The Boer farms were not much different from the traditional Dutch farms. The only difference was that there were a few long palisade wagons parked outside each farm. These palisade wagons were similar to the large wagons commonly seen in the United States during their westward march. They were both prepared for long-distance travel.
The former palisade wagons had thick wooden wheels and light but sturdy palisades. The former was to allow the wagons to travel long distances, while the latter was to allow the wagons to reduce their weight over long distances and save momentum.
The Boer farm that the British surrounded had such palisade wagons. Because of the trade with the Chinese, the current palisade wagons had been replaced with lighter and more durable Chinese rubber tires and iron carriage frames. In fact, the Chinese merchants had also tried to promote the lighter palisade wagons to the Boers, who were descendants of Dutch, Portuguese and French. However, the stubbornness of the Dutch was especially evident in the Boer bloodline. No matter how much they were interested in Chinese products, they would not compromise on the palisade wagons that expressed their origins. In other words, they could accept a few practical changes, but they would not allow any changes in appearance.
This kind of historical heritage was meaningless to the British expeditionary force. Their goal was to deal with the Boers on the farm. An hour ago, they were attacked by the Boers when they approached the farm. Now that they were close to the farm, it was inevitable that they would be more nervous. An attack in the wilderness and a siege on the farm were on completely different levels.
The cannons were set up and surrounded the farm. After two hours of intense preparation, the British commander gave the order to fire at the farm.
The No.37 cannon shell exploded into a cloud of smoke on the dirt road in front of the farm. Then, a long wooden pole stretched out from the outermost house on the farm. A large piece of white cloth was tied to the pole. As the wooden pole swayed, the white cloth fluttered, clearly expressing the attitude of the Boer farm to the British.
More than two hours later, the palisade wagons outside the Boer farm were harnessed to the livestock. The British forced everyone in the farm into the palisade wagons. The original palisade was a tool that the Boers used to defend against wild animals, enemies and bad weather when they crossed the boundary river of the British colony in Cape Town. Now, the palisade was locked by the British with clanking chains and large locks. The Boer farm members in the wagons instantly became prisoners of the palisade.
The people who were sent into the car were the remaining people of the farm. Most of them were the elderly, women, children, and Boer slaves. When the palisade cart started moving and the familiar home was getting further and further away, these people immediately cried loudly.
Team England, on the other hand, followed their own tradition, which was to 'clean up the battlefield'. The two majors leading the team sat down on a portable camp chair. These two chairs were spoils of war from the capture of Pretoria, the capital of the Transvaal Republic. The stainless steel bracket was sewn with a sturdy canvas. After it was unfolded, the width was very suitable for sitting. You could even comfortably lean on the back of the chair supported by the stainless steel bracket. You could even stretch your legs and cross them comfortably.
The edges and corners of the chair had been polished. There were no burrs or sharp protrusions. All the connecting parts were strengthened when they were manufactured to make the military chair comfortable and sturdy. The two majors came from prestigious families and had very high standards. The valuable spoils of war were naturally divided among the high-ranking officers, while the mundane items were divided among the low-ranking officers and soldiers. Major Solomon took a fancy to these two chairs at first glance and only chose these two chairs.
Sitting comfortably on the camp chair, the two majors felt that this choice was too correct. There was nothing more comfortable than a moment of relaxation after a hard march.
The soldiers went in and out to put the spoils of war into their huge backpacks. Before the British expeditionary force set off, they gave the soldiers military backpacks. They did not expect that after they arrived at the Cape Town colony, Chinese businessmen would sell the British a backpack with a huge capacity. This kind of canvas backpack, which was' big enough to put a living person in ', was thick and huge. It was especially cheap. The British soldiers bought it out of their own pockets, while the British officers bought it collectively with the army's money. They bought a lot of it, and each officer got a few.
Looking at the soldiers dragging backpacks filled with more and more things around the farm where only the British were left, Major Solomon smiled bitterly and said, "I thought I could collect some local specialties and give them to my relatives and friends as gifts when I go home. Now it seems that this chair is probably the only thing left for me as a souvenir. "
Major Adam and Major Solomon were both graduates of Oxford University. More than a year ago, the two of them were still working respectably in a securities company, specializing in US bonds and securities. After the war between China and the United States broke out more than a year ago, US bonds and securities showed a trend of plummeting. The securities company where the two of them worked had no choice but to cut off the US bond department.
Major Adam and Major Solomon, who came from prestigious families, were able to work in the securities company because they were from prestigious families. However, there was no shortage of college students from prestigious families in the securities company. There were too many people who came from more prestigious families than these two. After some maneuvering, the two majors submitted their resignations to the securities company in a dignified manner on the grounds of joining the army to serve the country.
