The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 330: One Army's Flags Conquer the World
"Have you seen the Marquis of Ping Liao?"

Wu Aheng sent messengers to search for Ping Liaohou everywhere and report important military intelligence.

The messenger was as anxious as an ant on hot pan. He rushed around on the deck and asked the gunners one by one if they had seen anything.

The gunners were busy loading and firing, and no one paid any attention to the messenger.

On the top deck, there was only a 17-foot-high flag fluttering vigorously, and the huge throne under the flag swayed gently with the warship.

Marquis Ping Liao and his central army guards had disappeared.

The shells fired by the red-haired barbarians poured down on the surrounding sea like a torrential rain, making a terrifying roar. Fortunately, only a small number of the shells hit the warship.

Most of the iron balls landed softly a mile in front of the fleet, hitting the sea surface and splashing huge water splashes.

The warships of both sides were more than four miles apart and were both moving at full speed, making direct hits difficult.

"Have you seen the Marquis of Ping Liao?"

Suddenly a huge wave hit the ship, causing it to shake violently. The messenger held on to the side of the ship tightly and shouted loudly to the gunner closest to him.

The gunner took a fixed powder bag and stuffed it into the barrel, not even hearing the shouting behind him.

He was loading the ten-pound field gun commonly used by combat soldiers.

The ten-pounder was the most powerful field gun of the Kaiyuan soldiers, and was nicknamed the "Phalanx Barber" among the artillerymen.

The artillery fired at the battle formation, and if it hit the target, it would shave off a large area like a razor.

However, when the barber was on the warship, his haircutting skills were not very good, so he could only be used as the smallest naval gun.

It is placed on the top deck of a warship and is only used to kill enemy moving targets during naval battles. It cannot cause substantial damage to the enemy ship's hull.

The messenger was about to ask again when he heard the sound of a shell breaking through the air behind him. He subconsciously shrank his neck, and a black shadow flew past his head and rushed towards the deck in front.

With a "puff" sound, blood and flesh splattered everywhere, and the artilleryman who was loading ammunition just now immediately turned into a pile of messy flesh.

A ten-pound solid bullet hit the port side of the Feilong, splashing dense wood chips, and wherever the wood chips went, a rain of blood burst out.

The iron ball rammed across the deck, finally breaking the starboard railing and falling into the sea on the right side.

A heart-wrenching howl came from the deck. Six gunners were hit by shells and flying wood chips. Two of them were killed on the spot by iron balls. The remaining four were not killed for a while and rolled on the deck wailing.

The surrounding auxiliary soldiers immediately stepped forward and carried the injured away on a stretcher.

The messenger struggled to his feet from the mess, hurriedly chased after him, and asked the auxiliary soldiers if they had seen Ping Liaohou.

