Late Ming Dynasty: The Counterattack Begins with Sea Pirates

Chi Honghai handed the binoculars back to Instructor Lang.

"Instructor Lang, take a look at the situation of the ship coming from the other side."

Instructor Lang opened his binoculars and looked carefully in that direction, speaking as he looked.

"These two ships don't look like warships; they look like cargo ships used by you Easterners, with little firepower."

Pang San, who was standing nearby, became excited upon hearing this.

"Sir, if this were a cargo ship, we'd be rolling in money this time!"

"What's going on? These two ships are clearly coming for us. They might even be here to eat us."

"What?" Pang San was shocked. "Master, what do we do now? The brothers were fighting one-on-one before, but this is two ships against one..."

Liu Qingjiang was also worried.

"Sir, if they really are here to steal, we're at a disadvantage with only one ship against two... They definitely want the cargo. If all else fails, we'll just abandon it..."

Chi Honghai looked at the two of them, his expression not very satisfied.

"You two are scared by just a few wrecked ships on the other side?"

He patted the breech-loading cannon next to him.

"Don't forget, we work with guns and cannons. If they want to eat me, they won't have the chance."

"Tell the brothers to stop loading, stow the grappling hooks, turn the boat around, and get over there!"

"master!"

"I said, drive over there!"

The grappling hooks were retracted, and the two ships separated again as the crew used objects to brace against each other's vessels.

"Raise the sails!"

The bow was turned around, and the sails on the mast were hoisted again.

Following the southeast wind, they quickly sailed towards the two ships.

As we got closer, we were finally able to see the situation on the ship's deck clearly through the binoculars.

The group of people in coarse clothes and tattered shirts brandished knives and guns on the boat, acting completely unserious.

But the more this is the case, the more it proves that the other party is a fellow professional rather than a government official.

However, pirates don't communicate politely with each other.

Robbery doesn't respect the order of arrival.

There was no prior agreement stipulating this, and now that we've encountered this situation, they certainly aren't here to ask you to sign a temporary contract.

The person standing at the bow of the ship was also looking at him through a monocular telescope.

Chi Honghai handed the binoculars back to Instructor Lang and asked for his opinion.

Instructor Lang raised his binoculars and looked at the opposing fleet's one-to-one sailing formation.

"Sir, if we go upwind and use the ship's firepower to strike them first, we might still have a chance to break free. But if we get entangled by the ships in front, we'll easily be attacked from both sides."

"I suggest moving some of the cannons to the bow so that we can bombard them first."

After listening to Instructor Lang's words, Chi Honghai gave a soft "hmm".

However, no emergency order was given to move the ship's breech-loading cannons to the bow.

Instructor Lang looked at Chi Honghai, who remained lost in thought.

"gentlemen?"

Chi Honghai patted him on the shoulder.

"Instructor Lang, you Westerners are indeed good at using firearms in combination at sea, but when it comes to naval warfare, we Chinese still have to take the lead."

After speaking, Chi Honghai walked to the bow of the ship and carefully observed the situation ahead.

With the southeast wind blowing, they soon came to within a kilometer of each other.

"Sir, we're almost there..."

500 meters...

"Hard to right, turn around."

"Turn around!" the crew member echoed.

Just as the two sides were about to meet head-on, Chi Honghai's boat suddenly turned to the right.

The entire ship began to turn sideways.

"All artillery, listen to my command," Chi Honghai said calmly.

"The cannons are under your command, sir!" Pang San roared.

Four hundred meters...

Chi Honghai watched the changes on both sides with utmost concentration.

When the entire ship was turned sideways to face the bow of the other ship, he finally blurted it out.

"put."

"Fire!" Pang San roared.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The cannons of different calibers made a tremendous noise in the port side of the ship's hold.

A salvo of fire blasted the bow of the opposite ship beyond recognition. The man who had been standing at the bow was thrown back by the violent shock and fell onto the deck.

