Chapter 1666 Attacking Manila (16)
When Aragones and Francis received the reply from Yan Chujie, they also received the report that the East City Gate had been lost. This is undoubtedly bad news that adds insult to injury and leaves them with one less bargaining condition. The two of them stared at each other, not knowing how to deal with the current situation. Their original assumption was that if the East City Gate could hold out until dark, they would have at least one night to reorganize their troops. Maybe the battle situation would change tomorrow, and negotiations with the Haihan Army would begin, at least There is still room for maneuver.
However, the Haihan Army advanced faster than they expected, and responded to the armistice proposal equally quickly. It was obvious that the opponent made this decision only after capturing the East City Gate, with the purpose of forcing the Manila authorities to make a decision within today. .
"Mr. Governor, it seems that we must go and meet with the Haihan people immediately." Francis said with a wry smile: "Otherwise, I'm afraid they will launch a general attack before dark."
"Both of us go? No, Mr. Francis, that would be too reckless." Aragones shook his head repeatedly and said: "How can military and political officials go together? If the Haihan people want to play any tricks, they will do it at the negotiation table. We won’t even be able to negotiate terms by then.”
Francis heard that there was a sense of prevarication in his words, and thought that in this case, only I, the commander of the city defense, would be able to escape. Instead of waiting for the other party to make it clear before giving the order, it would be better to be more cheerful and take the initiative to take the job.
"Sir, please sit in the rear and I'll go." Francis volunteered and said, "I'm more familiar with the city's defense situation, so I can negotiate terms with the Haihan people properly. If something happens that prevents me from coming back, at least I can't come back. You can take control of the situation.”
Francis' tone was sincere, but that was not what he thought in his heart. In Manila today, it is probably not the Spanish authorities who are in control of the overall situation. If the Haihan people were determined to wipe out all the Spanish officials in the city, then it would not make much difference whether Aragones went to the negotiation site or not. He believed that if the Haihan people really wanted to besiege the city, even the Pasig River Basin in the north would fall under their control, and the people in the city would not have a safe way to escape.
Francis believed that the Haihan people's tactics, in addition to being strong on the frontal battlefield, also deliberately left an escape route to the north in order to undermine the fighting spirit of the army and people in the city. The purpose of now agreeing to engage in armistice negotiations with our own side is to exert greater pressure on the Manila authorities in this area and force them to completely abandon armed resistance measures.
As for whether he could come back safely from this trip, Francis didn't dare to be too optimistic. Although he knew that the Haihan people might not necessarily kill them all, he couldn't guarantee that they would use the Spanish representatives who were negotiating to scare the monkeys. If the Haihan people wanted to choose an influential person to control among local officials, it would definitely be the higher-ranking Governor-General of the Philippines, not him, the commander of Manila City Defense. If Aragones can be made to bow his head, the Haihan people may not care about treating him as a victim, Francis.
Aragones pretended to be polite, but had no intention of taking over the job on his own. Francis sneered in his heart, and was even more disappointed with his immediate boss. If he can pass this level, he probably won't partner with him again.
At present, the Haihan Army has occupied nearly one-third of the city. It is difficult for the Spanish authorities to organize an effective defense line in the city, so Francis did not spend too long explaining the next deployment status to his subordinates. In fact, at this time, Francis was already a bit desperate and had many thoughts of simply dumping the mess on Aragones. However, in the end, reason prevailed and he did not completely hand over the command of the garrison to this timid and despicable man. In the hands of the boss. God knows if the command was given to him, he would simply open the city gate and run away the next moment.
At five o'clock in the afternoon, according to Haihan's request, Francis took a carriage to the ruins of the city gate in the south of the city. In order to show his sincerity in the negotiations, he only brought a coachman and two followers with him.
