Chapter 520 The Year Without Summer
Chapter 520 The Year Without Summer
"Marshal, it's bad, Johnson is critically ill."
When Shao Quanzhong hurried to Johnson's residence, Johnson looked in good spirits, with an unusually rosy face. He was holding a person in each hand. They were Grant and Emery, and he was giving detailed instructions.
"Ulysses, Emery, you are the marshal and admiral of Daxia, so you have gained a high prestige in the Federation. You must promise me one thing."
Johnson breathed a sigh of relief when he saw his two fellow federals nodding seriously.
"When I was in my second term as president, I felt that my body could no longer bear it and I was no longer able to do what I wanted. If it weren't for the people of the federation, I would have died long ago."
"After I stepped down, the past few years in Hailing were the most carefree days I've ever had. I feel like I've lived many more years because of this and have made a lot of money. Now that I'm finally going to heaven, I feel very relaxed as a person."
"The only thing I can't let go of is the people of the Federation. Garfield is doing a good job now, but he is paralyzed and may not live long."
"Those vampires are just hiding now. Once Garfield is unable to govern, they will definitely jump out again and try to make the people of the federation continue to be exploited by them."
"I have lived in Daxia for more than six years and I know the potential of Daxia. You may know it better than me. This is a great country. We cannot make enemies, but only friends."
"Once there is a change in the Federation, you must not covet the comfortable life in Daxia. You must go back and serve the people of the Federation. You must not let the people fall into the hands of vampires again. You must promise me..."
"Don't worry, the Federation is also our parent country. When needed, we will definitely go back. May the Emperor of Heaven bless the Federation."
After Johnson entrusted his son to others, he looked at Shao Quanzhong who had come running over and said, "Shao, thank you for your care over the past six years."
"The common people of the Federation are all straightforward men who love freedom, just like me. If there is a conflict between the Federation and Daxia one day, it must be caused by a few vampires. Please don't blame the common people."
"You have the interests of Daxia to protect. I don't ask you to give in in the conflict, but I ask you, for the sake of our friendship, not to be cruel to the people. This world should be able to accommodate the people of two great countries, and both live a good life through hard work."
Shao Quanzhong nodded solemnly, "Old Yue, I agree to your request."
Johnson had no more worries and closed his eyes with a smile.
On July 1883, 7, Andrew Johnson died in Hailing.
Because of his relationship with Shao Quanzhong, the fate of this uneducated real man was changed and he lived eight years longer than in history.
Both Ding Shoucun and Johnson died of old age, which is considered longevity in this era.
…………
August 8, Nanyang.
The waters between Sumatra and Java are called the Sunda Strait.
The strait is dotted with white sails, and sailing cargo ships carrying rice, spices and rubber are traveling back and forth.
It was mainly transported to the Batavia port warehouse for accumulation, then transferred to steam cargo ships and sold all over the world.
Java Island and the Spice Islands further east provided the small Dutch nation with a steady stream of wealth.
The Daxia fleet all burns heavy oil, and the cargo ships on the main channel also burn coal. In this place in the South Seas that has been forgotten by the mainstream world, sailing ships are still the main force of branch shipping.
The dark-faced indigenous sailors sat on the bow, humming songs about the Solo River. The Han accountants, who were still wearing Ming Dynasty clothes and lagging behind the times, recited poems with their hands behind their backs.
Occasionally a small steam-sailing ship passed by, with red-haired, blue-eyed privateers from the Dutch East India Company on board.
The sea breeze blows gently, and the coconut trees on the shore sway. This ancient sea area seems to still remain in the romantic Age of Exploration.
"Boom! Boom!"
Where is the drum? All the sailors and soldiers looked around in confusion. Some old sea dogs suddenly remembered the legend of Poseidon. This must be the sea king's plan to recruit people. Oh no, we must be alert.
The sea suddenly began to shake slightly, and the grumpy captains began to kick the lazy native sailors on their butts, shouting, "Lower the sails! Quick! The weather is going to change."
No matter how experienced the captain is, the self-rescue measures are useless at this time, because what they are about to encounter is a disaster that only happens once in a thousand years.
In the center of the Sunda Strait, there is a small island of 535 square kilometers called Krakatoa. In AD, a volcano erupted, and the cone-shaped mountain in the center of the island collapsed, forming a caldera.
"Caldera" is a technical term that refers to a sunken crater filled with water.
The crater of Krakatoa volcano is filled with sea water, and the crater that is not in the sea is called "Tianchi".
The rumbling sound became louder and louder, deafening. All the sailors knelt on the deck and prayed to their God. All they could hear was the huge noise and they could not hear anything else. It was as if the end of the world had come.
How loud was the sound? It was so loud that it could be heard for hundreds of miles. In fact, it was heard throughout the South Seas, including Java, Sumatra, Borneo, Luzon, and the Malay Peninsula.
The sound can be heard as far as 3500 kilometers. Yes, kilometers, not meters.
Sri Lanka, Indochina, Australia, and Guangdong and Guangxi of Bactria all heard the rumbling sound from underground on the island, and tens of millions of people were frightened at the same time.
It seemed as if there was an ancient beast roaring under the island, and it finally erupted. In an instant, all the sea water in the crater sprayed into the sky, and then the fiery red magma followed out.
