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Chapter 1212 Latest Situation

He had been in the army for more than ten years, and was a classmate of the Navy Chief of Staff and the Chief of General Staff. But don't worry too much, this senior is an outlier in the Navy. While others are trying their best to get ahead, he tries every means to avoid the power center and is willing to marry, have children and settle down in Enniao Port.

If it weren't for the restrictions of military law and the supervision of the emperor, he would probably have dared to apply for discharge in his prime, used the allowance to buy a piece of land and build a farm, and directly have a wife and children to live with.

It is difficult to make such a person give up his yearning for family life, but it is much easier to persuade him not to fight for power and profit. Although success is not guaranteed at the moment, there is no need to regard him as the main competitor.

"Oh my god, I thought Manila was the best port. There are better ones in the world! No wonder His Majesty fell in love with this place at first sight and spent a lot of money to build it. It's really worth it.

In time, this place will not only become a naval base, but also a good place for reclamation. Those sloping lands are excellent fields. After one or two years of reclamation, we can grow sugarcane. It is close to the river, so growing rice is definitely no problem. It is a good place, a really good place!"

As they were chatting, the identity verification boat arrived. After an inspection, all was confirmed correct. Then, under the command of the pilot, the two warships slowly sailed into the waterway leading to the port.

After driving about 2 kilometers, the terrain on both sides of the river suddenly lowered, the view became clear, and the entire picture of the port came into view. Lao Liang, who was visiting Pearl Harbor for the first time, could not help but admire it from the bottom of his heart.

He is from Zhangzhou, Fujian, where there are many mountains and little land. Although he has been drifting on the sea all his life, he has an inseparable sense of intimacy with the land. Seeing that there are both rivers and plains in the basin surrounded by mountains, his first thought was what crops he could grow.

Compared with Manila Bay, the bay where Pearl Harbor is located is much smaller in area. It can be used as a military base. Size is not the first priority. The natural terrain that allows for both offense and defense is more critical.

Manila Bay is surrounded by plains, with basically no strategic locations to defend. There are too many tidal flats along the coast and the water is very shallow, making it too difficult to build a dock.

Pearl Harbor is different. It is located in a valley basin to the south. The bay is divided into three parts by two capes and is connected to the sea only by a 2-kilometer-long waterway.

As long as we build bunkers and artillery batteries on the hillsides on the east and west sides, control both sides of the waterway, and store enough ammunition, it would be difficult for the Ming Navy to break into the port even if we send all its warships.

The only way was to land from other directions of the island and let the infantry take down the fortifications on the hillside first. But that would be bad luck for the infantry, as they would have to attack from above and be attacked from both sides. It was unknown how much it would cost to succeed.

"Don't look at it, be careful not to look too much. As long as I can get the appointment, the emperor will also decree to sell the land here, and I guarantee that the first 200 acres will be reserved for you for retirement.

Before that, we should go down and get enough fresh water and canned food, and tell Captain Wu to bring less ammunition and more food, drinks and medicine. We are going to be bait this time, and the time we spend running away will definitely be longer than the time we spend in battle, so it’s useless to bring so many heavy things.”

But Settle was born in the grasslands, and was exposed to nomadic culture when he was a child. He knew nothing about farming, and had no interest in it. He threw down a blank check and urged the old boatswain to work quickly.

Now he didn't want to stay there any longer. He wished he could grow wings and fly to Lima, kidnap all the Spanish governor's children, leave a note saying Galapagos Islands, and force the governor to send out the entire army to seek revenge.

The sooner this war is over, the sooner he can return to the capital to discuss the details of his transfer with his brother. As for the appearance of Pearl Harbor, there is no rush. When he takes office, this will definitely be the fleet's base, and there will be plenty of time to take a closer look.

"Commander Settle of the Decoy Fleet, Captain Wu Bing, meeting the Commander!" Unfortunately, the more anxious he was, the more trouble he got. Before he even started unloading the empty barrels in the cabin, several naval officers came riding over on horseback. You don't need to know them, you can probably tell who they are by looking at their titles. No choice, he's a local boss, just step forward and salute.

"Captain Tao Daxiang of the East China Sea Fleet, thank you for your hard work. This is Commander Wen Jiawei Ma and Captain Sun of the Navy Statistics Department... A few days ago, the communication ship delivered the latest combat instructions from the General Staff, instructing the Pearl Harbor base to fully cooperate with the decoy fleet's operations and assigning Captain Sun to provide intelligence support.

He is familiar with the situation on the west coast of the American continent and has had contact with the locals. Some issues should not be discussed here, let's go to the conference room to discuss them. "

Tao Daxiang took the initiative to extend his hand to shake Settle's hand, briefly introduced the two officers accompanying him, and then extended his hand to let him go, and took the lead to walk towards the nearby hillside. There was a row of wooden houses on the hill, with the navy's sun and moon flag flying on the roof.

"Tao Dusi, I was ordered to go to the Galapagos Islands for observation, but the nautical chart I got was from the year before last. Do you have a more detailed nautical chart?"

Settle had never met Tao Daxiang before, nor had they worked together. Seeing that the other party was not being polite, he simply dealt with the matter in a businesslike manner. He took out a few nautical charts from his briefcase, opened one of them and spread it on the wooden conference table.

“There are nautical charts, but relying on them alone is not safe. The sea conditions inside the archipelago are more complicated, with many tidal reefs. Some waterways cannot be marked at all, and they must be targeted according to different months and time periods.

There is also bad news that has not yet been reported to the General Staff. According to the latest close observation, there may be a small number of people and ships stationed on a certain island. It is not clear whether they are Spanish or local natives, so a detailed plan must be made before approaching the archipelago to ensure that the whereabouts will not be exposed. "

Tao Daxiang and Ma Lun remained silent. The order they received contained limited information, and they still did not know the overall plan. They only had to follow the instructions and provide supplies to the ships participating in the operation.

On the contrary, Captain Sun was more active. He took a quick look at the sea chart on the table and took out a chart from his briefcase. However, he did not give it to Settle. Instead, he spread it on the table and pointed at it with a pen to explain. It seemed that he had not only studied it, but also conducted field investigations.

"Which island is suspected to have people? How many waterways around it are wide enough for warships to pass?" When it comes to professional issues, Settle doesn't care whether it is overshadowing the main issue. Time is tight and the task is heavy, so let it be whoever wants it.

"It's probably this island, temporarily named Turtle No. 3. There are several bays on the south side of the island, and we can't be sure which one it is. The observation ship dare not get too close during the day, and can only roughly determine the location at night by the firelight."

Captain Sun picked up a pen and drew a circle on the map of the Galapagos Islands, circling a small island on the northeast side of the largest island.

"Before I came here, Chief of Staff Zhu gave me some information. It mentioned that the security situation in the Viceroyalty of Peru was not very good, but it lacked details. I want to ask if there are many pirates in this sea area, and where are they most active?"

Looking at the island on the map, Settle gave up asking questions. It was too vague. Although it was only the size of a peanut on the map, the scale was 1:50000. If you really sailed over there, you would find endless land. It would be almost impossible to search it comprehensively with two ships.

But we can't just ignore it. If we don't find out the origins of the people on the island, how can we use it as an ambush site? If the news leaks out, this trip will be in vain.

(End of this chapter)