"Your Majesty, urgent telegram from Chang'an!" A young officer quickly ran to Li Mingyuan and hurriedly handed over a telegram: "The situation in the Paraguay Civil War has changed. Chief Liu, Luo, Zhao and other central officials have requested Your Majesty to return to Chang'an as soon as possible to preside over
The overall situation internally and externally.”
"I understand. Call back to General Liu and General Luo. We will set off tomorrow morning and are expected to arrive in Chang'an in two days. Before we return to Chang'an, please ask them not to have contact with Paraguay. All issues related to the direction of the Paraguayan war are temporarily shelved.
I will make a decision after I return to Chang'an."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
The young officer took note of the instructions conveyed by Li Mingyuan, stood up and saluted, and quickly turned around and left.
"Deputy Director Niu, after the inspection in recent days, we have a pretty good understanding of the general situation of Xinghe Shipyard. The inspection of Xinghe Shipyard will end today. Early tomorrow morning, Chief Chen, Chief Mei and I will
General Chen will return to Chang'an together. The follow-up development of Xinghe Shipyard requires more efforts and more attention from your factory staff."
Li Mingyuan turned to Niu Shangzhou and said: "The 5,200-ton ocean-going ship has not been named yet. In my opinion, it is better to name it Fuxing to take the meaning of rejuvenating the country and prospering the people. I hope that when I come to Xinghe Shipyard for inspection next time, I can
Seeing the row of Fuxing ships docked in the port near the ship's cabin, Deputy Director Niu, you have a big task, so you can't slack off or relax."
"Your Majesty, please rest assured that all employees at Xinghe Shipyard will not dare to slack off before completing the construction task of "Fuxing Ship"."
"Well, professional matters are left to professional people. In terms of shipbuilding, you are experts. The central government and I are just proposing rough construction goals and standards for you. As for how to implement and operate them in detail, you still need to think more.
practice."
After Li Mingyuan finished speaking about his requirements for the shipyard managers, he looked up at the blood-red setting sun and said, "It's getting late, we should go back.
General Chen, notify the surrounding soldiers in charge of security and ask them to prepare to leave."
"Yes, Your Majesty."......
The next morning, the fleet headed by the 3,500-ton armored cruiser Pioneer set off from Songjiang Port and arrived at Huaiyang Prefecture (Rosario) in the afternoon. Then, it took nearly a day to transfer to a train from Huaiyang.
Arriving in Chang'an (Cordoba) on July 11.
In front of the Chang'an Imperial Palace is the Daming Hall. The spacious palace is full of people, including major officials from various departments of the central government and core officers of the army and navy.
Li Mingyuan came to the palace under the escort of dozens of soldiers of the Imperial Guard. When he saw that personnel from central government departments and land and sea parties had arrived, he immediately said: "Six days ago, the Republic of Brazil sent troops to officially declare a return to war with Paraguay.
,
On July 5, the Army of the Republic of Brazil was divided into two groups. One group, with about 60,000 troops, launched an attack on the Paraguayan-controlled state of Mato Grosso do Sul. The other group, with nearly 30,000 troops, attacked from the northern Goiás garrison area and defeated Paraguay.
The Army's 4th Division's defense line quickly advanced toward central Paraguay along the Paraná border river.
According to the latest information we have obtained,
As of the evening of July 10th,
The Second Division of the Paraguayan Army, which was deeply mired in the Indian rebellion, was completely wiped out by the attack of the superior forces of the Republic of Brazil. The Fourth Division of the Paraguayan Army was also defeated by the Paraguayan Army of the Republic of Brazil due to the turbulent domestic war situation and insufficient supplies of ammunition and supplies.
The front troops are divided and surrounded in several isolated towns, and it is optimistically estimated that it will only take a week or two before they are finally eliminated."
Li Mingyuan focused his eyes on a large sand table in the center of the palace conference hall. He casually picked up two small flags symbolizing the Second Division and the Fourth Division of the Paraguayan Army, and continued: "Excluding the Second Division of the Paraguayan Army that has been eliminated.
and the Fourth Division that is about to be eliminated, the number of remaining regular troops in Paraguay is only about 30,000, and among the remaining 30,000, more than 8,500 of General Whitehead's Paraguayan Army's First Division are stationed near the mainland.
Encarnacion is located at the southernmost tip of the Kingdom of Paraguay and is far away from the first line of the Brazilian Republic's offensive. Even if Whitehead and his officers wanted to move to resist the offensive of the Brazilian Republic's army, they would not be able to do so in a short time.
to reverse the situation on the battlefield in Paraguay.
Once again excluding the more than 8,500 troops of the First Division of the Paraguayan Army, the total pre-war strength of the four-member Regent Council and the rebel coalition was about 27,000 (including temporarily recruited soldiers). After several months of fierce fighting, the total number of casualties was about 5,000.
, the number of remaining soldiers with normal combat capabilities is approximately 22,000.
22,000 people are the largest military force currently assembled in Paraguay to resist the attack of the Brazilian Republic's army. If the four-person regent committee and the rebel coalition can abandon their past grievances, completely put down their guard against each other, and unite to launch a joint attack on the Brazilian Republic.
In the defensive war, the Kingdom of Paraguay may be able to win some chance of survival.
