Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 54: Planning Davao (Please vote for the monthly ticket and recommendation ticket to support, thank you enthusiastic readers.)
"I want to express my strong protest. I am Tony Holmes, a British businessman, and I am protected by the British Empire's unrivaled fleet, which sails across the seven seas. Any illegal act that harms British businessmen will be regarded as a provocation against the British Empire. Believe me, you cannot afford such a price."

Captain Tony Holmes was a tall and thin white man. He clenched his fists and protested angrily, his saliva flying into Zheng Shouxin's face.

In order to deal with this troublesome white captain, they treated him with courtesy and explained that they were only detaining him temporarily for a period of time due to the needs of military operations.

The task force is willing to purchase the cargo on board at the market price and will never let you suffer any loss.

The more humble he was, the more arrogant the white captain became, and the harder it was to talk to him. His aggressive attitude made Zheng Shouxin angry.

But considering his deep background as an English businessman, he had to endure it.

While they were struggling, there was a noise outside.

Zheng Shouxin turned his eyes to the side and saw a staff member who had just come down from the boat hurried in. He lowered his head and reported:
"Sir, we interrogated the crew, and they confessed that this sailboat came from Batavia. This foreigner is not British, but a descendant of the Dutch who settled in Batavia. His real name is Fergus."

"Can you be sure?"

"This is a serious matter. We have interrogated the boatswain, the helmsman, and two experienced white sailors. Their statements are consistent. The sailboat is named "Surabhai Margaret" in memory of Mr. Fergus's deceased wife."

"That's abhorrent... Then why are you flying the British flag?"

"According to the prisoners' confessions, Captain Fergus suddenly had an idea and decided to hang himself when he saw he couldn't escape."

"I understand." After Zheng Shouxin talked with his staff in Chinese, his face turned gloomy.

He turned around and looked at the arrogant red-haired foreigner coldly, wondering what else he could do.

Captain Fergus suddenly felt something was wrong. He looked at the direction of the sailboat guiltily, fearing that the gang of bastards on the ship had revealed their secrets.

However, facing this humble Oriental official, Captain Fergus still said in a tough manner;
"You have no right to detain my ship, let alone interrogate my crew. I will lodge a solemn protest with the English side regarding all your unreasonable actions."

After the interpreter conveyed his meaning, Zheng Shouxin sneered and said, "Mr. Fergus, all you have to rely on is the English flag. Isn't the flag of the Red Indians enough to satisfy you?"

"Watt, I don't know what you are talking about?" Captain Fergus was still pretending to be stupid.

Zheng Shouxin did not tolerate his bad habits. He swung the knife handle in his hand violently, hitting Foggs' chest and abdomen hard, knocking him down and kneeling.

Zheng Shouxin ordered, "We have commandeered this Red Barbarian sailboat and confiscated all its supplies. Arrange for immediate unloading. The rice and cloth are what we desperately need, and this will save us a great deal of money."

"No... no... you can't do this." Fergus coughed hard a few times, stretched out his hand and shouted in despair.

Zheng Shouxin sneered and said, "You guessed wrong. We can. Come on, take this Mr. Fergus into custody first. Don't allow him to see anyone unless I give him permission."

"Yes, my lord."

Two strong men stepped forward and captured Mr. Foggs, forcibly took him away from here, and locked him up in a dark room.

Zheng Shouxin felt much more relaxed. If he was really an Englishman, he would not have dared to do so if the general had ordered him to "treat him with courtesy."

As for the Red Indian ghost... I'm sorry, your Master Zheng is not interested in serving you.

After dealing with the white captain, Zheng Shouxin arrived at the dock in a good mood. He walked forward for a while and came to the pier where the ship was being loaded.

The pilot, Zheng Shouzhong (the eleventh uncle), was directing the loading of the ship. Upon seeing him approach, he clasped his fists in greeting and said, "Sir, how come you have time to come to the dock today?"

"Hehe... I just talked with Lord Qian about the construction of the Posonanka Fortress Artillery, but I couldn't convince him. He decided to build it on the top of the mountain according to the military's plan." Zheng Shouxin shook his head with a wry smile.

Zheng Shouzhong knew the difference between the two project options. He smiled and replied, "Large-scale construction has its advantages, and small-scale construction has its advantages. Anyway, the meat is rotting in the pot, and I won't let others get away with it."

"That's true, so I agree. Coincidentally, the Red Indians sent another shipload of food, so there's no problem now."

"Haha... General, you are truly destined to be my Lord. Even the Red Indians have come to join in the fun."

"Exactly. How's the copper concentrate loading going?"

"We have already loaded 16 ships. The remaining cargo will take another three days. We plan to sail in four days. We should return quickly while the weather is good."

"Okay, are you still short of laborers for loading the goods?"

"That's enough. We don't need too many people. Too many people would just get in the way."

