Just when Zhenhaibo Zheng Zhilong was feeling secretly proud of repelling the Hongyi envoy with words, he suddenly received news from Xiamen. Zheng Zhilan, who was responsible for guarding the rear, said that the Hongyi fleet was plundering merchant ships along the coast.
If his brother could not send the main fleet back for reinforcements, he could no longer guarantee that the supplies could reach Penghu safely, let alone be transported directly to Dajuan Island. It could be seen that the situation was already very serious, otherwise Zheng Zhilan would not have asked for help.
Before the arrival of Hongyi's support fleet, there would be no large-scale naval battles on the Dazhan side. Zheng Zhilong immediately asked Zheng Zhifeng's fleet to unanchor and set sail back to Xiamen. Even if Hongyi's fleet could not be captured, he could Escort transport ships.
Zheng Zhilong learned through the prisoners that the Hongyi fleet that escaped from Da Yuan Island was less than twenty ships in size, so their combat power was destined to not be too high. They would not fight against the fleet led by his fourth brother Zheng Zhifeng unless it was absolutely necessary. Decisive battle.
As a senior industry insider, Zheng Zhilong is also very aware of the tactics of this Hongyi fleet. If they cannot defeat Zheng's main fleet, they will choose lone merchant ships to attack. It is difficult for the fourth brother's fleet to capture the enemy fleet on the vast sea. .
According to Zheng Zhilan's report, after the war began, as many as eleven merchant ships and two warships were robbed or sunk by Hongyi. The losses did not seem too great, but the impact was extremely bad. .
Every merchant ship engaged in overseas trade paid an annual fee of three thousand taels of silver to the Zheng family to ensure the safety of maritime navigation. Now, not only did the annual fee have no effect, the ship was also sunk by a Hongyi warship.
For Zheng Zhilong, it is a small thing to pay some money to the maritime merchants, but it is a big thing to damage the dignity and prestige of the Zheng family. This small Hongyi fleet must not be allowed to plunder everywhere in the strait waters. At least it must Just drive him away.
Zheng Zhilong assigned two tasks to his fourth brother Zheng Zhifeng. The first was to ensure the absolute safety of the fleet transporting to the front line, and not to give the Hongyi fleet an opportunity. Secondly, if possible, the Hongyi fleet can be pursued as appropriate.
The wind is blowing from the south. As long as Hongyi finds that the Zheng fleet has signs of attack, its fleet will sail against the wind. When its own sails and warships have no advantage, the speed of warships is generally lower than that of Hongyi warships.
In the words of the prince, the speed of the Ming warships when facing a headwind is half a knot or even one knot slower than the Dutch warships per hour. Even if it is half a knot slower, in the endless sea, unless the opponent hits a rock, you will be too exhausted to catch up. .
The Zheng fleet has an absolute advantage in strength and is not afraid of a decisive battle with the Hongyi fleet. On the contrary, it is very eager to get such an opportunity.
The Hongyi fleet had an absolute advantage in speed. Whether it was downwind or headwind, its speed was higher than that of the Zheng fleet. This was an aspect they were proud of, and they used it very smartly.
This means that as long as it sails against the wind, the Hongyi fleet can easily escape the pursuit of the Zheng fleet, and then turn around after nightfall to "return to its old business" in another place.
"Report to Mr. Colonel, the fleet does not carry much fresh water. It can only last for three days at most!"
"okay, I get it!"
The fleet commander, Colonel Schulsbeck, was currently leading the fleet to sail south of Fujian and east of Guangdong. After five consecutive operations at sea, the morale of the fleet was high, but it had not received enough support. Fresh water supply.
Colonel Baker had already expected this kind of victory after repeated battles, but after winning five out of five battles, messing up Zheng Yiguan's rear, and leaving his fleet unscathed, he couldn't help but feel a little proud.
Baker also had considerations in choosing to "operate" in this sea area. At the very least, he had to avoid annoying storms and not let the fleet be sunk by the storm before it could fight.
It is close to both Xiamen and Penghu, and can threaten the safety of Zheng Yiguan's maritime supply line at any time. It is also convenient for retreating to the west, and is not easily blocked by Zheng Yiguan's main fleet in the strait.
Facts have proved that making such a decision is very wise. The fleet has gained a lot these days and seized many good things, including rhinoceros horns, ivory, deerskin, cardamom, sandalwood, bird's nests, and as many as five thousand taels of silver.
However, the fresh water obtained was quickly used up, and the fresh water carried by the fleet was also rapidly consumed, so it was urgently needed to be replenished, whether by landing on the island or plundering, it must be implemented immediately.
