1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 797 Secret Investigation
How many people in the world don't like glory, wealth, fame and fortune?Although Gao Qiaonan came from a humble background and had a heart of repaying Qian Tiandun, it did not mean that he would feel repulsive towards these things.It's just that he has been by Qian Tiandun's side since he joined the group, and he has almost never had the idea of ​​self-reliance. Even if he had such an opportunity, what he considered was how to win more benefits for his master.If Qian Tiandun hadn't taken the initiative to mention this aspect, he probably wouldn't have moved his mind in this direction at all.

After Gao Qiaonan left the office with mixed feelings, Chen Yixin said, "Brother Qian, do you really intend to let Gao Qiaonan command the attack on Taipei?"

"You can let him try the Spanish stronghold in Danshui. The Spaniards have only a few troops there, which is similar to the situation on Ambuna Island. With Takahashi Nan's ability, it will definitely be no problem to win the local area. It just depends on the cost. How much." Qian Tiandun responded indifferently: "With our maritime strength, it is not a big problem to block the Tamsui Estuary now. Once the war starts, the Spaniards will not be able to withstand our offensive. There is only one retreat in the local area. It is to retreat to Jilonggang through the Taipei Basin. When I attack Jilonggang, I will take over and personally command it.”

"I'm not worried about Gao Qiaonan's ability, I'm worried that someone in Sanya will use Gao Qiaonan's identity to make an issue." Chen Yixin explained.

"Gao Qiaonan is an old naturalized citizen who was naturalized in 1628. After joining the army, he has always been loyal and has won many military exploits. Besides, there are many foreign naturalized officers in the militia. I have become the captain of the ship, and no one has said anything about it." Qian Tiandun was very disdainful about this: "If anyone really wants to use his status to make a claim, I will go back to Sanya and beat him in the face!"

Regarding the use and restraint of the naturalized people, there have always been different voices within Haihan.With the rapid expansion of Haihan's control area and population, the situation of Guihuamin cadres in high positions will gradually begin to appear. This is an inevitable historical trend, and no one can go against it.However, the positions of senior officers in the army are relatively sensitive. Many people still have the idea that "if you are not of my race, you must have a different heart", and you are not particularly reassured about foreign naturalized civilian officers.In particular, Takahashi Minami's Japanese background has his own hatred value. No matter how good his performance is, it will be difficult for everyone to eliminate their prejudice against him.

However, Qian Tiandun's attitude on this matter is very clear, that is to firmly protect his shortcomings, and he will find trouble for anyone who troubles Gao Qiaonan.Moreover, he will not be like those time travelers who stayed on Hainan Island, taking into account the daily relationship between colleagues who look up and look down. There are many things that are not easy to talk about. For him, except for a limited number of people who deserve the necessary respect, The others are nothing special.Anyway, his current position in the Haihan military is irreplaceable, and he doesn't need to give too much face to people outside the military.

"Then when do you plan to attack the Spaniards?" Chen Yixin didn't want to talk too much about Gao Qiaonan's personal affairs, so he took the initiative to change the topic.

"We have to wait." Qian Tiandun explained: "As for the local situation, I can't completely listen to the little blacksmith's one-sided words. I still have to find a way to collect more information. If possible, I would like to send A reconnaissance team went to the local area to investigate the surrounding environment on the spot, and to perfect and enrich the details of the combat plan."

Chen Yixin comprehended and said, "Brother Qian wants me to go?"

Qian Tiandun nodded without hesitation and said: "I have this idea, but this matter must be kept completely secret, so I just asked you to come back in the telegram, without mentioning specific things. If this matter is passed on in advance If it’s opened, it’s inevitable that people will make irresponsible remarks.”

Previously, the Penghu garrison carried out reconnaissance on Taiwan Island, and even sent troops directly to Dayuan Port to threaten the Dutch with force. In fact, it was Qian Tiandun's idea, and it was not an action after the approval of the Executive Committee.After the news was sent back to Sanya, Haihan still had some complaints about this kind of unauthorized action. It was only because the effect of the action in Penghu was impeccable, and it brought practical benefits to Haihan, so that the Executive Committee was informed of the situation. Instead, many interim measures were taken to remedy the imperfections in the military's operations.

