Chapter 2109
The Fujian Ming Army dispatched by Xu Xinsu set off from Zhangzhou and Quanzhou at the same time in mid-April. Naturally, such a large-scale troop mobilization cannot be completely hidden from everyone. As for the whereabouts of these thousands of Ming troops, Xu Xinsu said to the outside world that they were in Fujian The Strait and the Haihan Army conducted military exercises together. As for whether the civil and military officials in Fujian believed this statement, he actually didn't care too much. If anyone felt that there was anything wrong with mixing with the Haihan Army, he could write a memorial to the court.
For Xu Xinsu, other things can be put aside for the time being, and the signs of the Eighteenth Party Committee's rise overseas must be dealt with first. The intelligence provided by Haihan showed that Japan's Hirado was building warships and various weapons on a large scale. The Eighteen Zhiyu Party obviously wanted to use Hirado to make a comeback. This was something Xu Xinsu absolutely could not accept.
Although Xu Xinsu now lives a pampered life and doesn't have to travel around anymore, she can't stand the fact that she is getting older year by year, and her body is gradually unable to withstand the demands of leading troops overseas. She can only command her troops. He handed over the power to his nephew and descendants, and sat in Fujian to ensure the stability of the rear.
However, before Xu Yuzhuo left Zhangzhou this time, Xu Xinsu had already given him a death order to annihilate the remaining members of the Eighteen Zhizhi Party at all costs, especially those related to Zheng Zhilong. A chance to regain momentum. The consequences of not killing them all back then have now become apparent. We cannot make the same mistake again this time.
Therefore, after Xu Yuzhuo met with Shi Diwen, he also made a request to wipe out the Eighteen Zhiyu Party. However, Shi Diwen believed that there would be considerable difficulties in actual operation, and it may not be possible to achieve the goal requested by Xu Xinsu.
Xu Yuzhuo was a little depressed because he failed to win the full support of his allies, so he asked Shi Diwen for a detailed map of Hirado and summoned his officers to study the battle plan together.
"The key point is to block maritime navigation and prevent the target from crossing the Hirado Strait and escaping to Kyushu. Once we cross the strait, it will be difficult for our small force to go deep into the interior to pursue the target."
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After studying the map, Xu Yuzhuo had to admit that Shi Diwen's opinion was more objective. It is indeed very difficult to completely block the escape route from Hirado Island with limited troops. Once the target escapes to the Kyushu area, which is close at hand, then It will be difficult to catch people again.
Although Kyushu and Hirado are both islands, Kyushu is the third largest island in Japan, covering an area of nearly 38,000 square kilometers, equivalent to the area of more than 200 Hirado islands. Most areas in Kyushu are mountainous and dense forests. As long as the target escapes into these areas and hides, it will be difficult for the Ming army, which is completely unfamiliar with the local environment, to track it.
"General, we have limited ships. It is very difficult to completely block the waterway at sea. It is better to concentrate on clearing out the ports on the coast of Hirado Island and control the ships on the island in the shortest time. Perhaps it is better than blocking the waterway. More effective.”
Xu Yuzhuo also had many smart people under his command, and he quickly thought of a solution to this problem. This approach is actually not new. Haihan used this method to control the Liaodong coastline in the north to prevent the Qing Dynasty from sailing out to sea.
Although the Fujian Navy is not as powerful as the Haihan Navy, it should not be a problem to deal with an opponent of the level of the Hirado Domain. Although the Hirado Domain originally had a certain naval force, and there is evidence that it is being built in batches locally. Warships, but Xu Yuzhuo still has full confidence in his own strength. After all, the Fujian Navy has participated in overseas campaigns with Haihan many times in recent years, and has fought against all kinds of enemies on the battlefield. The actual combat experience is definitely not that of the Hirado Domain, which is built behind closed doors. The navy can't compare.
As long as we can manage to control the port of Hirado Island, it can indeed cut off the enemy's escape channels. However, there will definitely be certain difficulties in the implementation of this plan. For example, the Fujian Navy, which is not familiar with the local situation, will It is not easy to find every port on the island that can access the sea in a short period of time. Even the detailed map provided by Haihan only marked some of the main targets on the island, and further on-site reconnaissance was needed to confirm which other unknown small ports there were.