However, according to the war situation deduction conducted by the General Staff Headquarters, the probability of this happening is very low."
"The rebel coalition and the four-person regency committee belong to different factions. They have accumulated irreconcilable conflicts in the previous civil war. I do not believe that they will give up their hatred of each other for the so-called Paraguayan motherland."
Army Chief Luo Linshan followed Li Mingyuan's words and speculated.
"It is almost impossible for them to completely give up their hatred and cooperate sincerely. However, it is quite possible that under the military threat of the Republic of Brazil, they will be forced to unite and deal with the outside world for the sake of each other's political and economic interests."
The views of Army Chief of Staff Zhao Yongzeng are different from Luo Linshan. He believes that under the military threat from the Republic of Brazil, even if the rebel coalition and the four-person regent committee had great hatred before, for the interests and survival of their respective factions,
We will also choose to resolve past grievances and respond to crises in a consistent external manner.
"Whether the Four-person Regency Council and the Rebel Alliance reconciled and fought against the enemy actually has no essential impact on the prospects of the Paraguay War. The total remaining strength of the Four-member Regency Council and the Rebel Alliance is only more than 22,000 people, while the Republic of Brazil wants to attack Paraguay.
, a total of 120,000 troops were mobilized. In addition to the 90,000 troops used for front-line combat, the Republic of Brazil also deployed 30,000 troops in Paraná to deal with possible attacks on the mainland.
After the death of Lopez Jr., Paraguay no longer has the overall conditions needed to maintain its independence. Without local support and intervention, it is only a matter of time before the four-person regency committee and the rebel coalition fail. Whether they will unite or not, there is no
Necessary relationship.”
Luo Linshan stated his point of view.
"The views of General Luo and General Zhao both have some truth. The contradiction between the two parties in Paraguay is irreconcilable, and the current Paraguay is not the Paraguay when Lopez Jr. was alive. Without the powerful rule of Lopez Jr., Paraguay is scattered into a mess. There is no way to achieve the same goal."
The weak defeated the strong, and the Brazilian army once again had an absolute advantage in strength and weapons."
Li Mingyuan smiled lightly and said: "Whether the four-person regent committee cooperates with the rebel coalition, or even whether the Paraguayan army is completely wiped out by the Brazilian army is not our focus. Our focus is how to use the Brazilian Republic's army and the Paraguayan army.
Opportunities to fight and obtain maximum benefits."
As we are about to enter the 20th century, the pattern of war is gradually changing towards heavy firepower and large-scale combat. In Li Mingyuan's eyes, this war involving hundreds of thousands of troops between Paraguay and the Republic of Brazil is nothing more than a war.
It’s a rookie-style war that uses modern weapons, but the tactics and quality of the soldiers are relatively backward.
Twenty years ago, the predecessor of the Han army, the uprising force composed mainly of Chinese workers, was also regarded as a war between rookies when fighting Bolivia, Peru and other countries. But now, after twenty years of development and
After being baptized and tempered by many wars, Han State has got rid of its role as a rookie and has begun to participate in the wars of all parties as the controller of the international situation in South America.
The Paraguayan War is like a huge chessboard. All parties in Paraguay and the Republic of Brazil are chess pieces on the chessboard. Li Mingyuan is like a chess player. He can influence the direction and outcome of the Paraguayan War just by standing in front of the sand table in the meeting hall.
result.
"Under the attack of the Brazilian Republic's army, the four-person regency council and the rebel coalition have only one way to fail. Before they fail, when will the local side intervene in the Paraguay war is an issue we need to consider.
Intervening too early, the warlord forces in Paraguay did not suffer huge losses, which was detrimental to our established policy of peacefully occupying Paraguay. Intervening too late, when the Republic of Brazil completely eliminated the main force of the Paraguayan army, and occupied and destroyed the main cities in Paraguay, was harmful to us.
Later recovery efforts in the occupation of Paraguay were equally unfavorable.
Therefore, it is best for us to intervene in the Paraguayan War at a time when the main force of the Paraguayan army has been damaged and before the army of the Republic of Brazil launches its final offensive against the remaining Paraguayan army.
In order to achieve this goal, the local side must selectively agree to Paraguay's request for assistance. In the early stage, troops will be gathered in Luoning County (Formosa) and Xianghe City (Posadas). In the mid-term, Xianghe City garrison will be mobilized.
Marching from the direction of the Paraná River and Encarnacion, the troops were divided into two groups to control the railway branch line from Encarnacion to Asuncion and the southern Paraguay area. When the Brazilian Republic Army besieged Asuncion in the later period, the main force accumulated in Ronin County was moved along the
The Paraguay River went north, and after occupying the three places of Puerto Ayes, Rinchio Town, and the Port of Antequera, it separated a partial division and continued northward along the Paraguay River to regain Paraguayan territory, while the main force stayed in the direction of Asuncion and attacked Brazil.
The Republic's army launched an attack and encirclement.
The purpose of the Paraguay War is to severely damage the main force of the Republic of Brazil and further weaken the war potential of the Republic of Brazil. Therefore, after the war begins, the officers and soldiers of all departments should give priority to destroying the army of the Republic of Brazil, and should not worry about the temporary gains and losses of one city or one place."