The British proposal to divide the Kingdom of Iran was not agreed to by the Chinese Empire, which meant that the last chance for peace between China and Britain had passed. A war between the two countries will inevitably break out. Of course, neither the Chinese Empire nor the British Empire will declare war on each other, and once war is declared, it will not end well. Therefore, this war between the two sides is actually more appropriate to call it an armed conflict. It's just that the scale of such a conflict is a little larger. The total number of participating armies is as high as two or three hundred thousand. The participating navy has more than 200 ships.

"Gentlemen, arrogant and ignorant Chinese, once again reject our good intentions. They apparently thought that the British Empire had been completely weakened and was easy to bully. That's why they dare to damage the interests of the British Empire in such a brazen way. Now that the Chinese have rejected our proposal to divide up the Kingdom of Iran, what do we think we should do now? David Lloyd George's face was gloomy as water.

"Your Excellency, if the Chinese reject our proposal, then their army will surely enter southern Iran soon. When we enter the army in southern Iran, we must prepare in advance. In addition, we have to draw more troops from India to southern Iran, otherwise, it may be difficult to resist the attack of the Chinese with those troops alone. Indian Affairs Minister Edwin Samuel Montague said.

"Humph! Drawing troops from India? There are only 200,000 troops in India. Expecting them to defeat the Chinese is simply unrealistic. War Chancellor Earl Derby said disdainfully. If all the troops sent were the British Army, they might still have the strength to fight a war. However, the Earl of Derby, who was composed of the Indian Asan, did not have any confidence in it.

The Anglo-Indian Army, to put it bluntly, is composed of British officers at all levels. The Indians served as an army of ordinary soldiers. Although, the British have been training these Indian asan and at the same time equipping them with decent weapons. But it does not mean that they admit that these Indian Asans are too lazy, which makes the combat effectiveness of the British and Indian armies very weak. Not to mention fighting against the world-class Chinese Army. Even against those second- and third-rate armies, they may not be able to defeat them. The biggest role of the Anglo-Indian army is probably to maintain law and order and bully those unarmed ordinary people.

"Your Excellency, are we not going to do anything and abandon southern Iran? In that case, what is the difference between abandoning India and letting the Chinese go straight in? Walter Lang, the Colonial Chancellor, objected.

David Lloyd George had a headache for the fighting power of the Anglo-Indian army. I don't quite believe it either. However, is there any other option now than to rely on the Anglo-Indian army? If it is to send troops from within the country to Iran, it will obviously be too late.

"Your Excellency, let's send another part of the army from India to the Kingdom of Iran, and first find a way to resist the attack of the Chinese. The Royal Navy's expeditionary fleet will soon enter the Indian Ocean, and if it can defeat the Chinese navy, it may be able to use this as a condition. Let them give us the south of Iran. Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour suggested.

Lloyd George nodded and looked at Lord Chancellor, Sir John Jericho: "When will the Royal Navy's expeditionary fleet be able to enter the Indian Ocean?" ”

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister. The Royal Navy has already entered the Mediterranean Sea and will be able to enter the Suez Canal in two days. It is expected to be able to cross the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and enter the Arabian Sea in a week's time. Sir John Jericho replied. Although he was reluctant to let the Royal Navy take risks, however, he also knew. War is already inevitable. He could only pray that the Royal Navy would win this battle. Only in this way can Britain's position as world supremacy be defended. Otherwise, Britain will fall into the abyss.

"Send a telegram to the Royal Navy and let them enter the Arabian Sea. Cut off oil transportation routes from the Middle East to China and give the Chinese a little color. If you can get them to retreat, that's the best. David Lloyd George said.

"Yes, Your Excellency Prime Minister." Sir John Jericho nodded.

At a time when the British were angry and ready to take revenge on the Empire. The Imperial Army has already struck first. After quelling the rebellion in the northern part of the Kingdom of Iran, two clusters of the Imperial Army moved south, with the southern front attacking the Anglo-Indian army occupied Sirkhan, and the northern front attacking the Anglo-Indian army occupied Kerman. In these two cities, the Anglo-Indian army each had two infantry divisions. Another infantry division was scattered across the vast southern part of Iran.

It is obviously unrealistic for five infantry divisions and more than 60,000 Anglo-Indian troops to deal with two clusters of the Imperial Army, more than 90,000 men. Not to mention that the Anglo-Indian army did not have a superiority in troops, even if they had a superiority in troops, they were not an opponent of the Imperial Army. Under such circumstances, the British and Indian troops could only ask for help from the rear, asking the Indian side to send more reinforcements.