"Tell Major Hendricks that if we can't encounter the enemy's merchant ships again today, we will sail west and land on the island at the right time!"
Colonel Baker divided his "huge" fleet into two, with the main fleet under his personal command and the auxiliary fleet under the command of the deputy commander, Major Thomas Hendricks.
The main fleet includes the battleships "Hector", "Wesp", "Kukko", "Seaburg", "Sam" and "Menji", as well as the armed merchant ship "Odwater" No., "Middlebuch", "Middleburg".
Except for the "Hector", which has a displacement of 600 tons, the remaining five battleships are all 100-ton small boats. This is why Colonel Baker must bring armed merchant ships.
The displacement of the "Oldwater" and the "Middlebuch" reached 400 tons, while the "Middelburg" was as high as 1,000 tons. It was a "returning ship" of 28 caliber.
As the flagship of the fleet, the "Hector" has sixteen 24-pound guns, ten 18-pound guns, and ten 12-pound guns. Its firepower is top-notch in the eastern waters. Zheng Yiguan does not have a warship that can match it. .
It's just that there is only one powerful warship in Baker's fleet, and the rest of the accompanying ships are either slow or have weak firepower.
If he could have twenty warships similar to the "Hector", Colonel Baker would have the confidence to fight Zheng Yiguan to the end, and he would not be targeting merchant ships like now.
The fleet of Deputy Commander Major Thomas Hendricks included the battleships "Bredan", "Welengian" and "Valmond", as well as three armed merchant ships "Erasmus" and "Zeland" Dee' and 'Bucastel'.
The three warships are all 100-ton small ships, but the displacement of the three armed merchant ships has reached more than 200 tons. Without the addition of six armed merchant ships, the combat effectiveness of the entire fleet will be greatly reduced.
According to the prior agreement, Colonel Baker would give half of all captured supplies as a reward to the armed merchant ships that cooperated with him in the battle.
As long as everyone can work together and unite, it can be seen from the previous battles that the success rate of "operations" at sea is very high, and the income gained from this is also extremely considerable.
The strength of the entire fleet is about 1,800 people. If each person is allowed to harvest 100 silver coins, then it would be necessary to plunder supplies worth approximately 200,000 silver coins.
A large merchant ship can carry supplies worth five thousand taels of silver, so the fleet must encounter at least forty merchant ships. In total, only a quarter of the entire work has been completed, and everyone still needs to continue working hard.
"Ming merchant ship discovered on the port side!"
"Hmm! It doesn't look very big! Don't shoot it yet! Go after it and seize it!"
Baker has a strong interest in any merchant ship of the Ming Empire, because it is directly related to the income of himself and his men. All the materials they carry are valuable, and it would be a pity to sink them.
This merchant ship was a Guangzhou ship. Since it was fully loaded and not very fast, its slow speed soon allowed it to be overtaken and surrounded by the Dutch fleet.
The captain knew very well the situation he was facing, so he made no resistance at all and directly ordered the sails to be lowered to surrender. Neither he nor his men wanted to feed the fish here or be killed.
"Report! They're all watermelons!"
"That's great! Transport them all away! Then let them go!"
Eating watermelon on the sea is a pure enjoyment. It is much better than drinking stale fresh water. Colonel Baker was so happy that he directly ordered the prisoners on the ship to be let go.
At this time, even plundering a treasure ship is not as beneficial as a ship of watermelons. If a person is extremely thirsty, he can do anything. Fortunately, he has not reached that point yet.
After hearing that the prize was watermelon, the sailors of the entire fleet cheered involuntarily. For them, watermelon is a veritable luxury product at sea.
Although each person can only eat less than one piece, and can only eat half a watermelon at most, the feeling of mouth being filled with sweet and juicy food is a scene that everyone likes.
Robbing the watermelon ship means that you are very close to the coast of the Ming Empire, because the ships transporting watermelons do not sail far, but today's sea visibility is very good, which is very convenient for early warning.
Fleet Commander Colonel Schulsbeck and Deputy Commander Major Thomas Hendricks were not worried about being attacked by Zheng's fleet. Looting the coastal areas of the Ming Empire in the south wind was very beneficial in itself.
Enemy warships are very slow when facing headwinds, so our fleet can confidently roam the opponent's offshore waters without worrying about the opponent's feelings and reactions.
