The battle surrounding Ryukyu has only now entered a truly exciting stage. Regardless of the crazy French bombardment before, the violence was violent enough, but it was less twists and turns.
Well now, all the chaos has come together to form a huge cyclone, and a super storm in the Pacific is about to erupt.
King Shangtai and his ministers in Ryukyu are ready for negotiations, and now even the new army forces represented by Fan Yan and Liang Kun cannot stop them.
On the sea, French envoy Molière and Major General Bruce had been so excited that they had not slept well for two days. Carefully selected French veterans who had fought with black indigenous people in the desert jungles of Africa were asked to start the negotiation table. The previous raid should be foolproof.
Look at the old traitor Gong Cheng again. His wonderful performance of jumping up and down here in Ryukyu has deceived countless people. No one would have guessed that this old guy is addicted to betraying his country. In his eyes, the excitement brought by deception and betrayal even exceeds Smoking heavily.
The main island of Ryukyu has become a mess, and other places are not much better. Wang Huaiyuan, Sakamoto Ryoma and four brave college students are already wandering on the sea, looking for any opportunity to strike.
On the Japanese island of Kyushu, the Shimazu family, the lords of the Satsuma domain, were also working hard. In order to contain the energy of the French, they even burned down a large civilian area and faked a huge plague. This shows that the Japanese are indeed It's crazy.
The storm is not limited to the ocean islands. On the opposite continent, the Manchu and Qing Dynasties have begun secret operations. Countless Eight Banners disciples have begun to put pressure on the court with the help of thoughtful people. They even temporarily formed an alliance with Qingliu led by Weng Tonghe. , and together they strongly requested the court to track down all the remaining forces of the traitor Xiao Letian.
Qingliu's bullets flew into the Forbidden City like snowflakes, and the secret gossip of the Eight Banners dandies also poured into the Yangxin Palace through various channels. The strong pressure had shaken the Empress Dowager Ci'an. This was the last calm of the Manchu ruling class. Once the anger that has been accumulated for several years is burned out, it will explode like a volcano. God knows what it will be like at that time.
At this point, even the powerful Hunan Army is helpless. Zeng Guofan's power is on the mainland, on both sides of the Yangtze River. The ocean is not his stage. No matter how Ryukyu fights, the Hunan Army will not be able to join in. This is the first to throw out The old man of Hidden Dragon Theory can only silently pray for Xiao Le at home.
The sky in East Asia was so dark that no sunlight could penetrate, but Xiao Letian didn't know all this. He could only make random guesses on the British merchant ship, and then relied on fine wine to get drunk.
This is the territory of the British. No need to guess, everyone knows that every sailor here is a voluntary spy for the British Empire. Every word Xiao Letian and his men say will be recorded by someone who is interested.
The prime minister's small class and regular war games were stopped. All the officers were bored and drinking and sunbathing on the merchant ship. The warm wind of the Indian Ocean almost softened their bones.
Everyone hates this kind of life, but there is only one exception, and that is Pierre, the French gold medal intelligence agent. This alcoholic made a three-way agreement with Fang Guan before, promising not to drink while working. However, due to the surveillance of the British along the way, , Pierre's intelligence analysis work all stopped.
During this long sea voyage, Pierre almost read about it in the wine cellar. His daily life consisted of drinking, learning Chinese, eating, sleeping... and borrowing Xiao Letian's light, everything he drank along the way was... It's a good wine that you can't even afford on ordinary days.
This is really the happiest time for Pierre. He doesn’t have to worry about not having enough money in his pocket to spend. Although he misses Fangguan every day, he suddenly thinks that he is going to Fangguan’s motherland to study Fangguan. For the life and culture that I am familiar with, for the sake of future happiness, I can bear to miss you for a short period of time.
However, the relaxing vacation time always comes to an end. When the merchant ship, under the protection of British warships, anchored in the port of Jaffna in Sri Lanka, a secret intelligence was sent.
Facts have proved that the Prussian intelligence personnel are still very capable, and the British are not monolithic. There are several secret agents among the sailors of the merchant ships who were instigated to rebel.
Basket after basket of tropical fruits, vegetables, meat, and grain were loaded onto the merchant ship, and the chef and sailors were very busy.
"Be careful, be careful. These barrels are filled with top-quality wine. If you break a barrel, you will have wasted a year... This is wine for guests. Send it to the bottom wine warehouse..."
"Move these dried meats quickly, don't use them as roads here...and these mangoes, send them directly to the kitchen..."
Even though the chief chef may not be a high-ranking official, he has a lot of prestige in the merchant ship. Even the captain does not dare to offend him. If you offend him, God knows if his saliva is in the food given to you.
Under the arrangement of the chief chef, various foods were moved into the cabin in an orderly manner, along with a summary of East News carefully prepared by the Prussians.
Pierre, a drunkard, was discovered in the wine cellar. As soon as the sailor carrying the wine barrel opened the hatch, he saw a sleeping Frenchman blocking the aisle. Several sailors kicked him in annoyance.
