The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 937 President, you don't want the White House to be burned down a second time, do you?
The roar of the explosions echoed along both banks of the James River as the 7th Division of Qingzhou and the 11th Division of Laizhou, composed entirely of tall, strong Shandong men, rapidly advanced from the flanks of the battlefield.

The immigrants to Beihezhou (North America) in Dayu were mainly Shandong people and people from northern Jiangsu, as well as a large number of Japanese people from the Eastern Seas Envoy Office and some ethnic minorities from various parts of Northeast China.

The relatively concentrated origins of immigrants allowed the Da Yu Bei He Zhou army to be organized according to region, resulting in very strong combat capabilities and outstanding individual skills and tactics.

For example, the elite assault troops, composed entirely of Shandong men over 1.75 meters tall, are the ace of the Dayu Hezhou Corps.

The so-called assault troops are the evolved version of the grenadiers that came after the advent of the needle-firing gun.

Assault troops no longer line up to bomb people like grenadiers used to. Their tactics are starting to resemble those of elite infantry in later generations, where bombs are used as tools for firepower breakthroughs, while the decisive battle still relies on rifles and hand-to-hand combat.

In addition to the Shandong assault troops, the cuirassiers and cavalry (dragon riders) from Xuzhou, Haizhou (Lianyungang) and other prefectures and counties in northern Jiangsu, as well as the light cavalry from various parts of the Northeast, were also exceptionally fierce.

As for the infantry who did the dirty work, they were mostly composed of immigrants from both Japan and North Korea. These ruthless little men could often withstand a lot of casualties without collapsing, making them very useful suicide squads.

In close combat, a strong Shandong man paired with two short men would form a bayonet formation with high, medium, and low attack points, often leaving Yang Jilao crying for his parents.

During the battle, the officers and soldiers of the 7th Division of Qingzhou quickly took off their trousers, tied their shirts with belts and pockets, and crossed the James River with bare thighs and even bare buttocks in temperatures of two or three degrees Celsius.

The U.S. Army's general reserve on the opposite bank of the river, militias from Massachusetts and New Hampshire, were terrified by this ferocious fighting. They screamed and poured all their ammunition on the Qingzhou soldiers crossing the river.

Blood stained this section of the James River, which was considered the shallowest part of the river. Many soldiers fell into the water and could not get up again, but the officers and soldiers of the 7th Division were not intimidated. Instead, it aroused their great anger.

Finally, seven minutes later, the officers and soldiers of the Zhucheng Regiment of the Qingzhou Division were the first to cross the waist-deep river.

Led by their regimental commander, Xu Huaqing, a native of Linzi, they roared as they charged toward the American militia in Massachusetts.

The Zhucheng regiment didn't engage in a firefight with the Maine militia at all; instead, they started their "Banzai" charge from 100 meters away.

They spread out quite widely, and the thousand-plus men ran with the momentum of five or six thousand troops, while avoiding being too densely packed and being wiped out by a single volley of fire.

The America of this time was completely different from the America after the Civil War. The America of this time was actually a community of interests formed by a group of powerful families who evolved into military governors.

That's putting it nicely; to put it bluntly, it's a coalition government of a bunch of big landowners.

Lincoln during the Civil War was the true architect of modern America; before that, it was merely a Confederation.

These former New England liberal farmers from Ireland and Germany were extremely nervous; the expressions on their pale, pork-colored faces began to stiffen.

The generals in the United States were not that great, because their opponents were either the poorly trained natives of Northern Hebrew or the former British royalists, who were of similar ability and are now Canadians.

The greatest test these people faced was the English army during the War of Independence.

Before the Duke of Wellington, the English army was notorious for its large-scale warfare, and in the near future, it couldn't even defeat the Boers, so it was hardly a strong army.

Therefore, the appearance of the Dayu Hezhou Legion immediately raised the intensity of the war to a level that did not belong to their world. From generals to soldiers, the American army was very unaccustomed to this Eastern-style brutal fighting style.

"Fire! Fire! Don't let these men get any closer!" Facing the Zhucheng Regiment was the elite force of the Massachusetts militia, the Continental Army's 181st Infantry Regiment.

At this time, Maine had not yet separated from Massachusetts, so these Maine people, mostly from the Hamptons, were still part of the Massachusetts militia.

