The weather conditions in Dazhan are changing rapidly, which is completely different from that in the Netherlands. It will be sunny and windy in the morning, then it will be stormy and rainy in the afternoon, and it may return to the original state in the evening, and even a beautiful and dazzling giant rainbow may appear. 【≤八【≤八【≤Read【≤Book,.▽.o√
This is the tropical weather, which is almost the same as that of Batavia in the East Indies. If you don't look carefully, even the blue sea, beach, and coconut trees are exactly the same. Only the buildings in the two places are very different.
But now, especially after the sun rises, everyone on the island has seen the real scene after the enemy fleet's bombardment. The open space outside the castle is full of craters. The shells are simply larger than the open space from the castle to Dayuan Town. There are more watermelons in it.
There are not many buildings in this open land. There are only a gallows, a shop and a blacksmith shop. Many of the remaining places are planted with watermelons to satisfy your cravings. After all, this kind of fruit is not easy to transport over long distances, so it is more convenient to eat it nearby. .
But when everyone planned to return to the town in small groups, they found a group of fat pigs whose pig pens had been damaged by shells. They seemed to be eating the watermelon with relish. This juicy and sweet fruit was very good for them. Appetite, mouth kept humming while eating.
"Catch them! Don't let them get away!"
A company commander who led the team immediately issued a combat order. They were originally going to the town to maintain order, but they encountered a group of "melon thieves" on the way. This group of "melon thieves" were still strategic materials in the eyes of everyone. , this requires action.
There is a lot of dried meat stored in the castle, but it is as hard as firewood. If the moisture is completely lost, one piece of dried meat can be chewed all night, so no one wants to eat that kind of thing when there are live pigs. .
The two dozen big fat pigs in front of them became a very ideal meat dish, especially after the war. The guards and soldiers urgently needed to reward themselves with a delicious meal, and it was perfect to be able to eat freshly killed pork.
"Mr. Company Commander, these are my pigs!"
At this time, a middle-aged man stood out from the crowd, wearing a white bell-sleeved shirt and blue shorts, stockings on his legs, and large leather shoes. He negotiated with the officer righteously. This was a famous meatman in the town. Food businessman Menno Koch.
Next to him was a big man with a brown beard, a stern face, and a body as strong as a bear. He was his wife's brother, Hackenbra Lutz, who was also a professional butcher, and he and his brother-in-law happened to have an upstream and downstream partnership.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Koch, these are already military supplies and have been requisitioned. But you can come back to the castle with us, and after weighing them, reimburse Chief Burg in full. We will not rob the people of their property, but we will." Pay the market price!”
The company commander Manu Huntral who led the team knew each other. Koch was the largest local meat merchant and a stable supplier to the defenders. At this time, there is no need to fall out with each other over a dozen pigs, and the governor's mansion is very rich.
Because of his outstanding performance in repelling the enemy fleet, Chief Berg was very happy and gave everyone three times the usual salary. Therefore, after receiving the order, the officers and soldiers went out to perform their tasks diligently.
Unexpectedly, under such a fierce bombardment, the defenders suffered hundreds of casualties, and the minions suffered even more casualties. However, these fat and big-eared animals were not killed by the shells. What a great fate!
I heard that Koch raised more than 30 pigs. These seem to be more than half of the number in stock. It seems that he can make a lot of money from this. If that doesn't work, he can also raise pigs in an area near the castle. . "Eight"Eight"Read "Book,.2■⊥
Officers and soldiers all like to eat fresh meat. It would be a pity to kill them all. Once the live pigs become dead pigs, they can only be used to make dried meat.
But first, kill a few to satisfy your appetite. Seeing so many moving delicacies, dozens of Huntelaar's men began to drool.
The cheapest local meat is seafood, including fish, shrimp, crab, snails, and shellfish. Ordinary soldiers have limited salaries, but they can also taste the delicious seafood barbecue every now and then.
In particular, Colonel Jansen attached great importance to winning over people's hearts and bought various spices produced in the East Indies from Chief Berg at reasonable prices, so that the officers and soldiers could have dinner together at least once or twice a month.
The garrison soldiers ate a lot of seafood, but what they liked the most was the roasted pork belly with seasonings scattered around it. The feeling of chewing all the time and making your mouth full of greasy food was so satisfying. One person could eat two plates of pork belly.
