The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 307 The Siamese Kingdom

On November 1732, 11, seven days had passed since the Battle of Shanting. The vanguard troops, which had been unable to launch a large-scale pursuit due to insufficient manpower, finally received reinforcements.

Meng Yuanyou looked at the long queues and supply convoys on the road, with more than 1,600 people, and a sincere smile appeared on his face.

Well, the mobilization speed of the local military preparation department was not slow. They sent the conscripted armed militia and local militiamen here so quickly, and also brought a large amount of supplies.

"Sir, did you engage in battle with the natives?" Qiu Jinshan, the logistics supervisor of the 19th Mixed Brigade of the Army and Lieutenant (Major) of Xuanjie, was surprised when he saw the large areas of charred ground in the wilderness outside Yuanshanting Town, as well as some scraps of meat and cloth still remaining on the barbed wire.

"Yes, we fought a battle seven days ago." Meng Yuanyou said with a smile, "We killed and wounded nearly a thousand natives, and basically crippled them."

"Congratulations, sir, for being the first to achieve this feat in the battle to kill the natives!" Qiu Jinshan smiled and complimented, "I believe that after this heavy blow to the natives, they will surely be terrified and their arrogance will no longer be there."

"Alas, this battle really frightened the natives." Meng Yuanyou shook his head and sighed, "Seven days ago, after the natives were defeated, they retreated to the northwest inland mountainous area. According to the report from our cavalry scouts, they split into several groups near Bihu (now Buluan Lake in the southwest of Mindanao Island) and fled into the dense jungle. They are no longer traceable."

"Ah?" Qiu Jinshan was shocked when he heard this. He turned around and looked at the more than 1,000 soldiers and armed militiamen who were setting up camp. "The natives have fled into the jungles in the mountains. How can we find them and annihilate them all?"

"So, we need more reinforcements, more civilians, and then build several guard posts or military strongholds on the edge of the mountain area." Meng Yuanyou said viciously: "In this way, we can block the natives who have entered the forest to the greatest extent possible, and trap them or starve them to death. ... Humph, in the dense primeval forest, there is almost no chance to obtain food and daily necessities. I want to see how long they can hide in the forest."

"As far as I know, there are already many native tribes in the dense forests of the mountains. They should be able to obtain some supplies."

"If there were only a few hundred people, maybe they could get some supplies. But there are thousands of them, how can we feed them all? It's impossible for so many people to rely on hunting and fishing to maintain their daily lives in the jungle, right?"

"That's right, sir. Then... wouldn't this campaign to suppress the native rebellion be a war of attrition?"

"Haha... do you think the natives have lost their minds and dare to attack us again?" Meng Yuanyou smiled. "In the future, I guess this war will be fought like the one in Aceh. We will build a large number of fortresses and strongholds on the plains or key locations to block the natives' attack routes or mountain exits. We will also use a small number of mobile troops to patrol the area, and then advance step by step to squeeze the natives' room for maneuver, and finally wipe them out completely."

"Then I'm afraid we'll need more troops."

"What's the latest news from Borneo and Annan? When can we withdraw troops from these two places?"

"In Borneo, the Kingdom of Brunei has given up resistance and allowed our coalition forces to enter Brunei. Currently, all parties are taking over the administrative and management rights in their respective territories in accordance with the prior agreement. Four battalions of our Qi Army and five divisions of the Sulu Guard have entered the Brunei Royal City, disarmed all Brunei troops, and controlled the Brunei royal family and government officials. In this way, the situation in Borneo should be completely calmed down within one or two months."

"There is a problem in Annan. After my Qi Kingdom, Champa and Ha Tien jointly issued an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Cambodia, the government weighed the pros and cons and finally chose to surrender and agreed to all our conditions. However, what is unexpected is that the Kingdom of Siam saw this situation and also came to take advantage of the situation. It sent troops to occupy Preah Vihear and Banteay Meanchey in Cambodia, and it seems to be swallowing up the entire western Battambang area."

"Heh..., our Qi Kingdom, in conjunction with Champa and Ha Tien, has been planning for a long time and has spent so much effort to force the Kingdom of Cambodia to cede a large area of ​​southeastern territory and disband its corresponding armed forces. Unexpectedly, the Kingdom of Siam would come and take advantage of it!"

"Who said it wasn't!" Qiu Jinshan nodded and agreed, "Siam's behavior is really speechless and annoying. It's like a few tigers sharing their prey, and a wolf comes along without knowing whether to live or die, wanting to get a piece of the pie and grab some food."

Well, it’s not very harmful, but it’s extremely insulting!
"So, how is Annan going to deal with this?"

"It was probably to warn Siam and force them to withdraw from the Cambodian territory they had seized, thus maintaining Cambodia's territorial integrity."

"Hmm?" Meng Yuanyou felt something was wrong after hearing this. "In other words, the situation in Cambodia will not be settled in the short term?"

