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Chapter 1236 Stalemate
"I understand. Giving carrots alone is not enough. We need a big stick. Sometimes we give carrots first, sometimes we give sticks first. Your Majesty, if we succeed in persuading you to surrender, can I make a small request?"

Every time he chatted with the emperor, Setel could comprehend some new ideas and get to know his majesty better. He always spoke of kindness, fairness, and morality, but deep down he was worse than anyone else.

It was not safe to ask the pirates to persuade them to surrender directly, and it sounded like they were more concerned about the lives of Mather and others. But then they turned around and asked to beat the Spaniards first, and then show mercy and magnanimity when they were in great pain.

The emperor's kindness and magnanimity were paved with the lives of Spanish soldiers, but no one can say that it was wrong. One has to sincerely admire his insight into human nature and his sophisticated means.

Settle couldn't really tell whether it was good or bad to meet such an emperor. But he firmly believed that following the emperor would not cause him any harm. As for who was unlucky, he didn't care. He still had things to do and couldn't worry about it.

"Are you eyeing the Hawaiian Naval Base again? Do you think it would be great to gain merit by serving in the war here? Don't think so. I won't agree to anything.

Do you understand overstepping your authority? You are a naval officer, not a royal warrior, and you are not under my jurisdiction. If anyone who wants to transfer has to go through my channels, what do you think Zhu Haiou and Bai Fan will think when they know about it? What will other naval generals think when they know about it?
You have offended them all. What does it matter if you get the position of Hawaiian Commander? There are always countless eyes watching you. Can you guarantee that you will not make any mistakes? Is this a good life?"

Facing Settle's sly expression, Hong Tao knew what he was going to say without much thought, and refused without any hesitation, then helped him to imagine the troubles he might encounter in the future with earnest words.

"…I don't dare to hope for anything, I just want to ask Your Majesty whether the decoy fleet can participate in tomorrow's battle. The cannons are almost rusted from just circling the sea these days."

The emperor saw through his little trick and refuted it in front of Captain Wu. Settle didn't make any excuses. He smiled awkwardly and denied it flatly, as if he had never thought about the position of commander-in-chief of Hawaii.

"I don't want to be harassed all the time. You two are familiar with the waters near the archipelago, so you can monitor the eastern waterway. Remember to ask Deputy Chief of Staff Bai for a mine-laying map first, and calculate the direction and speed of the ocean current at any time to avoid being hit by mines."

Hong Tao didn't care about Settle's disrespectful behavior. He himself was not a law-abiding person and disliked people who paid too much attention to etiquette. But he didn't want people to challenge his authority all the time, so he simply sent them far away so that they wouldn't be annoyed.

As expected, the Spanish fleet did not risk breaking out at night, and both sides spent the night peacefully, but it is unknown whether the officers and soldiers really slept well.

The second day's battle was opened by two muffled thunders from the waterway on the east side of the archipelago. Two schooners were tilting on the water, with not only their masts broken, but also their keels broken, almost breaking in two.

"Nicholas, am I dazzled, or does the Ming Navy know how to become invisible?" Seeing this, the Spanish fleet, which was lined up in two rows, quickly lowered its sails and slowed down.

Colonel Mendoza stood at the bow holding a telescope, looking at the two disintegrating sailboats in the distance. His mind was full of confusion, and he even began to doubt his original understanding.

"If it is really a spell, they should not be invisible, but diving. The explosion obviously occurred below the waterline, but not in the gunpowder chamber." Nicholas did not raise the telescope, he could see it clearly with the naked eye at this distance.

The two schooners responsible for exploring the way ahead did not explode at the same time. The one on the north side exploded first, and the one on the south side quickly turned around and followed suit a few minutes later. But the location and degree of the explosion, and even the shape and size of the splash were extremely similar. He served as a merchant ship boatswain for six years and in the navy for more than 20 years. He followed the sailing ships to almost all the known oceans, docked at most ports, and saw the navies and pirates of dozens of countries. He had never heard of a ship that could hide underwater and fire with such great power, and one shot almost blew a sailing ship several dozen meters long into two.

"Look here, there's not even a shadow of a ship... Send the order, turn back!"

Colonel Mendoza disagreed with Nicholas's speculation. If it was a Ming Navy ship that attacked underwater, there would definitely be more ships nearby to support it. However, looking around, there was no sign of a sail on the sea. The Ming Navy seemed to be afraid of things hidden in the sea, so they stayed away from it.

That's right, the more I think about it, the more plausible it is. The sea water is definitely not something that humans can understand. It might be a demon summoned from hell. The East Indies is full of all kinds of strange beliefs, so we have to be on guard.

"South or North?" Nicholas had no way of refutation of the colonel's decision without knowing what was hidden under the sea. But the fleet had to leave the archipelago and could not go east, leaving only two options.

“…Try the north.”

Colonel Mendoza was helpless about this problem. He wanted to return home quickly while the fleet was not seriously damaged, but he did not expect that the Ming Navy had blocked the waterway on the east side, obviously intending to annihilate the entire fleet.

Until this time, the rumors about the Battle of the Cape of Good Hope are worth pondering. The Ming Navy is indeed very strong, and it has demonstrated higher organizational and combat capabilities under unfavorable conditions of fighting with fewer troops against more. It is not appropriate to fight with the enemy to the end before thoroughly understanding the opponent's details.

The Ming Navy’s southern fleet’s combat effectiveness was tested yesterday. It was very tough and not easy to succeed. So the only way out is to the north, and we have to try it regardless of whether there is hope or not.

The two sides kept testing each other for a whole day. At first, Colonel Mendoza personally led 15 carefully selected warships to attack the Ming navy on the north side of the archipelago, and the result was very similar to the first day.

The Spanish fleet suffered from the disadvantage of speed and could never get close to the Ming navy. The Ming navy, relying on the advantage of the long range of its artillery, resolutely refused to engage in close contact and continued to attack the pilot ship. The accumulation of small attacks eventually led to the sinking of another Spanish warship.

When the Spanish warships retreated back to the archipelago, the Ming navy launched a counterattack, but failed under the strict defense of the Spanish fleet. However, Colonel Mendoza soon saw the clues that the Ming navy was not counterattacking at all, but harassing.

Each time, they only sent two or three warships into the inner waters of the archipelago, and never approached them. They fired from a long distance, regardless of whether they could hit the target or not. This forced the Spanish sailors to be alert and ready for battle at any time.

In this state, the food on board would be consumed in large quantities. Fresh water was easy to deal with, as sailors could be sent to the island in small boats to collect it, but there was no place to replenish food.

(End of this chapter)