Chapter 3603
Seeing that the enemy was about to turn away, Li Zhencheng was naturally unwilling to miss such a fighter opportunity easily, and immediately ordered to speed up the pursuit. However, a major assigned to his ship by the Luzon Combat Command reminded him that the main mission of the Taiwan fleet's trip was not to annihilate enemy forces, but escorted the supply fleet to reach its destination safely.
Moreover, this sea area is still relatively unfamiliar to the Luzon Navy, let alone the newly arrived Taiwan Fleet. Even with the chart in hand, it is impossible to confirm whether there will be other Spanish warships ambushing in the surrounding waters.
Li Zhencheng was not a person who insisted on having his own way. When he saw the Spanish fleet appearing just now, he was inevitably a little jealous. After hearing the advice of the combat staff, he quickly calmed down and realized that chasing the enemy ship would inevitably break away from the supply fleet, and this was obviously related to the current situation. It is inconsistent with the tasks he has undertaken.
If this is the opponent's plan to divert the tiger away from the mountain and cause any trouble in the supply fleet, he has no way to explain it to Manila. You must know that before setting off from the Cavite Port, he had promised Qiu Yuan and Xiao Liang that he would escort the supply fleet to Beimen Port without any damage.
"Cancel the pursuit order and let the scout ship follow the enemy ship to confirm its whereabouts."
Li Zhencheng quickly made redeployments and terminated the order to pursue the enemy.
After receiving the order, the two reconnaissance ships were already far behind. Their maximum speed could reach more than fifteen knots. Even if they encountered dangerous situations, they could escape by virtue of their speed advantage.
However, considering the complex environment here, Li Zhencheng did not dare to let them follow too far. It would take at most a day and a half to go back and catch up with the main force.
Seeing the Spanish fleet heading north in a hurry, Li Zhencheng couldn't help but feel a little regretful that he ran away just like that when the military exploits were at hand. If we weren't concerned about the safety of the supply fleet, we would have to let the other side keep a few ships today.
Li Zhencheng gathered his thoughts and returned his attention to the current mission. After rejoining the supply fleet, he returned to the established route and continued sailing south.
The two reconnaissance ships sent to follow them rejoined the main force and reported back. Half a day later, the Spanish fleet turned around and headed east along the north coast of Papua Island.
According to the battle report provided by the Manila authorities, Li Zhencheng couldn't help but suspect that the Spaniards might have a secret port somewhere in the waters in that direction. These dozen large ships had been operating in that area for a long time, and they would eventually have to find a place to obtain supplies to maintain them.
It's just that I can't go back and find out what's going on in my current itinerary, so I can only wait until I have the chance next time.
In the next few days, no Spanish sailing ships were encountered on the way, and they successfully completed the last third of the voyage and arrived at Beimen Port on the northern coast of the New World.
Li Zhencheng had not personally experienced the early days when Haihan took root in Taiwan. After seeing the current situation of Beimen Port, he did not quite understand why the Luzon Region would go to such a remote location to build a small colonial port at all costs.
The so-called port here is just a few wooden trestles built along the coast, and a few warehouses that look very simple.
These warehouses built of logs had not even had time to be painted, and the gabled roofs were only covered with a layer of tarpaulin as a rainproof measure.
Some sporadic wooden houses have been built near the port area, but most areas are still dominated by large and small tents, and there is no living environment at all. The only place that made Li Zhencheng feel relatively happy was the reclamation area that the local civil affairs officer took him to see. This is no stranger to Li Zhencheng. A large amount of coastal land in Taiwan has been converted into farmland through reclamation. And it is said that some of the supplies shipped to Beimen Port this time are crops originating in Taiwan.
The scale of the farmland here is not too large. So far, there are only three to four hundred acres of farmland. And because the season has not yet arrived, official farming has not yet started. However, the relevant farmland water conservancy facilities have been built in advance, and there are also specialized agricultural technicians. Necessary training and guidance are provided here to farmers.
The ranch located in another area has already begun operation, and almost all kinds of domestic livestock and poultry that Li Zhencheng knows can be seen here.
From Li Zhencheng's perspective, he could see that the development plan here was pretty good. If nothing unexpected happened, food self-sufficiency would be achieved within a year or two at most.
However, Li Zhencheng could also imagine that the Luzon Region had worked so hard to open up this colonial port, probably not just for the purpose of farming and breeding here.
If it were just for more farmland, then there would be at least millions of acres of land available for cultivation and development on Luzon Island, and there would be no need to go so far away to start from scratch.
Li Zhencheng tentatively asked the civil affairs officer. Unexpectedly, the other party was very frank and told him the reason directly.
"There are mines around here...gold, iron ore, bauxite."
Hearing this answer, Li Zhencheng suddenly realized that the value of these mineral deposits far exceeds that of farmland, and mining itself is a business that only makes money without losing money. It is no wonder that the Luzon Region has made great efforts to develop this place.
Li Zhencheng's hometown of Taiwan also has a considerable part of its fiscal revenue from various mines on the island. The gold, copper, coal, sulfur, oil and other mineral resources currently being mined have created a large number of local jobs. Position and wealth.
However, it is so far away from the Luzon region, and the route has to pass through the Spanish sphere of influence, which really increases the cost of operating Beimen Port.
Through conversations with civil affairs officials, Li Zhencheng also learned that in addition to its function as a colonial port, it was also an important supply point for the Luzon Army. The Luzon Army fighting in the northern sea area will take turns to return here to complete rest and supplies.
At the same time, on the west coast of the New World, there was also a colonial port developed in the Xingdao region. It is said that two to three large settlements have been built there, and the development progress has far exceeded that of Beimen Port, which was delayed by the war.
Returning to the temporary camp, Li Zhencheng once again confirmed the location of Beimen Port on the chart.
He arrived here from Kaohsiung Port on Taiwan Island, and his voyage has exceeded ten thousand miles. Such a distant place was actually included in the territory of Haihan. He couldn't help feeling that the strength of the country had even exceeded his imagination.
It's a pity that Taiwan is limited by its functional positioning. It is difficult for the garrison troops to have such an opportunity to expand overseas and fight in all directions. I don't know when I want to get a similar job next time.
Li Zhencheng decided that after returning from this mission, he would make another suggestion to his father to transfer himself to combat troops in other areas. Otherwise, accumulating military exploits would be insignificant. If he stayed on the island all the time, his vision would sooner or later become limited. The frog in the well.