Chapter 836 Yueqing
Although the pirates who captured the two ships were just small shrimps, according to their testimony, there was another slightly larger group of pirates operating at the intersection of Wenzhou and Taizhou in the north, and the number of people was much larger than theirs. Ten times more. Of course, even if there are ten times more pirates than this pirate gang of thirty to fifty people, in the eyes of the coalition forces, they are still just little shrimps that can be directly crushed by their respective postures at any time. What really attracts the attention of commanders is not their strength, but the possible official background behind them.
To the north of Wenzhou and to the south of Taizhou is the Yandang Mountain, known as the "No. 1 Mountain in the Southeast" in eastern Zhejiang. The "big pirate gang" confessed by the pirate prisoners has its home base in Yueqing Bay adjacent to the Yandang Mountain.
Yueqing County is under the jurisdiction of Wenzhou Prefecture, Zhejiang Chief Envoy, but its county system can be traced back to the Jin Dynasty more than 1,200 years ago. At that time, Wenzhou's place name was still Yongjia County, while Yueqing's place name was Lecheng. It was not until the second year of Liang Kaiping after the Five Dynasties that in order to avoid the taboo of the name of Liang Taizu Zhu Cheng, the county name of Lecheng was changed to Yueqing, and it has been used ever since.
This group of pirates entrenched in the local area is said to have a shady relationship with the county magistrate of Yueqing County and several large local households. Their territory happens to be at the intersection of the two states. Although the government has sent troops to kill them before, they have obtained it early. The pirates who tipped off the information would come ashore in advance and sneak into the Yandang Mountains to avoid the limelight, allowing the officers and soldiers to return without success. After doing it several times, the garrisons in Taizhou and Wenzhou were tired and too lazy to waste time and effort on doing this difficult and fruitful thing.
Originally, Qian Tiandun and Shi Diwen were still a little undecided about whether to deal with this group of pirates first before continuing to advance northward, because this unplanned combat operation may affect the implementation of the subsequent combat plan in Zhoushan, and this scale The pirate gang is not enough to threaten the normal movement of the coalition fleet. However, Xu Yuzhuo, as the representative of the Ming army in the coalition, insisted on destroying the pirates first before continuing to advance north.
"My generals, the pirates in Yueqing Bay are not very strong. They are just used to train and warm up their troops and prepare for the next battle. Besides, since these pirates have been entrenched in Yueqing for many years, they must have some oil and water in their lair. They should be captured by then. They can all be distributed by your army. I believe that this trip will not require the coalition forces to pay military expenses." Xu Yuzhuo was very concerned about this and spared no effort to persuade Haihan's side not to let this group of pirates go. As for the possible casualties, Xu Yu didn't even mention it - if there are still big casualties when fighting wild thieves like this, then everyone doesn't need to go to Zhoushan anymore and can just pack up and go home.
"General Xu, you are so interested in this group of pirates. I'm afraid it's not just for training, right? We are all our own people here. Honestly, do you have any trouble with this group of people?" Qian Tiandun is not so easy to be fooled. The person who was bluffing immediately asked with a smile.
Xu Yuzhuo was very happy and immediately admitted the account: "It seems that I can't hide it from General Qian's eyes! Yes, last year these gang of thieves robbed a batch of goods from my shipping company in Wenzhou. In fact, money is not a big deal, and the goods were only It’s worth two to thirty thousand taels of silver, but this group of people actually injured two lives of my Xu clan! At that time, my father had written to the Yueqing County Government, hoping that they could help catch the real murderer, but the Yueqing County Magistrate... Hehe! Regardless of the details, in short, he refused to cooperate and deceived me that the Fujian navy could not cross the border to capture people. I had been holding this breath for more than a year. Before leaving this time, my father had given instructions to pull out this Yueqing man if there was a chance. nail, to avenge my people!”
As the commander-in-chief of Fujian, Xu Xinsu was unable to send troops across the border to suppress bandits in neighboring provinces. However, this time his troops followed the Haihan militia and did not fly under the banner of the Ming army. It was indeed a good opportunity to take revenge in Zhejiang. . As for Haihan, Xu Yuzhuo thinks that Qian Tiandun and others probably don't care too much about how the local officials in Yueqing will feel about the Haihan army descending from the sky. The purpose of going north this time is to use a simple and crude method along the coast of Zhejiang. Seizing a foothold and killing a group of pirates was not a big deal for Haihan.
