,.
Chapter 285 Secret visit to Bopu 2
"Jiang Youling really made a mistake," Zhang Wen whispered next to him, "Now that the Australians have become a climate in the game, it will be difficult to fight again."
"What do you know?" Tang Yunwen scolded. Zhang Wen is his distant relative, and he also bears the rank of Xiaoqi. Tang Yunwen promoted him to be a general of the Chinese Military Standard Battalion as his personal general. No better than ordinary people in terms of affection.
"Could it be that the Australian cannons were built in Lingao?" Tang Yunwen said. "We have a few ships for him to shoot at."
Zhang Wen fell silent, his face seemed unconvinced.
Tang Yunwen asked: "Where is the big iron ship?"
"The ship is inside the port and can't be seen from here," the ship's boss said. "You have to go around Lingao Corner to see it."
"Go around and have a look" at the legendary large iron ship. Of course Tang Yunwen wanted to see it.
The ship slowly turned the rudder and headed towards the Lingao corner. Tang Yunwen noticed that the security on the Lingao corner was very tight. The piers were protected by horses and the like, and there were people who looked like soldiers standing guard on the platform, carrying long weapons on their backs. A long firecracker. Behind the pier, there is another tall stone round tower. According to the boss of the ship, this is a newly built lighthouse. With this lighthouse, it is much safer to sail at night and in bad weather.
The ship rounded the corner of Lingao, and the iron ship gradually appeared in Tang Yunwen's sight. At this moment, he held his breath - it was too big. Tang Yunwen had seen the large plywood boats of Franco and the red-haired people, with huge hulls and He was deeply impressed by the towering masts. But compared with the big iron ship in front of me, it was nothing worth mentioning. How could a ship be built so big?
"God, this boat is so big," Zhang Wen couldn't help but say.
"This boat is now a sight in the city, and many people come to see it." The boss of the boat said, "It is taller than the city wall of Fucheng."
"How can this ship sail without masts and oars?" Tang Yunwen felt that it was impossible for this ship to sail on the sea by itself - how big a sail would it take to drive this huge ship? What's more, it was made of iron, wouldn't it be better than wood? Many times heavier.
"I heard people say that there is no need for sails and oars, the boat will move by itself." The boss of the boat said, "But I have never seen it before. This boat has not moved since we arrived at the shop."
Zhang Wenque said: "Sir, this ship is probably made of iron. Otherwise, if the ship is made of iron, let alone sailing, it will sink when it is put into the water."
Tang Yunwen was convinced. He remembered that he had heard an old boatman say before that during the Cheng and Xuan years, Longjiang Shipyard built a large treasure ship for ceremonial purposes. It was extremely majestic in shape, with multi-layered decks and pavilions, like a water city. But it cannot drive on its own, nor can it go on long sea voyages. When moving, it must be towed by a smaller boat. This is probably the case for this large iron ship, otherwise Tang Yunwen really can't think of any power in the world that can directly drive such a large ship across the sea.
"Even if it is wrapped with iron, the skill is amazing." Tang Yunwen commented, looking up again with the telescope, and saw that there seemed to be a cannon on the bow deck. He was experienced in military warfare and had already marked three gun emplacements in his mind. With these three cannons, it would be extremely risky to attack Bopu directly from the sea.
While he was pondering, the boss of the boat suddenly said with a trembling voice: "The patrol boat is coming." Tang Yunwen looked up and saw a single-masted boat coming not far away, with a full sail and sailing towards it at a speed as fast as a boat. It flew over the waves, but the hull tilted so sharply that Tang Yunwen thought it was going to capsize.
Tang Yunwen knew that he could not escape by running away at this time, so he quickly put away the binoculars and hid them. Pretend to be a fisherman and inspect the fishing nets in the cabin. Zhang Wen was a little nervous and kept looking outside.
"Calm down." Tang Yunwen warned.
The patrol boat quickly approached the fishing boat. The moment the two boats came close to each other, several people in blue jackets jumped over and stood on the deck of the fishing boat. Then they threw a few ropes. Hold the two ships firmly together.
Judging from their agility, these men were obviously veterans of the sea. All of them wore blue cloth tight-fitting jackets with wide cloth belts tied around their waists. They looked very capable and capable.
Each person has a dagger leather scabbard hanging down between his hips. There is also a triangular coarse cloth bag hanging on the cloth belt around his waist, which is fastened with straps and iron buckles on the outside. Don't know what to pretend to be.
Looking at the blue cloth coats they were wearing, the style looked simple at first glance. But if you look closely, there were a lot of bits and pieces on them. There were small squares of black cloth on the upright collars, and there were crooked patterns on them. There are extra soft cloth trippers on the shoulders, decorated with patterns and stripes. He noticed that the leader had fewer bars than the others, but was much thicker.
Each person also had a piece of cloth pinned to their chest, with the word "Marine Police" written on it. He didn't know what it meant, but Tang Yunwen guessed that it was related to affiliation.
After getting on the boat, the people immediately dispersed. Some stood at the stern and controlled the helmsman, while others urged the boatman to lower the sail. Soon the entire ship was under control.
