Twentieth Century Chronicle

Page 81

Therefore, he revised his plan to support the Free Gurkha Union's rise to power and sought another Rana to replace Chandra. Through Nepalese intellectuals who sought to maintain neutrality between China and Britain, He Guangxie finally reached an agreement with Gehendra Sumsher.

His plan was quite successful. The officers monitoring Ghendra Sumsher, upon learning of Chandra's death, quickly pledged allegiance to him and persuaded their military colleagues, who were still attempting to suppress the people of Kathmandu, to cooperate with the Free Gurkha League. Once Kathmandu was calmed, King Prithvi announced the formation of a ruling council to replace the prime minister in governing the country, and established a funeral committee for Chandra, requiring Chandra's brothers and eldest son to return to Kathmandu to pay their respects. Their military posts were to be taken over by members of the Free Gurkha League.

This was rather confusing news for the Nepalese army not far from the Kathmandu Valley, but they ultimately accepted Gehendra Sumsher as the new commander-in-chief. However, for the Nepalese army closer to the Sikkim border, it was extremely bad news.

Before news of Chandra's death and Ghendra's appointment as commander-in-chief arrived, a rebellion suddenly broke out in the eastern mountain tribes, who attacked the logistics and supplies of the expeditionary force. The attack came so suddenly that the army had no time to react. They never expected that before any large-scale battle with the Chinese had even begun, they would be attacked by their own people on their own territory.

Faced with the rebellion that broke out among the tribes in the eastern mountains, the Nepalese army quickly descended into chaos. Chandela's eldest son and uncles at the front were embroiled in a dispute. The uncles argued that they should retreat first to suppress the mountain tribes' rebellion, while Chandela's trusted subordinates advised his son that retreat was not an option, as it would cause the British to lose support for Prime Minister Chandela. They also argued that once Darjeeling was captured, the British would provide logistical support, and then they could return to suppress the rebellious tribes later.

However, soon after, the Chinese sent a representative to tell Chandela's eldest son that a popular uprising had broken out in Kathmandu, that his father had died, and that he should return to report the death rather than fight against the army of the colonial power. This news quickly spread among the Nepalese frontline troops, causing great suspicion among the Nepalese.

Chandra's brothers had a new disagreement upon hearing this news from the Chinese. Some believed they should lead troops back to Kathmandu to suppress the rebellion if the news was true; others argued that regardless of the news's veracity, they should act quickly, either moving forward or backward, and not remain stationary.

However, the commander of this army was ultimately Chandela's eldest son. Upon hearing the news of his father's death, he was only concerned with verifying the veracity of the news and completely neglected the situation of the army. This further increased the credibility of the news of Chandela's death among the soldiers at the front. When inaccurate reports came from the rear that there had indeed been civil unrest in Kathmandu, Chandela's eldest son immediately wavered. He accepted the Chinese representative's request to withdraw the troops.

However, Lin Xinyi and Wu Luzhen did not send envoys for the sake of peace. They withdrew their peace request in order to undermine the morale of the Nepalese army. After Chandela's eldest son announced the withdrawal of troops, Wu Luzhen immediately led his army to begin a pursuit operation. The Nepalese, who had lost their will to fight, surrendered one after another. Although Chandela's brothers still wanted to stop resisting, at this time the Nepalese army had completely lost its command. Everyone was thinking about leaving the eastern mountains as soon as possible, and no one was willing to stay and resist.

Seeing that things were going badly, several of Chandra's brothers who were leading the army simply deserted and headed down the mountain. Chandra's eldest son insisted on advancing towards Kathmandu, but soon encountered a representative sent by Ghendra on the road. After being relieved of his military post, he was taken away from the army, but he never appeared in Kathmandu again. Ghendra later stated that he had never given such an order, so it became an unsolved mystery.

For the Shannan Military and Political Committee, the defeat of the Nepalese army removed a major obstacle, allowing them to focus on dealing with the British offensive. Colonel Haig had already led his troops steadily to Garsyan, only 10 miles from Darjeeling.

Chapter 283 Going Up and Down the Mountain

On the morning of May 10, Colonel Douglas Haig arrived at Gersyan Station by train, where he was greeted by Colonel Reginada Edward Harry Dawer, the front commander, who led him to his headquarters at the Clarendon Hotel.

