Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1714 Pampa Storm ([-])

It was already the next morning when Yinhaigang received the news.

Since there is no governing body affiliated to the East Bank government here, although everyone is a little angry, they seem a little disorganized and don't know what to do.In the end, there were only a few people who were quite prestigious on weekdays, each with a dozen or so entourages, with sabers and rifles on their backs, and headed in the direction of Niulan Mountain, although the battle there was over now: The confrontation lasted until midnight yesterday, and the Spaniards had no choice but to climb the wall and try to attack, but were shot down by a volley of guns.After so many times, the Spaniards finally gave up on this idea, and turned to looting the countryside outside the quarry, and then went to the brick kiln and other places to arrest a few people, ransacked the financial room, and destroyed the production facilities. Only then did they leave here swaggeringly, and returned to a military post they set up nearby.

Zhu Heng and Zhu Dianzhong, father and son, spent the whole night in fear in the quarry, and did not really relax until the Spaniards withdrew.At this time, they didn't have time to check the damage, but they planned to immediately send the situation to He Yuanhe, the mayor of Niuzhuang Town, and asked him to respond to the government as soon as possible, so as to protect the lives of those citizens living on the east coast of the Pampa Plain. Safety.

In addition, they also strongly demanded that Yinhai Port should also set up a governing body, which should be managed by the government.In the past, everyone felt that they were not comfortable being controlled, and their business activities on weekdays were taxed. If there was any large-scale infrastructure or war, their companies might need to "donate" a little extra money, so they have always been reluctant to see government agencies stationed Therefore, among the more than ten settlements (more than 2 pioneers) in the entire Pampa Plain, only one Niuzhuang Town has a government agency, and the others are all in a state of self-government. It's nothing more than poor services, such as medical services and so on.

But after the Spanish cavalry expelled the settlers on the east coast, the situation took a 180-degree turn, and everyone felt insecure.At this time, they eagerly hoped that the government would come to take over, shelter them from the wind and rain, and drive the Spanish cavalry away.

It is conceivable that the East Coast government should be happy to see this happen. Anyway, they have already set up a team at Niuzhuang, so why not copy it at Yinhai Port?It seems that the only obstacle at present may be the rebound that the Spaniard may have.After all, the East Bank has always claimed to be a civilized country. Since there are various treaties and supplementary agreements in black and white with the Kingdom of Spain, it is naturally not easy to destroy them at will, at least not explicitly.

Therefore, it was fine to cover up the Niuzhuang port (in the name of the merchant management organization), after all, there were no Spaniards there.But if you come to such an institution in Yinhai (that is, Mar del Plata), this matter will be a bit troublesome, and you must first obtain the understanding of the Spaniards.

Of course this is not impossible!It may have been difficult before, but after the Spanish cavalry was dispatched outrageously and caused many casualties, everything might become easier.In the final analysis, the people on the east coast are the weak side and the victims in this turmoil. Although their behavior is also open to discussion, in the final analysis, many people were killed and injured, and the account must always be settled with the Spaniards Calculated.Although it is impossible to extort compensation, land, etc. from them, it is not very difficult to obtain some conveniences and the name of continuing to pioneer here in the future. Everything depends on how the foreign affairs department on the east bank operates.

Before the foreign affairs department on the east bank had time to get the news, on January 1, Captain Pei Dade, who was leading the army to attack the indigenous people in the northern Patagonia region and ensure the safety of the road construction, had already got the news first.In this regard, Captain Pei Dade felt that it was not only unexpected, but also reasonable, because the matter was very simple. The people on the east bank occupied the land of the Spaniards, and wantonly expanded and plundered the wealth belonging to the Spaniards (such as land, quarry, etc.) , bison, seafood, etc.), the Spaniards will naturally be dissatisfied and will naturally fight back.Of course, on the other hand, the Spaniard's list this time is indeed big enough, and some of them do not conform to their usual cautious style, which makes Pei Dade feel a little strange.

