputou.

The trading post was located in Xinputou, and its chieftain, Chen Qi'en, benefited greatly from it. He refused the military intervention, saying, "Chief, if you wish to intervene, please do so. I will not entertain you!"

With Chen Qi'en taking the lead, the other leaders followed suit and all expressed their refusal.

Liu Tai'er was favored by the Dutch and benefited from their support in order to become the chief of staff. He had no way of refusing the Dutch orders.

Seeing the local leaders back down, his anger exploded instantly, and he cursed, "Without you bunch of butchers, I, Liu, would never eat pork with hair on it again!"

The meaning is self-evident; the deployment of this soldier has been decided.

The following afternoon, before Lanfang's army could assemble, 500 reinforcements from Zhaoyang Island arrived at the trading post, led by Wei Guochang, the magistrate of Zhaoyang County.

The situation was critical, and Wei Guochang did not rest. He rushed to the Red-haired Devil's camp in Laoputou and listened to the report from Deputy Station Chief Cheng Wenzhuo.

Cheng Wenzhuo dared not keep anything to himself and reported the matter truthfully.

Upon learning the whole story, Wei Guochang praised Tang Boqian highly, but expressed his disapproval of Tang Boqian's methods, saying, "Boqian was indeed a bit rough in his work, but he did a good job. Those red-haired devils should be taught a lesson."

"There is a risk of war breaking out in Lanfang at any time. I will write a memorial and report to Hanyang immediately."

The two sides remain deadlocked, but requests for help from all sides have been sent out one after another.

Originally, Southeast Asia wanted to keep a low profile, conceal its true strength, and try not to provoke countries like Britain and the Netherlands. However, the incident happened suddenly, and there were some things that could not be compromised.

If we take a step back today, we'll have to take a bigger step back tomorrow, and all the benefits we've gradually gained over the years will be completely lost and disappear.

Not to mention Wei Guochang didn't want to lose it, even Han Qingyun wasn't generous enough to abandon all the advantages Lanfang had gained. For the head of a trading post to be kidnapped by those foreign devils was something Xia Kingdom couldn't tolerate.

In the Southeast Asian region, Wei Guochang held considerable power. After careful consideration, he decided to try diplomacy first and then force, aiming to rescue Tang Boqian as soon as possible. He said, "Send someone to tell the red-haired devils to release Tang Boqian immediately."

Wei Guochang was met with a burst of gunfire; the red-haired devil showed no sincerity in making peace.

Since negotiations are impossible, war is the only option.

Considering the impregnable defenses of the Japanese army camp, Wei Guochang ordered his subordinates, "Go, bring over the two 42-pound heavy cannons I brought. I refuse to believe this tortoise shell can withstand heavy artillery!"

The 42-pounder cannon weighs about 6000 kilograms, has a caliber of about 175mm, and a range of nearly 3500 meters. Its only drawback is its slow rate of fire. It is commonly used in artillery emplacements.

It's perfect for bombarding the red-haired devil's shell now.

About an hour later, the soldiers finally got the two heavy cannons off the ship and onto the shore, aiming them at the Japanese garrison.

Walter Simmons, holding a telescope, saw what the heavy artillery looked like, and the unruly red-haired devil finally changed color.