Chapter 1796 Reconnaissance Operation
Two thousand taels of gold sounds like a lot, but when the North Koreans sent it over, it was actually packed in only two small iron boxes, which looked inconspicuous. After Wang Tom checked the number, he had someone put a seal on it and put it away. The gold will not be stored in the fleet for too long. When the supply fleet goes south later, it will be sent to Zhoushan and then transferred back to China. As for the fleet's expenses in the north, they are mainly based on paper money internally, and a combination of paper money and silver externally. Generally, gold, which is listed as a key reserve material by the Executive Committee, is rarely used. Although the fleet also brought some gold with it when it set out, they were all gold bars officially issued by Haihan Bank. The gold received from abroad must first be sent home and recast, turning it into gold reserves in the treasury before it can be used again. Make the call.
After the North Koreans offered this military expenditure, Wang Tom's attitude finally softened a little. He was not blinded by the money, but at least this was another indication of the North Koreans' attitude that they were willing to pay and hire Haihan to send troops to defend the country. own country. If the coalition forces want to fight in North Korea in the future, I believe it will not be difficult for the North Korean authorities to continue to pay for military expenditures.
However, other companies in the coalition are not qualified to enjoy active offerings from North Korea. They can only bear all the expenses for fighting in the north by themselves. At most, they can enjoy the wartime logistical support provided by North Korea as a unified coalition force. If you want to make money after the war, establishing an independent route from the south to this area is basically the only way. Haihan has given the green light to their needs, but in the end whether things can come true depends on their performance in the war.
These companies had already fought in the Battle of Manila, and their performance had been recognized by Haihan. After the war, each of them was rewarded by setting up local trade strongholds and even enclosing land for development. It is precisely because they have tasted such sweetness that these companies are full of great interest in entering Northeast Asia. Even though Haihan stated that the situation here may not be decided by a battle like in Manila, they still insisted on sending out Troops join the coalition.
The coalition command quickly agreed on the next operational arrangements and conducted more in-depth reconnaissance of the area near the border between the Qing Dynasty and North Korea to confirm whether the Qing army was moving towards the border area to gather large forces. The Fujian Navy, which took the initiative to fight, also gained the trust of the command and will act together with the Haihan Navy. The Independence Regiment and troops from Annan and Portugal will continue to stay on Ganghwa Island, waiting for news from the front. At the same time, the command will continue to negotiate with the North Korean authorities, urging them to improve war preparation measures as soon as possible, and the North Korean domestic armed forces must also be integrated into the coalition's command system to ensure that the North Korean army can cooperate with the coalition's actions.
"I'll leave the errand of dealing with the Koreans to you." Wang Tom unceremoniously passed the blame to Qian Tiandun, who stayed on Ganghwa Island: "If they make any mistakes, don't bear it. I think they are Need a lesson!”
"Of course I won't spoil them." Qian Tiandun changed the subject and said, "Don't be too careless when you go to the north. If you find that the opponent's troops are superior, you should withdraw to the sea as soon as possible. After all, if you have to fight, your legs will be weak. Can’t run on four legs!”
Regarding the matter of entering enemy-occupied areas to perform reconnaissance missions, the Haihan generals did not take the Qing army lightly because of their previous advantage on the Liaodong battlefield. According to historical records, the Qing army invaded North Korea with more than 100,000 troops. Even if the water is removed, the headquarters believes that its combat troops are at least 40,000 to 50,000. The number of troops Haihan can put on the Korean battlefield is, It may be less than one-tenth of that, and the casualties it can endure are far less than those of the Qing army. If the Qing army has gathered its troops near the border between the two countries, and considering that entering unfamiliar areas to perform tasks will inevitably greatly reduce its combat effectiveness, it is indeed risky to go to the north to detect the movements of the Qing army this time.
Tom Wang nodded and said: "I will be careful, and you still have to remember the safety rules."
The so-called safety rules are some precautions specially formulated by the Executive Committee for the members of the Cross-Travelling Army. Especially for generals who lead troops overseas, the personal risks they face are bound to be considerable. For generals like Wang Tom and Qian Tiandun, their personal safety can almost be equated with national security. The Executive Committee also restricts their actions during command operations to avoid putting them in danger as much as possible. For this reconnaissance operation that needs to go deep into the interior of enemy-occupied areas, in principle, travelers cannot lead troops to venture on the front line in person. At most, they can sit and command near the coastline. Qian Tiandun reminded Wang Tom that he also wanted him to stay calm and not be distracted for a moment. Being impulsive leaves personal safety behind.
