Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 88 Bloody San Diego Bay
On January 1628, 1, under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the "Wavebreaker" and the "Journey" raised their sails, weighed anchor, and set sail, slowly heading out of the harbor.

The temperature at this time was already below zero degrees. The strong northwest wind mixed with tiny snowflakes fell on the undulating sea surface. Even if you were wearing thick winter clothes, you would still feel the biting cold everywhere.

Fortunately, Qiming Island was affected by the Alaska warm current, which made the water temperature near Shixing Port higher, thus avoiding ice formation and allowing the two ships to leave the port smoothly and travel to the distant Shenzhou continent.

During this voyage, the two ships will still follow the trans-Pacific route "opened up" by the Spanish, heading south all the way to about 12 degrees north latitude, then turning west, and with the help of the North Equatorial Current, they will reach the Ming Dynasty smoothly.

Before setting sail, the original crew of the "Breaking Waves" was reorganized with the original crew of the "Journey (formerly the St. Louis)", and several sophisticated navigation instruments were reasonably distributed, so that the two ships could keep pace and accompany each other as much as possible when sailing on the sea.

However, considering that the "Breaking Waves" is a typical clipper ship and its speed far exceeds that of the "Zhengtu", it has to sacrifice its own speed advantage throughout the entire journey in order to try its best to maintain coordination between the two ships.

"I think, if we have the energy, we should build a radio." Former electromechanical instructor She Zhiliang shifted his gaze from the Zhengtu behind him, wrapped his fur coat a little tighter around him, and said to Captain Luo Zhenhui with a smile, "That way, even if we temporarily lose contact at sea, we can still reunite by relying on the radio."

"Hehe, do you think we can copy another radio device under our current conditions?" Luo Zhenhui asked back.

"Uh... it's a bit difficult." She Zhiliang shook his head and said, "We'll probably have to start with the steam engine and climb the technology tree step by step. However, in the future technological iteration process, because we have the advanced vision of future generations, we can avoid taking detours."

"Being able to avoid even a few detours is a huge improvement and development compared to other countries," Luo Zhenhui said. "This is especially true for a country like ours, where we're practically broke and have to start everything from scratch. Even the necessary population resources are extremely scarce. Therefore, avoiding even a few detours can allow us to develop at an extraordinary pace, rapidly accumulate formidable strength, and secure a place in the world."

"Captain, there are some things we can't rush." ​​She Zhiliang heard a hint of urgency and panic in his words, and then he comforted him, "At this time, the Spanish influence has not yet extended to the California region. We still have enough time to accumulate strength and consolidate our foundation. As long as we are given twenty years of stable development, we will definitely be able to gain a firm foothold on the west coast of North America."

"Twenty years have passed, and we've all grown old," Luo Zhenhui sighed. "While we're still here, it's best to lay a solid foundation and create a positive momentum for development, so that future generations can continue firmly along the path we've charted. ... Time waits for no one!"

"So, we'll need to recruit some shipbuilders for this trip to Daming," She Zhiliang said. "At the very least, we need to build a shipyard to perform basic maintenance and upkeep on the two existing ships. Ideally, we could also build some small fishing boats and cargo ships to practice and gain experience for building large ocean-going vessels later."

"If we want to recruit shipbuilders, we have to go to Fujian." Luo Zhenhui nodded and said, "I heard that the good shipbuilders are all in the hands of Fujian and Zhejiang sea merchants (pirates) like Zheng Zhilong, Xu Xinsu, and Li Kuiqi. I'm afraid it won't be easy to find them."

"Zheng Zhilong? Can we cooperate with him and use his naval power to help us immigrate?"

"I'm afraid not." Luo Zhenhui thought for a moment and then flatly rejected the idea. "Let's not even talk about whether Zheng Zhilong's fleet can sail across the Pacific. Even if he can reach Qiming Island, what conditions can we offer in exchange for his cooperation? We don't have any real bargaining chips!"

"Indeed." She Zhiliang gave a wry smile, then thought of something else. "Do we really need to find that Spanish merchant to cooperate in smuggling when we go to the Peruvian coast? Will he sell us out?"

"Let's give it a try," Luo Zhenhui said noncommittally. "Even if this doesn't work, don't we still have 150,000 silver pesos on board? Once we get to Ming, we can still purchase a large amount of supplies and recruit immigrants."
-
January 1, San Diego Bay.

The warm winter sun brings warm sunshine to the earth, and the breeze blows on the face, making people feel a long-lost comfort.

However, at such a sunny noon, a ruthless killing unfolded on this peaceful land.

The sharp matchlock gun made bursts of explosions, and the lead bullets ejected from the muzzle shot unhindered into the chest of the Indian warrior, reflecting bright red blood flowers.

Sharp swords stabbed one woman, child, and kid after another to the ground, causing them to scream in agony before death.

Several Spanish knights in plate armor drove their horses and charged into the Indian crowd, hacking and slashing, stirring up clouds of blood mist.

The entire tribal camp was littered with corpses, dozens of thatched huts were set on fire, and huge fireworks shot straight into the sky.

A group of Spanish soldiers, holding muskets and swords, surrounded more than 20 Indian warriors.

With brutality and fanaticism flashing in their eyes, they advanced towards the enemies in the circle step by step.

