roccoschili Chapter 90 Farmland outside Calcutta
Chapter 90 Farmland outside Calcutta
Chapter 90 Farmland outside Calcutta
After returning to Kolkata from Auckland, he was filled with anger and despair.
The size of the army sent by the Han Dynasty went out of control, becoming three to five times the size of the original plan.
I had made six months of preparations, and all the arrangements that I thought were quite secure turned out to be unreliable.
Auckland had learned about the Han army's operations in Luzon and Borneo and believed that the Han army was highly capable.
The Indian-majority troops were mostly no match for the Han Chinese local army, mainly because they lacked deterrent power.
The Han Chinese held Europeans and natives in extreme contempt, and this widespread contempt was a fundamental aspect of their morale.
Being emotionally defiant and fearless allows one to be more ferocious in battle and more likely to win.
The plan for Auckland requires the army to have a three-fold numerical advantage in order to ensure security.
To create a deterrent effect, a tenfold numerical advantage is estimated.
The Han people were too confident and were not afraid of a large number of enemies.
The key point is that, in most cases, the Han army was extremely large in number.
This army is seen as a monster in Auckland.
Now, Kolkata is holding back tens of thousands of Han Chinese troops, and there may be more than 20,000 more in Chittagong.
Just imagining himself living under the nose of an army of 10,000 makes Auckland feel incredibly oppressed and stifled.
Upon returning to the Governor's residence, Auckland immediately summoned the officers who remained around Calcutta.
The Han army is several times larger than planned, so the battle plan for Auckland needs to be adjusted accordingly.
First, local officers were reminded to proceed according to the pre-arranged plan.
Five thousand troops remained stationed in Calcutta, ready to participate in the city's defense at any time.
Ten thousand troops remained assembled in the military camp outside the city, ready to keep a close watch on the approaching Han army and be prepared to participate in any sudden field battles.
Once the Han army enters the city, they can coordinate an attack from both inside and outside the city.
In addition, personnel were dispatched to military bases in other cities, and more troops were mobilized to Calcutta and Chittagong.
The troop presence around Kolkata should be increased to at least 30,000.
As for Chittagong, the number of troops should be as large as 20,000, but any number above 20,000 should be transferred. After the arrangements are completed, Auckland reminded the patrol and guard forces that if the Han army arrives and attacks the city, or requests to enter the city to set up camp, they should immediately report to him.
In Auckland, I had a big meal and drinks, then went back to my room and went straight to sleep, wanting to recover my energy as quickly as possible.
After waking up the next morning, I braced myself for the possibility of bad news.
Until the governor's secretary, Colvin, hurried into the governor's residence.
Auckland asked with his eyes closed, "There's no sound of artillery outside, so the Han army shouldn't be launching an attack."
"So they sent people to request entry into the city?"
Colvin said with great delight, "No, Your Excellency, the Han army has arrived in Calcutta, but has not made any request to enter the city."
"They started setting up camp outside the city; they voluntarily stationed themselves outside the city."
"The order within the city will not be affected."
Auckland opened his eyes in surprise and asked, "They voluntarily stayed outside the city? They didn't request to be stationed inside?"
Colvin nodded. "Yes. We can't understand their methods, but at least it's slightly beneficial to us."
Auckland immediately got up and, with a few attendants, went to the castle's watchtower.
Auckland used binoculars to observe the situation outside the city and confirmed that the Han army was setting up camp outside the city.
Auckland finally breathed a sigh of relief.
If they are willing to station themselves outside the city, the situation will be much easier to control. As long as they don't come to occupy the city, simply stationing themselves here to supervise for a period of time is not unbearable.
Auckland watched for a while, relaxed, but then slowly began to feel something was off: "Isn't their camp a little too big?"
Colvin said somewhat uncertainly, "A camp for ten thousand troops should be quite large, shouldn't it?"
Auckland was also undecided, but issued a precautionary order: "Send men to the river mouth fortress to inform the garrison and navy to block the river entrance."
"Only exit is permitted; no entry is allowed. Further entry of the Han army is prohibited."
Colvin immediately wrote down the order and sent it away.
Auckland is concerned that the Great Hans will deploy more troops to Kolkata.
But the Han army had no such plan at all.
Once the 10,000 troops in Calcutta were settled, Zhu Guangrui directed the fleet to transport the majority of the remaining soldiers to Chittagong.
Although Zhu Guangrui and Dong Sheng persisted in their confrontation with Auckland in Kolkata, they seemed to completely ignore the option of setting up camp in Chittagong.
But in reality, there were two main objectives in this operation: in addition to Kolkata, the other was Chittagong.
Chittagong is even more important than Kolkata.
The garrison in Calcutta was merely a deterrent to the British, while Chittagong was the true objective to be occupied.
Chittagong is located on the eastern edge of the Ganges Plain, next to the foothills of the Arakan Mountains.
Natural harbors are found where mountains meet plains and coastlines.
Mountains provide a rocky foundation, forming a solid and stable coastline, rather than a muddy shoal.
Plains provide strategic hinterland and space for urban development and construction.
Chittagong is indeed one of the few natural deep-water ports in northeastern India.
However, the local waters in Chittagong are relatively shallow, with most areas having a depth of less than ten meters.
However, 40 kilometers south of Chittagong, near the ancient Dubudia Island, there is water that is 12 to 18 meters deep.
As ships demand higher water depths, engineering and construction capabilities will also continue to improve.
