1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 260 To intervene or not to intervene

The Zheng family of North Vietnam did not unrealistically expect Haihan to send armed forces to help them fight, but hoped to end the training of the current group of soldiers ahead of schedule and send them to the front line to withstand the offensive of the Ruan family of South Vietnam.

Zheng believes that these soldiers have received almost two months of military skills training in the training camp, and the weapons they use are the most "advanced" Haihan firearms at the moment, and their combat effectiveness is at least many times stronger than that of the temporarily recruited soldiers. Even if you can't defeat the enemy's main force, you can at least delay the opponent's offensive, so that your side can have time to organize a defense line and counterattack force in the rear.

Zheng's taking it for granted naturally did not get the approval of Haihan's military adviser.Feng Annan pointed out to the special envoy sent by Zheng that the training level of this unit is far from meeting the operational requirements of a firearms unit, and the actual combat power it can display on the battlefield may not meet Zheng's expectations.Moreover, the tactics designed by Haihan also require joint training with the spearmen, but the current training soldiers in the training camp are mainly firearms troops, and the joint training with the spearmen has not started at all. Will greatly reduce the defense capabilities of this unit.Even if the matchlock guns purchased by North Vietnam are equipped with bayonets and have certain self-defense capabilities, but using expensive musketeers to fight hand-to-hand with opponents is a very disadvantageous choice for North Vietnam.

There is also a very serious problem, and that is the mobility of this force.According to the information provided by Zheng, the current main battle zone is in the area around Vinh An Port in Ha Tinh Province in later generations. The North Vietnamese army barely held the line of defense by relying on the dangerous terrain there. It's easy to say.Annan's domestic rivers are densely covered, and there are countless mountains and rivers criss-crossing in the battle zone in the central region. The land transportation conditions are very bad. It is even more difficult for the firearms troops that rely heavily on logistics supplies to fight in this environment than the Yuan army and the Ming army who went south to crusade. The army is still large-at least there are still a large number of horses in those two armies that can be used for luggage.The North Vietnamese army didn't have so many horses, so it would be good to have some ox carts at most.

The military advisers made a simple calculation. From the Tushan Peninsula to the current battle zone, the land distance is 400 kilometers. Considering the geographical conditions during the march, it may take about ten days to measure this road with two feet. is enough.If you want to bring artillery, you need to add at least one-third of the marching time.When this tired army arrives at the war zone after a long march, it is hard to predict what kind of situation will change there. This kind of long march is simply an irresponsible adventure.

But Zheng's side obviously regarded this unit as a life-saving straw. Although the military adviser listed all kinds of disadvantages, the other party still insisted on letting this unit finish training and set foot on the battlefield in advance.As a last resort, Qian Tiandun also rushed from Heitu Port to Tushan Peninsula to participate in the talks.Under his repeated cross-examination, Zheng's envoy finally revealed an important situation-an important reason for this military defeat was that a unit that used firearms also appeared in the South Vietnamese Ruan's troops.The North Vietnamese forces that fought with it could not bear the one-sided killing, so they had to choose to retreat.The withdrawal of the North Vietnamese army could not be stopped, and they retreated nearly [-] miles north from Quang Tri before standing still and reorganizing the defense line.

The information disclosed by Qian Tiandun caused a burst of exclamation from the audience.Although the Executive Committee has mentioned more than once that Western forces will gradually infiltrate Annan in the near future, it seems that the time and progress of their entry into the Indochina Peninsula is faster than the Executive Committee expected, and they directly provided the South Vietnamese regime with military support.Now that South Vietnam has already had a firearms unit and gained a certain advantage in the battle situation, it is no wonder that the Zheng family is anxious to bring this new army that has not yet formed combat effectiveness to the battlefield.

At present, under Qian Tiandun's insistence, the North Vietnamese side has not issued a transfer order to this new army, but if the trend of the war continues to be unfavorable to North Vietnam, then it is only time before this new army is transferred to the south to face head-to-head with the South Vietnamese firearms troops question.In the last part of the report, Qian Tiandun reminded the executive committee to pay attention to the changes in the domestic war situation and political trends in Annan, the defeat of the Zheng family in North Vietnam and the intervention of Western forces, no matter which one will greatly affect the strategic layout of the Crossing Group in the Indochina Peninsula. .As for whether to provide further military assistance to North Vietnam, Qian Tiandun also asked the Executive Committee to hold a special discussion meeting to make a decision as soon as possible.

After this shocking news broke out, some people no longer have the heart to listen to the work reports of other departments-yes, this part of the people who are anxious are basically members of the military and police department.

After finally waiting for the afternoon meeting to end, a group of members of the military and police department immediately blocked several executive committee members, demanding that a discussion meeting be held as soon as possible to discuss strategies to deal with the changes in the Annan war situation.Except for Gu Kai, a pacifist, the executive committee members also agreed to respond to this as soon as possible.Even Mr. Yuan did not make peace this time, and expressed his attitude: "If the North Vietnam loses, the foreign devils will occupy Annan, and all our previous efforts will be in vain?"

