On July 8, the Yin Fa Expeditionary Fleet, which had been walking all the way, finally arrived in the Mumbai area.

Then the commander-in-chief of the fleet, Jackie Fisher, the Third Sea Minister of the Great Yin Empire, said in an interview with reporters that they would need to rest here for a month or two.

On the one hand, it was used to wait and converge the warships and infantry that had been mobilized from other colonies.

On the other hand, the expeditionary fleet has encountered some troubles, and there are many infantry in the cargo ships that follow the fleet, and due to weather and other reasons, there is a relatively serious situation of water and soil adaptation.

These ground troops are in somewhat bad physical condition, and they must be allowed to recuperate.

However, even after such bad news came out, almost everyone was still not optimistic about the Xuange camp.

Because 'not adapting to the water and soil' is really not a big problem, you can adapt to the weather in the Far East after a period of recuperation, and once the combat effectiveness is restored, it will be the end of the Xuange camp.

It's just that Hu Ertong and those people can live for an extra month or two.

It is definitely because of this reason that the Dutch people who were originally honest in East Java have become different for a while.

Not only did they regain their former swagger in front of their Javanese Chinese compatriots.

Although there is no real action yet, it is just that the time has not yet come.

According to credible information from the Ministry of Security, in addition to the fact that many Dutch troops are already secretly mobilizing, many Dutch expatriates are also secretly armed.

It is clear that these Durans are waiting.

After waiting for the arrival of the Yin Law Expeditionary Fleet, he stabbed the knife hard in the back of the Xuange camp.

In response to such a situation, Hu Biao gave the answer to Shi Poyu and the war elephant who came to ask for instructions: "Don't worry, let them toss again,

After the Dulands gathered more armed forces, they were all solved at once.

Otherwise, it's really hard to deal with them.

Then this place in Java will completely belong to the flower planters, after all, according to historical records, this place also belongs to our inherent land since ancient times......

On 15 July, everything showed that the Great Powers had completely failed to mediate the current crisis on the island.

After receiving such a message, Li Zhongtang did not speak for half an hour; He sat down in his chair, and his back, which had been erect and straight, was bent down.

After seeing this, Yang Shixiang, who was his confidant next to him, instinctively sighed in his heart when he saw this:

"Lord Zhongtang is old, and this group of foreigners who are known as the 'Bismarck of the East' no longer have the ambition and arrogance of the past.

He, the most core soul figure in the entire Beiyang, believes too much in those foreign devils this time; As a result, one wrong step, one wrong step, and finally to the embarrassing point of the current misground. ”

made Yang Shixiang have such a reaction, because on this day, the situation on Chaodao has been extremely bad.

After the devils continued to increase their troops, the army strength on Asahimama has now reached an astonishing 29,000 troops, and it is still adding troops one after another.

On the Beiyang side, 23,000 men were deployed on the front line of Asan, not to mention the individual combat effectiveness between the two sides, and the strength of the troops alone was already at a disadvantage.

But even so, it is almost in the entire Huai army system.

Including the Sheng Army, the Ming Army, the Chu Army, the Gongwei Army, the Qinqing Army, the Suigong Army, the Guardian Army, and the Songwu Army, almost two-thirds of the troops.

Although there are still more than 10,000 people left in Daqing, they need to guard many sailor bases in Zhili and Bohai Bay.

Even if Ye Zhichao, Nie Shicheng and other military leaders continue to ask Li Zhongtang to replenish troops and materials to prepare for war; But even if you grit your teeth and continue to increase your troops, you won't be able to mobilize many troops.

Based on the above total, Li Zhongtang has experienced many ups and downs in his life.

For a while, I was also exhausted.

Because he is already old, he can't accept that Beiyang, which he has worked so hard to run, has been exhausted in this battle, and can only pray that this battle will not happen.

The problem is that such a hope is getting slimmer......

On July 17, the island nation set up a base camp in the Hiroshima area and held a closed-door meeting of the highest level. In the end, under the auspices of the devil Ito Bofumi, a resolution was unanimously reached:

Find a way to create an excuse to start a war with Daqing as soon as possible.

Three days later, the island nation drew all the best of the Standing Fleet, the Garrison Fleet, and the West Sea Fleet; A combined fleet under the command of Ito Yuhiro was formed, ready to fight a decisive battle with the Northern Yang fleet at any time.

In such a fleet of island countries, it specifically includes:

Flagships Matsushima, Yoshino, Takachiho, Akitsuzu, Naniwa, Chiyoda, Itsukushima, Hashidate, Hiei, Fuso, Saikyo Maru, Akagi.

a total of 12 warships with a total tonnage of 40,840 tons; It has 268 artillery pieces, 568 torpedo tubes, and an average speed of 14.5 knots.

It can be said that for this war, the island country is like a desperate gambler, and all the decent belongings of its own navy are pressed up.

In contrast, they need to face the opponent of the North Yang fleet.

Although in addition to the eight warships such as the Eight Great Yuan, there are also the Chaoyong and Yangwei; There are also Guangjia, Guangyi, Guangc, etc., which were supported by the Guangdong East Naval Division, and there are thirteen warships.

