Chapter 718: The Battle of Gujarat

"Hahahaha, is that it?"

"Is this the so-called Six-Nation Allied Forces?"

"Pah!"

At this moment.

On this fortress, several generals exchanged glances and laughed with extreme arrogance.

"Hmph, this fellow Aurangzeb has truly lost his mind! To actually open the national gates and let these wolves with wild ambitions enter the Mughal Empire!"

The leader among them was none other than the head of the Maratha this time, Balaji!

As a major ethnic group in the India region, the Maratha were almost all followers of Hinduism. The Maratha occupied the west coast of India from Mumbai to Woya, extending inland to the Marathi-speaking regions about 160 kilometers east of Nagpur. This was not only the granary of the India region, but the Maratha were also known as the most valiant and battle-hardened people in India. In the history of India, there were two peoples who claimed to be "defenders of Hinduism": one was the Rajput, and the other was the Maratha. Throughout the long river of India's history, whenever they encountered foreign invasions, these two peoples would always rise up to resist.

The Maratha were a people who greatly revered martial prowess, and wrestling was their favorite sport. Xuanzang of the Great Tang recorded the following about the Maratha Samurai living in India in his "Great Tang Records on the Western Regions": "Their stature is great, their nature is proud and unrestrained; they repay kindness without fail and avenge grievances without fail. If someone insults them, they will sacrifice their lives for revenge; if someone is in distress and seeks their help, they forget themselves to save them."

In history, the only ones capable of contending with the powerful Afghan Army were the Maratha!

Today, the Maratha Empire had not yet been established, but following Aurangzeb's religious head tax, Balaji had already begun plotting rebellion to become independent and establish a nation!

This time, the Six-Nation Allied Forces wanting to enter Mumbai was the perfect opportunity for him to seize the chance to establish a nation!

"Brothers! The era that belongs to us has arrived!"

"Drive these thieves out!"

"Drive them out!"

"Drive them out, establish a nation!"

"Drive them out, King, King!"

For a time, the morale at this fortress closest to Gujarat city was as high as a rainbow.

……

When these bearded men were pushing and shoving each other, the appearance of this gold and silver was absolutely a tremendous shock to them.

"This..."

"My god!"

"General Zhai..."

A group of people gulped.

Zhai Shiqing laughed heartily: "What, do you all not want it?"

"Just as I said before!"

"Take the fortress, a reward of five million in silver!"

"For every head, five taels of fine silver!"

"I am right here; whoever wants to earn this money, go and fight!"

"All gold and silver will be paid on the spot!"

Boom!

Everyone on the scene went crazy.

In the agricultural era, Central Asia had always been very poor. They were basically all descendants of Genghis Khan, all nomadic peoples. To put it bluntly, these peoples lived hand-to-mouth. They did not know how to farm at all, and the arid, sandy characteristics of Central Asia could not support a very developed agricultural economy. It was not until later, when large amounts of petroleum were discovered in Central Asia, that this place began to become filthy rich.

At this time, no matter who they were, they were all very poor.

They could only share a piece of the pie along the Silk Road...

Who had ever seen so much money?

Who had ever seen so much gold and silver? This was something that could absolutely assault their visual nerves and shock their souls.

The soldiers serving in these Central Asia Five Countries were just as poor as could be...

"Five taels of silver..."

"Five taels of silver..."

"General, give me two thousand elite troops!"

"I want to go!"

"No one is to fight me for it!"

Before the Great Generals of these allied forces could even speak, those Lieutenants were already impatient. The soldiers of these allied forces also had eyes turned red one by one! Five taels of silver could support their families for two years!

The group that had been passive and lazy just a moment ago was now arguing until their faces were red, almost coming to blows.

For a time.

Fighting spirit was soaring!

"General, this..."

A Lieutenant reminded Zhai Shiqing.

Although this looked like fighting spirit and morale had risen, it would also lead to chaotic command.

Regarding this, Zhai Shiqing just smiled and shook his head.

"Once a few people die, they will understand."

On the battlefield, no one is merciful. Zhai Shiqing knew that these people were already crazy and had lost their reason. If you tried to persuade them, the effect would be poor instead. So let them lose some people first. Anyway, it wasn't his own men dying, just a bunch of rabble...

Sure enough.

Under heavy rewards, there must be brave men.

The first attack echelon, totaling twenty thousand men, set out very quickly. This time, the combat effectiveness of the Six-Nation Allied Forces could simply not be mentioned in the same breath. Artillery fire went first; this time, no one was stingy with their own Cannonball, firing them out as if they were worthless.

This attack did make the fortress side feel a different kind of pressure.

"Are they crazy? Have they all gone crazy?"

Balaji was already roaring.

The artillery fire had been bombarding continuously for over two hours! The entire fortress had been leveled by nearly a meter!

"Boom, boom!"

The Maratha people were all trying their best to dodge, completely unable to fight in an organized formation! But despite this, they still blocked several large-scale offensives from the enemy! The combat effectiveness and resilience of the Maratha people were manifested at this moment!

"Damn it!"

Balaji's face was very dark; he had almost been blown to death himself!

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, the fortress cannot be held..."

"Your Majesty, let us retreat back to Gujarat!"

"Your Majesty!"

A group of generals suggested.

Balaji was unwilling: "Retreat? Retreat my ass! Keep defending for me, defend!"

He was about to vomit blood.

He had just announced the establishment of the Maratha Empire, and he had just become king... He knew the importance of Gujarat within his sphere of influence; if this city were lost, then for the Six-Nation Allied Forces, it would be almost smooth sailing!

Gujarat cannot be lost!

This fortress cannot be lost either!

"Hold on!"

"All of you, hold on for me!"

Looking back at Zhai Shiqing's side.

"Damn it, are these Maratha people crazy?"

The first echelon of twenty thousand men suffered significant losses; after all, the others had a defensive position to hold, and they were the attacking side. Furthermore, although the cannon bombardment was very fierce, their command was overly aggressive; out of twenty thousand men, eight thousand were lost directly! When they retreated, only twelve thousand remained. The general of the Khiva Khanate who led the team had a dark face.

"Hahahaha, how is it? I told you not to go, but you insisted on snatching the lead!"

"Do you know how formidable they are now?"

"I told you long ago not to be so optimistic!"

The other generals of the Allied Forces, seeing this, gloated one after another.

The general of the Khiva Khanate spat: "You lot go and try! These Maratha people are simply not human! They are literally carrying the cannonballs and fighting!"

"Settle the accounts, settle the accounts!"

But regardless, there was still silver to be had, and very quickly, Zhai Shiqing's side settled the bounties for them!

Seeing this scene, the other generals became restless again.

Silver!

That was gleaming white silver!

Zhai Shiqing smiled faintly: "Gentlemen, I believe that if you act individually, the possibility of success is not great. Why not discuss a joint attack?"

Having once again felt the strength of these Maratha people, these generals pondered one by one upon hearing this proposal, and then nodded.

No one wanted to share the money with others...

But.

To take the fortress, they had to cooperate!

"Fine!"

"Let's attack together; if we take it, we split the money equally!"

"No problem!"

Only then did Zhai Shiqing smile slightly, feeling relieved in his heart.