"Reload all the breech-loading rifles with shotgun shells!"

As the second round of loading was completed, another round of muffled cannon fire ensued.

Thick white smoke drifted across the sea, accompanied by flying wood chips in the distance.

The enemy was in a very bad state from the fire of such a caliber cannon, and for a while they were all lying on the deck praying that they would not be hit.

However, under the commander's reprimands and whippings, they quickly organized a counterattack.

Those men stood at the bow of the ship and began firing with bows and arrows, along with sporadic firearms.

Once the gun was at the right angle, the breech-loading cannons on the other side roared to life.

Judging from the sound, it's a lightweight breech-loading machine.

However, due to the distance and the fact that Chi Honghai's ship was moving at high speed against the wind, these attacks were easily deflected and did not cause much damage.

After the second round of bombardment, the enemy ship's speed increased significantly, desperately trying to get closer to Chi Honghai.

He understood that his advantage lay in firearms, and once they entered hand-to-hand combat, the outcome would be uncertain. Even if he won, he might not be able to afford the cost.

"Turn left, towards their diagonal upwards."

"Turn left! Head diagonally upwards!" Pang San continued to shout, his voice sounding somewhat hoarse.

When the boats reached the opposite side, both sides were able to see each other's faces clearly.

They were extremely envious.

However, this eye contact quickly disappeared amidst the sound of the breech-loading cannon.

Thick smoke billowed from the deck and above, and a barrage of shrapnel rained down on the enemy's deck, instantly felling the pirates at the front.

Just as the pirates were preparing to retaliate, the breech-loading cannons of the Franco cannons were able to play their full advantage.

Just as they were recovering, another burst of cannon fire rang out, and another group of people fell.

The enemy's deck was riddled with craters, covered in bloodstains, and littered with severed limbs and remains.

Some people who no longer wanted to stay on the ship and be hit by cannonballs had begun jumping from the deck into the sea.

If you're lucky, you might even manage to grab a large piece of the broken wood.

As for those who fell into the water in the wrong direction, they became targets for Chi Honghai's side at sea, and were picked off one by one by the muskets.

Seeing the carnage ahead, the ship behind lost all will to fight and began to turn back.

However, Chi Honghai also noticed the change in the other party's sails.

Boss Chi pointed at the ship.

"Skip this one and chase after them!"

Taking advantage of the time it took for the other party to turn around, Chi Honghai rushed to their side with the wind.

Two more rounds of heavy artillery fire followed, overwhelming the enemy.

Although he was suppressing the opponent from a distance, he was unable to retaliate.

But the ship was about to complete its turn.

The other ship was light and did not carry heavy weapons and cargo like ours. If it had the wind at its back, it would be out of reach.

Chi Honghai patted the edge of the boat.

"Charge forward and take over!"

"Master, I've been waiting to hear that for so long! The cannons have been firing for ages, and I've just been watching!" Pang San said.

"Charge! Charge!" Pang San and Liu Qingjiang shouted at the same time.

The grappling hook caught the edge of the boat, and a group of people pulled on it forcefully, dragging it towards them.

Liu Qingjiang, Pang San, and the others threw their grappling hooks onto the enemy's mast and swung over.

The two sides clashed on the deck.

Chi Honghai also drew a knife and jumped onto the deck.

Liu Qingjiang saw Chi Honghai's actions.

"Master, what brings you here! It's dangerous!"

"With you all here, what do I have to be afraid of?"

In the time it took to speak, two lives were lost under the blades.

"Protect the master!" "Protect the master!"

The enemy's morale plummeted, compounded by the death of their leader.

The hand-to-hand combat didn't last long before the remaining dozens of men knelt down and begged for mercy.

Chi Honghai was covered in bloodstains. He wiped the fresh blood off his face with his sleeve and handed the knife to Liu Qingjiang, who was standing next to him.

He stepped forward and looked at the trembling people kneeling down.

"Who are you people?"