1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 701 Unintentional Challenge
Taking advantage of the opportunity to purchase large quantities of supplies, purchasing weapons and equipment in the territory of Daming, this method slightly exceeded the expectations of the coalition forces.These standard equipment from the Ming army are undoubtedly contraband. With the current situation of civil strife in the Ming Dynasty, it is easy to charge those who hide weapons with a crime of treason.But Shibazhi probably doesn't care about the number of crimes on his head. After all, they have been fighting with the Fujian government for several years, and the content related to treason in the "Law of the Ming Dynasty" has already been almost committed.

Just based on the crime of hiding a large amount of ordnance, the entire fleet can wait to be punished by the government. The lightest thing is exile.As soon as Xu Yuzhuo announced the charges, the gang of Jiangsu and Zhejiang maritime merchants immediately chose to confess honestly, revealing the whole process of the transaction.So on the way back to the station, the coalition forces already had first-hand intelligence information.

Shibazhi still has a lot of contacts and trade channels in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. The merchants who organized the fleet to transport supplies to Penghu this time have had business contacts with Shibazhi for several years, and some of them were even Zheng Zhilong’s former owners Li Dan's business partner.Last year, after the Fujian government began to control supplies in short supply, Shibazhi had to use all its connections in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. In addition to purchasing supplies, it also bought some old equipment that the Ming army had left idle in the warehouse at a high price.

Although these things are not big killers in the eyes of the coalition forces, they are very urgently needed combat preparations for the current Shibazhi.Just for the batch of weapons and equipment intercepted this time, Shibazhi paid nearly 10 taels of silver.

As for which army in Jiangsu and Zhejiang made the arms deal with Shibazhi, it is not convenient for the Fujian government to intervene directly.Even if Xu Xinsu is the tyrant of Fujian, he can't dictate to the garrisons in other provinces.

This time the goods were intercepted, and Shibazhi suffered the most, because the management and control measures of the Fujian government had also spread to Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Shibazhi had already paid a high price when purchasing these materials, and it had to be paid in advance. [-]%, and the remaining [-]% will not be paid until the goods arrive in Penghu.However, being intercepted by the coalition forces lost both property and goods, and the economic loss was not a small amount.

"What will General Xu plan to do after these maritime merchants are escorted back?" After interrogating the criminals, Xie Li finally had time to sit down and discuss with Xu Yuzhuo how to deal with them.

Xu Yuzhuo smiled and said: "I don't intend to punish them, I will release them after I go back, but the goods on the ship are all stolen goods, so I must keep them."

"Just let them go like this?" Xie Li asked with some puzzlement: "Even people and boats were released?"

"Do you still want to keep them?" Xu Yuzhuo put down his teacup, looked at Xie Li and said, "Does General Xie not care about the way I handle it?"

"I dare not, I just don't quite understand the purpose of doing this." Xie Li replied.

Xu Yuzhuo nodded and said: "Actually, the reason is not complicated. There are two reasons. One is that each of these maritime merchants has some background connections. Dealing with them is just a matter of one sentence. It's so easy. We are only responsible for intercepting the supplies delivered to Shibazhi, and we don't intend to offend the officials in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, right?"

Xie Li replied thoughtfully: "I see...then what is the second reason?"

"The second reason is that after putting these people back, let them tell the people in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang business circles not to try to do business with Shibazhi so easily as a warning." Xu Yuzhuo explained: "After this kind of news spreads, it will further increase the difficulty for Shibazhi to purchase materials in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. You should have heard the prices quoted by those merchants just now, which are two or three times more expensive than those in Fujian. After people go back, the price will continue to rise. If Shibazhi wants to buy supplies, he will have to bleed a lot."

"General Xu is brilliant!" Xie Li suddenly realized.

Although Xie Li is a senior officer in the navy and is good at commanding fleets to carry out combat missions, he was born as a civilian and knows very little about the rules of business and officialdom.And Xu Yuzhuo was born in a family of maritime merchants, and under the influence of his ears and eyes since he was a child, when dealing with such matters, his mind is indeed much more flexible.And these two people are fortunate enough to act together, so they can learn from each other's strengths and learn from each other's needs.

