Chapter 1060

Singapore.

Yue Yun and Lei Ming were drinking tea and basking in the sun on the King-Class ironclad warship.

According to the original plan, they were to attack Jakarta, but after discovering that Jakarta had built deep trenches, they did not act immediately and instead reported the intelligence on Jakarta to the Imperial Study.

They then received an order to temporarily halt military action against Jakarta and were instructed to send a group of soldiers to Qingzhou to undergo training on a new type of weapon. It was said that this batch of weapons was called mortars and was specifically used to attack enemy soldiers hiding in trenches.

At the same time, Yue Yun received an order to have his fleet dock in Singapore to rendezvous with Lei Ming. Once the new weapons arrived, they were to immediately take military action against Jakarta.

“Sigh, I don’t know when the order to attack will come down. Drinking tea and basking in the sun all day is not the way to live.” Yue Yun sighed. Since the establishment of this ironclad fleet, the fleet had not yet fought a single real naval battle, which made him feel as if he was holding a treasured sword that he could not draw from its scabbard.

Compared to Yue Yun’s eagerness for battle, Lei Ming was very comfortably enjoying this rare scenery. He said, “You naval people don’t know how hard it is to fight on land. In this campaign all the way down here in Southeast Asia, my soldiers didn’t suffer many casualties from the enemy. There were many more soldiers who lost their combat effectiveness because of venomous insects and miasma. So for us in the army, the soldiers are all enjoying this rare vacation.”

Yue Yun glanced at the army soldiers who were swimming in the sea and having a barbecue on the beach at this time. Compared to the first time he saw them, these soldiers had indeed regained their vitality.

“You’re right, but we in the navy are not having it easy either. It’s a tough life being cooped up in this iron can all year long,” Yue Yun said with a laugh.

Lei Ming looked at the giant cannons on the King-Class ironclad warship with some envy. The caliber of these cannons was very large, much larger than the field cannons they carried. Just from the caliber, one could tell the power of these giant cannons.

“Don’t be ungrateful when you’ve gotten a good deal. The sailing warships from before were much worse than this. The first time I saw your fleet, I even wanted to join the navy,” Lei Ming said helplessly.

While the two were teasing each other, a soldier boarded the ironclad warship and handed two telegrams, one to Yue Yun and one to Lei Ming.

After reading the telegrams, Yue Yun said, “The Empire is not peaceful inside now. It is said that some people want to restrict the Emperor’s power.”

Lei Ming, after reading the telegram, nodded. “These traitors are just being presumptuous. If it were up to me, I would have wiped out their entire clans and saved myself a lot of trouble.”

The telegram in his hand was from the headquarters of the Southeast Military Region. Although they were fighting abroad, news from within the Empire would be sent to them via telegraph.

And from the telegrams of their relatives and friends, they could learn even more about the rumors that were spreading.

“You can’t say that. Do you think the Emperor won’t kill people? The Emperor is still being patient now, so he must be planning something. Our Emperor rose from a mountain of swords and a sea of blood. These people are simply overestimating themselves by trying to contend with the Emperor,” Yue Yun said.

Lei Ming nodded. “No matter what, this time I will have someone issue an order to the military region command to resolutely support the Emperor. If the Emperor gives an order, there must be no delay. You should also send an order to Dengzhou. Now that we are fighting abroad, we must show our stance.”

“Hmm, you’re thoughtful. At least this can also suppress some of the petty villains,” Yue Yun said.

After a pause, he continued, “But you and I don’t need to worry. The Emperor seems to be confident about this, otherwise, he wouldn’t have mentioned nothing about it in this order and only told us to continue military action to seize Jakarta.”

Lei Ming also received an order from Xiao Ming. He said, “The first batch of mortars will be in place in half a month. At that time, it will be Jakarta’s doomsday.”

With that, he stood up and said to the adjutant beside him, “Order the soldiers to assemble. We will march on Jakarta in ten days.”

With a response, the adjutant immediately got off the warship.

Yue Yun said at this time, “I should also get ready. According to our intelligence, the Western combined fleet this time has a tendency to encircle us from Jakarta and Malacca. At least thirty reinforced warships have arrived in Jakarta, which makes the number of warships in Jakarta reach over fifty. And more warships are docked in Calcutta, preparing to break through Malacca.”

Lei Ming’s expression became solemn. To him, this would be the biggest battle they had fought against the West so far, and the outcome of this battle would determine who would ultimately win the dominance of Asia.

…

London.

Victoria was also worried about the war in Asia. This time, the delegations sent by Britain and France had all returned home in humiliation without achieving any results.

It was under this premise that they ultimately decided to fight a fierce battle with the Chinese Empire in India to force the Chinese Empire to return to the negotiating table, instead of using barbaric methods to seize all of their interests in Asia.

After all, India was of paramount importance to Britain. They would rather give up all of South America than lose India, because this region with a population of over one hundred million was a huge market and a source of raw materials.

Once India was lost, Britain’s industry and commerce would suffer serious losses.

“Now, in addition to worrying about India, we should also worry about whether the Chinese Empire will continue to expand westward. After all, according to the latest intelligence, they now have even more terrifying weapons: a breech-loading rifle with metal bullets, a breech-loading artillery, and a weapon that can fire continuously, called a machine gun. In terms of the navy, they even have dozens of powerful ironclads. I am afraid we don’t have a good chance of winning this war.”

In the Tulip Palace, Murphy reported the war situation to Victoria with some pessimism.

“Is this intelligence reliable?” Victoria frowned.

“This intelligence comes from Cao Kun’s people, and the soldiers who fled from Australia also confirmed this. In view of this situation, we must completely reform our national defense system, otherwise, what we lose will be more than just India.” Murphy said, “I suggest we increase our military spending, gather elite technical talents, and research weapons in the direction of the Chinese Empire’s development. Now that the domestic steam engine technology is already very mature, perhaps we should use these machines to do something?”

Victoria’s brows furrowed deeply. She said, “From now on, cut all palace expenses and invest all the saved money into weapon research and development. At the same time, send envoys to various European countries to seek their support.”

After a pause, she said, “Also, send another envoy to the Ottoman Empire. We must not allow the Chinese Empire and the Ottoman Empire to unite. To do this, we can use any means necessary to sabotage their relationship.”