After the large forces of the Fujian Navy arrived at Zhujiajian Island, they rested for seven days. The reason why we stayed at Zhujiajian Island for such a long time was mainly because we were waiting for the Northern Route Army on the North Korean side to arrive. Due to the limited conditions of Seogwipo Port, it is difficult to turn it into a qualified military base in a hurry to provide logistics services for the upcoming Northern Fleet and special operations group. Therefore, Qian Tiandun had to mobilize manpower to attack Seogwipo Port first. Some temporary modifications were made to port facilities to meet operational needs.
As a result, the date of dispatching troops can only be postponed. However, the generals also seized this rare buffer time to further improve the action plan so that their troops could prepare for the next battle. The only troublesome thing is that the people from the north and the south cannot communicate in time, and can only communicate through daily telegrams. The efficiency can be imagined. Fortunately, there is enough time, and the general plan of the operation can be understood in a few days. A consensus was reached.
The delay due to local reasons in Seogwipo was somewhat beyond Haehan's expectations. Although the battle plan did not make major changes, it gave the opponent more time to prepare for the battle. During this period, the Northern Fleet dispatched a second wave of reconnaissance fleet from Seogwipo, but the target area was mainly the waters of the Goto Islands. It did not take the risk of sending people to land for reconnaissance. Therefore, it was not informed of the change of power in the Hirado Domain.
When the time came to early May, both the northern and southern groups were ready, so the coalition forces began to take action according to the agreed time. The military operation launched against the Hirado Domain was named "Eradicate" at the suggestion of the Fujian side, which meant that the goal of the operation was to eliminate the Eighteen Shiba Yu Party hiding in the Hirado Domain.
The East China Sea Fleet on the south route set off first because the starting point was far away from the destination. The Fujian Navy hiding on the east coast of Zhujiajian Island also set off on the same day. After the two fleets met at sea northeast of Zhoushan Island, Slowly sail towards Japan in mixed formation.
Among this coalition fleet, the Fujian navy from afar accounted for the majority, with more than a hundred large and small sailing ships, which was fully twice the number of ships dispatched by the East China Sea Fleet. However, when it comes to the average tonnage of warships, Haihan is still far ahead, especially the two majestic-class warships with a displacement of nearly 2,000 tons. Their huge hulls are even more eye-catching in this mixed fleet.
Xu Xinsu has tried several times in the past few years to buy a Majesty-class battleship from Haihan. He also knew that buying a new one was unrealistic, so he offered to buy a ship with a certain service life, but Haihan always said that the Majesty-class battleship in active service was not enough. It was declined on the grounds that it would meet the needs of the Navy. Haihan did not even indicate further negotiation on the price. This was obviously pointing out to Xu Xinsu that the Majesty-class battleship was still not for sale and was not included in the export list.
Of course, Xu Xinsu is not alone in having such a plan. Annan also made the same request to the Haihan Executive Committee, trying to purchase a majestic class battleship as the flagship of the Annan fleet, but it also failed to achieve its goal. . Haihan's rejection of the purchase requests from these two parties was not only due to the risk of leakage of advanced shipbuilding technology. Indeed, most of the reasons were because the construction progress of the Majestic class could not keep up with the speed of Haihan's external expansion, and it was not enough for its own use. Of course, it was not Will consider exporting.
However, it is said that the Ministry of National Defense and shipbuilding agencies are already studying improved models of the Majesty class. If these allies want to purchase them, they may have to wait until the new model of the Majesty class is put into service before the old model will be included in the export list. Moreover, the majesty-class warships sold for export will definitely be weakened. For example, the steam system on the ship will not be retained. It will be completely dismantled before handover, and only a purely sail-powered version will be given to the buyer.
Judging from the known data, there is no Japanese warship that can compete head-on with the Majestic-class battleships. Even the Chinese-style warships currently under construction in Hirado are only one-fifth of the tonnage of the Majestic-class battleships. For about a year or so, the intensity of shipboard firepower is even different.
But for the sake of stability, the two fleets dispatched a total of three Majesty-class battleships in this operation. The combat power represented by these three battleships alone is actually enough to defeat most armed fleets in East Asia in this era. Kaihan mobilized such a strong combat force to participate in the war in order to steadily capture the navy of the Hirado Domain during the battle, and at the same time to guard against other armed forces from the Kyushu direction to support Hirado.
