Chapter 925 Heading South to Borneo
Roger personally trained this unit because its strength is just above the company and below the battalion level. It is not suitable to be organized at the company or battalion level, so the temporary organization currently obtained is the "South China Sea Special Warfare Group" Such a slightly nondescript title. However, Roger didn't care much about the name issue. He now wanted to get this unit out of Ambrosia Island to perform some real combat missions as soon as possible. Roger believes that the training level of his group of people has actually exceeded that of ordinary militia troops, but the shortcomings of experience are indeed too obvious, and only by participating in actual combat can they slowly make up for it.
That night, Roger held a grand celebration banquet to reward his men. At the wine table, he couldn't hold himself back and began to ask Yan Chujie about the next action plan: "Mr. Yan, this time I came to Ambona Island to bring the entire establishment of two fleets. It should be It’s not just about cruising in the South China Sea, but there are other big moves, right?”
Yan Chujie put down his wine glass and nodded in response: "The South China Sea is too far away from the base camp. We have to pave the way here station by station. It has been two years since we paved the road to Ambona Island. It is time to continue to extend our control area southward. ”
"Okay!" Roger was gearing up when he heard the news. Although he had expected it beforehand, he still couldn't suppress his excitement after hearing it from Yan Chujie. He had been hiding in Nanhai for such a long time, waiting for the executive committee to adjust its strategy. Although the waiting time seemed to him a bit long, it was not in vain.
Yan Chujie continued: "We plan to control at least one of the two Straits of Malacca and Sunda in the South China Sea within one or two years. However, Malacca is still in the hands of the Portuguese, and it is not easy for us to grab it directly, so it has been decided The target is still the Sunda Strait ”
"Are we going to fight Batavia?" Roger asked tentatively.
"Whether we should completely break up with the Dutch or not, the executive committee has not decided yet." Yan Chujie said with a solemn look on his face: "Our current navigation capabilities are not enough to open up routes in the Indian Ocean, and the western section of the East-West trade is still We need ocean-going ships from countries like Portugal, the Netherlands, and Spain to bear the burden. It is not surprising that a complete break with them may hinder our plan to open up Western trade routes.”
The situation mentioned by Yan Chujie does exist. If Haihan wants to use all his strength to attack Batavia, the possibility of taking it is very high, but the problems that may arise in the future must also be considered. . At present, the commercial and trade system between European countries and the Far East is basically monopolized by a few major maritime countries, of which the Netherlands accounts for nearly half. The name of sea coachman is not for nothing.
According to historical records, the tonnage of the Dutch merchant ships accounted for three-quarters of the total tonnage of European merchant ships during this period, with as many as 15,000 merchant ships. Most of the spices from Southeast Asia, cotton textiles from India, silk, porcelain, tea, etc. from China were transported thousands of miles to Europe by Dutch merchant ships. It was not until the Netherlands was defeated in the six-year Franco-Dutch War in the late 17th century that their dominant position in global maritime trade was gradually replaced by the emerging European powers.
If Haihan went to full-scale war with the Netherlands, it would definitely affect the East-West trade pattern of this era. Of course, countries like Portugal that compete with the Netherlands on a global scale will definitely be happy to see this happen. Only when the Netherlands loses power in the Far East will they have the opportunity to replace it, and Haihan's dependence on it in maritime trade will also be affected. Promotion, from the perspective of Portugal, of course, I hope that these two teams will fight as hard as possible.
From Haihan's perspective, finding a port suitable for long-term development is more important than eliminating current competitors. The Executive Committee has held many discussions on this, and most opinions believe that Batavia and Malacca are not suitable for long-term operation as regional trade centers, and the terrain conditions have limited their development prospects. In this era, the construction capacity cannot complete large-scale projects such as reclamation and port construction. When looking for overseas bases, Haihan often gives priority to natural harbors to reduce investment in the port construction process.