Considering the need for secrecy, the United Fleet escorted the captured fleet directly to the Zhongzuo, instead of docking at Kinmen Island, which is closer to the sea.As Xu Yuzhuo said, after confiscating all the goods on board, the ordinary merchant ships and personnel in the fleet were released.For these sea merchants, apart from being a little frightened, they have no real loss. After all, [-]% of the payment has been collected before departure. Even if all the goods on board have been confiscated by the Fujian government, in fact they still Profitable.

Qian Tiandun didn't interfere with Xu Yuzhuo's handling either. During this time, he was busy formulating a battle plan for attacking Penghu based on the satellite map provided by the base camp.

Just before the return of the United Fleet, Wang Tom, the commander of the Haihan Navy, had secretly arrived at the Kinmen Island base.His arrival also symbolizes that Haihan's combat command center has been transferred from the Sanya base camp to the Kinmen Island base, and the combat plan for Penghu has entered the second stage.

Arriving with Wang Tom was a whole naval fleet, including a "Majestic-class" main gunboat, four "Exploration-class" warships, four "Exploration-class" warships, and six ships responsible for logistical supplies.Including the naval forces already stationed there, the total number of ships has exceeded [-], and this is also the largest period for the Haihan Navy to station troops along the coast of Fujian so far.

Of course, this is not all the naval power that will be used in Haihan's combat plan.Before the war, at least one fleet will arrive in Fujian to participate in the war.If the situation in the South China Sea slows down, then the Military Commission is likely to concentrate three of the existing four fleets in Fujian to carry out combat missions, leaving only one fleet to look after the home in the base camp.This was also done to maximize the coalition's superiority at sea, so as to clear the way for the landing in Penghu.

On March 3, Kinmen Island Base.

Xu Jiaqi trotted all the way to the coalition headquarters. After entering the room, he hurriedly reported to Qian Tiandun and Wang Tom who were studying the map: "General Qian, General Wang, there is an urgent military message from the center left!"

At present, Xu Xinsu has set up the command center of the Ming army in the Zhongzuo Office adjacent to Kinmen Island, so almost all the orders of the Ming army are sent from the Zhongzuo Office.

Qian Tiandun took the secret letter from Xu Jiaqi, and there was a wax seal with Xu Xinsu's private seal on it, which showed that the secret letter was drafted by Xu Xinsu himself, and its importance is self-evident.

Qian Tiandun opened it and read it briefly, then frowned and handed it to Wang Tom who was next to him.Wang Tom also changed his face after reading it quickly, and asked Xu Jiaqi: "Do you know the content of this letter?"

"This letter was asked to be opened by the two generals, but the last general didn't know about it." Xu Jiaqi replied honestly.

"It's okay to tell you now." Tom Wang handed the secret letter to Xu Jiaqi, motioning him to take a look too.

Xu Jiaqi glanced twice, and said in astonishment, "Shibazhi is going to run?"

The content of Xu Xinsu's secret letter was sent out by Neiying who was lurking on Penghu Island. The content is that Shibazhi is currently reorganizing various materials in stock, but it has not further strengthened the various places on Penghu Island. Instead, the fortress spent a lot of manpower and material resources to repair and maintain the ships, and even the dilapidated ships that had been on the coast for a year or two were all repaired.

Although the spy did not explain the purpose of Shibazhi in the secret report, after the information was sent back, the high-level Ming army quickly thought of the possible reason-or Shibazhi planned to rely on the number of sea ships. Advantages, fighting to the death with the coalition forces in the naval battle, or they are planning to empty Penghu and move to other places.

If Zheng Zhilong is really stupid enough to rely on the large number of ships to suppress the current Haihan United Fleet, then Xu Xinsu may really wake up from his sleep with a smile.Now the strength gap between the two sides at sea has been difficult to make up for with the number of ships participating in the war.Even if Zheng Zhilong could dispatch thousands of ships at one go, most of them could only be cannon fodder in the naval battle. At most, it could delay the time for the coalition fleet to attack Penghu, and it was unlikely to change the trend of the battle.

Compared with the desperate fight to the death, Xu Xinsu and his staff believe that Shibazhi's recent movements are more likely to be planning to flee.For a group of pirates, survival is obviously the most important thing. As long as they can leave the sphere of influence of the Fujian Navy, with the strength of Shibazhi, it is indeed difficult for anyone to hold them down at sea.

