Chapter 524: Chapter 435: The Stars of Paris
“But…”
The Indian officer was about to say sothing more, but he was interrupted by the Marquess of Wellesley raising his hand, “If you do not want to lose soldiers, then go conscript so untouchables. Anyone will do as long as they can lure the enemy into shooting.”
The officer imdiately closed his mouth, touched his chest in salute, and left. On the Indian Peninsula, the lives of those of low caste were the least valuable, and it didn’t matter how many died.
Wellesley continued to Cornwallis, “This will force Tipu to divide his forces to defend Mangalore.”
To the south of Mangalore lies the capital of Mysore, Mysore City, which is also the second-largest city in Mysore. Sultan Tipu naturally could not easily give up this place.
Wellesley continued, “Once Mysore’s army begins to mobilize, I will take the Marines by ship around Kanniyakumari and launch a surprise attack on Tiruchirappalli.”
...
Kanniyakumari is the southernmost mariti area of the Indian Peninsula, while Tiruchirappalli is an important city in Carnatic, southeastern India, that has been conquered by Sultan Tipu.
If Tiruchirappalli can be recaptured, then Mysore’s offensive to the east will be hindered.
“You stay in Mangalore and continue removing those annoying fortifications according to my tactics. Once I have achieved military success on my side, you will be almost able to reach the vicinity of Mysore City,” Wellesley said.
Waving his walking stick, Wellesley added, “Then we can attack Tipu from both sides. I believe he would co to us seeking to sign an armistice before the fall.”
…
Cities in the east of Mysore.
Salem.
Sultan Tipu watched carriage after carriage enter the city, and his expression finally relaxed a bit.
Those carriages carried flintlock guns and gunpowder just transported from the Ottoman Empire, along with so dicines and uniforms. With this batch of supplies, his army should not lack for ammunition before the rainy season arrives.
However, he also knew that after losing control of the southern coast, assistance materials had beco very difficult to transport into Mysore, and future battles would beco increasingly difficult.
Initially, he had so doubts about Lafayette’s words, but after several months of fighting, he finally realized that the British were much stronger than he had imagined.
The red-coated soldiers were highly trained and maintained strict discipline; usually, he had to mobilize tens of thousands of troops just to barely handle a few thousand British soldiers.
At the sa ti, British commanders were very cunning, almost flawless in their commands during the battles.
He was ambushed by the British at Tiruchirappalli. In less than three days, a 30,000-strong army was crushed by fewer than 4,000 British soldiers and over 10,000 from the Hyderabad Army, and the recently captured Tiruchirappalli fell.
He then had no choice but to withdraw to Salem.
If he could not hold this third-largest city of Mysore, the British would then march directly to Seringapatam, which is his administrative center.
He carefully recalled Lafayette’s words before departure, first sending a trusted officer to check the food reserves, and then summoned the senior minister Shah to secretly go to Hyderabad to conduct so secret trades.
On the other side, Marquess of Wellesley rode his horse spiritedly onto a low hill and overlooked the distant Salem City, feeling much relieved in his heart.
Although it was this British war-god’s first ti commanding a large army, he capitalized on his extraordinary military talent and had been invincible in a series of battles, completely reversing the British Army’s weak stance within a few months and transitioning to an all-out offensive.
Just yesterday, he received orders from London that he had been promoted to Major General, now solely responsible for the military affairs in India.
Wellesley had been holding back his fury, waiting only to stabilize the situation in India before going back to settle scores with those French!
He kicked his horse’s flanks hard and galloped towards Salem at the foot of the mountain, shouting orders to the officer beside him, “Get the whole army ready; we launch a full assault on Salem City the day after tomorrow at noon.”
…
Paris.
On the main street to the south side of the Louvre, Schmidt pulled his neck into his collar, glanced at the darkening sky, and said to his servant, “Damn the cold wind, I want to go back to the hotel.
“Why do the French people hold the opening ceremony of the exposition at night?”
The servant looked towards a few children not far away and whispered, “Sir, would you like to rent a hand warr for you?”
“Oh, alright. I’m nearly frozen stiff.”
The servant had just left, when suddenly cheerful music sounded all around.
Schmidt looked up to see a troop of court guards parting the crowd. Then Her Majesty, the Queen of France, clad in a white gown and adorned with flowing colorful feathers, stepped down from the carriage across the street and arrived at the pre-erected stage, surrounded by a host of officials.
After a burst of intense drumming, a court official signaled everyone to bow, and then Queen Mary raised her arms high, without any preamble, and loudly proclaid, “Please join , all friends who have co to Paris, in witnessing this grand spectacle!”
Before Schmidt could react, he heard several saluting cannon shots, followed by a series of “stars” quickly starting to twinkle at both ends of the street.
The “stars” continued to brighten in the night sky, and within re minutes, the entire street was magically lit as bright as day!
Schmidt, like everyone else, shielded his eyes from the dazzling white light and looked up in astonishnt to discover a string of peculiar street lamps.
Unlike the kerosene lamps he had seen, these were extrely bright, allowing him to clearly see the embroidery on the dress of the lady next to him.
The crowd imdiately erupted into excited chatter, “What kind of lamps are these? They are so bright!”
“I heard they’re called gas lamps; a few dozens appeared in the Saint-Germain District a few months ago.”
“Oh, God, it’s like there is no night here…”
Monts later, the band began to play again, and Queen Mary, with a smiling face, announced, “This is the first exhibit of France at this industrial fair, oh, forgive us for not placing it inside the Royal Palace, as it’s just too large.
“Its na is the gas street lamp. It will light up all of Paris! After the rest of the world falls into night, this place will remain a bustling tropolis!
“Now, the World Industrial Exposition officially begins.
“I will join all of you in this global festivity; please fully enjoy the wonders and conveniences brought by industrial technology!”
As the Queen of France continued her passionate address, Schmidt couldn’t wait any longer and slipped out of the crowd, looking into the distance, where the entire Parisian street block was dotted with “stars”, and ribbons of light stretched to the horizon, reminding him of a future world he had read about in a novel.
His weariness vanished in an instant; taking the hand warr passed by his servant, he casually walked down the street with the bustling crowd.
The shops along the street were still brightly lit, vendors on both sides of the road enthusiastically hawked their wares, and the volu of people on the streets was even greater than during the day, while the surrounding night added an air of mystery and style to the place.
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