There are many unnamed islands in the Atlantic Ocean. Since they are not located around the golden shipping lanes, and they are small in size and have no strategic resources, they are all in a state of neglect and neglect.
The Zhiyuan is now moored on the sea, surrounded by four primitive clipper ships and two newly snatched merchant ships. All ships have their flags at half-mast. Except for the necessary remaining personnel, all officers and soldiers have landed on the island. Today is the cremation ceremony for all the fallen brothers.
The orderly formation was solemn and rigorous, and everyone looked sad and angry. The 36 huge firewood piles on the beach in front of them were piled up by cutting down all the trees on the island.
Because the firewood was too wet, people had to pour large buckets of kerosene on it, and even placed a large amount of coal on the firewood pile.
The remains of the fallen soldiers were simply sorted out, and they put on brand-new military uniforms and lay on the pyre. Their faces were peaceful, as if they were sleeping soundly, but many of the people alive around them had tears in their eyes.
Xiang Ying walked up to each corpse with red eyes, shouted the name of the war dead, and stuffed his certificate of sacrifice into the urn. The so-called urn was an empty six-inch Armstrong breech-loaded rifled secondary cannon shell. shell.
"Have a good journey, brothers. We will take your ashes home safely... We will not abandon you. There is your share of incense in the Ryukyu War Temple... Your parents and relatives will have a peaceful and prosperous life... …”
"Brother! We will not let your death be meaningless, rest in peace..."
Every time a name was called out, there was a burst of sobs in the surrounding military formations. Now all the officers had no time to take care of everyone's military appearance. They themselves also shed horse urine.
In the end, the crying turned into a cry without any concern for face. Anyway, this is an uninhabited island, and we are not afraid of spreading the word and making people laugh, so everyone can cry openly.
All the Chinese here have undergone military training in the Ryukyu Recruit Camp for half a year. We have long established a very close comradeship.
What's more, we all traveled across half of the world to Europe together, and then studied and lived together in various universities. The friendship, classmate love, and hometown love are entangled together, making everyone have a deep relationship with each other like blood brothers.
Thirty-six brothers could not return home alive. Everyone cried bitterly and they did not know how to face the parents and relatives of their dead comrades.
Xiang Ying held a torch in his hand and shouted, "Don't cry! Ashes to dust, dust to dust... let us send our brothers off for the last time! Everyone... stand at attention! Salute! Fire a gun!"
Boom boom boom... On the sea, the Zhiyuan fired nine blank rounds in a row, and other clipper ships also fired nine blank rounds. As for the soldiers on the island, they saluted and collectively pulled the triggers. Suddenly, gunshots were like rain and cannons were like thunder.
Xiang Ying and officers at all levels lit the firewood pile respectively. The firewood soaked in kerosene emitted thick black smoke. The flames shot out more than three feet high, and crackling sounds were everywhere in the air.
The Chinese people's concept of funerals is still different from that of Westerners. China has not experienced the Age of Discovery, and they cannot bury teammates directly at sea. If they were Europeans, most of the soldiers who died in naval battles were wrapped in white cloth and thrown directly into the sea.
But Xiang Ying and others are not willing to do this. In the hearts of Chinese people, even if the ashes go home, or even a handful of hair, this can give the souls of overseas wanderers a place to rely on. Even though we are thousands of miles away, our souls still have to go home.
The fire burned ragingly for more than four hours. Because a lot of coal was added in the middle, the fire was very intense. It burned until the evening of that day, and people began to search the ashes in the ashes.
It was not until the middle of the moon that 36 shell casings wrapped in white cloth were held in people's arms. A cabin was specially cleared on the Zhiyuan as a temporary storage place for the ashes of the victims.
When the last group of Xiang Ying left the island in a small boat, he said quietly, "We have only gone a third of the way home. God knows how many more people will die..."
When the Zhiyuan sailed away towards the southern ocean, the telegraph station in Dakar finally restored communications. The intelligence agency in Paris, France, received this unbelievable news late that night.
After the Intelligence Bureau's transceiver translated the code, he was stunned for ten minutes. If it weren't for the fact that the message did contain the encrypted beginning of the Governor of Dakar and the Intelligence Bureau, he really thought it was a prank.
The officer holding the coffee stood beside him in confusion, "Hey...what's wrong? Did you see a ghost in your eyes?"
"No... it's something more terrifying than ghosts! Sir... Dakar was bombed by unknown warships and attacked by unknown troops. The whole city was on fire. It is initially estimated that the number of casualties is at least 10,000..."
Pfft... A mouthful of coffee squirted onto the wall. "What? Are you kidding? Dakar will be attacked?" It's no wonder that the commander didn't believe it, because West Africa is basically France's back garden now.
From the map, West Africa is not far from Europe. Gibraltar can be reached by driving straight south. This is the earliest golden waterway discovered in Europe, and it was discovered by Prince Enrique.
There are no hostile countries around at all. France now has a very close relationship with Britain, while Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and other countries have long been weakened, and no one dares to declare war with France.
"If you make such a joke again, I will deduct your salary! There are five thousand defenders in Dakar, including battleships and coastal defense batteries. What kind of fleet can cause such a massacre? Tianfangye Tan, it’s really a fantasy!”
The mailman made a grimace and said, "I'm really not kidding. If you want to deduct your salary, please deduct the salary of the Chevalier Molière and the Governor of Dakar...because this telegram was signed by both of them!"
At this time, the commander could no longer remain indifferent. He grabbed the telegram and read it carefully. He kept mumbling to himself, "A pure iron-clad battleship whose nationality cannot be identified? An eighty-pound main gun? His face is covered in greasepaint." Soldiers? Undeclared war? Late night sneak attack..."
"Oh my God! Chevalier Molière thought the attackers were Chinese? And the governor thought they were British? Fifteen hundred soldiers were killed and over 10,000 citizens died?"
"Damn, are these two idiots? After being beaten so badly, they can't even figure out the identity of the enemy? Can't tell the difference between the Chinese and the British? Damn it... hurry up and report to the military headquarters, The cabinet and His Majesty the Emperor are sending copies!"
"It's broken, it's broken, it's all bad now! His Majesty the Emperor's temper is too terrible. I hope I won't be asked to present the information..."
Late at night in Paris, carriages with military lanterns on them were rushing through the long streets. No police dared to stop them, because people saw that the direction of the carriages was towards the Palace of Versailles.
That night, Napoleon III roared in the Palace of Versailles, "This is a disgrace to the empire! Shame! Send those two losers back to Paris and have the Atlantic Fleet dispatch immediately... Find the damn attacker! Immediately! Immediately!"
Note: Today is the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, so I’ll give you three updates! It’s been a long time since I updated the third update, and I’m quite embarrassed about it. I’m sorry!
