Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1296 Fire Attack
“This…” Zheng Hongkui wanted to refuse, but he couldn’t bear to do it in front of Prince Durano. Just as he was thinking about how to politely decline, Prince Durano seemed to see through his thoughts.

"I understand the general's concerns. Madura is just a small country, but even a small country can be of help to the general. As long as the general agrees to let me lead the troops into battle, I can guarantee that the country will crush the combined forces of the Netherlands and Maduram in one fell swoop!"

"Oh, you have such confidence? What is the reason for this?" Zheng Hongkui asked, quite surprised.

Prince Durno immediately said to Zheng Hongkui, "General, you have come from afar and are not very familiar with the enemy situation. However, I have fought against the Dutch and Mataram's armies many times over the years and know their situation very well. Moreover, the enemy is currently gathered in Sulumay, which originally belonged to our country. Mataram occupied this place with the help of the Dutch a few years ago. Even so, I am very familiar with the terrain of Sulumay and the situation on the other side of the strait."

As he spoke, Prince Durno apologized to Zheng Hongkui, then picked up his teacup and dipped his finger in the tea to trace patterns on the table, quickly creating a topographical map of Sulumay and the strait. Pointing to the map, he said to Zheng Hongkui, "Sulumay is a natural harbor, and it is sheltered from the north and east by the strait and Madura Island. In addition, the ocean currents in the harbor are relatively calm. It is precisely because of these advantages that the Dutch chose this place as a location to conceal their fleet."

"In my humble opinion, the Dutch hid their fleet here simply to catch the Celestial Empire off guard and launch a surprise attack at the most crucial moment to win a decisive victory. Unfortunately, they never expected that the news would leak to me, nor did they expect that the Celestial Empire would send envoys to contact me in advance. Now that they know their plans and the general has led his troops here, the next step is to use their own methods against them and begin the war."

Seeing Zheng Hongkui nod slightly, Prince Durno continued, "In my opinion, the best way to deal with the enemy once war breaks out is to trap them in the strait and engage them in battle. In this way, the advantage will be on the general's side. But even so, the Dutch warships are not weak. Even if the general has a large army, it will be difficult to annihilate the enemy."

"Moreover, General, don't forget that the Dutch have long been allied with Mataram, and they still have Mataram's troops and warships. Even if we are no match for them, once they escape back to shore, they can use that as a defense, making it not easy for you to annihilate them."

"So Xiao Wang thinks that either we should not go to war, or we should fight to the death, catch the enemy off guard, and establish victory in the shortest possible time. Only in this way can we completely annihilate the enemy."

“Your Highness is right, but how can Your Highness do that?” Zheng Hongkui countered.

Prince Durno laughed and said, “General, don’t forget, as I just said, Sulumay is our territory, currently only occupied by the Dutch and Mataram. Moreover, your fleet is large, and once it reaches the strait, the enemy will surely discover it. It would be better if I made the arrangements: first, we can use small boats to transport our men and land in northern Sulumay, then we can infiltrate Sulumay in small groups, and when the battle begins, my warships can act as the vanguard, entering under cover of night.”

"Although Xiao Wang's warships are small, their combat power is naturally inferior to that of the Celestial Empire's warships. However, small ships also have their advantages. Moreover, they are not easy to spot when sailing at night. Once they get close, we can launch a fire attack and then block the enemy fleet in the port. At this time, the general's main fleet can then rush straight to Sulumayi, so as to strike the enemy when they are unprepared. The enemy will be in a panic and will not be able to resist."

"Furthermore, the warriors who have infiltrated Sulumayi first can launch their attack simultaneously. Whether they set fire to the city or create chaos, they will surely keep the enemy in the dark about the true situation. In this way, the enemy will be thrown into chaos and caught in a dilemma. The general can then advance the main force in this way, and the battle will be won in one fell swoop!"

It must be said that Prince Durno was quite eloquent, and his plan did indeed have some merit. Moreover, the method of using fire ships to attack the sea was not unfamiliar to Zheng Hongkui. Back in Fujian, the Ming Dynasty had fought against the Dutch. At that time, the Ming Dynasty did not yet have three major fleets. Even in Zheng Zhilong's fleet, apart from a few main warships, the rest of the warships were small warships. Although they were not slow, they could not sail far, and their attack power and protection were far inferior to those of real warships.

In this situation, if it were a direct naval battle at sea, the Zheng family's fleet would be no match for the Dutch. The most powerful Dutch warships had over fifty cannons of various types. If these cannons were to fire at full force, no small warship could withstand a single shot. Even if they relied on their sturdiness to ram the Dutch, those smaller warships would likely be smashed to pieces like paper.

In this way, conventional naval warfare would be difficult to win. Therefore, the Ming army adopted a method of using its main warships as cover while employing hundreds of small warships loaded with incendiary materials to launch fire attacks. Although this method seemed ineffective, it was actually quite successful. When the Dutch main warships were entangled by the Zheng group's main warships, and the small fire ships rushed towards the Dutch fleet at extremely high speed, the Dutch fleet was instantly thrown into chaos. The originally intact formation was directly broken up by these fire ships, and many warships were even set ablaze because they did not have time to dodge.

