Wearing British clothes as a second-generation aristocrat

87. Bakershill Brawl

Now that things had come to this, Dugan stopped trying to persuade Griss and Ken, since the two of them, being in their own armies, should be able to secure a lot of resources for themselves.

Two days later, Dugan said goodbye to his parents and set off for Bakershill.

The carriage had just left central London when it encountered Griss and Ken on the main road leading south. They were in the same carriage, which was full of luggage.

"Dughan!"

When Gris saw Dugan's carriage from afar, he waved and shouted.

"Whoa!" Aldo quickly stopped the carriage.

Dugan opened the small window and asked, "Are you going on a trip?"

Ken said, "Didn't we agree to go to Bexhill together?"

"What?" Dugan asked in surprise, "Have your appointments all been approved?"

Gris shook his head, looking indifferent. "That's just a matter of procedure. We can get used to the environment first."

Dugan remained silent, closed the small window, and gestured for Aldo to continue.

Gris also told his coachman to hurry up and catch up with the Connaught family's carriage.

The normal travel time by horse-drawn carriage from London to Bexhill is around 7 hours.

So, Dugan set off at 8 a.m. and arrived in Bakershill around 16 p.m.

Bakershill is located on the coast in southern England, and Duggan could faintly smell the sea breeze when he opened the carriage window.

Even from a distance, the outline of the military camp could be seen.

But after the carriages rounded a low hill, the two drivers simultaneously tightened the reins, the horses reared up and snorted impatiently, and the two carriages stopped in an open area about a hundred yards from the camp gate.

The sudden braking caused Dugan to stumble. He opened the car window and looked out, only to find a large number of British soldiers in red uniforms standing densely packed in the open space outside the military camp.

These soldiers, rifles already fitted with bayonets, were constantly hurling insults in English.

Inside the camp, large numbers of German soldiers were also gathered, each holding a rifle with bayonets fixed.

The two sides remained locked in a stalemate.

Gris and Ken disembarked from the carriage at this moment. Upon seeing this scene, the relaxation on their faces vanished instantly, and their earlier excitement about leading troops disappeared. Their brows furrowed: "Damn it, we've just arrived and we've already run into a mutiny among the soldiers?"

Dugan wasn't too nervous. He jumped off the carriage, straightened his brigadier general's uniform, and swaggered toward the soldiers outside the camp.

The soldiers outside the camp had already noticed the two carriages and were about to go up and question them when they saw a young man in a general's uniform get off the carriage.

"I am Brigadier General Dugan Connaught, commander of the German Regiment of the Kings." Dugan said sternly to the soldier in front of him, "Soldier, state your name and unit number."

"Sir, my name is Frith, and I am a corporal in the 18th Rifle Battalion of the local garrison," the soldier opposite replied in English.

"Very well, Corporal Freys, I order you to summon your superior officer to me immediately," Dugan said bluntly.

"Yes, sir." The soldier quickly went to find his superior.

A short while later, an officer jogged over, stood at attention and saluted Dugan, "Captain Pendes of the 18th Rifle Battalion reporting for duty."

Damn, just a mere captain.

Dugan, still with a stern face and an air of superiority, asked, "Captain, you are the local garrison. Why are you gathering in front of my legion's camp?"

"Your legion? This..." Captain Pendes said, "Reporting to Your Excellency, these Germans are drunk and causing trouble, assaulting British soldiers, and are planning a mutiny."

Dugan frowned and asked Captain Pendles, "Are you the highest-ranking officer in the local British garrison?"

Captain Pendes shook his head and said, "No, it's Colonel Albert."

"Summon him to see me. I'm going to the military camp now." With that, Dugen waved his hand, directing two carriages to come over.

"Captain Pendes, I order you to clear the way for me," Dugan said bluntly.

Rank matters, and even though Dugan's rank was more than one rank higher than Captain Pendes', Dugan was not Captain Pendes' direct superior, and Captain Pendes had the right to refuse to carry out Dugan's orders.

But Captain Pendes wasn't stupid. The young brigadier general in front of him was only in his early twenties. To become a brigadier general at such a young age, he must be no ordinary person.

I can't afford to offend them.

So Captain Pendes had no choice but to obediently disperse the soldiers and make way for Dugan's carriage.

"Move aside, move aside, make way for the general's carriage."

The carriage arrived at the gate of the military camp, but was stopped by the German soldiers.

Dugan calmly said, "I am your new commander, Brigadier General Dugan Connby. You can ask Colonel Deken and Major Harkert for information."

After saying that, Dugan also took out the War Department's documents.

The German soldier at the gate, who knew a little English, grabbed the documents and rushed into the barracks.

A short while later, the camp gates opened, and Colonel Deken and Major Harkert came out to greet Dugan.

Upon entering the camp, Dugan found that the atmosphere inside was also tense and hostile.

Inside the camp, the local Hanova officers formed several human walls, blocking the restless soldiers horizontally, waving and shouting to calm them down while restraining those who wanted to charge forward.

Several cavalry officers patrolled the perimeter of the crowd on their horses, their sabers half-drawn at their waists, trying their best to quell the out-of-control situation.

"I want to hear your explanations, Colonel Deken, Major Harkert," Dugan said loudly, standing in front of the soldiers.

"Sir, this is what happened." Colonel Deken recounted another version of events.

The British soldiers in Bexhill were generally drunk and undisciplined, and were known as hooligans and scoundrels by the locals.

In contrast, the taciturn German soldiers, due to language barriers, rigid and serious demeanor, and aversion to taverns and gambling dens (perhaps because they were poor), were regarded by the locals as "arrogant foreign mercenaries" and were often compared to the local British troops.

The saying goes, "It's not that you don't know the goods, it's that you're afraid of comparing them," which has led to many conflicts and constant friction between the two sides.

Just yesterday, several drunk British infantrymen publicly mocked and provoked German soldiers who were strolling around in the street, insulting them as "exiles," "defeated cowards," and "foreign beggars who eat British money."

The German soldiers, knowing they were in a foreign land and had no choice but to keep their heads down, pretended not to understand English and tried to avoid the area.

However, several drunk British soldiers, taking advantage of their numbers, refused to back down and deliberately pushed and beat the German soldiers.

The German soldiers, having reached their limit, finally retaliated and sent reinforcements from their camp.

The British army also deployed a large force to participate in this organized, large-scale brawl.

Fortunately, neither side used guns; they only fought each other with sticks and stones.

The melee lasted for nearly an hour until officers from both sides, accompanied by their guards, forcibly intervened, finally bringing the riot to an end.

Although no one died.

However, overall, the British suffered losses, and more people were injured.

The indignant British soldiers then regrouped and gathered in front of the German regiment's camp, demanding that the German regiment hand over several of its leading soldiers.

Colonel Decken, of course, disagreed, and more and more British soldiers gathered outside the camp.

"Colonel Deakin, I order you, I need to see those leading soldiers immediately." Dugan's face remained stern.