"On the mid-deck!"

~~~~~
Compared with the thousand-ton main battleships in Europe at the same time, the Type 20 flat-armored ships currently in service with the Kaiyuan Navy are less than tons, which is obviously smaller in tonnage.

Small but complete.

From top to bottom, the flat-armored ship is divided into three decks, each of which is equipped with artillery, which meets the artillery design standards of battleships of this era.

The top deck is equipped with a ten-pound infantry gun, which mainly fires shotgun and chain bullets, mainly to kill living targets on enemy ships, and will not cause structural damage to the hull.

The middle deck was equipped with a 15-pound naval gun, which was aimed at the side of the enemy ship during combat. After the shells penetrated the side, the flying wood chips would kill the enemy and easily cause a fire on the enemy ship, but it was difficult to cause devastating damage to the overall structure of the hull.

The firepower equipped on the lower deck is the most powerful, currently equipped with a 32-pound naval gun, which attacks the waterline of the enemy ship at close range, creating huge holes and quickly sinking the enemy ship.

Ping Liaohou was accompanied by only two guards and was inspecting his gunners' operations on the middle deck.

At this time, on the sea outside the cabin, the two fleets were less than two miles apart, and the Red Haired Foreigner fleet had already started firing.

The Pingjia ships only launched sporadic counterattacks. According to the Kaiyuan Navy training regulations, in order to achieve the best killing effect, they had to wait until they were within a hundred steps of the enemy ship before launching a salvo.

This drill was certainly not decided by Ping Liaohou on a whim, but because the naval guns of that era were far away and the hit rate at distance was really impressive. It was the same as soldiers lining up and firing in unison. Shooting too early was of no use except wasting ammunition.

Under the bombardment of Tsushima Island's artillery, the Red Haired Foreigner Fleet suffered heavy losses.

In just half an hour, they were damaged and sunk by shore artillery, and five galleons lost their ability to move after being bombarded. They were abandoned behind by the fleet and became sitting ducks for the island's heavy artillery.

The more than forty surviving warships hastily lowered landing craft and allowed the mercenaries to land on their own.

Then they quickly fled to the north, staying away from the coastal artillery fire.

Under the unified command of British Captain Oreo, the fleet rushed towards the flat-armored fleet with all its might.

The Kaiyuan Navy's ships were suddenly filled with the sound of trumpets and drums, and the captains of each battalion shuttled among the gunners, loudly conveying the order to attack.

Fifty-six battleships, with their backs to the Korean Peninsula, formed an eight-mile-long column line, like a solid wall, stretching across the Tsushima Strait, blocking the enemy ships' path.

When the warships on both sides approached to within a hundred steps, they opened the porthole covers at the same time. Then, densely packed black gun muzzles extended from the sides, aiming at each other at the same time.

Nearly a hundred warships passed by each other, and after a burst of artillery fire, the surrounding sea was completely covered by white smoke, and only the orange-red flames could be seen.

The warships of both sides were hit by each other's shells at the same time.

The Feilong shook slightly, wood chips flew all over the deck, and the screams and wails of gunners could be heard all around.

Liu Zhaosun had seen too many bloody scenes, so he was calm at this moment.

When the thick fog cleared, seven or eight artillerymen were lying on the ground. Near the position of the ship's guns, body parts were flying everywhere, and the surroundings were in a mess.

The auxiliary soldiers who helped carry the shells and gunpowder immediately stepped forward, cleaned up the remaining limbs and bodies, and moved the dead bodies aside.

The wounded soldier who was still breathing was pulled to a corner, and the ship's military doctor immediately performed simple hemostasis on the wounded and disinfected him with honey and wine.

At this time, the Feilong moved forward and crossed with the next enemy ship. There was a fierce artillery fire from the opposite side. The Pingjia ship also fired more than 30 shells. It was foreseeable that they would have a greater impact on the enemy ship. Suddenly, the deck under their feet shook violently, and the guards hurried forward to protect Ping Liaohou.

An iron ball weighing at least 20 kilograms smashed a hole in the side of the ship. The iron ball was still powerful as it swept across the deck and hit the rear.

Fortunately, the shell caused no casualties.

The surviving gunners around were not affected by the changes in the outside world at all, and continued to load ammunition like puppets. Several people worked together to pull the cannon back into position, waiting to pass by the enemy ship next time, and then fire before the enemy ship.

Liu Zhaosun looked at these gunners who were completely immersed in the battlefield and felt that the psychological quality of these artillerymen was no worse than that of the cavalrymen in the cavalry battalion.