If there were no other options for a place like Ambona Island, Haihan would probably not build it as an important stronghold in the South China Sea. However, Ambona Island has limited congenital conditions and it is difficult to build a large seaport that can deploy a fleet. Therefore, as Haihan continues to expand southward, it will have higher requirements for geographical conditions when looking for its next foothold. Otherwise, it will be far away. The fleet in Cam Ranh Bay will be difficult to provide timely military support to the new stronghold in the South China Sea.
This time, Yan Chujie personally led the fleet south to conduct a relatively comprehensive cruise in the South China Sea, hoping to find a suitable place to settle south of Amborna Island.
After Roger listened carefully to Yan Chujie's story, he asked a more sensitive question: "Do the Portuguese know our plans?"
Yan Chujie said: "The Portuguese have an office in Sanya. Such a large-scale naval fleet trip will definitely not be hidden from their eyes. So we informed them of the situation in advance to prevent these foreign devils from misunderstanding."
Roger said: "Unless we go to war with the Dutch, the Portuguese will probably not be happy to see us opening new ports in the South China Sea."
"You are right. Their consul in Sanya, Thomas, has already lodged a protest with the Executive Committee, believing that our actions will affect their rights and interests in the South China Sea."
"How did Tao always reply to the Portuguese?" Roger asked with interest.
"Mr. Tao was very tough and beat Thomas back with just one sentence - whoever has the bigger fist has the right." After Yan Chujie finished speaking, he couldn't help laughing. Roger was stunned for a moment, then started laughing. With Haihan's current strength, he can indeed stand tall and say no to the foreign devils. To put it more seriously, the Portuguese's status in the Far East is actually closely related to Haihan's support for them. Portugal's current import and export trade with the Ming Dynasty can only be carried out with Haihan's permission and protection. There is no capital to dictate to Haihan. Although Tao Donglai's words are extremely rude, this is exactly what Haihan's army did. The tough attitude that Fang hopes to see.
Although Haihan and Portugal have formed a partnership, both parties have their own small calculations. The Portuguese wanted to use Haihan's force to suppress competitors in the Far East and expand their own trade routes. Haihan also hoped that Portugal could take on more freight tasks for east-west trade, so that they could have free hands to deal with Spain. and the Dutch. However, Portugal still lacks such strength for the time being. After all, their country is still under the rule of Spain and has not gained independence. In recent years, the Far East, especially the area west of Malacca, has basically been struggling to support itself. If it were not for Haihan, A big leg, they may not even be able to save the few existing control areas.
However, Portugal's opposition is not useless. They know more about the situation in the South China Sea than Haihan. Without the support of this intelligence source, Haihan will have to spend more time on preparations.
Roger took advantage of his drunkenness and said: "I'm drinking a little too much now. I won't be able to remember the specific action plan if you tell me. I only have one request. This cruise also brings my people out to see the world."
Yan Chujie readily agreed. He also wanted to see how this unit performed after leaving the training ground. Moreover, Haihan's patrol exercise in the South China Sea included many landing and reconnaissance missions, and it is indeed necessary to have an army more adapted to the local environment to act with the fleet.
Also coming to Ampurna Island with the Haihan Fleet were Annan's young prince Zheng Zha and Champa General Fan Ji. They also visited today's troop assessment as military observers. They can only be envious and envious of the performance of this new Haihan army. Their new army, which has not yet set foot on the battlefield, has already become more powerful than their own regular army. This gap is simply inconceivable. Thoughts of resistance. The only good thing is that the training items of Haihan's army are similar to those of our own army. If we put more effort into our daily training, there should still be a chance to shorten the gap.
The military assistance Haihan gave them also included the training plan for the troops. Haihan did not hide too much in this regard. The technical and tactical gap between the two sides was actually more reflected in the quality of the commanders, not just Differences in individual abilities of individual soldiers. In the Haihan Militia, starting from the grassroots officers at the squad leader level, they are all veterans with actual combat experience. Those who can be promoted to company and platoon commanders also rely on their military exploits, and most of them have received advanced training in military schools and have professional abilities. It is far from comparable to the grassroots commanders in the army such as Annan Champa. Although these two countries also send officers to Sanya for further training every year, there are not many grassroots officers. Almost all of them are from various connections to gilt, so that they can get promoted and make a fortune based on their resumes. The effect on improving the overall strength of the army is very limited. .
