Chapter 2010
The other party was obviously very powerful, so why did he carefully disguise himself as a salt merchant and enter Yangzhou? Now it seems that his purpose is obvious. Obviously, they came here for the musketeers under Lu Kangtai, and they evacuated Yangzhou immediately after finishing the work. They didn't care about other things at all, and they were not prepared to deal with the local salt merchants at this time.
And this kind of behavior also makes Lu Kangtai hate and fear him. What he hates is that the other party is ruthless and destroys the Musketeers team that he has worked hard for a long time to achieve some results in one move. What he is afraid of is that if the other party takes the key The evidence left Yangzhou safely, and I'm afraid I won't pretend to be a salt merchant again when I come back next time.
But now that their faces have been broken, Lu Kangtai can no longer expect to resolve the issue peacefully with the other party. He can only hope to stop the two ships on the canal tonight and keep these people in Yangzhou, and then Then slowly try to cover the lid, or use the hostages captured tonight to conduct subsequent negotiations with the other party - of course, the premise is to intercept the other party first.
Judging from the situation of the battle, it is not a simple task to intercept the opponent's ship. The firepower on the opponent's ship is too strong. It is obviously unrealistic to defeat the opponent with the strength of the crowd, so we can only find other ways. Weaken the opponent's weapon advantage.
The problem that Lu Kangtai thought of was actually thought of by many people at the same time, so when the second group rushed to try to intercept the target's ship, some people used various items as shelters to cover their bodies, and then looked for opportunities to expose only their scalps on the target ship. The enemy attacks. Although the ship planks, wooden barrels, copper basins and other things in their hands can provide extremely limited cover, they at least provide some psychological comfort and encouragement, giving them the courage to fight the enemies on the target ship.
Although most of the weapons in their hands are relatively primitive cold weapons, as long as they are close enough, they can still pose a threat to the enemies on the ship. Especially the muskets and crossbows they used, although their performance was limited, their shooting accuracy was quite impressive at a combat distance of only two to three feet or even closer.
Fortunately, the Military Intelligence Bureau has made corresponding preparations for extreme situations that may arise during the operation, and even installed a batch of light armor and helmets for infantry on the ship, which will come in handy at this time.
This kind of light armor is made of two pieces at the front and back. It can only protect the vital areas of the chest and vest. The helmet is stamped from one minute thick iron sheet. Its protective capabilities are actually very limited. It may not be able to reliably defend against muskets at close range. shooting. However, generally speaking, the Haihan Army will maintain a relatively safe fighting distance from the enemy when fighting, so protective measures do not require covering the whole body with armor. Infantrymen fighting on the front line generally only need to protect the vital parts of the head and torso.
Such basic protective measures allowed the combatants on the ship to successfully avoid multiple fatal injuries, but even so, casualties were inevitable in the chaotic fighting situation. The two military doctors on board the ship also began to be busy at this time, treating the injuries of the wounded separately.
Ji Yuanqing did not send all combatants into the battle at once. Instead, he maintained a combat strength of about ten people on the left and right sides of the ship. The remaining people were on standby on the deck to maneuver and assist the crew in completing damage control.
Although the kerosene incendiary bombs thrown from the nearby ship could not burn the sails, the fire on the deck was quickly extinguished. However, this has made the people on the ship very nervous. If the sail ropes on the ship are burned, they will most likely never be able to get out of the canal.
"Hit the arsonist first!" Seeing that the situation was critical, Gong Shiqi quickly issued an order to the gunmen on the side of the ship.
A guy on the boat next to him was about to throw the kerosene bomb in his hand onto the boat. He was hit by a shot. The kerosene bomb exploded directly in his hand and then spread on the deck, killing him and several people around him. All were enveloped in fire. The man reacted very quickly. After making a strange cry, he jumped directly into the river, and then several others jumped into the river to put out the fire on their bodies.
The fire on the deck quickly ignited several other kerosene bombs stacked on the side of the ship, and soon the entire bow was engulfed in raging flames. When the sailors on the ship saw that the situation was not good, they could only change the ship's course and sail to the shore, making way for the ships behind it.