"Go back to your cabin and sleep. Can anyone sleep here? I'm not afraid of the wine barrels rolling down in the sea and hitting you to death. Oh, it's really heavy..."
Seeing that they couldn't wake him up by kicking him, the sailors had no choice but to take him out themselves. At the same time, a wax-sealed paper roll was thrown into Pierre's shirt without anyone noticing. .
Pierre was thrown into his hammock. Living in the same cabin with him were Long Ye, Sima Yun and Xiao Hexin who had an injured knee. However, at this time, Long Ye and Sima Yun were both on the deck looking at the exotic scenery. Only Xiao He Xin was reading alone in the cabin, and what he was reading was the English version of "Hamlet"
The cabin door was closed, and Pierre snored loudly for five minutes. The Frenchman suddenly opened his eyes like a ghost, and he was not drunk at all.
"Can you understand the English version of Hamlet? There are many medieval and old English words in it."
"It's okay. I can understand the general meaning. If you really don't understand, I can ask the British captain and first mate."
"Oh, God, have you really studied English for more than two years? Then you are really a genius..." Pierre and Xiao Hexin were chatting about literature, but their hands were not idle. The wax-sealed The scroll was crushed into pieces, and the two of them memorized all the information inside at a glance.
After reciting it silently three times and reciting it three times, Pierre finally stuffed the roll of paper into his mouth and chewed it hard. "Oh... Mr. Xiao, the bit of beef jerky you left is really too hard." , you give me a drink..."
After taking three gulps of beer, Pierre swallowed the unpleasant paper roll. He whispered, "I didn't expect the situation in East Asia to be so serious. Give me three hours." , you go see the adults now, and we will analyze both aspects together..."
After saying that, Pierre acted like a drunkard again, opened the cabin door and walked out, and happened to bump into the two British sailors he had 'encountered'.
"You...why did you bump into me...go away, don't block my way, I'm going...to the deck to bask in the sun..." After that, he walked away.
At this time, Xiao Hexin walked out on crutches. "I'm sorry, gentlemen. Pierre is drunk. I apologize to you on his behalf..."
"Oh, it's okay. Mr. Xiao also wants to go and bask in the sun." The two sailors quickly asked enthusiastically.
"No, I'm going to play chess with our Prime Minister. It's a really nice day today... Oh, if it's not too much trouble, could you two please send us some tropical fruit? I heard that the fruits in Sri Lanka are very delicious..."
As he spoke, Xiao Hexin took out a two-pound note from his pocket and stuffed it into the sailor's pocket. Xiao Hexin was an important officer on the merchant ship and had a much higher status than the two sailors. It was really not an insult to give him a tip. .
Moreover, the pound in this era followed the gold standard. One pound can be exchanged for nearly 8 grams of gold. Xiao Hexin's purchase is 16 grams of gold. It is not difficult to calculate how many things can be purchased.
Although the two sailors had complicated identities, they would not refuse the opportunity to make extra money. They nodded and walked out without saying anything. Xiao Hexin hurried to see Xiao Letian.
"Sir, the Prussian intelligence officers are really powerful. All the intelligence from East Asia during this period has been compiled. These damn French people have begun to massacre civilians..."
Xiao Hexin lowered his voice and began to repeat the details of the intelligence one by one, while Ping'er and Huniu on the side began to hum a European opera ditty very thoughtfully to cover the conversation.
Xiao Letian's expression became more and more serious. This information was only up to the first day of the war. Although it was not comprehensive, it still made people feel the seriousness of the situation.
Rumors were flying all over East Asia. People above the eighth floor believed that Xiao Letian was dead. The morale of the military was already at its most unstable. Coupled with the French fleet's excellent tactics, they captured Kunigou Village and established a landing position just after the war started. , which makes all analysts even more pessimistic.
It took Xiao Hexin ten minutes to finish reciting the information. At the end, he said nervously, "Prussia hopes that you will not move forward. The situation in East Asia is very dangerous. If Ryukyu is lost after you return, all the enemies will attack in groups. Your life is in danger."
Xiao Letian did not answer immediately. He knew what the Prussians meant. If he turned back to Europe now, under the dual protection of the United States and Prussia, he would definitely have a very good treatment, and even be able to become a political adviser to the opposition. These escaped officers can also have their own uses.
Being able to save his life and make progress in his career was Prussia's promise, and Xiao Letian had no doubts about this promise.
If Xiao Letian insists on going back to Ryukyu, it will be a disaster. If Ryukyu has been lost, the French navy will naturally block the ocean. At that time, even the Americans will not be able to confront France.
And the sworn enemies within the Manchu Qing Dynasty will not miss the opportunity to beat the drowned dog. When the time comes, they will definitely roll up their sleeves and go into battle personally. Maybe Caishikou will be Xiao Letian's final destination.
