1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 537

The Ministry of Security has been deployed in Nanyang much earlier than the military. Last year, Hao Wanqing had arranged for his men to enter the shipping company of Zhangui, a maritime merchant, and go south to Batavia and Manga to participate in the establishment of commercial warehouses-of course, this so-called commercial The stack also undertakes the task of intelligence collection accordingly.Since the first half of this year, the compiled information has been regularly sent back to Sanya by ship from the local area.

For security reasons, the Ministry of Security did not deploy radio stations and dispatchers locally, so it cannot be said that it is time-sensitive.The contents of the reports received by the security department were basically two months ago. If measured by the standards of He Xi and Hao Wanqing, such work efficiency is actually unqualified.But the reality is like this, no matter how dissatisfied, Jane can only deal with it in this way.

Of course, part of the information retrieved by the Ministry of Security was also sent to the military staff.However, the military is not very clear about the specific layout and grasp of the Ministry of Security in the Nanyang region.Yan Chujie had made a report a long time ago to set up a military intelligence department directly under the military, but it got stuck due to funding problems, so up to now, it still needs to rely on the information provided by the Ministry of Security to a certain extent.

After Hao Wanqing finished speaking, Yan Chujie let go of his guard: "Then what kind of cooperation method do you plan to use?"

Hao Wanqing did not immediately answer Yan Chujie's question, but asked instead: "Is Mr. Yan familiar with the geographical conditions of the South China Sea?"

Yan Chujie nodded and said, "If you mean looking at the map, then it's okay, but I've never been to the field before."

"Then it's much easier for me to say." Hao Wanqing returned to the topic and said: "First of all, I need to confirm one thing, that is, what is the combat radius of the navy's existing fleet? No need for a very specific number, just give me one A rough range will do.”

This is not a military secret. There are often discussion posts about this on the Internet forums used by the traversers. Anyone who has a little knowledge of the data of naval warships can roughly guess it through simple calculations.

Yan Chujie didn't deliberately conceal it, so he reported the data: "The daily combat readiness cruise probably keeps the combat radius within [-] nautical miles. If enough supplies are brought during wartime, the combat radius can be extended to [-] nautical miles. The strength and time of the fleet will be greatly limited, and the supplies carried by the fleet alone cannot last for too long."

Hao Wanqing nodded and said: "This is basically consistent with our speculation, but in this way, between Sanya and the main ports in Nanyang, we have too few supply points. If I remember correctly, the military There is only one Cam Ranh Bay in the main military port in the southern part of the Indochina Peninsula?"

Yan Chujie responded: "That's right, Jin Ran Bay is about [-] nautical miles away from Sanya, and it happens to be within the combat radius of the naval fleet. In fact, when the Ministry of Shipping and we designed our warships, we also took this voyage into consideration. .”

"The distance between Cam Ranh Bay and Sanya is not a problem, but going south from Cam Ranh Bay is more troublesome." Hao Wanqing followed Yan Chujie's words and continued: "It is more than 700 nautical miles from Cam Ranh Bay to the Strait of Malacca, and the distance to Batavia is [-] nautical miles. The voyage exceeds a thousand nautical miles. Whether it is a warship or a civilian ship, such a long-distance sea voyage is a very troublesome and dangerous thing. Moreover, it has exceeded the combat radius of the navy. If something happens in Nanyang and the navy needs to go south, Then combat supplies will be a very big problem.”

"Can the Ministry of Security help us solve this problem?" Yan Chujie stared at Hao Wanqing's face with a half-smile and asked.

Hao Wanqing shook his head and said: "The Ministry of Security is not a god. We can't solve this kind of problem. At most we can give suggestions, but I think the military should have planned for this long ago, right?"

Yan Chujie did not deny Hao Wanqing's doubts, nodded and said: "Actually, as long as you look at the map, you will find that there are not many options to solve this problem. The most feasible way is to establish a At least one large stronghold is responsible for supply and transit."

