The British expedition withdrew to Brazil for more than a month for repairs. From Gordon on down, every British soldier became an idler with nothing to do. Ordinary British soldiers received the salary issued by the London government and went to Rio de Janeiro to enjoy life and get drunk.
The street shops and taverns that were experiencing bleak business have gained a noisy and glitzy atmosphere due to the entry of new customers.
The power of combat command of the expeditionary force was handed over to the British Minister, and the training arrangements for ordinary soldiers were also handed over to his deputy. Gordon did not have to rush back to the military camp and walked around the city of Rio de Janeiro at a slow pace alone.
In the center of the Imperial Plaza is a huge statue of the Imperial Emperor, Pedro I. The statue was built to commemorate Pedro I's contribution to the country's independence when Brazil first gained independence from Portuguese colonial rule.
Normally, many Brazilians who visit the Imperial Plaza will inevitably look up at the landmark buildings in the square. But when Gordon walked near the statue, what he saw was a group of protesting students, standing passionately under the statue.
He spoke angrily.
The imperial bureaucracy and aristocrats were corrupt and incompetent, foreign wars repeatedly failed, and the empire was plagued by internal crises. Government officials in high positions only followed the European views, arbitrarily deprived native white people of their land wealth, and liberated black slaves who were originally private property.
for free people, and forced the native white landowners to sell the land inherited from their ancestors to the new immigrants and freed blacks at low prices...
The students who gave the speech criticized and refuted the policies promulgated by Pedro II since he took office one by one. The white Brazilians surrounding him clapped their hands and applauded as if they were not afraid of causing trouble.
More and more Brazilians gathered near the statue. The students' increasingly violent words and deeds finally provoked the Brazilian police who were patrolling and monitoring. They first loudly warned the crowd of onlookers and students to call off the demonstration and quickly dispersed without receiving an effective response.
Finally, the police leader's patience ran out, and he swung his stick and hit one of the students who was making the most noise in the stomach. Other police officers saw the leader's move and stepped forward to drive away the crowd.
Gordon was accustomed to what was happening in front of him. Under the reform initiative of Pedro II, the political climate in Brazil was more wild than that in the United Kingdom and France. The members of the two houses of the United Kingdom had different political opinions. At most, they slobbered wildly. London
When faced with demonstrations and demonstrations, the police could only expel workers fighting for labor rights. However, during demonstrations in Brazil, deaths of police officers and demonstrators often occurred, riots caused by demonstrations, and separatist movements did not exist.
few.
After staying near the statue for more than half an hour, when the demonstrators were dispersed, Gordon turned around and prepared to walk back.
"Sir, your Excellency the Minister invites you to come to the embassy to discuss important matters."
Gordon walked out of the Empire State Plaza and met an embassy staff member.
"Are the boys causing trouble in town?"
When British soldiers stay in Rio de Janeiro, they will inevitably have things beyond friendship with some married ladies. In the past month, more than 40 similar incidents have occurred in the military camp, so Gordon's first reaction was that there was another incident.
The young man failed to control his strong energy and accidentally misfired, and his relationship with the Brazilian ladies was broken by others.
"No, the soldiers have been very responsible in the city recently and have not caused trouble randomly."
The young British embassy official was sitting on the carriage and explained, "The peace envoy sent by the Han people has just arrived at the embassy. Mr. Minister, please come to the embassy area to participate in negotiations with the Han people."
…
At the British Embassy in Brazil, Hu Yaqi and several Chinese diplomats sat in the lobby and waited for more than an hour before meeting the British Minister Auston.
"Your Excellency, Minister, the Kingdom of Han and the British Empire are thousands of miles apart. The outbreak of the Argentine War was just an unfortunate accident. Our Majesty sincerely hopes to restore the friendship with the British Empire. The differences and misunderstandings between the two countries regarding the Argentine War are unfolding.
Have frank discussions and reach a mutually acceptable compromise and truce."
"No, sir, South America is a peaceful and peaceful continent. It was only after you Chinese came to South America that wars and conflicts continued to break out between countries. The wars were started by you in advance, brave young men of the British Empire.
, came to South America from distant Europe just to save the white Americans who were invaded and insulted by you. If you truly realize the disaster that the invasion of Argentina and Uruguay has brought to the people of both countries, then your Majesty should immediately order his subordinates
The army, leave the illegally occupied lands and return Argentina and Uruguay to their original owners."
"The Han army has strict military discipline. During the Argentine War, our army strictly abided by the war responsibilities between civilized countries and never bullied ordinary people in Argentina and Uruguay. If you don't believe it, you can go to the territory of Han and personally
After experience, His Majesty the King of Han is magnanimous and treats the Chinese, whites, and Indians in the country equally, and will not treat whites differently from the Chinese because of their different skin colors. The accusations made by the Minister are completely groundless."
Hu Yaqi righteously refuted the British minister's views and continued, "The Han army has done no harm to the people of Argentina and Uruguay. No matter how the outside world framed the Han army, the Han army's determination to defend its territory will not change. Argentina
, the people in Uruguay have voluntarily joined the Han Kingdom and become Han nationals. As long as they are within the territory of the Han Kingdom, they can choose the area they like as their residence according to their own wishes. Similarly, the Chinese in Han can also
You can choose to move to other areas.
So you should make it clear that there are not only white residents in Argentina and Uruguay now, but also Chinese people who immigrated there a few months ago. Whether Argentina and Uruguay are willing to accept Han rule depends not only on the white people, but also on the local people.
Millions of Chinese people also have the right to speak."
"Stop your cruel and barbaric behavior immediately, otherwise the British Empire's fleet will make you pay a heavy price!"
Hu Yaqi's tough reply made the British minister angry. He shouted, "You overestimated Easterners, the British Empire's cannons and ships will make you give up your ridiculous greed!"
"Your Excellency, please don't be angry. The Han Kingdom has no intention of overestimating its own capabilities and becoming an enemy of the British. All we have to do is to defend the achievements of the Han Army's bloodshed and sacrifice under the current circumstances.
The British Empire is the most powerful empire in the world. We have no doubt that if you are willing, you can once again send 10,000, 20,000, or 100,000 troops to fight in South America. But may I ask, Sir, what will this do to the British Empire?
Any tangible benefits?”
"In order to maintain peace in South America and allow Christians in Argentina and Uruguay to bathe in the glory of the Lord again, the British Empire is willing to send an expeditionary force to fight against any enemy!"
The British minister held his neck high and said proudly.
"I don't deny that your answer sounds very exciting, but today is no longer the period of the Crusades. It is really unreasonable for your government to differentiate between enemies and friends based on skin color, religious beliefs, and cultural differences, because
The skin color and culture of the Argentine people are similar to those of the British. Your country helped the Argentinians attack the Han Dynasty during the war.
The Argentine war has ended. Your country also paid the price of thousands of casualties in the battle more than a month ago. If your country continues to send more reinforcements to interfere with the merger of Argentina and Han, how much more price do you think it will have to pay to defeat it?
A National Defense Force with a reserve of more than 500,000 troops?”…………
The first day of negotiations was completely reduced to a verbal battle between Hu Yaqi and British Minister Auston. The British side asked for too high a price and showed no sincerity in the negotiations. Facing the aggressive posture of the British, Hu Yaji responded neither humble nor overbearing, which showed that Han
The Han Dynasty was unwilling to fall into a long-term war dispute with the British, and it also countered the British's war blackmail to send more reinforcements, showing the Han Dynasty's war potential and firm belief in protracted warfare.
