War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

On the island of Kalimantan, Hugh Gough finally arrived at Mala Port after several days of frightening march. The reason for this is entirely due to the "landmines" and landslides that appear from time to time.

The rainy season has made the road that was once destroyed by the Nanming army become even muddy.

But what depressed Hugh Gough the most was that along the way, he didn't see even a single hair of the Nanming army, and even the indigenous people disappeared.

The gunfire that rang out from time to time at night was just the fighting between Indians and British soldiers. He even suspected that the Nanming army had given up pursuing him.

But the smoke rising from the mountains from time to time told him that the god of death had never left.

Mara Port, a port that has experienced two wars, has become deserted, not even a body is left, and only the wreckage of a few warships are still standing next to the dock.

The huge battleship was blown into two pieces. This scene shocked Hugh Gough. Even the coastal defense guns of Portsmouth Fortress could not have such power.

Directly blow the battleship into two pieces, unless it directly hits the ammunition depot, causing a chain explosion.

But the wreckage of the four battleships on the shore were all the same, as if a giant ocean beast had torn them apart from the middle. He even thought of the Eastern super weapons described in "Marco Polo's Travels".

The soldiers checked around the Mara Port and found no survivors, nor any trace of the Nanming people. Of course, there was not a grain of food, and even the wood for the fire was taken away.

This made Hugh Gough feel extremely tired. His supplies could last for a while, but how to leave? Do he have to build his own ship?

Maybe you should choose to surrender but you can be shameless. Can the British Empire be shameless? What's more, he still has 2,500 soldiers under his command, as well as sufficient ammunition and food.

But the biggest problems and confusions facing us now are houses and firewood and how the Nanming army defeated the garrison stationed in Mara Port before.

Hugh Gough once inspected the outer city wall. Only the city gate was damaged, and the surrounding fighting was not fierce. Instead, there were traces of fighting everywhere in the city. Most of the houses were burned down, and there were even more damage around the pier. crater.

He could be sure that the enemy did not come from the sea, nor did they rush in from outside the city wall. Then there was only one possibility - to suddenly appear from the city.

But this was too strange, because at that time the British troops almost killed all the local aboriginal males for safety reasons.

But if these aborigines hadn't rebelled, how could we explain the fact that a large number of enemy troops suddenly appeared in the city?

Hugh Gough suddenly thought of something, and immediately ordered the soldiers to rotate in three shifts and be on alert 24 hours a day. He believed that the eerie calm now was the calm before the storm.

It's just that seven days have passed, and Nan Ming's troops still haven't caught a single shadow.

Of course, Hugh Gough's army was not idle either. They had repaired the previously damaged walls and houses, also found some food hidden underground, and used some grease to make a fire to obtain a batch of dry firewood that could be used.

Hugh Gough even felt that he was about to become the protagonist in "Robinson Crusoe". Maybe he could really build a ship and lead his men away from here.

But there are also some strange things that make him feel weird, that is, not a single merchant ship has passed here these days; even if Mara Port is not a big port, it shouldn't be so deserted.

At this time, the messenger's report interrupted his thinking.

"The rain has stopped!"

"Very good!"

Hugh Gough walked out of the room and looked at the sea that was reborn after the rain. He seemed to see the shadow of the sailboat, which made him very excited.

"Bring me the binoculars."

The adjutant on the side quickly took out the telescope from the suitcase and handed it to the general.

Hugh Gough raised his telescope, and he really saw a fleet, and it was a British fleet flying the Union Jack and the St. George's flag.

He shouted excitedly, but he could not restore his own low morale. After all, many soldiers died of hypothermia, freezing and starvation due to long-term mental stress.

Many people were still immersed in sadness and could not feel the general's excitement.

"It's our fleet, the British Empire's fleet is coming to pick us up! We are going home!"

At this time, some people raised their heads and looked into the distance, and then some people ran towards the shore. One or two people shouted excitedly. They were finally leaving this hell that was sometimes extremely hot and sometimes extremely cold.

As the sun slowly rose, the fleet also approached the coast, like a coquettish beauty. The ships of the fleet did not land directly to reward these brave men, but lined up in a line from a distance.

The eagerly awaited British soldiers on the dock didn't know what was happening before them. They thought it was a performance.

But Hugh Gough, who had experienced many battles, immediately realized that something was wrong. He picked up the telescope and saw a desperate scene.

The gun doors of more than a dozen military ships opened one after another, and then the black muzzles were revealed.

But even at this time, Hugh Gough still held a trace of luck in his heart, maybe this was a "salute" to comfort the warriors.

But as the cannons sounded, green smoke came out of the muzzles of each cannon, and large iron balls covered the sky and hit the shore.

A few seconds later, the railway set off flowers of flesh and blood in the crowd. The power of naval guns was far more powerful than the common field guns of the army.

And there are many tricks, such as incendiary bombs and explosive bombs. After crushing several British soldiers, a shell rolled in front of the last British soldier. Just when the latter thought he could escape, the iron ball It exploded, and the huge air wave lifted it into the air five meters high, and then fell heavily.

"Enemy attack! This is not our ship, this is Nanming's ship! Fight back quickly!"

Hugh Gough shouted and directed calmly.

"Quickly retreat into the fortress, the enemy must want to attack us from both sides!"

He guessed correctly. At this time, a large number of Nanming troops appeared from all directions outside the city.

With the poor strength of our own troops at this time, it is impossible to deal with the siege from all directions at the same time.

Then he could only retreat into the fortress built on the mountain, so that he only had to deal with the Nanming army attacking from the front, and in terms of firepower, he did not think that the Nanming army could break through the fortress's defense.

It's just that Hugh Gough missed one thing, that is, the earthen artillery of the Nanming army was naturally unable to do it. But the naval guns on British warships can. These large-caliber naval guns are stronger in range and power than the field guns brought by Hugh Gough.

Under the bombardment of large-caliber naval guns, the British troops hiding in the fortress became turtles in the urn.

The devastating bombardment made the British army desperate. Every explosion of a shell would cause the ground to shake. Seeing his brave soldiers walking around like headless flies, he couldn't help but feel heartbroken.

"Fight back! Fight back quickly! You damn Asan, you low-class person." Hugh Gough grabbed an Indian gunner by the collar and roared.

The Indian gunner said with a frustrated look.

"General, our cannons can't reach them."