In fact, four merchant ships traveling together can also improve a lot of security. Those small pirates, such as those with only one or two ships, will never plan to have a fleet of more than four ships.
You must know that these four ships are equipped with advanced stern guns and bow guns, and they still have the ability to fight and retreat!
Especially Prince Zheng Chengzhi, although he made suggestions to dismantle the large fleet and form a small fleet of three or four ships to increase commodity profits, he was not a fool!
You still have to have the ability to protect yourself. Not only did he install fast guns, but he also equipped each boat with fifty Mauser fast guns, all of which were purchased from the Chinese at a high price!
Once a conflict occurs on the sea, these four ships have eight cannons and 200 guns at their disposal. This is no small amount of firepower. For the lagging pirates along the way, the firepower is extremely fierce!
Because of this, the captains of these four ships are very confident and have no idea that danger is waiting for them ahead!
The Maldives is the pearl of the Indian Ocean. The scenery here is beautiful, but it is a pity that there is no tourism industry in this era. The life of the indigenous people here is very difficult, and the social level is extremely backward!
Since there are no valuable commodities, no big ships are willing to come here. Only some local Indian boats occasionally come here to purchase some local products such as pearls, corals, tortoiseshells, and clams!
But today, the natives of the Maldives knelt on the ground, kowtowed desperately toward the southeast, and muttered something that they didn't know what to say!
Just to the southeast, seven sailing boats are lining up in a straight line passing through the Maldives Islands. These boats are all flying black flags with skulls painted on them with white paint!
It was actually a pirate ship, and seven sailboats were dispatched at once. Looking at the dense artillery ports on both sides of the sailboat, we can see how terrifying the lethality of this warship is!
On the deck of the leading flagship, a middle-aged man with a bronze-skinned Asian appearance was putting down his binoculars. A pirate next to him stood at attention and saluted.
"Report to the colonel! We are still forty minutes away from the scheduled sea area. If the information is correct, the four big fish will not be able to escape!"
"You, you, you... what are you talking nonsense about? Where is this place, and a colonel... call me Golden Eyed Snapper, or call me Lord Jin!"
"It's so easy for the CIA to use us once. There can't be any mistakes. All the brothers show their true colors as pirates and rob those Manchu and Tatars!"
"Grab it!" The seven pirate ships suddenly cheered.
Goldeneye Snapper is one of the most famous pirates in Southeast Asia, but he defected to the Chinese army early. When the French attacked Naha, it was he who sent the news that the head of state was still alive to Ryukyu.
It stabilized the morale of the army and finally lasted until the return of the head of state!
Afterwards, Golden Eyed Snapper stayed in the Chinese Navy and was recruited as a member of the Navy. Although he had merit, he had to study hard if he wanted to integrate into the new navy!
Goldeneye Snapper and his brothers have no problem fighting hard, but when it comes to studying and studying, they are all dumbfounded!
Several years have passed, and Goldeneye Snapper is still just a colonel. This is a reward based on his merit!
It can be imagined how strict the rules of the Chinese Navy are. Even if you have made great achievements and your professional skills are not up to standard, you can never expect to be reused!
Goldeneye Snapper will be completely marginalized in the later stage, and the Chinese will not treat you badly. The military pay is high, but they will not give you missions!
A group of brothers can only take on those offshore defense tasks, and even the hard work of logistics transportation!
But no one dared to complain to the head of state. They had seen with their own eyes how difficult the Chinese naval training was, and they also knew how excellent the college officers were!
Calculus, trigonometric functions, calculating routes and positions on complex charts, calculating curved ballistic data over and over... Even foreign languages, these naval officers must master at least two of them.
English is compulsory, and the other items are optional. If this kind of elite were sent to the Qing Dynasty, they could be ministers of the Ministry of Works, and the country would have to give them first- and second-grade titles!
But among the Chinese, these are the basic requirements for becoming a naval officer!
Golden Eyed Snapper was convinced. He was even prepared to serve as a servant of the Chinese Navy for the rest of his life. Anyway, he had no worries about food and drink, and his social status was high. It was better than being a pirate!
But unexpectedly, when he was desperate, the CIA came to his door. Bureau Wang and Xiang Ying met him together and gave him a top-secret mission!
Let Goldeneye Snapper choose a few old sailboats to transform into pirate ships, lurk in the Indian Ocean for training, and wait for orders!
Golden Eyed Snapper was very excited now. He knew that there was a top-secret mission to be completed. This mission could be exchanged for military merit. What he lacked was military merit!
He immediately summoned his old subordinates, and then seconded a group of cadets from the navy recruit camp, and took them directly to the Indian Ocean in the name of internship!
They have been training for three months since the summer, especially in the Maldives, and they are already familiar with it!
Since they often trade fresh water food with the indigenous people of the Maldives, they are relatively generous in dealing with them, and the size of the pirate ship makes these indigenous people mistakenly think that they are kings from somewhere.
Whenever I see these pirate flags and ships, I throw myself on the ground and kowtow. It’s the same today!
"Brothers! We have been eating military pay from the Chinese in vain for several years. When we encounter a war, we always resort to attack. We have never been the main force!"
"Today God opened his eyes and the CIA rewarded us with a bowl of rice. Do you think we can smash it?"
"No!" The seven pirate ships collectively shouted.
"That's good... come out with the courage we had back then, draw your knives... let's engage in a battle!"
"Kill..." Seven pirate ships rode the wind and waves and headed towards the northwest waters of the Maldives!
"Robbing the Tatar ships...killing the Tatars...leaving no chickens or dogs behind, no one alive..."
Li Hongzhang's guess was not wrong at all. There are many people in this world who want the Great Qing Navy Master to appear, even the Chinese people hope so!
Fu Qing's plan didn't require anyone to worry about it. Naturally, someone would understand and help him get it done!
Goldeneye Snapper's men have completed the pre-war morale boosting. They are not just pirates, but also pirates trained under military management. These people have become killing machines.
In the Indian Ocean, apart from the main fleets of the British and French powers, they are not afraid of any enemies!
At the end of the distant sea, a faint trace of a ship appeared, and the target had already appeared on the chopping board!
"It's almost... it's almost... I've seen it... just as the intelligence said, four sailing paddle-wheel cargo ships, sailing against the wind!"
"Brothers... go ahead..." Goldeneye Snapper's shout aroused an excited response from the brothers.
But at this moment, fate suddenly played a joke, and bursts of thunder suddenly came from the distant sky!
"Hey... thunder ahead? It's not cloudy... Oops! It's broken, someone fired a cannon... Damn it, did someone intercept it?"
