Chapter 646 Preparing for War
It's not that Zheng Zhilong has never thought of seeking recruitment from the Fujian government. In fact, he had already considered this when he integrated the Eighteen Zhizhi. After all, no matter how glorious it is to be a pirate, he has become the most powerful man in the Far East. The pirate leader will eventually be unable to enter mainstream society, let alone honor his ancestors. He will eventually have to find a way to clear his name and come ashore. The route planned by Zheng Zhilong was to rely on force to control the waters of Fujian and coerce the government to offer favorable terms to recruit him. Moreover, this approach was implemented smoothly in the first few years. Xiong Wencan did find someone to explore the possibility of recruiting him. sex.
However, opponents who had such intentions in the past few years have changed their attitude in the past two years and no longer mentioned the recruitment matter. Zheng Zhilong found many intermediaries to get information. It is said that most of the reasons for this change in attitude were caused by Xu Xinsu's interference. Of course, this is easy to understand. After all, Zheng Zhilong has more powerful maritime weapons than the Fujian Navy. It is hard to say who will listen to whom after the recruitment. In addition, it is almost impossible to completely resolve the personal grudge between Xu Xinsu and Zheng Zhilong. He wants to keep Given his position in the Ming army, he was naturally unwilling to have a strong competitor appear out of thin air.
If Xu Xinsu had been defeated repeatedly like his predecessor Yu Zigao, maybe Xiong Wencan, the governor of Fujian, would have already issued a recruitment document. However, in recent years, Xu Xinsu's performance has been outstanding, and he has gradually taken back those areas along the coast of Fujian that had been occupied by Shibazhi. Lost ground, but it was difficult for Shibazhi to take advantage of the Ming army. Therefore, Xiong Wencan would naturally prefer Xu Xinsu's opinion on whether to recruit Shiba Zhi.
But in the final analysis, this problem is still due to the appearance of the Haihan people. It was precisely because they provided military assistance to Xu Xinsu that the Fujian Ming Army was able to fight a turnaround, but Shibazhi turned from active to passive. It was difficult to win on the frontal battlefield, and all private recruitment negotiations with the Fujian government were stopped. Later, the sphere of influence continued to shrink under the suppression of the Ming army, and the situation became increasingly embarrassing.
Zheng Zhilong didn't quite understand why the Haihan people had to try every means to target Shibazhi. Speaking of which, before the naval battle at the Pearl River Estuary, the two sides had no problems and didn't even have a direct confrontation. At that time, the Haihan people were already secretly transporting to Fujian. weapons. After the situation in Fujian became tense, Zheng Zhilong certainly found an intermediary to try to make peace with Haihan. At the very least, he had to stop supporting Xu Xinsu's side. However, Haihan didn't seem to buy it, as long as it involved the topic of Shibazhi. , no matter what level of management the other party has, they will remain silent and will not respond to any topics related to the peace talks at all.
This obvious hostility also makes Zheng Zhilong unable to retreat. If Shibazhi still does not have a big enough response to the defeat of Nanri Island, then maybe the combined fleet of the Fujian Ming Army and the Haihan people will soon reach Magong Port . In comparison, although the Dutch's conditions were very harsh, they were at least for the money, not for the death of Shiba Zhi. Comparing the two, although he was dissatisfied with the Dutch's extortion, Zheng Zhilong still had no choice but to pay the Dutch to help him.
Qian Tiandun arrived in Fujian and completed negotiations with Zheng Xinzhi in Dayuan Port. It was almost a matter of front and back. The two sides basically started preparations for the next stage of war at the same time. However, there is still a relatively large gap between the two sides in the details of preparations for war.
The favorable conditions for the defenders of Nanri Island are very obvious. Relying on the Ming Dynasty, which is still the most powerful empire in the Far East at this time, whether it is materials or manpower, it cannot be compared with the Eighteen Zhizhi entrenched in Penghu. Although the combat capability of the Fujian Navy is very limited, it is not difficult for them to undertake some of the work of transporting supplies.
Since Qian Tiandun arrived at Nanri Island, the Fujian Navy, in accordance with Haihan's request, began to continuously send various supplies and manpower from several nearby towns to build a more complete defense system on the island. Qian Tiandun has nearly a thousand veterans with rich combat experience, eight warships, four large, four small, and thousands of Ming troops at his disposal. He can use more methods during the battle than in two months. There were much more mission fleets attacking here before. What's more, it is difficult to attack and easy to defend. Qian Tiandun believes that with more than 2,000 troops guarding this island, and almost all of them are Haihan weapons and equipment, even if the opponent comes with 8,000 people at once, it will be difficult to capture it. The castle.