Gong Shiqi glanced at the river behind him and saw at least a dozen boats following him, with a determined attitude, and he secretly complained in his heart. Although there is a clear gap in the combat effectiveness of the two sides, if the opponent keeps using wheel tactics to drag itself, and the manpower and ammunition on the ship are limited, the time to suppress it has actually entered a countdown. He estimated that according to the current intensity of the battle, Amitabha would be the only one who could hold out until Guazhou.
But in this case, it is absolutely impossible to order to reduce the intensity of combat. Once the opponent sees through the reality, they will definitely cling to you at any cost. It is better to fight with all your strength and strive to repel the enemy's pursuit before reaching Guazhou.
In Gong Shiqi's past career experience, there were actually very few situations where he was free to fight with others like he was now. Even though he had rich experience in action, he still couldn't help but become quite excited at this time. On the other hand, Ji Yuanqing, who was born as a soldier, was more calm. After all, although the current battle situation was quite fierce, it was still too childish compared to the actual battlefield where thousands of troops were involved.
"Go on!" Lu Kangtai gritted his teeth and urged his men to continue attacking the ship in front, and doubled the previously announced reward standard to stimulate his men to continue fighting at the risk of their lives.
Such financial incentives did have an immediate effect. The offensive momentum that was originally hit quickly ignited the pursuers' emotions after Lu Kangtai's statement was conveyed to each ship. More than a dozen ships continued to surge towards the target with great momentum. .
After several miles of fighting with the salt merchants who caught up with them, the ship that was left behind had already suffered battle damage, with two people dead and more than ten injured. Even Gong Shiqi's own arm was scratched by an arrow. It was a big cut, but luckily it didn't hurt any muscles or bones, and after being bandaged, it didn't cause any serious problems for the time being. However, another ship carrying the radio, prisoners, and evidence took this opportunity to successfully escape from the battlefield, and its figure was no longer visible in the dark night.
Although there are no specific statistics on the number of casualties on the chasing side, they are definitely far more than Gong Shiqi's team. There are already as many as five ships that have lost their combat capabilities and been forced to leave the battlefield. Regardless of whether the interception is successful or not, Lu Kangtai will definitely have to pay a large amount of pension for the aftermath.
The bloody battle continued in the night, with gunshots and firelights, and pitiful howls constantly heard on the river. Fortunately, both sides of the canal were mostly farmland and there were not many people, so the fight between the two sides was still possible for the time being. Didn't cause much panic in the canal basin.
Lu Kangtai was already furious at this time and kept giving orders to urge his men to continue attacking the ship. As a kerosene bomb finally hit the cargo ship's sail, sparks flew up, and a burst of cheers suddenly sounded on the river. But before they could be happy for long, several pumps on the deck of the ship poured water onto the sails, extinguishing the fire that had not yet ignited.
This was really not an ideal situation for the pursuers who had finally made some progress, but the real blow came later. Several fist-sized iron bullets were thrown from the big ship to the small boat that came up. After bouncing on the deck a few times, they suddenly exploded. The fragmented shrapnel immediately caused a terrible killing effect on the surrounding crowd. After the bomb went off, it knocked down almost everyone within a one-foot radius.
After eating several such iron bombs one after another, most of the two boats closest to the big ship had been killed or injured, and they had to withdraw from the battle.
"This thing is really easy to use! It would be nice if there were more of it!" Gong Qiqi was also very satisfied with the impact effect of this military weapon. The only problem was that the inventory was too small. They only brought a total of them when they came out this time. Just twenty pieces.
"This grenade is mainly used by front-line army troops. It has not been installed in the troops here in Zhoushan, and there is only a small amount of inventory in the weapons depot. If it were not for the special nature of this mission, we might not be able to apply for this weapon. "Ji Yuanqing explained with a smile.
This time they came to Yangzhou to perform a mission. The ship was not equipped with heavy weapons such as artillery, so Ji Yuanqing thought of another alternative. The Ministry of Security basically had no chance to equip this kind of military weapon. The grenades used in this operation were all reported and applied for by Ji Yuanqing before departure. They were originally just used as a secret weapon just in case, but they didn't expect that they could actually be used when the incident happened. Comes in handy.