Of course, it was mainly because Qian Tiandun handled things beautifully. If he failed, he would have to face a storm.And he knew very well in his heart that this kind of behavior would easily give outsiders a chance to attack the military, so he didn't want to let the wind leak in advance before taking the next step.He didn't tell Chen Yixin the truth in the telegram, because he was afraid that Chen Yixin would say something to Anxi in a hurry.Although Anxi is not an anti-war faction, there is no guarantee that he will not spread the news further after hearing the news.

Chen Yixin replied: "It takes about two days to go back and forth on Danshui Road, four or five days before and after is enough. But you have to help me find a reason to say hello to Coach Anxi, otherwise I disappeared for so many days for no reason, he will definitely would be suspicious."

Qian Tiandun was already prepared for this: "I have already thought about this reason. I will send a telegram tomorrow, saying that you have contracted a cold and fell ill after arriving in Penghu, and you need to rest for a week. In this way, you will also be able to recover during your mission. You don’t need to show up in Penghu to show your existence, and you won’t leak your stuff.”

Chen Yixin nodded and said, "It's indeed a good idea to ask for sick leave. Is the manpower ready?"

"I transferred the reconnaissance platoon directly under the battalion headquarters to you. They are all veterans of more than three years, and they all participated in the previous two landing operations on the island. What do you think?" Qian Tiandun asked.

"You sent me the best of the best, so I have nothing to criticize." Chen Yixin said with a smile: "The veterans are much better than me in the wild. I didn't bring them, they took me. That's right."

Chen Yixin had been transferred to Qian Tiandun's side for a while, and he had a relatively clear understanding of the composition of the special warfare battalion.Most of the veterans like Gao Qiaonan who joined Qian Tiandun's command in the early days have been promoted to company and platoon level officers by virtue of their military exploits.However, there are also some veterans who were still in the establishment of the special warfare company, and they still serve in the most elite reconnaissance squad.

It's not that Qian Tiandun treats one differently than another, but considering that some people are not born to be commanders and are more suitable for performing tasks on the front line. It may not be a good thing to rashly be assigned to other positions.On the contrary, staying in the reconnaissance platoon can not only give full play to its strengths, but also train successors with the old leading the new.Although the military ranks of these veterans have not been promoted, their military ranks and treatment have not lagged behind their comrades in the same period. Moreover, with the increase in the experience of the Southern and Northern Wars, the combat experience has become more and more abundant. It is not an exaggeration for Chen Yixin to call it the "elite of the elite".

The establishment of the special warfare battalion has always exceeded the standard configuration, and the reconnaissance platoon is no exception. It currently maintains an establishment of 58 people, which is almost double the number of regular military systems.And the luxurious equipment of four snipers in the platoon organization is unique in the entire Haihan militia.

As for personal equipment, it is enough to make colleagues in the special warfare battalion envious.The camouflage uniforms that were used as militia uniforms in the early days have now been replaced by gray military uniforms, and currently only the reconnaissance platoon of the special operations battalion is still using camouflage uniforms as military uniforms during field combat missions, although this fancy military uniform is not It conforms to the aesthetics of this era, but when wearing this kind of clothes becomes a special status symbol, many people will also work hard on it as their own goal.

At present, other militia units are gradually equipped with binoculars for company commanders, but in the reconnaissance platoon, each squad has one, which is enough to make colleagues envy and hate.Similar to this is the hand grenade, which is still in the stage of manual trial production. This thing is not a primary fire starter such as the oil-filled pottery thrown by the contemporary army in combat, but a real imitation of the Mark II. grenade.Just because the manufacturing is difficult and the raw materials are not easy to prepare, the production method of the assembly line cannot be adopted at present. Each one is hand-made by the technicians in the train room of the Sanya Army. Large-scale equipment, only the reconnaissance platoon can receive one each time they go on a mission.

