Chapter 3465
The expedition fleet to Ceylon successfully arrived in the waters of the Andaman Islands two days after setting off from Phuket.
The north-south Andaman Islands stretch for nearly two thousand miles, forming a contour line that divides the northeastern Indian Ocean into two parts, with the Sea of Myanmar to the east and the Bay of Bengal to the west.
When the sailors saw the Andaman Islands appear in sight, it meant that nearly one-third of the voyage to Ceylon had been completed.
Although Qian Shaobao came to this sea area for the first time, he had seen this place name in relevant internal information before. It is said that the reason why the Special Operations Division and the Star Island Alliance Force sent troops to the northern Strait of Malacca was that armed pirates robbed merchant ships in the waters between the Andaman Islands and the Malay Peninsula.
After Qian Shaobao came to Phuket, he got confirmation from Qian Tiandun that the pirates who used the Andaman Islands as their base to carry out plundering activities were actually the foreign mercenary group affiliated with Xingdao.
In other words, the joint military operation launched by the special operations division and the Sing Tao garrison at that time was actually a self-directed and self-acted play in order to seize control of the northern end of the Malacca Strait.
Neighboring countries may also have doubts about the truth of the matter, but under the strong force of Haihan, no one dares to take the initiative to question it.
Takahashi Nan was not shy about this matter, and even brought Qian Shaobao to the bow of the ship and pointed out to him the location of the island where the Xingdao mercenary group was hiding at that time.
Qian Shaobao asked: "Uncle Gao, there is something I don't understand. Since we had the ability to control these islands at that time, why not just set up the base here, which can be closer to Ceylon Island, and it can also Channel radiating to the northern end of the Strait of Malacca”
Takahashi Minami responded: "It's not that we haven't considered the plan you mentioned, but comprehensively comparing all conditions, Phuket still has greater advantages."
"First of all, Phuket is closer to the mainland. There are many countries around it, so it is more convenient to obtain various materials and manpower. The Andaman Islands seems to have more than 300 islands, but considering the need to guard the waterway, it is We can only choose a few islands in the south to set up bases, and these islands are only adjacent to Aceh within a few hundred miles. Once there is a conflict between our country and Aceh, our access to nearby supplies may be restricted. "< br>
"Secondly, these islands are all covered with mountains and forests, with barely a few feet of flat land. It is difficult to cultivate wasteland and produce food on the spot. Apart from forests, there are almost no other valuable natural resources on the islands, and there are no natural harbors for the construction of large ports, so it is completely It does not have the conditions to become a regional trade center. This means that not only will there be no output in the future, but it will have to rely on external resources and consume a lot of money to maintain the operation of the base.”
"Third, the indigenous people on these islands are limited by the environment and are still in a very primitive stage. They basically rely on hunting, fishing and picking wild fruits for a living. They have not even entered the agricultural era, so it is difficult for us to use them. And the local people The natural conditions are unlikely to attract domestic immigrants to settle here.”
Qian Shaobao nodded repeatedly after hearing this. If the conditions in the Andaman Islands were just like this, then it would indeed be wiser to choose Phuket.
The fleet met four cargo ships coming from the port of Banda Aceh near Great Nicobar Island at the southern end of the archipelago, and then continued westward.
Five days later, a reconnaissance ship dozens of miles ahead at sea set off fireworks signals, indicating that the island of Ceylon had appeared in the forward view.
Soon after, Qian Shaobao also saw the outline of land appearing on the sea level through the telescope. As he was about to arrive at his destination, Qian Shaobao couldn't help but feel a little excited. He quickly returned to the cabin and packed his luggage and backpack, preparing to participate in the next landing operation. However, after the fleet arrived near the coastline of Ceylon Island, it was still one or two hundred miles away from its destination. It sailed westward along the coast for half a day before finally arriving at Hambantota.
Although the reconnaissance ship had already landed on the shore first after arriving here and released a firework signal indicating safety from the shore, out of caution, Takahashi Minami still ordered the troop transport to dock under the cover of the warship and be controlled by the troops. After settling on the nearby coast, let the cargo ship sail into the bay and dock.
Although Qian Shaobao is very active, he has a special status after all, and Gao Qiaonan must ensure his absolute safety. A mission that really requires taking the lead in an unknown environment will definitely not be his turn.
On the grounds of command, Takahashi Minami did not allow the warship they were traveling on to dock immediately. He did not order the ship to dock until an infantry battalion completed its landing and defense deployment.
So when Qian Shaobao set foot on land, the infantry battalion that first landed had already expanded the defense zone to a radius of two miles. The area including the small fishing village near the bay has been completely controlled by the special operations division.
The whole process was very peaceful. The landing troops did not find any enemies nearby and did not have any disputes with the local residents.
The fishermen were ordered to return to their homes to await door-to-door population registration later.
Takahashi Nan asked the two Sinhala translators hired in advance to tell these fishermen that not only would they not be forced to join the army, but they would also be protected by the Haihan Army from now on. As long as they cooperate with the arrangements, each household will receive some rewards, such as good rice and grain seeds.
After Qian Shaobao landed ashore, he immediately got into work before he had time to visit the fishing village where the locals lived.
According to previous field surveys and design plans, the southwest side of the bay will be constructed as a port area, and adjacent to it is the garrison base.
These two core areas are adjacent to the west side of the channel entering and exiting the bay. Only simple fort fortifications are needed to control the bay.
But for related building materials, the local area obviously does not provide a wealth of options. There are no quarries available for development nearby, and previous surveys have not found limestone deposits that could be used to make cement. If you want to make bricks and tiles, you probably can only use clay.
The only abundant product on the island is wood. Outside the living area of the aborigines, you can see endless mountain forests, many of which contain precious woods such as mahogany, ebony, and teak.
Everything is difficult at the beginning. The progress of the engineering department on the first day of landing was not fast. By nightfall, the demarcation of the main construction areas had not yet been completed.
Fortunately, the tent base has been set up at this time, and hundreds of marching tents have formed a camp on the coast.
However, the number of people these tents can accommodate is limited, and nearly a thousand soldiers still need to stay on the ship overnight. Fortunately, most people have already landed, and the living space on the ship is not as crowded as it was on the way here.