The final result was that the Dutch were forced to retreat under this tactic, and lost several capital warships, thus the Ming Dynasty won the victory.

As a member of the Zheng family group, Zheng Hongkui personally participated in this naval battle and was naturally very clear about how to use such tactics. If this war had been fought along the coast of the Ming Dynasty, Zheng Hongkui might have used the same tactics in the same way. However, the problem was that this battle was fought in the South China Sea, which was far from the mainland. Small warships simply could not be brought here, so Zheng Hongkui did not consider using fire attacks in this naval battle.

But now Prince Durno reminded Zheng Hongkui that the Ming Dynasty's allied fleet did not have fire ships, but Madura did!
Although Madura was a small country, it could easily field dozens of ships. Furthermore, Prince Durno had fought against the Dutch and the Kingdom of Matara for many years, possessing not only knowledge of the enemy's situation but also an intimate understanding of the terrain surrounding the target enemy fleet. If Prince Durno's plan were followed, there might be a chance of success. Even if the plan failed, Zheng Hongkui would suffer no loss; the fire ships belonged to Madura, and the men sent to Sulumay were Prince Durno's men. The fleet could continue its operations as usual, without affecting the overall situation.

But what if it succeeds? Once the fire ships directly storm the port and set the ships ablaze while the enemy is off guard, the enemy fleet will be thrown into chaos. Whether they rush out of the fire to escape to the sea or hurriedly land to avoid the fire, this will be an opportunity for our fleet.

Once chaos erupts in Sulumayi City, the battle will be much easier. Thinking of this, Zheng Hongkui's eyes lit up, and he began to plan.

"Your Highness, did you perhaps plan this tactic all along?"

Upon hearing Zheng Hongkui's question, Prince Durno nodded with a wry smile: "To be honest, General, Madura is a small and weak country. The Dutch and Madara are pressing us step by step. If I don't come up with a solution, it will be very difficult for my troops to defend the country once the enemy attacks."

"I had long considered this matter and secretly trained a group of men. I also prepared a fire attack tactic to destroy the enemy. However, now that the army of the Celestial Empire has arrived, the situation is different. If before I only intended to protect myself, now I hope to do my part to help the general win this battle and completely defeat the Dutch!"

"it is good!"

Upon hearing Prince Durano's statement, Zheng Hongkui couldn't help but praise him, and in his heart, he accepted Prince Durano's explanation and reasons. Moreover, to be honest, the suggestion he made was truly appealing to him; if this tactic were used well, it could even play a decisive role in the upcoming battle.

Immediately, Zheng Hongkui agreed to let Madura participate in the war as an ally, and Prince Durno, as Madura's crown prince and commander-in-chief, would naturally be a member of the allied forces. However, Zheng Hongkui still needed to carefully discuss the next steps with Prince Durno. This plan was either not to be done at all, or it had to be done perfectly, to decide the outcome in one battle.

Before we knew it, the Spring Festival was approaching. Because of the Ming Dynasty, the entire region of the South China Sea countries was originally under the control of the Ming Dynasty. Although the political influence of the Ming Dynasty in the South China Sea gradually declined after Emperor Xuanzong, the influence of the Ming cultural sphere remained. In addition, since the Southern Song Dynasty, many Han Chinese had migrated to the South China Sea countries, and after the founding of the Ming Dynasty, many Ming people came here to make a living. Over the centuries, the festival customs of many countries have become similar to those of the Ming Dynasty. Even the indigenous people also celebrate the traditional festivals of the Ming Dynasty under these influences.

The Lunar New Year is one of the most important festivals of the year, and most people in the South China Sea countries, despite their different faiths, celebrate it. However, this year's Lunar New Year in Madura was different from previous years because of the arrival of the Ming Dynasty fleet and Prince Durno's direct joining of the allied forces as crown prince. After discussing and refining the plan with Zheng Hongkui, they quickly began to take action.

To ensure everything went smoothly, Zheng Hongkui selected two fast warships from the fleet to assist Prince Durno in transporting the prince's two thousand men directly from the north to the other side. Under the cover of night and the festive atmosphere of the Lunar New Year, no one noticed what was happening.

The people of Madura were already familiar with the terrain on the other side of the river, and knew the situation in Sulumay very well. After landing, they immediately split into smaller groups, dressed in local clothing, and headed towards Sulumay.

Once the warships returned to their units after completing their mission, Zheng Hongkui and Prince Durno were ready to set off again.

Prince Durno's small warships set off first. To avoid being discovered by the enemy before entering the strait, they deliberately bypassed Madura Island from the east and south and entered the vicinity of the strait from south to north. After reaching their position, they hid in a place and waited patiently. When it gradually got dark, the ships emerged from their hiding place and quietly headed north, successfully entering the strait.

(End of this chapter)