Qian Tiandun nodded and said: "Since it happened for a reason, it's understandable. Come here, find all the maps and information about Yueqing Bay!"
Immediately, someone took the order and went to the cabin to look for information. Qian Tiandun said to Xu Yuzhuo: "Although this group of pirates is not a strong opponent, since we have a mission, it is better to fight quickly. When the map is brought, we will formulate a rough battle according to the map. Plan to avoid confusion when taking action.”
Xu Yuzhuo didn't expect Qian Tiandun to agree so readily, so he quickly thanked him with fists in his hands. He originally thought that since Qian Tiandun knew his motives, he would need some words to convince the other party. Unexpectedly, Qian Tiandun immediately agreed after hearing his reasons, and even took the initiative to ask people to find maps and formulate a battle plan. Xu Yuzhuo had originally been mentally prepared to send troops alone, but the Haihan people would definitely take the initiative to help, which was naturally the best thing.
About half an hour later, Qian Tiandun's people found a map near Yueqing Bay and related written information. Although Haihan's plan to go north originally did not include Yueqing as a stop, he still brought detailed maps and related information along the coast of Zhejiang in case of emergency. Sure enough, this was still half the flight away from the destination, so the extra information came in handy. Compared with the maps in the hands of the Ming army, the maps in the hands of Haihan naturally had great advantages in accuracy. Xu Yuzhuo had cooperated with the Haihan militia several times and knew this very well. He stood up and thanked Qian Tiandun. help.
Qian Tiandun spread out the map on the table, and everyone gathered around to discuss how to send troops and form formations to kill the pirate gang in Yueqing Bay.
Yueqing Bay is a shallow-water harbor with an average water depth of about 10 meters and a deepest depth of about 40 meters. This is an unimpeded area for seagoing ships in this era. The bay is long and narrow from north to south, wide at the mouth and narrow inside, in the shape of a gourd. It is nearly a hundred miles long from north to south and ten to thirty miles wide from east to west. There are 14 islands and 9 reefs in the bay. The tide is a regular semidiurnal tide, and the water level changes very obviously with two highs and two lows every day.
It is said that the home base of this group of pirates is on the coast at the northern end of Yueqing Bay, that is, near Yandang Town, which is adjacent to the Yandang Mountains in later generations. From the topography, it is indeed difficult to catch them all. A slight negligence will allow this group to escape by land. Enter Yandang Mountain. Although the coalition forces have three thousand troops, it is impossible for them to land for this purpose and enter the mountains to encircle and suppress the remaining bandits.
"Let's lure them out to fight, otherwise we won't have the energy to waste it here." After briefly looking at the map, Qian Tiandun made suggestions to Xu Yuzhuo: "We just happened to have brought a group of merchant ships that can be used as bait."
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"But there is no big port in Yueqing Bay. It would be a bit too ostentatious for a group of merchant ships to sail in." Xu Yuzhuo still had some doubts about this suggestion.
Qian Tiandun pondered for a moment and then ordered: "Those pirates we captured earlier, let's go look for anyone who can be used. Just one or two will do."
Xu Yuzhuo's mind also moved quickly, and he immediately asked: "General Qian plans to find local pirates to deliver the message?"
Qian Tiandun nodded and said: "Ask the local pirates to tell them that there are fat sheep passing by the nearby waters, and they need to join forces with them to get the deal. Do you think they will come out?" "It's fat on the lips." , there is no reason not to eat it." Xu Yuzhuo quickly figured out the reason: "As long as the value of this batch of goods is exaggerated, there is no need to worry about these people not being fooled!"
The place where the Xu family's merchant ship was robbed last year was outside Yueqing Bay. The cargo was only worth two to thirty thousand taels of silver. These pirates would not hesitate to hurt the lives of the cargo owners. If they were told that a batch of goods worth one hundred and eighty thousand dollars was going to pass through. Here, they are afraid of flying out of Yueqing Bay. Of course, before that, the coalition must first find the right person who can complete the task of delivering the message.
Takahashi Minami is an expert in how to select useful people from a bunch of prisoners. He can judge the mental state of the person involved from the eyes and subtle movements of the other person, especially those who are not strong-willed enough and will betray in order to survive. He can almost see it accurately. When attacking Santo Domingo City at the mouth of Tamsui River some time ago, Gao Qiaonan successfully instigated Delgado, allowing this native from Luzon Island to open the gate of Santo Domingo City for the Haihan Army.