"If that's the case, come to the regiment headquarters that evening. Master Qian and I will practice for you and we can have a few drinks together."

"Hahahaha... so that's what I wish for, but I dare not ask for it."

As they spoke, they burst into laughter, their smiles revealing boundless joy.

The first trip south had been a success. They were all meritorious officials and would surely be highly valued by the general in the future. How could they not be happy? On this return trip, they loaded 30 ships with copper ore, which would be a huge fortune after refining.

The copper coins circulating in the market today are far inferior to the high-grade copper ore produced in Mindanao. After being refined into copper billets, they are all money.

In this era, the private minting of copper coins is rampant despite repeated bans. The key is not whether it is privately minted or not, but the quality of the copper coins.

Good money is easy to use. There are merchants willing to accept it wherever you go. It can be used in Southeast Asia and even in Fuso.

Inferior coins are difficult to use, and there are even iron coins as thin as a cicada's wing, which will break into eight pieces if they fall to the ground.

The navigator Zheng Shouzhong led most of the fleet back, leaving ten thousand-stone Fu ships to the advance group for the next military operation.

According to the advance mission's military action plan

The next target of the attack is Davao, the largest town in Mindanao. After the spring farming season is over, they will cross the sea and capture it in one fell swoop.

On Mindanao

The area is full of primitive jungle ecology. The local indigenous population mostly lives in tribal communities, and many are still in an ignorant state of slash-and-burn agriculture. Naturally, there are no decent roads, bridges and other infrastructure.

It is very difficult to advance deep into the tropical jungle by land, and dozens or hundreds of kilometers are already the limit.

Fortunately, most of the larger towns in Mindanao are located on the coast, with a long history of development and a certain scale of aggregation.

some of

In particular, Davao, Zamboanga, and Cagayan ranked in the top three respectively. They have one thing in common, that is, they are all located on the coast.

The advance team has been trying its best to collect intelligence about Davao and has learned a lot of valuable information from the captains and merchants who traveled back and forth.

This lifted a corner of the mysterious veil on Dawo, revealing his true appearance.

Davao is located in the heart of the South Brazil Strait in the southern part of Mindanao Island. The large land stretching out to the left and right are like two huge wings, shielding it in the heart, and its geographical location is extremely advantageous.

Davao is also a seaport with excellent conditions. The entire town is built on the port. The local population is about 4 and it is 319 nautical miles away from Zamboanga.

This is also a normal situation in an agricultural society. Since there are no decent industries, towns cannot provide enough employment opportunities and are generally small in scale.

Davao and Zamboanga belong to different indigenous tribal forces, are not subordinate to each other, and have no close relations. In other words, they all live their own lives.

The local indigenous people of Zamboanga are mainly Moros, an indigenous tribe that believes in West Asian religions. The total population is about 8 to people, and they mainly live in the Zamboanga Peninsula and inland areas.

Davao is mainly inhabited by the Subanon and Manobo people, as well as the Bilan, Tagalog and Mandaya indigenous tribes. There are more than 300,000 indigenous tribal people living in the vast inland hinterland, and they have developed a relatively mature agricultural civilization.

The town of Davao was the next major target for the advance team to conquer.

The Spanish colonists had priests, churches, some merchants and captains in the town of Davao, who transported the area's resources to Manila.

However, they had no army and mainly relied on local indigenous tribal warriors to maintain social order. Their military force was primitive and backward, mostly equipped with swords and spears.

There may also be some foreign guns, but not many.

The entire island of Mindanao was located on the periphery of the control of the Portuguese colonists, and each area was under tribal autonomy. There were neither French troops nor direct colonial officials.

The most convenient way to get from Zamboanga to Davao is by sea, which only takes one and a half to two days.

The advance team only left behind ten Fujian ships, plus the four large Western sailing ships and a dozen small sloops that had been captured, which were enough to carry out the task of transporting troops for the cross-sea expedition.

Due to the short distance, these ships can carry a maximum number of troops, enough for 3500 people and the corresponding weapons, equipment and supplies.

Once the local situation in Zamboanga stabilizes, only a thousand or so people will be left.

Navigator Zheng Shouzhong will not participate in the military expedition to Davao. He wants to take advantage of the good weather in late April to lead the fleet back to Chongming Island as soon as possible.

The safety of the entire fleet depends on one's own responsibility, and one cannot afford to slack off in the slightest.

The return trip to the north mainly takes nine days from Zamboanga to the Penghu Islands.
The main purpose is to prevent typhoon attacks. After passing the Penghu Islands, the fleet will head north along the coastline of the Chinese mainland and sail within the visual range of the coastline.

If there is a strong wind and waves, immediately find shelter in a nearby bay or fishing port.

If you are lucky, you can even sail into the estuary of a large river and anchor there, and you won’t have to worry about any strong winds and waves on the sea.

(End of this chapter)