Late Ming sea owl

Chapter 357 Mortality
"Attack? Are you crazy? Don't you see how many cannons there are on the opposite side?" Lin Hai looked at Miguel in disbelief.

"It will be too late if we don't attack now! While the artillery batteries at the foot of the mountain still have some strength to fight, the fleet will immediately sail out from the western channel and form a T-shaped concentrated fire on the red-haired fleet." Miguel learned a lot of vocabulary from Lin Hai that were not available in this era. The so-called T-shaped concentrated fire means that both fleets are arranged in a column formation, and the side occupying the head of the T can concentrate its broadside firepower, while the opponent has very few artillery with a range of fire.

"In this case, the enemy will have to abandon their artillery batteries and change their formation to engage our fleet. We won't fight them. If the red-haired men come to attack our fleet, we'll run away. If they attack our artillery batteries, we'll come back to grab the T-head. We can just waste a day or two with them like this, and take this opportunity to quickly dispatch reinforcements from the Tamsui Garrison General Administration."

Miguel had no confidence in land warfare. Most of the officers and soldiers in the Navy were just ordinary fishermen a few years ago, and they had basically been fighting artillery battles in recent years. They were definitely no match for Li Kuiqi's gang of bandits in land warfare, not to mention the VOC Army or Japanese mercenaries.

Moreover, there were no trees on Jilong Mountain to provide cover. With the enemy's powerful firepower suppressing the enemy, the anti-landing party actually had little advantage...

It must be said that Miguel's tactics sound quite desirable. The only way for VOC to break this tactic is to split the fleet into two, fighting the fleet and artillery fort of Huiyou Company separately, but this would greatly weaken their firepower advantage, after all, Dingyuan plus four old lock ships also have 120 broadside guns.

"No, this is too risky. I guess the Reds won't split up their forces, but will abandon the artillery forts and seek an opportunity for a fleet decisive battle, and our fleet may not be able to escape in time." Lin Hai shook his head firmly. Miguel's tactics must be based on the premise that the fleet can escape, otherwise it would be a waste of lives.

"Boss, our ships have steering wheels and more convenient maneuvering mizzen sails, so they are definitely more maneuverable than the red-haired ones. In addition, the red-haired fleet has come from afar, so the bottom of their ships must be covered with seaweed and shells, while our ships regularly clean the bottoms of their ships in dry dock, so we definitely have an advantage in speed!"

The shells that Miguel was talking about are actually barnacles, an arthropod that looks very similar to shellfish. When they attach to the bottom of a ship, they increase sailing resistance and thus slow down the ship's speed.

This is of course very fatal to warships, so dry docks that can perform bottom maintenance on large ships are very important. For this reason, a strong ocean-going navy is not only reflected in the number of ships and guns, but also in the number of overseas bases, which is the same even four hundred years later.

"It's still too risky. The red-haired guys have too many guns, and they may not be slower than us." Lin Hai still did not accept Miguel's opinion. He believed that their maneuverability advantage was relatively clear, but the speed was not necessarily certain.

Since the VOC ships were mostly designed for the navy, they were extremely fast. However, the Manila Galleons and the Old Lock Ships were merchant ships from the beginning to the end, and they valued cargo capacity more than high speed. Even if they were better maintained, they might not be able to outrun their opponents.

Even if the speed of the ship is slightly higher, it is not safe, because the pursuit process is often accompanied by long-range artillery battles, and the speed and maneuverability will be affected by the damage. Especially the old lock ship is still hard sail, and the redundancy of the sail and rigging is not as good as that of the Western full sail warship.

"General, if Jilong Mountain is captured, everything will be over!" Miguel was anxious. The artillery battle at the foot of the mountain was still going on, and the balance of victory was gradually tilting towards the enemy.

"Of course I know this, but we can't lose our composure. Don't worry, old friend. The reinforcements from Tamsui are on the way. Believe me, Jilong Mountain will never be conquered!"

Lin Hai continued to observe the battlefield situation as he spoke. At this time, the smoke on the sea was getting thicker and thicker. Only nine blurry shadows of the VOC's main battleships remained, but the intensity of the gunfire still showed no obvious signs of weakening.

Because of the wind direction, the casualties on our side could still be seen relatively clearly at this time: during the time he was talking to Miguel, several artillery batteries were completely silenced, most of which were due to the loss of too many gunners... "We must hold on, at least until the Iron Country army arrives, and..." Lin Hai prayed silently in his heart, but was interrupted by the timely arrival of the Army Department's artillery post.

"Commander-in-Chief! All the soldiers of the artillery post have been ordered to come to reinforce!" Jiang Yu snapped and stood at attention behind Lin Hai. Two adjutants stood beside him, and behind him were a hundred artillerymen lined up in neat rows. These were all the officers and soldiers of the artillery post directly under the Central Army of the Army Department. They were also responsible for defending Keelung Fort in normal times.

"You've come just in time!" Lin Hai turned around and saw that all the artillery sentries were standing straight like javelins, with stern expressions on their faces, completely different from the ruffian-looking gunners in the Navy Department.

These were elite gunners selected from the Navy Department. After joining the Army, they no longer had to endure the harsh environment on ships, and their pay was also improved. However, the military law they faced was even more severe, and they occasionally participated in basic training such as formations and marches. Their entire mental outlook was different from when they were in the Navy.

Moreover, they are forbidden from whoring and gambling, and most of them are married and have children, unlike the sailors in the Navy Department who are still single...

Lin Hai originally planned to make a pre-war mobilization, but in the end he only said one sentence: "Soldiers! The enemy's fleet is fighting with us. This battle is related to the life and death of Jinhe. Your family is behind you!"

"Commander, please give the order!" Jiang Yu did not say much. Keelung Fort had already exchanged fire with the Lioness before, and Viper had been ordered to report the situation of the enemy fleet to him.

The battle situation in front of them was clear at a glance. If they went down the mountain to reinforce earlier, they could hold out longer. This was how artillery battles were. Offense was the best defense. The more guns the enemy had destroyed, the safer they would be. And vice versa. This was one of the reasons why Lin Hai's pre-war mobilization was so brief.

"In small teams, go down the mountain and take over the artillery batteries that have lost more than half of their crews. If any team suffers more than half of their personnel casualties and is unable to fire, the remaining personnel must not retreat without orders and must replenish the manpower of other artillery batteries nearby..." Lin Hai put forward higher requirements for the Army Artillery than the Navy Gunners. This was tantamount to a fight to the death.

"Yes! Commander!" Jiang Yu answered loudly without hesitation or trembling in his voice. After the sea journey to Java and the battle of Xiamen, the artillery sentry, who was originally as gentle and pretty as a girl, was completely different from before.

"Artillery sentries, first to fifth teams, march off!" Lin Hai took a deep breath and waved his hand loudly. The sea breeze made his military uniform rustle.

"You must die!" Jiang Yu turned around and shouted at his subordinates with his eyes wide open, his gaze as firm as iron.

"You must die!" The two adjutants and one hundred artillerymen at the Army's artillery post also shouted in unison, temporarily drowning out the rumbling of artillery in the distance...

(End of this chapter)