"It seems that the military has already selected a target. I don't know if it is consistent with our security department's expectation?" Hao Wanqing looked at Yan Chujie with a hint of hope in his eyes.

"There is no need to continue playing charades. Between the Indochina Peninsula, Sumatra, and Java, the most suitable place is the Natuna Islands." Yan Chujie did not continue to circle around, but directly revealed the answer.

"The hero sees the same thing." Hao Wanqing nodded again and again: "Then the next thing is easy to talk about."

The Natuna Islands are located between the Malay Peninsula and the island of Borneo, consisting of more than [-] islands with a total area of ​​more than [-] square kilometers.This place is located about [-] nautical miles due south of Cam Ranh Bay, about [-] nautical miles northeast of Malaga, and about [-] nautical miles due north of Batavia. It is perfect to be used as a transfer station in ocean voyages.

Of course, the reason why the military and the Ministry of Security are interested in this place at the same time is not only because of its unique geographical location, but also because it has been regarded as the farthest point in southern China since ancient times. The central imperial court was drawn into the territory.The earliest historical records can be traced back to the Han Dynasty. In the "Stories of Foreign Objects" written by Yang Fu of the Eastern Han Dynasty, it is recorded that "the head of the sea rises, the water is shallow and there are many magnets", and "Nanzhou Foreign Objects" written by Wan Zhen during the Three Kingdoms period also records Similar records.Since the Song Dynasty, the Natuna Islands have been regarded as the sea boundary between China and foreign countries.

When Zheng He sailed to the West in the early 14th century, the Natuna Islands were officially named "Wansheng Shitang Islet" and recorded in "Zheng He's Navigation Chart".Barracks and a large number of living facilities were built locally, and personnel were stationed on duty. In 1433, Emperor Xuanzong of the Ming Dynasty bestowed the word "Wansheng Island, Anbuna" to exempt the residents on the island from taxes. Therefore, the island was called "Anbuna Island" by the residents on the island. An official recognition of the ownership of this overseas enclave.

If this place is still controlled by Daming so far, it would be easier for Haihan to strike. Anyway, the local population is not large, and Haihan's occupation of that place will not be much more troublesome than occupying the county seat on Qiongzhou Island.But the problem is that it has been 30 years since Daming lost this place, and it will be more troublesome for Haihan to make an idea of ​​this place.

In 1601, the Dutch colonists occupied Batavia on the island of Java, the later Jakarta area, and established the headquarters of the East India Company there.After that, the Dutch quickly sent armed personnel to occupy "Ambona Island" and renamed it "Ambona Island", and later changed it to "Natuna" because it had the same name as another place. , which became the name of later generations.

When the Haihan Group traveled to this time and space, the Natuna Islands had already been occupied by the Dutch, so there was no time to affect this period of history.However, the Dutch do not have much energy to manage the Natuna Islands, because apart from the forests, there are no natural harbors with good conditions, and there are no high-value natural resources to be developed——Natuna Island There is an oil and gas field on the seabed of the Northeast that is said to have the largest reserves in the world. However, even if these travelers who have mastered various black technologies, it is probably impossible to see the oil and gas fields under the sea while they are alive.

Therefore, whether it is for the Dutch or Haihan, the greatest value of Natuna Island is still its geographical location. Apart from being a transit supply station on the route, this place does not have much commercial development value.But for the Dutch, the importance of this transfer station may be even greater than that of Haihan, because after leaving here and continuing north, the next colonial stronghold belonging to the Dutch is far away 1400 nautical miles away. Voyagers need to cross the entire South China Sea to reach the city of Zeelandia in the southwest of Taiwan Island.

If this place is lost, then the Dutch sailing ship from Batavia will need to drift about [-] nautical miles at sea before arriving at another port of its own. A happy situation.