Because of this, truly insightful people value the opportunity to conduct military exercises with the Haihan Militia Army, even if such exercises require spending huge sums of money and taking risks to mobilize elite troops to unknown lands thousands of miles away. , but also strive for this opportunity that only comes once a year.
Starting from the day when the Combined Fleet arrived at the Port of Ambuna, military control was implemented at the port, and only civilian and merchant ships were allowed to enter or exit, to ensure that the whereabouts of the Combined Fleet would not be leaked in a short time. Although this arrangement will make some businessmen dissatisfied, they also know that the Haihan people have extremely strict rules. If they break these rules, they will never want to do business with the Haihan people again in the future. Fortunately, the living facilities on the island are much more complete than before, so it won't be too difficult to live here for a while. It's like being forced to take a vacation for a while.
The fleet stayed at Ambuna Port for four days, during which Yan Chujie and others took the time to inspect various work on the island, while the soldiers and sailors took the opportunity to rest. On October 16, the combined fleet sailed out of the port of Ambona one after another and headed southeast.
The first destination of the combined fleet is Borneo, which is only more than 100 nautical miles away from Ampurna Island. The third largest island in the world is also known as Bo Ni, Bo Li, etc. in Chinese historical records. Narratives about this island were first seen in the book "Topographic Guide" written by Ptolemy in 150 AD. Civilization already existed here as early as two to three centuries BC. The earliest record of navigation between China and Borneo appears in the "Book of Liang" in the fifth century AD. The current national government in Borneo is called Sukadana, and its ruler is loyal to the Mataram Kingdom on Java Island, which is the country to which the army that swept through the Dutch colonies and almost captured Batavia last year belonged.
However, Haihan is not very interested in Borneo at present. First, because this large island lacks a natural harbor and the development cost is high; secondly, because its location is relatively far from the two key waterways that Haihan values, there is no need to look far away. Establish a stronghold in Borneo; thirdly, we are also wary of the Sukadana Kingdom on the island. After all, the Matalan Kingdom behind it is considered a first-rate power in South Asia. Although its military force is definitely not as powerful as the Haihan Militia, this This kind of country can easily mobilize tens of thousands of indigenous troops to go to war, and it is not a small trouble to be an enemy of it.
The cruise route set by the navy is to go all the way south along the west coast of Borneo into the Java Sea. Depending on the situation, it will be decided whether to cross the sea between Borneo and Java Island and go to the north coast of Java Island to find out.
There are more than 20 islands of various sizes in the sea area from Ambuna Island to Borneo, including Subi Island. However, these places have been repeatedly cleared by the Ambuna Island garrison many times in the past two years and are relatively safe areas. . The fleet maintained a relaxed atmosphere and spent a day and a half sailing to the coast of Borneo.
The fleet used a small boat to send a group of people ashore near the shore. The purpose of their landing was not to detect the enemy situation here, but to collect samples of local flora and fauna. These samples will be made into specimens during the cruise and will be sent back to the research institution in Sanya for collection in the future.
According to Ning Qi’s report to the Executive Committee, Borneo is home to ten species of primates, 350 species of birds, 150 species of reptiles, and 15,000 species of plants. There is no reason to miss such a good place for natural science observation. Today’s research results will be valuable knowledge for future generations. Although Yan Chujie believed in his heart that this kind of research would not help Haihan expand his territory, since this was a special task assigned by the executive committee, he would still carry it out without compromise. It's just that it takes two to three days for the staff to collect specimens, which makes Yan Chujie a little unbearable.
The most confused people were Zheng Zha and Fan Ji. They didn't know why the combined fleet wanted to stay on this desolate and inhabited coast. Judging from the natural conditions, it was not suitable for establishing a port. The nearest local town is at least two hundred miles away from this place, and the Haihan people should not find this place even if they want to conduct trade with the locals.
(End of chapter)