"Don't you know? Although the only poor people here are rubbish, the British have been defeated here!"
Beside the fire, Doro, Guan Lu and a dozen brothers whispered together.
In this era, Afghanistan did not yet have the nickname Graveyard of Empires, but the first British invasion of Afghanistan had already been fought.
In 1839, the British and Indian coalition invaded Afghanistan. Although they quickly defeated the king's army, they fell into the vast ocean of people's war.
All the people in Afghanistan rose up to resist, and it took three and a half years to completely drive the British out of Afghanistan!
More than thirty years have passed, but the Afghans' hatred of the British has not been resolved. When they saw the large-scale expedition of hundreds of people led by Sir Gordon, they automatically thought it was a British army.
This is simply an unreasonable war. There is no declaration of war or warning, and even the two sides do not understand each other's languages. Basically every tribe in this place has its own language, and even the same language has a very complicated accent due to geographical reasons.
The enemies on the battlefield didn't listen to your explanation at all. Tribal warriors riding fast horses and carrying bows, arrows and scimitars attacked the expedition team desperately, killing one group and then rushing up to another group, as if human lives cost no money.
At the end of the fight, Gordon had no choice but to bow his head and let the guide use gold coins to clear the way. The tribal elders saw the money to buy the way and let them go.
After the danger passed, these cronies of Emperor Tongzhi gathered together for a meeting. Yes, they also learned some basics about the Chinese people. They knew that they had to gather together for a small meeting every day to talk about what they had encountered during the day. Everyone Analyze it.
Regarding the toughness of the Afghan tribesmen, these guards of the Qing Dynasty have completely learned the lesson!
"Damn it, if our people in the Qing Dynasty had been so brave back then, the whole village would not have been bullied like this by the big noses of Britain and France..."
"That's right, I finally figured it out today. The people in this place are too united. The whole village comes out to fight with you. The men in the front charge, and the women wrapped in scarves behind are yelling with hoes!"
"Even children carry bows, arrows and ammunition for the soldiers... Look at their weapons, don't say that our Qing Dynasty's weapons are inferior. These people are fighting the British with axes and kitchen knives!"
"There are more than a hundred tribal warriors with only one musket, but they dare to risk their lives..."
"Look, the corpses are spread out on the ground, and no one is crying. One group dies and another gets killed. Human life is so worthless!"
A group of guards vented their anger angrily, holding swords and scabbards to fight the yellow sand in front of them, eating dry barbecue in their mouths as if they were enemies.
"Just look at the time when the British and French allied forces invaded the Forty-Nine City, and those stinking common people actually gathered around to watch the fun! The foreign devils gave them some money, and they all turned into civilian laborers carrying big bags!"
"It's so shameful. How can you compare with others?"
"That's enough! Just say a few words. This is a British expedition, not a hot pot restaurant or a small teahouse in Sijiu City!" Doro roared, calming the guards present.
Guan Lu, who was drinking water from his leather bag at the side, sighed, "Is Europe all gone in vain? Why hasn't your knowledge increased at all? Are our Qing Dynasty and this place the same thing?"
"Look here, they are all tribesmen with the same culture, the same race, and the same bloodline. They even have the same belief, just one belief. Do you think they can't be united?"
"Eat together, live together... enjoy blessings together, bear hardships together!"
"Why are you not afraid of death? Because they don't have to worry about anything after death. They know who they are dying for, and they know that their wives and children will be taken care of after they die!"
"This is the nation! I have heard so many nationalist principles in Europe, but you still don't understand?"
"What's going on in our Qing Dynasty? Are the Manchus and the Han the same nation? At least not now... The Manchus don't pay for food, but the Han people pay for food every day!"
"What does it have to do with the Han people when Britain and France attack the Forbidden City? To put it bluntly, even if the Queen of England sits in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, as long as the Han people are given tax exemptions, they will still shout long live!"
"You are treasonous, arrogant and rebellious!" Some of the guards didn't like hearing it at that time.
Guan Lu didn't say anything. Doluo next to him sighed, "Okay, what the hell! Now you are capable. When Xiao Letian beat the emperor, why didn't you take the lead and curse?"
"What kind of bullshit is this? There are so many arrogant and rebellious traitors! Why did Your Majesty let us take the ancient Central Asian Road? Why did you let us come here?"
"Think about it carefully. His Majesty also wants us to see with our own eyes how the war in the west is fought and what this national war is all about!"
"Don't say that Han people are mothers if they have breasts, let alone carrying big bags for foreign devils! Zuo Zongtang and Master Zuo are in Jinzhou now, aren't they?"
"They are Han people, and they are also Han people when they lead the Hunan army. How about they fight a national war? Are they also the traitors you are talking about?"
"Now I understand a little bit about Lord Long Live's thoughts... Lord Long Live wants us to experience it. If it is possible, we can also shed some blood for this land..."
"Otherwise, what dignity will we have in the future, saying that this land belongs to us?"
The small team suddenly fell into silence, and the grumbling guard stopped talking. Not far away, Gordon and Adventurer Baker looked at the Qing guards beside the fire, with a thoughtful look on their faces.
"Sure enough, there have been some changes. These Manchus have learned to think, and even know how to hold a meeting every day to summarize... When I helped the Qing Dynasty disrupt the bandits, those Manchu soldiers were not like this..."
Baker shook his head, "I didn't learn from the Chinese. I really don't think highly of this nation. To be smart... you have to be Chinese!"
Gordon smiled bitterly and said, "Just tell me this. Don't tell those politicians in London... No matter how powerful the Chinese are, they cannot be the masters of East Asia!"
"It is precisely because the Manchus are cowardly that we help them like this... In the future of Asia, the Manchus control the mainland and the Chinese control the oceans, making them a pair of enemies against each other..."
"This is good, this is in the interests of the UK!"
"Okay, lunch is over, let's move on... We can go to Kapchagai tonight!"
The expedition continued northward, with snowflakes filling the sky in the northwest wind. These people soon turned into snowmen one by one, but they did not know that around this team, several cavalry reconnaissance teams were following them closely. .
There are cavalry sentries from Agub, cavalry from the Kokand Khanate, and even a group of Tsarist Russian Cossack officers on the distant hillside spying on them with binoculars.
Doro and Guan Lu didn't know that if it weren't for the British flag protecting them, these braided guards of the Qing Dynasty would have been skinned and made into human skin drums!