These big fat pigs are hundreds of plates of pork belly. Of course, they must be captured and brought back to the castle as soon as possible. Ordinary soldiers cannot eat good parts, even pig heads or trotters. At this time, you cannot be picky, otherwise you will not be able to eat them in succession. You can't even eat the pig skin.
"……All right!"
From the current point of view, this can only be done. Although the other party's tone is to discuss, there will be no change in actions. Koch can only reluctantly agree. Anyway, selling these pigs is better than being robbed. It's much better to go.
"Mr. Koch, this is also for your sake. No one knows when the enemy fleet will come again. If your pig is killed by the bomb, I'm afraid it won't be worth so much money!"
Huntelaar felt that the other party should cash out quickly now, otherwise when the live pig turns into a dead pig, flies will be attracted directly in such hot weather, and maggots will appear in a few hours. Who will buy it? Pork with maggots?
Private property is inviolable, even in a state of war. The reason why Prince Maurice's army was able to win many battles and defeat the Spanish Empire troops was because of its strict military discipline and no harm to the people's property, which won the support of the people.
Otherwise, like Wallenstein's army of locusts, leaving no grass behind and treating the miners as food after crossing the border, they will be defeated sooner or later, and this is also the case.
"...What you said makes sense!"
Koch thought that Bolger was a pretty good official. He almost never had to lower the price, and every time he paid in full, which made him very happy. The cooperation between the two parties had never fluctuated due to price issues.
He is also worried that due to the enemy fleet, the live pigs he raises will turn into dead pigs, which will shrink his wealth. If he can sell these pigs as soon as possible, he can sit back and relax.
If possible, just leave some piglets to raise. When the reinforcements from Batavia repel Zheng Yiguan's pirate fleet, you can continue to be a meat supplier on the island.
This business is not possible in the mainland, and the competition is very fierce, but it is easy to make money here. He is the only big pig farmer on the island. Even if the indigenous people can supply wild boars, the taste of the sausages or pork belly produced cannot be compared with that of domestic pigs.
As for whether his brother-in-law Hacken Brauz lost his job because of this, Koch would not worry at all. As a professional butcher, even if all the domestic pigs are killed, there are still wild boars that can be processed. If there are no wild boars, there are still other ingredients.
Whales also have a lot of oil. From time to time, Yumin catches small whales and sells them in the town. These things are larger than pigs, and the meat is rich and oily. Koch thinks that even if he sells out all his pigs, he can still engage in this business. You can save money on business.
He hasn't made fish sausages yet. Maybe he can take this opportunity to study it, and he can also buy wild boars from the indigenous people on the shore. This stuff doesn't taste very good when cooked, but after being pickled and made into sausages, the taste is no better than that of domestic pigs. Too bad.
In short, Koch believes that his business will only change due to the current situation and will not go bankrupt at all. The same is true for Blaruz's business. It is just that the objects of sale and slaughter have changed from pigs to other animals. .
The pigs in front of them must be captured as soon as possible. If they are not captured, all the watermelons in the field will be eaten by them and used as food. This makes everyone feel distressed, so a group of people snatch the watermelons from the pigs first... …
Many people have experienced watermelon overnight. The watermelon is right in front of them, and of course they will not miss it easily. The defenders were busy catching pigs, but the Min soldiers did not dare to go up and plunder, so they could only start grabbing watermelons. However, there were many people and few watermelons, and the scene quickly turned into a melee.
Huntelaar didn't want to care about these trivial matters at all. Pigs were much more important than people at the moment. With fresh pork, the defenders have combat effectiveness, and everything else is a trivial matter. As for those Min soldiers, in his eyes they were just waste that wasted food.
The main force of the Min soldiers are sailors and city miners, both of whom are not highly educated and can barely understand a series of letters. Most of them are illiterate. If it were not for the current enemy, and the wartime regulations announced by Chief Berger and Colonel Janssen successively.
They would all attack their own people, and women and children were no exception. What they did was not much better than the burning, killing, and looting that the Spanish army had done in the Netherlands.
They are now having internal strife. Huntelaar feels that there is no surprise. There is no unity among these people at all. They can get together entirely because the enemy fleet bombarded them with nowhere to go.
It is a complete joke to expect them to guard the high officials. The combat effectiveness of these people is far inferior to that of the pirates. Two hundred defenders can take care of a thousand minions. They are left alive to be used as cannon fodder to reduce the casualties of the defenders. .