As for sharing the local port with the Dutch, Yan Chujie had no such intention, and he believed that the Dutch would not have such an idea either.If it's just a merchant ship or a civilian ship, maybe it's not a big problem to stop there, it's nothing more than paying money, but it's not just merchant ships that Haihan wants to send to the south.If the Dutch could honestly let Haihan's warships also dock at the port, then they probably wouldn't become one of the maritime overlords of this era.

"I have read all the reports sent by your security department before. I just want to know how many ambushes you have laid. Regarding the situation of the Natuna Islands, are there any things that were not mentioned in the report?" Yan Chujie didn't Frightened by Hao Wanqing's words, he asked profound and direct questions.

"Mr. Yan, you really think too much." Hao Wanqing immediately denied Yan Chujie's suspicion: "The report we submitted to the military did not make any changes. What you see is the same."

"Really?" Yan Chujie still couldn't believe it.The people from the intelligence agency have always been secretive in their work style. Although Yan Chujie doesn't have a bad impression of them, he does lack trust.

"Really, there is no need for me to deceive you on this matter. After all, our Ministry of Security is looking for cooperation with your military this time, and it is also our duty to provide you with intelligence information." Hao Wanqing said sincerely.

"Well, if we say that we are building a supply point, what does your security department want to get from it?" Yan Chujie decided not to delve into the question just now, and returned the topic to the serious business.

"Before establishing permanent colonies on the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra or Java, we need a more stable base in the South China Sea to improve the operational efficiency of local intelligence agencies." Hao Wanqing paused and made a more detailed statement Explanation: "You have to know that for safety reasons, the intelligence stations we set up in Malacca and Batavia do not have radio stations. It will take a month for these news to be transmitted back to Sanya from the local area. Most of the time-sensitive information has lost its use value when it is transmitted back. If we can set up a workstation in the Natuna Islands, then our intelligence transmission speed can be at least doubled compared to before. This is what our security department wants got something."

"So what the Ministry of Security means is to provide information and cooperate with us in capturing the Natuna Islands so that your Nanyang intelligence network can operate more efficiently?" Yan Chujie finally figured it out.

"A very correct understanding." Hao Wanqing responded: "This is not only beneficial to us, but also very beneficial to your military."

"The problem is that we don't have enough strength to go south to capture the Natuna Islands." Yan Chujie shook his head and said, "Our existing fleet is a bit tight to protect the Qiongzhou Strait and the Pearl River Estuary, let alone go south to fight."

"This matter doesn't have to be done by the navy." Hao Wanqing said solemnly: "We only want to achieve our goal, and we don't need to be particular about the means we use. Mr. Yan has also read the report, and there are not many armed personnel stationed there. , the defense strength is also low, we don't need to go to war."

"The defense is low, so you have to send troops to do it. The main force of the militia is now deployed in the Qiongbei area, and they can't get away in a short time..." Speaking of this, Yan Chujie suddenly stopped by himself: "Your It means, what we did in Qiongbei, can we do it again?"

"Why not?" Hao Wanqing showed a black-bellied smile: "I think the pirate joke can be played for at least a few more years. For many things, as long as someone takes the blame and keeps yourself out of it, then there is nothing to worry about. "

"Your security department must have been planning this matter for a long time, right?" Yan Chujie didn't answer his question, but continued to ask.

"It didn't take long, that is, after the third anniversary of landing this year." Hao Wanqing said frankly: "To be precise, we only started planning after the executive committee approved the Liaoyuan plan."

"You guys are staring at the South China Sea while you are fighting in Qiongbei. This is really eating from a bowl and looking into a pot. It's amazing!" Yan Chujie couldn't help but stretched out his thumbs sincerely and praised: "Why don't you merge into our military? Forget about the staff, this plan is much more reliable than the method that those guys in the staff came up with!"

Of course Hao Wanqing knew that what Yan Chujie said was a joke, so he said modestly: "Mr. Yan is over the top, and we are just following the gourd. The root of this idea is still the prairie fire operation. Besides, the final implementation of this plan still depends on your military. Just go out. Of course, our Security Department will do our best to cooperate within our capabilities."

(End of this chapter)