Compared with Johannesburg, Bloemfontein is indeed very troublesome, the key reason is that there is no money, Johannesburg has gold mines that can be taxed, the surrounding farms are now gradually on track, and there are already operating textile mills, carpentry factories, motorcycle factories, etc., which can provide tax sources for the municipal government.

Bloemfontein did not have these conditions, and it was easy to slack off, and when the war was just over, the Boers did not immediately enter a state of reconstruction, but waited for help from London.

London did deliver on its promises, not only paying the promised grants, but also giving more loans, which gave the Boers the illusion that there would be a steady stream of aid from London, after all, it was much better to sit on the ground and get money than to work hard to run a farm.

It was only after London realized that the reconstruction of the Boers was a bottomless pit and cut off support for the Boers that the Boers understood that the British government was not a savior, and that everything had to be left to itself.

Unfortunately, it was too late, accustomed to sitting on the ground and taking money, and now rebuilding the farm, the contrast was so great that the rebuilding of Orange was extraordinarily slow.

It's also self-inflicted!

On the day of the wedding, Roque wakes up early and changes into a dress prepared in advance.

There is nothing to say about the dress, Roque worked hard to design a wedding dress for Phyllis, and it doesn't matter if he comes here, fortunately, Roque's foundation is still good, and a dress looks magnificent, which is still very compatible with Phyllis.

The day was not destined to go well, and shortly after dawn, Roque received the latest report from Natal, the Zulu ambushed the local garrison of Natal near Pietermaritzburg, killing 150 of the army and taking more than 400 prisoners.

Roque couldn't cry or laugh with the telegram, who is to blame?

Originally, during the Second Boer War, an agreement was reached between the Cape colonial government and the Boers that neither side would recruit Zulus to the war.

As a result, the expeditionary force suffered heavy casualties in the early stages of the war, so the British government brazenly broke the agreement and hired a large number of Zulus to fight the war, using livestock on Boer farms as bait.

Initially, the Zulus served only as scouts for the expeditionary force, but later, this rule no longer existed, and the expeditionary force did not even spare the police, let alone the Zulus, and as a result, many Zulus took up arms and really participated in the war.

Therefore, the fighting power of the Zulu people was trained by the expeditionary force, and the British government certainly did not expect that the Zulu people are now using the combat method trained by the expeditionary force to deal with the garrison of Natal.

It's not just the expeditionary force, don't forget that Roque also recruited a lot of Zulu scouts who served the British in the war in order to deal with the Portuguese, and the combat capabilities of these Zulu scouts were further strengthened in Portuguese East Africa, after the Portuguese and the Yao reached an agreement, some Zulu people stayed in Portuguese East Africa and became part of the Yao people, and more Zulu scouts returned to Zululand, and now it is estimated that many people are also involved in the battle against the Natal government army.

Relatively speaking, Roque was not worried about the Zulu scouts trained by the expeditionary force, and the Zulu scouts at that time fought in the same way as the conformist expeditionary forces.

Roque's real concern was the Zulus who had fought against the Portuguese, who had a certain understanding of the methods of guerrilla warfare through fighting in Portuguese East Africa, and although Roque was still very confident in the northern Rhodesian division, the Zulus who used guerrilla warfare were undoubtedly more difficult to eliminate and would cause more trouble for the northern Rhodesian division.

"Send a telegram to Anton and Martin, tell them both to be careful, don't underestimate the Zulus, they are not like those vulnerable mercenaries." Roque still had to warn Anton and Martin as soon as possible, in case Anton and Martin were careless and suffered at the hands of the Zulus, then Roque would also shoot himself in the foot.

"Okay, I'll send a telegram—" Li De's mood was a little low, the Johannesburg Police Department wanted to maintain law and order in Johannesburg, and could not go to Natal to quell the rebellion, Li De still regretted it.

There was a wireless telegraph in the Baron's Palace, and Li De sent a telegram without returning to Johannesburg, and when Roque arrived at the church, Li De also received a reply from Nyasaland.

"Anton and Martin have already taken the train to Natal and cannot be contacted now—" Li De hurriedly, already attracting the attention of the guests.

The 150-seat church was packed, and all the people who were eligible to enter were Roque's friends, subordinates, and officials from Johannesburg and Pretoria.

Outside the church door was crowded with residents who had come to bless Roque, who had just appeared and was greeted with cheers and applause.

Roque waved to the residents, eliciting even louder cheers.

When he turned around, Roque told Lide: "Send a telegram to Pretoria, and tell Anton and Martin at the train station—"

There was no direct train between Nyasaland and Natal, and the Northern Rhodesian Division had to pass through Pretoria to get to Natal, when Henry could alert Martin and Anton.