Colonel Haig was quite fond of his old classmate, Colonel Dawell. Both of them graduated from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 1885 and then served in the colonies. Colonel Dawell was originally in charge of the defense of the Northwest Frontier region of India, but the failure of Lieutenant Colonel Merlis forced Lord Kitchener to recall some troops and experienced commanders from the Northwest Frontier.

Although he and Colonel Haig were old classmates, Colonel Daer did not use his position to interfere with Colonel Haig's plans. Instead, he honestly carried out the plan set by Colonel Haig and moved step by step to Gersyan. This certainly deserved Colonel Haig's kindness towards him.

Looking at the hotel, which showed almost no signs of battle, Colonel Haig couldn't help but compliment Colonel Daell, "Indeed, only your rich combat experience could allow you to capture this place so completely. I think the owner of the Clarendon Hotel will be very grateful to you, otherwise he would have suffered a great financial loss."

Colonel Daer hesitated for a moment, but still nodded slightly to accept Colonel Haig's compliment. Although the battle to capture Gersyan was somewhat different from what Colonel Haig had said, unlike the previous section of the road where the Chinese army had been constantly entangled with the British army, in Gersyan the Chinese had actually taken the initiative to withdraw.

However, Colonel Daer believed that the Chinese evacuation was also due to his previous good command, which left no loopholes for the Chinese. Therefore, they finally could not tolerate the continuous bloodshed and took the initiative to withdraw. Strictly speaking, Colonel Haig's flattery was not excessive, and his command was indeed good.

As an old classmate who had already gotten close to Lord Kitchener, Colonel Dawell also hoped to strengthen their relationship. After all, Lord Kitchener would inevitably rise to a higher level after returning to London from India, and establishing a connection with him would be beneficial to his career.

Furthermore, although he came from a family of colonial military officers, Colonel Kerr also believed that the Indian Army did indeed need some changes, even if it meant some losses to his family. After all, he had always commanded frontline troops and deeply believed that the Indian Army's combat effectiveness needed to be improved; otherwise, the British Empire would probably find it difficult to maintain its prestige in the colonies.

After entering Colonel Daer's command post, and seeing that the others hadn't followed, Colonel Haig whispered to his old classmate, "Although Darjeeling is not far from us, the Commander-in-Chief believes we should slow down our advance slightly."

Colonel Daer was somewhat surprised by this. He couldn't help but say, "But our pace of attack has already slowed considerably. If we slow it any further, it's like standing still. Are we going to let the Gurkhas get into Darjeeling first?"

Colonel Haig immediately shook his head in denial: "The Commander-in-Chief certainly didn't mean that, but he also didn't want the Gurkhas to enter Darjeeling with us. The Commander-in-Chief felt that if the Gurkhas could suffer a minor defeat, and then we could launch a full-scale attack to capture Darjeeling, then this war would no longer be about the Gurkhas helping us, but about us relying on our own strength to restore the honor of the British army."

Colonel Dawer instantly understood Colonel Haig's meaning. As a colonial officer, he could empathize with Lord Kitchener's feelings. At all times, people of color must be made to believe that white people are superior and omnipotent, and they must not be allowed to think that they are no different from white people in terms of intelligence or physical strength. Once people of color develop this mindset, the day when they challenge white rule will not be far off.

After the British army's disastrous defeat, if the Gurkhas were to easily penetrate Darjeeling, the whole of India would likely believe that the victory belonged to the Gurkhas, not the British. This would be dangerous for British rule in India, as Indians did not consider the Gurkhas superior to themselves; the Gurkhas were simply descendants of those who fled to the mountains after being defeated on the plains. If the Gurkhas could do it, then the Indians could certainly do it too.

Therefore, even if they genuinely needed the Gurkhas' help, they couldn't let others believe that the Gurkhas had actually helped them. Thus, a minor setback for the Gurkhas, followed by a decisive British victory, was the outcome most in the interest of the British Empire.

Colonel Daer nodded in agreement to Colonel Hager and said, "I think it's necessary for us to rest in Gersyan for a few days first. This will allow the soldiers to rest and also allow us to thoroughly inspect the railway facilities to ensure that there are no problems with logistics."

