Chapter 314 War is Killing (Second Update, Please Subscribe)
war!
As the shadow of war looms over the Pampas, the armies of South China and Argentina are gathering, and the peaceful grassland is no longer peaceful.
Thousands of soldiers were gathering on the grassland half a man deep. The deafening sound of horse hooves trampled the ground, and the soldiers carrying rifles marched towards the target with resolute expressions.
Whether it is South China or Argentina, they seem to want to completely defeat the opponent through a large-scale battle.
That morning, a train pulled into the Xintai'an Railway Station. Before the train stopped, armed guards jumped out of the carriage. While they quickly took over the train, the telegraph operator had already connected the telegraph line to the telegraph wire. Within just a few minutes, this special train resumed contact with the outside world.
“Where are the Argentine troops now?”
Standing in front of the map, Zhu Xianhai asked directly.
At this time, he was wearing a military uniform and looked no different from an ordinary soldier. The only difference was that his uniform had no rank.
"Trentlauken Town!"
Li Senge replied.
This artillery officer, whose original name was Heisenberg, was from Prussia. His experience was undoubtedly legendary. He was a lieutenant colonel of the Chilean army's artillery. After being captured by Zhu Xianhai during his expedition, he became his staff officer as a prisoner, and finally naturalized in Nanhua and served as deputy chief of staff. Such an experience is definitely fantastic enough.
"Marshal, the Chilean army has already turned to the town of Trentlauquen based on our actions. They are trying to inflict heavy damage on us through defensive operations there..."
Zhu Xianhai did not speak during Li Senge's explanation of why the Argentines transferred their troops to the town of Trentelaucon. This town may seem to be just a small town, but it has an advantage that other areas do not have - there is a railway between it and Buenos Aires.
railway!
The distance between Nanhua and Trentlauken without a paved railway is less than 40 kilometers. How close is this distance? It is so close that it only takes a few days for engineers to build a simple railway to connect the two places. Then, a steady stream of supplies and troops can be transported to the front along the railway, and the troops can also march along the railway.
This is the reason why Nanhua concentrated its troops in the Xintai'an area. The mobilization of security forces naturally led to the mobilization of the Argentines, and both sides set their sights on this area.
"According to our intelligence, the Argentines have built a large number of fortifications near the town of Trentlauken and have also brought in more than 60 large-caliber artillery pieces. We have reason to believe that they are trying to use fortress defense to inflict heavy damage on our army..."
When Li Senge finished speaking, Gu Chengxun reminded.
"Marshal, the Investigation Department has intelligence showing that Argentina has recently summoned Shanxi separatists who are in exile in its territory to the Presidential Palace many times. We have reason to believe that once our army suffers a setback here, they will inevitably launch a rebellion in Chile after the troops stationed in Chile are mobilized!"
After a pause, Gu Chengxun continued,
“The British ambassador to Afghanistan, Edward Thornton, also met with those people.”
As the head of the Intelligence Bureau of the Security Department, Gu Chengxun is not only concerned with military intelligence, but also with other intelligence. In addition, there are corresponding communication channels between the Intelligence Bureau and the Investigation Department. The intelligence sharing between them is extremely smooth.
"It would be unexpected if the British did not take any action. By the way, the investigation department has intelligence showing that the British Navy has ordered at least two ironclad ships to be dispatched to Buenos Aires to express support for them..."
Zhu Xianhai sneered.
"This is not to show support, but to stop our fleet from attacking Buenos Aires. After all, we have a great advantage in the navy. The British are worried that our ironclad ships will enter the La Plata River, so they will send out the fleet first!"
The British trouble maker reacts really quickly!
Not only did they react quickly, but they also made decisions quickly. London made the decision on October 3rd, and then they immediately ordered the fleet stationed in Cape Town to rush to Argentina's aid. Such a quick reaction was extremely rare, let alone in the 19th century.
This is because of communications, which of course was the advantage of the Atlantic Telegraph Company. It was the secret telegrams sent by the British Embassy through the Atlantic Telegraph that allowed London to make a quick decision.
There is only one reason why London can make such a decision so quickly. The British have fully realized the threat from South China, and they are trying to use Argentina to interrupt the development of South China.
"What would happen if South China was defeated or suffered heavy losses on the battlefield? First, Shanxi would launch a rebellion, which would disperse South China's forces. Then, Argentina would further mobilize its army to seize the Pampas. Tell me what you think about how this battle should be fought. Tell me what you think and I will listen."
Zhu Xianhai cast his gaze at several young staff officers standing aside and asked one of them.