After the battle started in the early morning today, Francis finally had the opportunity to return to the south of the city and witness the situation here with his own eyes. When he saw the ruins of the South City Gate, he couldn't help but be shocked by the methods of the Haihan Army. He could imagine that this was the result of a violent explosion, but he really couldn't think of how his opponent could blow up the city gate and the city wall into ruins without anyone noticing. He could only explain it as maybe the Haihan Army. There is also some kind of mysterious weapon unknown to him, which can destroy the city defense in one fell swoop under certain circumstances.
But this possibility is scary just thinking about it. If Haihan has such a powerful weapon in his hands, wouldn't it mean that no city in the world can withstand their offensive? Francis didn't even dare to think about the consequences, because he knew that even with the power of the Kingdom of Spain, there would be no effective resistance plan against Haihan's almost unsolvable military strength. The best and only solution is probably to stop being an enemy of Haihan.
After several careful investigations by the Haihan Army, Francis finally met his real opponent, General Qian Tiandun, who commanded the Haihan siege troops, in a nearby private house.
Regarding the life of Qian Tiandun, in fact, the Spanish intelligence network in the Far East has also conducted targeted research in recent years. In particular, the intelligence personnel lurking in Haihan have spent a lot of energy collecting relevant information about General Haihan. Qian Tiandun, who ranks high on the list of famous generals in Haihan, is naturally one of the targets.
As the first general to lead troops in Haihan, Qian Tiandun's military exploits since time traveling can be described as brilliant. Since the beginning of the Annan Civil War, Qian Tiandun has been fighting overseas, fighting all the way from the South China Sea to Liaodong, and then from Liaodong back to the South China Sea. The special operations battalion formed by him himself has also been supported by war in these years. The more war he has fought, the stronger he has become. Its strength has always held the first place among Haihan's ace troops.
Although the special operations battalion has been kept secret due to its combat methods and equipment, and has been shrouded in a layer of mystery all year round, Qian Tiandun, who single-handedly created this unit, has already become a well-known general in Haihan. Most of the war events have been turned into stories by storytellers, which are widely circulated in Haihan. Therefore, it is not too difficult for Spanish spies to collect various information about Qian Tiandun, but the authenticity and accuracy need to be verified.
Of course, Francis had already seen the information collected by the intelligence agency, but he would definitely not believe the descriptions of Haihan folk who described Qian Tiandun as a three-headed and six-armed god descending to earth. However, after seeing Qian Tiandun himself, he was still a little surprised by Haihan. The number one general of the Han Dynasty was actually so calm, completely different from the image of a ferocious warrior he expected.
Francis's entourage was left outside, but Qian Tiandun brought an entourage - Simang, a translator from Portugal. If there is no translator to convey the message in the middle, then the negotiations between the two parties may only be the same as chickens and ducks.
Both sides are soldiers, so there is no need to waste any more time arguing about who represents the righteous side of this war. This is a boring question, and they go straight to the topic as soon as they start talking.
Qian Tiandun made a clear request that the Manila authorities abandon all measures of armed resistance before sunrise tomorrow, hand over weapons to Haihan's army, and hand over control of all aspects of the city, with Haihan taking over the city. The Haihan Army will provide asylum to all Spaniards, their personal belongings will be protected to the greatest extent, and they will be allowed to choose whether to leave Manila. Naturally, Francis would not agree to such harsh conditions outright. Even if the conditions of the Haihan people were mostly within his expectations, such an armistice would be a huge disadvantage to Spain, and he had to fight for it no matter what.
Francis' request on behalf of Spain was exactly the opposite. The Haihan Army immediately stopped its aggression and withdrew from the city, and then the two sides conducted further negotiations. Of course, as the price for letting Haihan retreat, the Manila authorities can consider giving Haihan a certain amount of "compensation" financially, and the amount can be further discussed.
This is the condition that Francis and Aragones have negotiated. In fact, this means admitting defeat and being willing to pay war compensation. But if Haihan can agree to this condition, then at least the city of Manila can still be kept in Spanish hands. It will be easier to explain in future reports to the country. In their view, Haihan launched this war partly for revenge, and partly to plunder the wealth of Manila City. If they take the initiative to give the opponent a considerable amount of benefits, perhaps the Haihan people will consider retreating after achieving their goal.
