The Ming Dynasty did not revolutionize

Chapter 52 Seizure and Blockade

The Ming fleet did not ultimately enter the Caribbean Sea, but passed by the east side of the Lesser Antilles.

It followed the Gulf Stream northward and arrived off the coast of New York.

The Ming military officers headed by Qin Nanxing certainly hoped that their fleet would not be discovered by the British until they formally declared war.

But they also knew that this was impossible.

The British Navy has over a hundred warships in North America, although only ten of them are large main battleships, the rest are low-level frigates.

But a fleet of this size is enough for them to control the situation in the surrounding waters in a state of war.

You won't become a blind person who knows nothing.

Especially around New York, the location of Britain's North American camp, there have been several fleets patrolling day and night to ensure the safety of New York itself and maintain the supply lines to the European mainland.

At noon on September 1779, 9, the Ming fleet passed by more than 2 kilometers off the coast of New York and directly encountered two British patrol search ships.

When the captain of a British patrol boat received the news from the lookout, he jumped up on the spot:

"Ming's ships? There are dozens of battleships! Hundreds of warships in total! How is this possible! Are you talking in your sleep?"

At the critical moment when Britain was competing with France and Spain, hundreds of Ming warships suddenly appeared here. This was really sensational.

The British captain was simply unable to accept this reality.

But reality is reality, and the more he doesn't want to accept it, the more cruel it will become.

When the Ming Dynasty's large fleet was fully revealed, the officers and sailors on the British ship were all stunned.

The British captain gave a numb order, asking the flag bearer to use flag signals to try to communicate with the Ming people, mainly to ask about the Ming people's purpose.

Qin Nanxing learned from the report that the fleet had been discovered, so he directly arranged for a low-level fleet to cut out and surround the two British patrol ships.

The two sides have not yet officially opened fire.

The situation was like two children surrounded by a group of strong men. The strong men pushed and shoved the two children, but still did not really punch or kick them.

The officers of the two British patrol ships were stunned. After being surrounded by warships that were ten times their number, they had no idea what to do.

The key is that the captain does not have the courage to open fire directly, otherwise he might be held responsible for declaring war on the Ming Dynasty.

The British captain was so anxious that he kept waving flags to question Daming.

It was a long time before someone from the Ming Dynasty responded to them, asking them to follow the Ming fleet.

The Ming fleet then arranged two warships to continue approaching the British patrol ship, apparently preparing to directly board and seize the ship.

At that time, merchant ships also had cannons, not to mention military patrol ships.

The sailors on the British ship all looked at their captain, waiting for his decision as to whether to open fire immediately.

The British captain's eyes widened, his fists clenched, his breathing rapid, he was obviously very angry, but he still did not dare to order to open fire.

The gap in strength between the two sides was too huge. Whether compared with the sailors on the ship or the entire fleet, it would be suicide for these two patrol ships to resist.

The British captain did not give any orders in the end, and he and his sailors watched the Ming warships approach.

The captain watched as a group of Ming soldiers came aboard with guns in hand. His emotions, which had been brewing for a long time, finally erupted, and he shouted in protest at these Ming soldiers:

"This is an act of war. This is a direct attack on the Kingdom of Britain. I want to protest to the Ming Dynasty!"

The officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty ignored his shouting. The Ming officer in charge of translation shouted to the ship:

"Everyone on board, listen up! Put down your weapons immediately and obey the orders of the Ming soldiers. This will ensure your personal safety. Otherwise, you will be executed on the spot!"

The Ming translator had a heavy English accent, but the British sailors could understand him.

They were all startled and looked at their captain again.

The British captain shouted angrily:

"We will obey the orders of the Ming people for now. There is no need for us to sacrifice ourselves in a meaningless battle. The Kingdom of Britain will seek justice for us!"

The British sailors finally dropped their weapons one after another and gathered together under the drive of the Ming soldiers. The Ming sailors, armed with revolvers, escorted some British sailors to cooperate with the work and controlled the patrol ship to join the Ming fleet.

After taking control of the two patrol ships, Qin Nanxing, the admiral of the Ming Dynasty's North American fleet, ordered the entire fleet to be divided into three parts.

Forty battleships, led by eighty secondary warships, spread out off the coast of New York and blockaded the area.

Cutting off New York’s external maritime traffic prevents the transmission of information and supplies.

When they encountered other British ships, whether they were warships or armed merchant ships, they all used force to intimidate and capture prisoners.

Qin Nanxing gave a direct order that if the enemy's ships or crew resisted, they would be fired upon and destroyed without any special warning.

If the British do not resist, then continue to take prisoners.

Now it is past the time that the Ming Dynasty had planned to formally declare war on Britain.

However, the British troops in North America obviously did not know that they had entered a state of war with the Ming Dynasty.

They did not dare to decide to declare war on the Ming Dynasty on their own, so they could take advantage of this information gap and capture as many British ships as possible.

The remaining battleships and secondary warships were divided into two groups, carrying transport ships carrying the Ming expeditionary force and ground military supplies to Boston and Philadelphia.

Boston is now the most important port in the northern United States, and Philadelphia is the nominal capital, both of which are very important cities.

It just so happens that one is north of New York and the other is south of New York.

Li Anbang personally led the team to Boston.

Before the large fleet that Li Anbang was on approached Boston Harbor, they arranged for small boats to go ashore and make contact.

John Hancock and Samuel Adams, the two most famous local politicians in Boston and the direct promoters of the American War of Independence, were anxiously awaiting news from the Ming Dynasty.

After learning that the Ming army had arrived, he immediately organized personnel to welcome the Ming army ashore.

Hancock and Samuel went straight on board to meet Li Anbang.

In Li Anbang's office, the two sides simply greeted each other and explained their identities, then quickly got down to business.

Hancock and Samuel are both real core figures, and they both know the plan to invite King Wu of the Ming Dynasty to be the King of the United States in the future.

So the two of them can discuss things more directly without too much concealment.

After Samuel and Hancock decided to invite the prince of the Ming Dynasty to be king, they began to learn the Ming Dynasty's elegant language.

In order to better adapt to future life and gain a place in the future kingdom, they study very efficiently.

Although his accent is still very strong, he can now barely communicate on his own.

The American translator who had gone to Suriname to make advance contact with the Ming Dynasty had brought back news that the Ming Dynasty intended to directly attack New York.

So now Hancock and Samuel are both a little excited and feel that they have seen hope of victory.

As a representative, Samuel first introduced to Li Anbang the general situation of military forces around New York that he knew:
“There are about 36,000 British troops on the entire American battlefield.

“About 8,000 of them fought in the South, and about 6,000 were stationed at Newport.

“There are about 22,000 people in New York City right now, of which about 8,000 have just arrived.

“These 8,000 men may be assigned to fight in the south, but they have not left yet.

“There are now 10,000 militiamen in Massachusetts, and the Continental Army in the North should also have about 10,000.

"Neither the militia nor the Continental Army could sustain continuous combat, and with a default service term of only one year, they could not always maintain their maximum strength.

“But the number of young men in Massachusetts who have received basic military training is in the tens of thousands.

"If the Ming Dynasty can provide sufficient military pay and weapons, the number of the mainland army and militia can at least double.

"With the leadership and support of the Ming army, we will definitely be able to capture New York!"

(End of this chapter)