So that night, the executive committee held an emergency discussion meeting on the Annan war situation to discuss what kind of countermeasures should be taken now.In addition to all the executive members of the executive committee and some senior officers of the military and police department, the participants also included the heads of the shipping department and some military industrial units.

A map of the Indochina Peninsula was hung in front of the venue, and Qian Tiandun first explained the situation of Annan's civil war.But this time the explanation was much more detailed than the work report in the afternoon. It not only pointed out the location of the battle, but also had general information about the military strength of both sides.

At present, the main battlefield of the Civil War in Annan is located at the junction of the two provinces of Ha Tinh and Nan Quang Binh, and the mountains stretching from northwest to southeast for more than a hundred miles almost completely block the land route. The South Vietnamese army had to attack here because The geographical environment slowed down the offensive.

If the South Vietnamese army wanted to continue going north, one way was to follow the mountain range, go northwest from the mountain valley for hundreds of miles and directly bypass this area, but the marching route was almost all in the virgin forest, and the march of large troops It will be difficult.The other way is to go directly north along the coastline. You only need to cross the pass of a few hills to enter the coastal plain of North Vietnam. At a critical pass, the South Vietnamese troops were temporarily blocked here.

Of course, there is also a third option of marching route, which is to bypass this area by sea by boat and directly attack the coastal plain area of ​​​​North Vietnam.But doing so also faces two problems. One is that the military forces invested in the north will face supply problems and will not dare to go deep into the inland to fight. Second, South Vietnam's sea transport capacity is far from enough for large-scale long-distance force projection.

The North Vietnamese army deployed nearly 30 troops on this defensive position-of course, a considerable part of them were peasants and soldiers in charge of logistics and logistics, and the regular army had less than half of them.The South Vietnamese army is said to be [-], but according to North Vietnamese estimates, the North Vietnamese troops assembled on this front probably will not exceed [-], and the personnel composition of its army is not much better than that of the North Vietnamese.

At present, North Vietnam is mobilizing troops from all over the north to go south, trying to stabilize this line of defense first, and wait for an opportunity to counterattack.The South Vietnamese side regarded this as a key battle to defeat the North Vietnamese regime, and even took out their housekeeping skills and firearms troops.

According to the current known situation, the number of firearms troops owned by South Vietnam is between 200 and [-]. The main weapons are arquebus and spearmen, which is basically the combat mode of the Spanish phalanx. In addition, there are a small number of Flang cannons as fire support to cooperate with operations.No matter how you look at it, this force will not be the opponent of the North Vietnamese firearms force after training, but time is running out. South Vietnam has already shown its weapons, but North Vietnam does not have a force of comparable strength to confront it head-on. .

After Qian Tiandun introduced the details of the battle situation, he also briefly stated his opinion: "I think based on the current situation, we can confirm three things. First, Western forces have reached a certain degree of cooperation with the South Vietnamese regime. Second, they have not been involved for a long time, and have not carried out a large-scale weapon replacement. From what we know, the training situation of the South Vietnamese firearms unit is not ideal, and what they rely on is only the quality of weapons. It’s just power. Third, the North Vietnamese army may be defeated, and we must consider how to protect our interests in the North Vietnamese region once this happens.”

Tao Donglai took over the topic and said: "Leaving aside the foreign devils' involvement in South Vietnam, as far as our own situation is concerned, the current largest sources of immigration, energy, and food are in North Vietnam, and we have paid a lot for this. With a lot of manpower, material and financial resources, no matter from which point of view, the interests of the Traversing Group in North Vietnam cannot be lost!"

Tao Donglai's words basically established the tone of the Traversing Group's response to the changes in the Annan War situation. In order not to damage their local interests, they cannot sit back and watch North Vietnam be beaten unilaterally until there is a military defeat.Of course, expulsion of Western forces in the Indochina Peninsula is also a long-term policy that the Executive Committee must have determined long ago, and it is also an important part of the entire strategy for the South China Sea.

Yan Chujie said: "Old Tao's words are correct, but I think there is still one thing that needs to be investigated - what kind of force is currently supplying weapons to Nanyue?"

After Yan Chujie raised this question, most of the participants' eyes focused on Ning Qi.Among the group of people here, only Ning Qi knows more about the history of Vietnam. Although he is just an amateur, his level is at least much higher than the half-baked people here.

Ning Qi cleared his throat and explained: "From a geographical point of view, the Dutch East India Company is the closest to the warring area. They now control the Strait of Malacca, the Strait of Sunda, the Java Sea and the waters of the Maluku Islands. , and want to expand their territory northward. If they can establish strongholds or ports in the Indochina Peninsula, then they can effectively connect the South China Sea area with the strongholds they occupy in Taiwan and form a safer sea passage.”

Ning Qi paused, then continued: "However, judging from the situation introduced by Lieutenant Qian, the weapons used by the South Vietnamese Firearms Force are more likely to be provided by the Portuguese or the Spaniards, and the Spanish stronghold in Southeast Asia is Manila. The possibility of the entire South China Sea going to the Indochina Peninsula to cause trouble is not very high. On the contrary, the Portuguese are more likely to be suspected. After all, they are well-known arms dealers. They even sold the artillery on the sunken British ship to Daming. , we cannot overestimate their integrity."

