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Volume Three: The Wind Rises in the Southern Kingdom, Chapter 12, Chapter 12: Ascension to the Throne

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    Hearing this, Batu couldn't help but be stunned. After a while, he asked: "Is this okay?" "Why not? Don't forget that the orphan of the King of Burma is in our hands, and the righteous name is in our hands. According to Burmese customs, unless  He cut off the bloodline of the old king, and the person who usurped the throne was nothing more than a traitor. It has been more than a hundred years since the founding of Myanmar, and its rule has long been weakened. There are many ambitious people who want to rebel below, and many of the guards are just ceremonial guards to suppress the power of the central government.  If the local powerful factions below do not accept our request, someone below will use their heads as a pledge of honor. On the one hand, there is free money and promotion, and on the other hand, there are guns and the danger of losing their heads. This is a multiple-choice question.  It's not difficult to do!" At this point, Chen Zaixing took out a stack of scrolls from his arms and said with a smile: "This is the official seal. The prince's seal was hidden by his side. I prepared one before leaving.  More than a hundred, I can give you as many generals or prime minister positions as you want. It doesn¡¯t cost anything anyway.¡± ¡°What about these ambitious people? How do you know they will fall to our side and not to the new king?¡±  "On the other side?" Chen Zaixing replied calmly: "The prince is just a boy of thirteen or fourteen, and there are no Burmese around him. After all, we are outsiders and it is difficult to live in Myanmar for a long time; but the new king is a middle-aged man in his forties.  There are many people around you; if it were you, which side would you choose?" After hearing this, Batu lowered his head and said nothing. After a while, he raised his head, looked at the other party with a strange look, and whispered: "You  Why are you so keen on this matter?" Chen Zaixing smiled slightly: "You know that my wealth is in Myanmar, and I have a million taels of silver, so I am naturally very keen!" "No!" Batu shook his head: "  I always feel that you are not a person who cares about money. Otherwise, according to your status, you would have been at least a prefect in the court and a doctor of the six departments. You abandoned it like a pair of shoes and didn't value it. How could you care about those things now?  So enthusiastic, not to mention that even if the new king of Burma succeeds to the throne, it won't be difficult to get your mines back." Chen Zaixing said calmly: "Now and then, I was young and energetic, and as I got older, I knew some things.  Seriously, if I were at this age, I wouldn¡¯t have given up my official position and returned home so easily!¡± Batu stared at Chen Zaixing¡¯s face, but he still couldn¡¯t tell what was hidden behind the other¡¯s pale expression, and finally he looked down in despair.  He nodded and said: "Okay, I'll do as you say!" Mandalay Duncan stood in the corridor, looking at the sky full of rain clouds.  The southwest monsoon coming from the Indian Ocean has taken over the sky here. The continuous rain has lasted for nearly two months. The abundant rainfall has not only turned the ground into a swamp, but the Irrawaddy River outside the city has also swelled a lot, and the rumbling river water is impacting  Standing against the dike, it seems that it will break through this restraint at any time and swallow Mandalay together with everything.  "Duncan! Do you feel very friendly?" Gillings walked out of the house and looked at the raindrops outside: "The weather here at this time is very much like London, very much like the Highlands, very much like our lovely island!"  Duncan nodded silently. His red hair had been wetted by some splashing raindrops and stuck tightly to his skin, like a red hat.  Duncan shook his head nonchalantly, took a deep breath, with a rare expression of joy on his face, and whispered: "It is indeed very similar, the air is so fresh and moist!" But his expression soon changed.  He showed a disgusted expression: "But in September, the rainy days will end, and the air will become dry and hot. When you breathe, it will be like a ball of fire being sucked into your lungs, and the sun in the sky will bake your whole body."  And the terrible yellow fever, which will chew up the whole company of young men, not even a bone will be left "Oh! Come on, my dear Duncan!"  Interrupting Duncan's complaint: "You are talking about the Deccan Plateau in India, not the beautiful Mandalay. The climate here is much better than in South India. Besides, I will not throw the entire company of English boys to  The only people here are you and thirty instructors. The new Burmese king promised me that you will live as comfortably as kings here, and you will be as rich as kings when you leave - of course.  At that time, he must still be wearing that beautiful crown on his head. ""Cowardly and cunning yellow-skinned monkey!" Duncan snorted disdainfully: "It's like you have honey on your mouth, but you are holding it in your hands.  Poison Dagger, you can't believe what he said. And he said that we should train the army, but so far, there are only less than 400 people sent to us. I think he is obviously stalling for time, maybe as an envoy to China.  The minister has already set off secretly. ""Patience, patience!" Gillins patted Duncan's thick shoulder confidently: "In this ancient country, we must be patient. You wrongly blamed the noble man on this issue.  