Colonel Haig was satisfied with Colonel Dael's reply. He nodded in agreement and said, "Indeed, in mountain warfare, it is essential to ensure unimpeded logistics. I will send someone to contact the Gurkhas as soon as possible and urge them to accelerate their advance on Darjeeling..."

When Colonel Haig personally arrived in Gersyan to persuade Colonel Daer to slow down and wait for the Chinese and Nepalese armies to fight to the death before taking action, Lin Xinyi was holding a military conference in a village on the border between Sikkim and Nepal.

Standing in front of a wooden table with an English map, Lin Xinyi addressed the people in the room: "Although Nepal is in turmoil, the power struggles within the country are too complex. If we get involved, we will likely be caught up in one internal conflict after another, which is clearly not in line with the purpose of our revolution."

Now, the Rana family's power has been severely damaged. Tribes in several eastern regions are trying to form an autonomous alliance. Even after the overthrow of Chandela's rule, no real winner has been decided in Kathmandu. The remaining forces of the Rana family, the king's faction trying to seize power, and some local forces trying to take over Kathmandu are all fighting in Kathmandu.

Therefore, I advocate against continuing the advance on Kathmandu. We support the tribal autonomy of several eastern regions and also support the swift restoration of peace in Kathmandu, preventing further internal strife. Our only demand is to maintain Nepal's neutrality between China and Britain. After such a major defeat, I believe Nepal has no choice but to remain neutral, allowing us to focus all our efforts on dealing with the British.”

Although Wu Luzhen was in high spirits—no battle could be more comfortable than one where the wind was blowing so smoothly—he still nodded in support of Lin Xinyi's proposal and said, "Committee Member Lin is right. The Nepalese have almost no will to resist now. Although we can achieve greater results by continuing our pursuit, our real enemy is still the British. Going to Kathmandu but losing Sikkim is still a loss. I support turning back to deal with the British and driving them down the mountain again."

Although the committee members and military officers present were still somewhat reluctant, they all raised their hands in favor of the garrison. For them, Darjeeling and Kalimpong were, after all, their own territory, so if they could hold onto it first, they would naturally hold onto it first.

However, at this moment, Lin Xinyi said, "I advocate stopping the pursuit of the Nepalese army, but I do not advocate a full retreat. Although we have a geographical advantage, it would be a losing proposition for us to engage in a war of attrition with the British army, which has a manpower advantage."

Think about it, everyone. We drive the British away this time, but once they return, they can quickly replenish their manpower and supplies and come back again. How many times can we repel the British with the resources we have?

Therefore, the best way to break the British encirclement of us was to let them fight their battles while we fought ours. After the defeat of the Nepalese army, the nearly 200-kilometer mountain pass between the Teesta and Gosi Rivers was wide open to us.

The Testa, Jamuna, Gosi, and Ganges rivers form a quadrilateral area of ​​over 300 kilometers by nearly 300 kilometers, 30 times the size of Lower Sikkim. This region is crisscrossed by forests, rivers, and plains, making it a highly suitable area for guerrilla warfare. The region also has a decent population and economy, enough to support a larger fighting force.

Therefore, my proposal is that, while the British army concentrates its forces in the Siliguri area, we should advance directly down the Gosi River valley into the plains below the mountains. The British can take Darjeeling or Kalimpong without any problem. But we want the plains below the mountains to liberate the Indian people there, to liberate the two to three million Indians in this region, and to teach the British a lesson they will never forget.

During the past spring tea harvest, we mobilized a group of activists from among the tea workers to go down the mountain and spread our message in the tea gardens of the plains. According to the feedback that came back, the tea workers down the mountain were willing to change their lives and join us in resisting the oppression of the tea plantation owners. Moreover, it wasn't just the tea workers; some tribal people and poor farmers in the forests also hoped that we could liberate them. Under the oppression of the British and local landowners, they could no longer survive, but they lacked weapons and experience in resistance.

