1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 1033 Longxi After Fierce Battle
With the development of the situation to the present stage, both Haihan and the local aboriginal tribes have suffered many casualties. The knot is too deep, and there is basically no possibility of reconciliation.It is too late for the natives to stop now. Since the Haihan Ministry of Defense has made up its mind to clean up this area, it means that the result is already doomed. The only variable is whether the implementation process is smooth.

To achieve complete control over the Miaoli region, conquest and killings are naturally unavoidable, but after the past few years of fighting in the north and south, the traversers no longer have much compassion for the uncivilized natives However, Morgan, Wang Tom and others are more concerned about how much effort it will take to clear this place and eradicate all hidden dangers that threaten Haihan's development of this area.As for the casualties of the natives, and even the casualties of their own subordinates, in the end, they were just a series of cold numbers in the post-war report submitted by the military to the executive committee.

It didn’t rain on the day Morgan led the team back to the coastal camp. Although the sky was still cloudy and not sunny, it had been raining for ten days before that, causing water to flood everywhere in the oil field camp. God finally stopped Take a breather.However, it is hard to say whether it is good or bad for the rain to stop.

At present, more than half of the materials needed for the oil field camp have been transported to the mountains, but more than half of the follow-up supporting facilities have to wait until the end of the rainy season, so the transportation pressure is not as great as in the early days.If the rainy season can last until the end of May, then the scheduled transportation volume will definitely be completed.

As for after the rainy season, Houlongxi may lose its navigable conditions in mountainous river sections due to the decrease in water flow. Liu Shanxia has already thought of two countermeasures. One is to build a road along the bank of Houlongxi, about four or five miles long. It can lead to the river valley where the oil field is located; another way is to build a dam at the outlet of the mountainous river to store water and increase the water depth upstream, so as to obtain the ability of ladder navigation and build a small hydropower station by the way.However, the amount of work and the corresponding cost of this latter method must be greater than that of road construction. Although there are many benefits, it must face many insurmountable difficulties if it is to be implemented at this stage. With the manpower and material resources we have, I am afraid it will be difficult to realize it.

Of course, if the banks of the Houlongxi can be cleaned up to ensure that they will not be harassed by the natives again, in fact, it is not a big problem to transfer through the land passage for these few miles, and it will be nothing more than transporting some pack horses. , using animal power to pull the cart to complete the transportation for this section of the journey.In comparison, it must be much easier than building a dam for transshipment.

The speed of the emptied fleet down the river was at least twice as fast as when it entered the mountain. It took just over an hour to travel from the oil field camp to the No. [-] stronghold for more than ten miles.However, Morgan did not arrange to stop here during this trip, so when passing the river section outside the No. [-] stronghold, Morgan just walked to the bow of the boat to salute the sentry on duty on the river bank.

At present, in addition to a platoon of the army stationed in the No. [-] stronghold, there are more than a dozen logistics personnel assigned here, including cooks, blacksmiths, carpenters, plasterers, etc. After Haihan cleans up the surrounding area, he will Immigrants gradually moved in, and agricultural development was carried out in the surrounding valley plain area.

From a safety point of view, Morgan actually doesn't want the rain to stop, because the rain will affect people's vision and make it more difficult for them to target targets on the river.Moreover, the slippery and muddy river bank will create more obstacles for the sneak attack of the natives. If they try to approach the barge in the middle of the river and launch an attack, they will easily get stuck in the mud and become a living target for the escort soldiers. .

According to statistics these days, the natives launched a total of thirteen attacks along the Houlongxi, nine of which were concentrated in the area between the two river bend strongholds, which is also the gap in this defense system along the river. where.Almost all of Haihan's casualties in the battle with the natives came from this area.Of these nine attacks, seven were launched during the cessation of rain, and the probability is sufficient to show that the rain had a significant impact on the actions of the natives.

The last report of an attack by the natives was three days ago. Judging from the frequency of their dispatches in the past, Morgan believed that the possibility of being attacked during the voyage today was very high, so after the fleet passed the No. [-] stronghold, Morgan went to Order people to play the signal flag, and notify all the personnel of the five fleets to enter the state of combat readiness.

