The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 838 - 627: Passing the Buck

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

Early in the morning on September 30th, the Dutch Prime Minister urgently knocked on the door of Queen Wilhelmina’s sleeping quarters and brought news that drastically changed the Queen’s complexion, "Batavia has been breached!"

"Damn it! How could Batavia be breached? What is Dirk doing?" Queen Wilhelmina asked in disbelief.

"Your Majesty, according to information from the Dutch East Indies side, Muhammad has betrayed us and launched a surprise attack on Batavia.

Our military was engaged on the front line fighting the indigenous people at the time and had not reacted before Batavia was already under Muhammad’s control.

The current army is now surrounded by Muhammad and the indigenous forces; if not rescued in time, it is very likely to be completely annihilated," the Dutch Prime Minister explained with a pale face.

The previous Dutch government had placed all its hopes on the victory against the indigenous forces. But with Batavia taken, what victory is there to speak of?

With firearms and machine guns, the defense becomes very simple. Under Muhammad’s command, the indigenous just need to rely on machine guns and firearms to resist the Dutch army’s assaults.

What’s even more fatal is not just these aspects. The fall of Batavia is a heavy blow to the morale of the Dutch military, and the Netherlands can no longer ensure the logistics supply for these colonial troops.

For the indigenous army, including Muhammad, this is great news, also symbolizing that their rebellion against the Dutch government is about to succeed.

The morale of both sides is waning for the one and waxing for the other; for the Netherlands, which is fighting from a great distance, this is the worst news.

Even to put it bluntly, the Dutch army has no hope of retaking Batavia unless there is no support from any country’s forces behind the indigenous.

"Muhammad? That damned scoundrel!" Although the noble Queen Wilhelmina did not know who Muhammad was exactly, this did not prevent her from despising this person named Muhammad at the moment.

"Where is Governor Dirk now? What is his location?" Queen Wilhelmina continued to inquire.

"According to messages from the front line troops, Governor Dirk and the entire Colonial Government have been controlled by Muhammad, who has declared his intention to dissolve the Colonial Government and establish a large indigenous nation," the Prime Minister said with a bitter smile.

The current situation in the Dutch East Indies has become a dead end. The Governor of the East Indies has been captured, and the army is surrounded, with almost no hope of resistance.

And Dutch reinforcements have only left the motherland a few days ago; at the earliest, it will take half a month to arrive, by which time everything will be too late.

"Your Majesty, perhaps we need to make some sacrifices," the Prime Minister said, looking towards Queen Wilhelmina and finally speaking out.

"Alas, the government will handle this matter in full; I hope we can quickly calm the people’s emotions," Queen Wilhelmina sighed and said.

"Yes, Your Majesty," the Prime Minister nodded and responded with forced ease.

He was the one to fiercely resist at that time, and now that hope has been shattered, naturally, he also has to bear the responsibility.

The loss of the Dutch East Indies for the Netherlands is like suffering a flesh wound; if things go as expected, the reputation of the current Dutch government, including the Prime Minister himself, will be ruined in the Netherlands.

The Dutch ambassador in Australasia, having received a telegram, urgently requested an audience with Arthur at noon, seeking Australasian support for the rebellion in the Dutch East Indies.

If these troops weren’t rescued soon, it was very possible that not a single one of the tens of thousands would be saved.

And yet, the real Dutch among them numbered only in the thousands, but how could the Dutch afford the loss of so many?

Furthermore, with the loss of the Dutch East Indies, the enraged Dutch might just replace their government, and while they’re at it, send everyone in the government to the guillotine.

But seeing the meaningful smile on Arthur’s face, the Dutch ambassador understood it was already impossible to negotiate at that moment.

After offering apologies and taking his leave, the Dutch ambassador urgently contacted his home country, conveyed Arthur’s stance, and requested a decision from home.

The Dutch Government was already in chaos, the fall of Batavia was not a minor issue, one that could affect not just the current Dutch Government but also the royal family.

In response, Queen Wilhelmina issued a strict command. Under the assumption that the Dutch East Indies could not be retained, it was imperative to save all the Dutch soldiers there.

The mixed-race individuals should also be taken care of as much as possible, minimizing casualties was the current priority, at the very least to show that the government had done its best and it was only the enemy’s overwhelming strength that prevailed.

The Dutch Prime Minister understood this was his only chance at redemption, and instructed the Dutch ambassador to secure as much benefit for the Netherlands as possible, including raising the purchase price of the Dutch East Indies to 100 million Australian dollars.

Considering the income the Dutch East Indies brought to the Dutch Government, 100 million Australian dollars was a loss for the Dutch Government.

But if the Dutch East Indies was sold to Australasia under unavoidable circumstances, in order to recoup losses for the Netherlands, then it would be considered a merit. Explore new worlds at novelhall.Côm

The Dutch Prime Minister was astute. Although he knew well that Australasia was behind this incident, a powerful nation like that was definitely not one to offend.

Compared to Australasia, Muhammad was evidently the easier one to blame, and it was also easy to pin all the responsibility on Muhammad.

With the helplessly captured incompetent Governor Dirk, with these two as scapegoats, the government could conveniently absolve itself of most of the responsibility.

After all, the Dutch reinforcements had not yet arrived, and the vast distance between the Netherlands and the Dutch East Indies was indeed a fact, leaving not much responsibility on the government.

With that mindset, on one hand, he urged the Dutch ambassador to reach a compromise with Australasia as soon as possible to rescue the Dutch forces near Batavia.

On the other hand, the Dutch Prime Minister had the newspapers urgently print reports explaining the war, with a considerable focus on Muhammad’s betrayal and Governor Dirk’s incompetence, preparing to wash his hands of any blame at a moment’s notice.

After all, Governor Dirk was the leader of both the colonial government and the military in the Dutch East Indies, his stature there almost that of a local Emperor.

Having someone of such status bear the brunt was more than sufficient, the public could still be easily fooled.

Without any intention of taking responsibility, the royal family would not stand up for Governor Dirk.

Even the reverse, if the blame game proved highly effective, Queen Wilhelmina would also hastily shift all blame onto Governor Dirk and Muhammad.

The combined effort of Queen Wilhelmina and the government to deflect blame would be incredibly effective in the Netherlands.

As long as they could dupe the ignorant lower-tier citizens, it was as good as absolving themselves of blame.

How substantial the loss of the Dutch East Indies was to the Netherlands no longer mattered, as a politician, the priority should be one’s political career.