The magma was like a fiery ribbon, rushing straight into the sky. The thick black smoke brought by the magma rushed up dozens of kilometers, reaching the zenith, and there was no end in sight. The entire 75 square kilometers of Krakatoa Island collapsed by two-thirds. It was like the earth was angry and opened its huge mouth.
Lava rain sprayed into the sky and scattered onto the sea, destroying all the sailboats in the Sunda Strait.
This was just the beginning. With the unprecedented volcanic eruption, strong air currents formed in the air.
An unprecedented gale swept across the South China Sea, destroying all the houses with weaker structures and damaging all the ships on the sea, including those anchored in the harbor.
The strong air currents even destroyed parts of the forests in Kelantan and Terengganu states on the Malay Peninsula, 1300 kilometers away.
Then came strong earthquakes and tsunamis, destroying countless towns and villages in Southeast Asia. The areas that suffered the greatest losses were the Dutch territories, Sumatra and Java.
This was the most violent eruption of Krakatoa, with volcanic ash covering 80 square kilometers of land.
The volcano spewed out 250 billion cubic meters of ash, mainly sulfur dioxide.
These volcanic ashes floated around the earth for more than a year. From 1883 to 1884, the sun at the equator was blocked by volcanic ash, and the global temperature dropped sharply, becoming the "year without summer."
…………
In Shanghai, by the Huangpu River, Shao Quanzhong was inspecting the newly established Shanghai Water Company, completely unaware of the catastrophe occurring in the far south.
Shao Quanzhong held military power himself and never took care of internal affairs, which he entrusted to Zhang Siwen.
However, the quality of life of the people has improved and they can drink tap water. As an emperor, he has to come and inspect it.
Hailing had running water a few years ago, and Shanghai was the second city to have running water. In the future, this thing will become popular in all cities in Daxia.
The huge water pipe spans the Huangpu River. This is the embodiment of Shao Quanzhong’s ideal, his virtue benefits all people.
When we finished the inspection and returned to Hailing, it was already August 8th.
"Shao, your phone number is from Yuan Rong'an."
"Uncle Shi, it's me. I'm requesting support from the main fleet of Zhanjiang. I need more than 200 transport ships, a large amount of disaster relief supplies, at least five divisions of infantry, and more than 200,000 able-bodied men."
Shao Quanzhong was stunned. "No, Rong'an, even if we want to capture Java Island, we don't need five divisions. If we really want to fight against those poor red-haired devils, the South China Sea Fleet will be enough. Is it necessary to send out the main fleet?"
"Uncle, who said we're going to go to war? However, our South China Sea Fleet has basically lost all its ships. Uncle Wu Changqing will soon come to you to complain about his poverty, so I have to mobilize the main fleet."
"You may have received news about the volcanic eruption in Nanyang, but text messages cannot explain it clearly. The disaster here is beyond imagination. Preliminary estimates show that more than 30,000 people have been killed and millions have been left homeless."
"The Dutch mainland is thousands of miles away, and the government is unable to provide relief here. Java and Sumatra are in urgent need of Daxia's emergency support."
"Are you stupid? They are not our people. Am I crazy to spend so much money on them?"
"Uncle, have you forgotten the trust you gave me? Now is a great opportunity to make them our subjects."
Shao Quanzhong slapped his forehead and said, "Old leader, you are so smart! I couldn’t react for a moment."
"Rong'an, just wait. Reinforcements will arrive as quickly as possible!"
After hanging up the phone, Shao Quanzhong threw his hat on the table and said, "Isabelle, record my order!"
The Queen of Spain, who had changed into a military uniform and put on a boat hat, put her heels together and picked up a shorthand notebook and pencil.
"Dispatch 200 military transport ships and urgently requisition 1,000 civilian cargo ships to form a rescue fleet to reinforce Java and Sumatra."
"Requisition as many emergency construction machinery, food, clothing, tents and other disaster relief supplies as possible and transport them to the front line."
"One million reserve men will be recruited from all over the country to go to Java and Sumatra for disaster relief. Be careful not to hire the eldest son, so that he can be prepared to settle down in the local area and provide one-on-one assistance."
"Zhang Siwen is the general commander of the disaster relief work, and he is also in charge of the reserve forces."
"Dispatch the main fleet from Zhanjiang to escort and ensure the safety of the rescue materials and personnel."
"Have Hengzhong transfer five divisions of regular troops to the two islands to maintain local order. Pay attention to strict military discipline. Not only should the Chinese be protected, but the natives should also be treated well."
"Appoint Yuan Rong'an as the commander-in-chief of disaster relief and reconstruction in Java and Sumatra. He will lead his troops to Batavia and temporarily command five divisions of regular troops."
"Appoint Zeng Xiaoyi as the chief rescue officer, responsible for establishing the Fenian Society in the disaster area to enhance disaster resistance. Bring more Irish military supervisors. They have red hair like the Dutch, so they may have something in common."
Ahem, what a common language! Isabel couldn't help laughing as she took notes.
Mr. Shao is definitely not really kind-hearted for spending so much money. She is sure that after Zeng Xiaoyi's work is done, Nanyang will be named Shao.
(End of this chapter)