Upon hearing the commander's order, the soldiers of the 181st Infantry Regiment, who were already extremely nervous, immediately opened fire, and then began to fire in short bursts based on their instincts.

Smoke filled the battlefield, and lead bullets rained down on the soldiers of the Zhucheng Regiment, slowing their advance.

Xu Huaqing screamed, but it wasn't him who was shot; it was his younger brother, Xu Huajing, who was standing next to him.

Historically, Xu Huaqing was serving in Xinjiang at this time. Ten years later, during the Zhang Ge'er Rebellion, he was the deputy general under the commander of the Kashgar garrison.

He was one of the very few military commanders who persisted in Xinjiang before the arrival of the main army to quell the rebellion, and later made important contributions to suppressing the rebellion.

In this time and space, he had long since responded to the call of his fellow villagers and come to North America, thousands of miles away, to seek a living.

"Charge! Charge! Don't let me die in vain!"

Xu Huajing fell to the ground, and a large amount of blood began to gush from his abdomen. However, he was not worried about his injuries at all. Instead, he kicked his legs frantically, fearing that his brother would miss the opportunity to fight because of him.

Xu Huaqing's face was contorted as he wiped away the tears that were about to fall from his eyes. He drew the eight-sided Han sword worn by officers and charged ahead with a howl.

The officers and soldiers of the Zhucheng Regiment were mostly from Zhucheng County, Qingzhou Prefecture, Shandong Province. Those who fell on the road were all from their hometown, just like the Massachusetts militia on the other side.

At that moment, blood rushed to their heads, and not a single person retreated; they all charged forward in a frenzied frenzy.

"Throw bombs! Throw bombs!"

"Fifty meters away!" Xu Huaqing shouted. Even if he hadn't shouted, the veteran soldiers of the Zhucheng Regiment, who had been through countless battles, would have known it was time to throw the grenade.

The Massachusetts militia on the other side also began dropping bombs, but the difference in explosives between the two sides was enormous.

The bombs carried by the Massachusetts militia were filled with black powder, but the bombs thrown by the Zhucheng Regiment contained a small amount of nitroglycerin as explosive.

Boom! A bomb exploded next to nineteen-year-old Jiang Jiaqiang. The violent kinetic energy tore his right leg apart, and a large piece of flesh turned into minced meat that flew everywhere.

Jiang Jiaqiang gritted his teeth and didn't scream. After leaping away from the main assault area, he stood still with his rifle in hand, trying to aim at the enemy in the distance.

Just as he threw the bomb, it landed in front of a US soldier named John Doug, and the terrifying nitroglycerin dynamite blew both of the guy's legs into the air.

John writhed on the ground in agony, excruciating pain emanating from his bleeding legs. After only a dozen seconds, he could no longer even roll, and could only groan.

To be fair, the 181st Infantry Regiment of the United States Army was not weak in combat, because although all armed forces in the United States were called militias at this time, there were different levels of strength among the militias.

The others were genuine militia members, like the 181st Infantry Regiment, which, strictly speaking, should be considered part of the National Guard.

However, they still cannot compare with the Da Yu He Zhou Army Corps, which is a powerful army that has fought its way through the natives of the East Coast and the Mexicans. Even before it was formed, they had already accumulated rich combat experience in China.

The violent explosion forced the 181st Infantry Regiment to retreat in panic, while the officers and soldiers of the Zhucheng Regiment did their best to hold them off and prevent this elite American force from escaping.

The two sides clashed all the way from the banks of the James River. The 181st Infantry Regiment was unable to shake off the pursuit and suffered increasing casualties. The situation only changed when the two sides passed a U.S. militia position.

At least four or five kilometers of soldiers and civilians surrounded the pursuing Zhucheng regiment, and the 181st Infantry Regiment also turned around to launch a counterattack.

Major General John Langdon, who was in full command of the Massachusetts and New Hampshire militias, took the opportunity to transfer two artillery batteries from the 101st Field Artillery Regiment, which also belonged to Massachusetts, in an attempt to wipe out the Zhucheng Regiment.

At this critical moment, the Hizen Regiment from Japan suddenly arrived. They came by mistake and bumped into two companies of the U.S. 101 field artillery that were being deployed.

This was bad news for the Massachusetts militia; half a regiment of militia guarding the artillery company was quickly scattered.