Fighting over watermelons may sound unbelievable, but it is what is happening. When people are extremely thirsty, they will do anything to get water.
In Huntelaar's eyes, pigs are more important than minions!
In Minbing's eyes, watermelon is more important than the other party!
After being bombarded and frightened by Zheng Yiguan's pirate fleet for half a night, now that the sun has risen, it is understandable to want to eat a watermelon to quench your thirst. The problem is that everyone thinks so and is unwilling to give in.
This is the tropics, and it's the height of summer. When I wake up in the morning, I'm sweating and have no appetite at all. Eating watermelon has become the biggest enjoyment. If a group of strong men want to enjoy it, it will become a disaster...
The scene was extremely fierce. Hundreds of people first fought with cold weapons, then struggled with each other, rolling around on the ground, accompanied by yelling and the grunting of the fat pigs being driven away. It was simply a farce.
"Bah! Bah! Bah!"
With three gunshots, the lively situation at the scene suddenly cooled down, and the deputy regimental commander, Major Brian Barber, came with two companies to maintain order.
Berg and Jansen could see clearly with telescopes in the castle. They were really speechless. If they had not died under the fire of the enemy fleet, but died in the hands of their own people, they would have to use the gallows. Give them finishing touches.
Major Babel, wearing a hat with a big white feather, stood on a mound and shouted in front of everyone: "Stop it! All pigs and watermelons will be sent to the castle. Your task is to go to the town." Search for survivors and remaining supplies! Anyone who dares to disobey will be regarded as a hostile act and will be arrested! Remember, a wartime state has been implemented. Before Chief Boerger announces the lifting of the order, anyone who gathers to cause trouble or murder Both the defenders and Ju Min will be severely punished!"
These guys really have nothing to do. If they really have the courage to fight for the watermelon, they can send these people to fight when the enemy comes again and lands on the island. Who dares to retreat then? He was shot dead on the spot.
Pigs are good things, and watermelons are also good things, but you are not worthy of enjoying them. If it weren't for the heroic fighting of the garrison officers and soldiers last night, you guys wouldn't even have a final foothold, and you would all be blasted to death by flying shells outside.
"Get out of here immediately! If you insist on staying here, you will be arrested! The injured come to me and get bandaged!"
Disobeying orders, being uneducated, and selfish, they are just a bunch of lazy people. Only by controlling them at all times can they understand their status and situation.
Major Babel would not look down upon these people and directly ordered his men to raise their guns. Anyone who dared to resist would be shot dead on the spot.
This made the Min soldiers who were still fighting for the watermelon realize that the major and his fire soldiers in front of them were not acting, but were serious.
If they insist on going their own way, they might be shot on the spot. No one is stupid enough to challenge Major Babel's bottom line. Wartime control measures are now being implemented in the entire Dajuan area.
Anyone who stirs up trouble will be arrested by the defenders. If he refuses to be arrested, he will be shot to death. So if you don't want to die, you'd better be obedient.
Wanting to use the weapons in hand to fight against the defenders is nothing more than a daydream. If you really have that ability, you won't be bombarded when the enemy fleet bombards Daguang Island.
"...They are not as good as the local regular soldiers!"
Bolger, who frowned slightly, stood by the wall of the inner city of the castle, watching what was happening in the open space from a distance with a telescope, and then commented with disdain.
In the mainland, a thousand-man Mining Soldiers can even rival two to three hundred regular Spanish troops in defense, but here, organizing a Mining Soldiers of the same size is an armed thug gang...
They looked more like the locust army that once served for Wallenstein. They had nothing to do with the name of the Dutch soldiers who defended the homeland. It was embarrassing to say it.
"Untrained is what it is!"
Colonel Jansen also had great contempt for the group of trash below. Their behavior could be compared to those fat pigs eating watermelons.
He needed soldiers to guard the castle of Geranze, not hundreds of bandits who would steal supplies if they didn't obey orders. If that's the case, it's better to just let them fend for themselves outside.
If these people really help themselves at a critical moment, it will indeed be a thorny problem. For example, if they are sent to support the Utrecht Fort on the top of the mountain, few of them will act under the rain of bullets fired by enemy naval guns.
In just two hours, Zheng Jun's fleet caused so much trouble to the defenders. So what will happen in twenty hours, or even three days, one week, one month, or three months?
Colonel Jansen looked thoughtfully at the craters scattered around the castle. 11