Comrades, the plains below the mountain are now littered with dry matchboxes. If we light them, they will burn the British and those landowners to ashes. Now it's up to us whether we're willing to do so…”

Everyone was willing, of course. In fact, if Lin Xinyi hadn't been constantly stopping them, some people would have suggested moving down the mountain to develop the area as early as the first occupation of Siliguri, because there was really no future in the mountains. How could you talk about development in a place where you couldn't see a single person on the entire mountain? Most of the populous areas in Lower Sikkim were built by the British, since Sikkim didn't have any industries to support its surplus population in the past.

Initially, Wu Luzhen advocated leading his troops down the mountain, but Lin Xinyi objected. He believed that the mountain needed a military officer with excellent command skills, while the area down the mountain was mainly for political work, which he was better at. Moreover, he had studied the intelligence on the area down the mountain the longest and had a better understanding of the situation there.

Wu Luzhen ultimately accepted Lin Xinyi's suggestion, agreeing that Lin Xinyi would lead Harry Singh and Li Tang's battalions down the mountain, while he would lead the rest of the troops back to Darjeeling and Kalimpong to maneuver against the British. The two parted ways on May 11th. Before leaving, Lin Xinyi told Wu Luzhen, "If the British want to push their way up the mountain, let them. The deeper they go, the harder it will be for them to retreat. If you can wipe out two or three more British battalions, our development down the mountain will be secure..."

Chapter 284 A Battle Without Resistance

The Indian subcontinent, especially the northern Ganges region, is closely associated with forests. Until 1857, the northern Ganges region still had vast tracts of virgin forest. However, with the construction of railways, India's forests began to be extensively logged. Not only did the railways themselves require a large number of sleepers, but railways were also more convenient for transporting timber than fixed river areas.

Despite over fifty years of logging, vast forests still exist in the northern Ganges region, but the area surrounding the railway is now largely barren. Forests are vital to the lives of the Indian people, providing not only fuel but also food. Therefore, in Indian literature, forests are often depicted as a close, caring elder sister.

However, due to the destructive logging by the British, forest resources could not be restored. Not only did a large number of animals lose their habitats, but the tribal populations living in the forests also lost their means of survival. This made the tribes living in the forests extremely angry with the British logging companies. Although they kept protesting to the British logging companies, no one paid attention to them.

By 1901, India's railway network had reached nearly 3 miles. Because India is located in a subtropical continent with alternating periods of rain and heat, wooden buildings there are prone to decay, and the climate is also conducive to termite life. Therefore, apart from some special types of wood used to construct buildings that can last longer, such as those made from the bald elm wood of Bengal, most wooden buildings cannot endure for long. This is also why India's famous ancient buildings primarily use stone.

As a result, the sleepers on the Indian mainland railway line were worn out much faster than in other regions, which meant that the longer the railway line was, the faster the British could cut down Indian forests.

More seriously, due to British restrictions on the development of Indian industry, India's coal mining industry lagged behind the pace of railway construction, resulting in a coal shortage and a situation where coal was more expensive than wood.

This led the railway company to use timber instead of coal as fuel, since logging in India's forests was free of charge—a privilege afforded to colonizers.

The British Indian government did establish the Forestry Department in 1864, but its purpose was not to protect India's forests, but to ensure a stable supply of timber for railway construction. As a result, within a few years of the establishment of the Indian Forestry Department, the Himalayan cedar forest resources in the Sutlej and Yamuna valleys were rapidly depleted.

In addition to the railway sector's depletion of forest resources, the British government also encouraged local villages to clear forests to expand farmland, since tribal people living in the forests could not collect taxes, while farmers could. This forced many forest dwellers to change their way of life, either voluntarily cutting down trees to become proud taxpayers under the British Indian government, or having to give up their right to use the forests of their ancestral homeland under the British government's policies.

Although Nepal ceded part of the lowlands to British India in the Treaty of Sagauli, the British returned some of the land to Nepal after Nepal sent troops to help British India suppress the Indian Revolt in 1857. As a result, the lowlands near the Kosi River returned to Nepal.

However, what the British actually returned was the forested area of ​​this region. Because the rains brought by the monsoon season every year caused the forests in this region to be full of malaria and other plagues, the British at the time felt that this region had little value. The plains agricultural areas that were valuable to the British were preserved.