It is worth mentioning that after the Battle of Jinzhou in 1636, Huang Taiji offered a reward for General Haihan. Those who could capture Haihan and the generals who led troops in Liaodong alive would be directly granted the title of king and fiefdom, even if they took it back. People can also enjoy high-ranking officials and generous salaries. Of course, this bounty was more of a way to motivate soldiers to kill the enemy, and Huang Taiji didn't expect to really catch General Haihan.
Over the next two days, the generals gathered to study plans for the reconnaissance operation. The first thing is to determine the target area for reconnaissance. In the past, the border between the Ming Dynasty and North Korea was bounded by the Yalu River. The southeast was the border of North Korea and the northwest was the jurisdiction of the Liaodong Dusi of the Ming Dynasty. However, now most of the Liaodong area has fallen to the Qing army. Under the iron heel, this natural national border became the dividing line between the Qing Dynasty and the Korean Kingdom.
The straight-line distance from Shenyang to the Yalu River is less than four hundred miles, but the terrain during this period is almost entirely mountainous. Tens of thousands of troops, especially large cavalry units, must be assembled from the direction of Shenyang to the national border, and Not an easy task. With the Qing's national strength at this time, an expedition to North Korea would also be a great test for their logistical support capabilities.
Precisely because of the special terrain of this area, Haihan believes that there are only a few routes for the Qing army to mobilize troops, and there are only a few places where the Qing army can assemble tens of thousands of troops on the north bank of the Yalu River. Considering that Haihan had repeatedly cleared the coastline near the mouth of the Yalu River two years ago, the Qing army would not choose a place close to the coastline as the base camp for launching a cross-river offensive. Therefore, Wang Tom believed that if the Qing army wanted to gather near the Yalu River to cross the river, River, then it must be a place slightly closer to the upstream. Jiulian City, about a hundred miles away from the coastline and located on the north bank of the Yalu River, is one of the areas that Wang Tom believes is most likely to be selected by the Qing army as a gathering point.
Jiulian City was built in the Jin Dynasty and got its name from the nine connected castles of various sizes built there. It faces the Jue River and the Yalu River in the east, and is backed by Zhendong Mountain. The strategic terrain is very dangerous. In the Ming Dynasty, another Zhenjiang City was built here, and thousands of soldiers and horses were stationed here. It was an important military location on the border of Liaodong and one of the main land routes for trade and diplomatic exchanges with North Korea. Of course, now this area has all fallen into the hands of the Manchus and has become part of the Qing Dynasty's territory.
If Huang Taiji leads his army from Shenyang, he can pass through Baitapu, Qinji Fort, Weining Camp, Lianshanguan, Tongyuan Fort, Xielie Station, Fenghuang City, Tangzhan Fort, and march all the way through the mountainous area to Jiulian City , crossing the river from here is Uiju of North Korea. This route was the only official road built in this mountainous area during the Ming Dynasty. If Huang Taiji wanted to quickly complete the army gathering near the border, he basically had no other choice. The previous reconnaissance operations launched by the Jinzhou Garrison only made routine observations near the mouth of the Yalu River and did not venture hundreds of miles inland, so the situation near Jiulian City was not clear. Although the administrative seat of Yiju in North Korea is just across the river from Jiuliancheng, only more than ten miles away, the relevant information provided is of little reference value, because since last year North Korea has sent information to Haihan who stationed in Jinzhou. After the Jin army began to provide logistical supplies, Hou Jin blocked the Yalu River and banned exchanges between the two countries. Although the North Korean garrison in Yiju also tried to inquire about intelligence on the other side, they were worried that the other side would be able to use it to start a war, so they did not act resolutely, and there has been no substantial intelligence harvest.
Of course, based on the performance of the North Koreans at this time, even if relevant information is provided, Wang Tom may not dare to believe it all. He will definitely have to go through it himself before he can rest assured. However, under his strong request, Kim Sang-hyun had already sent a message to Seoul, asking the king to order the troops from the northern states to gather in the direction of Yiju, so as to avoid even the slightest resistance from the North Korean side if the Qing army suddenly launched an offensive. Once the Yalu River defense line is breached, the coastal plain on the west coast of the Korean Peninsula will become a fast passage for the Qing cavalry to move south. Even if Haihan sends troops by then, it may not be able to stop this offensive.
