Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

On the morning of February 11th, 1673 (the 29th year of the Qianyuan era), the port of Dagu in Tianjin was filled with warships ready to set sail. There were more than 800 ships of various sizes, carrying more than 40,000 fully equipped naval officers and soldiers. This army was of diverse composition, including 2,000 Han Chinese who had fled to Korea, 10,000 Korean naval personnel, and 30,000 Tianjin and Jinzhou naval personnel. The Tianjin and Jinzhou naval forces originally numbered only about 10,000, but with the personal decree of the Great Khan and the strict supervision of officials at all levels, a large number of ships were quickly rented from the people, and many fishermen's sons from the north were recruited into the army, rapidly expanding to 30,000 soldiers.

"Your Highness, the soldiers are ready. Should we set sail? Please give your instructions!" Tianjin Naval Vice Admiral Seter asked Prince Qin, Chosiji, for his instructions. For this expedition, the Great Khan of Lotus appointed Chosiji as the commander-in-chief. To train his son, he also appointed his seventh son, Prince Han, Lobsang Heshuoqi, along with the Governor-General of Zhejiang and Fujian, Suhe, and the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, Mandulatu, as deputy commanders, dividing the army into three routes to cross the sea and attack Taiwan. One route, personally led by Chosiji, sailed from Tianjin to the port of Jinxiangwei in Zhejiang. After gathering the naval forces of Huguang, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Anhui provinces at Jinxiangwei, they directly attacked Keelung City in northern Taiwan. After capturing Keelung, the navy continued along the coast to attack Tamsui and Dongning. A selection of elite troops traveled overland from Keelung, crossing high mountains, to attack Dongning. The other two routes, led by Suhe and Mandulatu respectively, departed from Changle Port in Fujian and Chaoyang Port in Guangdong to attack Penghu. After capturing Penghu, they directly attacked Dongning. In addition to these three naval forces, Fujian Governor Liu Maoxia and Fujian Admiral Li Yingming led the land forces gathered in Fujian to recover Tong'an, Kinmen, Zhangpu, Zhenhai, Tongshan and other places in Zhangquan Prefecture that had been occupied by Zheng's army.

"Set sail!" The battle-hardened Chosiji didn't say much, only uttering two powerful words. The military order was short and full of killing intent.

The wind rose! The mighty navy sailed with the wind, arriving at the port of Jinxiangwei in Wenzhou Prefecture, Zhejiang Province, in just over a month. There, they joined forces with nearly 40,000 naval troops from the four provinces of Huguang, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Anhui, including Admiral Guo Yi of the Huguang Navy, Admiral Yang Laijia of Jiangsu, General Deng Junbi of Anqing, and General Li Rong of Wenzhou, bringing their total strength to 80,000. Among the generals, Guo Yi and Yang Laijia were former subordinates of Zheng Chenggong and were extremely familiar with the terrain of Taiwan.

"Your Highness," Guo Yi advised, "Northern Taiwan often experiences fierce winds in July and August, capable of capsizing ships, and these winds are also frequent in September and October. However, it is only April now, the weather is warm, and strong winds and heavy rains are relatively rare, making it the best time to attack Taiwan. We should attack Taiwan immediately!" Guo Yi was originally a general under the Zheng regime, but out of attachment to his homeland and unwilling to follow the Zhengs to Taiwan, and dissatisfied with the Zheng regime's distrust of its meritorious officials, he surrendered to the Qing in anger. Later, he joined the Great Wei Kingdom and was highly valued. Having severed ties with the Zheng regime when he surrendered to the Qing, he was now eager to establish merit in the new dynasty and actively offered advice.

Jiangsu Admiral Yang Laijia's feelings were much more complicated. He had served as Zheng Chenggong's bodyguard and risen to the rank of Grand Commander. He had previously had a close relationship with Zheng Jing and Zheng Jing's mother, Lady Dong. Now, having to lead troops to attack his former master, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. However, the situation was beyond his control. He was now a subject of David and could only serve David. He offered a suggestion: "Every year on the sixteenth of April, there is a folk custom in southern Fujian called 'Sending Off the Royal Ship.' At that time, every household is decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, waiting for the Royal Ship to patrol the villages and alleys. There will certainly be few troops on the beach, and their defenses will be easily relaxed. I have calculated the speed of our fleet. If we set off on the ninth of April, we will arrive at Keelung on the sixteenth of April."