It took the two of them a year to be promoted from a reserve officer to a lieutenant. After they signed up to join the expeditionary force, they were promoted again in a very short period of time. They were promoted again after they arrived in South Africa. It must be said that in the process of graduating from Eton College and going to Oxford University, the two young majors had the experience of riding, hunting, military training, camping, and picnicking. These aristocratic games actually evolved from military operations. With these practical experiences as a foundation, they could be called 'not so elite soldiers', but they could not be called 'unqualified soldiers'. For the British field army, military operations were more or less horseback riding, hunting, camping, and picnicking.
Major Solomon lamented that the spoils of war were all taken by his subordinates. Major Adam's view was different. His tone was full of ridicule. "Dear Solomon, when you arrive at the Boer territory, can you find any products that are not 'made in China'? If you really want to collect local specialties, then take some Boer …. Oh, no, the Boer also came from Europe. You can take some local black people. Definitely local specialties. That kind of backpack can not only be used as a pillow, everyone says that thing can be stuffed with a living person. "
After leaving the securities company for more than a year, this was the first time Major Solomon heard someone express an opinion in the economic field. Even if the British Empire's army was the best in the world, it was too much to expect this army to have an opinion other than 'plunder' in the economic field. Even though Major Adam's tone was full of ridicule, Major Solomon still sighed with a nostalgic feeling. "I wonder what the British merchants in Cape Town do for a living."
"When I was in Pretoria, I followed the headquarters to investigate some seized documents. Those documents were mainly about the commercial agreement signed between the Transvaal Republic and China." Major Adam recounted his own experience.
Major Solomon inexplicably felt a burst of jealousy in his heart. Even though he did not have any malicious intentions towards Major Adam, this jealousy could not be suppressed. Perhaps it was because he was young, but he could not help but reveal a sour expression on his face. Major Adam clicked his tongue and showed a helpless expression. "Solomon, I have already thanked you for the chair. Transferring you to escort the spoils of war was not a decision I could make. "
"What did those agreements say?" Major Solomon also quickly regained his senses. Just as Major Adam said, the rank of Major in the army was also a rank that listened to orders.
Major Adam lowered his voice. "It doesn't matter what it says. In the current situation, I think the British government is going to continue to fulfill the agreement with the Chinese. In other words, the Chinese can continue to occupy a large number of mining rights. Compared to this mining rights, the business of those merchants is nothing. "
After listening to this brief statement, Major Solomon's expression changed. No matter what kind of sense of honor those soldiers held, or how the teachers, workers, and writers who joined the army under the encouragement of the government's propaganda were boiling with love for the British Empire. Major Solomon, who came from a securities company, had always believed that the purpose of the British government fighting this war was to seize control of the Rand Gold Mine. If what Major Adam said was true, the British government's actual gains from this war were not high.
"The Chinese have already occupied most of the mining rights of the Rand Gold Mine's deep veins. In the information I saw, the shallow veins of the Rand Gold Mine are almost all dug out. If they want to continue to profit from mining, they must have the ability to mine the deep veins … "Major Adam seemed to be suffering from holding it in. Now when he was narrating, there was a deep hatred on his face, as well as happiness.
Major Solomon listened very carefully. He knew that Major Adam was mainly engaged in mining before he left the securities company. All the clear-headed investors believed that after China solved the US problem, there was a 99% chance that they would not recognize the European investors' investment in the US mines. Therefore, the investors who could run sold the mine bonds as soon as possible.
The Chinese could completely disregard the investment interests of the European investors, but the British had to abide by the investment agreement between the Transvaal Republic and China. From an economic point of view, the gap between the two was not only calculated in hundreds of millions of dollars, but also the lives of many people. Last year, the number of suicides in the United Kingdom soared. Major Solomon knew that some of them were his former clients.
"Major, we've already packed up and are preparing to leave." An elderly captain ran over to the two young majors to report. The conversation between the two had to be temporarily stopped.
"Oh." Major Solomon replied somewhat dejectedly, then stood up to do the final inspection. Prepare, study, review. This was the education that Major Solomon and his classmates had received since they were young. It was also the foundation for them to be able to succeed step by step. Therefore, no matter how he felt, he instinctively followed this pattern.
The slightly valuable things that could be taken away were taken as spoils of war by the soldiers. The worthless things that could not be taken away were gathered in the largest room of the farm. Messy junk and broken things were all piled up together. Looking at the pile of junk, Major Solomon asked the old captain next to him, "Has everyone been taken away?"
The old captain was stunned. He thought that the major would ask how much they got. He didn't expect that the major would actually care about whether there were still people left here. The old captain quickly replied, "Major, everyone has been taken away."
Knowing that no one was left here, Major Solomon said, "Alright. Let's retreat. "
The major didn't go far before he heard movement behind him. He turned around and saw that the British soldiers had begun to set fire everywhere. The Boer farms were not made of bricks and tiles. In this relatively dry place, most of the buildings were made of wooden poles and thatch. The winter temperature was not high, and the humidity was even lower. Under the deliberate arson, these buildings were quickly set ablaze.
When the two majors led the troops to gather outside the farm, the entire farm was already burning. There was no possibility of saving it.
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