Huh, maintain Cambodia's territorial integrity?!
"Even if there are reversals, I don't think it will last too long. As long as we warn Siam, their army will definitely withdraw from Cambodia. By then, when everything is settled, we can transfer more troops to surround and kill those rioting natives in the jungle."

"I hope so." Meng Yuanyou said, standing up and putting on his general's cap. "After your troops rest for a night, leave some of the militia here tomorrow to repair the fortress and build a stronghold. The rest of you can follow me to Bihu to see what the situation is like there."

"As you command, sir!"

Meng Yuanyou returned a military salute and then turned and left.

"Oh, Siam is just a tiny country, and yet it dares to come and compete with Da Qi for food!"
-
November 11, Runzhou Governorate, Jiangzhou City (now Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)
"Your Highness, Siam is stubborn and has been plundering people and property in Cambodia. It has been procrastinating on withdrawing its troops. We only need to send a few gunboats to Siam, then go up the Chao Phraya River and head straight to Ayutthaya. Siam will surely surrender and withdraw its troops and give up the occupied territory. Therefore, Your Highness does not need to go in person to meet the King of Siam and reprimand him face to face."

At the Jiangzhou river port, a group of military and political officials were trying their best to persuade the Governor of Runzhou and Prince of Min Qi Weihao to cancel his trip to Siam so that they could stay in Jiangzhou City and wait for good news after the Annan fleet launched an attack on Siam.

As the ancients said, the son of a wealthy family would not sit with his head down in the hall.

As a prince of the Great Qi, there is no need for you to accompany the fleet to the royal city of Siam and scold the King of Siam to his face, saying that you were not respecting your dignity and were taking advantage of the fact that we were dividing Cambodia by rashly raising an army to take advantage of the situation.

"Alright, alright, please stop trying to persuade me." Qi Weihao waved his hands impatiently and said unhappily, "The King of Siam, Taisa, is rebellious and rude. He is trying to take advantage of the chaos in Cambodia and seize the political and economic interests that should belong to our Qi State. This is really annoying and hateful. I just want to ask this guy, isn't he afraid of bringing disaster to Siam by being so perverse?"

"Your Highness, although Siam is a small and weak country, it dare not act rashly in front of our Qi State. After a little threat of force, it will certainly choose to give in and surrender. However, it is not necessary for Your Highness to go there in person to raise an army to call for punishment. If the situation does not go as planned and things get repeated, I am afraid that we will fall into... unpredictable risks. Therefore, I earnestly ask Your Highness to think twice and act cautiously." Runzhou Garrison Commander, General Mingwei (Brigadier General) She Bangshu stepped forward and persuaded earnestly.

"Why, Siam has become a den of wolves and tigers, and I can't go there?" Qi Weihao shook his head and said with a smile: "Even if Siam has ten times the courage, it dare not do anything wrong to me! I will go there quickly and come back quickly. I will teach Taisha a lesson in person and let him know the duties of a small country. Then I will return immediately. It's not a big deal."

As the Governor of Runzhou and Prince of Da Qi, Qi Weihao really didn't need to go to Siam in person to give the Siamese King Taisha a lecture in front of him and satisfy his desire to act like an envoy of a superior country.

However, as the leader who pushed for the division of the Kingdom of Cambodia, Qi Weihao was very annoyed by Siam's actions. In his eyes, the whole of Cambodia was a delicacy he had carefully cooked. He needed to sit at the table, maintain the necessary dining etiquette, then raise the cutlery, taste it slowly, chew it slowly, and finally digest it slowly.

I never expected that you, a little Siamese, would pick up your chopsticks, secretly pick up a few bites from the side, and can't wait to put them into your mouth.

Let me ask you, are you polite?

Qi Weihao didn't take the King of Siam, Taisa, seriously at all, and he despised him. This guy was just like his father, Pa Chao Su, lustful and cruel. @! #! ￥! @￥! @#%! @%! @#￥! @#￥@
In addition, the king often threw officials and scholars who opposed him into pools full of crocodiles, and then watched with great pleasure the bloody scene of the crocodiles fighting for food, which was cruel and perverted.

However, although this gentleman was cruel and ruthless in Siam, he had a clear understanding of foreign affairs and was quite tactful. He did not dare to offend Qi easily and behaved submissively and flatteringly.

A few years ago, not long after Qi Weihao took office as the governor of Runzhou, he "visited" this neighbor with several warships. He was warmly welcomed by Taisha and presented with many valuable gifts, which made Qi Weihao very satisfied.

That's right, Qi Weihao went to Siam this time, not only to call the enemy to task, but also to get something for free. He planned to use this "foul move" of Siam to scare it severely. In addition to forcing the other party to withdraw its troops, he would also make the King of Siam, Taisha, spend some money and bleed a little, so as to enrich his own treasury.