countryWell, this place is different from our motherland. Here, cities, temples, governments and everything are built on one thing, that is, thousands of farmers planting rice, and planting rice is inseparable from  Irrigation, so it was the king's sacred duty to build dikes and ensure that the rice fields were well irrigated.  If the current king doesn't put enough manpower into the dike, the raging river will wash away everything. Even if the Chinese don't come, he will be torn to pieces by the hungry farmers!  More importantly, the embassy of Shun State here was burned down, the ambassador was killed, and the children of the old Burmese king were in their hands. What a great opportunity this was for them! Those smart women in the palace would definitely  I won't let such a good opportunity pass by. I know this, and that cunning Meng Ji doesn't know it either.  " "Barbaric country!  "Duncan was persuaded by Gillings and murmured in a low voice. "In the ancient country, there were traces of civilization here BC. At that time, our ancestors were still chasing deer in the forest!  "Gillis on the side corrected with a smile. This graduate of Bailey College, Oxford, was in a good mood at the moment. Everything was going smoothly. Burma and Shunguo were beating like puppets under his wrist, while he was silent on the side.  Watching their performance quietly, when everything is over, the British Empire will win, and he will be richly rewarded. This young and promising gentleman gently tapped the exquisite reliefs on the wall with his fingers.  It was a little expression of the excitement deep in his heart. At this time, a person rushed over in the rain outside. Duncan recognized that it was one of the students from the missionary school under his command. Since they knew some English, they wanted to be there.  A British instructor in the newly established Burmese army acted as a translator: ¡°General, ambassador, the king has summoned you urgently!  "The soaked man ran up the corridor, knelt on the ground, and shouted loudly to Duncan and Gillings. Duncan and Gillings looked at each other with a look of surprise on their faces. Duncan stepped forward and grabbed the student's arm.  With his arm, he pulled him up from the ground and shouted loudly in the other person's face: "What happened?  " "I'm not sure, but I heard from the guards around His Majesty that it seems that the Shan people in Lashio have rebelled, and they have the support of the Shun people!  " "What, Lashio?  Shunguo people!  "Duncan and Gillings looked at each other, and saw surprise and anger on each other's faces. Lashio is an important military, political, economic, and transportation town in northern Myanmar. Most of the local residents are Shan ethnic groups. It is far away from the capital of Myanmar.  It is about 289 kilometers northeast of Mandalay and 185 kilometers away from Wanding, Yunnan, China. It is located on a small ridge in the upper reaches of the Nanma River. It is an important gateway to northern Myanmar. After the establishment of the Myanmar Konbaung Dynasty, heavy troops were stationed here.  To resist possible attacks by Shun Kingdom, at the beginning of the 19th century, the pressure from Western colonists invading from the south and west continued to increase. The Burmese king's attention gradually turned to these two directions, and naturally the guards here gradually relaxed.  As the economic exchanges between the two countries continue to deepen, this place has gradually transformed from a military fortress into a center for people and logistics. The population, wealth, and city size have all expanded rapidly. Although it cannot be compared with the opposite cities such as Tengchong and Mengzi, it has already  It has gradually transformed into an ordinary city. Many of the forts and walls with distinctive military characteristics have been damaged. The flat land that was deliberately vacated in the past to clear the shooting range is also covered with houses and provides livestock rest for passing caravans.  Only the dilapidated military flags on the fortress towers and the rusty cannons on them can remind people of the city's history. But at this time, Lashio has regained some of its former military color.  The streets of the market outside were filled with Dashun soldiers in black military uniforms. The mules and horses pulling the artillery were not neighing, but made the place seem more and more silent. In the houses and shops, local residents and businessmen used  Looking at these strange people with horrified eyes, the rain hit the blades of the weapons in their hands, reflecting dark gray light. These strong men stood upright, motionless, as if they were waiting for something. It was about 10 noon.  At about one o'clock, dozens of cavalrymen walked slowly along the road down the mountain, accompanied by a very ornately decorated white elephant. In the camel sedan on the back of the white elephant, two young men with gorgeous clothes and golden crowns sat upright.  Among them, a group of people walked slowly towards the gate of Lashio City. The local Burmese guard Qiwu stood in front of the door. The two sides were full of Burmese people holding rifles and swords, and Chen Zaiqi saw that.  The pedestrian was already approaching, and Chen Zaixing whispered: "Master Qiwu, the new king of your country has arrived, please go out to greet him personally.  " Qiwu glanced at Chen Zaixing, and saw this Shunguo man looking at him quietly, with a faint smile on his face, but his eyes were full of calmness. He couldn't help but recall what this man said not long ago: "On one side is eighty  For ten thousand taels of silver, the Dashun Kingdom was willing to pay it in the form of arms, and to be promoted to the position of Governor of Burma; on the other hand, the Dashun Kingdom wasArmy, don¡¯t you think that the new king of Burma will send troops to support Lashio? It¡¯s your choice!  "After all, the new king of Burma has just ascended the throne, and it is impossible for him to devote too many troops to support him. If he chooses to resist, maybe Shunguo's invasion will end in failure, but his failure is inevitable. In the end, he did a very utilitarian job.  The choice was just that this man had dealt with him before and didn't think there was anything special about it. However, he didn't expect that he was such a powerful person. He grasped the interests in a few words and forced himself to make a decision in a short time.  A choice that is beneficial to him. ¡°My lord!  "Chen Zaixing coughed, and Qiwu smiled bitterly to himself, knowing that the other party was urging him. He walked up to the white elephant, knelt down in the mud, and kissed the soil in front of the white elephant's feet as a sign of gratitude.  With the king's obedience on his back, Batu saw the guard kneeling down, and the stone in his heart fell to the ground. He pulled out the sword from his waist, pointed it to the sky, and shouted: "Thousand years old!"  "The cavalry behind them and the infantrymen guarding both sides also raised their weapons and shouted. After the three chants, the artillery that had been prepared began to fire salutes. The sudden sound of artillery and cheers made the onlookers and residents happy.  The merchants were startled and hurriedly knelt down and cheered. When the cheers were over, Batu jumped off his horse, walked to Qiwu, took out a bright yellow silk book from his arms, opened it and read loudly, "  It is destined to be carried by heaven, the emperor decreed.  Meng Ji, a thief in the vassal country of Burma, initiated rebellion, usurped the old master, attacked the country's envoys, and acted perversely. His crime is unforgivable.  Fortunately, God's way has returned, and the orphan of the late king is still alive.  The survival of a country depends on the continuation of the peerless world, and the great righteousness of the Spring and Autumn Period. Now I rise up and serve the young master, and I will obey and attack against the rebels. Why worry about being victorious?  Only the first evil ones will be punished, and no threats will be asked. If there is a counter-attack, and those who lead the crowd to surrender, they should be rewarded without hesitation.  If you are stubborn and unrepentant, as soon as the army arrives, everything will be burned, and it will be too late to regret!  Don¡¯t make the mistake of yourself!  Batu read this in a stern voice, and his own translator read the Burmese version again. Batu helped Qiwu up from the ground, and said with a pleasant smile: "Master Qiwu, this time you abandon the darkness and turn to the light, it is really true."  The credit is not small. Not only does the new king have to rely on him deeply, but also Kunming Wu Xianggong and Han Jing also appreciate it very much. New rewards will come soon.  I will trouble you more about marching to Mandalay!  " "Don't dare!  Please give me some advice from the envoy." Qi Wu bowed deeply. He knew that since he got on this ship, he had to live with his tail between his legs. After all, the two orphans of the late king were only half-grown children of fourteen or fifteen years old.  , your wealth and destiny are still in the hands of the Dashun Kingdom, that is, these two envoys who have cheap jobs. It is better for you to be careful about this kind of etiquette. Anyway, it is just harder on the waist and legs, but there is no real loss.  Eat. "Actually, there is nothing wrong. There are just food and civilians. It is the rainy season and the roads are not good. It is impossible for the army's food to be transported from the country. Please order us to provide as much food and civilians as possible along the way. We are willing to pay and buy them.  !  "Batu said according to the prior plan. The result of his discussion with Chen Zaixing was that the most important thing at the moment is time. As long as there is a place to provide food and accommodation along the way, Shunjun can abandon his husband and baggage, go straight to Mandalay, and defeat the enemy.  It¡¯s too late to give the British any room to intervene. For this purpose, it¡¯s acceptable to pay more. ¡°This!  Qi Wu pondered for a moment and said: "I want the envoy to know that some places in our country are still very remote, and the local people have no money."  " "It doesn't matter!  Batu smiled and said: "We have prepared six thousand salt for this trip. We can exchange it for salt. If we don't even want salt, we can also exchange it for swords. I would like to ask you to prepare more guides and translators who are familiar with the situation along the way."  To avoid causing trouble!  ", "That's good, that's good!  "Hearing that Shun Jun was so fully prepared, Qi Wu couldn't help but be surprised, and immediately secretly felt happy that he had made the right choice. After all, the more fully prepared Shun Jun was, the greater the possibility of cashing out those rewards. He hurriedly smiled and said: "  There are many guides to and from Mandalay in the hotels outside the city. How much it costs to go to the country's army, all will be sent to your army before tomorrow morning!  " "Three hundred people are enough!  "    "yes!  "
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