Not to mention the large number of troops on the southern route, the Northern Fleet assembled at Seogwipo Port dispatched far fewer ships than the coalition fleet in the south, and it still paralyzed the local port for a time. The Northern Fleet set out two days later than the Allied Fleet, and the meeting point of the two fleets was the first attack target, Fukue Island, located at the southern end of the Goto Islands.
When Yuan Zhi of the Northern Fleet came here for reconnaissance in the early stage, he had discovered a shipyard and port hidden in the bay. From this sign, it can be confirmed that there must be a certain number of Shibazhiyu Party members active on the island. According to the combat plan, the Fujian Ming Army will be responsible for the attack on this secret stronghold.
According to the scheduled time, the two fleets completed the rendezvous on the sea twenty miles west of Fujiang Island. Then the Fujian Navy separated out more than ten warships, and the East China Sea Fleet separated out four exploration-class warships, which together covered the ships carrying a thousand ships. More than two hundred Ming Army musketeers' troop carriers headed to the target area to land.
If such a large fleet appeared near Fukue Island, it would be difficult to hide it from the surveillance measures on the island. Hirado had issued a warning a few days ago, requiring island personnel to strengthen patrols of the surrounding waters and report any hostile situation as soon as possible.
The warning signal used by the people on the island was a very primitive method. Not long after the coalition fleet appeared at sea, thick black smoke appeared on a mountain ridge on the coast of Fukue Island. After a while, it rose to a height of 100 feet. It was estimated to be ten meters high. It can be seen for miles. Before the ships responsible for carrying out the landing operations reached their destination, the people on the island had already received warnings of the incoming enemy.
However, the people on the island could not predict how powerful the offensive they faced was. Even if they observed an armed fleet approaching the local area in advance, it was still difficult to organize a decent resistance immediately.
With the huge disparity in surface armed forces between the two sides, going out to sea for a decisive battle is undoubtedly a suicide move. Therefore, the people on the island can only choose to defend the island on land. However, Fukue Island covers an area of more than 300 kilometers, and there are two Hirados. The island is so big that it is impossible for the people on the island to quickly move to a certain point to complete the assembly. Therefore, even if they see a fleet heading towards the secret base in the north of the island, they will not be able to reinforce the local area in time. .
When the troop transport ship was still about a hundred feet away from the shore, it encountered armed resistance from the shore. However, the strength of this resistance was also very limited. It only had a scale of about a hundred people. The weapons used included bows and arrows and muskets. It was difficult for the resisters' attacks to cause any damage to the protected troop carrier. Instead, they actively exposed their position and called in warships on both sides of the troop carrier to counterattack. Several ships used their bow guns to fire a round at the targets on the shore, and quickly dispersed these resisters who were not determined to fight.
The troop transport successfully landed on a gentle coast about two miles away from the entrance of the secret bay. The soldiers in the vanguard did not wait for the landing, raised their muskets above their heads, climbed over the side of the ship and jumped knee-deep into the sea. deep water and then wade ashore.
During this period, the resisters who were repulsed by ship-based artillery fire appeared again, trying to prevent the landing of outsiders, but this time they were rewarded not only with artillery strikes from the warships, but also with musket fire from the landing vanguard. After leaving behind several bodies, the resisters retreated inland again, surrendering the landing point.
Although the resistance from the island was not strong, due to the relatively narrow terrain of the landing site, it was difficult for all troop transport ships to reach the shore at once, so the landing speed was not ideal. It took nearly an hour for more than a thousand Ming troops to move ashore from here. However, the good news is that during this period, several attempts by the resisters were repelled without any suspense, and the Ming army's casualties were only in single digits, far less than their opponents' casualties.
After completing the assembly on the shore, the infantry began to march inland. Their goal was the shipyard in the harbor.
According to the map, the target location is not far away. It only needs to pass through the large farmland by the sea to reach it. However, after entering the inland, the warships at sea can no longer provide them with fire support, so the next battle can only be carried out by themselves.
The farmland here is still mainly for rice cultivation. The spring planting has ended at this time, and there are large rice fields as far as the eye can see. There is no need to worry about a large number of enemies setting up an ambush nearby.
(End of chapter)