On the opposite ship, two small cannons were already aimed at the fishing boat. Tang Yunwen had seen similar small cannons on Franco's ship and knew that they were specially designed to fire small iron rods to kill deck sailors.
Although this group of people are pirates, the whole process of jumping into a gang and controlling the ship is smooth and fast, which shows that they are well-trained and elite troops. Tang Yunwen thought that his Chinese military standard battalion could only do this. I'm afraid not so soon.
The leader yelled: "Where did you get this fishing boat from? Why don't you fly the flag?"
He spoke in Mandarin, but his accent was that of southern Fujian. This pirate is obviously not an Australian, but a scoundrel from the Ming Dynasty. Most of them are Zhu Cai's subordinates who defected to the Australians.
The boss of the ship had already nodded and bowed to greet him: "The younger one hasn't received the flag yet."
"How can you come here to fish without a flag?"
"I heard that the fishing ground here in Lingao has a good harvest. Let's take a look at the situation first. If it is really good, come and apply for a certificate." The boss of the boat pointed to the cabin with a smile on his face, "You guys don't dare to break the rules, you see. The fishing nets are all packed up, and there aren’t even any fish scales in the cabin, let alone fish or shrimps.”
Tang Yunwen knew that according to the general routine, the leader of the team would definitely scold him with a straight face, and then threaten him with whatever he wanted. The boss of the ship would naturally give him the money he had prepared. As for what to check, it's just a formality.
However, the leader did not use this routine intimidation and threats. He waved his hand and his men immediately dispersed. They really had to search cabin by cabin, even the coiled ropes and piled up fishing nets. Take a look, very carefully.
The captain of the ship hurriedly dug out a few coins from his waist and tried to stuff them over. But he was pushed back by the other party:
"You keep the money yourself. If there is no poaching, I will naturally let you go." The leader said seriously, "If there is any poaching, you will be offended."
"There is absolutely no poaching. It's just a small thing, just buying wine for a few lieutenants." The boss of the ship still stuffed the money into his hand.
The leader actually refused to accept it. Not only did he not accept it, he also reprimanded the ship boss sternly. Tang Yunwen was stunned for a moment - looking at his appearance, his refusal to accept the money was not an act.
Can this Australian even be considered a pirate if he doesn't even need the money brought to his door? Tang Yunwen has dealt with the heroes of the sea a lot. He knows that the reasons for people who take this road are various: in the end, it is all for the sake of Money and women. Unexpectedly, there is such a group of pirates who don’t love money.
After some inspection, of course no catch was found. Tang Yunwen's telescope was well hidden and not discovered. The leader registered the name of the owner of the ship and the port where the ship was located one by one before leaving. Before leaving, he did not forget to remind him: If you want to fish locally, you must register as soon as possible. Recently, the "Fishery Association" was established and launched We have found many ways to benefit fishermen and asked the boat boss to "take a look" if he is interested.
Of course, the boss of the ship was obedient and sent the people away like a head-scratcher. Only then did Guanren raise the sail. Seeing Tang Yunwen sitting under the mast of the ship, staring at the departing patrol boat, he couldn't help but smile bitterly: "Master, I was really scared to death."
"What are you afraid of? There are no swords and guns on the ship, and there are no seals on the ship. As long as you are careful, nothing will happen." Tang Yunwen asked, "Were the Australians who got on the ship just now?"
"Yes, this is a company that specializes in patrolling and inspecting the ocean in this area," the boss of the ship said, "These are small boats, and there are also big two-masted ships. The inspections are very intensive, and a lot of sporadic pirates have been caught recently. The ones here in Lingao The sea is much calmer than in previous years. Boat owners and merchants along the coast said that it was very calm once the ship entered Lingao."
In this way, the Australians not only collect the benefits of the "catch" here, but also take care of catching pirates and protecting merchants. It's a bit like what the government does. Thinking of this, Tang Yunwen was already wary. This group of Australians had great ambitions.
Zhang Wen suggested going ashore to take a look. Explore the reality on the land, especially the land defenses and artillery. But Tang Yunwen believes that what he has seen now is enough. Go ashore and there are many old men of Zhu Cai Lao here - some of them have seen him before, and it will be troublesome if they are recognized. But at this moment, he completely lost interest in using force to expel the Australians - the disparity in strength was too great.
"Go back to Baisha." Tang Yunwen ordered.
"Sir, if we don't find out clearly what is true on the shore, if we want to raise troops to attack in the future, wouldn't it be——" Zhang Wen whispered.
"It's not too late to explore again then." Tang Yunwen said, "This Lingao matter is very difficult. If we want to attack, we must use the strength of the entire province."
The implication is that the campaign of suppression will not happen in five or six months. How can he, a coastal defense general, gather the strength of the whole province to do it? It would take months just to write the report and deliver the pile of official articles waiting for this in the Tang newspaper.
Furthermore, given his status, coming to explore outside the Port of Bopu is considered "personally involved in danger", so there is no need for him to sneak into Bopu and leave it to his subordinates. ,.