The coalition forces spent three days on Ganghwa Island to rest and formulate an action plan. During this period, although Kim Sang-heon also tried to get North Korean generals to go to Ganghwa Island to join the coalition's combat preparation meeting, he was turned away by Wang Tom for various reasons. . Before confirming that the North Koreans would no longer paddle, Wang Tom did not want them to participate in the coalition's operations, so as not to delay them.
One day in early May, a fleet of more than 30 combat ships, ten troop carriers, and eight supply ships slowly left the dock of Ganghwa Island in the morning fog and headed northwest.
This fleet included ten warships belonging to the Fujian Navy led by Xu Yuzhuo. He was also very excited to get the opportunity to take the lead in this operation. Both Annan and Portugal's colleagues expressed envy that he could get such an opportunity, but this trip north was mainly for reconnaissance, so although the other two companies also wanted to fight, Wang Tom no longer needed more participants.
Haihan's repeated campaigns at sea in the past two years have completely destroyed Houjin's few sea-surface armed forces, and almost all of the few remaining warships will no longer take the initiative to go to sea. Therefore, the current Yellow Sea area has no control over Haihan. Basically, it belongs to a safe zone. There is no need to worry about encountering enemies in this sea area, and you can move forward with confidence and boldness. The fleet will also take this opportunity to survey the northwest coastline of the Korean Peninsula again and check and correct the map data at hand.
Although it has entered May, due to the influence of the Little Ice Age, the temperature in the north is below 20 degrees all year round, and there is no strong feeling of heat even in midsummer. Southern soldiers who went to this area for the first time would more or less have symptoms of colds or acclimatization. Fortunately, the military was very well prepared for this, and had corresponding medicines for timely disposal, and there were no large areas of patients on the ship.
Two days after setting off from Ganghwa Island, the fleet sailed past the west side of Pi Island where the soldiers and civilians of Dongjiang Town were once stationed. However, all the soldiers and civilians on the island had moved to Jinzhou for resettlement last year. Now the island is basically uninhabited and has become a desert island again. Officials in nearby Tieshan, Xuanchuan, Dingzhou and other places breathed a sigh of relief last year after seeing off the Ming army on the island, believing that no longer providing them with supplies would relieve local pressure, but within a year Over time, the military threat from the north made them miss the sense of security that the Ming army in Dongjiang Town had stationed nearby. Even though the Ming army on the island at that time was starving and emaciated due to lack of material supplies and was not able to support high-intensity battles, it was still a powerful backer for the Koreans during the war.
However, the Koreans also know that if they want to burn incense, it is effective to burn it in a big temple. Seeing that the Ming army is no longer reliable, the Haihan army that can beat the Hou Jin army back step by step in Jinzhou is obviously the real one, so they decisively He found Haihan for help. Although the Haihan people made many more demands than the Ming army stationed on Pi Island, this was taken for granted by North Korean officials. After all, the strength was here, and it was normal for the people to ask for more money and food.
Although Wang Tom rejected North Korea's request to send troops to participate in this reconnaissance operation, he still brought North Korean official Jin Sangjiu with him so that he could go ashore to contact the local government in case of emergencies. However, the headquarters still did not reveal much to Jin Shangjiu about the specific arrangements for the reconnaissance operation, so he could only continue to be a spectator during this voyage as before.
"If you are lucky, you can just go out for a tour and go back in a few days. If you are not lucky...then we may run into a large force of the Qing army near here, maybe Fight directly." Wang Tom said to Jin Shangjiu: "Of course, Mr. Jin, don't be nervous. I will not arrange for you to get off the ship to fight with the Qing army. You just need to stay on this ship and wait for news. If nothing happens, you will be fine. Maybe you won’t even see the shadow of the Qing army.”
Jin Shangjiu was quite puzzled by this: "Since General Wang said it was so easy, why is your army unwilling to take our army with us?"
Wang Tom coughed twice, patted Jin Shangjiu on the shoulder and said: "Master Jin, it is precisely because I did not bring your army with me that I can make this matter so easy!"
(End of chapter)