In addition, there are the latest field compasses, water purifiers, self-heating marching rations, multi-functional engineering shovels, portable tents, etc., many black technology equipment that are still in the trial production stage and have not been installed on a large scale. Individual soldiers in the reconnaissance platoon can be seen in the equipment.In Yan Chujie's words, apart from the fact that the performance of the main weapon has not kept up, the equipment level of this group of people has at least reached the level of "late World War I and early World War II", although it cannot be compared with the personal equipment of the traverser officers. But it has gone far beyond the level of this era.

Such a small elite unit with rich combat experience, excellent weapons and equipment, and high training level performs tasks such as infiltration, reconnaissance, assassination, and sabotage in enemy-controlled areas. High casualties are too likely.Otherwise, due to safety considerations, Qian Tiandun would not be able to arrange for Chen Yixin to lead the expedition alone. After all, he can be regarded as a key training object recognized by the military, and accidents cannot easily occur.

"In the reconnaissance of Danshui stronghold, there are a few points that you should pay attention to." Qian Tiandun warned: "First, there is a gap of more than 300 years between the map we have in hand and the current actual situation of Danshui, especially places like the estuary and coastline. The topographical discrepancy will be very large, and we need to correct the data we have based on the results of field surveys."

Mastering the global satellite map is one of the more important advantages Haihan has. It is no different from a plug-in that directly opens the map in an instant battle game. This can save a lot of time spent on exploring unknown areas during the expansion process. time.However, this skill is not flawless. After hundreds of years of vicissitudes, the actual terrain of many places is quite different from the map data in Haihan's hand. Therefore, when performing combat missions, the military will generally be very cautious. Conduct on-the-ground reconnaissance first, correcting inaccuracies on the map to ensure commanders don't send troops into battle to seize beaches or high ground that don't exist.

Chen Yixin was no longer a newcomer, so he naturally understood this, and nodded silently to show that he had made a note of it.

Qian Tiandun continued: "Second, if it is not necessary, hide your whereabouts as much as possible during the operation, do not have contact with anyone, and avoid direct face-to-face with the Spaniards. If there is a chance to catch someone alive, you must also make sure that nothing is lost, and don't startle the enemy. "

Qian Tiandun paused, and then said: "Third, try to verify what the blacksmith said, especially the city defense configuration of the stronghold, and the location with the preset landing area. If the distance is not suitable for using naval guns to cover Landing tactics, then we have to make an action plan early."

Chen Yixin smiled and said, "Don't worry, I will remember these things. If there is nothing else, then I'll go back and pack my things first."

"Don't worry, there is one last thing." Qian Tiandun said solemnly: "In any case, ensure your own personal safety first, and everything else is a secondary condition, including the tasks you want to perform. You are done If you go there completely, you will come back completely."

Chen Yixin also put away his smile, nodded and said, "Don't worry, Brother Qian, I still care about my little life."

"Then you go to prepare first, and when it gets dark, arrange to board the ship." After Qian Tiandun finalized the matter, he got up to see off the guests: "I have two meetings later, so I won't go to the pier to see you off." Yes. When you come back from Danshui, I will ask the kitchen to prepare a feast for you!"

In order to avoid unnecessary attention, Qian Tiandun did not directly mobilize the Navy's ship to carry out this secret investigation mission, but used his contacts at hand to rent a Guangzhou ship from the Fujian Chamber of Commerce a week in advance.Of course, in order to ensure that the news would not be leaked, all the crew and sailors on board were replaced by the Haihan militia.

After dusk fell, the soldiers of the reconnaissance platoon, who were already ready to go, carried their bags, large and small, and boarded the ship one by one in a silent atmosphere.Their actions have always been military secrets, and there will not be a large number of people rushing to the pier to cheer and see them off and greet them like when a large army goes out and triumphantly. Such an elite presence.

Chen Yixin rushed to the pier in a covered carriage. He didn't stop after getting off the carriage, and boarded the boat directly with a large bag of equipment on his back.After a while, the sailors on the ship unmoored and hoisted the sails, slowly propped the ship away from the pier with the poles, and sailed out of Magong Port without a sound, and quickly merged into the night.In the next few days, this force will complete a series of reconnaissance operations in northern Taiwan.

(End of this chapter)