However, with the development of Indian railways, forest resources that were previously considered worthless became valuable. The British then regained the right to cut down forests from the Rana family, forcing the Nepalese to cut down these forests and sell them to them. As a result, after Lin Xinyi arrived at the foot of the mountain with his troops, the Nepalese villages in the area quickly submitted to him.

With the support of the local people, after leaving Mount Mahabharata, Lin Xinyi's troops quickly traversed the dense primeval forest. For about 40 kilometers south of Dalan, the forest was so dense that the sun could not be seen. Without the guidance of the forest dwellers, it was almost impossible to find a road to pass through, because the road would be covered by rapidly growing vegetation during the rainy season each year, and it would not be cleared until the autumn and winter when caravans passed by.

Lin Xinyi led his troops through this area on May 19th. In ten days or two weeks, the rainy season would arrive, making the forest passage unsuitable for travel. After passing through this primeval forest, they arrived at a newly developed town, Biladnagar. This area was originally the boundary between the plains and the forest, but after the British Indian government extended the railway here, it became a new logging town.

The British established a logging company in the town and also stationed forest police. The British captain stationed in the town never expected that Chinese troops would emerge from the primeval forests at the foot of the Nepalese mountains.

Although the Chinese had caused quite a stir in Siliguri and even captured a British lieutenant colonel, Siliguri was over 100 kilometers away, which made the captain feel quite safe. Even after receiving orders from Calcutta to increase vigilance to prevent the Chinese from emerging from the Himalayas, the captain maintained that they were at most a few dozen or a hundred people, about the size of a forest tribe attempting to disrupt the logging company.

He had never anticipated that an entire army would appear before him, while he only had 50 policemen, plus the town's logging company guards, totaling just over 100 men, and fewer than 10 British soldiers. After confirming that the Chinese had cut off the telegraph wire, the captain wisely chose to surrender.

According to newspaper reports, the Chinese were merciful to those who surrendered. Even the British Post and the Times, which consistently portrayed the enemies of the British Empire as cruel and ignorant barbarians, had to admit that the Chinese were much more civilized than the Indian army in their treatment of prisoners of war.

This wasn't because British newspapers liked to expose their own ugliness, but because the British Indian government discriminated when receiving wounded soldiers. British soldiers were given priority, even those with minor injuries, and were transferred to Calcutta first, while Indian soldiers, even those with serious injuries, had to endure the pain themselves because of insufficient railway capacity.

Indian newspapers quickly reported these scandals. According to some Indian soldiers, they were treated better by the enemy than they were by their own side. At least the Chinese did not treat them and their wounded soldiers as different classes, but treated them according to their condition.

What angered these Indian soldiers most was that they were not only treated worse than the British in terms of medical care, but also neglected while waiting for transport. Food was either not distributed in time or violated their doctrines, leaving them frequently hungry. This was not entirely the fault of the Indian army's logistics department, as it was the first time they had encountered so many complaints. In the past, these soldiers would never have complained about such minor issues; they were grateful to have doctors to take care of them.

Faced with criticism from Indian public opinion, the British Indian government could only admit that it had indeed made mistakes. British newspapers, of course, immediately severed ties between the colonial government and London, suggesting that the problem was unrelated to London and stemmed from excessive bureaucracy within the British Indian government. Under this propaganda, the Indian public at least came to the perception that the Chinese army was more civilized than the Indian army and that they did not kill prisoners.

Unable to send a distress signal to the rear camp, the British captain had no choice but to surrender. Lin Xinyi ordered the British and some logging company employees to be interrogated separately, and quickly learned the basic situation of the area.

About 20 kilometers south of here lies the town of Forbusgenj, a junction of the logging railway and the local railway. Normally, a company of British troops is stationed there, but now the force has been increased to two companies. However, it's clear the British don't believe the Chinese can break through the Nepalese defenses and reach this point; therefore, this troop increase is merely a formality.

After learning that the garrison in Forbusgenj was mainly there to suppress a possible rebellion by the forest dwellers, Lin Xinyi convened a military meeting. He pointed out to a group of military and political cadres, "Biladnager is just a logging town. If we cut off supplies from the outside, we won't be able to feed so many people."

Therefore, we need to continue south into the plains, but this area can serve as our logistical base. After all, the rainy season, unsuitable for logging, is just around the corner, and once the loggers leave, the town won't be lively until at least October. Therefore, as long as we keep the British at bay, this place will be safe.

