The Australian Revolution of 1828

Although the princess was a bit dark-skinned, she was still within Han Qingyun's aesthetic range. After all, if a woman was too ugly, it wouldn't be easy for Han An to accept her.

The fact that Han An took a liking to her shows that she's quite good-looking.

After dismissing Han An and the other eunuchs, leaving only the palace maids on night watch, Han Qingyun sat on the bed and said, "Naisa, what a beautiful name!"

Naisa, who was just learning Mandarin, could understand a little, but her speech was not fluent and she stammered. Struggling to get out of bed, she said, "This servant greets Your Majesty!"

The palace matrons had done a good job training Naisa; she was very well-mannered. She didn't criticize Han Qingyun simply because of her status as a princess of the Bali Kingdom.

Despite being reduced to the status of a princess of a fallen kingdom, at least she still had some self-awareness.

Since Naisa was completely naked, Han Qingyun stopped her from bowing and said, "Lie down, I also need to rest!"

Naisa clearly understood what was going to happen next, and remained silent.

After a quick wash, Han Qingyun felt Naisa's delicate skin and entered a state of blissful oblivion. For a time, the two of them were in high spirits and very comfortable.

Early in the morning, the Grand Eunuch Han An disturbed their peaceful sleep, waking them both up.

Normally, Han An is quite sensible and wouldn't usually do something like this to disturb someone's sleep. If he does it on an occasional occasion, it must mean something important has happened.

Indeed, just as Han Qingyun had predicted, Han An glanced at the awakened Naisa and said, "Your Majesty, news has come from Lanfang that the Dutch..."

He stopped halfway through his sentence.

Clearly, Han An had some reservations, fearing that military intelligence might be leaked.

When it comes to matters of national importance, Han Qingyun still knows what's important. He got out of bed in his pajamas, walked to the door, and then impatiently inquired about the military situation, saying, "Tell me, what exactly happened in Lanfang?"

The Lanfang trading post was a crucial link in immigration and trade, and it absolutely could not be lost. If the Dutch caused trouble, it would provoke the British, and a war would ensue.

The Xia Kingdom had no choice and no room for retreat.

Han An also knew the importance of Lan Fang, so he handed over Wei Guochang's military report and said, "Your Majesty, this is a personal document from Wei Guochang, the magistrate of Zhaoyang County. The Dutch attacked Tang Boqian, the stationmaster of the trading post."

The military situation is urgent, and there is no time to hesitate.

Han Qingyun took the document from Wei Guochang and read it carefully before he learned what had happened to Lanfang.

In short, Tang Boqian was kidnapped, Wei Guochang sent troops to rescue him, and the Dutch troops stationed in Pontianak were wiped out. They have now withdrawn to the trading post to await orders.

Han Qingyun didn't know if there were any hidden reasons behind this, but the Batavian colonial government was unlikely to let the destruction of the Dutch garrison go unpunished.

Given the importance of Lanfang, Han Qingyun had to take action to prevent the Lanfang trading post from falling into the hands of the Dutch colonial army and being destroyed.

He handed the document to Han An and said, "Immediately notify the Grand General's Office, the Ministry of Military Affairs, the Grand Secretary, and others to convene a meeting to discuss countermeasures against Lanfang."

Whether it's sending troops to reinforce Lanfang or attacking Java Island, Machen, and other places to achieve the goal of "besieging Wei to rescue Zhao," a clear strategy must be devised as soon as possible.

Upon receiving the order, Han An immediately sent people to convey the command to the various departments, while Han Qingyun, with the help of the night watch maids, dressed in the Ming Dynasty imperial robes.

Before leaving, Han Qingyun did not forget Naisa and instructed the maids, "Help Naisa get up and take her to see the Queen later, where the Queen will arrange her accommodations."

Ultimately, matters of the harem should be decided by Queen Meng Yu. Han Qingyun did not want to interfere too much, to avoid marital conflict, and tried his best to have the woman manage the household affairs while the man managed external affairs.

Handing Naisa over to the Queen for arrangements was also a way to maintain order in the harem.

After everything was arranged, Han Qingyun went to the front hall to wait for the heads of various departments to arrive.

The first to arrive was Luo Bingzhong, the Grand Secretary of the Civil Affairs Council. With a somewhat incredulous expression, he asked, "Your Majesty, has something happened to Lanfang?"

He gestured for Han An to hand over the latest document before saying, "The situation in Lanfang is urgent; a war seems inevitable. We must prepare!"

Luo Bingzhong quickly reviewed the documents before understanding what had happened. He said, "The Dutch have been operating in Lanfang and Machan in Borneo for many years and their influence is considerable. I'm afraid this battle is inevitable."

Han Qingyun shared this view.

After all, Wei Guochang destroyed the enemy's garrison castle in Pontianak. If things had just passed like that, the Dutch power in Borneo would have been at risk of collapsing.

First, there were many factions in Borneo dissatisfied with the Dutch, and they were essentially indecisive. If it weren't for their fear of Dutch military power, they would have already rebelled.

Secondly, the Netherlands has a small population but controls most of Borneo, so it has to rely on local powers, namely the Lanfang Republic, the Machen Sultanate, and the Banjar Sultanate.

Third, the Netherlands' weak stance could trigger a chain reaction, causing local leaders to change their allegiance based on the prevailing winds.

With these three points in mind, the Dutch had to react to prevent the situation in Borneo from deteriorating. Han Qingyun saw this clearly and could naturally guess the Dutch's next move.

He agreed with Luo Bingzhong's opinion, saying, "You're right. Lanfang is too important to us. We absolutely cannot let the Dutch run rampant. We must win this war caused by the conflict."

The two discussed coming up with a concrete strategy as soon as possible, and Grand Commander Meng Xiong and Minister of Military Affairs Li Guochen also arrived soon after.

After reviewing the document sent by Lan Fang, Li Guochen offered his opinion, saying, "Your Majesty, I believe we should send the navy north to sever the connection between Batavia and Borneo."

"At the same time, he secretly ordered Zhang Zhenghe, the magistrate of Xunyang County, that as long as Prince Tibonico of Yogyakarta paid him, he would provide him with all kinds of military equipment."

"Strengthen the Javanese uprising forces and make sure to tie down the Batavian colonial army, preventing them from escaping."

Borneo's military equipment all came from Batavia. If the merchant shipping links between the two places were cut off, consumables such as bullets and shells would soon be exhausted and in short supply.

As for Java, at this time, Prince Diponegoro of Yogyakarta was leading a rebellion to drive the Dutch colonial army out of Java.

At this critical juncture, as long as military equipment continues to be supplied, the outcome of this war becomes uncertain, and the Batavian colonial government has no energy to deal with matters in Borneo.

If the Xia Kingdom were given just two years, it would be enough to develop a powerful military force that could rival the Netherlands.

After listening to Li Guochen's opinion, Grand Commander Meng Xiong also expressed his views, saying, "Your Majesty, Guochen's opinion is very insightful and highly practical."

"In addition to these two points, I believe that Wei Guochang should be given more authority and allowed to recruit soldiers in Lanfang to deal with this conflict."

"In addition, the Xunyang Garrison Command is fully prepared for war. Once the Dutch colonial army in Ma Chen marches north to Lan Fang, the Xunyang Garrison Command will immediately send troops to Ma Chen (the capital of southern Borneo) to destroy the Dutch center of power in Borneo."

After a brief discussion, a strategy for deploying troops was quickly formulated, and the latest war orders were issued to the Navy, Xunyang, Zhaoyang, Lanfang and other units.