Count Ridding, the vice-king of India, had no choice but to once again transfer five divisions from the Anglo-Indian army and let them enter the Kingdom of Iran to support the troops on the front line. However, now that the northwestern part of India has been drained, reinforcements can only be drawn from the heart of India. In this case, by the time these British and Indian troops arrived in Iran, it is estimated that the daylilies would have cooled.

On March 21, 4620 (22) of the Yellow Emperor Era, the southern front of the Imperial Army gathered troops in Siljan. The Anglo-Indian troops stationed here hurriedly asked for help from the Anglo-Indian troops in Kerman. They only have more than 20,000 people at the moment, and it is obviously impossible for them to deal with twice the number of Chinese troops. In that case, what's the difference between sending them to death?

"Order the troops, hold the position, and never let those yellow-skinned monkeys break through our position. Send a telegram to Delhi that we need reinforcements. Otherwise, they'll wait to collect the bodies for us. Major General Kleiman, commander of the 11th Infantry Division of the British and Indian Army, roared angrily.

"Reinforcements have already been sent from Delhi. However, they are still on their way. It is obviously unrealistic to rush from the hinterland of India to southern Iran, at the pace of the march of the Anglo-Indian army, in less than half a month or even longer. Carter, commander of the 12th Infantry Division of the British and Indian Army, said helplessly.

Compared to the Chinese Army, the equipment of the Anglo-Indian Army was too poor. There were almost no trucks and cars, only a small number of mules and horses. When marching, you have to rely on your legs. As a result, most of their time was spent on the march.

"Damn, those bastards in London, why provoke the Chinese? Even if they are determined to provoke the Chinese, why don't they prepare in advance? Sending these infantry divisions of ours into the south of the Kingdom of Iran, isn't that sending them to death? Major General Kleiman grumbled angrily. Many officers of the Anglo-Indian Army actually have no real material. They choose to serve in India, on the one hand, the salary is relatively high, and they can also get an additional subsidy. If you're lucky, you'll be able to make a fortune on those docile Indians. Often, if you serve in India for a few years, you don't have to worry about it for the rest of your life. It was with this mentality that many British Army officers went to serve in India to make a lot of money. When they get the money, they can go back to England and live a good life.

"This time, we're out of luck." Major General Carter said speechlessly.

"Carter, what do you think we should do? With our two infantry divisions, can we withstand the tough Chinese? Major General Kleiman asked.

"Of course it's impossible. Unless it is God who appears, otherwise, the Chinese can easily defeat us. "Major General Carter looked like he was right.

"Then we can't really stick here, can we?" Major General Kleiman was already thinking of escaping.

"Kleiman, I advise you to dispel this thought. Now it is the Chinese cavalry that appears outside the city, and if we abandon the city and escape, we will definitely be chased and killed by them all the way. When the time comes, all of us will have to die. Major General Carter shook his head.

"Bastard!" Major General Kleiman couldn't help but curse secretly. He was now very angry, why would the Anglo-Indian army staff send him into the Kingdom of Iran?

"In my opinion, let's resist for a while, and then go straight to the Chinese headshot." In that case, we will have an explanation for London. Major General Carter suggested.

Major General Kleiman nodded: "That's a good idea. After all, our strength is not as good as that of the Chinese, and it is already very rare to be able to save our lives. ”

Even the two division commanders thought about how to surrender to the Chinese, then it was obviously unrealistic for the British cabinet to expect these British and Indian troops to resist the attack of the Chinese * army.

On 23 March, the 9th Infantry Division of the Imperial Army arrived in Sirjan. Subsequently, 36 105-mm light howitzers of the divisional artillery battalion entered the artillery positions and began shelling Sirjan.

"Boom! Rumble! Rumble! ”

With a sound like thunder, one shell after another whistled towards the British and Indian positions in Sirjan.

"Shelling! Hide! ”

The British officers of the Anglo-Indian army shouted loudly, and at the same time immediately lay down in the trenches. However, many Indian Ah San are still at a loss.

"Boom!" The shells fell into the positions of the British and Indian troops, exploded, and the shock wave was generated, radiating in all directions. Those Indian Ah San, who did not have time to dodge, were like fallen leaves in the autumn wind, they were swept up all at once, and when they fell to the ground, they had no breath of life. (To be continued.) )

PS: The twenty-seventh is here, book friends, smash the monthly ticket and reward hard!