Global colonization began with Ming Dynasty pirates.

"Gunner, load!"

"Aim!"

"fire!"

With a thunderous roar, countless sparks and white smoke appeared from the side of the ship, and black spheres shot towards the water, stirring up waves in the distance.

"Qingtang! Again!"

As orders continued to be issued, the cannons on the entire ship were quickly ready and began firing at the water again.

Meanwhile, on the deck, men carrying various swords, shields, spears, and muskets constantly changed formations in response to the captain's loud commands.

Several other ships in the distance were in the same situation as this one.

This is on the waters off Dongluo Island. Ever since Lin Hao issued the order to prepare for battle that day, the recruited soldiers have been practicing constantly on the ship during the day, striving to become familiar with naval warfare as soon as possible.

Lin Chengfeng stood on the largest sailing ship, watching the crew train with a blank expression, occasionally issuing commands. Then, the sailors on the mast waved flags, and the ships behind them performed corresponding actions.

His gaze followed the new recruits. Although they had only been recruited recently, they were mostly from nearby fishing villages; otherwise, they wouldn't have been chosen as sailors.

After half a month of basic training, these people were quite obedient; the only thing they lacked was a grasp of various aspects of naval warfare.

The most crucial element is flag signaling. Most pirates don't use flags; they communicate entirely by shouting. But on the high seas, how easy is that? So, in typical pirate battles, aside from a somewhat organized start, it usually devolves into a chaotic free-for-all.

But the Four Seas Gang obviously wouldn't do that. From the very beginning, they adopted Commander Qi's watercraft training method, and naturally copied the flag signals as well.

This also brings an advantage: many of the sailors were converted from government troops, and these people knew some flag signals, which made training them much easier.

Around noon, the boats gradually turned around, and the new recruits disembarked for lunch.

Lin Hao found Lin Chengfeng at the dock.

"Third Uncle, how's the training going?" Lin Hao asked with a smile.

Hearing Lin Hao's question, Lin Chengfeng's stern face finally began to change. He wiped the sweat from his face and grinned, "It's even better than I imagined. After your training, Hao'er, these people are now obedient to any order. It's much easier than when I trained the first batch of sailors."

Lin Hao nodded: "How are the gunners? Are they adapting well at sea? Can the ships withstand the cannon fire?"

"It's alright. With the gun carriages you gave us, the cannons firing in salvo, apart from the accuracy being much worse than on land, haven't had any adverse effects on the ships. I feel we can add a bit more. How about we try replacing them with bigger cannons? I feel these small cannons are still a bit inadequate," Lin Chengfeng said eagerly.

"No, these cannons are enough. If we switch to larger cannons, we won't have any other ships to replace them if something goes wrong," Lin Hao said speechlessly. He knew that his third uncle had been eyeing those twelve-pound cannons for a long time.

"Alright, whatever you say. We'll be practicing boarding this afternoon, Hao'er, do you want to come watch?" Lin Chengfeng said with a smile.

Lin Hao slowly shook his head and said, "I won't go. I have more important things to do. I trust you can handle things on the ship, Uncle."

Lin Hao and Lin Chengfeng walked back side by side. Suddenly, Lin Chengfeng remembered something and asked Lin Hao, "Have the people who went to Nangantang Island returned?"

Lin Hao nodded and said, "We'll arrive at the 12th on the morning of the 12th. Let's have lunch first, and then we'll finalize the battle plan."

"Haha, it seems Hao'er already has a plan in mind," Lin Chengfeng said with a smile.

Lin Hao smiled slightly: "I just have some ideas, but we need to discuss them with everyone before we can finalize them."

……

"That's basically the situation. Like us, the outer perimeter of Nangantang Island has fishermen acting as scouts. There are also watchtowers around the village, but from what I've observed, not many people are actually on duty. I haven't heard of any outposts on the surrounding mountain peaks. I traveled from the east, measuring the hydrology, and nothing happened, but it's possible they overlooked my fishing boat. There are about three thousand people in the village, but I estimate that about five hundred are truly elite and capable fighters. In addition, there are two cannons in the village, but they are both at the front gate. As for warships, there are seven large ships, which appear to have cannons on their bows. There are twenty-six medium-sized ships, and the rest are small boats."

In the council hall, as Lin Twelve recounted everything he had seen and heard in Li Jiuzhai, everyone frowned.

The Lin family currently owns only five medium-sized ships, while the opposing side has five times more ships of the same tonnage, not to mention seven large ships.

In naval battles, the number and size of ships have a huge impact on the outcome. Even if our side has a considerable number of cannons, it can't possibly outnumber the enemy's thirty-odd ships combined, right?

"This battle won't be easy." Even Lin Chengfeng, who was the most confident, hesitated at this moment.

He had initially thought that his side had more cannons, but upon hearing that the other ship also had Hongyi cannons, he was immediately caught in a dilemma.

The Lin family members sat around the table, all looking worried. Lin Hao, however, was staring at the map on the table, deep in thought.

This map is a topographical map of Nangantang Island drawn by Lin Shier, as well as the defense layout of Li Jiuzhai Village.

"I think there's only one sentry post near the back of the mountain," Lin Hao suddenly said.

"In reply to your question, young master, that is indeed the case. Behind the stronghold lies the highest mountain range on the island, and there is no place nearby to anchor. If the enemy were to come from the back of the mountain, they would have to cross the entire Yuntai Mountain. Unless General Qi is alive, this is an insurmountable barrier for both pirates and government troops. Therefore, Li Jiu does not believe that the enemy will attack from the mountain behind them."

"If we're going to cross Yuntai Mountain, are there any safe places to dock on the east bank?" Lin Hao asked, frowning.

"Young Master, the east coast beach is mostly cliffs and reefs, with very few places to anchor. There are only a few shallow areas where we can moor. But even the closest of these places to the village requires crossing at least three miles of mountain road," Lin Twelve said, as if reciting a familiar story.

Lin Hao stroked his chin thoughtfully and asked, "Are there pirates patrolling the mountain?"

"No, not really, but according to Chen Er, pirates will come up the mountain to chop wood, but they'll mostly be in the vicinity of the back mountain," Lin Shier said knowingly.

"Hao'er, do you intend to cross the mountains and attack the enemy's water fortress by land?" Lin Chengfeng then understood Lin Hao's idea.

"That's right, that's what I'm thinking. Just like when we attacked the Shen family's warehouse last time, we'll sneak up from the mountain and strike when they're off guard." Lin Hao swung his hand down hard, making a decapitation gesture.

"Isn't this too risky? Last time you only climbed a small hill, but the mountains on Nangantang Island are much bigger than that," Lin Chengzong objected, frowning.

"Father, this is the only way. Given the strength of their navy, we have no chance of winning. In that case, we have no choice but to use our best land warfare tactics."

To be honest, Lin Hao was also very frustrated. He had gone to great lengths to build ships and cannons, all so that he could gather his forces and give the enemy a shocking experience with naval line warfare tactics.

Unfortunately, the opponent dismantled the platform beforehand. Since that was the case, Lin Hao had no choice but to abandon his long-awaited naval battle and return to his most proficient tactic: surprise attack.

In this era, most people suffer from night blindness due to malnutrition. Lin Hao paid particular attention to this, and after a period of nutritional supplementation, his soldiers rarely experienced night blindness.

If we can sneak our way close to the village and launch an attack when all is quiet at night, the pirates' organizational skills will make it very difficult for them to resist.

The only problem is that the journey to be covered by stealth is quite long this time. How can we get there safely?