Of course, the power of grenades is still far from being comparable to artillery, but in the current special combat environment, the actual killing and deterrence effects of grenades are not necessarily inferior to artillery. However, they actually have little confidence in whether this thing can completely destroy the opponent's will to fight. After all, the quantity is limited, and it cannot be renewed after it is used up. After all, the opponent has a lot of people on board. If they are ruthless enough, they can actually survive this wave. Not much of a problem.
In fact, this more or less had a psychological impact on the salt merchants' armed forces. Even Lu Kangtai was a little guilty, thinking that this group of people had slowed down their speed and fought with their own troops all the way. In fact, they were deliberately luring themselves into the bait. At one time, all the armed forces on hand of the local salt merchants were eliminated.
But he immediately rejected his idea. If the other party had this idea in mind, why would he ask Da to let another ship leave first? Wouldn't it be faster for the two ships to do it together? Moreover, after fighting for so long before using this big killer weapon, it is very likely that there is no other way but to use the bottom trick to find an escape. If you give up the pursuit at this time, you may miss the best opportunity to attack.
The more Lu Kangtai thought about it, the more he felt that this was possible, so he immediately ordered the attack to continue and further increased the reward. Now he has no other better way to stimulate the fighting will of his men. He can only continue to increase the silver reward chips to ensure his courage to continue fighting.
"We're catching up again! It seems they still refuse to let go!" Gong Shiqi's excitement did not last long, and he saw two more boats behind him, approaching the left and right sides respectively. A new round of offensive was coming in an instant. .
To repel this wave of offensive again, it took Gong Shiqi and others much longer than when they first engaged in the battle. Currently, more than half of the combat personnel on the ship were injured, and nearly half of them could not insist on continuing to participate in the battle. , the combat attrition was very obvious. Although there is still some ammunition for the rifle, if the combat intensity is maintained at this level, it probably won't last too long.
Ji Yuanqing was also hit on the shoulder by a crossbow arrow fired from the boat. Fortunately, like Gong Shiqi, it was only a flesh wound. After being bandaged, he continued to direct the battle from the side of the boat.
The twenty grenades were quickly used up in the battle. Although they caused a lot of damage to the opponent, they still failed to defeat their will to fight. The red-eyed salt merchants' armed forces only had about half of the ship and manpower left, but they still clung to the side and rear reluctantly, constantly trying various means to prevent the large ship from escaping.
"We're heading to Guazhou!" Finally, they had some good news that made them slightly relieved. As long as you pass Guazhou, you will be at the intersection of the canal and the Yangtze River. After entering the Yangtze River, it will be difficult for the other side's small boats to stop the ship from sailing to the downstream estuary on the river that is several miles wide.
The same information made Lu Kangtai even more anxious. His goal is to block his opponent in the canal, but if his opponent escapes into the Yangtze River, all his efforts tonight will be in vain. Guazhou is already vaguely visible ahead. Even if all the remaining ships swarm up at this time, it may be difficult to intercept the opponent.
When entering the fork of the river in Guazhou, the cargo ship fired a salvo of three-round rifles at the nearest small boat that was trying to get on, sending sawdust flying everywhere, and then leisurely sailed toward the mouth of the river.
Just when Lu Kangtai was hesitating whether to give the order to continue the pursuit, the sound coming from the ship in front made him so angry that he almost vomited blood.
"I have already felt your enthusiasm, and it will be repaid in the future. I say goodbye today. You have sent me dozens of miles this night, so there is no need to send you away again. Please come back!"
After Gong Qi Qi finished shouting, he put down the tin trumpet, shook his head proudly and said: "If you are not convinced, just keep following me. I'll see if you can follow me all the way to Ningbo!"
"If they have the courage to follow Wusongkou, then take them to Ningbo together!" Ji Yuanqing felt much more relaxed at this time, and no longer worried about whether the other party would continue to pursue. There will be Haihan warships near Wusongkou to meet them. If the Yangzhou salt merchants don't know what to do, they will definitely be gone and never return.
In the end, Lu Kangtai's remaining troops were defeated and stopped at Guazhou. They watched helplessly as the cargo ship that had fought all night sailed into the Yangtze River and then turned around and headed east.
(End of chapter)