In fact, there was no need to block the news, many of the guests attending the wedding were just as well-informed, and before Roque came to the church, many people were talking about the war in Natal.

Unlike Roque, the guests were unaware of the situation in Natal, and they did not know the Zulus' fighting prowess, so many were shocked by the outcome of the battle when they first learned of the battle report.

In 1879, a war broke out between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom of South Africa, when the confident British troops were met by the Zulu Kingdom, killing 1,727 British troops and wounding 256.

After the Zulu War, with the exception of the Second Boer War, the British army suffered no major losses in southern Africa, and when the Zulus of Natal began to rebel against the Natal government, many believed that the Zulu resistance was short-lived, and that when the army reached Natal, the Zulus would be vulnerable.

As a result, as soon as the report of the battle in Pietermaritzburg came out, many people realized the seriousness of the situation, and many people linked the Zulu revolt to the Zulu War and the Second Boer War, which had just ended.

Now that everyone knows that the British government paid 220 million pounds for the second Boer War, is the British government ready to pay another 220 million pounds?

Everyone knew that it was impossible, and that the British government would rather abandon Natal and allow the Zulu people of Natal to become independent than wage another protracted war for Natal, and even that the British government would not send troops from its homeland to Natal to quell the rebellion.

When Roque arrived at the church, the chatter immediately stopped, but everyone's expressions were a little solemn, and it didn't look like they were attending a wedding, but rather like a funeral.

Well, that's right, marriage is the grave of love.

"Congratulations, Sir—"

"Lord, you're so handsome today!"

"Locke, long time no see—"

As soon as Roque walked into the church, his acquaintances and colleagues greeted him.

"Thanks—thank you very much—let's have a drink later—" Roque said as he greeted Bishop Elijah.

Elijah is the head of the Protestant diocese in southern Africa, and the last wedding between Henry and Lacey was presided over by Elijah, and this time Elijah certainly won't miss it.

Seeing Roque, the smile on Ilya's face was also a little embarrassed, Natal's situation was something that no one expected.

"Happy Father, the Governor has ordered the Northern Rhodesian Division to go to Natal to quell the rebellion, and it won't be long before good news arrives, the Zulus are not Boers after all, and there will be no more Boer War." Roque took the initiative to reassure Elijah, if Elijah had been so absent all the time, I was afraid that he would even have to say the wrong prayer later.

"Rhodesia Northern Division—is that the same force that annihilated the mercenaries of the Congo Free State?" As bishop, Elijah must also be well-informed, and many things are not a secret in southern Africa.

This time it was Roque's turn to be embarrassed, but fortunately, someone would solve the siege immediately.

"It doesn't matter what kind of troops he has, as long as he can kill the Zulus!" It was Marcus Beaufort, Roque's old friend, who spoke.

In Johannesburg, if you don't consider the Henry family, among all the officials, Marcus Beaufort and Roque have the best relationship, and now Marcus Beaufort is still the tax collector, although Natal's war and Marcus Beaufort have nothing to do with it, but the war will definitely affect the stability of Johannesburg, and then affect Johannesburg's taxes, so Marcus Beaufort's attitude towards the Zulu people is as resolute as he is with the Boers.

"Mercenaries and Zulus are still not comparable, mercenaries are fighting for money, but Zulus are fighting for their homeland, I'm afraid this time it will be very troublesome." The relationship between the immigration director, Ulysses Noel, and Roque is also good, Johannesburg can recover from the war so quickly, the role of Chinese immigrants is very large, Ulysses Noel does not care about the color of the Chinese, the British are white, but unfortunately they are not willing to come to Johannesburg.

As soon as Ulysses Noel finished speaking, many people nodded their heads, and the discussion became louder again.

Only then did Roque realize that there was already a crowd of people around, and the church was as chaotic as a vegetable market.

"No, the Northern Rhodesian Division is a very strong force, and this time it is the training battalion of the Northern Rhodesian Division and fifteen temporary integrated companies that are heading to Natal, with a total number of more than three thousand, and the Zulus will definitely not be able to compete with the Northern Rhodesian Division." Roque is categorical, what is most needed at this time is faith, and faith is contagious to others.

"It's only three thousand—"

"I heard that there are more than 100,000 Zulus involved in the rebellion!"

"It's hard to say, 100,000 people must be counted even the old and weak, women and children, and those who can really go to the battlefield will be good to have 10,000 or 20,000."

"One or two thousand is not less!"

Roque's words did not play a role in stabilizing people's hearts, and the discussion became louder and louder.

It was in this chaotic atmosphere that Philip and Phyllis came to the church.

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