He has been the governor of Runzhou for four years. When his term expires next year, he might be recalled to his homeland and become a sinecure. By then, there will be no extra money to be made. Therefore, he must take advantage of his tenure as governor to collect more money from various channels and enrich his own pockets.

Otherwise, when we return to Chang'an, we will have to live a hard life by tightening our belts.

"Okay, everyone, say goodbye. I will be back soon." Qi Weihao waved to the many military and political officials, then turned his head to look at the princess and two children standing next to the carriage, nodded slightly, and turned around to board a warship.

Nahid Mirza, the former Persian princess and current Princess of Min, held her two children and watched her husband get on the boat expressionlessly, then sailed away, without saying a word for a long time.
-
November 11, Ayutthaya, the royal capital of Siam.

Led by his attendants, Nataporn, the Siamese Samhan (a Siamese official title), entered the majestic Bang Pa-in Palace, ready to meet King Thaisa.

However, he was stopped outside the Tianxin Palace by the guards, who told him that His Majesty the King was handling government affairs and would not receive any ministers for the time being.

"Please inform His Majesty that I have important military matters to report, which are related to the survival of the entire kingdom." Natapon said anxiously to an officer of the Imperial Guards: "If there is any delay, the kingdom will surely fall into a serious crisis."

"Lord Shamuhan, we dare not disobey the order of His Majesty. Please don't make things difficult for us." The officer said with difficulty.

If you disturb your majesty's interest at this time, you may lose your life.

"If you fail to make matters of the kingdom important, His Majesty will be furious and will hold you accountable," Natapon said threateningly.

"...In that case, please wait a moment, Lord Shamuhan. Once His Majesty has finished handling government affairs, I will immediately inform you to come in." The officer was obviously in a dilemma and could only bow and beg, "But if we disturb His Majesty at this time, we will not be able to bear the consequences."

"Hmm?..." Natapon couldn't help but frowned when he heard that.

Standing outside the Tianxin Temple, Natapon faintly heard the suppressed and sad cries of a woman inside the temple, and he immediately understood.

His Majesty is favoring a new girl again!
However, after waiting for more than half an hour, the personal eunuch in Tianxin Hall came out to inform everyone that His Majesty the King suddenly felt unwell and had gone to bed. If there were any state affairs to report, they would come back tomorrow to report and ask for instructions.

"Your Majesty, what is this..." Natapon was anxious and angry, but he looked at the closed door of Tianxin Palace in shock for a while, and finally waved his sleeves vigorously, turned around and left angrily.

The coalition led by Qi State has attacked the Siamese army that entered the Banteay Meanchey area of ​​the Kingdom of Cambodia. More than 700 soldiers were killed, wounded or captured. Seeing the situation was not good, the leading general fled with the remaining troops and retreated back to Siam.

However, the coalition forces were relentless and followed the Siamese army's retreat route, threatening to take advantage of the situation to attack Siam. This caused panic in the entire southeast region, and people quickly reported to Ayutthaya, asking what to do next.

The people of Qi are coming to attack us. Should we fight or make peace? Give us some instructions!

But now, after favoring the new girl, His Majesty the King fell asleep directly.

God knows what the southeast border will look like after one night.

It is said that Qi, Ha Tien and Champa mobilized nearly 10,000 troops to divide the Kingdom of Cambodia. If they all came to attack Siam, who could defeat them?

Originally, regarding the division of Cambodia among the above three countries, many ministers advised His Majesty the King to stay out of it and not get involved in it to avoid getting into trouble.

However, the ambitious King wanted to take advantage of this major external crisis in Cambodia to tear a piece of its flesh from it and seize the Battambang area in western Cambodia for himself, thus realizing his long-cherished wish of expanding his territory.

In your Majesty's eyes, since Cambodia has been placed on the table of the Qi people, there must be some soup left for the Kingdom of Siam to eat.

Otherwise, the whole of Cambodia will be completely swallowed up by others, and we in Siam will not get a penny, which will be very regrettable.

There is a classic saying in Chinese civilization that goes, "If you don't take what heaven gives you, you will suffer the consequences; if you don't act when the time comes, you will suffer the consequences."

We in Siam took advantage of Qi's division of Cambodia to sneak a bite, and I don't think they would mind.

Even if Qi State is dissatisfied and angry about this, the worst that can happen is that we can just spit it out, but we, the Kingdom of Siam, can also take the opportunity to plunder more wealth and people.

If the people of Qi still want to blame us, we can get rid of them by saying some soft words, giving them some gifts, and granting them some trade privileges.

Siam has always been submissive to Qi, so there should be no problem in secretly kissing Qi.

But will things really develop exactly as I want?

"Alas, Your Majesty is confused..." Natapon sighed heavily after walking out of the palace.

(End of this chapter)