Late Ming Dynasty: The Counterattack Begins with Sea Pirates

After several days of sailing, the fleet finally arrived at the territory of Guangzhou Prefecture.

The informant in Guangzhou sent back a message.

A few days ago, on the eighth day of the eighth lunar month.

When the British fleet arrived at Ya Niangxie in Humen, the Ming army in Humen fired warning shots upon seeing the approaching British ships, but to no avail.

The British fleet immediately opened fire on Humen and captured the area from the Ming army.

The officials in Guangzhou Prefecture were in complete disarray, some furious, others confused.

Several warnings not only had no effect, but also provoked the British army to carry out a frenzied looting in the surrounding area, and many villages have already suffered.

Upon receiving this news, Zheng Zhilong not only didn't get angry, but instead smiled.

In his excitement on the ship, he momentarily forgot his and Chi Honghai's identities.

He walked over to Chi Honghai and patted him on the shoulder with his palm.

"Fine, fine, Heaven has granted the people's wish."

What a stroke of luck! The lives of these people are just numbers, not even worth as much as a single animal you keep in your camp.

Chi Honghai stood still without moving or speaking.

"What? Shouldn't you be happy that your news is true, Chief Chi?"

"General, I am happy for you. This confirms what I said before, and you can now legitimately intervene in the affairs of Guangzhou Prefecture."

Zheng Zhilong nodded in satisfaction.

"Someone come here!"

Two guards at the cabin door responded and entered.

"Order the entire army to march towards Humen and head straight for the British fleet!"

"Yes, General!"

Zheng Zhilong led Chi Honghai back to the deck, where they watched as the sails changed again and signal flags were hoisted on the flagship's mast.

The entire fleet began to move rapidly toward Humen.

……

When the fleet sailed to Humen, it saw several British ships firing at the shore around Humen from a horizontal position.

The flag planted high up in Humen was not the Ming flag, but a Union Jack flag.

Upon seeing this, Zheng Zhilong did not hesitate and waved the command flag toward the British fleet.

Immediately, seven or eight small, fast sailboats rushed up.

The Englishman heard the sudden sound of drums and horns behind him, turned around, and was immediately taken aback.

They had traveled thousands of miles to the East and had never seen an Eastern fleet of such scale.

A large group of ships formed a dense formation, and when they surrounded the area, they blocked all the space for ships to leave the sea.

Now he was truly trapped.

There were soldiers from Guangzhou Prefecture in front, and Zheng Zhilong's ships behind.

The British morale plummeted. After all, the disparity in strength was stark, and even if they fought on, they wouldn't receive any reinforcements.

Hoping the Portuguese will lend them a hand?

If he had the guts, he would have taken over Macau long ago. Why would he be in this situation today?

While Captain Weddell of the British fleet was still trying to figure out a way out, the fast sailboat had already sailed up to the front of the ship and began to cast hooks to board.

The large ship behind them was also rapidly closing in, and the density of its sails temporarily reduced the wind overseas.

Even the wind can't get in, how can you get out!

Weddell had thought that even if he couldn't win, he could ask the Portuguese to mediate, and at most he would just have to pay some money. Besides, he hadn't even thought he would lose in the first place.

The officials in Guangzhou, however, did not want to fight.

As for how many pigs were stolen and how many people were killed, it wouldn't hurt them much.

It's only when war breaks out that things really get seriously damaged.

Harmony is the most precious thing.

But now, the Portuguese might be able to see that area with their eyes, but they can't see any people even with binoculars.

It seems that surrendering is the only option left.

Weddell stood on his flagship, and when he came to his senses and turned around, he saw that hand-to-hand combat had already begun on the decks of various ships, and even his own flagship was about to be grappled by approaching ships.

Sometimes, the sound of cannons firing is frightening; people rushing towards them are terrified.

Weddell quickly ordered his men to find some white canvas or something similar on the ship and hang it on the mast or wave it in their hands.

Before long, the entire British fleet surrendered. The British troops at Humen were not fully aware of the situation and were engaged in battle with the Ming army in Guangzhou.

When Zheng Zhilong approached, the British troops on Humen realized that the situation was hopeless and gave up resistance.

However, when Zheng Zhilong saw Weddell, his first words were not to interrogate him, but to signal him to give the order.

Fire on the Ming troops at Humen!

"What?" Weddell was a little confused. Weren't these all Ming soldiers?

How could the Ming army capture him and then expect him to fire on them?

But with his own neck held to a knife, and since they weren't attacking his own people, he raised the flag again and directed the ships to continue firing at Humen.

Only after the Ming troops at Humen were driven back by artillery fire did Zheng Zhilong order the British ships to stop firing and send his own men to occupy Humen.

Zheng Zhilong, who had just boarded the Humen gate, looked at the fleet on the coast and then glanced at Guangzhou Prefecture.

Zheng Zhilong looked at Weddell and spoke to the translator.

"Ask him what his purpose was in causing the disturbance in Guangzhou, and who his accomplices were?"

Hearing this, Chi Honghai, who was standing next to him, broke out in a cold sweat on his back and forehead.

The objective is not important; after all, the shelling has already begun.

Accomplices don't matter either, after all, in Kinmen, even white can be turned into black, and Zheng Zhilong himself knows that.

But if Weddell says he has no accomplices, then wouldn't all his previous statements have been fabricated?

Although it won't affect the outcome, given Zheng Zhilong's recent attack on friendly forces, it's hard to imagine that he won't use this as an excuse to stage a "kill the dog after the rabbit is dead" scenario.

Zheng Zhilong glanced at Chi Honghai and noticed the sweat on his forehead.

"Chief Chi, what's wrong? What's the matter?"

"Without an adult present, the battle just now was so intense, I... I was quite excited..."

Zheng Zhilong laughed heartily: "You have to see things to broaden your horizons."

Weddell spoke for a while.

Chi Honghai had already closed his eyes and was waiting for the translator to pronounce the verdict.

"My lord, he said that General Chen Qian of Guangdong is in cahoots with him and that his purpose in coming to Guangzhou is to open up trade with the Ming Dynasty."

Zheng Zhilong first glanced at Weddell, then at Chi Honghai, and finally turned to look at Guangzhou City.

"Take it back and keep an eye on it."

"yes!"

Half an hour later, the Guangzhou troops, seeing the Ming flag already raised on Humen, hurriedly arrived here.

Along with him came Chen Qian, the general of Guangzhou Prefecture.

Chen Qian started cursing: "How the hell did it take so long to take them down? Where are they?! Where are those foreigners?!"

Chen Qian, who had just bumped into someone, didn't see the foreigner, but he did see Zheng Zhilong.

When Chi Honghai saw Chen Qian come up, he turned to the side and looked at Zheng Zhilong, his head lowered, not even glancing at Chen Qian, so naturally Chen Qian didn't notice him.

"Lord Zheng? What's wrong?"

"General Chen, you're not handling things well in Guangzhou, so I've come to lend you a hand."

"Ha, lend me a hand? These few foreign devils don't need your help, Lord Zheng. The Guangzhou government will handle the matter itself."

Zheng Zhilong walked up to Chen Qian with a smile.

"General Chen, how do you intend to resolve the situation in Guangzhou with the foreigners?"

After he finished speaking, he turned around and took a special look at the fleet below.

Chen Qian followed Zheng Zhilong's gaze and looked over.

Below is the captured British fleet.