As a colleague, Baker didn't look down on Jansen at all and was reluctant to sail this time. However, for the sake of his duty as a soldier and the reputation of the Batavia headquarters, Baker still had to do his best to lead this small fleet to harass Zheng Yiguan's rear.
Although there may be storms at sea and heavy rains are common, it is better than being blocked by Zheng Yiguan's pirate army in the Castle of Relanja. At least you can breathe fresh air and bask in the sun at any time.
Since all the army soldiers were left on Taiyuan Island, the people Baker brought out this time were all sailors, which made it inconvenient to carry out landing operations.
The attacks on the coastal defense facilities of the Ming Empire were also relatively limited. At most, naval guns could be used to fire a few symbolic hits on some of the bunkers built on the seaside.
Baker did not want to lose too many men because of the land battle. The landing had only two purposes. One was to obtain daily necessities, and the other was to avoid the storm.
"This is Waiping Island... Yeah! Let's go to the island and wait until evening before leaving!"
For safety reasons, the fleet must stay at sea overnight, otherwise it will be too late to set sail when the Zheng Jun fleet is discovered. After many days of sailing and fighting, Colonel Baker also asked his sailors to take a rest on the shore to restore their strength.
Two ships of cattle and sheep have been captured, which can be unloaded here and turned into delicacies. There are a lot of spices on the ship, which can only be eaten by nobles in Europe.
But for now, everyone in the fleet, down to the most junior sailor responsible for cleaning the decks, can get a piece of roast beef that weighs several pounds and is sprinkled with spices.
"Order to dock!"
"Yes! Full left rudder! Slow down! Approach the shore!"
Battleships rely on the "vertical tiller" to achieve control. The vertical tiller is a long control rod and is controlled by the helmsman. However, the helmsman's working position is below the deck, so the captain will ask his assistant to shout down, so The command can be executed.
Slowing down means retracting the sails on the masts. Before approaching the coastline, the sails on the three masts must be lowered by at least half. Otherwise, the speed cannot be reduced quickly, and the warship will run into the shoals and run aground.
"Pull quickly!"
"Harder!"
A large number of three-hole pulleys are installed on the "Hector" battleship, which can save sailors a lot of effort during operations. However, complex rigging still requires professionals to skillfully operate it. This is a Ming-style hard sail. Incomparable.
Since the friction between the hemp rope and the pulley hole is still very high, coupled with the wind force on the sail, the sailors must use force to pull, and they must pull it in an orderly manner. If something goes wrong, it means that the rigging will be intertwined, and even injured. sailor.
The entire battleship is a huge and complex machine that requires the careful cooperation of everyone to operate normally. After arriving at the designated position, the sailors will push the winch to lower the anchor and fix the warship.
"Send a few small boats to the island to check the situation!"
If the island was suitable for resting and no enemy fleet was found nearby, Colonel Baker decided to let his men rest here for four or five hours and set sail before sunset.
Since it was wartime, rest was also done on a rotating basis, and at least half of the sailors had to be left on duty on the warship to prevent Zheng Yiguan from actually sending a fleet to pursue his side.
Colonel Baker did not go to the island, he was too lazy to bother, and the deputy commander, Major Thomas Hendricks, boarded the "Hector" in a small boat.
"Colonel, I'm worried about whether it's safe to rest here? Will the Ming people on the island secretly tell the nearby Zheng army warships or the Ming army on the shore about the situation here?"
Major Hendricks did not think it was appropriate to go to the island to rest. Although it could replenish some fresh water for the fleet, it would be a great risk.
"According to my estimation, it will take at least four hours for the Zheng Jun warships to catch up with us after receiving the information. We will be safe here in the short term. Once an enemy ship is discovered, we can set sail immediately!"
Colonel Baker will not be too careless. Everything is within his control. As long as the fresh water is replenished and the sailors are fed and drunk, the fleet can set sail at any time.
Eating fresh meat, especially beef and mutton with a lot of seasonings, can greatly replenish physical strength and improve morale. Baker wants his men to maintain this state so that they can fight at sea for a long time.
Berg said that they would hold on to the Castle of Geranze for three months in order to wait until the reinforcements sent by the Batavia headquarters arrived, and then the fleet would have to fight at sea for the same period of time.
Baker decided to go ashore every five to ten days, depending on the situation at the time. Only in this way can the non-combat attrition be greatly reduced, and it is best to get some fruits.
If Zheng Yiguan's fleet is chasing closely, then they will go to Guangguang waters to fight. Otherwise, they can continue to stay in Fukien waters and wait for opportunities to attack the merchant ships of the Ming Empire...