On the surface, at first glance, there is not much difference between the two sides, and there are even slight advantages.

However, in terms of total tonnage, there were only 32,100 tons, 195 artillery pieces, and 556 torpedo tubes.

If the above difference is not big, but the average speed is only 10.2 knots, which is quite fatal in the current naval battle.

If you also count the daily training, the professionalism of the sailors, etc., it is simply desperate......

On July 23rd, in the early hours of the morning, in the royal palace of Asahima, which is not small, but always looks a little childish.

In the mouths of the Obas of later generations, Concubine Min, who was about to be blown into the sky, sighed silently in her heart; Facing Li Xi, the king of Chaodao, who had been sitting for almost a night, he opened his mouth to persuade him:

"My lord, it's late at night, so let's rest early; Now that the state is difficult, you still have to focus on your body. ”

Li Xi didn't speak after hearing this, just shook his head and said he wouldn't go.

Seeing this, Concubine Min didn't continue to persuade her, because she knew that with the bad situation in Chaodao at the moment, she couldn't sleep even after going to bed?

Since the 10th of last month, the Asahima's Imperial Court and the Togaku Party reached an armistice.

The two of them kept urging Daqing and the island country, and the two families hurriedly withdrew their troops from Chaodao; What I'm afraid of is that in the back, something will go wrong.

However, both sides promised well in their mouths.

In fact, it was like a game, constantly transferring troops into the DPRK.

Now in Asahima, there are tens of thousands of soldiers and horses on both sides facing each other on Asahima, and it seems that as long as a slightly larger Martian son can make them fight.

At that time, it will be a huge disaster for them who are caught in the middle.

In the face of such a difficult situation, even if she Concubine Min is conceited and scheming, but under her own weak strength, where can she solve it.

The husband and wife sat here, unable to think of any good way.

I can only silently pray to the ancestors of the Asahimama royal family in my heart, hoping that this crisis can be passed safely.

Then, the two of them sat for less than a quarter of an hour, when suddenly a loud burst of gunfire sounded in their ears, and the terrible shouts of the guards guarding the palace 'The islanders have come in'.

After the two glanced at each other, they could both see the deep despair in each other's eyes:

"The ancestors of the royal family of Chaodao didn't bless them at all, and those island people still did it."

After about a minute or two at most, the chief guard guarding the palace pushed open the door with half of his body bloodstained, and without even paying attention to etiquette, he hurriedly shouted:

"King, the big thing is not good, the people of the island country have already come in, and the guards are about to be completely unable to withstand it.

Please quickly follow your subordinates out of the palace from the back door, your subordinates and others are all brains, and they must escort the two of them to the Daqingqing army to hide. ”

Faced with such a proposal, Li Xi shook his head with a wry smile and said in his mouth:

"No need, since the islanders have done it tonight, they are already fully prepared, and they can't escape at all; Yuan Datou's Qingjun also had a big disaster tonight.

So instead of fleeing in embarrassment and eventually being caught by the islanders, it is better to stay here and wait for them, and maintain the last trace of dignity on my island. ”

Concubine Min also nodded in agreement, and shouted in her mouth: "Come on, help me change clothes with the king~"

Suddenly, some palace maids with frightened faces hurriedly ran in.

At this moment, the sadness of the small country and the widows who are extremely powerless under the general trend is fully revealed in the two Li Xi and Concubine Min.

Even if the two of them claim to be the masters of the three thousand miles of rivers and mountains on this island, so what?

They also need to rely on the snort of Daqing and the island country, and even fate is in their hands.

Ten minutes later, Keisuke Otori, the minister of the island country in Korea, and Li Yingshi, the biological father of Li Xi, the king of the courtyard, were escorted by dozens of soldiers with bloody bayonets, and walked into the largest Qinzheng Hall in the palace.

The heavy footsteps of the military boots under his feet resounded in the center of the supreme power of the island.

In other words, the situation of Li Xi, the king of Chaodao, is similar to that of the Guangxu Emperor of Daqing, and the situation of the two ascending to the throne.

Both of them belonged to the previous emperor and had no sons, and they finally became emperors after being passed by.

The difference is that Emperor Guangxu's biological father, Prince Yiyun, never thought of seizing the rights of his son; But Li Ying, the king of the courtyard, has been fighting with Concubine Min for the power of Chaodao.

On the contrary, it was Li Xi who didn't have the heart to fight.

After entering the door, Keisuke Oshima, who was holding a victor high, bowed extremely perfunctorily to Li Xi and his wife, who were dressed in a full set of robes and robes of the king and princess of Asasima.

In his mouth, he said very unceremoniously:

"Your Majesty, the Honorable King and Princess of Chaojima, considering that you have been greatly troubled by state affairs, it is better to let the Dayuanjun regent in the future, how about the two of you go to recuperate with peace of mind."

Looking at those bloody bayonets, it was equivalent to the knives being put on his neck, knowing that he was powerless to resist at all, Li Xi didn't even hesitate, and immediately agreed in his mouth.

In a short time, an edict written exactly according to Keisuke Oshima's intention was stamped with a large seal.