My suggestion is to first restore the telegraph service and send a telegram to the army in Forbesgenj, informing them that the loggers there are rioting because they have been owed wages. According to logging company employees, such incidents occur at least several times a year, but most are quelled by the company and local police, with only a few requiring military intervention.

From this perspective, the workers' riot requesting military support is valid. We can then ambush them at the station and take the train to Forbsgenj. After occupying this place, besides transporting local supplies back, the important thing is that we can take the train to attack Burnia before the British can react.

Burnia is a junction of local railways, while Ghattihar to its south is the junction of the main railway lines in eastern India. Once we reach Burnia, the British will be too busy searching for our next move to pay attention to what's happening in Forbesgenj. This will give us time to mobilize the local population…”

On the morning of May 20th, upon receiving the telegram requesting assistance, the Forbesganj garrison quickly dispatched a company. Two hours later, this company surrendered its weapons and uniforms at the Biradnagar platform. That evening, Harry Singh's troops, now dressed in British uniforms, successfully entered the Forbesganj camp. British camps throughout India were largely similar, so Harry Singh and his men easily occupied key locations throughout the camp.

Chapter 285 Taking Darjeeling

When Lin Xinyi led his men into Forbsgenj, Colonel Douglas Haig and Colonel Regina Edward Harry Dawer finally received news of the Kathmandu riot and the Nepalese army's crushing defeat.

Chandra's brothers finally escaped down the mountain, but to the west of the Kosi River. News of their defeat was quickly transmitted to Calcutta by telegram. At first, Calcutta did not believe it and sent people to inquire about the situation in Kathmandu. Although Chandra strongly advocated Westernization, the telegraph line from Kathmandu to the foot of the mountain had not yet been completed, so messages still had to be relayed by people along this route.

However, Kolkata soon received confirmation that a popular uprising had occurred in Kathmandu, Chandra had died suddenly, and the Kingdom of Nepal was now rebuilding its government and refusing entry to outsiders into the Kathmandu Valley.

While Kitchener hoped for a setback for the Nepalese so that the British Indian Army could enjoy the glory of recapturing Darjeeling and Kalimpong alone, it was not a defeat as devastating as this. Chandela's death meant that another variable had emerged in India's periphery; Nepal, which had long been under British protection, now had no idea which side it would take.

This is a truly worrying problem for the British Indian government. Compared to the troubles of Sikkim and Bhutan being controlled by China, the chaos in Nepal actually poses a greater threat to India, because the population of the Kingdom of Nepal is six to seven times that of Sikkim and Bhutan. If unrest breaks out in the country and a large number of Nepalese flee to India, it could very likely trigger conflict within India.

In his frantic state, Kitchener immediately telegraphed Colonel Haig, ordering them to launch an attack on Darjeeling as soon as possible. He warned that if they did not attack soon and the Chinese troops returned to reinforce Darjeeling, it would become even more difficult to capture.

Three days later, the British army finally reached the top of Mount Gam and captured the station there. From there, the valley where Darjeeling is located is only 6 kilometers away. However, to Colonel Daell's surprise, the Chinese did not choose to defend the city to the death. They voluntarily abandoned the city. Apart from a few residents who followed the Chinese to evacuate, most of the residents stayed and welcomed the British army.

After Colonel Haig arrived at the station on the top of Gam Mountain, he looked at the town of Darjeeling in the distance and said to Colonel Daer, "The Chinese are wise. Otherwise, if we set up a cannon here, what would they use to defend themselves? But these thieves actually dismantled the railway tracks from here to Darjeeling. If I catch them, I will hang that man-eating tiger."

Colonel Daer showed a hint of reluctance. In his personal conscience, the Chinese had absolutely no connection to man-eating tigers. On the contrary, their actions of burning down villages and killing resisting villagers were somewhat similar to those of man-eating tigers. If the Chinese were to be hanged, then they should probably be hanged instead.

However, he could only keep this conscience to himself; it would be inappropriate to voice it. Unlike the British who grew up in the colonies, they did not consider Indians to be a kind of barbarians. But for officers like Haig who came from the mainland, this feeling was absent; they judged people by skin color, not by their thoughts.