However, the spies Xu Xinsu placed in Penghu were not high enough to have access to Shibazhi's high-level insider information. Based on these circumstances alone, it was impossible to guess when Shibazhi planned to flee or where he planned to settle down.And if these conditions are not implemented, no matter how strong the combined fleet is, it will not be able to block both ends of the Taiwan Strait to block the escape route of Shibazhi.

"Eighteen Zhi doesn't want to fight, it's very embarrassing." Tom Wang couldn't help complaining: "The ship has also arrived, the soldiers have also arrived, and the battle plan has been formulated in a mess, and you actually said no to me. Take it?"

Qian Tiandun was calmer, and asked Xu Jiaqi: "When Mr. Xu sent this secret letter, did you have any instructions?"

Xu Jiaqi shook his head and said, "I don't have any special instructions, I just say that everything is subject to your army's decision."

"Master Xu is putting the responsibility on us!" Tom Wang replied: "We are guest soldiers, I think it's better for Master Xu to make the decision."

Tom Wang didn't say what kind of decision he was going to make, but Xu Jiaqi understood what he meant.Now Shibazhi has expressed their willingness to move away from Penghu, which means that they do not want to engage in a direct confrontation with the coalition forces, so the next step is to advance the plan to attack Penghu, so as not to let Shibazhi go away too late, or should wait for the situation Change, give Shibazhi a chance to escape?
If Shibazhi really intends to move out of Penghu, then the result of waiting may indeed be that Shibazhi successfully evacuated before the coalition forces took action. Such a consequence is not too bad for the coalition forces, at least it can save With a lot of combat military expenditures, the coalition forces can also avoid casualties and war losses.But the problem is that no matter for Xu Xinsu or Haihan, the existence of Shibazhi is always a hidden danger. No one can guarantee that this pirate will completely give up fighting against them after they leave Penghu.If this trouble is not resolved, I am afraid that both sides of the coalition forces will find it difficult to feel completely at ease.

But at present, it is impossible to determine when Shibazhi plans to withdraw. If we simply rely on the spies from Penghu, if the intelligence fails to be sent back in time, the coalition forces may miss the opportunity to let Shibazhi withdraw from Penghu intact. Walk.However, if the combat plan is forcibly advanced, and the two armies have failed to complete the established mobilization and deployment of troops, acting rashly will definitely affect the effectiveness of the battle, and the commanders of the two armies participating in the battle will also have to bear greater pressure.

Wang Tom didn't want to attack Penghu in advance, because with the naval ships currently in place, even the blockade of Magong Port in Penghu was not enough, and it simply couldn't reach the planned scale of the navy's participation in the war.Although self-protection is safe, the effectiveness of combat will also be extremely limited.Therefore, even though he knew that only by doing it in advance can he keep Shibazhi, he still would not take the initiative to make this suggestion.

Another reason is that the Fujian government had taken the initiative to bear the expenses of attacking Penghu before the war.Of course, the sponsor of this money is not just the Fujian government, but the maritime group headed by Xu Xinsu.If Xu Xinsu planned to recover Penghu logically after the withdrawal of Shibazhi, it would undoubtedly save a lot of money. If Haihan asked to do it in advance, Xu Xinsu might not be willing to cooperate.

Xu Jiaqi naturally also thought of the reason why Wang Tom said this, but his authority is not enough to bargain with the Haihan people on this strategic decision, so he can only say that he will go back to the left center first to ask Xu Xinsu for instructions.

After Xu Jiaqi left, Qian Tiandun said: "Do you think it's a good fight or not?"

Wang Tom laughed and said, "That depends on whether you stand on the side of the military or the stand of the executive committee."

"How do you say that?" Qian Tiandun asked in puzzlement.

Wang Tom replied: "From the standpoint of the military, every battle is worth a battle. Our strength is obviously superior. Even if we fight ahead of time, we will not suffer any losses. It is nothing more than the difference in the size of the credit. Of course it is It's better to fight."

"What about standing on the executive committee's side?"

"Let them go, no matter where they go, we will have the opportunity to hunt down them all the way in the future. Wherever they escape, our army can chase them." Tom Wang explained with a smile.

(End of this chapter)