Holding the edict that was not dry, there was no need for Keisuke Oshima to say a word or two, and the courtyard king who was in the position on the side said with great eyesight:

"Your Excellency, I will officially announce to the public early tomorrow morning that Asahimama and Daqing will completely sever their vassal relations; In addition, we have entrusted the island nation to help us drive the green army out of Asahima.

Therefore, everything in the future of Asahimashima is up to all of you in the island country. ”

After finishing speaking, he also learned the etiquette of the island people and bowed deeply.

"There is no problem, the island country will be Asahima's best friend in the future, and the Qingjun will definitely get out of Asahima; Then Asahimama will also be as civilized as the island country, and become a modern and powerful Guo Jia. ”

While bowing in return, Keisuke Oshima readily agreed.

Then, in the bloody palace, the two looked at each other and smiled......

Not long ago, Yuan Datou, who was sleeping in the camp of the Qing army, suddenly woke up from the faint sound of gunfire from the direction of the palace.

Judging from the details of the gunshots, I know that it is the little devil of the island country who has made a move to have such a movement.

In a fierce spirit, this 'Emperor Chaojima', who is extremely familiar with the current situation of Asahima, has already reacted in his brain: No! Li Xi must not be allowed to fall into the hands of devils.

Otherwise, in the next time, the legality, justice, and supplies left by the Daqing army on the island will be fatally affected.

More importantly, if the court blames it afterwards.

As the 'Plenipotentiary Representative of the General in Korea for Trade and Trade Matters', everything about his future will be over.

Immediately, he rushed out of the military tent, shouting 'everyone get up quickly', and after a long period of busy work, he took a group of Qingjun soldiers who had hurriedly got up and were disheveled, and even their heads were still dizzy, and went to the palace to support.

As a result, the group of people was only a hundred and ten steps away from the camp in a mess.

In the darkness of the night, in the low-rise houses in front of them, a dense number of guns attacked, knocking over the twenty or thirty people who rushed to the front on the spot.

Even Yuan Datou himself was shot in the shoulder and fell off his horse.

The rest of the Qing army instinctively shot at the opposite side; Unfortunately, soon after, the guns beckoned from the front knocked over about 34 people.

Judging from the numerous muzzle flames on the opposite side, as well as the 'whooshing~' bullets flying around, God knows how many people were ambushed by those god-damn little devils?

Yuan Datou's luck was good, at the moment when he fell from the war horse, he was quickly caught by Fenghuahui, and he was not choked by a fall.

dragged to a slightly safer place in the back, tore off a strip of cloth, and temporarily wrapped the wound.

The problem is that he saw the Qingjun soldiers under his command, and the one who was panicked to the extreme, even if his heart was full of strong unwillingness, he didn't know that the general trend had gone.

After biting his lip hard, he felt a sharp pain, and the fishy sweet taste of blood in his mouth, and his mind was reluctantly retracted

A sentence shouted out of his mouth: "Withdraw, withdraw immediately, withdraw immediately to Ashan, go and ......join Admiral Ye and Nie Junmen."

******

On July 25th, in Jingshi City, a mid-range restaurant called 'Gaosheng Tavern'.

Although it was already evening, because of the shocking incident that had happened on Asagima the day before, there were still a large number of newspaper boys running on the street outside the window.

shouted loudly in his mouth, the latest news published in the special issue of several popular newspapers in Beijing Shicheng:

"Outside, outside, the minister of the island country told the imperial court that the battle with the Qing army the day before yesterday was a misunderstanding, and the island country has absolutely no intention of starting a war with Daqing at present......

"It's amazing, the latest regent of Asahima, officially announced that Asahima's and Daqing's vassal relationship was severed, and His Majesty the Emperor was furious and issued a decree to severely reprimand this fatherless and motherless person......"

"The latest news, the 20 million island currency bonds issued by the island nation in London have all been sold out.

According to the latest statistics, in the past year, the island nation has issued 80 million yen in bonds, equivalent to 56 million taels of silver......"

"The island's finances are commensurate, and the bonds issued recently will all be used for industrial upgrading, such as industry and railways.

Mr. Miyanmao, the editor-in-chief of "Innovation Daily", said that upgrading the little devil's grandmother's mouth, these grandsons are paralyzing my youth; In the near future, there will be a war between the island nation and Daqing.

Weeping blood implore the princes of the imperial court to give up their illusions and prepare for war with all their might......"

Outside the number, "Xinmin Weekly" published an anonymous author, a long serial article "Chrysanthemum and Knife".

The editor-in-chief, Mr. Baron, said that this article profoundly exposes the contradictory character of the little devil in a small country and a widow; If you want to win against them, you must understand their character......"

"Yangcheng New Newspaper", editor-in-chief of the board ......"

In such a bustling voice, the 'Big Sword King Five', who is well-known in the Jingshi City Well.

The shopkeeper, who was also standing on the side, ordered a few seasonal appetizers, and glanced at Tan Fusheng, who was sitting opposite, with some concern.

In the end, he couldn't help the worry in his heart, and carefully asked: "Brother Tan, ......are you okay?"

(End of chapter)