He was about to go down to the ground floor to look at the largest 30-pound cannon when the messenger came hurriedly down the stairs, saw him, and said breathlessly:
"Marquis Ping Liao, the red-haired barbarians are landing on the island. General Wu sent me to inquire if the fleet will provide support!"

"Landing on the island? Are the people from the East India Company crazy? Do they want to fight our soldiers?"

Ping Liaohou was surprised and asked:

"Approximately how many people are there?"

At this time, Ping Liaohou and the guards had returned to the top deck. Ignoring the corpses scattered on the ground, he hurriedly took the telescope handed to him by Pei Dahu, and without waiting for the messenger to answer, he couldn't wait to look towards the Falkland Islands in the south.

"More than two thousand."

"Two thousand men want to break through the artillery position. They really treat us like buns!"

Through the telescope, it was clearly visible that ten miles south of the Feilong, more than thirty small boats had been docked on the rocky coast.

Before the ship had even reached the shore, teams of mercenaries armed with muskets and spears jumped off it.

There were dense corpses floating on the sea in the distance, and several troop transport ships that had been hit were sinking little by little.

Trench and breastwork fortifications were built on the shore. The defenders hid behind the breastwork and fired at the landing mercenaries. Tiger squat cannons and divine fire flying crows were fired from time to time, and the opposing mercenaries fought back with mortars.

At this time, Wu Ah Heng hurried over and saw Ping Liao Hou holding a telescope to observe Tsushima Island. He said straight to the point:

"Marquis Ping Liao, the Red Haired Barbarians are currently at a disadvantage. Should we go to Tsushima Island to support the artillery?"

Liu Zhaosun put down the telescope and said to Wu Aheng:
"General Wu, the most urgent task now is to completely defeat their fleet. Otherwise, we will be severely defeated, and defending Tsushima Island will be useless."

"The island's defenders are undermanned. What if we sit back and allow the enemy to destroy the cannons, or even use them to bombard our ships? Please reconsider, Marquis Ping Liao."

Several others wanted to persuade him, but Liu Zhaosun raised his hand to indicate that the matter was decided.

"Who is the commander of the Tsushima Island garrison?"

Pei Dahu quickly stepped forward and said, "It's Zhu He."

Ping Liaohou was deeply impressed by the newly appointed commander. No matter what kind of enemy he faced, Zhu He would always move forward bravely and fight the enemy.

"I remember that he should be stationed in Fukuoka, Kyushu. How come he is here?"

Pei Dahu looked around, walked up to Liu Zhaosun, and whispered about Zhu He's stay on Tsushima Island.

The Seventh Army was responsible for escorting food supplies to Tsushima Island. Zhu He followed the soldiers here, but soon after landing on the island, they were blockaded by the fleets of the four countries.

He and his five hundred soldiers were left on Tsushima Island.

Along with the 500 combat soldiers of the Seventh Army, there were also 1,000 artillerymen from the artillery regiment.

They are quite familiar with the terrain of the island and are now working hard to strengthen the fortifications.

Liu Zhaosun frowned and thought for a long time.

This anti-landing battle was a bit risky.

"Of course we have to save them, but we have to destroy these large ships first. Otherwise, we will die after landing on the island."

"Zhu He is a fierce general, he should be able to stop the red-haired barbarians!"

Pei Dahu stopped talking.

The two men stood on the deck of the Feilong, and heard the explosion of burning gunpowder. After firing five rounds, the ship's guns stopped to dissipate heat. Rockets were continuously ignited, rising from the side of the ship and flying towards the enemy fleet.

Ping Liaohou was shrouded in the white smoke of burning gunpowder, his vision was hazy, and the outline of the enemy ship became blurred.

But what is certain is that the counterattack of the four fleets is getting weaker and weaker.
The water columns splashing around the battleship became less and less, and the previous torrential rain of shells became noticeably sparser.

Liu Zhaosun estimated that the other party's ammunition must be running out.

~~~~~~
The fat director of the East India Company sent an envoy in a small boat, raising a white flag, to negotiate peace with the Liao Hou.

Liu Zhaosun saw at a glance that this was to delay time so that the mercenaries could successfully capture Tsushima Island.

So he ordered the ship's guns to fire a salvo, smashing the boat into pieces.

"Weakness and ignorance are not obstacles to survival, arrogance is."

Looking at the densely packed mercenaries landing in the distance, Liu Zhaosun recalled the famous quotes he had read in his previous life.

After the Europeans made the great geographical discoveries, they massacred cities and destroyed countries in various parts of America and Africa, killing countless people for a hundred years.

Perhaps because the early expansion went too smoothly, these bandits who claimed to be God's chosen people had forgotten the reverence they should have for life.

It's time to let things be as they are.

"Keep on attacking and make them remember this lesson."

(End of this chapter)