But it doesn't matter if it's strange, the matter has come to this point, and now it's time to consider how to solve this matter.Without further authorization from the higher-ups of the Ministry of War, Captain Pei Dade did not dare to privately mobilize the various troops under his command to enter the Pampa Plain, because this kind of "walking alone" behavior is a bit taboo, and Captain Pei Dade still wants to continue to make progress. So I dare not make mistakes.

However, the fact that the regular army cannot move does not mean that there is no workaround!In fact, Northern Patagonia has a vast area, many counties, and a relatively small population. Therefore, it is also a good idea to temporarily recruit some militiamen with combat experience from it, and then transport them to Niuzhuang and Yinhai for landing. way.

You must know that as long as the security regiments of the counties are not formally assembled, those militiamen are still strictly speaking farmers, not soldiers.And since they are farmers, of course they can accept the employment of others to make money!Therefore, after thinking for a long time, Captain Pei Dade finally made up his mind to find two young men named Cai Zu and Cai Dao, and asked them to lead the 600 militiamen in the two counties of Dingnan and Luyang (each county dispatched three soldiers). 72), take a [-]-ton inland river/offshore general-purpose small steamer, go ashore in the area of ​​Yinhai Port, and then get in touch with the locals and try to sign a security employment agreement with them, so that they can legitimately intervene in the things on the Pampa Plain .

Cai Zu and Cai Dao are the third and fourth sons of Cai Huaze, deputy commissioner of Northern Patagonia. One runs a ranch in Dingnan County, and the other runs an orchard in Luyang County. They can be regarded as local leaders. He is also a reserve lieutenant on the roster of the Ministry of the Army and a serious militia officer.

Captain Pei Dade clearly told the two of them not to stay in Yinhai Port any longer, as it is still relatively safe there, but to take the initiative to go deep into the inland areas of Niulanshan Township, Niushou Township, and Huoniu Township to protect the people engaged in various activities there. At the same time, I searched for the military outposts set up by the Spaniards on the grasslands (actually equivalent to temporary military posts) to see if there was a chance to unplug them.Because in case the Spaniards figure it out in the future and start to expand into villages based on these military outposts, then there will be big troubles, and it is better to give priority to destroying them.

Of course, Captain Pei Dade also pointed out that if there is no clear reason or a very good opportunity, it is better not to take action against these outposts to avoid causing more serious casualties, because it may cause a series of serious diplomatic incidents and cause disastrous consequences to the government. necessary trouble.However, Pei Dade also hinted that "small-scale friction" and "less serious casualties" are acceptable, and neither side will pay too much attention to such things.

After explaining this, Pei Dade took the initiative to allocate some guns and ammunition from the arsenals of the above two counties to equip the 600 people, and asked them to "reimburse" the local merchants after they arrived in Yinhai, Niuzhuang and other places. It's not difficult.After repeating such instructions, Pei Dade sent Cai Zu and Cai Dao to go to the above two counties separately to recruit soldiers with letters of introduction and order documents.After recruiting more than 1676 people, the two did not delay. The small steamers divided into several inland water transport companies left Dingnan Port and Luyang Island, and finally arrived at Yinhai Port on January 1, 31. divine speed.

The local merchants were stunned at the arrival of these hundreds of people wearing their own casual clothes but carrying knives and guns, and were immediately overjoyed after they figured out the situation.In the afternoon of that day, a dozen or so people with the highest reputation in the East Coast settlement of Mar del Plata New City sat together for a meeting and raised more than [-] yuan in money, food and materials in just two hours (at this time, no one is stingy anymore) , and then handed over to Cai Zu and Cai Dao, which was regarded as the first military supplies and employment expenses.

At the same time, they also sent people to the remaining settlements to discuss with the local leaders, focusing on the deployment of the militia, the distribution of supplies and military expenses, and the plan to drive and attack the Spaniards.It can be expected that they are now being bullied by the Spaniards-the Spanish cavalry is now acting more and more excessively. They are constantly patrolling outside the settlements, cutting off the routes for the cattlemen to sell bison, supply and rest, which almost shakes the east coast The economic foundation of the people on the Pampa Plain - the people in the various settlements will definitely not be reluctant to give up money, and will definitely do everything possible to provide the troops led by the Cai brothers so that they can give the Spaniards an impression profound lesson.