Hearing this, Chosiji felt emboldened and laughed, "Since you two are so familiar with the situation in the Taiwan Strait, why worry about the Zheng family not being destroyed! Order the Fujian Governor Liu Maoxia and the Fujian Admiral Li Yingming to launch simultaneous attacks on five locations—Tong'an, Kinmen, Zhangpu, Zhenhai, and Tongshan—on April 3rd to draw the attention of the main force of the Zheng army; order Suhe and Mandulatu to depart from Changle Port in Fujian and Chaoyang Port in Guangdong respectively on April 6th, and to join forces on April 13th to attack Penghu; as for us, we will follow your advice and set sail on April 9th, landing at Keelung while the Zheng family is 'sending off the royal ships'."

"I have a request, Your Highness. Please spare the lives of the Zheng family behind the platform," Yang Laijia suddenly pleaded.

“Yang Gong is truly a loyal and righteous man! However, the fate of the Zheng family after the platform can only be decided by Father Khan,” Chosiji replied slowly, then suddenly changed the subject, “I will definitely plead with Father Khan to spare the lives of the Zheng family after the platform!”

"Governor, His Highness Prince Qin has ordered us to launch an attack on the territories occupied by the Zheng family in Zhangzhou and Quanzhou on April 3rd. Our troops under General Bai Xianzong and Chen Zhong have arrived in Tong'an County; Generals Zhou Biao, Wu Jinzhong, and Sun Kaizong, along with Deputy General Xu Shangchao, have arrived at Jinmen; Generals Chen Hui and Wei Ming have arrived in Zhangpu County; Generals Song Guofu and Li Famei have arrived at Zhenhaiwei; and Generals Han Tianfu and Li Yubin have arrived at Tongshan. Everything is ready. Shall we launch the attack immediately?" Inside Fuzhou, Fujian Governor Li Yingming politely asked Fujian Provincial Governor Liu Maoxia.

"Don't be in a hurry, Mr. Li. Please take a look at this." Liu Maoxia smiled and took a letter from the desk and handed it to him.

Li Yingming opened the letter and examined it closely. It was a letter of surrender written by Shi Mingliang, a general and strategist under Zheng Jing. In addition to expressing his loyalty to Wei Ting, the letter also clearly described and drew maps of Zheng's military deployment in various places. Li Yingming couldn't help but gasp. "I heard that Shi Mingliang is Zheng Jing's confidant. Can his words be trusted?"

"I have spent a lot of effort to induce this man to surrender. The Zheng army's deployment described in the letter matches our information in many ways. Moreover, I believe this man is very good at seeking profit and avoiding harm, and is not a loyal subject. It is probably true that he has surrendered now because he fears our army's strength," Liu Maoxia said confidently.

"Phew~" Li Yingming breathed a sigh of relief. "If it's true, I now know the true strength and weakness of the Zheng army, which will make the battle easier! However, I must report this to His Highness the Prince of Qin as soon as possible!"

Liu Maoxia smiled slightly, "Two days ago, I ordered someone to send a message to Your Highness via carrier pigeon. This bird can travel a thousand miles a day and delivers messages much faster than a horse. I estimate that it has already reached Your Highness by now!"

"No wonder Governor-General Li Yingming was so composed in deploying his troops the other day! He had a complete grasp of the enemy's strengths and weaknesses! Such brilliant strategy is beyond my ability! Please take command in Fuzhou. I am willing to go to Kinmen to lead the battle!" Li Yingming sincerely admired him and humbly volunteered for the mission. He had joined the Wei Kingdom much earlier than Liu Maoxia and held a higher official rank. He had initially been very dissatisfied with the King of Qin's appointment of Liu Maoxia as the commander-in-chief of the Fujian land battle, but now he was finally convinced and willing to accept the command.

"No, Lord Li should go to Tong'an, not Kinmen. Shi Mingliang said in his letter that Zheng Jing is personally leading a large army stationed in Penghu to consolidate the newly acquired territory. After Lord Li arrives in Tong'an, he can simply surround and feign an attack, without actually breaching the city. He can use the city as bait to lure Zheng's army to his aid. If we can lure Zheng Jing away from Penghu, attacking Taiwan will be much easier!" (End of Chapter)