Chapter 322 “Disaster Relief”

Chapter 322 “Disaster Relief”

The clouds stopped and the rain stopped, and a huge fleet appeared on the calm sea.

Although the people on the ship did not see the rainbow at this time, they felt a sense of joy in surviving the disaster. Thanks to the new compass installed on the ship, Friedrich's fleet did not lose its course.

After a day of sailing, we saw the Port of Kolkata not far away.

This port is "prosperous" visible to the naked eye, and everyone heaved a sigh of relief. After all, the ocean-going fleet needs to purchase a large amount of materials. It is obvious that remote areas cannot meet its huge needs, not even the largest port of Bangkok on the Indochina Peninsula.

However, Friedrich put down the telescope and said very seriously.

"It seems that your whale friends are right. If we had stayed on the shore when the incident happened, we would probably have the same ending as the British."

Franz took the telescope handed to him by the other party. The sight in front of him made him a little unbelievable. The large number of "bustling buildings" on the coast were actually piled up from the fragments of ships and trestles. They were just visible to people in the distance. A visual error.

When the fleet finally sailed into the port, the real tragedy after the tsunami was revealed to everyone. There was devastation as far as the eye could see, dozens of ships were piled up like hills, and the sea and the coast were filled with bloated corpses.

The once bustling port has now become a ghost town. Because the dock was destroyed, Franz and his party could only take a small boat to the shore.

Only after landing on shore did Franz deeply understand the horror of this natural disaster. In his previous life, he had seen hundreds of boats fighting over the flood waters. But it pales in comparison to the desolation and misery before our eyes.”

The once huge battleship was cut off at the waist, and the wooden piles originally used to secure the dock were uprooted and inserted deeply into the stone building called the "Port Authority".

The sailors of the Austrian Navy have already begun rescue operations. In addition to finding survivors, the main purpose is to find available supplies. After all, they have also suffered considerable losses.

Although the city of Calcutta, which is dozens of kilometers away, may not be destroyed by the tsunami, it may not have the navigation supplies that the Austrians need there.

Of course, there is some intention of taking advantage of the situation. After all, there is no surveillance in this era, and many goods did become ownerless after this disaster, so what’s wrong with being prepared?

At least during the period after Austria and his team landed, they did not see other organizations or individuals carrying out rescue operations, so it was natural to receive some "remuneration".

After a day of rescue, a total of more than 2,000 bodies were found. Except for 300 white people, the others were all native Indians.

The more than 4,000 people who were rescued were divided into four different areas according to language, skin color, and position. Of course, their temporary residences must be made of local materials, and they even need to be built by themselves.

Many British officers stationed in India who were confused about the situation were still complaining and even wanted to complain about the barbaric behavior of the Austrians.

"Damn it! This is a shameless invasion! Calcutta belongs to the United Kingdom!" The British "gentleman" who refused to register his identity was even prepared to draw a gun in protest in front of the Austrian imperial officers.

Of course, those who waited were sent to see God in advance, and the people around him who behaved strangely also suffered the same fate.

Although his own rescue behavior was due to Franz's compassion, he would not exchange the gratitude of others at the expense of his country's outstanding soldiers.

After that, the remaining people who raised objections quickly understood the current situation under the "friendly" persuasion of the Austrian naval soldiers.

Among them, the Indians were the first to understand the situation. Whether they were lowly Vaishyas and Sudras, or noble Brahmins and Kshatriyas, they all followed the Austrian instructions very obediently, building houses for themselves, registering identity information, and distributing materials and food. .

The white survivors were uniformly placed in a better location, received more abundant material rations, and had greater rights to move around.

Although they complained in their hearts, facing the sharp bayonets and black muzzles of the Austrian Marines, they dared not speak out.

Then all the opium merchants were gathered together and enjoyed a building that looked intact on the outside, but was soaked in sea water inside.

At this time, the interior of the building was like a water prison, but the Austrian soldiers outside the door, who were armed with live ammunition and did not understand the language, made these people dare not resist, and they had to spend the night in this environment.

Of course, Franz was not completely inhumane. These opium merchants got box after box of damp opium. Due to the harsh laws of the Austrian Empire, no soldier dared to hide opium secretly, and only the ship's doctor left a step as medical supplies.

Of course, some people received Franz's permission and were invited to spend the night on the Austrian Empire's warships. The vast majority of them are local British officials and technical experts, or scholars, and of course there are a small number of Indians.

Among them is the famous Indian national hero Tandiya Tobe. Although he is the king of an Indian state, he is not welcomed by Westerners.

This time, he was really flattered to be the guest of a Western prince and sit on his right hand.

Even the General Manager of the Port Authority can only sit in the third position on the left, while other Indian kings can only sit in the corner.

Tandia Toby learned from the conversation among this group of Westerners that the two young princes at the table had a high status in the Western world and had brought a sizable army with them.

There were not many British troops here originally, and coupled with the impact of the tsunami, the balance of power between the two sides changed dramatically.

At the same time, the Austrian Navy's strong approach after waiting for the shore and during the disaster relief process made people dare not neglect them. Of course Franz's explanation is a necessary means to restore order.

However, it seems that these two people did not visit here for the purpose of fighting. They just saw the damage here and decided to park here briefly to replenish supplies and maintain the ship while rescuing people.

"Mr. Tandiya, I heard that you are very brave?"

Faced with Franz's sudden inquiry, Tandiya seemed a little panicked. After all, a low-level British military attache could usually make it difficult for him, a local king.

At this time, the immediate superior of the low-level military attaché was like a pug begging for mercy in front of the prince. Not only him, but even the usually aloof white gentlemen in the entire banquet hall were like the lowest slaves, trying to please this kid who looked only twelve or thirteen years old, which made people feel very ridiculous.

The harbormaster on the side said quickly.

"You are absolutely right, Archduke Franz. This Indian once killed three tigers in one day with bow and arrow and spear."

"Is it just a tiger?" Friedrich had a playful expression on his face. In his eyes, his brothers and nephews were much more ferocious than wild beasts.

Moreover, land beasts such as tigers and lions, including elephants, are too small compared with the deep-sea behemoths in the sea, and they pose no threat to his tall and powerful battleships.

But I heard Franz describe that there is a mythical beast in the East called the Tibetan Mastiff that can sink battleships. Although I don’t know whether it is true or false, I can tell the truth by firing a few shots and trying it out.

"Grand Duke Friedrich, tigers are very ferocious animals. They are good at hiding, tracking and..."

Before the British official finished speaking, Friedrich slapped his pistol on the table.

"Tell me, how many bullets can it take?"

"This" official's face was full of embarrassment that could not be concealed.

A straight soldier like Friedrich, who had not received the education of an eldest son, was really unable to handle such matters in foreign exchanges.

"That depends on whether he drank too much!" Franz smiled and helped the British official out of the siege, which immediately caused a burst of laughter at the wine table, which greatly alleviated the embarrassment at this time.

Friedrich also realized that he did not belong to the banquet, so he picked up the wine glass and took a sip of wine and said, "Franz, I think the barnacles I dug taste good, so I won't talk to you anymore."

After saying that, he walked away, leaving only the adjutant to temporarily take his place.

After three rounds of wine and five tastes of food, Franz once again brought up the matter of tiger hunting.

"Mr. Tandiya, if you buy the weapons produced by us in Austria, coupled with your bravery, there will be ten tigers, let alone five tigers."