Until this time, Francis did not feel that Haihan's real purpose of launching this war was to seize the city of Manila from Spain and implement long-term rule. Even when Qian Tiandun proposed that Haihan take over the city, he believed that this was some kind of coercion method by the other party to reduce his own room for counter-offering.
The reason is that Francis believes that there is no reason for Haihan to occupy an immigrant city that has been ruled by Spain for more than half a century. More than half of the people here speak Spanish, and Spanish immigrants account for a quarter of the total population. about. For this city to change ownership from top to bottom, it would be much more complicated and troublesome than a simple military occupation. The cost for the Haihan people to occupy this place is not small, but the benefits they can gain from it seem to be extremely limited. At least from Francis' perspective, he cannot see what Haihan's purpose is.
Of course, it is impossible for Qian Tiandun to give him the long-term development plan of Haihan, but one thing is very clear, that is, the city of Manila, including the entire Manila Bay nearby, is determined to be occupied by Haihan. Target area for yourself. Even if the Manila authorities were willing to pay more war reparations, they would not be able to make Haihan give up his original plan.
Haihan has been preparing for this war for nearly two years, and now that the army has entered Manila City, how can he give up the victory that is about to be obtained when victory is imminent. Qian Tiandun directly rejected Francis' request with a smile.
"Whoever takes the initiative on the battlefield will have the right to speak at the negotiation table. If you can't get something on the battlefield, don't expect to get it here just by talking." After Qian Tiandun finished speaking, he gestured to the interpreter Simon conveyed these words to Francis.
Simang's admiration for Qian Tiandun has reached an unparalleled level. As a fanatical supporter of the Portuguese independence movement, he very much hopes that his compatriots will have such confidence when facing the Spaniards and use a condescending attitude to deal with them harshly. Knock each other down.
Francis had already predicted the other party's attitude from Qian Tiandun's expression, but after listening to Ximeng's translation, he couldn't help but feel that he had been humiliated. The other party obviously did not intend to negotiate terms with him, but wanted to fully accept what they had to say. conditions mentioned.
But how can we accept such harsh conditions calmly? Francis also shook his head and once again refused to accept the conditions proposed by Qian Tiandun. Neither side was willing to make concessions, and the situation reached a deadlock.
"Ximang, tell him that if you don't want to talk, then just stop here. But this negotiation is the last chance for peace. If you give up this opportunity, it will be useless even if you surrender to our army later." Qian Tiandun's His patience was quickly worn away. At the current situation of the war, he actually didn't have much time to think about peace. He believed that the only way to capture the city by force would be to minimize the consequences, but Yan Chujie still had illusions about persuading surrender, which in his opinion was not a perfect solution.
After hearing this, Francis couldn't help but take a deep breath. He knew that when he rejected the opponent, the war would resume again, and the current situation of the defenders was estimated to be difficult to block the opponent's offensive. How long can the city of Manila sustain itself? In two days, three days, or at most four or five days, it will inevitably fall completely. At that time, as the other party warned, there may not even be a chance to surrender. But even though he clearly knew this direction, he still refused to give up.
Francis glanced out the window. Dusk was approaching. At least he had bought himself another night by taking this trip.
"Leave everything to God to decide!"
Francis secretly made up his mind, then stood up and said: "Unfortunately, it is impossible for the city of Manila to surrender to your country. I think we have to resolve our differences through war."
Qian Tiandun also stood up slowly and responded: "As a soldier, this is the way it should be. See you on the battlefield then!"
Qian Tiandun watched Francis and his party leave, and then said to Simang: "This Spanish officer is quite interesting. If there is a chance after the war, I would be happy to sit down and have a drink with him."
Simang smiled and responded: "By then, he may not be in the mood to drink and chat with you."
(End of chapter)