Morgan also distributed all the three binoculars he brought out to his subordinates, and asked them to take turns to watch for human activities on the shore.Due to the limited size of the garrisons at the two strongholds, and the frequent activities of the native armed forces in this area, Morgan also specially ordered during this period that the patrolling range of the garrison at the strongholds be consciously reduced to avoid unnecessary casualties.

After leaving the No. [-] stronghold for about six or seven miles, the natives of Maolishe appeared on the west bank of Houlongxi almost without any suspense.Morgan got up immediately after being reminded by the sentinel. Even without binoculars, he could already see figures passing by in the bushes in the distance.

"Load the rifle and prepare to fight!" Morgan gave the order immediately without taking any chances.He knew very well that these natives did not appear on the nearby river bank to watch the fleet, and since they had already arrived, they would definitely make a move.

Morgan didn't intend to resist passively. This time he specially brought a number of students by his side. One of the purposes was to use his own weapons and tactical advantages to deal with some enemies at a long distance before the opponent made a move. It can also act as a deterrent.If this could deter the action of the natives, Morgan did not intend to kill on this voyage to the coastal camp.

However, even the experienced Morgan didn't dare to say that he had perfect accuracy when shooting at an enemy a hundred meters away on a slightly bumpy and moving boat.Therefore, even though Morgan had discovered the enemy's traces, he was not in a hurry to launch it. He just put his rifle on the firing position on the ship's side, waiting patiently for a better time.

"Boss, the water flow is relatively slow at the river beach in front. They attacked the fleet a few times in the past, and they did it here."

The boatmen who were driving the boat had already been on the Houlongxi many times, and they were the ones with the most experience in dealing with the enemy, so they took the initiative to remind Morgan immediately.The river in front of it suddenly widened, and the water flow slowed down. However, the boat was still only 20 or [-] meters away from the river bank, just within the range of the natives' weapons.Most of the Haihan soldiers who were killed or injured in the previous battles were injured in this area by the bows and arrows and spears that the natives concentrated on shooting.

After being reminded by the boatman, Morgan concentrated his men on the left side of the ship in order to maintain the strongest firepower output.The team he led was equipped with four seven-shot rifles and seven [-]-style sniper rifles, while the escorts of the other fleets that followed used standard flintlock rifles as their main weapons.Morgan ordered someone to hang a signal flag symbolizing battle on the bow. After the armed personnel on several other ships saw this flag, they could choose the timing and fighting method to fire in the ensuing battle. Morgan here for instructions.

With the blaring of horn horns in the woods on the river bank, loud voices soon came, and many people were singing and shouting with unknown syllables. Morgan had interrogated the native captives before, and knew that these were the native soldiers before the battle. Cheer yourself up and ask the gods for protection.However, under the muzzle of Haihan's rifle, I am afraid that the gods they believe in will not be of much use.

Soon a person ran out of the forest. Morgan could see that the young man was naked to the waist, with deerskin around his waist, a pair of straw sandals on his feet, and a bamboo spear about two meters in his hand, striding towards the river bank. Come.

The bamboo spears and arrows used by the natives are all made of local mottled bamboo. One section is cut to a fine point and then baked on a firewood. After it is baked hard, the hardness of the tip is almost the same as copper and iron up.Although this kind of bamboo weapon is very primitive, its lethality is not weak, and some natives even smear snake venom on the tips of arrows and spears, making it difficult to treat people once they are injured.Therefore, although Haihan's side has superior weapons, if they can't control the combat distance and bring the natives closer, the risks they face will increase exponentially.

Of course, the one who rushed out to attack the fleet would not be just such a native warrior. Morgan knew that this was a common tactic used by the natives. A selected tribal warrior would lead the charge, and the others would follow.Sure enough, in the blink of an eye, dozens of native warriors rushed out of the forest, following the man before, rushing towards the river bank.