Nanri Village was first built by the Ming army. Later, after the army withdrew and became deserted, it was occupied by pirates and some reinforcements were carried out. It was damaged by Haihan's artillery offensive in the battle a few days ago, but Shi Diwen later organized manpower to repair it. When Qian Tiandun arrived here, there was actually not much to do. He only had to further heighten and thicken the wall on the original basis, dig trenches outside the wall, and place the artillery brought there one by one. On the gun position. It's a pity that the local area is not as good as Sanya, and there is no building materials such as cement available. Otherwise, Qian Tiandun would have wanted to build a concrete fortress on the island as a test subject for practicing tactics.
Of course, based on the current level, Qian Tiandun believed that it was more than enough to resist Shiba Zhi's counterattack. What he was worried about was not the opponent Shibazhi, but whether the Dutch would directly join the war if they intervened.
The fighting ability of the Dutch is undoubtedly much higher than that of the Ming Army and the Eighteen Zhizhi. Although the armed forces affiliated to the East India Company are not regular armies, many of their members are veterans or mercenaries with combat experience. army, and are familiar with the means of hot weapon warfare, dealing with them will not be as easy as dealing with the Ming army. Qian Tiandun had also obtained relevant information from Sanya through the radio during the Dutch battle on Ambona Island a few days ago. Regarding the actual combat capabilities of the Dutch, the Military Commission's previous views were indeed somewhat dismissive.
Of course, if you suffer a loss once, you will not suffer a second loss in the same place. Since there is intelligence that the Dutch may intervene in this war, Haihan's preparations should include more content targeting the Dutch armed forces, and The advantage of sticking to one place and not having to take the initiative began to be further highlighted at this time.
Under the command of Qian Tiandun, Haihan soldiers began to use live ammunition to delimit the shooting range outside Nanri Village. In this way, the areas within the range are divided into checkerboards and numbered, and the artillery fire on the fixed fort can also be calibrated in advance, and the viewing angle and gunpowder dosage are all determined. The efficiency and lethality that can be improved during combat will be difficult for the attacker. Achievable.
Qian Tiandun was not afraid that this method would be copied by the Ming army. There was still a performance gap between the two sides in terms of weapons, and the range and accuracy of artillery guns were still not the same. If the Ming army wants to retaliate on the battlefield in the future, it will really feel the feeling of being passively beaten due to the difference in weapon performance.
Starting in late July, the Haihan warship responsible for patrolling around Nanri Island frequently discovered unidentified speedboats appearing at a distance of more than ten or twenty nautical miles near the island. After identification by the accompanying Ming army officers, it can be basically confirmed that most of the unidentified ships are reconnaissance ships belonging to Shibazhi. Qian Tiandun believed that this was a precursor to Shibazhi's preparations to take action, and ordered all armed personnel on Nanri Island to enter a state of combat readiness.
However, Qian Tiandun still had one important thing to do before the war started, which was to send Luo Wudan away. After Luo Wudan followed the fleet to Fujian, he did not choose Zhangzhou to settle down, but went to Nanri Island together. Although there are some women on the island who are responsible for cooking and logistics, it is impossible for Luo Wudan to live with these servants who do menial work, so she has to arrange a separate residence for her in Nanri Village. To be honest, it is There are many inconveniences. Fortunately, there is not much superstition in the atmosphere of the Haihan Army, otherwise it would be a big taboo for women to live in the army. Of course, this is also related to Qian Tiandun's personal prestige to a certain extent. After all, he trained this army step by step, and almost all the soldiers regarded him as a commander who could risk their lives to follow him, and the commander's fiancée followed him. There doesn't seem to be much to say about the commander-in-chief acting together.
Some people also had doubts about the identity of Luo Wudan's fiancée. After all, Qian Tiandun himself had never mentioned the personal relationship between the two on any occasion. The mention of his fiancée was also a rumor in the military. However, Qian Tiandun's bodyguard, Gao Qiaonan, stopped soldiers from talking about the matter many times, citing "no private discussion of the general's family affairs." Therefore, many people believed that this confirmed Luo Wudan's special status.