When Colonel Daell accompanied Colonel Haig to the town of Darjeeling, they discovered a group of British men waiting there. Colonel Haig, somewhat surprised, greeted one of them, "Commissioner Bell, what are you doing here? When did you arrive?"

Charles Bell, somewhat resigned but still, said to Colonel Haig, "May is the summer tea-picking season. We reached an agreement with the Chinese that as long as it doesn't involve war, we can continue working on the tea plantations. So, we went up the mountain before the war."

Furthermore, gentlemen colonels, we are still the administrators of this town; the Chinese handed it over to us before they left. We hope your troops will not trespass on private residences. If you need anything, please let us know, and we will do our best to assist the troops.

Colonel Haig was furious upon hearing this and said, "Mr. Bell, are you insulting the Imperial Army? Do you think the Imperial Army's discipline is inferior to that of a bunch of barbarians?"

Before Bell could speak, an Englishman beside him retorted, "Colonel, you should open your eyes and see what your soldiers are doing. The Chinese just want to occupy this place, but your troops seem to want to destroy it. If you can't stop your men, we will file a claim with Calcutta."

Colonel Haig instinctively looked up into the town and saw smoke rising from several houses, clearly indicating that cooking was not taking place. He had to change his tune, saying, "No, we're just searching for the remaining enemy forces in the town."

Someone retorted bluntly, "I can tell you very clearly that the Chinese had already withdrawn half an hour before you entered the city. Or are you planning to consider all the civilians here as enemies?"

Colonel Haig was furious, his face flushed red. Colonel Daell quickly stepped in to smooth things over, saying, "We're just worried about those Chinese people posing as civilians. I'll send someone to warn them to follow the rules when they're screening people..."

Commissioner Bell also advised his companions not to criticize the army too much, after all, the Chinese were not easy to deal with, and it was understandable that the two colonels were being cautious. Although Commissioner Bell's explanation was well-intentioned, the two colonels felt particularly awkward listening to it and quickly said goodbye, citing their busy military duties.

Commissioner Bell quickly stopped the two men. He and his men weren't blocking the town entrance to plead for the residents; he had requested the two colonels to use the train to transport tea. Colonel Haig nodded in agreement. After all, there wasn't much to transport down the mountain besides the wounded, so transporting tea wasn't an unreasonable request.

Over the next five days, Colonel Haig was busy repairing the missing section of the railway and moving troops from the foot of the mountain to Darjeeling. After all, the mountain roads would become difficult to traverse once the rainy season arrived. The small train could only transport goods; it wasn't efficient enough to transport large groups of people up the mountain. Colonel Haig intended to leave the Chinese no chance, and to prevent any loopholes, he naturally needed to increase troop strength.

In the view of Haig and Daer, if they could recapture Kalimpong, the Chinese would have no choice but to retreat to Upper Sikkim, since Lower Sikkim no longer had any cities capable of accommodating an army of several thousand men. Therefore, after capturing Kalimpong, they would only face small groups of troops in Lower Sikkim, without having to worry about any major battles.

However, just as the two colonels had established a foothold in Darjeeling and the railway company had almost restored the tracks to Darjeeling, a surprising telegram arrived from the foot of the mountain.

Colonel Haig, waving a telegram in his command post at the Wundame Hotel, roared at his officers: "How could this be? We clearly cornered the Chinese on the mountain, how could they have gone to Burnia? This is a false report! What is the 16th Queen's Lancer Regiment doing?"

Colonel Daer remained silent. In his view, the telegram couldn't be considered a false report; Colonel Haig was being somewhat arbitrary. However, he also harbored doubts. After all, Burnia was too far from the Himalayas. Even if the Chinese had defeated the Nepalese and descended the mountain, how could they have reached Burnia so quietly? Or rather, what exactly had happened north of Burnia? Without concrete intelligence, he couldn't make any judgments.

Of course, he could understand his old classmate's anger. They were so close to recapturing Kalenberg, but now they found the Chinese had circled around to their backs. This meant that even if they recaptured Kalenberg, their counterattack against the Chinese would have failed. How would Colonel Haig deal with the media backlash? Was he going to tell the reporters that he was only responsible for recapturing Darjeeling and Kalenberg, not for eliminating the Chinese?