Major General John Langdon was terrified and broke out in a cold sweat. He could only frantically mobilize his troops to protect the artillery battery and prevent the cannons from falling into the hands of the Seres.

As it turned out, the US military's training was already mediocre, and these contradictory orders, issued within fifteen minutes, threw them into complete chaos.

Xu Huaqing was overjoyed at the sight and ordered the soldiers of the Zhucheng Regiment to charge directly into the American army. The two sides were entangled in a very small space, each side intertwined with the other.

In this situation, the Zhucheng Regiment made full use of its strengths in hand-to-hand combat, its fierceness and speed. They cooperated with the soldiers of the Feiqian Regiment, and the two thousand men charged left and right and tore each other apart in the six or seven thousand meters of the army.

The Massachusetts militia initially managed to put up a fight, but eventually they were completely overwhelmed and thrown into disarray.

Despite his right calf muscles being blasted into a puffy mess, Jiang Jiaqiang didn't fall. He stood there and roared twice, searching for his comrades.

Soon, amidst the chaos, Captain Takeo Masayoshi of the Hizen Battalion arrived with a soldier, and the three immediately formed the Kitagawa Infantry's signature technique, the Bayonet Three-Talent Formation!
Behind Wu Zhengyi, four Massachusetts whites were in hot pursuit.

Jiang Jiaqiang was the tallest, standing at a full 1.8 meters. Holding an extended and reinforced bayonet rifle, he roared and, with a series of provocations and clashes, completely disrupted the three bayonets that had come through.

Jiang Jiaqiang wasn't trying to kill, but rather to parry and break through the white men's defenses. Sure enough, the three white men hadn't expected him to be so strong, and their defenses were immediately wide open. Wu Zhengyi seized the opportunity and, along with another soldier, shouted and thrust their bayonets forward like poisonous dragons.

Puff, puff!
In the blink of an eye, the two white men were taken down; the efficiency was astonishing.

The other white man had just come to his senses when he realized he was all alone. Before he knew whether to stab or block, three bayonets were thrust at him at once.

In the blink of an eye, this unlucky man was stabbed three times and died even faster than his two comrades who were screaming on the ground.

As for the remaining white guy, he was the most timid when the four of them came. They had already stabbed him, but he was just pretending to be busy. He shouted loudly, but he just didn't come closer.

Seeing his three comrades fall, he was even more frightened, trembling like a yellow leaf barely hanging on a branch in the autumn wind, not daring to make a move.

"What a coward!" Wu Zhengyi scoffed, reloaded his gun at lightning speed, and sent the terrified guy to his death with a single shot.

A few more American soldiers arrived shortly after.

The three used the same tactics: Jiang Jiaqiang, who was tall, strong, and had long arms, disrupted the enemy's attack, while Wu Zhengyi and the other seized the opportunity to kill one person first, and then it was easy.

If anyone was about to fire from a distance, Wu Zhengyi would pull out his revolver and fire a burst of shots.

He was a member of the Ryuzoji Takeo family, a branch of the Nabeshima clan of the Hizen Domain, and he had enough money to buy two revolvers out of his own pocket.

And so, the three of them huddled together, unable to move, but there were still more than a dozen American corpses lying haphazardly around them.

The trio was forced to shut down only after several bombs knocked them all out.

"It was worth it!" Jiang Jiaqiang sighed regretfully. He had already given up due to excessive blood loss, and now, after being injured by the explosion, his head lolled to the side and he was in his final moments.

Wu Zhengyi was covered in blood. He didn't know where he was injured, but he just couldn't stand up.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, Banzai!"

The remaining Hizen soldiers, who were less seriously injured, shouted and charged at the enemy troops who were still throwing bombs, raising their bayonets, which were taller than themselves.

The soldier fought five or six enemies until they all disappeared into the smoke and fire, only then did his roars and shouts cease.

"I am His Majesty's loyal warrior, and I will serve His Majesty to the bitter end!" The soldier inspired Wu Zhengyi, and he didn't know where the strength came from, but he struggled to get up from the pool of blood.

Thankfully, he shouldn't be dead. It turns out his left ankle was blown off.

"Long live! Long live!"

"Broken bowl! Broken bowl!"

However, as soon as Wu Zhengyi got up, shouts in various accents came from all around.

