Chapter 246: Unequal Treaties (First update, please subscribe)
This is a small step for a person, but a big step for the country!
On March 18, 1866, a secret treaty was signed at the Pacific Hotel on the seaside. Only a very small number of people knew the content of the treaty. What is certain is that it was an unequal and humiliating treaty.
The signing of this treaty meant that Chile would lose half of its land, all state-owned copper mines, and of course, a series of other national rights.
In order to fight together, Chile even lost its military command, and South China will continue to station troops in Chile in the future.
In a word, the signing of the treaty meant that Chile became a semi-colony.
But, so what?
For Zhu Xianhai, when he signed the treaty, he actually saw himself taking the first step towards annexing Chile.
It was on this day that the army stationed on the banks of the Obio River set out.
The train station was filled with the sounds of people and horses. Two infantry regiments, nearly six thousand soldiers and over a thousand horses, had packed the train station to the point where no one could get through.
"Get in the car, everyone from the Sixth Regiment, Third Battalion, get in the car!"
Following an order, officers and soldiers lined up and boarded the freight car. This type of freight car only had two windows on the sliding door. It was usually used to transport goods, but now it was used to transport troops.
After entering the sealed train, some veterans simply threw their backpacks on the ground and lay down. It was the first time for Zhao A-liu and several new soldiers to take a train. The new straw mat on the floor was flat and spacious, and they could roll around on the floor with a blanket.
Although the sealed tank car was simple, it looked fresh and novel. When they gathered with a few new soldiers, they talked endlessly. Occasionally, they thought of the biscuits, whale meat or canned beef in the marching bag, which was the rations uniformly distributed by the troops - three days' rations.
They even planned what to eat for this meal and how much to eat for that meal. For these recruits, being able to eat more than half a pound of canned meat a day is a kind of enjoyment in itself. The sense of happiness of eating enough meat to be full arises spontaneously.
Finally, the train started moving, and the stuffy carriage gradually became windy. Some soldiers played poker, some squeezed to the door to look at the scenery, and some simply closed their eyes.
The carriage was shaking with the sound of "bang bang". Although the train was heading towards the front line, the officers and soldiers in the carriage did not seem to have any awareness of going to the battlefield.
The train stopped and started all the way, and no one knew which station it would stop at or how long it would take before stopping. It was like being isolated from the world. At night, the lantern on the top of the carriage was dim, hazy, and swaying. People lost their spirits, felt bored, and lonely...
Just as the soldiers were riding on the train towards Chillán in their sleep, several green military trains roared all the way towards the north. Their carriages were covered with a layer of camouflage nets. Under the camouflage nets, the barrels of 180mm heavy artillery were pointing straight ahead. Soldiers holding rifles at the gun positions looked vigilantly outside the railway line with firm eyes. This was the first time that armored trains were deployed on the battlefield. As for what kind of changes they would bring to the battlefield, no one knew, but one thing was certain: this war was definitely an unprecedented test for the Nanhua army.
Especially for Sun Hu, the front-line commander, this was his first time commanding such a large-scale force. Although the number of troops including friendly forces was less than 30,000, this was definitely a major battle.
It can even be called the largest battle on the South American continent.
Standing on the fortress battery outside the city of Chillán, gazing at the field fortifications built by the Chilean Legion in the distance - breastworks, batteries, trenches. In the past few months, such earthen fortifications and breastworks have been everywhere outside the city of Chillán, interspersed with a large number of batteries.
The densely packed deer camps in front of the trench even blocked Sun Hu's sight.
“They are all fortifications!”
Sun Hu said to himself.
"General, whether we attack or the Northerners attack, we must first conquer the enemy's fortresses. But to conquer these fortresses, we must pay the price of blood. They also have Type 63 machine guns. If we attack by force, the casualties will surely be extremely heavy..."
How dare you say that!
Sun Hu didn't even bother to pay attention to Colonel Fernando. The Type 63 machine gun is a fine product of the Nanhua Arsenal. It is a 10-barrel machine gun developed on the basis of the Gatling gun. It uses powerful 11*60R mm machine gun bullets. It has great power and a long range, and its rate of fire is as high as 500 rounds.
But even with such powerful military weapons, the Southern Army that surrendered last year took away 16 of them to the Chileans, as well as more than 60 muzzle-loading cannons and more than 30 old-style Gatling machine guns.
This is definitely a transport captain! Send it to others!
“40,000!”
Sun Hu looked ahead for a while, then said to Colonel Hofpu.
"Using 30,000 to fight 40,000, and attacking fortifications, Chief of Staff Huo, will it work if we fight according to the original plan?"
“The plan has been drawn up.”
Colonel Hofp said bluntly.
"Commander Sun, the Marshal's order is very clear. This is both a battle and a training exercise. The security forces have been conducting training in this area over the past year. I think there should be no problem!"
There shouldn't be any problem...
Such an answer made Sun Hu frown. He silently put down the binoculars, then took out a cigarette from the cigarette box and lit it.
After taking a few puffs of his cigarette and walking back and forth on the artillery platform, he thought silently for a while. Sun Hu always obeyed the Marshal's orders unconditionally. He was originally just a slave worker in a gold mine. So what even if he escaped to Buenos Aires?
If there was no Marshal, he and his other old brothers would have died in a foreign land, even if it were not for the Marshal. Would he be where he is today?
But isn’t the Marshal’s plan a little too risky?
Taking a risk... that was also the Marshal's decision!
Pursing his lips, Sun Hu gritted his teeth and said.
"Since the Marshal has made the decision, let's proceed as planned!"
After receiving the telegram sent back from the front line in Qilian, Zhu Xianhai, who was sitting in the special train carriage, just nodded silently.
"It seems that the tiger is still the same tiger!"
Glancing at the guard standing outside the window at the small train station, Zhu Xianhai smiled. He knew the risks of this plan, but he knew even better what chips he had in his hand.
In fact, when the plan was first formulated, Heisenberg and others opposed it, but Zhu Xianhai believed that the plan would definitely succeed.
And what are the prerequisites for success?
It was the frontline commander who could resolutely implement his orders. So he chose Sun Hu. The "Eighteen Arhats" of that year were absolutely reliable and would absolutely obey orders!
(End of this chapter)
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