"Lieutenant Li Sijie, please tell me!"
In the simulator, Li Sijie is a lieutenant colonel and commander of a fortress. He was killed in the Linhai Fortress in 1877. After running out of ammunition and food, he led his subordinates to launch a final counterattack and committed suicide. But now he is a staff officer of the command headquarters.
"Marshal, it's very easy to defeat the Argentines militarily. You don't even need to mobilize many troops to defeat them!"
Li Sijie's answer surprised Zhu Xianhai.
"Oh? No need to mobilize the army? Tell me what you think."
Li Sijie replied seriously.
"In fact, the reason why Argentina launched this war was fundamentally based on economic reasons. Argentina seemed to have gained a large piece of land in the Paraguayan War, but in fact they lost more. The blood and money they consumed in the war were more than ten times that consumed in the entire anti-Spanish war of independence. They lost 20,000 people in the war and spent 60 million pesos. They owed a large amount of foreign debt and were heavily dependent on Britain economically. Under such circumstances, they naturally could not ignore the huge benefits of the Pampas!"
Li Sijie, wearing a white navy uniform, stood out among a group of army officers.
"Marshal, for Argentina, which is in economic trouble, this is an economic factor that cannot be ignored. One hundred million pesos!"
Li Sijie deliberately emphasized the number and then said.
"For the bandits, this is enough to make them try to seize the grassland at the cost of all their national strength. As long as they seize the grassland, the rewards they get will be extremely generous! Therefore, they want to seize the Pampas through war at all costs. This is also the reason why they choose military adventure."
It is well known that Argentina is taking military risks for economic reasons. Zhu Xianhai nodded slightly, indicating that he should continue.
"If we just want to stop the Argentines from getting their hands on the Pampas, then the simplest way is to set up fortresses. It is the Argentines who took the initiative to attack us. We can use the fortresses to severely damage the Argentine army and consume Argentina's war potential through the continuous consumption of the fortresses. This potential does not only consume the manpower of the Argentine army. There is also money. Compared to us, Argentina's current financial situation is extremely tight. As long as we delay the war, Argentina will eventually be caught in a situation where it is difficult to back down - the economic difficulties will force them to end the war."
After expressing this insight, Li Sijie said again.
"The most critical issue now is that we must not only defeat the Argentines on the battlefield, but also eventually occupy the country!"
Looking up at the Marshal, Li Sijie said with a smile.
"Since we are going to occupy this country, we have to reduce future troubles, so all our plans are not only to win this war, but also to annihilate the Argentines' manpower, that is, to kill as many of their soldiers as possible."
As a soldier, Li Sijie speaks with a completely cold soldier's mindset without a trace of emotion.
"Just like what they did in Paraguay, only by killing as many of their soldiers as possible can we minimize future resistance."
"What Captain Li said is different. If we kill a large number of Argentine troops, will it arouse hostility? This will definitely lead to hostility from the local people towards us in the future!"
Zhao Yan, who was standing aside, immediately retorted.
"What we will face then is hostility everywhere."
"What's the point of hostility? When we occupy a place as an occupying force, can we expect others to welcome us?"
Li Sijie said directly.
"Since they are unlikely to welcome us anyway, why not kill as many adult men as possible while the war is going on? This will reduce future resistance. After all, the main force of the guerrillas is always men. As long as the men are killed, resistance will naturally cease to exist. We certainly can't massacre civilians like the Brazilians, but everything we do on the battlefield is reasonable and logical. After all, war always results in casualties."
Many people do die in wars, but how they die is probably unknown to the outside world. However, it is natural for soldiers to die on the battlefield.
Li Sijie's words definitely touched Zhu Xianhai's heart. In fact, they agreed on some points of view.
"Why is the resistance of Paraguay becoming increasingly weak? To put it bluntly, it is because most of the men died on the battlefield. How can the women resist the invaders? ... They would even use their beauty to seduce the enemy in order to survive. To them, I am nothing special. It's all for survival!"
Li Yunjie said with a grin.
"Since Paraguayan women would do this, Argentine women would also use their beauty to seduce men for a living and commit themselves to our South China men! So no matter how you look at it, killing as many Argentine troops as possible in the war is a good thing that benefits the country and the people."
His words immediately caused a burst of laughter, and Zhu Xianhai of course smiled without saying anything. After all, they had the same opinion on this point.
If the Argentines heard what Li Sijie said, they would be so angry that they would vomit blood. They were just thinking about the Pampas, but they never thought that Nanhua not only had their house in mind, but even the woman in the house was also in mind...
(End of this chapter)
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