The three regiments of the 7th Division of Qingzhou, which had been advancing diagonally, finally completed their crossing of the river, while the 11th Division of Laizhou, which had also made a flanking maneuver, defeated the militia of New Hampshire and came to encircle them.

In addition, infantry from the Silla Gyeongsang Regiment and the Nagasaki, Owari, and Shimabara Regiments from the Japanese archipelago also came from the front.

The field artillery regiment of the Prince of Zhongshan's personal guard even set up cannons on a hillside very close to the Massachusetts militia, and then opened fire fiercely.

These naturalized Frenchmen unleashed thousands of shells on the American troops in less than ten minutes, becoming the final straw that broke the camel's back.

At 4 p.m., the main force of the US army on the outskirts of Richmond, numbering over 40,000, collapsed completely. They retreated into Richmond in tears, while some fled towards St. John's Church, which was situated on a high platform to the left.

In this battle, 60,000 American troops clashed with 40,000 troops from the three northern states of Hezhou (Yan, Chen, and Zhongshan).

The three factions of Kitagazu suffered fewer than 5,000 casualties, yet inflicted nearly 20,000 casualties on the American army.

Moreover, half of the casualties in the San Francisco army were former auxiliary troops of the New Spanish colonial government transferred from Mexico, and their own casualties were not significant.

This led to the American forces, who had just gained a certain advantage in their battles against the British and Canadians, suffering a major loss in Richmond, and the situation immediately became very unfavorable for them.

. . . .

Boston, the capital of Massachusetts.

This place has been occupied by the British army for the second time, and the Duke of Wellington, the commander-in-chief of the British forces in North America, has moved his command post here.

However, this commander was very lenient with the New Englanders, or Americans, whom he referred to, showing none of the ferocity he displayed towards the French during the Napoleonic Wars.

He even returned some of the treasures that the British army had looted from Washington after his arrival.

Among these items were some of the state banquet silverware looted during the burning of the White House, a portrait of Washington stored in the Blue Room, and Madison's gold-plated saddle.

Of course, the Duke of Wellington would not return the most important spoils of war for the British army—a copy of the North American Declaration of Independence—to the Americans.

Because in the Duke of Wellington's view, this was evidence of a New England rebellion, which he wanted to take back to England.

“Mr. Madison, you have no choice but to return to the embrace of the Kingdom of England to avoid the fate of destruction.”

Opposite the Duke of Wellington sat James Madison, the current President of the United States and its fourth president.

"We have captured Boston, and the Seres will soon take Richmond, which is only a hundred miles from Washington, or three hundred and twenty miles from the Seres."

If the Seres capture Richmond, their main force will appear outside Washington within five days at most.

"Sir, you don't want to see the White House burned down a second time, do you?"

"What's even more terrifying is that Richmond's tens of thousands of troops are your last resort. Without them, America cannot hold out for long."

I must also tell you, Mr. Madison, that the Seres are in dire need of slaves, and that they seem to dislike black people.

"If you don't make a quick decision and let our navy take the Richmond militia away, they will soon become serfs on Serris's estates in Mexico and Louisiana."

James Madison's face was ashen. He hadn't expected the situation to turn out this way. He hadn't imagined that the great emperor of Seris would be so cruel and ruthless towards the newly established United States, sending a large army to attack regardless of cost.

“I really don’t have much of a choice, but Duke, things can’t go back. The people of America can no longer tolerate the treatment of the colony.”

James Madison looked at the Duke of Wellington and said, “I must also remind you, Your Grace, that what you are trying to do will not succeed, because the nobles of the kingdom will not be willing to share power with a peasant.”

“Times have changed, and so have circumstances.” Duke Wellington shook his head. “There was no Seris Empire before.”

Now, the Seris Empire, like a stern and cruel father, has begun to torture us all.

"Therefore, everything is changing, and the Kingdom of England needs to acquire New England!"

The Duke of Wellington stood ramrod straight and extended his hand to President Madison. “Sir, I am very confident about this.”

James Madison also stood up and shook hands with the Duke of Wellington.

“Duke, all I can say is that I can surrender to you on behalf of America. There is nothing else I can do or represent.”

The Duke of Wellington shook hands, his smile fading, but thankfully, James Madison had said surrender, not suing for peace.

Then things can continue to move forward.

(End of this chapter)