The landing process of the French army lasted for almost a week. When the last group of French troops set foot on Khmer soil, the first brigade to land had already arrived in Phnom Penh. During this period, the Chinese fleet never showed any intention to attack.
They looked on as if nothing happened, as if the French landing operation had nothing to do with them, which made even Gervais doubt whether Emperor Yang really wanted to fight this war.
Public opinion, including in Europe, is gradually turning towards a peaceful solution. After all, Emperor Yang has always played the role of a pacifist outside, especially the Beijing Convention just signed, which has erased the negative impact caused by the war with the United States. In addition, it has just been launched
Snow White also graced him a lot. It was hard for the European people to believe that a person who made such a beautiful movie could actually be a conspirator who brought trouble to the world.
Even many people in France took to the streets and demanded that the government negotiate with China to resolve the Vietnam issue. In fact, in the eyes of ordinary people, there is really no need to be so tense for the sake of that distant colony. Doesn't Vietnam just want to*
*? Then let them *.
Moreover, this view is still very popular in France. The people do not care about national strategies. What they need is a peaceful and peaceful life, not the ambition to dominate the world. Losing Asia or not is a very distant goal for them.
topic.
The landed French troops pushed cars and dragged cannons, and walked with difficulty to Phnom Penh through the newly opened simple road. Then at this river port, they boarded civilian ships recruited from Khmer and Cochin, and sailed down the Mekong River in a mighty way.
The hot and humid environment made them miserable. Although there were no enemies along the way, a large number of soldiers were still buried in this remote jungle forever due to various diseases every day.
After arriving in Saigon, after a short rest, the army led by Gallieni took a train and headed north. First they arrived in Da Nang, and then waited here for a domestic decision, because they didn't know what to do next.
Next in front of them was the city of Hue. In this city, even the real and fake ones, plus a group of foreign volunteers, had gathered more than 30,000 Vietnamese troops. It was impossible for the French army to cross this city.
They had to capture Hue, otherwise they would not be able to go north to rescue Du Mei.
But the problem is that Hue is protected by the Chinese Overseas Chinese Protective Army. If we attack Hue, it will be equivalent to declaring war on China. Only then did Gallieni, who had arrived in Da Nang, realize that the Chinese were waiting for him here.
Woolen cloth!
Attacking Hue is tantamount to declaring war on China. It would be impossible not to attack Hue. The only railway connecting the north and south of Vietnam is less than one kilometer outside the city. It is conceivable that after I pass from here, the 30,000 Vietnamese troops will pick up
What will they do when they come down? Although they are too scared to leave the city now, if the main force of the French army goes north, they will fight out without hesitation.
The helpless commander finally had to send a telegram back to the country. He demanded that war be formally declared on China, otherwise he would not be able to continue his journey north. Unfortunately, his request was rejected by the cabinet without hesitation. At this time, the French government was still
I wonder if it can be resolved peacefully? How can it be possible to proactively declare war?
Gallieni's stubborn temper also rose, and he clearly told the officials in Paris that going north without Hue was tantamount to committing suicide. Once the Chinese army landed on the flank, it could easily cut the French army into two parts, and going north by himself was not
Rescue Du Mei, but give them a big piece of fat. Don't always imagine that China will not go to war. It has already reached this point. How can it not go to war?
Of course, his good words and criticism are destined to be of little use. French Minister of War Frescine also clearly told him that France would not take the initiative to provoke a war, and would not take action even before the second batch of reinforcements arrived.
At this time, the second batch of reinforcements has arrived at the Suez Canal. If Du Mei can still persist, then just wait!
Why did Du Mei persist? Although he had made adequate preparations in Hanoi, he could not withstand the Vietnamese who were fighting more and more. Up to now, the Vietnamese army had increased from the initial 60,000 to 150,000. He had a pitiful total of more than 10,000 people.
After these days of consumption, there are less than 6,000 left, and all the outer defense lines have been lost. Now we can only retreat to two strongholds in Hanoi and the North Bank Fortress. Hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese artillery shells fall into the city every day, and the people in the city can only
He could live in a cellar, and the Vietnamese who stayed in the city often wanted to start an uprising. His defense line was already crumbling under internal and external troubles.
Hold on and wait for reinforcements? It is estimated that when the second batch of reinforcements arrives in Hanoi, they will only come to collect the corpses. There are not only troops in this city, but also nearly 30,000 French expats who have fled from various places, including those from Vietnam.
It is estimated that no one will be able to survive when the time comes. If such a tragedy occurs, it depends on how the president and the cabinet will explain to the people in the country.