In this Northern Expedition to Zhoushan, Gao Qiaonan, as Qian Tiandun's right-hand man, naturally got the opportunity to accompany the army. However, in order to deal with the affairs of Jilong Port, he set off from Taipei two days later than the main force. At this time, he had just caught up with the main force. As soon as he rendezvoused with the coalition fleet, Takahashi Minami received a notice asking him to see if there were any available prisoners of war.
Gao Qiaonan did not participate in the previous small-scale battle, but he had heard about the situation in Yueqing, Wenzhou, and also knew that there was another group of pirates hiding in Yueqing Bay. Gao Qiaonan believed that with Qian Tiandun's military habits, he probably would not sit idly by and ignore this, and would probably find an excuse to eliminate this hidden danger. But what he didn't expect was that Qian Tiandun didn't need to use his brain to think of reasons this time. The Ming army had already taken the initiative to wipe out this group of pirates, which saved a lot of trouble.
Takahashi Nan could probably imagine why Qian Tiandun wanted to find useful people among the prisoners of war. He took a small boat to the warship where the prisoners of war were held, and asked someone to take the list of prisoners of war and several confessions recorded in previous interrogations. He quickly browsed through it, and then selected a few prisoners who took the initiative to explain their circumstances during the interrogation. Go and escort them out for your own questioning.
"Do you know why I selected you for interrogation?" After Takahashi Nan asked, the pirate prisoners looked at each other and shook their heads in confusion. However, Gao Qiaonan asked this question not to ask them to give an answer immediately, but to elicit the following words: "Several of you all explained the situation of the pirates in Yueqing Bay during the interrogation. I have an errand now. If you do it well, you can not only regain your freedom, but also get real money and silver rewards. Who is willing to take over? ”
"Me, me, me!" As soon as Gao Qiaonan finished speaking, a middle-aged pirate responded loudly: "Master, I am willing to go through fire and water for my mission, no matter what!"
Takahashi Minami almost laughed out loud: "You actually dropped your book bag. Can't you just be a good scholar? How could you become a pirate?"
The man responded: "The villain has failed in the examination for many years. When he was desperate, he went astray. Little did he know that the first time he went to sea, he became a prisoner! The villain is extremely regretful at this time. If the military master can give the villain a chance to repent, the villain will People must try their best! ”
Takahashi Minami didn't completely believe this. It was true that this guy had read a book, but judging from his skin color, he didn't look like a novice who was going to sea for the first time to rob. Takahashi Minami asked noncommittally: "What's your name?"
"The villain Song Qing, a local from Yueqing, has old people and children at home..."
"Okay, okay!" Gao Qiaonan quickly interrupted him: "Don't sell your bitterness. Let me ask you, if you are asked to go to Yueqing Bay to find those pirates, do you have the courage to go?"
Song Qing hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said: "If the military master just wants to say something, I should do my best."
"Very good! That's you!" Gao Qiaonan felt that this person was available, so he stopped wasting time and asked slowly, and immediately got to the point: "We will send you to Yueqing Bay to find those pirates for help, let's talk about you guys People have caught up with the big fish in Wenzhou, and they need to join forces to eat it, and the faster the better, because the big fish will leave here and go north soon. If this is done successfully, you will be free. If you fail, you, like several others, will be sent to dig in the mountains and forests for the rest of your life. Do you understand? ”
"I understand, thank you for your advice, Master Jun!" Song Qing was indeed a smart man, nodding like a chicken pecking at rice. Although he still couldn't guess the true identity of these uninvited guests, Song Qing believed that their strength should be far superior to the local pirate armed forces. They were going to a lot of trouble to find trouble with the pirates in Yueqing Bay. Song Qing would not bother asking why. He had to complete the life-saving task first. In the past, Song Qing's pirate gang had cooperation experience with the gang in Yueqing Bay. In order to get a big deal, both parties chose to work together, and they succeeded, so the matter of liaison between them was really not a big deal for Song Qing. rusty. The only thing that needs to be worried about is how Song Qing can conceal his identity during the evacuation to avoid being attacked by the pirates who realize the truth.
"The dirty talk is ahead. If you show your flaws and are discovered, or if you want to betray us to gain the trust of the new owner, I would like to advise you to give up as soon as possible." Minami Takahashi pointed to several other prisoners of war who were temporarily unsuccessful. Said: "If you can't do it, I will send these people out and let them tell those pirates your plan."
(End of chapter)