These natives knew that there were armed escorts on the ship, and the weapons were more advanced than those in their hands, and they still used this very primitive method to launch attacks time and time again. Morgan really admired the ruthlessness of these people.But even so, he had no intention of showing mercy. Morgan put his index finger on the trigger, and slowly aimed the front sight at the native warrior who was rushing over.

Morgan knew that before he shot, the subordinates next to him would not shoot him in advance to steal his limelight, so he had to hit the target with this shot, otherwise his instructor's face would be somewhat damaged.

As the native warrior at the head ran closer and closer, Morgan could already see clearly the totem pattern drawn on his face with chalk, the few pheasant feathers inserted on both sides of the headband, and the appearance of his body made by running vigorously. Some ferocious expressions.

The native warrior began to adjust his pace when he was seven or eight meters away from the river bank. He raised the bamboo spear with his right arm, and it seemed that he was about to use the momentum of running to shoot.Just when he leaned back and was about to throw the bamboo spear in his hand forward, Morgan pulled the trigger, and a puff of green smoke came out of the gun with the gunshot. Almost at the same time, the native soldier A flower of blood bloomed on his chest, and his half-swinging arm suddenly lost strength. Before he could make a move, the bamboo spear turned and stabbed at the ground. Although he tried hard to use the bamboo spear to stabilize his body, the impact of the spear The injury made him lose the strength to control his body. After kneeling on the ground, his body also fell to the ground. It seemed impossible to get up again.

The aim of this shot was very good, and the timing of the shot was just right. If it had been a moment later, the bamboo spear in the native warrior's hand would probably have been thrown out of his hand.The fall of the leading soldier also made the large team behind him stagnate, but these natives did not stop there, and no one even looked at the fallen man, and continued to rush towards the river bank .

After Morgan's gun went off, everyone around him also opened fire.Since the combat methods of the soldiers around him are different from those of the general army, and the guns they use are not uniform, Morgan will not ask them to fire salvos, but let them find targets and grasp the rhythm of shooting by themselves.

As the gunshots rang out one after another, the natives on the shore also began to be shot one after another.However, quite a few natives managed to rush to the riverside and shot their weapons at the barge Morgan was on.

A bamboo spear was inserted into the ship's side less than one meter away from Morgan's location. If you hadn't seen it with your own eyes, it would be hard to believe that this bamboo spear is so powerful that it can fly over a distance of 20 meters Then insert it into the plank of the ship's side.Although its power is not enough to shoot through the ship's side, looking at the still shaking spear tail, it is not difficult to imagine how strong this bamboo spear is. I'm afraid that a transparent hole will be poked out immediately.

Most of these native warriors were equipped with bows and spears at the same time. After throwing out the bamboo spears, they immediately took off the bows and arrows for the second round of attack.Although the ship was constantly firing, the psychological quality of these native soldiers was obviously very good, and they still opened their bows and arrows at their own pace, aiming and shooting.And they didn't seem to care about the following fleets at all, they chased after Morgan's barge and launched an attack.

This is probably also because the protective measures on Morgan's ship are too eye-catching. The tighter the cover, the more the natives feel that the ship needs to focus on fire.In the forest, half-grown children kept coming out carrying bundles of bamboo spears, bows and arrows to the front line. It seemed that the natives had not rested during the few days of the truce, but had been preparing for battle.

Due to the relatively slow flow of this section of the river, the natives chased the fleet on the shore and attacked, but they were not dragged too far.In addition, they had a large number of people, bamboo arrows and bamboo spears flew towards Morgan's barge like rain, and the density was better than the attack from the ship.

Although the rifles used by these people on board are superior in range, accuracy, and lethality, it is unavoidable that the firing frequency is slow due to complicated loading.Except for the four seven-shot rifles that can be fired in succession, the rifles used by others have to be reloaded once each shot is fired, although the flintlock guns using fixed bullets are already faster than the previous arquebus. Many, its shooting speed is still not as good as the original bow and arrow.

(End of this chapter)