On February 2, Cai Zu led 3 soldiers from Dingnan County to leave Yinhai Port, took hundreds of mules and horses raised locally, and headed for Niulanshan Township in the inland area.At this time, an envoy from Niuzhuang Port in the south also rushed over suddenly, and told Cai Dao, who was still stranded here, that Niuzhuang Port and several nearby settlements were willing to pay more than 2 yuan in materials and food as a down payment. These more than [-] militiamen from Luyang County went to protect their safety and commercial interests.

Reserve Lieutenant Cai Dao thought for a while, and allocated a small half (about a hundred people) to him, intending to return to Niuzhuang by boat, and then go about his activities nearby to support the great cause of reclamation by the people on the east coast. stationed in the sea and surrounding areas.The main reason for this is that the Spaniards in the south appear very infrequently and their number is very small, and there is a local garrison in Niuzhuang, so it is not worth putting too much troops there.If it weren't for the more developed economy near Niuzhuang Port in the south, he wouldn't even be willing to dispatch a soldier there.

On February 2, the militiamen on the east bank who had marched to Niulan Mountain for some time finally had their first confrontation with the Spaniards.At that time, more than 9 Spanish cavalry were besieging a cattle hunting team on the east coast with about 30 people, and the situation was extremely critical.Seeing this, Cai Zu, the leader of the team, rushed forward without saying a word, and launched an attack from the flank with a dense volley of muskets, killing and wounding more than a dozen Spanish cavalry at once, and successfully rescued the cattle trap. team.

As the saying goes, "Once you are born, you are cooked twice." After making the first vote, this army began to move continuously, maneuvering between various settlements on horseback, and encountered three times in the wild within a month. The Spanish cavalry (basically in the form of dozens or hundreds of cavalry) repelled the opponent every time, and accumulated a record of killing, wounding and capturing more than [-] enemies.

In this way, the Spaniard felt a little uncomfortable.Because if you count the people who were killed and injured in the fights with the cattlemen on the east coast in the wild and with some outlaws on the east coast in the reclamation villages, the Spaniards have already killed or injured 80 or [-] people in this wave, although this is not a large number. , but still made them feel a little distressed, and subconsciously reduced the activities of the cavalry outside.

The Spaniards took such a small step back, which immediately made the more than 2 residents of the twelve settlements on the east bank feel a lot easier.The originally cut-off transportation lines and other various routes have resumed part of it again, and the goods have gradually begun to circulate slowly. Everything is developing in a good way, so that many people have to sigh: the money spent in the past is really not unfair. After the arrival of these hundreds of militiamen, the situation has indeed changed a lot.

After Cai Zu and Cai Dao initially solved the Spaniard's "suffocation tactics" (that is, forcing the people on the east bank to leave by cutting off the transportation and commercial lines), they brought their troops and horses to find the Spaniards on the grassland to set up Several military outposts in the country, and launched a tentative attack on one of them.

The result of the tentative attack was not very good, because in addition to a small group of cavalry, there were some Quechua soldiers transferred from the north, and the superiors did not ask them to really tear themselves apart from the Spaniards, so they tried their best , and retreated after finding that it could not be easily conquered.

In this way, the Spaniards and the people from the east coast played such a strange "war" on the Pampa grassland. up.

And more than a week passed like this. On February 2, Zheng Yong, the Central Executive Committee of the Central Committee of the East China Republic and Minister of Foreign Affairs, had an urgent meeting with the Spanish ambassador, Count Sebastian, and planned to discuss the recent incidents on the Pampa Plain. A series of time to exchange views with him and see if he can take the opportunity to reap some benefits.You know, the Kingdom of Spain is still in a state of war with the French in Europe. Although the main direction of the French is not theirs, the pressure is also very great.Zheng Yong didn't believe that they dared to make such a tough stance with the Dong'an people at this time, and this was undoubtedly the opportunity for the Dong'an people.

(End of this chapter)