In the future, port cities can simply develop southward along the coast.
Therefore, the Chittagong area will become the core base of the Han Navy in the Bangladesh region.
However, the Han army had previously indicated that it did not want to go to Chittagong.
The Governor-General of British India, Auckland, along with local Indian officials and troops, did not value Chittagong, which is why they requested the Han army to be stationed there.
This made the landing of the Han army at Chittagong very smooth; after explaining their identities and purpose, they went directly ashore.
The number of British Indian troops gathered near Chittagong has exceeded 20,000.
They had long ago received orders to receive and supervise the Han army.
Although they were surprised by the size of the Han army and immediately sent people to Calcutta to report, they did not prevent the Han army from landing and setting up camp.
Governor Oakland's response was simply to increase their vigilance and inform them that additional troops had been deployed as reinforcements, which further eased their guard.
They simply sent people to patrol and guard the perimeter of the Han army's camp, observing and confirming the Han army's movements every day, without doing anything else.
After the Han army set up camp, they leveled the land on a large scale and built permanent houses and walls without finding any problems with it.
It wasn't until the Han army began constructing large-scale field ridges that the patrolmen and officers realized something was wrong.
"Weren't they here to destroy the opium plantations? Why are they clearing land here to farm?"
The Governor-General of India in Calcutta, Auckland, received similar news around the same time.
After settling in, the Han Chinese garrison outside Calcutta and Chittagong began clearing land to prepare for farming.
Oakland held back for several days, but finally couldn't take it anymore and sent Colvin to the Great Han camp to question him.
As the chief of staff and interpreter of the garrison in Calcutta, Dong Sheng received Colvin, the secretary to the Governor-General of India: "The custom of the Han army when carrying out its mission is to cultivate the land and collect food on its own."
"The task of destroying opium plantations and banning opium smuggling cannot be accomplished in a short time."
"In order to avoid having to transport grain from the mainland again next year, our natural course of action is to establish military farms."
Colvin looked astonished upon hearing this; he hadn't paid attention to this before: "The army is procuring its own food? I didn't know about these things."
"This is your tradition, but this is not the land of the Han Dynasty."
"This is British East India Company land."
Dong Sheng said matter-of-factly, "You can investigate, ask the British merchants who are most familiar with the Han Dynasty, and ask if what I said is true."
"As for the ownership of this land, we have no doubt that it does not belong to Britain."
"Planting one or two crops of grain does not affect the ownership of the land."
"When the Han army leaves, these cultivated lands will belong to you. You should be happy."
Oakland and Colvin, among others, saw the Han army clearing land and were actually worried that they would stay there permanently and that they would actually occupy these lands.
Dong Sheng made it clear that the ownership of the land would not be changed. Although it was only a verbal statement, it still slightly lowered Colvin's guard.
The ownership of these reclaimed farmlands also allowed Colvin to see tangible benefits.
Although I won't be serving in India for life, I can sell these lands after I acquire them.
Colvin raised a lot of questions with a stern face, but ultimately did nothing.
Dong Sheng, however, took the initiative to make a new request: "The Han army has settled down, and we can begin our mission now."
"Therefore, I request the Governor-General of India to arrange personnel to lead and assist the Han army in formally beginning the destruction of opium plantations."
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Colvin hesitated slightly: "Well—I will convey your message to His Excellency the Governor."
Opium in Europe was supplied by the Ottoman Empire, while the target customers of Indian opium plantations were the Han Chinese.
Due to the Han Dynasty's sustained and stringent anti-smoking campaign, India's current scale is far smaller than it was in history, but it still represents a real and tangible interest.
Especially in India, many merchants, princes of various states, and employees of the East India Company were able to actually profit from opium plantations and the smuggling trade.
Now, they are being asked to cooperate in destroying the plantations, but various forces in India are not very willing to cooperate.
Dong Sheng could see Colvin's hesitation, so he bluntly reminded him: "We will only leave when the opium plantations are completely destroyed and India is no longer exporting opium."
"Otherwise, we would have to stay here permanently."
"You can weigh the options yourselves and decide which one is more suitable."
Colvin thought to himself, "If you're just farming, it's not impossible for you to stay here permanently."
Calcutta might be able to accept it, but London certainly wouldn't.
In fact, the other faction also found it unacceptable.
Therefore, Dong Sheng went a step further and reminded them: "If the Governor-General of India does not cooperate, then we will have to find and destroy the plantations ourselves."
"This is something that your king and parliament have agreed to."
"The key point is that if we search for and destroy the plantations ourselves, the army will act entirely according to our habits and will not take your rules and habits into account."
"All opium merchants will be killed on the spot."
"Anyone who tries to shirk responsibility or obstruct will be regarded as a protector of opium smugglers and will be killed on the spot!"
"The resulting losses and liabilities shall be borne by the Governor-General of India and his officials."
Colvin finally realized the problem.
The ones who most wanted to destroy the opium plantations were not the distant gentlemen of London, but the Han army in front of them and the Han emperor behind them.
These Han officers and soldiers probably didn't want to stay here permanently either, and the Han emperor certainly wouldn't allow them to continue delaying and making excuses.
Colvin quickly said he understood and then went back to report to Governor Oakland.
The Governor's Office must send troops to cooperate with and supervise the Han army's actions, and not allow them to destroy the plantations on their own, as the consequences would be unimaginable.