Urging the country, Dume in the north was also urging. Gallieni had no choice but to leave 10,000 French troops to trap Hue, and then rushed to Hanoi with the remaining 40,000 French troops. Of course, they no longer have trains, and the railway to the north
It is basically no longer accessible. Fortunately, the coastal plain from here to the north is basically densely populated and has convenient transportation. If you travel day and night, you can reach Hanoi in about ten days.
However, dense population also has its disadvantages. The number of guerrillas in Vietnam is also very dense. In places like the north of Hue, the response to the king's call to resist the French was very strong some time ago. Numerous crimes were committed against French expatriates, and absolutely
Most of the Vietnamese troops who besieged Hanoi were in this area, so when the French army went north from here to clean up their own soldiers, the common people were extremely unfriendly, and attacks on the French army occurred almost every day.
Where is Galieni's origin? He is not from the civilized society of France. He is the notorious conqueror of Madagascar. He naturally knows how to deal with the resistance elements. Anyway, the Vietnamese have committed many crimes in killing French expatriates.
Naturally, he didn't need to care about his image. The huge legal group rolled towards Hanoi like a steamroller, leaving a bloody storm wherever it passed.
"Let these monkeys know who is their master." Standing in front of the ruins of the burning village, the general said proudly to the reporters accompanying the army.
However, the atrocities committed by the French army in Vietnam completely angered the Chinese people who already regarded the Vietnamese as brothers. Even students from some universities in Beijing took to the streets and asked Congress to declare war on France. They could no longer sit back and watch the Vietnamese people struggle under the butcher knife of the French.
Even Kang Youwei, who had just returned from the United States, also criticized the cabinet in newspapers. It was very satisfying to attack the United States, which had no grievances with China in the past and has no enmity in recent times. But when the time came when our brothers were in trouble, they refused to do anything.
As time went by, the wave of calls for a declaration of war against France became more and more intense, and gradually spread from Beijing to all parts of the country. Even as far away as Seoul, a large number of students ran on the streets to criticize the weakness of Congress, demanding an immediate declaration of war on France and the immediate dispatch of troops to Vietnam.
Drive the barbaric French invaders from the soil of Vietnam.
This is also the first time that the Chinese people have learned to challenge the government, the first time they have learned to make their own voice against the government, and the first time they have realized their power. Of course, what they don’t know is that this time the government is really wronged
Even if Emperor Yang suppressed them from declaring war, there was nothing they could do. In fact, both the Chinese Congress and the cabinet had already seen that at this time, France was afraid. France was afraid of China. They had been bullied to this point. The French government was still
Suffering without humiliation and negotiating to peacefully resolve the Vietnam issue is just like China did when it faced the great powers in the past.
If Emperor Yang hadn't nodded, Congress would have passed the declaration of war by now.
Huang Huatan, who was outside Hanoi, had already known the news of the approaching French army, and also knew that the members of the Chinese Congress were hesitant. Even the Chinese brothers who were fighting alongside him were angrily cursing the members of the Congress for their incompetence. Of course,
Scolding comes after scolding, before China officially joined the war, they had to rely on themselves on the battlefield in Vietnam. So far, the Vietnamese army has suffered more than 40,000 casualties on the battlefield in Hanoi, but the more they fight, the higher their morale becomes, and the more they fight, the more people they fight.
, countless Vietnamese came from all over to join this team, and some even came from as far away as Cochin.
As for the 40,000 French troops led by Gallieni, Huang Huatan actually didn't take it seriously. He had 150,000 troops in his hands. How could he be afraid of such a small number of people? And they were all armed with the latest weapons.
There are hundreds of cannons, and not all of them were donated by Chinese people to buy them. A Chinese steel company discovered high-grade iron ore in Taiyuan, Vietnam, and a large part of it was the cost of purchasing the mining rights of this iron ore.
It can be said that the Vietnamese army is not bad at all in terms of equipment, and it will not be short of supplies with China's backing. Although the quality of the soldiers is poor, they all have actual combat experience. Compared with the French army that has no actual combat experience, they are not inferior to them, and they are fighting.
By now Hanoi is just around the corner. In fact, the city has been almost flattened. Even a section of the city wall has been blown down. There are fewer and fewer French troops in the city. Even some women have joined the battle.
, in this case, naturally we cannot fall short.
Therefore, after Huang Huatan left 50,000 people to continue attacking Hanoi, he personally led an army of 100,000 people south to face Gallieni, preparing to defeat this enemy force from afar in one fell swoop, and then go back to clean up Du Mei's remaining troops. At the same time, in order to cooperate
However, the Vietnamese troops in Hue City also came out and tried to attack the French transportation lines, but were beaten back by the French troops who stayed behind. (To be continued...)