However, letting Haig get so angry was not a good thing. When Haig calmed down a bit, Colonel Daer finally spoke up to persuade him: "Perhaps things are not so bad. On the plains, we can at least send out cavalry, and it won't be as bad as it is on the mountain. I think those Chinese can't withstand a cavalry charge on the plains. We should send a telegram to ask for the exact situation."

After being persuaded by Colonel Daer, Haig finally calmed down. He asked his adjutant to send a telegram to Gettihar, inquiring about what had happened in Burnia, how many Chinese people had appeared there, and whether Burnia had been recaptured.

But the situation was worse than they had imagined. The 16th Queen Lancers Regiment stationed in Getihar, upon learning of the attack on Burnia, set out under the command of Major Leibusch. Subsequently, two companies from an infantry battalion stationed in Getihar also set out by train to Burnia, but now they have all disappeared.

Meanwhile, the Burnia Telegraph Office issued a telegram in which the Chinese army claimed to have annihilated the 16th Queen's Lancer Regiment and captured two Indian infantry companies. This brief statement threw Gettihar and the cities along the lower Ganges into a panic.

Britain's most powerful military force in India was never its infantry, but its cavalry. British infantry were almost entirely recruited from the lower classes of the country, fighting for money, and thus prone to collapse in battles against barbarians. However, British cavalry were mostly composed of small landowners and farmers, whose social class was higher than that of the infantry. They saw military service as a path to advancement, and thus often displayed great bravery or recklessness on the battlefield.

Even Napoleon praised the bravery of the British cavalry. On the Indian subcontinent, the British cavalry had never suffered a true defeat. The 16th Queen's Lancers once confronted a Sikh cavalry force six times their size, routed them, and drove them into the river. They then immediately charged the Sikh infantry phalanx, suffering a third of their casualties before finally winning the battle. How could they be defeated by the Chinese?

Chapter 286 Ward

When Captain Luo regained consciousness, he realized that he was wrapped up tightly, and even the slightest movement caused him pain all over his body. It took him a while to realize that he seemed to have been fighting before he lost consciousness.

He suddenly realized that the person he had stabbed wasn't Chinese or Indian, but an Englishman. He instinctively yelled, "Damn it, what's going on? Is anyone there...?"

He was quickly interrupted by a familiar voice, “Captain, be quiet. We’ve been captured. This isn’t our camp.”

The captain turned his head with difficulty to look at the source of the sound, and found a familiar figure lying on the bed next to his. He said in surprise, "Major, what's wrong?"

Major Leibusch, lying on the bed, looked at his leg that was hanging up, sighed and said, "I broke my leg, and you broke a few ribs, so we were captured by the Chinese."

Captain Luo glanced at the major's injured leg, but still didn't understand, and said, "I heard the sound of Maxim machine guns before I passed out. We were probably ambushed, but why were there British soldiers among the Chinese troops?"

“That wasn’t a Chinese force; they were the garrison from Burya and the 25th Bengal Infantry Regiment…” Major Leibusch said with a heavy heart. He lay in bed thinking for a long time before finally figuring out how the Chinese had set the trap.

After receiving Burnia's telegram requesting aid, although he was unsure how many native soldiers had joined the rebellion, he believed he should lead his cavalry to relieve Burnia as soon as possible.

The rebellion of the native troops at Vérol Fortress in 1806 was quelled by Gillespie's decisive actions. He mobilized only a cavalry company under his command and a platoon from the 71st Cavalry Regiment, leaving the majority of his troops behind.

This proved to be true. Before the rebel soldiers could truly organize themselves, they heard that the British had appeared outside the fortress. Some of the native soldiers returned to their camps and refused to join the rebellion, while others abandoned the walls and their Sultan, fleeing to the countryside. Gillespie quickly opened the fortress gates and quelled the rebellion.

The process of suppressing this mutiny became a classic textbook example of how the British army could quell a rebellion by native soldiers. It was crucial to quickly deploy troops to strike the rebellious native soldiers and prevent them from electing a leader. The Indian Revolt of 1857 proved this point in the opposite way.