"Have all Miss Luo's luggage been packed?" After receiving a positive reply, Qian Tiandun signaled the soldiers to step back and walked into Luo Wudan's residence. The accommodation here is naturally not as good as the dormitories built specifically for Haihan cadres in Sanya. Luo Wudan was only assigned a better room. Although the private supplies allocated to Qian Tiandun by the Executive Committee included hot water boilers and a full set of ceramic sanitary ware, they were not installed here - after all, they would not be stationed here for too long, and it would be a problem to dismantle them in the future. Very troublesome thing. Therefore, of course Luo Wudan cannot enjoy the Haihan-style living environment. The only advantage he has over the militia soldiers living here is that he has more space to live alone.
Qian Tiandun has never been a pampered person, and he has no special feelings about this kind of wild life, but he is not a straight man, and of course he can understand the inconveniences of a girl living in such an environment. Therefore, after making the decision to prepare for this war, he asked Luo Wudan to pack her luggage and send her away from Nanri Island as soon as possible.
When Luo Wudan saw him coming in, he just snorted and said nothing. Qian Tiandun took a look inside the house and saw that things had been packed and packed into boxes. He felt relieved and walked to Luo Wudan and said softly: "After all, the environment on this island is much worse. You go If you stay in Zhangzhou for a while, someone will arrange everything there, and you can live the life of a young lady.”
"I don't want to be the eldest lady!" Luo Wudan's arrogant temper rose again: "I know that I am an eyesore living here, and your people will inevitably talk about it, so you are eager to drive me away! ”
"Watch your words. I'm not asking you to leave. I'm giving you a compliment. Can you give me a compliment?" Qian Tiandun explained with a wry smile: "Shibazhi's ships have already started to come to the area to stamp on the market. I can't say for sure." The war is going to start one day. The guns and guns have no eyes in this war. How dare I let you stay in Nanri Village."
"That's nice!" Luo Wudan scolded, but his tone was much softer than at the beginning. She can naturally feel Qian Tiandun's care for her, but when she goes out, Qian Tiandun is the only time traveler around. When she goes to Zhangzhou, she can't even find anyone who can talk and quarrel. The life of food may not be much better than the life on this isolated island.
When Qian Tiandun saw that the persuasion was effective, he continued: "You also know that the executive committee transferred me to Fujian to lead the troops this time, and the standard of living treatment given to me is relatively high. Someone has already bought one in Zhangzhou City. In the courtyard, the furniture and servants have been furnished, and the boilers, sanitary ware, and solar panels have been installed. All that is needed is for the owner to move in. ”
Luo Wudan's face turned red and he said: "That is the treatment given to you by the executive committee, not to me."
"I'm going to fight on Nanri Island now, and I can't live there for the time being, so I want to entrust you to go over and take care of my house first, okay?" Qian Tiandun said it tactfully, but his meaning was very clear.
"Then you...will you move to Zhangzhou after the war?" Luo Wudan's voice became softer and quieter. If Qian Tiandun hadn't been close to her, she might not have been able to hear the second half of what he said.
"Nanri Island is not suitable for long-term stationing. Only the Fujian government regards this place as a treasure. After the situation stabilizes, our station will definitely be moved to near Zhangzhou." Qian Tiandun coughed dryly and said He lowered his voice and said: "In order to facilitate communication with Fujian officials and the military, my office will definitely be located in Zhangzhou."
"Remember what you said clearly!" Luo Wudan now got a promise in disguise, and he didn't lose his temper anymore. He stood up and walked straight out of the house: "I can't carry too much luggage, please find someone to help. Help me.”
Then I heard Takahashi Minami's voice from far outside the house: "Just leave this kind of rough work to your subordinates!"
When Gao Qiaonan excitedly brought a few soldiers into the house to carry the luggage, Qian Tiandun kicked him in the butt: "Well, you Gao Qiaonan, I have led you for so many years, and you are still silent." Hibiki becomes someone else’s subordinate!”
Takahashi Minami was not angry after feeling the pain, and responded with a smile: "I just want to share your worries with you, and have no other ideas."
"You're a bad learner!" Qian Tiandun raised his finger and pointed at Gao Qiaonan: "It's time to find you a wife to take care of you!"
(End of chapter)