A Spanish officer in a red cloak looked coldly at the few remaining Indians in front of him. There was no mercy in his eyes, only worship of strength and indifference to life.

He licked his lips, raised the rapier in his hand, and swung it down fiercely.

"shooting!"

"Bang! Bang! Bang!..."

As the gunshots rang out, a cloud of white smoke suddenly filled the battlefield, making it impossible to see the entire picture for a moment.

"Don't leave anyone behind!" the Spanish officer ordered loudly.

Upon hearing this, the soldiers immediately drew their rapiers and rushed towards the Indian who had fallen to the ground.

"Major, look!" A second lieutenant picked up a matchlock rifle from the pile of Indian corpses, brought it over, and presented it to the officer in the red cloak. "Although these matchlock rifles are quite worn and a bit worn, judging by their shape, they should have been manufactured in our Kingdom of Spain."

"In addition, we also seized many items from the civilized world from the camp, even some sacred objects from the church. Therefore, we can say with certainty that this Indian tribe must be connected to the pirate attack in Banderas Valley (now Puerto Vallarta, Mexico) over two years ago."

"Well, very good." The Spanish major nodded, "Those tribal leaders and priests must be interrogated carefully, and asked how they attacked our Spanish kingdom's territory. Oh, by the way, we also need to ask them where the big ship is hidden? And by the way, how much do they know about the situation of the 'St. Louis' that lost contact three years ago?" "Yes, Major!" The lieutenant responded respectfully, then turned and walked towards the largest thatched house in the camp.

After the massacre, the Indian tribal camp fell into deathly silence.

Countless Indian corpses lay among the rubble, their expressions frozen in the final moment of fear and despair, while the few survivors huddled in corners, their eyes hollow, as if they had lost their souls.

The air was filled with the smell of blood and death. This was a massacre of civilization against barbarism, a historical tragedy, and a sorrow of humanity.

Major Diego Ricardo stepped over the corpses and walked to the altar in the middle of the camp. He looked with contempt at a fat pig hanging on a rack.

Maybe it was because it was tied up for too long, or maybe it was because it was hung upside down, which consumed too much of its energy. It was now panting and humming continuously.

Coincidentally, when their two armed ships and more than 120 Spanish soldiers arrived at San Diego Bay, this large Indian tribe with more than 300 people was holding a sacrificial ceremony, so they had not sent out observation posts to monitor the enemies from the sea.

When more than one hundred fully armed soldiers and dozens of sailors rushed ashore and began to attack the tribal camp, the Indians hurriedly ended the sacrifice and, like a group of sheep, hastily picked up weapons and launched a weak resistance to the invading Spaniards.

However, although the Indians' resistance was not fierce, it still caused certain losses to the Spaniards.

They used seven or eight muskets to kill and wound five Spanish soldiers, and in the subsequent close combat, they killed and wounded four more soldiers. This made Major Ricardo, who led the team, furious, and he immediately issued an order to massacre.

Last September, two Jesuit priests visited the Indian tribe in the hope of strengthening their faith and increasing their devotion to the Lord.

However, when I entered this Indian tribe again after several years, I felt a strong sense of alienation and a vague hostility.

The priest was also shocked to discover that this tribe actually had muskets and more than twenty iron weapons, including Spanish rapiers, sailor knives, and spears.

This surprised the priest and made him suspicious.

Where did this Indian tribe get these weapons?
When they discovered that there were many daily necessities and farm tools from the civilized world, as well as a small amount of cloth and clothing in the tribe, they immediately became alert.

The Indians probably acquired these items from the Mexican region.

In fact, it was stolen!

So, in the process of indirect questioning, the priest accidentally learned that the Indian tribe had come into contact with a large ship passing through the area and had a small-scale trade with it, thereby obtaining these goods.

Big ship?

"Commodities" with Spanish imprints?
After a brief thought, the priests immediately understood the reason.

Those who had come into contact with the Indians must have been the pirates who had attacked the Banderas Valley more than two years ago!

So the priest returned to Mexico by boat without making a fuss and reported the situation to the colonial authorities in Mexico City.

After a long and tedious discussion and decision-making, a month ago, the Spaniards sent a mopping-up force led by Major Ricardo. They assembled in the port of Acapulco, waited for a few days, and then boarded two merchant ships and headed straight for San Diego Bay.

Now, we have defeated this Indian tribe and captured several of their leaders and priests, which means we have successfully completed the task assigned by the Governor.

Although twenty or thirty Indians escaped during the chaos, it did not affect the overall situation at all.

As long as we get the confession and find out the whereabouts of the pirates who attacked Banderas Valley, we can basically have a reasonable explanation for the pirate attack two years ago.

By the way, maybe the attack on the small town of Manta last year could also be blamed on those pirates.

What remains is to try one's best to find the pirates, bring them to justice one by one, and thus safeguard the dignity and glory of the Kingdom of Spain.

"Boom! Boom!..."

Suddenly, bursts of muffled thunder were heard from the sea, startling the Spanish soldiers who were searching the Indian camp for valuables. They all stopped and looked towards the seashore.

"Boom! Boom!..."

Another roar was heard, and a thin white smoke rose.

Is this a bombardment!?
The enemy is coming?

Oh no, it seems there are only a few people left on those two ships!
(End of this chapter)