"That's why we can't be sure!" Tao Donglai nodded and asked, "Does South Vietnam have any foreign trade ports?"

"Yes!" Ning Qi replied, "It's Hoi An, south of Da Nang."

Hoi An has become an important seaport of Champa as early as the 5th century AD. Since the 15th century, merchant ships from Western countries have also come to this largest foreign commercial port in Annan.However, it is Chinese businessmen who play the leading role here. There are so many Chinese here that Hoi An is even divided into multiple residential areas such as Fujian, Guangdong, Chaozhou, Hainan, and Hakka.A large number of Chinese-style buildings were preserved in the later generations of Hoi An, and various guild halls, temples, and residences have left a deep imprint of Chinese culture.If necessary, the Time Traveling Group can also use the rhetoric of "since ancient times" to take this place as its own in the future.

However, in the eyes of the Crossing Group, the conditions of Hoi An's port are far from meeting the requirements. That place is just the mouth of the Hoi An River, and there is neither a natural harbor nor a dangerous terrain to defend. The port has not been included in future development plans.

"So, it's not too difficult for us to inquire about the specific situation in Hoi An?" Yan Chujie asked.

"There are a lot of Chinese businessmen going to Hoi An to do business. It should be easy for us to find one or two." Ning Qi thought for a while and said, "The shopkeeper Zhan who has been traveling for many years has probably been to Hoi An Port. You can find him later to understand the situation. In addition, you can also ask the Guangzhou Office, there should be more news channels in Guangzhou."

"Okay, let's put Hoi An aside and get back to the topic." Tao Donglai rearranged the topic: "No matter which country is providing military support to the South Vietnamese regime, we should not be directly hostile to it at present, after all our The sea power is still quite limited, so we should not rush to create an opponent for ourselves."

All the participants agreed with this. Whether it is Portugal, Spain or the Netherlands, their maritime power in East Asia is much stronger than that of the current crossing group. Once confronted head-on, it may directly affect the safety of the group's shipping routes. It will have a negative effect on normal diplomatic relations and trade with Western countries in the future.In order to expel the Western forces on the Indochina Peninsula, it mainly depends on supporting interest agents.

"You can't fight with the foreign devils directly, so you can only rely on the North Vietnamese army? I don't think this army that has even completed military training can achieve anything on the battlefield. Maybe they can't compete with the South Vietnamese army that has already formed an army. Firearms troops." Yan Chujie was quite pessimistic about the situation in the Annan war.

"We'd better pray that that doesn't happen. The North Vietnamese regime may not be patient enough to give us enough time to train the second army." Schneider also expressed his opinion: "They are big customers of military purchases, and we must obtain Just try to maintain their military superiority, and they will be interested in buying more weapons from us if they win a few more battles."

"How to win? Are we sending our militiamen to join the war? Don't forget that our militiamen have no fighting power at all. The oldest soldier is only half a year old, and within half a year they are just fishermen and farmers!" Gu Kai heard that the limelight was wrong, and immediately objected.

"The number of militiamen we can mobilize is only a few hundred at best. Even with advanced weapons, how effective can such a small number of people be in a battle of tens of thousands?" Meng He also questioned this.

"The terrorists in Iraq only need 800 people to beat the shit out of [-] regular troops. That's still when the weapons and equipment are at a disadvantage... The battle on the battlefield is not a competition of the number of soldiers. The level of equipment, fighting will, tactical use, presence Commander, there are many factors that can affect the outcome of the battle. If we can predict the outcome just by looking at the data on paper, then we don’t need to develop, and we can just ask the Ming court to surrender.” Yan Chujie immediately fought back against the two opponents .

"Iraq is Iraq, and we are now in the 17th century! We have trained so many hundreds of soldiers in half a year. If we send them out to fight them, can we guarantee that there will be no accidents in the next window period?" Meng He retorted unconvinced road.

"If the army does not go to the battlefield, it will never be able to talk about actual combat effectiveness. If it is not pulled out to fight, how will it go out to expand its territory in the future? Keyboard strategists will always only use their lips. Which real strategist does not stand out after the baptism of war? ?" Yan Chujie also refused to give in.

"The battlefield is so far away from the base camp, how can we ensure combat supplies and troop mobility?"

"It's only a few hundred kilometers across the bay? Then what should we do when we attack the mainland? Does the executive committee need to follow the troops to the front line to supervise the battle?"

Seeing that the discussion began to become chaotic, Tao Donglai quickly stood up to calm the situation: "Okay, okay, it seems that we have to hold a vote first. Everyone think carefully, if the situation of the civil war in Annan does not improve in the near future, So do we need to intervene directly. Vote on this matter first, so we can continue to discuss the next response measures."

After Tao Dong said this, everyone calmed down and began to think about the impact of the Annan War on the Crossing Group, as well as the feasibility of military intervention in the Annan War.

(End of this chapter)